7.

I keep on tapping the upper end of the pen on my forehead while my eyes are still focusing on my tablet screen. My hair are already messy since I have been ruffling them for the past hour, trying to pull out the new ideas that have just crossed my mind this morning. This is what happened when you got a sudden inspiration but stalling on taking it out. It would eventually fades away and forever be gone or in simpler language – being forgotten.

The door is suddenly being sled opened, almost making me jumped out of the shock and a sight of one person, none other than Minseok, comes to my sight. That elder guy is wearing an expression which has been rarely seen these days, an excited smile on his cat look-alike face, to be exact. Instead of getting in, he just peek inside and calls my name, a bit too excitedly that caused me to question myself was I living in the past or something good really just happened?

“My on-call shift is over and I think the weather for today is good, do you want to go outside?”

Upon hearing that, my lips stretch out forming a grin and get off the bed without any second thoughts. I saw how Minseok’s eyes are widened the moment he sees me already dresses up, wearing jeans and along with the red sweatshirt as if I was always ready for hanging out but that is somehow true, of course.

I’ve been eager to step out from this suffocating cramped room since a few weeks ago and almost every day, I prepare myself with suitable outfit instead of wearing those boring pajamas. And now I finally get the chance.

Minseok comes in and hands me a padded winter coat with a white knitted scarf for me. Also a pair of socks and I noticed there are hot packs in each pockets of the coat.

Seeing my disbelief look at all his preparation, Minseok shrugs, “Sorry, the weather is not that good and getting a cold would be worse for you, right? Definitely would not dare risk it as well.”

“I know.” I smile at him, “Don’t want to go through it again either.”

We head straight to my car that has been parked at that one spot since the last time I went out to the foundation. Obviously, Minseok is the one who insist to drive and as the elder guy told me just now, he would bring me out to eat something that I’ve been missing so much. Only God knows how long I have been craving for meat of all this time.

“Safety as its best,” I heavily sigh. “Hyung, can you step on the gas a little bit more?” I turn my head to left and right, watching the cars from behind keep on coming pass us, cutting the way. “After all these years, you still drive like this?”

That guy huffs whilst still having his eyes focused on the road, his two hands are gripping tight on the steering wheel but the position of him sitting on that driver seat looks a bit too leisurely, as if he was strolling somewhere along the beach. Because we are on the highway, for God’s sake!

“It’s not that we are rushing somewhere, Mr. Byun.” His head tipped to the front side and Minseok puckers his lips to the small television that I have in that car. “Just stay still and watch something or whatever.”

“Sitting still, watching stuff on television is all that I’ve been doing all this time.”

“My bad.” That was all he could respond before continuing to concentrate on the road once again. My fingers keep on tapping on the dashboard, trying to find something to make myself less bored but did not manage to find it, unfortunately. And so Minseok breaks the silence as he suggests, “Then what about your tablet? I saw you were doing something with it just now. It’s good to see you designing again.” He hums, “Got a new idea?”

“Oh,” I breathe and turn to my side, reaching for the bag that I placed on the back seat. As I take out the gadget that he mentioned before, I nod, “Not really designing, just sketching things. And yeah, I got some while staring at the ceiling above me.”

“That is supposed to be a good thing that you got an idea while spacing out,” Minseok clucks his tongue, tilting his head to the side as he thinks, “But why do I feel sad over it?”

I let my giggles out and shake my head off while my hand are busy sketching the new idea that has popped in my mind right on that moment. “Look at how I’m coping with that place.” Then I get reminded of something I saw when stepping out from the building earlier. “Hyung.” My eyes gaze to the outside, looking at the scenery of the city with colorful lights shining from all over the place. I have been missing this sight more than I thought.

But I cut my emotional session off by proceeding to say out my wonder just now. “I saw they are setting up tables, chairs and balloons as we walk pass the hall just now. What’s the occasion?”

“Oh, right. I forgot to say something regarding that too.” He glances at me as he speaks, “Tomorrow there will be a charity event for the patients. Do you want to join? I can tell the staff to put your name on the list if you want to.”

“Activities?”

“Just the usual sharing session from the survivors and performances from the kids. Maybe there are going to be a few more activities they would do in small groups that would be formed later on. Do you want to join?”

“The volunteers are from…?”

“Students.” He pauses, “From all ages. University to…kindergarten, I suppose? Do you want to join?”

I laugh when it reaches the third time of Minseok asking me the same question. I have no idea why he keeps on luring me to do something with my life, even for the littlest and boring one like…watching an English romance movie, a genre that has never crossed my mind in my entire life. Not until he forced me to watch one. And I bet he got me with that, how dare he made me cry over a disabled guy with his caregiver-turning-girlfriend, since Minseok purposely did not warn me that the movie has a stupid sad ending. I found that was depressing because at the end, the guy left that girl alone to die quietly, away from his loved ones.

That British guy in the movie said it was because he couldn’t bear seeing his girl or his family to live with a man like him that it eats him inside and finally decided to leave for their good. I mean dude, dying alone would never be good. That would be the saddest thing that could ever happened, even how ‘romantic’ – ‘pure and great sacrifice’ would be a better term, actually – he made it soun