Taeyeon has watched enough romance films to know that getting dumped is the worst feeling ever. She has also experienced it first-hand by her significant other.

She then came to the conclusion that love is truly temporary; like a blockbuster film that would only last for a few weeks and then be forgotten after a year. She has experienced a love like snow that instantly melts at the touch of the skin.

For the past two years of residency, the emergency medicine doctor would often stop by a gukbap restaurant and have her dinner there. In the summer, however, she’d have cucumber naengmyeon—if she’s brave enough not to break down inside the restaurant about how she associates the vegetable to her past lover.

For heaven’s sake, it’s been more than a decade. Get over her already.

“Taeng, you know you won’t be able to move forward if you keep thinking about the what-ifs. I shouldn’t have made you watch those cheesy romance films if you’re just going to drunk call me and cry about the romantic scenes that you’ve never done with her,” Tiffany, Taeyeon’s former roommate, retorts in a joking manner. Annoying as her best friend’s early morning drunk calls can be, Tiffany gets more worried every time she picks up. And it’s been two years.

Just what happened in Taeyeon and Jessica’s breakup that she gets drunk in the middle of the night? Tiffany wonders as she goes back to sleep after hanging up the phone to a drunk best friend.

The only good thing about springtime is the cherry blossoms. That’s about all Taeyeon could think of on the top of her head. If you think about it, being an EM doctor isn’t bad if you want to maintain a healthy work-life balance while practicing medicine. Taeyeon is simply a workaholic that you wouldn’t catch her dead with someone new.

Five centimeters per second is the speed at which a cherry blossom petal falls from the tree. Much like a love that withers overtime. Taeyeon thinks that dragging on a useless relationship is as worse as slowly peeling off a bandage. Fast or slow, it doesn’t change the fact that it hurts like hell. It’s still better than having to suffer for a long time. She’s the type to get her problems over with rather than run away.

“It’s spring. Great.” The attending in the psychiatry ward sarcastically says out loud that Taeyeon overhears.

It’s spring indeed. With Sooyoung in our area now, I can’t even imagine her face when she receives reports of attempted suicides. “Ah, I forgot Sooyoung-ssi not a police officer anymore.” Taeyeon frowns since she can’t avoid suicides and suicide attempts as a medical practitioner in the emergency department.

Being in the frontline, doing her job properly as an EM doctor isn’t enough. Aside from doing her best medically, bonding with her patients and empathizing with their struggles is a must. Not because being human is on her payroll, but because she understands. They’re all human. Trauma surgeons and EM doctors don’t always have enough details about their patients in the state of urgency. Criminal or not, their lives are literally in the doctor's hands.

“You’re too nice…” Taeyeon knows it’s not a compliment. The way her senior in medical school says it is like she’s being slapped in the face.

Maybe she is. Maybe she’s just a pushover. Maybe she’s too gullible. Maybe she easily let Jessica go.

Her ex said the same thing, but more poisonous.

The thunder roars, Taeyeon imagines that it’s nature’s way of stopping their argument. “You know we can’t continue on like this,” Jessica chokes, failing to contain her tears. “No one will ever accept our relationship. The world won’t change just because you believe so. Stop being delusional, Kim Taeyeon.”

Following the mood of the conversation, the heavens began weeping at the losing battle. “We’re both circling the same orbit and yet you’re always looking somewhere else. We can’t do this—“ Jessica took off in the opposite direction, looking for a place where she can be vulnerable in private. The girl cries harder. No, I have to be strong. Her emotions fail her as she drowns in her own sobs.

Girls’ Generation was set to debut in a week. Jessica just couldn’t sit by and let their relationship jeopardize her group’s career. She simply wants a future where the nine girls succeed with no scandals. And most importantly, a prosperous singing career for Taeyeon and herself. Her plan, unfortunately, went down the drain after the company cancelled their showcase.

Running off in the pouring rain, it was the last time they ever saw each other again.

April showers are for star-crossed lovers. Yes, that’s more accurate.

A fairytale story ends just as the prince and princess found love. You’ll never know their stories behind closed doors.

In other words, spring isn’t her favorite season. Well, exempting the adrenaline she gets from the tough cases, and the serotonin when her patients get to go home with a smile—she thinks that maybe she chose the right specialty after all. Too much work that can help keep her mind off of things and the month-long time off are both rewarding.

She loves work so much that she gets to spend her entire weekend in a hospital bed with IV drips connected to her arm.

Taeyeon doesn’t remember the details, all she could recall was talking to her Heechul sunbae, going home after eating gukbap, and then passing out before she reaches her apartment building. The last thing she heard was a dolphin-like scream before her head made contact to the asphalt.

“You’re really not going to tell me?” Taeyeon takes a bite out of her apple with a deathly glare directed to her hoobaes.

“W-We really don’t know, sunbae,” Yeri stammers, unable to make eye contact with Taeyeon. The surgical interns admire their senior but they get really scared when the older woman threatens them like that. It’s an abuse of power, Taeyeon thinks, but it’s funny seeing their reactions.

“Wendy, can you at least tell me what she looks like?”

“Her whole face was covered,” Wendy explains and motions to her head. “She’s wearing a black cap and a black mask, I couldn’t even see her eyes.”

“Interesting…” Eyebrows furrowed, Taeyeon takes a sip of chocolate milk and tries to rack her brain if she has flirted with any women that it saved her life. No, it’s just some random person that’s kind enough to save your stupid . She realize it’s best not to think about looking for love while she’s currently bedridden.

“She looks like she was worried, though,” remarked Irene.

“Do you have a secret admirer, Taeng-sunbae?”

The senior audibly sighed. “I wish.”

As the weekend goes by, Taeyeon gets discharged. She steps out to breathe in the fresh air after so long.

God, I hate spring so much.

—•—

The mystery savior still remained a mystery as Taeyeon returns to work.

She catches sight of an intoxicated man catcalling the female nurses and doctors. She was about to shush him but thankfully her BoA ssaem came to calm down the drunkard before Taeyeon somehow prompts a fistfight. As the sound of Dr Kwon’s high heels get louder as it echoes off the linoleum floors and the white-painted walls in the corridor, the chattering dissolves into thin air. The beautiful attending general surgeon came into view and she does not look happy.

A normal Monday evening. Taeyeon silently thanks Dr Kwon for handling yet another patient causing a scene.

Taeyeon receives a group video call. The EM doctor excused herself from her superiors and goes up to the rooftop to accept the chat. Sliding the green button, she squeals in excitement as her groupmates flashed on the screen. “Doctor Kim is present!” she salutes, earning a laugh from her friends.

“Actress Seohyun is present too!” Seohyun mimics their leader.

“Variety goddess Sunny is tired…” Sunny prolongs the last word, eyes drooping but she forces a smile.

“Yah, then sleep!” Tiffany chuckles. “Hyoyeon is most likely passed out somewhere in her apartment,”

“Do you have something to tell us, Fany?” Sooyoung questioned.

“Not really,” the four girls looked at their American friend like she had two heads. “I called Sunkyu by accident and she decided to invite you all.

“It’s actually Taengoo I need to talk to,”

“Huh? Why me?” Tiffany sighed. She glances at her members before adding, “Jessica’s apparently—“

The connection kept cutting off. Sighing, she tells them about her phone losing connection and the pager going off at the same time before ending the call. She makes a mental note to call Tiffany after work. Taeyeon proceeds to the elevator, expecting to get an earful. Sneaking her way into the emergency department, she lets out a breath she didn’t realized she’s been holding as her superiors were nowhere in sight.

“…was seen in Icheon, Gyeonggi-do last week. The star recently released her first Chinese film that premiered in Hong Kong…”

Hearing both the news and a patient’s internal organs through a stethoscope is now second nature to the doctor. “Does your family have a history of cardiovascular diseases?”

“Now the leading figure of Korean fashion, Jessica Jung…”

She hears her heart pound loudly from her chest. But she realizes she’s at work, she needs to be professional.

“Did you have a history with Jessica Jung?”

“What?”

“What?” Taeyeon blinks then drops the stethoscope. Her ears are ringing, her body feels numb. Is it excitement? Is it fear? Is Jessica Jung really staying at the province of Gyeonggi out of all places?!

“Please… Please request an ECG. I’m gonna get coffee,” she quickly rose from the stool and left the room, leaving the nurse and the patient puzzled. Feeling lightheaded, she goes back to the rooftop to get some fresh air. Taeyeon unlocks her phone and taps the Contacts icon. As she crouched down, her eyes landed on a contact named Sica. She remembers how she got Jessica’s new number saved because of Tiffany. Taeyeon can’t thank her best friend enough. She anxiously taps the call button.

The line rings once, twice, thrice. “Sorry, the number you have dialled is unavailable…” Taeyeon inhales sharply and tries again. “Sorry, the number you have dialled—“

Three attempts and still nothing. Defeated, Taeyeon goes back down to the ED. She makes another mental note to try and call Jessica again. An hour later, her shift finishes. She’s itching to go home.

Just as she walks out of the hospital, she’s met with the warm spring air and a loud brunette girl shouting her name. She whips her head to the direction of the familiar voice but the shouting girl dashes to Taeyeon, with heels clicking so loud that her feet must’ve hurt. Was she seeing things? Does she need to get her eyes checked? Thoughts filled her mind. The sight seems too impossible to be real. It’s like those romcom dramas she watches out of boredom.

Seeing the love of her life run towards her with longing and endearment, she begins to appreciate the cherry blossoms floating around them and the season in general. Jessica didn’t think twice before pulling Taeyeon in a bone-crushing hug as the smaller girl stood there, frozen in place. After a while, she begins to cherish the warmth of Jessica that she misses dearly and embraced the love of her life back. The universe somehow brought them back together. The two girls wouldn’t trade this moment for anything else.

“It’s been so long,” Jessica mumbles in Taeyeon’s shoulder. She lifts her head up to look at Taeyeon’s glossy eyes. “I know it’s late but I wanted to greet you a belated happy birthday. Instead, I was the one that got a surprise,”

“Did you, by any chance, stopped by my place last Friday?”

Jessica hums. “Don’t scare me like that again,” she buries her face in the other girl’s neck.

They may have drifted apart, but feelings linger. Spring opened up new beginnings. Maybe it was their turn to start anew.