Afterlife | Kim Seokjin ✔

AFTERLIFE 1/3

Everything in that moment was dark.

It took too much effort, but she pried her left eye open way enough to flinch at the glaring light at the white ceiling. Her head ached so much like a dagger was sliced at her temple. Out of incentive, she elevates her left hand to press it to her cranium. Perhaps that would stop from wrecking. Her eyes were tightly shut as she felt her arm as bulky as a gigantic rock, and it was cast. She laid on her hospital bed miserably, waiting for the pain to vanish.

The room was soundless. The only sound you could hear in this place was the lady's breathing and the beep beep sound you frequently hear in hospitals that signify you are alive.

Alive.

Her eyes slowly opened, squinting in able to have a clear vision of her dull surrounding. The pungent odor of hospital disinfects, foraying into her nostrils. But a mask was emplaced against her nose and mouth. A venturi mask.

"Yeorum?"

Yeorum? The young woman's eyes wander in the direction where the voice came from to see who else was in the room. A gentle hand with icy fingers was placed on her right arm.

"Darling, how are you feeling?" A face of a woman in her late 50's appeared above her. The old woman seemed to be glad and a hint of relief was sketched in her face, to the point the old lady might cry in any seconds from the mixed feelings she feels.

Who is she? As if the old lady can read the young lady's mind, she spoke, "Don't you . . . recognize me? I am your mother, Yeorum-ah." You could hear the sadness in the woman's voice. I believe that's my name - she thought.

This mom tucked a strand of her daughter's black hair behind the girl's ear for it was blocking her daughter's colorless yet lovely face. Her mother pulled the venturi mask out of its place and gently placed it at her chin before pressing a straw to her lips, "Drink a bit of this, Honey."

The lukewarm water was soothing her dry throat as she swigged it. After guzzling, Yeorum's mom fixed the venturi mask against the proper spot, then mellowly stroked Yeorum's casted forehead and at her left cheek. "Wait for mom here, okay? I'll just call for your doctor and your father." She left a warm smile to her daughter before heading out.

The lass exhales deeply soon as the door closed. Why am I even here? Yeorum shut her eyes, trying to recall what had precisely happened before she got here. Soon enough, she gave up restoring her past for now. The deeper she tried, the more her head throbbed excruciatingly.

After a couple of minutes, a woman in a doctor's robe and a stethoscope on her neck came in. Behind the doctor was Yeorum's mother and a man in his late 50's. I guess . . that's my father. They all looked at the young lady with relief and felicity. The three of them felt euphoric.

Yeorum blink and tried to ask the doctor bunch of questions that were bombarding and bothering her for a long moment when she woke up, but words weren't just there. She felt there was a rock in her throat.

The doctor seemed to notice her patient's situation right now, "I am Mrs. Hong, your doctor. You were in a  serious accident, Yeorum." The doctor inhaled and exhaled deeply before continuing, "You are suffering from amnesia, my dear. And you are in a coma for three months."

What?

Amnesia?

Three months in a coma?

The wind played with her shining black hair as the warm breeze kissed her whole body. Watching the bright orange sun kissed the horizon, Yeorum smiled as she felt felicity crawl inside her.

People say, when the sun slowly and aesthetically sinks at the horizon, it is time to judder off all your worries and problems and take a break. Sunsets epitomize the finished tasks of a day, declaring the passage of time, and your hard work & journey throughout the day. Sunsets are typically magnificent and scenic events. Indeed it is. Sometimes, it makes your whole self complete.

But somewhere inside her, she could feel she's incomplete. Utterly marred.

Yeorum didn't know what was it, for her memories were only jolting and jarring inside her mind at a slow pace.

KIM YEORUM'S P.O.V

Rain.

What do you personally think about cloudbursts?

People say rain is a benison.

But for me, it's a tribulation.

Somewhere, the sound of heavy raindrops was kissing the roofs. Somewhere, the clock is ticking. Somewhere inside me, my heart is beating. And somewhere inside me, I could sense something was wrecking. My heart was shattering. And I can't do anything to desist from it.

Oh god. Why am I feeling this ghast pain? The tears that I kept from falling are now crawling down from my eyes. I hugged the pillow tightly to stop myself from weeping. But it didn't appease me as I desired.