ENG - Fractured Fates ʰʸᵘⁿˡᶦˣ

10

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Felix POV

With a deep sigh, I stood under the jet of water from the shower and let the warm water flow over my tired body. It was only the third night of my shift and I already felt completely exhausted, as if I hadn't slept for days. My eyelids were so heavy I barely had the strength to keep them open and my body felt like it was made of lead, like it was going to collapse at any moment.
I was incredibly tired and my illness had been making itself felt more and more often recently. I was losing feeling in my hands or legs more and more often, as if they had fallen asleep, numb and immobile. It wasn't a new condition, but the frequency with which it had been occurring recently was worrying me and I couldn't sleep peacefully.

After I had washed myself, I turned off the water. The last drops slid over my skin before I grabbed the towel and tied it around my hips. I strolled over to the fog-shrouded mirror and looked at my reflected image. My eyes were red from fatigue and my face looked unusually pale and drained, having only woken from a fitful sleep less than twenty minutes ago.
Sighing, I reached for the hairdryer and began to dry my hair. The loud, soothing hum of the appliance left me lost in thought and once again I found myself wanting to just throw in my work and enjoy the rest of my life. I was going to have as many new experiences as I could before my body gave up and I couldn't move anymore. I wanted so much to travel, to see the world, I would have loved to fly to the USA or Australia or just leave Seoul in general without a medical examination. But I was too afraid of that, because I could just die abroad at any time and I didn't want that. I at least wanted to die in my home country if I couldn't choose 'how'.
But there weren't just places I wanted to see. There were also things I wanted to experience. I wanted to skydive and see the world from above, go bungee jumping and release pure adrenaline, dive with sharks and experience the beauty of the underwater world. I wanted to write a book, learn to play an instrument and run a marathon, although no, maybe not the last one.
I wanted a relationship like everyone else, I wanted my first kiss or my first time, to fall in love and maybe even start a family. I was only 22 years old and hadn't even had my first kiss yet, instead I worked, went to sleep and then continued working.

A bitter laugh escaped me at all these absurd dreams and I shook my head, because my progressing illness was putting a spoke in my wheel and bursting these dreams like soap bubbles.
In those moments when a glass of water slipped from my hands or I stumbled on the stairs because the feeling in my legs and arms disappeared, I was overcome by the tempting thought of simply giving up and surrendering to my fate.
But then I remembered my family, who supported me with all their strength, who encouraged me and gave me their unconditional love, even though I felt like a burden to them. I just couldn't let them down by giving up, not after they had invested so much time, money and energy in me. I couldn't bear their tears, their disappointment and their sadness, so I did everything they wanted: every test, every exercise to strengthen my body, every possible change to my environment, even if it was exhausting and painful. Just so that I didn't have to see my mother's desperate tears again, which were like daggers in my heart.
That wouldn't be fair to her, it would be like betraying her love and trust.

I put the hairdryer to one side and ran my fingers through my freshly dried hair. One last look in the mirror before I went into the bedroom to pick out something suitable for the evening. A quick glance at the clock told me that it was almost 4pm and I had to hurry to avoid being late.
As it was the weekend and I was off work, my father had invited me to come over for dinner. I didn't live too far away from my parents, in fact I lived on the same street as them. If I had lived further away, my mother would certainly never have let me go. It broke her heart that I had only moved six houses away and that she couldn't see me every day. Nevertheless, she accepted with a heavy heart that I wanted my own privacy.
As soon as I had put on my top, the doorbell rang. With one last look in the mirror to check my appearance, I went to the door and opened it. Shortly afterwards, I saw Jisung coming up the stairs, his arms wide open, ready to embrace me in a warm hug. He had also been invited to eat with us. He was like a second son to my parents, as he had been by my side since I was a young child and had therefore often been at my house.
"Come in," I said with a smile as I released myself from his embrace and invited him in. "I'm just getting ready. You can make yourself comfortable in the living room."
He nodded and followed me into the apartment. I left him in the living room and went back to my bedroom to get ready.

After I had finally finished, I took one last look in the mirror and smiled with satisfaction. When we reached my parents' house, I could already smell the familiar aroma of my mother's cooking wafting through the door. It smelled of chicken, spices and a slight sweetness that immediately put my taste buds on alert. I smiled and felt my stomach growl in anticipation.
"Mom, we're here!" I shouted as I opened the door with my key and stepped inside. The walls were decorated with family photos in warm colors that brought back memories of happy times. The pictures showed us laughing, playing and going on vacations together. Each picture told a story and I could remember every single event as if it had happened yesterday.
My mother came out of the kitchen and greeted us with a warm hug. Her smile was infectious and immediately made me feel at ease. "I'm so happy you're both here," she said as she led us towards the living room, where my father was already waiting for us.
He was sitting in his favorite armchair reading a newspaper, but when he saw us, he put it aside and stood up to greet us. "We see each other every day at work, but I'm still glad you're here," he said with a smile.

We all sat down together at the large dining table, which was already festively set. My mother had brought out her best crockery and the table decorations created a cozy atmosphere. The candles on the table flickered gently and spread a warm light around the room. I could see her going out of her way to make everything perfect to ensure we all felt at ease.
When the food was served, I was amazed by the variety of dishes my mother had prepared. As well as the chicken, there were vegetables, salad and more, all perfectly seasoned and cooked. We chatted and laughed as we enjoyed the food. Jisung made us all laugh with his bright and lively manner. His jokes and stories brought a cheerful and light-hearted mood to the table and made us all feel at ease.
But in the middle of it all, my father's cell phone suddenly rang with a loud, shrill tone. My father took the device out of his pocket and looked at the display while his face darkened. He apologized and got up to have the conversation in another room. I looked after him and sighed. It was his emergency cell phone because my dad was always on call due to his position as a senior doctor. I could see the worry flash in my mom's eyes, but she tried to hide it by telling us to go ahead and enjoy the meal. However, the mood had changed and I could feel a sudden tension in the air.

After a few minutes, my father returned, his face serious and tense. "Felix, Jisung, I'm really sorry to bother you on your day off, but there's an emergency. Would you please help me?" he asked hurriedly as he was already getting his red emergency kit out of the cupboard. Jisung and I gave each other a quick, worried look and nodded at the same time, then we stood up.
As we put on our shoes, I could feel my hands shaking nervously and secretly prayed that they wouldn't fail now. Then we were already in my father's car and drove off with squealing tires. The roads raced past us and the tension in the car was almost palpable.
During the drive, my father explained to us what had happened: "Apparently it's the same man who was admitted a few days ago with twelve stab wounds and had discharged himself early. His roommate found him unconscious and bleeding in their apartment." I immediately remembered who my father was talking about - the red-haired man who for some reason had left a lasting impression on me. Perhaps because of his disrespectful, almost challenging manner? It was unusual here in Korea for someone to talk to someone else like that.
"Felix, call an ambulance and order it to the following address and have the hospital prepare an emergency operation," my father said as he told me the address. I immediately did as he asked, my fingers flying over the phone as I called the ambulance and ordered emergency surgery.
My heart was racing and I could only hope that we would make it in time. This wasn't how I had imagined my day off would be, and I don't think Jisung did either, the way he stared out of the window with his brows furrowed.

After a while, we finally reached the address given and got out of the car while we helped my father get the medical supplies out of the trunk. The ambulance didn't seem to be there yet and I fervently hoped that it would be soon. The street was full of old, dilapidated buildings and the air was somehow filled with an air of despair and hopelessness. Immediately, a little boy with disheveled hair and dirty clothes came running up to us and asked with wide eyes, "Are you the doctors?"
I looked at the boy, who was no older than eight, and nodded with a reassuring smile. "Yes, we're here to help," I replied as I tried to hide my own nervousness. "Then come with me," he said, already running towards one of the derelict houses and going inside.
We immediately followed him and as we entered the dark and worn stairwell, we were hit by an unpleasant smell. It smelled of rotting garbage and mold, as if a mountain of waste was rotting away somewhere. But we didn't have time to worry about it and climbed the stairs, following the boy. On the sixth floor, the little boy stopped and pointed to a door that was wide open. Without even a moment's hesitation, my father rushed into the apartment, followed by Jisung and me. What we found made my blood run cold. His roommate was kneeling next to him, desperately trying to stop the bleeding with a blood-soaked towel, which he pressed onto the unconscious man's stomach. The sight was horrible and my stomach tightened.

The moment my father knelt down next to Hyunjin, whose name I still remembered, he opened his suitcase, which was filled with a variety of medical instruments and medicines for emergencies. His roommate immediately made room and let us do our work. The fear in his eyes was clearly visible as he leaned against the wall and watched us. My father immediately tended to the wound, his hands moving precisely and surely as he tried to stop the blood.
Jisung, kneeling beside me, started an IV, his hands shaking slightly as he tried to make up for the fluid loss. I monitored the casualty's vital signs, my eyes nervously darting back and forth between the small monitor and the unconscious man. My hands were wet with excitement as I ventilated him with the resuscitation bag.
My father and Jisung worked together like a well-coordinated team, they understood each other perfectly and my best friend hardly needed any instructions. He had worked as an emergency nurse for a while, but then transferred to my nursing department because the stress had taken its toll on him. However, he still seemed to remember everything and his body just worked as if it had never been any different.
I, on the other hand, was actually no help at all, I had absolutely no experience of such situations and this was also my first encounter with such a situation. The only thing I could do was keep an eye on the vital signs and heartbeat while I continued to press on the resuscitation bag. I had never seen so much blood at once and an open wound from so close. I did see wounds every day in my work as a nurse, but they were usually already closed and this was a lot more comfortable and nowhere near as bad as this. To be honest, I even had to pull myself together, which is why I looked around the room to distract myself, but the sight was no less encouraging.

The room was small and dark, with only one window letting in a scant ray of light. The floor was covered in dirty carpets and there were empty bottles and garbage everywhere. The walls were bare and the wallpaper was peeling. Then my eyes fell on his roommate, who was sitting on the floor leaning against the wall, just watching us. He had his hand pressed to his mouth and was supporting his head with the other as he cried quietly to himself.
Understandably, if I had found Jisung in such a situation, I wouldn't even have been able to move, which is why I found it respectable that he remained so calm. At least that's how he looked from the outside, even though he must have been completely distraught.
Suddenly, a soft whimper reached my ear, pulling me out of my thoughts and making my eyes slide back to the red-haired man's face.
He slowly opened his eyes, which were surrounded by a veil of weakness, and gradually regained consciousness. Reassuringly, I placed my left hand on his cheek while my right hand continued to operate the ventilator. His skin felt cold, almost lifeless. "It's going to be okay," I whispered to him, trying to keep my voice calm as I continued to ventilate him.
My gaze drifted to my father, whose hands were desperately trying to stop the bleeding, which stubbornly refused to stop. My heart raced as I watched the color drain from Hyunjin's face and it grew paler and paler. I could see my father and Jisung trying everything they could to save his life, but the fear in their eyes told me that the situation was critical. I prayed silently that we would manage to help him.

My heart pounded wildly in my chest and a wave of fear slowly rose up inside me, even though this person was a complete stranger to me. I didn't want him to die and I felt so helpless, but I tried to suppress my fear and concentrate on my task.
The injured man moaned softly and I saw him move weakly. I leaned down to him, my hair falling around our faces like a curtain, and whispered soothing words in his ear. I tried to give him hope by telling him that we would do everything we could to help him, while I stroked his cheeks soothingly with my left hand and it actually seemed to calm him down a little. I had never before experienced so much fear and tension as I did at that moment, not even for myself had I ever felt as scared as I did for this unknown stranger.
Finally, it seemed as if the bleeding was slowly subsiding. My father breathed a sigh of relief and I could see the tension in his shoulders easing. My father had placed a temporary stitch to stop the bleeding.
It seemed that the injured man was slowly becoming more stable, but he needed to go to hospital as soon as possible and have proper surgery. This was just an emergency solution, a short-term delay.

Finally, after what felt like hours, the ambulance turned up. Its siren wailed like a desperate cry in the neighborhood. When it came to a halt, everything happened very quickly. With calm, practiced movements, they carefully lifted Hyunjin onto a stretcher and carried him down the stairs towards the ambulance. His face was pale and his eyes were closed. It was a sight that inexplicably broke my heart into a thousand pieces.
He was lifted into the ambulance with great care and my father said goodbye to us. He asked us to take care of the roommate and pack up his things, as he would be going straight to the hospital by ambulance to have the operation.
Before they left, he pressed his car keys into my hand and Jisung next to me let out a deep, stressed sigh. "God, I thought my heart was going to stop," he suddenly said next to me, his voice quivering slightly with excitement.
A faint smile crossed my lips and I looked down at my hands, where a little of the blood was still sticking. "Ask me," I replied. "I've never witnessed a situation like this before, I thought I was going to die with you." My voice shook slightly as I said the words. "Come on, let's get my father's things and then go home. He'll be looked after at the hospital," I added, more to reassure myself.

I walked back towards the house and climbed the stairs. The elevator in this building was obviously out of order. When we reached the sixth floor, we stepped back into the apartment. The air was filled with a metallic smell from all the blood on the floor. But before I started to put away my father's equipment, I knelt down in front of his roommate. His skin was pale, his eyes empty, as if he wasn't really there. "Is everything all right? Are you hurt too?" I asked as carefully as I could.
The black-haired man's fixed gaze met mine. He shook his head slowly. "It's not my blood," he said curtly and then stood up. His movements were slow as he was still in shock. "I have to get back to work," he began quietly. "Please close the door behind you," he said and disappeared out of the door without looking back.

I was confused and didn't really know what to think. I sighed and looked at Jisung, who was just standing next to me, staring in the direction the other had just disappeared in. "Jisung," I tapped him on the shoulder and he flinched, startled. "What?" he asked, confused, and I rolled my eyes.
"Let's clean up," I said again. We then collected my father's instruments and wiped up the blood from the floor before driving back home.

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