Hershe (Ryeji ver.)

43 - Hospital

"HAHAHA!" There was a loud guffaw of a man from inside the hospital room.

"I can't believe it, he's here." Yuna looked excited, turning to Lia and Yeji.

"He?" asked Lia.

"Ryujin's dad. He's a fun guy. You'll see." Yuna knocked on the door.

A man, whom Yeji assumed to be Ryujin's dad, opened the door for them. "Look who we have here!" he exclaimed, arms stretched wide. "Isn't this the almighty Yuna descending from Mount Olympus to captivate women's hearts?"

Yuna threw herself for a big hug. "Uncle! I missed you!"

"I missed you too, kiddo." The man pulled away after noticing Lia and Yeji. "Oh. And you brought your pretty friends, huh? Come in," he said, gesturing to them. "Tiger, you got visitors."

Yeji smiled at the pet name. Her eyes immediately scanned Ryujin who's lying on the bed with a bandaged right foot. No one knows how much she struggled to maintain her composure not to hug the poor patient at that moment.

Ryujin looked surprised to see her there. It was a brief shock that Ryujin immediately changed to a smile when she turned to look at Yuna and Lia.

Aside from Ryujin's dad, there were other people inside. One is a slightly older woman, whom Yeji initially assumed as Ryujin's relative, and then there's a familiar person...

Chaeryeong.

Yeji's brows furrowed while staring at Chaeryeong who's sitting ON the hospital bed, BESIDE Ryujin.

"Hey, guys." Ryujin looked more cheery now compared to how she was last Friday.

Yuna pointed at Ryujin's foot. "Dude, what's up? You got it pretty bad, eh?"

"I'm fine. You've seen worse, remember?" said Ryujin. Yuna laughed.

"What happened to you?" Lia walked towards Ryujin.

"Just minor foot injury," said Ryujin. "I can go back to work the day after tomorrow. Miss me already?"

"Of course. It just doesn't feel the same not seeing you passing by the hallway." Lia nudged Yeji. "Right, Yeji?"

Yeji, who was zoning out while looking at how close Chaeryeong's body is to Ryujin, was brought back to Earth. "Uh... yeah..."

"This is my dad, Aunt Victoria, and my friend Chaeryeong," said Ryujin, gesturing around. "And these are are my friends and colleagues from the office: Yuna, Lia, and... Yeji.

"Oh. So, she's THE Chaeryeong," said Lia.

"Hello everyone," said Chaeryeong.

Ryujin's dad cleared his throat to gather everyone's attention. "So, now tell me, which of you girls is Ryujin's girlfriend?"

Their mouths fell open.

Ryujin's palm flew over her face. "Ugh. Dad, stop it."

"What's the matter, Tiger? I'm just curious."

"How many times should I tell you I'm single?" Ryujin's voice is muffled from hiding her face behind her palms. Yeji still finds it cute.

"What? I can't believe it! You're a disgrace to this family," said Ryujin's dad, hands on his waist. "You surely have pretty friends here and you don't like any of them? What happened to your taste?"

Ryujin groaned even more.

"Maybe she hasn't moved on from Heejin yet?" said Aunt Victoria.

"Ahh. The one that got away, huh? Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. If Tiger here wasn't a slowpoke I'm pretty sure they've been officially together." The man shook his head. "Oh, but there was a girl you were calling when we were in Bali. What happened to her?"