The ceiling lights reflected off the white plastered walls into my eyes, blinding me. I started to panic, I was frightened, my throat tightened and I could barely whisper “Mommy”. I started to run down the empty hospital corridor, unknowingly and carelessly flinging myself in any random direction in search of Mommy or in fact, of any other human being. Panting and close to tears I ran into the last room at the end of the corridor and collapsed onto the floor.

“Hello there little girl”, a soft voice sang from across the room. My head jerked and I looked up to find a young woman lying in the furthest bed away from me near the window, smiling in my direction.

“Come here”, she called softly, obediently I stood up and walked to the side of her bed. Now that I was closer I could see that she was extremely beautiful with long shiny black hair, pale white skin, large round eyes and willowy features, she was at the peak of her youth. I felt compelled towards her, all thoughts of finding Mommy had vanished, this stranger… this woman… I was very intrigued by her. I stared deeply into her warm brown eyes and felt a sense of safety. Instinctively the side of my lips turned upwards and the woman patted my head affectionately. As she drew her hand out from under the covers I noticed she was attached to a drip. Was this beautiful woman sick? I frowned and shuffled away from the bed slightly. Sensing my discomfort the woman asked me still smiling, “Little girl, what’s your name?”

“Yu Hae Ra”, I answered back, sounding each syllable confidently, returning to my original place on the side of the bed.

“Such a beautiful name! It suits you well”, the woman pinched the side of my face lightly. I beamed at her compliment and giggled as she asked me brightly, “Hae Ra, can I ask you to do me a favour?” Absolutely smitten by the woman, I bobbed my head in agreement. “See that top drawer over there?” she pointed to a small set of drawers across the room, “Inside should be some paper and a pen, could you get it for me please?” The woman’s eyes hardened slightly and I could tell that this, for some reason, was very important to her so I ran across the room as fast as my 5 year-old legs could carry me. Sure enough there I found a pad of light blue paper decorated with the hospital golden lion logo and a pen. I grabbed them both and ran back to my station next to the woman’s bed, offering her the pen and paper with both hands. “Thankyou Hae Ra, thankyou”, the woman said as she let out a sigh of relief and began to write.

I watched fascinated as her hand grasped the pen so gently and lightly and yet her handwriting appeared fluid and strong with purpose. The woman was absorbed fully in her writing, never pausing to think over the structure of a sentence or the spelling over a word. I was amazed by her dedication and waited patiently for her to finish. When she finally did finish writing what seemed to be a letter, she gave me the pen as she folded the paper neatly in half and placed it on the dressing table on the other side of the bed, taking the pen back she set it on top. Relieved she looked back at me and grinned, “Thankyou very much Hae Ra… but could you do me one more favour?”

“Yes, of course!” I jumped up excitedly. I wanted to help this woman so much but I don’t know why. It felt like I was the only one who could help her and yet even if I didn’t want to, I couldn’t say no to her.

“Okay, well I want to show you something but I’m going to need you to help me get up”, she motioned towards the drip stand. Understanding what she meant, I ran to the other side of the bed and held her hand as she turned to the side and slid off the hard bed. She then walked, but it seemed more like floated, towards the large hospital window with me waddling behind closely, pushing the drip stand. For the first time I noticed something next to the window, the woman was walking towards it. From behind the woman I couldn’t tell what it was but then she motioned with her small hand for me to come closer. Tip toeing slowly, I came closer and noticed that it was a cot, not just an ordinary cot though but the incubator kind where premature babies were kept. Standing on my toes I peeked over the side and saw a baby, a tiny baby hidden under a sea of blankets. It looked frail, it sounded frail and with each feathery breath it took the blankets moved lightly in sync.

Both the woman and I were silent for a long time, both staring at the baby, admiring its ability to sleep so peacefully. “Isn’t he just beautiful?” the woman broke the silence. I nodded wholeheartedly, still in silence as the woman gave a motherly smile. She found my hand and squeezed it, “He has a beautiful name too, just like you… Shin Dong Ho. His father gave it to him you know?” I didn’t have time to answer because all of a sudden the baby named Dong Ho started to shiver and cry as coughs shook his body violently. His feathery breaths became gasps for air and his eyes flew open, his tiny eyes opening for what seemed like the first time as he stared at me. Surprised, I fell backwards and my eyes widened in horror as the woman showed no reaction to Dong Ho’s sudden sickness. Wasn’t she the mother of Dong Ho, why wasn’t she doing anything? I stared intently back up at the woman’s face, no hint of shock, understanding or even disgust registered on her face. Instead, she looked at me questioningly.

After a moment, the woman turned back to the cot, opened it calmly and with gentle hands, picked Dong Ho up. I watched nervously as she moved naturally and gracefully, holding Dong Ho securely in her arms. At his mother's touch, Dong Ho calmed down slightly however he still seemed to have trouble breathing; his short sharp wheezes the only sound in the room. Not taking her eyes off Dong Ho, the woman moved back to her bed, I ran to push the drip stand to keep up with her. Swiftly, she climbed back onto the bed, lying on her back; she laid Dong Ho across her chest. Taking my position next to the bed once again I could see that Dong Ho had become silent again, sleeping once again he moved up and down with every breath the woman took. It was as though the mother's breath acted as a support to keep her own son breathing. Fascinated by their connection, I didn't notice until she nudged my cheek with her which held 2 necklaces in front of me. There weren't exactly necklaces but in fact couple rings on chains, almost like wedding rings. Just like the woman, the rings were beautiful, silver and smooth; they were shaped like miniature crowns decorated with strong sparkling stones.

“Here take one. Go on... Think of it as a return for your favors.” Before I could politely reject her offer or even accept it, the woman looped the smaller of the necklaces over my head, beaming shyly, I looked down to see the ring bouncing off my chest. Adorned with a round of diamonds, it was smaller and more detailed than the other ring the woman still held onto. “See! It looks good on you! A beautiful ring for a beautiful girl”, the woman commented proudly, “Now this one... is for Dong Ho.” She the larger necklace, looping it twice over Dong Ho’s tiny neck. Dong Ho’s ring was larger and was decorated with a round of black gems instead. Sleeping as peacefully as ever, he shifted slightly on his mother’s chest to comfortably accommodate the new accessory.

With a final sigh of relief the woman whispered looking up at me, “Thank you again Hae Ra for your help… but I think I’ll rest now for a while...” Silently nodding I gave the pair a last long look. So peacefully they laid together on the plain hospital bed, like an angel and a cherub, a young mother and a newborn son. As the woman’s eyes began to close, just like Dong Ho’s, I slowly backed out of the room, back into the empty hallway grasping tightly onto my ring.