“Everybody’s got a life to live… As well as I am. But, I couldn’t find the right reason to live it.”

A young man stopped his steps at the hospital hallway to fix his black Converse tie. Another young man and a doctor were out from one of the room, and passed him. They stopped not too far from him, and discussed about something. He was accidentally overheard them.

            “I don’t care about anything else, but, please do not release her life supporting equipment.” That young man said.

              “It’s almost three weeks after the accident. You know there might be no chance for her to get up.” Said the doctor.

                 He leaned his head to the wall, he sighed, “Yes.”

                The young man with the black sneakers continued his walk, and passed the room were the two people he overheard were getting out from. He peeked inside through the small window on the door. He saw a girl, with eyes closed, was on the bed with some complicated devices around her. Somehow, he felt so sympathetically at the girl. He, later, hoped someday he could meet her after she opened her eyes.

Jaerin was in a state of coma for almost three weeks. It was because the severe head injury that caused by the accident. The team doctor was already made a decision to remove all the supporting equipment, after the twentieth day of the coma. They did all they could do to save her, but all the hope was already gone. When that time came, Mr. Jung just kept praying to God, hoping the girl who he considered as his own daughter, to survived from that horrible condition. Only one person that insisted the hospital to kept installing the life supporting equipment for her. It was Daehyun, who left all his college matters to come home, and stay at the hospital since the day the accident happened.

           The doctors were amazed when they did an examination after she awakened. They didn’t find any damage on her brain, like what they’ve found when she was in the coma. All of it was disappeared like a miracle. She just has to do some therapy to recover a couple fractures of her legs. She had to use a wheelchair for a while, before walking normally on her own feet like she used to do before the accident.

            The hardest part remained on Mr. Jung and Daehyun. They should tell her that she had lost her husband in the accident. Bang Yongguk’s body was found by the rescue team above of his wife’s body, shielding her from almost the whole broken parts from the car crash, lifeless. They did tell her right after she finished the examination, because she asked them about her husband. The surprising part was, she didn’t cry at all. She just kept being silent, and stared outside the ward window. No one knew what the exact reason that made her like that. But, she knew why. It was because death always cruelly took all the people she loved.

In that wide, similar savanna, Jaerin was keep on running and running. She was pursuing something, that she didn’t know what, actually. But, then, she captured that broad shoulder, from the back image of a man she really loved. She put out all her energy to chase that figure. Until it was just a couple inches, she reached out one of her hands to his shoulder. But, it couldn’t be reach, as if she was trying to catch the air. She, then, kept trying and trying. It still can’t be done.

              She fell down on her knees, before she started to weep. She was mad at herself, why she couldn’t reach him. Just like the last time, later, someone stood in front of her, covering from the bright light of the sun.

                Yongguk bent his body to approach her, “Don’t cry.” He said.

                She looked up. “Why don’t you just take me along? I want to be with you.”

                He smiled, and shook his head, before he was gone.

                “Please… I want to be with you… Take me with you!”

               She couldn’t hold back her tears for any longer, it fell down a lot more, and more. Her heart ached, her head was so hurt, it was a very terrifying feels.

            Jaerin woke up on her hospital bed. Her face was full of tears. She could feel her heart was aching, although, what just happened was a dream. It was the third night after she awakened from the coma, also, the third night she had the exact same dream.

In that unpleasantly cold morning, Jaerin felt like she needed to get some fresh air. Mr. Jung hasn’t arrived at the hospital to visit her. So did his son, Daehyun, whom never visited her again after the uncomfortable moment when she woke up. Once she put on her sweater and jacket, Jaerin asked the nurse to bring her with the wheelchair to the outdoor garden on the rooftop. She was alone there, after the nurse left, just before she saw a young man came. He sat on the chair, just a few steps away from her.

             The young man wore black jacket over a white t-shirt, and black trousers, with a pair of black Converse. He brought a plastic bag, that one from the convenience store, and put it on the seat next to him. Later, he took a light-colored pack from inside the bag. He opened it, it was a popsicle. From the yellow-ish color, seemed it was lemon flavored. The young man realized that he wasn’t alone. He captured Jaerin on his eyes and threw a grin for her. She didn’t reply it. Not because she didn’t want to, she just hasn’t been able to smile.

           Another two days passed with still the same dream, it was after lunch before the two-full-hours of therapy, Jaerin wanted to go again to the rooftop. She kind of enjoyed the silence there. Before going back to the coffee shop, Mr. Jung brought Jaerin to the place she wanted to go. She wasn’t alone that time, that place was filled with some bored hospital patients. She didn’t feel like being there for long time. When a nurse was about to bring her back to her room, she saw a familiar figure, asleep on a chair near the bushes. The young man from two days earlier. That time he was using a black jumper, with washed-up jeans, and same pair of shoes. She wondered why she kept seeing that young man in that place.

              The next day, to avoid the jam-packed time of people, Jaerin went again to the rooftop after breakfast. She told the nurse to pick her up around thirty minutes later, that place was empty at the moment. She inhaled some fresh air, which made her feel so good. Just one thing that was missing, she couldn’t stroll on that place. That was why she just appreciated the scenery on the wheelchair. The height up there was high enough to reduce the noises that could be heard from her room. She hated it, especially, some huge honk from the vehicles on the road. It brings back some bad memories. On the contrary, she felt very comfortable in the rooftop. She didn’t know how long exactly she spent during that pleasurable peacetime.

                “Isn’t that feels nice?”

               A raspy voice from behind startled her. She turned her head, and saw the young man she met from the days before was standing there. He was still wearing some black apparel. She didn’t know what to do. The young man, then, stood in front of her. He moved toward her. She realized that his face was an attractive view to look at. She was kind of uneasy by it.

                He leaned his face close to her, “You’re not fond of talking to stranger, huh?” He said.

                She didn’t answer him.

                “Can you speak?” He asked.

                “Yes.” She answered directly.

                He didn’t move his face away from her. His sharp eyes kept marking her deep eyes. Then, there was a sound from his pocket. It was some kind of alarm from his phone. He turned it off, before he observed her again.

                “I gotta go. See you next time.”

                She didn’t know why he said that before he left.

              Later in the evening, Jaerin did a prayer before she fell asleep. She didn’t want it to be her seventh night having that same horrible dream. The universe was kind of her side on her sleep. She was still in that wide savanna. Running out almost her entire breath, pursuing something that she couldn’t reach. When her knees fell down to the grass, someone walked to her. That person’s feet were the first thing that caught on her eyes, it was the familiar pair of black Converse. That someone kneeled down and offered her his hand. She recognized that face, he was the young man she had met for a few times in the rooftop.

             Based on what the young man said on the previous day, Jaerin was back to the rooftop the next morning. She wondered herself why she searched for him and why she dreamt about that unknown person the other night before. She was there for almost an hour, but there was no sign of his presence at all. At last, the nurse had already come to pick her back to her room.

Another week Jaerin had passed in the hospital. It was a week without the mysterious young man appearance. She spent a few days earlier in the rooftop, but, he never showed up. When she wasn’t thinking about him anymore, that day, he was there. In his another black jumper, it was like he waited for her. He approached her right away, after she was left by the nurse.

                “Here we meet again.” He said.

                “Oh… It’s you.” Jaerin unconsciously said that.

                He raised an eyebrow, “Are you looking for me?”

                She shook her head. “No. It’s just…”

                He threw a teasing smirk at her, making her a bit uncomfortable.

                “I always see you, mostly, when I come up here.”

                “Really?

                She just nodded. Then, none of them continued the talk.

                “Do you want to walk?”

                She didn’t know how to answer his question. “Um…”

                “It’s a very nice place to walk, come on…”

              He offered her his hands. She, later, gave hers. According to her doctor, Jaerin was already able to walk with the crutch, but, not in too far distance yet. That was why, she still used the wheelchair when she went to the rooftop that day.

                “You’re doing good.” He said.

           That was the first time Jaerin smiled after the incident. She felt so happy to walk on her own feet. Although, still with another person assistance, but, it just made her day. She felt so excited, she quickened her steps. She got wobbly, but, she got the young man that keep her steps steady.

                “Jaerin-ah…”

               Someone called her name. It was Daehyun on his first visit after she awakened from the coma. He came to bring her back to her room. Because when he came earlier, he couldn’t find her there. The mysterious young man, then, put Jaerin back to the wheelchair. Daehyun started to move the wheelchair, after gave a slight greet and thank to the stranger.

                “It’s nice talking to you.”

                That was what the young man said to Jaerin, before Daehyun took her back to the ward.

                “Do you want your rice with the soup?”

                Daehyun was preparing the lunch for Jaerin whilst he adjusting the hospital bed table.

                “No, let me do it myself.”

              Then, a really long silence occurred. Since the first time she put the rice on the chopsticks to , until the bowl was almost empty. Meanwhile, he was just busy with the news channel on the TV. She, then, grabbed a book that Mr. Jung bought for her the previous day, and start reading. Their eyes meet sometimes, but, they just didn’t know what to say. They hadn’t met in a very long time.

                “I didn’t expect you here…” She said, without getting off her eyes from the book.

                “Is he a friend of you?” He looked at her. “The guy at the rooftop.”

                “No. I just met him few times there.”

                “Oh really?”

              He turned off the TV, and put the plates from the hospital bed table to the tray, Before put it on the desk near the door. “I came because dad is not very well this morning. Now, I should head back to the shop. Do you still need something else?”

                She shook her head.

                “Okay, I’ll come again tomorrow.” Then, he walked to the door.

                “Thanks.” She said, before he nodded and left.

Jaerin tried to walk with the crutch until she finally arrived at the rooftop. She felt some kind of huge accomplishment happened that day. She rested her tired feet, and sat on a seat near the bushes. She inhaled the nice air, from the rain that just stopped when she left her room. A few moments, before someone sat next to her. But, then, he got up and made her too. He placed the newspaper he brought to the seat, and let her sat to it.

                “It’s still wet.” He said.

            She sat on it while observing him. He didn’t wear black this time. But, it was just before she noticed the black Converse.

                He, also, was kind of thinking about something, “Ah… I still don’t know your name.” He offered a handshake.

                “Park Jaerin.” She shook it.

                He grinned. “I’m Kim Himchan.”