Ae-Cha gave another spoonful of medicine to her sickly mother. The doctor had told her that the recommended dose was 3 times daily, but it didn’t come cheap. They weren't rich, so they couldn’t afford as much as they needed. They lived poor, barely making it as it was with her older brother out and about trying to make as much money as he could and her younger brother being picked on in school for his tattered clothes.
A long time ago, they could afford the wealthy lifestyle and the expenses that came with it, but the passing of their father had taken a huge toll and it wouldn’t be long before the house was repossessed and they had nowhere to go. That was one of the main things Ae-Cha worried about on a day to day basis. She'd have to figure out something and figure it out soon.
"Thanks… sweetie.", her mother said in between fits of coughs.
Ae-Cha held back her tears as she saw how much medicine was left in the bottle. "..You're welcome..", she responded before covering her mother up in a thicker blanket. She would have to ask her boss for overtime if Jin didn’t come up with the money soon. He'd always told her not to work herself too hard and that he'd take care of everything, but things just weren't going as planned. She believed in her older brother, she really did, but sometimes you were the person that had to go out there and do something.
Just as she began walking into the kitchen, the home phone rang. It was more than likely from Jin. She walked over to it. "Hello?", she answered. Just a few words, only a few had her grabbing her purse and leaving the house quietly, yet in a hurry. She ran as fast as she could to the nearest hospital, bursting through the doors, earning a few stares. She rushed up to the nurses podium in worry.
"L-Lee Jin."
The nurse looked at her in pity before giving her his room number and a visitor's pass. When Ae-Cha made it to room 135, she quietly knocked before opening the door. Apon walking in, she saw her brother laying down in a bed of white, staring at the ceiling. He had slight bruises and cuts on his face, but he was breathing. She let out a breath of relief before walking up to him, but he didn’t look at her. "..Are you alright?", she questioned.
Jin heavily sighed. "Yeah.", he said, anger lacing his voice. Ae-Cha gave him a gentle smile before sitting on the edge of his bed. "You can talk to me." A few more moments of silence went by before he finally decided to speak up. "..I went to go pick up the money, but they jumped me.", he said, bringing shock to Ae-Cha's face. "..Broke a few ribs, cut me up real good and then dropped me outside of this hospital here."
He grabbed onto his side and closed his eyes in pain as he began sitting up. "No, Jin. Lay down." He glared at her before replying. "I'm not helpless, you know." The tone he'd used was harsh, but she understood he was just upset about the whole situation, not her. She suddenly got a sense of unease. "..It's nothing illegal.." Jin looked at her, his expression unchanging. "Jin. It's nothing illegal, right?", she questioned once more.
Before she got her answer, the doors were open to nurses and a doctor. "Ms. Lee Ae-Cha?" She nodded at the mention of her name. "I'll need you to go back into the waiting room. I'm taking him back in for an x-ray and the nurses will talk to you about your insurance plan." Jin and Ae-Cha exchanged glances before she obliged to the doctor's wishes.
She was escorted to the waiting room by the two nurses, the worst case scenarios pulsing through her brain. "Is he going to be okay?", she questioned them, fearing the inevitable. "Yes.", one of the nurses started. "You don’t have to worry about his health, but.." Ae-Cha grew worried as she trailed off. "But..?" The nurses exchanged looks. "Without an insurance plan, the bill is..." Ae-Cha hesitantly nodded at the trailing off of their sentence. "We're willing to work with you."
"..How much is it?"
She swore money was the root of all trouble as it was the root of all evil. The cost was clearly going to be out of their range. "53,000 if rounded up, but you can pay it in installments.", they responded. Ae-Cha's eyes widened at the ridiculous number. "53… w-well, how much would the installments be?"
"As low as 800 monthly, that way it could be paid off within the span of 5 to 6 years."
On the sidelines, a man sat in a chair, flipping through a magazine as he overheard the conversation in front of him. 53,000? Was that all? That would be nothing but chump change to him. He could pay that off right now if he wanted to. He looked over to the girl who wore a panicked expression. It wasn’t the case for everyone, though, was it?
Ae-Cha nodded. "Okay..", she said. Life was really beating down on her. She was going to have to get an extra job. She was going to have to do something. The nurses smiled at her before reassuring her that they would go check on her brother and give her the news. They then bowed to her before leaving. Ae-Cha stared wide-eyed at the ground. 53,000..
"I'll give you the money.", she heard someone say.
She quickly snapped her head around to face a man of clear skin and dark hair with his legs crossed, starring at her. He had to be joking, right? "Huh?" The man smiled at her shocked expression. People didn’t believe in generosity anymore, did they? Well, it was probably a good thing, though because he wasn’t going to do it for free. Once he saw something he could take advantage of for a small price, why not, right?
"I said that I will give you the money.", he repeated.
Ae-Cha stared at him in disbelief. "..Really?" He got up and walked towards her before giving her a smile that sent chills through her spine. As he looked down at her, he said, "Sure. If you're willing to sleep with me." Ae-Cha felt as though she'd taken a hit to the face.
"What?!"
"You like me repeating things or what?", he asked her. "Sleep with me and I'll give you the money. I won’t repeat myself again." He couldn’t be serious. He talked as if it were the most normal thing in the world to say to someone. "No!", she exclaimed in anger, drawing attention from those around them. No? Usually women would throw themselves at Seung. But this one.. No?
"You think just because you're rich that I would sleep with you?!"
He furrowed his brows at her. Was this a trick question, or.. "Well, yeah." His answer made her even angrier and the fact that he saw nothing wrong with it made her want to knock some sense into him. "You are a horrible person!", she yelled before storming out of the doors. He began to laugh to himself. How many times had he heard that? Looking down to the ground, he saw a purse laying there and picked it up. What a clutz. Dropping things with valuable items in them. Like.. Her wallet with her I.D. in it for instance. He laughed to himself again.
That's what she gets for being ugly to him.
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