By the time they had reached the hospital, Eunha and Sally were already in the operating rooms. Yerin sorted out the patient registration before joining the rest in the family room.

“This is my fault. I’m sorry Sojung, none of this would have happened if I didn’t suggest this,” Yuna said, breaking the silence.

“No, Eunha would have done it even if you didn’t make that suggestion. It really is no one’s fault. If I didn’t freeze up, we could have taken down that bastard before he shoved her out,” Sojung said as she buried her head in her hands. Her voice was nasally and hoarse after crying.

“Don’t dwell on it, it’s over. What matters is we caught her. Don’t think about the ‘what if’s anymore. They will be fine as long as there are no complications,” Yerin said and heaved a sigh, leaning back in her seat. Eunbi took the doctor’s hand into her own and intertwined their fingers, giving the latter’s arm a comforting rub.

“You were great back there,” Eunbi said softly.

“I can’t thank you enough for saving her,” Sojung agreed, looking at Yerin with her red and puffy eyes.

“I did what I could to stabilize her. Hippocratic oath,” Yerin gave a tight smile. They waited for what felt like hours before a surgeon emerged from one of the rooms.

“Sally is in the clear. Her brachial vein had been cut and she lost a fair amount of blood but we’ve stitched it up and given her a transfusion. There’s also slight trauma to the head which we suspect may result in a mild concussion but we can only be sure once the anesthesia wears off,” the surgeon explained and Yerin nodded. 

“How about Eunbi?” 

“Her 8th and 9th rib were broken which punctured her lung and caused it to collapse. It was stabilized when she arrived so we’ve put her on a ventilator for now and thoracic support to relieve pain in her surrounding muscles. We’ve also put a splint on for her tibia that was fractured by the GSW. Otherwise, she’s stable and they’re being moved to a private ward right now.”

“Thank you,” Yerin bowed at the surgeon who returned the gesture to her and the girls before taking his leave. They made their way to the ward and saw the girls in bed. A couch with blankets had been prepared by the corner along with some extra chairs. The ward was quiet apart from the alternating beeps of the monitors and the pumping of Eunha’s ventilator.

“Oh, Eunha…” Sojung whispered as she pulled a chair to the girl’s bedside. She held out a shaky hand, gently Eunha’s head. Half of the girl’s face was hidden behind the mask. A Pulse-Ox was clipped onto her right pointer finger with an IV line inserted into the back of that same hand. Though her lower half was covered by a blanket, the shape of the thick split could still be made out.

Sally was in slightly better shape with just wires from the 12-lead poking out from under her shirt. The entirety of her right forearm was bandaged and so was her head. Yerin looked between the two who seemed to be sound asleep.

“They’re still under heavy sedation but they should start lowering the dosage gradually tomorrow morning,” Yerin said. A soft buzzing was heard and Yerin fished her phone out of her pocket, excusing herself to take the call. Sojung seemed to pay no heed, looking at Eunha’s face. She felt her world crashing down around her. It was supposed to be a simple operation. How did it go so wrong?

“I’m right here with you, okay?” Sojung whispered and gingerly took Eunha’s left hand into her own, raising it to her lips. The girl’s hands were cold and Sojung breathed onto it in an attempt to warm it up. 

“Jihyo has notified Daein and Ji-in. They should be on their way. Both her parents are in police custody and have requested an attorney. The rest of the police are still collecting evidence from the house. They’ve expedited the initial appearance to take place as soon as everything is bagged up,” Yerin notified the girls.

“ers better rot in hell,” Eunbi seethed under her breath.

“Trust me, they will,” Yerin said and looked back at Sojung who had her complete attention on her unconscious girlfriend.

Sojung woke to an aching sensation in her neck. She register