Wanting to Live

Choi Seunghyun didn't imagine his life ending that way. He was only 19, in the beginning of his adulthood, but was already covered in blood, lying half-unconscious on the battlefield. A North Korean soldier shot him, while he was trying to aim the Commander of the enemy army.

He didn't want to die. He was too young. He wanted to live enough to feel the freedom and joy of being a young man. He didn't want to fight. He didn't want to leave his mother in Boryeong alone. No, he didn't want any of that. Sadly, destiny had other plans for him.

And now he was laying there, watching as the enemy retreats and the gunfire stops slowly.

Seunghyun was only 19 and yet, in the end, he closed eyes, waiting for Death to come, thinking only about his mother.

The last thing he felt, before drifting to sleep, were two hands gripping his, pulling him to an unknown direction.

As the man dragged the unconscious boy in the hidden hospital, after 2 hours of traveling, he was welcomed by a young nurse.

"Take care of him, I don't know how he even survived." He helped her place him on a bed and ran to the truck for the received medical supplies.

She looked at him and gasped. He was covered in blood. She couldn't recognize which one was his and which was not, he was painted with blood.

After finding the wound, she quickly looked around for a doctor. Today was a full house, there weren't any doctors available at this time, everyone was busy.

She stood there, thinking of what to do.

"Unnie! What should I do?" She yelled at the nurse standing on the opposite end of the room, restraining a screaming man, while the doctor cut open his leg.

"Chung Hei-ssi! You saw this procedure yesterday, take it out!" The doctor yelled, continuing the painful treatment.

The young nurse, known now as Baek Chung Hei, looked at Seunghyun and frowned. She tied his hands  and legs to the bed, took off his shirt and examined his wound more closely. The bullet has hit his rib, dulling the hit. It didn't seem like there were any organs hurt. She only had to take out the bullet, stitch him up and clean the wound.

It was an easy job.

Until he woke up, or so she thought.

"Wha-..." He started, but only continued with a sharp shout in pain. "Sir!" She had a little panic attack, but quickly endured it. "Please, stay still! You are in a hospital near Goryeong. You have a bullet in your chest, which I have to pull out. Please, don't move for a moment." They looked at each other, both feeling scared.

He felt his eyes filling with tears as he nodded in response. She poured alcohol and pushed her tweezers in him, trying to locate the bullet. He screamed in pain, but kept his body in place.

"Look at me!" She said at him, drawing his attention to her. "What's your name?" She asked, pushing her hand deeper in him.

He gulped and struggled to speak. "C-Choi S-Seunghyun." He felt pressure in his throat, making him want to throw up. The pain was unbearable.

She nodded and kept her eyes on him. "My name is Baek Chung Hei." She looked at the wound again. "Where are you from?" She asked again, grabbing more disinfectant from the bedside table. He struggled again. "B-Boryeong." She smiled. "I'm from Cheongyang-gun, we are neighbors." She finally took out the bullet and tossed it on the table.

"The worst is over, Seunghyun-ssi. Now I'll stitch you up. It will hurt less." She smiled, wiping the sweat from his face. "You are a hero." She chuckled softly and went to get a needle and some string.

She stitched his wound in a short time and was already cleaning him with a wet towel. "You can't move around the first one or two days and after 2 weeks, you are good to go." She smiled.

He stared at her, not making a sound. She raised a brow and touched his forehead. "Are you okay?" She asked, pressing the wet cloth to his cheeks. He nodded slowly and continued to look at her.

Never in his life, he had seen such a beauty. The light in her eyes struck him in the darkest depths of his mind, blinded by the bloody color of war.

Moments after, he collapsed in her arms, the fever taking over his body.