By Zephyria “Looking at the charges he was indicted on, he deserved to die.”
“Whether someone lives or dies, it’s none of my business.”
CEO Lim waved his hand dismissively, put down his coffee, and leaned his heavy body forward. Then, in a husky voice, he subtly asked Yong-jae.
“Speaking of bad guys, what about Chairman Jo? Is there still no movement from his side?”
“…Well, yes.”
“How can someone not show their face for months when the child they abandoned is lying there like that? Is that even human?”
Even in a lowered voice so as not to be overheard, CEO Lim scowled and emphasized his words.
“Technically, it’s Chairman Jo’s fault that things got this bad! If he hadn’t just thrown the kid away like used chewing gum! Would that Hyean bastard have even had such a terrible thought as jumping off a bridge?!”
The honorific ‘President Jo’ was instantly downgraded to ‘Chairman Jo’. The more he spoke, the more indignant he became, puffing out his chest and heating up.
“Even if it was just a sponsor relationship, people develop feelings even when living under the same roof. I told him so many times not to associate with chaebols and the like, but he…”
What was the point of talking, he thought, trailing off. He then pulled the straw out of his cup and gulped down the coffee as if it were bitter liquor.
While Yong-jae cautiously observed, CEO Lim’s phone rang loudly from his jacket pocket. It was a hit song from ‘Titan,’ the group Yoon Hye-an once belonged to, now disbanded.
“What is it, an unknown number?”
Muttering with an annoyed expression, CEO Lim covered his left ear with his hand to block out the loud music and answered the call.
“Yes, hello. Ah, it’s the hospital. Where else would it be.”
Yong-jae, who had taken out his phone to search for nearby real estate agents who might handle Yoon Hye-an’s officetel, looked at CEO Lim at the mention of the hospital.
“Yes, it’s me. I am Lim Sang-jin, the guardian of patient Yoon Hye-an. But what is it… Yes, yes. Ah… Yes??”
CEO Lim’s expression grew increasingly serious, and he lowered his head. Then, he suddenly lifted his head high. His bloodshot, yellowish-white sclera gleamed, and the coffee in the cup he slammed onto the material boxes overflowed, staining his suit sleeve and the back of his hand. Yet, he didn’t even seem to notice.
“No, that’s… How could this happen… When… Ah, yes… I understand for now. We’re in Gangnam, so it might take time… but I’ll leave immediately. Yes.”
CEO Lim, who had jumped up as if scalded by hot water, hung up the phone and then stood frozen, as if possessed by a ghost. Yong-jae worried that something bad might have happened to the patient at the hospital. He bent his large frame and cautiously observed CEO Lim.
“Is it the hospital?”
“Huh? Uh… Yes, the hospital.”
“What did they say?”
CEO Lim turned to Yong-jae, his neck stiff as if his limbs had frozen, moving only his eyes.
“Hyean… That bastard, he woke up.”
■
The first thing he saw was light.
Not an object, not a person, just light.
Abundant light poured in through the large window that stretched alongside the bed.
It was so white, yet transparent, and generously abundant.
For a moment, he felt as peaceful as if he were in heaven.
Choi Hong-seo realized he was smiling with his actual lips.
He rolled his eyes and looked down. The volume of his thin body lying under the covers came into view. He had enough consciousness to infer where he was. Embroidered in blue letters on the blanket, which covered him neatly up to his shoulders, was the name of a renowned university hospital.
Is this a dream? Is this another one of the scenes that changed in an instant?
Or was the memory of… jumping from the 32nd floor actually a dream?
No, that wasn’t it.
With a jolt, all his organs shifted upwards, and he vividly remembered the sensation of his heart contracting. The moment of impact, and then the experience of rupturing and disappearing before he could even feel pain. No, could that be called an experience?
A shiver ran down his spine, and Choi Hong-seo’s body began to tremble under the covers.
No miracle could save someone who jumped from the 32nd floor. That was never a dream. There was no possibility of survival. Then… is this moment also an extension of a dream? Am I drifting somewhere between this world and the next? But I clearly have a body now?
“……”
At that moment, the hospital room door opened.
“You know everyone is working without meals, so do you think it’s okay to go eat alone just because you have free time?”
Someone’s grumbling voice entered the room. It was a nurse who had come to check the patient’s vital signs, a routine procedure several times a day.
She approached the bed directly and took Choi Hong-seo’s wrist to check the name on the patient bracelet against the list. Then, she wiped the ear thermometer with an alcohol swab and reached for the patient’s ear to measure his temperature. This was a procedure performed identically many times a day for months on this patient, so all her movements were almost mechanically smooth.
“Can you swallow food like that? Well, you probably can. If you were someone who couldn’t swallow food, then from the start… Ugh, Ugh!”
This was a patient who was supposed to keep his eyes closed peacefully, as he had for months. The nurse, making eye contact with such a patient, recoiled and let out a scream. She had seen him die, had seen the corpse with her own eyes and buried it. She looked as if she had witnessed a corpse coming back to life.
The nurse, who had instinctively clutched her left chest, quickly regained her composure. Then, she carefully bent down towards Choi Hong-seo.
“Patient, can you speak?”
Choi Hong-seo nodded slightly. The fact that he could communicate with someone sent a thrill through him.
“Please answer without overexerting yourself. When did you wake up?”
“About… five minutes ago.”
His voice was dry and raspy, but it wasn’t painful to speak.
The nurse, completely out of her shock, checked the patient’s condition with quick and precise movements.
“Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”
Choi Hong-seo shook his head. The nurse reassured him with a bright smile.
“Temperature, pulse, respiration, blood pressure… everything is normal. You’ve really done well. I’ll bring the doctor in charge soon.”
As she walked quickly towards the door, she turned back to the patient.
“Welcome back, Hyean-ssi.”
The nurse’s last words created a gap in Choi Hong-seo’s heart. Like a twisted door and frame that don’t quite fit, like a key and keyhole that don’t match. Something was out of alignment. After she left, Choi Hong-seo felt trapped in that misaligned gap.
And that gap widened further when the attending physician arrived.
The doctor, who came with only one nurse for the patient’s stability, performed basic tests that could be done in the room.
The doctor explained that the condition of patients waking up from a coma varies greatly, from those who can only blink their eyes to those who can immediately resume daily life as if they just woke up from a nap. Choi Hong-seo was in relatively good condition. Although not completely normal, it wasn’t to the extent of having to move his toes one by one like Uma Thurman in the movie
“Excellent. Hyean-ssi, your breathing has been comfortable, and the physical damage from the accident has almost healed. However, it’s best to rest today. We’ll start rehabilitation little by little from tomorrow. Absolutely do not try to move excessively. Understand?”
Although everyone was maintaining a calm demeanor for the patient’s stability, both the doctor and the nurse seemed to be suppressing their excitement. Looking around at them, filled with the joy and emotion of witnessing a miracle, Choi Hong-seo was only confused.
He fell from the 32nd floor.
There was no way he could have survived, and even if he had, there was no way he’d be this fine. Yet, he wasn’t spiritually existing like he was when looking at Earth from space. He was a tangible reality, with blood flowing and flesh to be touched.
Even as he sat, stood, and walked as they instructed, Choi Hong-seo could not accept that reality.
“You can start eating slowly from tomorrow as well, and today, just drink a little water at the scheduled times. We’ve contacted your guardian, so they’ll be here soon to see Hyean-ssi.”
“Doctor.”
“Yes.”
The attending physician’s expression as he looked down at Choi Hong-seo, who was lying back in bed, was gentle.
“My name is…”
“……”
A shadow momentarily crossed the hopeful faces of the two. The doctor, trying to hide his agitation, leaned calmly towards the patient.
“You can’t remember your name?”