*Before reading this, please know that this is fiction and the real world is not like this. While I try to make my story as realistic as possible, I still take a creative decision for the story that is different from the real world so please understand that this is fiction, Thank you!!

***

10 pm.

Irene stood on her apartment balcony, gazing at the seemingly limitless sky. Today, the sky was clear, allowing the young professor to admire the stars and the moon in all their glory.

What makes her love the sky so much? What makes her love the moon so much?

In Irene’s mind, her brain keeps replaying the sight where the young novelist would look at the sky and the moon and then the young novelist would smile like it seems as though everything is okay.

“Unnie? What are you doing here?” Yerim's soft voice interrupted Irene's reverie. Irene turned her head to see her sister peeking through the sliding glass door.

Irene gives her sister a tender smile, “I don’t know, I just want to look at the moon.”

Yerim joined Irene on the balcony, leaning against the railing with her head resting on her sister's shoulder. “The moon? Suddenly?” she asked curiously.

“Hmm,” The young professor mumbled, “Look at the moon, isn’t it beautiful?”.

Yerim chuckled softly, “Yeah it’s beautiful, but why so suddenly? You’ve always loved the sky, but the moon?”.

Irene took a moment to collect her thoughts before answering, “The moon can always make her smile so I wonder what makes it so special”.

Yerim nods, “Well I think I understand why”.

“Care to tell me why,” Irene asks.

“Look at the moon unnie, look how it shines, It's always there, even when people don't pay much attention to it. It's like a quiet listener, never judging” Yerim began.

“Also, do you realize how dark the night would be if the moon isn’t there? But have you noticed how the night feels a little less dark because of the moon's gentle glow? I think the moon is just like a small light of hope, not too bright to overwhelm, but enough to guide someone.”

Yerim's words resonated with Irene, and she smiled softly, “Well I guess you’re right”

“Sometimes you can speak with so much wisdom Yerim-ah”

Yerim lifts her head from Irene’s shoulder. “Well, I’m your sister unnie, of course, your wisdom would rub on me. And maybe I actually learn a thing or two from your class at my university”.

Yerim taps Irene back softly, “I’m going inside unnie, take your time out here, unnie, but don't forget to get some rest?” Yerim said as she headed inside.

“Thanks, squirt, you’re the only one I have, goodnight”

And once again, the young professor turns her attention to the celestial body above.

So the moon is her light of hope? Her loyal listener?

Irene closed her eyes, she prayed to the moon    

Hey Moon, if you truly are her light of hope, her loyal listener, then please keep her hope alive, Please continue listening to her, for she has been through so much. And perhaps, let me help her too. Let me be her light of hope, let me be a listener whom she can trust, just like you are for her.

Then a realization struck the young professor, and she opened her eyes. A strange feeling washed over her as if a battle was taking place between her heart and her brain.

What happened to you Bae Joohyun? She questioned herself,

What are you wishing for? Do you like her? No, you don’t trust love, Irene shook her head.

Right, you are simply attached to her because she is your patient and you are her doctor, you want to help her.

And Irene nodded, accepting the logical explanation.

***

11 pm.

Irene can’t sleep, she has been staring at the ceiling of her bedroom for almost half an hour now but not an ounce of sleep dared to visit the young professor.

Her mind was restless, troubled by the condition of the young novelist. The past week had shown a decline in Wendy's condition, and Irene couldn't shake off her concern.

Eventually, Irene decide to wake up and sat at her cluttered desk. delved into her collection of medical journals, seeking answers about Wendy's disease.

Irene graduated with a Master's degree in Precision Cancer Medicine from Oxford University and she herself is a well-known medical researcher in her days at Oxford, even winning several awards for her research contribution to cancer treatment.

Her academic achievements had given her valuable connections with some of the brightest minds in the medical world.

This network granted Irene access to advanced medical journals and research, allowing her to explore potential answers to Wendy's deteriorating condition.

Why was Wendy's health getting weaker during her resting period? The FCR Therapy might have side effects, but it shouldn't have affected her heart. Moreover, Irene couldn't ignore the mystery surrounding Wendy's initial collapse, which resulted in a cardiac arrest.

I need some opinion on this, Irene then glanced at the clock,

It’s 11 pm here so it should be 3 pm on Oxford. Maybe I can call someone there.

The young professor reaches for her phone and starts to scroll through her contact list. Not long after that, she finds what she was searching for and hits the call button.

“Hello, good afternoon Professor John” Irene greets when the call is connected.

“Ahh!! Hello Doctor Bae, or should I say Professor Bae now?” The voice at the end of the line answered excitedly.

Irene let out a small chuckle, “Uhm, yeah, apparently I am a professor now, so thank you, Professor John”.

“Of course, anything for my genius favorite student, so what do you need Professor Bae?”

“Ah right!” Irene exclaimed, “I have this patient, she has stage 3 of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and because Leukemia is your field of expertise, I want to ask you about a few things about her condition”

“Sure Professor Bae, ask away” Professor John replied.

And that night, Irene spends almost an hour talking with Professor John discussing the young novelist's condition, and hours In the dim glow of her desk lamp, researching and trying to find a solution to Wendy’s condition.

***

7 am.

Irene stepped out of her bedroom after getting ready for the day. The young professor was running late due to her impromptu late-night research the previous night.

When she texted Joy to apologize for being late, her best friend's reply was ‘Unnie, you don’t need to do rounds anymore, we have one patient, One,  besides, you've never been late before, so it’s okay. The hospital surely won’t mind. Take your time; we’ll take care of Wendy.”

Amused by her best friend's response, Irene shook her head. No matter how annoying or uncontrollable Joy could be, she always had Irene’s back. That's why Irene proudly considered Joy as her best friend and family.

“Yerim-ah, unnie going to the hospital, you need a ride?”.

“Yeah unnie, drop me off at the university, I have class at 8,” Yerim said while shuffling through the kitchen, the young Bae is preparing a sandwich for herself and Irene.

"But it’s already 7 am. Won’t you get into trouble for being late?”

“It’s fine, I don’t need to do rounds anymore right now, I only had one patient”

Yerim stopped and looked at her sister. “You do? Then why are you always in the hospital? You even stayed there for a full week!”

The young Bae then continue to pack the sandwiches and hand one to her sister.

“This patient is a VVIP apparently and I’ve been assigned to be responsible for her health and wellbeings,” Irene said while receiving the sandwich from Yerim.

“Her condition is worsening for the past week, and that’s why I need to stay there and closely monitor her condition” Irene explains while watching Yerim putting on her shoe.

“Thanks for the sandwich Squirt”

Yerim stands up before giving the young novelist a thumbs up, “No probs unnie, now let’s go”.

Irene nods, “Let’s go”

The young professor proceeds to close her apartment door and walks beside Yerim to the elevator.

“So is this VVIP patient of yours, is she a rich person? An important person?” Yerim asks curiously.

Irene presses the ground floor button on the lift and the door is slowly closing, “I can’t disclose any personal information of my patient Ms. Bae” Irene responds.

Yerim pouted, "Unnie! Come on, it’s not like I will tell someone about this! Trust your sister, will ya?"

“Okay, okay, well surprisingly she’s not rich nor an important person. Well I don’t know if being a successful novelist can be counted as an important person”.

“She’s humble, very humble even, and nice, and her cheeks are fluffy and her eye is big and sparkly” Irene become lost in her mind for a couple of moments describing the young novelist.

“Unnie, this is our floor” Yerim reminds her with an indescribable smile on her face

The young professor clears , “Sorry Squirt, let’s go”.

The duo walks through the parking lot to Irene's cars. The young professors press the button on her car key to open the car before opening the door for her sister.

Yerim smiled tenderly at her sister before getting into the car, and Irene closed the door. After circling the car to the driver's side, Irene fastened her seatbelt and started the car's engine.

“Ready?” Irene asked, facing her sister.

Yerim nodded, and the car immediately started moving.

“Soo this patient, is it the same patient that make you stressed out over dinner last night? And the moon too?”

After a couple of seconds of silence, Irene finally answers, “Yes”.

Yerim nods her head, “Cool, Cool”.

“Anyway, how’s your GPA this semester?” Irene asks her sister, trying to change the topic of the conversation.

“Well, my GPA is fine, I got 3.9 in almost all subjects” Yerim answers, understanding that her sister doesn’t want to talk about this ‘VVIP’ Anymore.

And the duo talked about anything for the rest of the ride.

***

8 am.

“Good morning everyone” Irene greets the room occupants as she enters the familiar doctor’s ready room.

“Morning, Unnie” Joy gre