Chapter Text
Yi Young took another beating—not physical, but verbal, mental, emotional.
Of course, it was
her
again. That bitch.
That OB-GYN fellow, Myung Eun Won.
It was like she’d put an invisible target on Yi Young’s back, taking every opportunity to tear her down. She didn’t get up in the morning to treat patients. No, she got up to practise some kind of sadistic sport, with Yi Young as her favourite game board. Every shift felt like a trap, and Eun Won always had the upper hand.
The last time she wanted to run away and now she wanted to as well. The only things stopping her were of course her debt and then her sister. Yi Young knew she was stubborn and she was the bane of existence to her sister, but a tiny part of her wanted to repay her sister in a way. For raising her after their mother died. Somehow she wanted her older sister to be proud of her.
She checked the time and sighed. Her break was almost up. Another coffee, gone. It was dark and cold out here on the hospital rooftop where she was at. It was late or early depending on the perspective. It was 2 am. Nobody else was here. Only her. It was good to stay away from everyone sometimes. To clear her head before another emergency happens. She had just assisted three deliveries and one surgery that took almost five hours during the day. The tiredness seeped into her bones and she was barely functioning but there were still hours to go until her duty ended.
She was lost in the void of her thoughts until she heard a sound behind her. She turned around to see Nam Kyung. Great. Not now. She didn’t want to deal with her right now to be honest. She’d keep yapping about them being rivals in high school or something equally irrelevant, but she couldn’t even recall that. Most of the time, she stayed in her own head. Worrying about herself. Trying to survive.
She stood up and looked on as Nam Kyung went the opposite side. It didn’t seem like she had seen her when she entered. Yi Young was about to greet her, out of habit more than desire but then Nam Kyung screamed. Yi Young froze, suddenly not knowing what to do. Nam Kyung didn’t seem to notice that another person was on the rooftop. She sat down again as she heard her scream again then silence which heaved into broken sobs. Yi Young remained and just listened on.
She was tired and she didn’t care if she’s out there. She’s got her own struggles too…
But something inside her shifted. A heaviness pressed deeper in her chest. It seemed to have grown as Nam Kyung continued. For every sob was a reflection of what they both share. First year of residency was only the first battle, she very well knew that after all she was the residency repeater.
She decided not to interrupt her and sat still. She just listened on. It was short-lived though because her alarm rang. Her 5-minute reminder that break was almost over.
“Who’s there?” Nam Kyung had heard the alarm and followed the sound of it. She froze when she saw it was Yi Young. Her tear-strained face flushed redder. “How long have you been there?”
Yi Young, sighed, looked away and didn’t answer directly. “Long enough.”
“Don’t pity me,” Nam Kyung replied sniffing, and wiping her face.
Yi Young couldn’t help but scoff. “Do you think I’m in shape to pity anyone?”
“Don’t tell anyone about this.”
“This isn’t something to tell anyone about. It’s none of my concern.”
“You’re too cold.”
Yi Young shrugged.
Silence again.
It always came down to this between them. Was it awkwardness? Resentment? They were just colleagues after all and Yi Young usually put people at arm’s length. Why care now? She’s gone after the year anyway, as soon as she paid off her debt. There was no point in getting attached.
“So, uh, I have to go.”
Nam Kyung blinked at her a few times. Was she surprised? It was hard to tell. She couldn’t read her face now. “Of course.”
Yi Young looked around in awkwardness now. She gave a slight shiver as the temperature continued to drop.
She stood.
Then, without thinking, she gave Nam Kyung a gentle pat on the shoulder.
She wasn’t sure why she did that.