CHAPTER TWELVE

“But I’m scared.” The little boy whined.

“You won’t feel a thing, I promise.” The doctor assured him but he was still skeptical. “If it hurts even just a bit, you can pinch me as hard as you can, deal?”

The little boy was unsure but bobbed his head anyway.

“Here, you can hold onto this if you want.” she handed out a small stuffed dinosaur that she always keep in her lab coat whenever she does her rounds in the pediatric ward. “Alright, ready?”

The frightened kid shut his eyes tight and squeezed the stuffed toy with all his might, anticipating the sting in his arm. However, all he felt was a cool, damp cotton being rubbed on the spot where Eunji shot the needle.

“Did you feel anything?”

With pink tinted cheeks, the boy shook his head.

“You’re a brave little tyke. You’ll be out of here in no time.” Eunji playfully ruffled the kid’s hair. Pleased with himself, as sense of pride shone in the boy’s eyes.

“You’re really great with kids.” The mom stated. “Do you have one?”

Eunji was taken aback by the question but took the compliment with gratitude nonetheless. “Ah. No.” she muttered, fixing her stethoscope on her neck.

“I wouldn’t have known.” she giggled. “You seem like the mom type.”

The doctor flashed a grateful, albeit awkward, smile.

“I’m sorry, I think I overstepped.” she apologized as she dropped her head, her cheeks flushed.

“It’s alright. I appreciate it.” Eunji made some last routine checks on the little boy and scribbled on her clipboard before bidding farewell.

She’s been really considering to try and have a baby with her wife. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she had already outran the rush of her career. She’s already one of the finest physicians in all of Seoul; she doesn’t need to chase around people to make her name, at a very young age, she’s already there. What more could she ask for? “I think it’s time.” she whispered to herself.

She was too absorbed in her thoughts that when she entered her office, she didn’t notice a woman sitting on the couch until the said woman cleared .

“Bomi-yah! You startled me!” she exclaimed. “You should really stop popping in my office. Call me first, like a normal person.”

“You know I’m not a normal person.” Bomi chuckled.

Accepting the argument, Eunji nodded. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“What? Can’t I visit my best friend? I get to miss you too, you know.”

Eunji raised her brow. “Really? Yet you’re perfectly fine with shutting us out for weeks?”

“Yah! That’s a special case, Meung. And you know it.” Bomi said defensively.

The doctor laughed, teasing this pabo never gets old. “Alright, alright. Let’s say you really miss me and want to catch up. What is it that you want to talk about?”

“Well,” she paused, “remember what you said about Chorong’s nightmares?” Eunji nodded. “She’s still having it.”

“Oh? Did she tell you that?”

Bomi blushed. “Not exactly.” The doctor raised her brow, intrigued. “It’s not what you think! We just- We spent the night in Gangbuk when we climbed Bukhan-san.” She answered, rubbing her nape. “But that’s not the point.”

“Oh but I’d like to hear more.” Eunji insisted playfully, making Bomi scowl. “Alright, alright. So I’m guessing you’re still worried about it?” Bomi bobbed her head. “I didn’t want to tell you this,” Eunji sighed, “but are you familiar with self-hypnosis?” Bomi could only furrow her brows. “I’ve thought about it since the last time you came to me. She’s an orphan, right? And she didn’t leave the orphanage until now?” Bomi gestured a confirmation.

“I think growing up, she somehow learned to enter hypnosis to cope with her situation. It’s mostly used for a goal-oriented lifestyle, but some people use it to battle depression and alleviate anxiety. It’s not exactly dangerous and no one can be stuck in their hypnotized state – one way or another, they will eventually wake up.” She sighed. “In Chorong-unnie’s case though, she must have been in her hypnotized when she got knocked out. That may be why she’s confused.” Bomi was about to say anything but Eunji cut her off. “It’s still just a wild guess, Bomi-ah. But if that’s the case, it means she’s been hurting since she was a little girl. I think the only thing that could help her now is to relieve her of the pain she unconsciously have.”

Bomi pondered on it. Even if Chorong could remember everything, her past must have been too painful, yet she seemed so unaffected by it. Is it even possible that she’s just doing self-hypnosis again to make it seem like she’s fine? The short-haired woman didn’t know what to do anymore, except – as Eunji pointed out – to try and ease her pain. Is she really at a position to do that, though?

“Bomi-ah,” Eunji called out, “you know what to do, right? You need each other, even more than you think.” She smiled. “Your eyes tell me you’ve fallen in love with her.” She raised her hand so as Bomi would not interrupt her. “And you shouldn’t stop yourself. I’m happy for you, really. And I know Hani-unnie is too.”

“H- How do you know?” Bomi suddenly felt uncomfortable at the mention of her late wife’s name.

Eunji offered a reassuring smile. “I just do, Bomi-ah. I have a feeling that this time, it’s different from when you were with Hani-unnie.” she winked.

Bomi was caught off-guard. How did she know that? It’s true though, what she feels right now for Chorong is entirely different. “Thanks, Eunji-yah.” she bowed as she went to the door. “I promise we’ll catch up for real next time.”

About six years ago

It was a rainy Saturday afternoon, there weren’t a lot of people in the café today. The ones who were there though were busy with either their books or laptops. Seated at the farthest corner was none other than Eunji who was engrossed with her med books laid flat on two tables.

This has been her daily grind, rain or shine, as her exams are just around the corner. She was too busy to notice the pink-haired woman who took the liberty of sitting in front of her.

“Eunji-yah, you should get some rest too.” The pink-haired woman interrupted.

“O- Oh! Hani-unnie! How long have you been sitting there?” Eunji welcomed the interruption.

“Long enough to read a whole page of that book without understanding a thing.” she giggled. “Do you… Do you have time?” her tone suddenly changed.

Looking out the window, the sun was almost setting which meant that Eunji had been studying the whole day. ‘Perfect time to take a break’, she thought. “Sure unnie, what is it?” she asked, closing the book in front of her.

“I know you have a lot on your plate right now so I’ll try not to take too much of your time.” yet she hesitated. “I know Bomi is planning to propose any day n