“I told you man, I don’t have a ing plan. No ing plan! Okay!?” Jaejoong groaned and grasped his hair. Seung Hyun has been bothering him about what he plans to do with Jiyeon.

Seung Hyun raised his eyebrows. He was enjoying this desperate love sick version of Jaejoong. He never thought this day would come. He was chuckling.

“And a few months back you were bashing me because you said ‘I got it bad’… tsk… tsk… tsk…” Seung Hyun murmured in amusement.

“This is not freakin funny okay. Get off my case! Go and worry about how you’re going to propose to your girlfriend.” Jaejoong grumbled.

“Speaking of which, where the hell is your girlfriend? She’s already ten minutes late.” Jaejoong asked, checking his watch.

“She said she’ll drop by at the hospital to pick up Jiyeon.” Seung Hyun answered.

“Oh here she is…” Seung Hyun immediately stood up and waited for Chaerin to come to him for a quick kiss. Jaejoong stretched his neck to look for Jiyeon but she wasn’t there.

“Jiyeon unnie is not coming. It’s this time of the year that she can’t really be bothered.” Chaerin told Jaejoong, immediately knowing who he was looking for.

“What do you mean it’s this time of the year?” Jaejoong asked suddenly curious. Chaerin sighed and touched Seung Hyun’s cheek giving him a peck on the cheek.

“Ever since I’ve known her… this time of the year… she doesn’t go home for four days… all she does is be at the hospital and operate. She goes home drunk, she doesn’t talk unless she really needs to…” Chaerin’s face showed that she was very concerned about her friend.

“She doesn’t really talk about it. After that she just returns back to her usual self.” Chaerin sighed heavily.

Jaejoong left Chaerin and Seung Hyun after their dinner. He went straight to Tequila Joe’s for a drink. By himself. He wanted to think.

This, I’m telling you is quite surprising if you’ve known Jaejoong well enough. Whenever he goes out, he goes out on a date. He picks up his next target while he’s dating a current one. But tonight, he’s going solo.

He ordered a glass of red wine from Jaebum. He casually wiped the wine glass clean and swirled it in his hand, smelling the aroma and then took in its essence. Jaebum gave him a funny look.

“No date today? No ladies to break up with? The end of the world must be near.” Jaebum joked. Jaejoong just sighed and looked around the bar.

“Can you blame me? There’s none much to see around here.” He scanned the crowd and felt like everyone, even the beautiful ladies that have been eyeing him, faded into the background.

“That’s because who you’re looking for isn’t here. She’s at the hospital across the street slicing up hearts.” Jaebum gave him a knowing look.

“Do you always get into your customer’s business?” Jaejoong gave him an irritated look and took another sip off his wine. Jaebum chuckled and slid a beer unto another customer.

“Not really. Just to the ones that matter to me. Jiyeon’s got my back. You break her heart, I break your neck. You make her cry, I’ll make sure you won’t get to see another day alive.” Jaebum gave him a serious warning look. He looked like he meant every word he said and he wouldn’t hesitate to keep his promise in case Jaejoong did a wrong move.

“For someone who claims not to have any friends, she’s got two paranoid ones getting on my business.” Jaejoong muttered and asked for another glass of wine.

“Look, I don’t owe you any explanation. But just so we’re clear, I assure you, you won’t be breaking my neck and you won’t kill me… because I won’t do anything to hurt her.” Jaejoong finally answered. Jaebum looked at him as if he wasn’t convinced. But after a few seconds of giving him a death glare, Jaebum nodded.

Jaejoong emptied his glass and Jaebum gave him the bottle of wine so he’d pour it himself.

“It’s on the house.” Jaebum uttered.

“She operated on my little sister’s heart three years ago. Every doctor we went to turned us down. She’s the only surgeon brave enough to operate on my sister. I owe her a lot.” Jaebum sighed, he looked at his watch.

“I doubt it if you’d get her out of that hospital though. Today is that time of the year… she takes on a four-straight-day duty. Doesn’t talk to anyone… just her patients… and on the fourth day, she comes in when my bar is about to close and just plays one song on that jukebox over and over again. Elton John I think… Can you feel the love tonight…”

“She just drinks her heart out and listens to that song… I usually just send her home and make sure she’s okay. I guess I won’t have to worry sending her home now…” Jaebum pats Jaejoong’s shoulder and leaves him to attend to a customer.

That song… he heard that song before… Jaejoong stood up and rushed out of Tequila Joe’s and headed over to the hospital.

*****

“Sorry, Mr. Kim, Doctor Im doesn’t really want any visitors. She’s still in surgery. After this, she has consults… after that she has to do her rounds… and then she’s booked for two more surgeries… there’s really not much I can do…” The nurse smiled sheepishly at Jaejoong.

“How about you do me this one favor… please?” Jaejoong gave his most charming smile at the nurse and whispered into her ear about his plan in order to get Jiyeon out of the hospital.

In the mean time, Jiyeon finished her surgery about an hour after Jaejoong came in to the hospital. Her body is tired but she’s not planning on stopping anytime soon. She has to keep herself preoccupied… because if she doesn’t… she’ll go back to that dark and solitary place in her heart again… and she doesn’t want to go back… not anymore…

She went straight towards the nurse’s station after donning her coat. She looked at the nurse and the latter reluctantly gave her the charts for her consults. She got around fifteen patients waiting for a consult.

Feelings… emotions… they’re overrated…

That’s what Jiyeon always tells herself.

Feelings mak