"It all happened in a flash, Young Saeng hyung wasn't able to stop him"

Seeing the usually cheerful Hyung Jun choked up with tears, Kyu Jong placed an arm over him and
patted him on the shoulder. Jung Min too, offered his support by giving his hand a light squeeze.

Both of the guys had rushed over to the hospital immediately after receiving a call from a distressed Hyung Jun.

It was only then that they learnt that the criminal named Viper had a personal grudge against Young Saeng,
and he was the mastermind behind the incidents that happened to Hae Yeon.

Viper had managed to grab a knife in the midst of the chaos and stabbed him hard.

"I was reaching them, if only I was a little faster…"

"It's not your fault"

"The only consolation now is that Viper's dead. Our men fired at him after he hurt Hyung"

"You did your best. Hyung will be alright"

They sat in silence outside the operating theatre after that, each praying for the smooth surgery
and recovery of one of their best friends.

After what seemed like forever, it was close to daybreak when Young Saeng was finally wheeled 
out of the operating theatre and transferred into the intensive care unit.

"Hae Yeon ah..."

Kyu Jong caught hold of his cousin who was on the verge of collapsing as she exited the ward,
leading her towards a bench to take a seat.

"Your shift has ended. Take tomorrow off, the day after too if it's needed"

Hyun Joong, who had just stepped out moments after Hae Yeon, passed the order after seeing the state she was in.

He had seen her trembling hands in the operating theatre, and how she fought to keep her tears in and
focused on her work even when Young Saeng's blood pressure and heart rate dipped to dangerous levels. 

The knife had punctured his lung and they had to fight against time to fix the wound to save him.

"Hyung, how is he? Will he be alright?"

"He's still not out of danger yet. But he'll pull through. It'll take a few days before he regains consciousness.
We've sedated him to allow his wounds to heal better"

"I really hope he'll be fine"

"You did well. It's ok to cry now, don't hold it back"

Hyun Joong said to Hae Yeon, who was now clinging onto Kyu Jong's arm for support.

He was amazed by how she had managed to calm herself down and persisted through the entire
mind wrenching operation which even he had difficulty coping with.

Hae Yeon's tears began flowing almost immediately upon hearing those words.
Kyu Jong frantically pulled her into his chest and began patting her back to calm her down.

"Let's go home. Jung Min ah, you too give Hyung Jun a lift home"

"Oppa, I want to stay with him..."

"We'll come back again later in the afternoon after you get some rest"

"But what if -"

"Do you not have faith in him or the rest of your colleagues?"

Having failed in his attempt to get his cousin moving, Kyu Jong looked at Hyun Joong who had
intervened to help and silently mouthed his thanks.

"No, it's not that…"

Hae Yeon whispered her reply, lowering her face at the same time to avoid Hyun Joong's glare.

"Go get some rest. This is an order from your team lead"

---

"Andwae!!"

Hae Yeon awoke from her sleep with a scream which sent Kyu Jong and Ye Won scrambling into her room.

Trembling and unable to control her tears, she buried her face into Kyu Jong who was now seated on her bed
and holding on to her.

"Hae Yeon ah! It's ok, I'm here"

"S-Saengie… he… I couldn't save him"

"You did everything you could and saved him"

"…"

"He's doing fine, I just got an update from the hospital. Don't worry, it's just a bad dream"

Removing herself from Kyu Jong's embrace, Hae Yeon began to come to her senses as she looked around
and calmed down gradually.

"Take your time to wash up. Ye Won will heat up the food and we'll head back to the hospital
after you have your meal"

"But I -"

"How are you going to take care of him if you can't look after yourself?
I'm not letting you step out of the house unless you finish a full meal"

Knowing that her cousin totally meant his words, she dragged herself into the bathroom to get ready for the day.
She had to pull herself together to be there for Young Saeng.

The image of Young Saeng being brought into the hospital unconscious with a gapping wound and almost
losing him in the operating theatre appeared again as she showered, and she allowed herself to cry her pained
heart out at the memory.

Still feeling weak after the bath, she sat herself at the dining table in front of Kyu Jong and Ye Won whose faces
were full of concern.

She made a mental note to control her emotions and not worry them, but tears began trickling down her eyes
again as soon as she tucked into the warm bowl of porridge.

"I'm sorry. Thank you…"

When she finally made it back to the hospital, the couple kindly left her alone in the ward and told her to
give them a call when she was ready to leave.

After they were left alone, Hae Yeon hesitated before carefully holding on to Young Saeng's hand.

She was used to the sight of patients being hooked up to machines, but it was different this time with her
boyfriend lying in there unconscious.

There was so much she wanted to hear from Young Saeng himself, even though she had heard a little from Kyu Jong.

Why didn't he tell her about having to work for a night operation?
Why did he always have to put himself in danger? How did he end up with such a bad injury? 
Will he quit being a detective if she begged him to?

She wanted very much to give him a piece of her mind for not taking care of himself and worrying everyone.
More than anything else, she wished she was able to take away the pain from his injury.

Little by little, she lost her composure and soon began fearing for the worst.

Hae Yeon's POV
He's still in a critical condition. What if he doesn't wake up?
His voice, his smile, his teasing, everything he has done for me…
I don't know… what am I supposed to do?

"Saengie ah, can you hear me? I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier. Can you please wake up now?"

...................................................................................................................................................................

have you ever woken up crying from your dream?
i just did the other day and though it was really horrible (was crying for a good few minutes)
i felt better after that. it probably released a lot of the tension that was within me :X
anyways, how are you liking the progress of the story? :)