The doctor entwined his fingers together, staring hard at his laptop screen. His face scrunched up in concentration as a neat, short-haired nurse brought him his tea.

“Here you go.” She said and Dr. Kwon replied,

“Thank you.” He noticed something brownish (like a huge speck of dust) on the nurse’s usually white skirt.

“Ah, Subin-sshi. Sorry.” He told, stopping the nurse to stop in her tracks.

“What?” She questioned.

“Minhee… She did that again.” He informed as the nurse pull her skirt around and the back of it came into view.

“Oh! Which chair was it this time?” She asked while dusting the stain veraciously off her used-to-be clean skirt.

Dr. Kwon smiled and looked at the ceiling. Then he sighed.

“She probably wanted to get me instead.”

He looked at the other.

“I’m the bad guy, you see.”

Subin just frowned at her boss’s daughter’s behavior. Her eyes travelled around and landed on the image on an x-ray Dr. Kwon’s computer screen.

 “Are those Takuma’s?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“Minhee’s right. A useless doctor is like a bad guy.  I’m worried about my daughter.”  He paused.

“She just lost her mother, and now maybe she will lose her friend.” He continued, after a sigh.

The man looked at the nurse, “Should I stop bringing her here?”

“I don’t know. But you do know, they’re not just friends, right?”

“First love, huh?”

*****

It was a clear day. The sky was blue, birds chirping in their nests and a little cute girl was squatting in the middle of an open field. The girl looked around the ground, searching for something and then she would pick up a leaf and throw it back again. She kept repeating the process until,

“Minhee-ah!”

The blue shirted girl turned to look at the direction of the voice. She knew it too well whose voice it belonged to. When she turned, a boy with a cute smile, in hospital clothes was heading towards her.

“Baekhyun-oppa… Are you better now?”

“Mm! As long as I don’t run. What are you doing?”

“Can’t you tell? If I make a wish on a four-leaved clover, then it will come true.”

The boy stood there with a blank expression.

“I’ve never heard of that before.” He told honestly.

“Well, I have…”

Baekhyun then squatted down and helped the other search.

“When you find one, what will you wish for?” he asked.

“I don’t know yet.”

“Then why are you looking for it?”

“You talk too much.” And with that the innocent boy blinked and shut up.

“I was bored because you couldn’t play…” she mumbled.

“Hey, if I could find a four-leaved clover, I can make a wish too?”

“Mm… What would you wish for?” She asked, eyes not leaving the green bushes.

“To become an astronaut when I grow up.”

“Astronaut?”

“Nae. Then, Minnie, let’s get married.”

Minhee stopped searching and stared at the other’s eyes. His eyes were sparkling with innocence and happiness as his lips formed the cutest smile.

“That’s my dream.” He stated bluntly.

“To become an astronaut and to marry you. Then both work and home would be fun.” He told with a chuckle.

“We could both always be happy~” he said again, flashing his teeth as he smiled.

Minhee just froze on the spot, biting her lips, looking at Beakhyun up and down. Her expression looked painful and sad but the boy was far too oblivious to notice that.

“Ah! Minhee! I found one!” he shouted in joy and pointed at a lonely four-leaved clover.

Immediately, Minhee pushed the boy making him stumble back so that she has room and a full view of the said clover. She kneeled down, putting her hands on the ground.

“Please! God of the four-leaved clover! Please save Byun Baekhyun! Don’t kill Byun Baekhyun!”

Baekhyun was still in the position where Minhee had pushed him, wide-eyed. He could see tears seeping out from her pretty eyes and her voice got higher.

“Please let us be together! Please cure his disease! Please! Please!!!” Her voice was straining by now, as she screamed as loud as she could. Her eyes were red and tears were rolling down her smooth cheek. She paused, sobbed, to take in air before she would scream the word ‘please’ over and over again at the leave.

Baekhyun was shocked. He never saw this side of Minhee before.

“Minnie-ah…”

He got up and crawled to the girl who was crying ever so loudly by now. He grabbed hold of her shoulders and kissed her on the lips, making the other shut up immediately.

At that time, I didn’t really understand what death really mean.

*****

“Minhee!” Dr. Kwon called for his daughter as he placed a plate of a perfect American breakfast on the table. He poured fresh orange juice into his child’s cup before calling her again.

“Minhee-ah!”

He decided to go check up on her. The man went upstairs and knocked his daughter’s room’s door before entering.

“Minhee, are you up yet?”

The doctor was shocked to see his daughter dressed up cutely in a long, white sparkly cloth. The fabric was spun around her body neatly. It was fitting at the top and flaring around the bottom. The girl’s hair was tied up in a messy bun with a white headband and cloth hanging from it. She was holding a teddy bear which was dressed up similarly to her too.

So I…

“I made a wedding gown!” She happily told her father, bouncing up and down on her pink mattress.

 …promised you an empty future.

Dr. Kwon rubbed his eyes, not believing what he just saw. His mouth was wide agape when he saw his eight-year-old daughter wearing a ‘wedding gown’. His eyes squinted, and then he went close to her curtains hung on the window, next to Minhee’s bed.

“Oh, curtains…” he muttered, figuring out where she got the cloth from.

“Mianhe, I couldn’t help it. Baekhyun proposed to me!” she told her father with giggles filling the air.

Such a thoughtless promise.

*****

Baekhyun was just sitting on a bench outside the hospital. It was a nice day outside and he felt cramped and lonely inside his ward, so why not? As he was just looking up at the beautiful sky, a soccer ball rolled towards his feet. He looked at the ball and soon, a boy, about his age, asked him to pass them the ball. Baekhyun picked up the ball and smiled, heading towards the group of kids.

*****

Footsteps echoed down the hallway accompanied by the sound of wheels rolling against the cold floor of the hospital.

“Baekhyun! We’re almost there!”

They ran full speed towards the specialized room. Dr. Kwon was leisurely walking when he noticed his patient on the bed.

“Hang in there!”

“What the heck happened!?” the man asked as he helped the nurses rush Baekhyun’s bed.

“He played soccer.” One of the nurses replied.

“What?! He knew it was forbidden, right?!”

The boy’s eyes were shut tightly and his face was strapped with a device to help his weak lungs with his breathing. Once they reached a certain room, they pushed Baekhyun’s bed in there, immediately connecting the dying boy with wires and machines.

“Turn on the monitor.”

Minhee’s father took a pair of scissor and didn’t hesitate to cut Baekhyun’s shirt into two, showing his bare chest. Once again, the professionals connected all sorts of devices on the poor boy. The monitor of the machine let out loud beeping sounds, indicating that the patient was in critical mode.

“Baekhyun! Baekhyun, can you hear me?” the doctor tried asking but received no reply.

I made you a promise that I couldn’t keep.

The screen went red. The boy’s breathing went faster, his pulse higher causing his chest to rise and deflate in an abnormal pace. His forehead and black hair were drenched in sweat as he panted.

Let’s get married when we grow up.

Comments are highly appreciated ^^

-dreateamace