Sacrifices are inevitable in a real world. In the absence of the ideal, what we want is not what always comes to be and much of human progress is evidence of this. However, as is our nature, we sacrifice the things we desire and continue walking forward because there is only that available to us.

'I love you.'

The words whispered through Mina’s mind as she faced Momo. She gazed into Momo’s eyes as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Mina. She softened in the embrace, comforted by having Momo so close.

'I'll never leave you.'

Mina looked up as Momo spoke again and matched her smile. Warmth spread inside her and she reached a hand to Momo’s cheek but something stopped her. She frowned then watched as Momo's smile turned into a smirk. Shadows glinted across her expression and she said nothing as her body starting fading.

'No!'

Mina fell forward as Momo disappeared. Filled with an incomprehensible ache, she bent over as tears fell from her face. A voice appeared in front of her and she looked up, recognising the speaker.

'Goodbye…'

Momo stood at a distance, watching her then turned with a wave and began to walk away. Mina began to sob helplessly wanting to run after Momo but unable to. She held out a hand to reach for Momo as she slowly disappeared into black nothingness.

“Momo!” Mina woke up with a start and looked around frantically. It had been a dream. Momo was right next to-. The spot on the bed beside her was empty, as it had been so for the past 8 years. She had gone to America against Momo's wishes and even after returning to Korea, had heard nothing from her. She placed a hand over her chest, feeling her heart still in a panic. Her back was damp with sweat and her skin was clammy. She pressed her palms against her eyes then sat staring at the wall for some time.

It was finally the call of nature that broke her out of her stupor and she walked into the bathroom to pee. Washing her hands, she examined her face in the darkness. Even in the dim light, she could see the circles that surrounded her eyes from lack of sleep. She washed her hands and returned to her bed to try and get back to sleep. It was a futile effort with her mind filled with unwanted thoughts and she slowly got up and walked to the lounge room.

The apartment was silent with only the faint whirr of kitchen appliances, the furniture gazed upon by the moonlight shining in through the glass windows. She stepped onto her treadmill and began to run. Running or exercising always seemed to help calm her and she tried to empty her mind as her legs pumped on the plastic surface. The walls of her apartment overlooked the city and she blinked at the bright lights of a city that never slept. Even in the witching hour there was still cars driving along the streets. She continued to run and clocked up the kilometres as time passed.

Finally, after exhausting herself, Mina stopped the treadmill and looked outside as the sun began to rise. Soon the people would wake and bustle about in preparation for the working day. She wiped away her sweat with a towel and stepped into her bathroom with the hope that a hot shower would help ease the soreness from her muscles and give her some refreshment for the busy day to come. It helped a little and she changed into her work clothes, trying not to think about her dream as she drove. The early morning traffic was the same as always; drivers honking and cutting into other lanes yet going nowhere.

When she arrived at the company building, the parking lot was void of people. She remained in her car and sat with her head resting on the steering wheel. Her thoughts kept returning to her morning dream, distracting her. She didn’t know what had triggered it and the uncertainty unsettled her. She looked up at the muted sound of a car door closing and saw one of her colleagues, an executive of the company, making his way to the elevators. She stepped out of her car to do the same then paused, not feeling up to making small talk. She a whim then started walking towards the concrete ramp that led onto the street level.

The pavement was crowded, full of people rushing to get to their workplaces. Standing on the edge of the path where she wouldn’t block anyone, Mina stopped outside the building entrance and looked up at the large letters denoting the name of the company – Myoui and Co. It was a name that had defined and dominated much of her life and as she thought again of her morning dream, what she’d chosen in place of something else. Shaking her head, she joined the stream of workers entering through the rotating doors and crossed the lobby floor. She swiped her key card and passed through the gate to the waiting elevators. 

‘Morning ma’am. Walk to work today?’

Mina turned to see the security guard looking at her and grinned. “Nothing like that. Just wanted to check if you were doing your job properly,” she said. The security guard stiffened immediately and placed a fist over his chest.

‘No need to worry. I keep a sharp eye from my station. You can be sure that everything is in order.’

Mina smiled in amusement and nodded to him as she walked away. She entered a crowded elevator and went up to the top floor where her office was. As soon as she stepped off the elevator, her assistant came rushing towards her with a planner in hand. “What do I have today?” she asked, not stopping to take a look herself.

‘You have 20 tasks today; 5 urgent, 10 important and the rest which can wait. The board wants to call a meeting about the latest stock price rise and there are a few events scheduled tonight which you can choose to attend.’

Mina showed a wry smile as she thought of the work waiting for her. It seemed to never end, day after day, and she wondered how her father had ever managed. Most of her days were spent trying to get through a pile of documents and spreadsheets requiring her attention or signature. The remainder was wasted on attending functions and events where her presence was expected from either her father or the company. She glanced at the planner and read down the list of scheduled events. There were two fundraisers and a dinner date her father had organised. Sighing as she pushed open her office door, she shook her head at her father’s attempts to pair her up with someone. She’d been single her entire life as far as he knew and she didn’t try to tell him otherwise, knowing how awkward it would be to discuss.

‘You can cross off that last one. I’ll be working in my office for the rest of the day but notify me if anything comes up.’

Her assistant nodded and left her as she entered the office. Closing the door behind her, Mina appreciated the view from her window as she took off her coat. Throwing it over the back of her chair, she sat down and her computer. The computer whined softly as it loaded up and she took the short wait to look around the room. The office had been hers for over 5 years but it hadn’t changed much since her father had retired. There was still the fish tank on the coffee table and the wooden closet in the corner. The only major addition had been a couch that sat beside the wall. She often used it to nap when she was tired or when she couldn’t be bothered driving half an hour home to an empty apartment. Her computer screen brightened and she logged in, focusing on the day’s work.

~

‘I already said no.’

‘Don’t be like that. Say you’ll do it.’

Momo shook her head and continued walking.

‘Come on Momo. You’re the only person who can do this.’

Momo stopped and turned to Hyejin with a questioning look. “Am I really?” she asked. One of the other doctors in the oncology ward, Hyejin was a few years older than Momo and her closest friend at work. Hyejin hesitated before shaking her head.

‘No, but-’

Hyejin grabbed Momo’s arm as she walked away. “Please,” she pleaded. “You’ve been to these types of events before. You have the most experience among all of us and you’re the prettiest.” Momo sighed as she reached the floor’s reception desk. Hyejin was trying to convince her to go to an organised charity event with each ward in the hospital allowed one representative to talk to the rich patrons attending. “Just because I’ve been to a few doesn’t mean I want to ever go to any again,” she said. She tried not to think about the reason she avoided the events and smiled at the receptionist. The receptionist greeted her and handed her a clipboard. She scanned over the first page and paid half an ear as Hyejin continued to talk.

‘As you know, we are one of the biggest hospitals in the city and we always have more patients coming into our ward than going out. This means that we have a gradual shortage in available rooms and a need for upgraded facilities. Please, we really need the extra budget.’

Momo thanked the receptionist and turned to walk towards the patient rooms as Hyejin followed her. Hiding a smile at her friend’s persistence, she considered the request. The other doctor had been pestering her since the beginning of the week, begging her to attend the event. She flipped through the papers attached to the clipboard and wondered how much longer Hyejin was willing to press the issue. It was early morning when most patients were still asleep or only just waking up and the ward was quiet. There wasn’t much to do yet which explained why Hyejin had so much time to bother her but she was due to make her rounds and hoped that it would finally get her some peace.

She raised an eyebrow as she noticed her friend stop in the middle of the corridor. For a second, she wondered whether she would regret turning around to see why she had stopped but curiosity won over and she looked back. Hyejin stood with her arms by her side, her chest heaving as she drew in breath. “That’s it,” she said as Momo stared at her, confused. “I didn’t want to do this but you’ve forced my hand.” Momo raised an eyebrow again, thinking about what the other woman could do that she hadn’t already.

‘Don’t you care?’

‘Huh?’

‘Don’t you care about the patients? Don’t you care about the pain they go through every day as they wait to be cured of their ailments?’

Momo blinked a few times as she listened to her friend’s strange questions.

‘Of course I do.’

‘Then why are you against going? If you go, you will get a chance to talk to the rich elite of Seoul and enlighten them to the plight of our patients. There you will get a chance to get donations that could be used to build new and better rooms that would alleviate the patients’ suffering as they wait for cures to be discovered; research you could also be funding with those donations. There you will get a chance to save lives.’

Momo stared speechless as the words echoed inside her head, guilt running through her as she thought of the sickly patients she would be visiting soon. She sighed once and shook her head resignedly. “I can’t believe I’m letting you talk me into this,” she said. “Alright. I’ll go.” Hyejin’s face broke into a wide smile at the confirmation and rushed forward to hug her. Momo stood unmoving in the hug, defeated and still gripping the clipboard. “Give me the time and venue so I can get ready,” she said as they broke apart. Hyejin held up a thumb then thinking quickly, Momo added, “Also, you’ll be taking all the overnight shifts for the next two weeks for this.” Hyejin’s body jerked at the sudden condition and she grimaced before sighing.

‘Fine. I suppose it’s worth it to save the cancer patients. I’ll send you a message with all the details when I get to my desk later but I’ve got some other stuff to take care of first.’

Momo nodded once then pursed her lips as her friend walked away. “You don’t really care about the patients, do you?” she called out. “You just want a new break room to drink your coffee.” Hyejin grinned cheekily at the slanderous claim, not denying it. “Just make sure you dress to your absolute best.”

‘Sure.’

Momo shook her head and tutted at herself at how she had been guilt-tripped into agreeing. She bit her bottom lip as a little apprehension entered her, thinking to the night’s event then turned around to continue with her work.

~

Mina stopped typing and felt her stomach as it rumbled again. She looked up at the clock that hung on the wall and blinked. She had been working for nearly 10 hours without stopping. She sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. She closed the document she was working on and turned off her computer. Closing her eyes, she let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding and felt her back. Her body had been tense since the morning and she was reminded again of her dream. Her memory had mostly phased out what had happened in the dream but she still remembered waking up to an empty bed and feeling scared and in a panic. Her eyes flew open as knocks sounded on the door and straightened up.

‘Come in.’

The door opened and the head of her assistant popped through.

‘Sorry. I’m not interrupting you, am I?’

Mina shook her head and stood up, slipping on her coat. “You’re not,” she said. “I was just about to head out and get something to eat. Why? Did something come up?” She narrowed her eyes as her assistant gr