Tomorrow morning, as I got opened my eyes at my place by noticing my alarm sound, I felt my whole body ache and my throat was itchy and dry. I guess I've caught a cold since I took a cold shower yesterday...

After dragging myself out of bed forcefully, I walked straight to the bathroom, splashed water on my face, took some medicines from the cabinet, and gulped down some water from the bottle on my bedside table.

I stepped out of the bedroom, and when my gaze fell on my dark, empty living room, I felt a sudden rush of loneliness. I wished my mom and sister were with me here. 

Since they live in another city, which is three hours away, meeting them oftentimes is hard...

I let out a sigh and got ready for work, then headed out of my apartment. 

As I got to the hospital and entered my room, the head nurse, Miss Choi, walked in with some files in her hands. "Good morning, Dr. Seo, " she said.

+"Good morning. How can I help you?"

-"The president assigned you to take care of more patients from now on since you've done well up to now."

+"Really? How many are they?!"

She placed the files on my desk and then replied, " Six more. Well, good luck..."

"Thank you." I said, and she left the room after.

I took out a mask from the drawer and put it on my face to avoid spreading my cold as I wanted to see Myung. 

I walked down the hallway and noticed that a young boy dressed in all luxury brands was arguing with the PICU's guard. When I got closer, I instantly realised that he must be Myung's friend, who everyone was talking about!

So I cut into their argument and said, "I'm his doctor." Then I stepped towards him, "May I ask who you are?"

He took a glance at me with a puzzled face and then answered, "I'm Kim Haru. Are you his doctor?"

After I introduced myself to him, we walked into my office so we could have a talk. 

As we sat down, I asked, "Can I ask what was wrong earlier?"

He was completely pissed and said, "They didn't let me in! They mentioned that his new doctor restricted visits!"

I answered calmly, "Yes, I did since my patient's condition is serious, and we should act cautiously. No one is an exception."

He raised an eyebrow and muttered in a low tone, which I barely heard it, "My"...

Then he said with a clear voice, "I'm aware of that. But I've been careful up to now... I just want to..."

I snapped at him, "Mr. Kim!... Bad things happen out of the blue! I can't take that risk!... If you're really worried about Myung, you should put him first and think about what is best for him, not yourself."

He clenched his fists and frowned frustratingly. "First it was 'MY PATIENT', and now it's 'MYUNG'!..." 

He smirked and said, "Dr. Seo, are you that close to all of the patients to call them like that?! What do you know about him? You can't know him better than me."

I flinched at his comment, and my eyes widened in shock. I wondered, "What's going on with him? Why is he acting aggressively?... However, I won't react to his nonsense..."

I replied, "I still got a lot to learn, which is why I wanted to talk to you about Myung."

He laughed anxiously, "Why would I tell you?"

"To help him heal sooner... Don't you want him to recover?" I said.

Kim Haru looked at the floor nervously and said, "Of course I want him to get out of here." 

I asked, "Then, by any chance, do you know why Myung became like this?"

"It's because of me," he murmured. 

"Pardon me?!" I said as I was taken aback. 

Kim Haru looked up at me, his face full of regret. "I'm the reason why all of this happened," he said.

As I opened my mouth to ask him more, his phone rang. After he ended his call, he got up and said, "I'm sorry, but I should leave now." 

I sprang up and asked nervously, "Mr. Kim!... What did you mean by that? At least explain a bit before leaving... What's going on between you two?"

He walked to the door, holding the door's handle, "We were lovers. So do not dare to make a move on him! Stay moral, doc!" He then opened the door and added before leaving, "See you again." 

I stood frozen at my place by what he had just told me as the door got closed...

Completely shocked by the unexpected news and pissed off by his attitude...

"Lovers, you say?..."...

"That boy and Myung?!..."...

"Making a move?! Me?"...

I was in my own thoughts when suddenly Nurse Joe, the president's daughter, came to my office along with one of my new patients...

~

Visiting new patients and doing therapy sessions took up all my day. 

I was incredibly tired since I was sick and also mentally exhausted by what had happened today. 

Before leaving the hospital, I walked inside Myung's room, but he was asleep so peacefully that I was unable to wake him up. 

I caressed his hair away from his face lightly and stared at him blankly for a bit.

"What has he done to you?" I thought as I had mixed feelings about the whole thing...

Then I left after a few minutes and returned home right away. 

When I got home, I was still confused, and my mind was racing. I had a lot of questions but no answers. 

I flopped down on my bed, pressed my face against the pillow, and then nodded off for a while until I heard my phone's ringtone.

As I answered the call, I heard my mom's voice, "Dantae, where are you?..." 

+"hm~ I'm at home..."

- "What? Then when are you coming?"

+"What do you mean, mom?!"

-"Tomorrow is your father's memorial anniversary. Have you forgotten?..."

I sat up on my bed and glanced at my watch, which showed 9 p.m. 

+"I'm sorry!... I overslept! I'll get ready now!"

-" (sighed) I'll still awake until you come... Don't drive hastily! Okay? Be careful on your way..."

+"Okay, bye for now."

I let out a sigh, frustrated, then called to take two days off since I had completely forgotten. 

My body felt hotter than usual, probably caused by a fever, so I took a quick shower. Then I packed a few clothes and necessary things, and walked to my car, starting the engine to drive away.

As soon as I arrived at my mom's house, it was already near 1 A.M., so we slept right away to get up early to visit the cemetery.

~

Tomorrow evening, when the anniversary event comes to an end, we sit down in the living room. My mom cut fruit for us to eat as my sister was talking excitedly about passing the first stage of the new audition for a famous company. 

My mom then scolded her, "Dami! Stop talking! And eat a bit!"

Dami complained, "I don't want to! I'll get fat!"

My mom sighed and said to me, "Dantae, tell her something that she will get sick like this! You're a doctor! "

I laughed and said, "Mom is right! You need enough nutrition to grow well... instead you can exercise..." 

Dami pouted her lips and then silently bit into an apple slice... 

I felt my throat's condition had worsened as I coughed unconsciously the whole day.

"Dante, your face seems really pale... Don't you need to go to the hospital?" My mom asked worriedly. 

"I'm okay~... " I replied.

-"You've been getting sick every year around this time of the year, and I know why... Dantae... What happened to your father wasn't your fault... So stop blaming yourself..." 

+"I don't wanna talk about it, mom." I clenched my fists slightly as those sorrowful memories came back to me. 

~

When I was 15-years-old my dad died caused by an accident. The reason behind it was me...

I wasn't really a docile child at first...

I've done so many stupid things...

I was always looking for trouble, fights, etc. And my dad used to try to protect me at any cost...

That day I skipped school with one of my friends and we had fun until late at night without answering my parents' calls...

We fooled around for the whole day, going to a karaoke room, playing arcades, and even watching a movie... 

Since my parents were worried about me after school informed them that I didn't attend in the classes, not knowing what happened to me since I was missing for a whole day, they started to search for me in our neighbourhood worriedly...

That was when my dad got hit by a car in a street, and after staying in a coma for a week, he passed away...

So how is that not my fault?...

I was never able to apologize for my mistake...

I will never forget the pain of losing my father and knowing that it was my fault...

I'll carry this guilt until the day I die...

After that incident, I decided not to live like that anymore...

Be a responsible son to my mom, and protect my family in any possible way...

So I started to focus on studying and working part-time jobs at the same time up to this point...

In the end, my life has changed completely...

~

As we chatted about different things, my phone rang nonstop. When I picked it up, one of the nurses said, "Doctor Seo, you need to come to the hospital right now." 

I asked nervously, "What's wrong?"

-"Your patient, Park Myung, has been acting strangely since last night. He once again refused to eat or drink anything... and he tried to hurt himself a few times... So we had to keep him calm by injecting sedatives..."

+"Haven't you noticed why?!"

-"We don't know... The only thing he said now was that he wanted to see you, so I called right away..."

I got shivers down my spine as I was bewildered, then I said, "I'm out of town, so it'll take a while, but tell him that I'm coming back right now..."

After I hung up, my mom asked, "What's wrong?" 

I stood up and then packed my things hurriedly. "Mom, I should go... Sorry... Something came up at the hospital..."

~

As I got back to the hospital, it was 11 P.M.

I rushed to the PICU hastily and entered Myung's room right away. I found him in the corner of the room, sitting and hugging his knees as he has leaned his forehead on them. 

I called his name calmly, "Myung." 

He lifted his head up as tears welled in his eyes, "Where were you?"

I was taken aback by his question. I crouched down in front of him to be at the same eye level and said, "I apologize for getting late... What did you wanna say to me?"

He asked furiously, "Have you given up on me already?!..." 

"What?..." I asked, dazed.

Myung raised his voice as he was trembling in anger, "I'M ASKING YOU IF YOU'VE GIVEN UP ON ME?!... YOU TOLD ME THAT YOU'LL COME TO SEE ME, BUT YOU DIDN'T!!!... I KNEW IT THAT YOU WERE NO DIFFERENT FROM OTHERS!!!!..." 

I replied as I was shocked by his sudden change of behaviour and reaction, " No! No! Of course not!!!.... I told you that I'd..." I coughed again as my throat ached terribly. 

He covered his ears with his hands. "I DON'T WANNA TO HEAR YOUR EXCUSES!" 

I grasped his wrist and pulled him into my arms, holding him tightly as he struggled to get out of my grasp by hitting me. 

Then I said firmly, "I went to my father's death anniversary!!!... (cough)... I'm not making excuses!!... Why would I give up on you?... (cough)... I'm not leaving you alone..."

His shoulders sagged as he stopped struggling after hearing what I said. However, he was still breathing heavily from his frustration, trying to suppress himself again.

I said, "Don't hold back your emotions... It's okay to pour them out... You can do it in front of me..." and patted his back lightly.

Myung shivered in my embrace, whining, "I... Hate~... Waiting~... Don't make me wait, Haru~..."

Has he just said, "Haru?!"... 

The boy I saw yesterday morning...

The boy who used to be Myung's lover...

An irritation came over me unconsciously...