Michaeng (Short Stories) Vol. 2

OMG 4

"Nayeon?!" Chaeyoung screamed, her voice cracking with panic. She turned to the officer. "Where is she? Please, I need to know!"

"Are you a relative?" the officer asked.

"No, sir, but she's my friend. Please, I need to see her," Chaeyoung insisted,

The officer hesitated for a moment before responding. "She was rushed to the hospital. She tried to take her own life."

"Which hospital?" Chaeyoung asked, barely able to contain herself.

"Seoul Medical Hospital," the officer replied.

Without another word, Chaeyoung ran out of the station, her heart pounding in her chest.

***

At the hospital, she rushed through the doors, her breath coming in sharp gasps.

"I'm looking for Nayeon, please!"

Outside the emergency room, a faint, ethereal presence hovered. Jeongyeon's ghost, pale and consumed by guilt, stared at the door wishing she could save and wake Nayeon up.

"It's my fault," Jeongyeon whispered, she was trembling. "I should've never left her alone. She's in so much pain because of me."

Chaeyoung stepped closer, her eyes softening as she placed a hand on Jeongyeon's shoulder. "It's not your fault, Jeongyeon. You couldn't have known. You were never the cause of this."

Jeongyeon's ghost turned toward her, tears silently streaming down her translucent face. "Please, tell me she's going to be okay."

"she will be okay... Nayeon is strong. She's going to fight through this. I know she will." Chaeyoung said.

Mina, standing nearby, joined in, her own voice filled with quiet determination. "She has to be okay, Jeongyeon. We all believe that. Nayeon is a fighter. She won't give up. She can't."

Jeongyeon's gaze drifted to the door of the emergency room again, the weight of her regrets still heavy in her heart. But something in Chaeyoung and Mina's words seemed to offer a sliver of hope. Maybe, just maybe, Nayeon wasn't done fighting. Not yet.

***

A few days had passed, and Nayeon had finally woken up. The guilt, the confusion, and the anger all weighed heavily on her, but she was alive. She hated it.

Chaeyoung, however, never left her side, accompanied by the quiet presence of Mina and Jeongyeon's ghost.

"Hi, remember me?" Chaeyoung greeted, holding a small flower and a tray of food in her hands.

Nayeon's gaze flickered to her. "What are you doing here?"

Chaeyoung smiled softly. "Well, I'm here from now on. We're not just neighbors anymore, Nayeon. We're friends."

"Get out. I don't need you," Nayeon's voice was thick with emotion.

"Everyone needs someone," Chaeyoung said, undeterred. She gently placed the food on the table. "Come on, eat. I cooked this, you know."

Nayeon looked at the food and then back at Chaeyoung, an exasperated sigh escaping her lips. "I can feed myself. I didn't lose my hands."

"Nah, c'mon. Just say 'ahh,'" Chaeyoung teased, trying to make her smile.