Coincidences come in different circumstances, but it’s what you do with these coincidences that counts. 

If he had to look back at the events on that week, it was a coincidence that on that day he almost ran his own daughter over, it had to be on his birthday. It was a coincidence as well that right after his confrontation with Ji Hyun after the accident, when Chang Wook wanted to take a peek inside Hee Young’s suite, Halmeoni opened the door at the same time. It was another coincidence that Halmeoni was just about to walk out of the room to find him. It was also a coincidence that they were both wearing striped shirts that day, which was funny to think about.

“I have to be honest, Ji Chang Wook-ssi,” she addressed him as she took a sip of jasmine tea from her paper cup. “I was not expecting to see you here, especially about why you’re here in the first place.”

He cringed, leaning back on the plastic chair. “I’m sorry, Halmeoni. I really didn’t mean to bump into your granddaughter.”

They sat in the middle of the hospital cafeteria that night, and he was glad that most of the people here are oblivious to their surroundings, as well as there were little to no people in it. They made sure to sit by the very corner of the room, just so no one would see them or hear what they’re talking about at least. It was a good thing that Chi Gu was there to guard the kids for a short while before they went for some refreshments, but they knew that they had to leave soon, for there was work to be done the first thing tomorrow. 

She pressed her lips together. “Do you know how you’re related to my twins?”

It was silent, but after a few beats, he finally nodded. “Ji Hyun-ssi told me about it.”

“Oh thank the heavens,” she groaned. “I really thought she’d tell you when you’re in your deathbed.”

I thought so too, he spoke to himself internally. 

“On behalf of my daughter, I’m really sorry it took you this long to know about this.” She placed her hand by her chest. “Rest assured, I did my best to at least urge her to tell you about it.”

“It’s alright, Ahjumma.” He gave a tight-lipped smile. 

“How did it go by the way?”

“What about?”

“The talk?”

He let out a breath. “Not so well.”

“I figured.” She muttered to herself, before turning to him. “Have you two talked about what you’re going to do with your children?”

“We haven’t… really settled a deal or anything,” he uttered. “But, she did assure me that we would talk about it some time, and that she will allow me to see my children.”

“Of course,” she sighed. “Knowing my daughter, she’ll probably settle some ground rules and at least a contract on how you two will approach the children.” 

He sulked slightly in his seat. The more that he thought about it, it was as if she was pushing him away from her completely.

“But I do have to ask you,” she leaned forward. “By any chance, do you still have feelings for my daughter?”

He was still for a second. If he were completely honest, his feelings were still jumbled and mushed, but he couldn’t lie over one thing.

“I… I care about her.” He replied. “I cared about her before, and I still care about her until now.”

“If you care about my daughter,” she added. “How can I be so sure that you’ll care for my grandchildren? I heard before that you had no intentions of having kids.”

It was true that he didn't have any intentions of having kids, yet. He thought that his career is too much to juggle at the moment, so the thought of having kids while doing all of the work made him feel anxious. As much as he wanted to juggle his family life and his work life, he was scared of not being there for his children when he needed the most. But, with the knowledge of him actually having not one, but two children in the mix, and especially with the woman he deeply cared for... the thought of him being a family man won't be as bad as he thought he would.

"You're right. I did say that, but that was months ago." He sighed, clasping his fingers together. "I know that I was late to know, and I know that there were instances that I have said that I wasn't ready for that, but knowing how I have two beautiful children after so long... I want to be there for them. I want to make up for the lost time I had to be apart from them. I'm willing to sacrifice anything just so I can see my children and make them happy. I want to be a great father to my children, even if it means Ji Hyun and I have to live separate lives."

Even if he tried to hide it, the glimmer in his eyes showed how much it hurt him saying those words. Halmeoni knew that look too well, because it was the same thing she saw behind her own daughter's eyes whenever she talked about him. 

God, these young folks sure have a lot of pride to keep.

"But how do you feel right now?" 

"Pardon?"

"How do you feel knowing what you know now?"

He pressed his lips together, his heart slightly constricting from the thought. "I know she had her reasons, and she was willing to tell me. But... I really just wished she told them to me sooner. I mean, I'm their parent too. I wanted to at least know how my own flesh and blood are doing."

She watched as he let out a humourless chuckle. "I... I missed so much of their life already. I wasn't there when they first started talking, when they first walked, when they first laughed, when they had their first birthday— hell, I didn't find out what their first words were. I wasn't there to witness them grow into the children that they are today, and I just feel... dejected, that's all."

Halmeoni smiled weakly at him. "Hey, it's not too late. They have so many years ahead of them, and this is your chance to see that." 

"I know, Ahjumma." He nodded slowly. 

"Well, I'm glad that you're dedicated to be a good father for my grandkids." She spoke. "I won't hold them back from you either, if that's what you want to know."

He nodded, a sad smile on his lips. "Thank you, Ahjumma."

She reached out and placed her hand on top of his own. "Please don't call me that. You can call me Eomeonim, or Jangmonim if you could."

His eyes widened when she winked at the mention of the name. "It's alright, Eomeonim."

She laughed at his reaction. "Also, happy birthday to you!"

He cringed at the mention of the event. "Thank you, and a memorable one too."

She sighed. "Would you like to see your twins before you go?"

He nodded slowly as they got up from their seats, throwing their respective trash in the bin before they left. 

“So,” she asked as they opened the doors. “When are you planning to see them again after this?” 

“I don’t really know.” He shook his head. “I’m actually trying to find a short medical program since I have to play a doctor in my next role. It might run for a long time until I get back to my real work, so I don't really know if I'll have the time to see them a lot.”

”Well, why don’t you try asking Ji Hyun for advice?” She raised an eyebrow at him. 

“I don’t think—“

The moment they passed the reception area, something caught his eye.

A poster. 

It was for a civilian volunteer program that will run for two months. 

Halmeoni noticed that he suddenly stopped in the middle of the hall, and suddenly, something sparked in her as she gazed at where he looked at. 

“Why don’t you try your luck here?” She nudged him. 

“I’m... I don’t know...” He trailed off, but Halmeoni had other ideas. 

“Why not?” She asked him. “This is a great option! You get to learn your role, and you’ll get to see your kids at the same time.” 

“Really, Eomeonim?” 

“They often visit the hospital whenever they can.” She pointed out. “I don’t see why you shouldn’t really go for it when you’re hitting two birds with one stone.” 

“Pardon me for saying this, but I think you forgot that your daughter wants nothing to do with me as well.” 

"I didn't mention that you might bump into her in this hospital." She smirked, raising an eyebrow at him. "This is a pretty big establishment, and there are hundreds of doctors running around. You'll be lucky if you get to bump into her in one room again. Trust me, I've been visiting this hospital for years now."

It was a mere coincidence that he was just looking for a hospital for his volunteer program, and that this very hospital had it run for a time that would perfectly match his schedule, and be in a convenient location. It was just a coincidence, but in the end, he took the plunge. 

And here he was one week and three days later, working a nine-to-five shift in a span of eight weeks just for the sake of experience and for his new role. Of course, he did disclose to the volunteer services office that he wanted to at least keep the commotion down in the hospital to the best of his abilities, and so, his first two weeks would be dedicated to clerical office work and patient assistance in different wards, but he was given no exception to working in the emergency room, which he'll come in for at least three times a week for the entire program. He assisted the patients and their families to their destinations and helped doctors during their rounds with the patients, talking and asking questions about their current state. During his spare time, he asked surgeons about their operations and techniques, some even offering him to watch the operations himself during specific times. 

One of the things he dreaded the most though, was working in the cardiology department. 

It wasn't just because it was one of the most toxic departments, it was also because Doctor Nam Ji Hyun was said to be very strict in handling volunteers, despite the very warm welcome she displayed during the beginning of the program. If any of them were a minute late, she would give them at least a proper scolding session. She wanted to make sure that everyone that followed her took note of the conditions of the patients that she handled. The other thing though, was that she takes feedback seriously. If any of her patients reported anything unsatisfactory about their service, she would send at least them to the emergency room for the rest of the shift. Yes, she was nice, but her work ethic and her discipline was something else. It was quite unusual for Chang Wook to witness this side of her, or this version of her, to say the least. It has been eight years since they last saw each other, and he could tell the hard exterior she developed after studying medicine. Nonetheless, he kept his boundaries and his head down when it came to her, but there would be times that whenever he looked at her, he would catch her staring at him with an unreadable expression, but afterwards, she would raise her chin and gaze at the other volunteers. 

"I never really expected Nam euisa-nim to be this strict." Yoon Min, one of the volunteers sighed as they sat in one of the benches by the wards. Four from the batch, including him, were tasked to man the department's patients in this shift. Unfortunately, they'll be handling the department on Wednesdays and Fridays from 8 to 11 in the morning, and even for just three hours, it seems as if it was another layer of hell has opened with the amount of work to be done in the said area. It was another unfortunate thing that it had to be a Wednesday today. Now, he's thinking what if they'll get longer or shorter hours in working in the department once their new schedule comes out this week.

"Although, she is one of the best in the hospital." Seok Ho, another volunteer, shrugged. "She's a pretty one too."

"Ya, don't even think about it." The third volunteer, Hyung Joon, pointed out. "She may be pretty, but she'll probably cut your head off if you even try to approach her." 

"Really?" Yoon Min raised an eyebrow. "How come I saw one of the doctors—Jung Ryeo So, I think?— ask her out yesterday?"

Chang Wook's ears perked up by the mention of the question. "Wait, who?"

The three men looked back at him with wide eyes. "I didn't know you had a thing for hospital gossip, hyung."

"I do." He pressed his lips together, leaning towards the young boy. "Who's asking what now?"

Yoon Min raised his eyebrows at him, before he whispered. "It's Jung euisa-nim, from the orthopedics department, I think? I saw him approach Nam euisa-nim yesterday by the new hospital wing and he was asking her out."

He raised his eyebrows at the gossip, his lips kept shut as he nodded. "Oh."

"Yeah," the young boy leaned back on his seat, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Didn't know a celebrity likes to listen to gossip as well."

"We're humans too," he shrugged. "We're just as normal as any person out there."

He realized, at that very moment, that it was a coincidence for someone like Yoon Min to walk into the very second he saw the two doctors. It was a coincidence how the topic just came up all of a sudden in the middle of the cardiology department. He thinks about how these coincidences come up together in such a short span of time, and how they all seem like constellations slowly being connected until they form an image that he could decipher. The thing is, he doesn't know what does this all mean.

He kept these thoughts to himself as he worked the rest of his shift running multiple errands and giving comfort—and some selfies—to some patients that asked for it, while asking them to not post them for the sake of his security. Somehow, Eomeoni was right though. If you're not centered in the cardiology department, there would be less chances of actually getting to see her, but despite this, there was something else that bugged him the entire time he worked, but he couldn't really put his finger on it (despite knowing very well what is keeping his nerves uptight). When the clock finally struck at five, he checked out immediately and watched as his companions leave the premises. The moment he made his way to the parking lot, he couldn't stop looking at the elevator, his feet itching to go somewhere, until he couldn't help himself and called his manager that he might be late for his photoshoot later. This resulted in the heaps of questions he had to fire at him, but all he could tell him was that he had a last-minute errand to attend to. He made his way to the elevator and pressed the "8" button, and brisked his way through the hallways to the room he was looking for, but just when he was about to knock, the door opened.

"Oh what a coincidence," she spoke as she stood by her door. "I was just about to look for you." 

Coincidences come in different circumstances, but it’s what you do with these coincidences that counts. In this case, he chuckled nervously at her and sighed. 

"I could say the same thing to you."