A week dreaded by. The hell Minju had expected turned out not bad at all. Unlike the university hospital, things are a lot less chaotic. People are indeed nicer here as Yujin said. Patients live up to their label of being patient while everything seems to be falling into place.

But one person she couldn't quite get along with was Juyeon. Otherwise known as Eunseo.

The girl doesn't talk much. All she does is do whatever she's tasked to do as if she doesn't want to be here. She doesn't share her interests and is always dry with her response.

It was totally not what Minju had expected for a roommate.

The only thing she couldn't quite live with but is putting up with is Eunseo's rules for her as if they aren't sharing a room.

No music, no phone calls, no borrowing of things, no leaving things lying around and many others. She just didn't like talking to anyone.

Minju didn't have a say, being three years younger than the latter. She ought to respect, even though it isn't sought for.

While making her rounds in the child wards, she goes up to one of her patients—a six-year-old boy, Yejun, who's on the waiting list for a heart transplant. 

The brunette saw him folding paper cranes and smiled instantly when it reminded her of Yujin. "Do you know you can make a wish when you make a thousand of those?"

Yejun looked at her. "A wish?"

Minju nods. "Anything you wish for, it'll come true."

"Wishes don't come true."

"They do."

"What makes you so certain that they come true?"

"Because of a wish, I have someone who looks after me."

"You wished for your mom?"

Minju chuckled, pulling over the stool to sit. "I used to, but she gave me someone else and I could never be more thankful."

Yejun sighed. "I've always wished to get better but look where I am. I'm not getting any better. You adults only know how to tell lies."

"But the fact that you're here tells you that you're a step closer to getting better. You just have to remember to take your medicines and be patient," Minju said. "And by the time you've folded a thousand of these, you won't have to see me anymore."

"Why won't I see you anymore? You're a nice doctor."

"Because that means you're all better to go home," the girl snickered. "And I'm not a doctor."

"Who are you?"

"I'm Minju."

"Minju...noona?"

She gently patted his head. "You can call me that if you want."

He nodded and saw the small cup Minju slipped to him. "I don't want it." A cup filled with a few kinds of medicine—a cup he hated.

"Just these few."

Yejun sighed sharply. "Can I go see Taesung if I eat this?"

"Taesung?"

"Taesung ahjussi. He's the one who taught me how to fold these."

Minju nodded, earning a little smile from him as he prepared to eat those pills and liquids

—

The brunette navigated her way through the building as per Yejun's instructions since the boy had been here a while longer than her. They ended up leaving the main building to go to the next, the Psychiatric building.

The walls were flaunted by a pleasant peachy pink and several art pieces made by patients who have been here. Minju noticed that the corners of counters, chairs and tables were rounded and there wasn't a single bin around.

All there was were people and nurses roaming the corridors.

When Yejun spotted the guy sitting by the window of the lounge area, he patted Minju's hand and asked for her to bring him there.

"Taesung!"

The man who looked a little over his forties turned away from the window and smiled when he saw the boy. Unfamiliarity strikes with the presence of a new girl who is with him. "Who's this?"

"Minju noona. She'll be taking care of me for the next two months."

The brunette gave a small bow to greet the man who acknowledged her gesture with a little smile. While Yejun was talking to the guy, Minju sat on the chair and started to wonder how he knew him when they were in separate buildings.

Her curiosity was answered when the little boy said, "His name was on the donor's list but he's too old for me. So I told him we could be friends instead." Yejun leaned closer to Minju and whispered, "He was sad that he couldn't help me."

The brunette smiled softly but the organ Yejun needed was far too vital for a donor who looked healthy.

As the minute passed, Yejun found other kids who made this lounge their safe space and went to play. The alleged Taesung came back to his seat with two cups of coffee in his hands, handing one to Minju. "Don't worry. The coffee here is better than the main building," he said. "That's because I made it. The grounds of arabica that flew straight from its plantation fell right into my hands. Grind them with power and this is what you get."

"You made it?"

"No, it's instant," he chuckled, sparkle finding his eyes. "But it's still better."

Minju found familiarity with his antics and took a small sip of the steaming beverage. As presented, it was much better than diluted, over-sweetened coffee. "Thank you."

He smiles a gentle smile. "What brings you here? Resident in cardiology? Although you look a little too young to be one. But you may have your talents to skip years."

"Internship," Minju answered.

"Ah, med school?" He earned a nod. "He must be a handful for you then. Always not eating his medicines and finding ways to bribe his nurses to give him what he wants."

"He's smart."

"He is," Taesung said. "And he knows things. He once told me he didn't want to get better because he knew the truth. That someone has to die for him to live."

Minju sighed, knowing an unfortunate accident was all he could hope for.

"But I always tell him that whoever had a heart to spare will be a kind soul who will be looking after him from up there. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have a second chance in life."

The girl nodded slowly, watching Yejun closely as the paper cup in her hands warmed her up.

"He reminds me a lot of my daughter. She used to be just like him. Kids who know more than they should at that age."

"You have a daughter?"

Taesung nods, pulling out his hospital pass and showing a picture the size of an ID stuck to the back of it. "She has my eyes, doesn't she?"

Minju examined the photo closely, its colours were fading slowly with time. But anyone could tell those huge eyes of hers came from him. "She does."

Smiling gently, he puts the card in front of him. "I remember her being the greatest comforter. She's extremely talkative. Started talking when she was barely a year old." He chuckled endearingly. "She talked before she could walk."

Minju smiled warmly, his words bringing her through his story.

"She could say something about every little thing. Sometimes I do wonder if she remembers her past life to know that many things," he said. "But she's a child every parent wants to have. She doesn't cause trouble, knows when she's in the wrong and owns up to it. She doesn't lie, she understands things an adult finds difficult to accept."

"She sounds lovely." His every word only brought Yujin to her mind.

He nodded. "She was a perfect kid who didn't deserve a father like me." He sighed deeply, leaning back into the chair and settling his coffee cup on the table next to him. "Who would want a father who put his dreams before his family?"

Minju didn't know the right thing to say. All she could do was listen, taking careful precautions.

"I used to tell her that by folding a thousand paper cranes, she could make a wish. The same goes for every candle she blows." He watched Yejun dragging his wooden car across the floor. "If only wishes came true, the only thing I'd wish for is to see her again." He turned to Minju.

She could see the longing in his eyes but didn't ask more, afraid it would bring up memories that might be sensitive.

"Whatever you do, don't find a husband like me," he said. "Or are you...I'm not caught up with the times. Been here for as long as I can remember. Do you have a boyfriend, a girlfriend or say, a partner?" He queried. "Or are you already married—I'm keeping my options open."

Minju chuckled at the way he sounded just like her dad. "I have a girlfriend."

"Does she treat you well?"

The brunette nodded. "With every opportunity she gets."

"That's all you need," he said and heard buzzing coming from Minju's phone. "Duty calls."

"I need to get him back." She stood from the chair. "I'll definitely be back for the coffee." Minju smiled, giving him a slight bow before going to get Yejun.

—

Behind the glass windows of an operating theatre stood interns who were quietly observing the ongoing bypass surgery they would have a chance to assist in.

Minju took down necessary notes and heard a whisper from Gyuri, "I heard you've met Taesung."

"You know him too?"

"The whole department knows him." The older girl folded her arms. "He's one of our long-term patients. Been here since I was in med school."

The brunette nodded slowly, hesitating to ask, "What's he here for? He seems perfectly fine."

"Psychiatric patients do that. They seem perfectly fine until an unplanned event triggers them," Gyuri said. "But so far, he hasn't tried to do anything. Rumour has it, he'll be discharged soon." When she saw the curiosity behind Minju's eyes, she said, "Depression and alcoholism. When they first found him, he OD'ed."

"On?"

"What else? Anything he can get his hands on." Gyuri sighed. "But he's been clean for the past few years. So, that's a good sign."

—

Reaching the end of the lunch line, Minju followed her mentor towards a seat, not expecting her to take the table where Eunseo sat alone.

"Mind if we join you?" Gyuri asked after sitting, leaving the tall girl no choice.

Eunseo's gaze shifted to Minju, watching her sit next to the girl. She let out a soft sigh, taking off her earpiece and bundling them together.

Silence took over them before Gyuri decided to ask, "Are you always this quiet?"

Eunseo looked at her and back at her food, fingers lightly gripping her utensils. "What do you want to know? I'm here because my family wanted me to become a doctor and I have no dream whatsoever, yet I took a gap year trying to think if I really had a dream," she said coldly. 

"Interests?"

"None."

"You draw," Minju said, earning her attention. "You doodle in your sketchbook during lectures."

"I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"She does?" Gyuri questioned. "I thought she—" She got cut off when Eunseo stood up with the tray and left the table.

The two girls watched her walk out of the cafeteria, lost by her actions.

Gyuri frowned slightly. "What's wrong with her?"

—

"There's something wrong with her," Minju said