As soon as they arrived at the hospital, they rushed into the emergency room. It was packed with people. Medical personnel were running back and forth, and gurneys with injured patients were being pushed into wards.
They found their way to the reception counter and asked for the whereabouts of Jihyo's father. The nurse directed her to the waiting area outside the operating room on the second floor.
When they went up, they saw was a woman sitting on one of the chair in the first row. It was only when Jihyo went closer then did she recognise who the person was.
"Omma." She called out, and the woman turned her head to look at her. She seemed dazed at first but when she saw Jihyo walking towards her, she tried to stand up but her legs were too weak. She almost fell to the floor, if not for Gary's timely support. He kept one arm around her and helped her sit down on the chair.
"Omma, what happened to appa?" She asked as soon as her mum sat down. Her mum clutched a piece of tissue in her hand, struggling hard to explain to Jihyo.
Her dad was on his way to Bukhansan; his usual hiking place where he had been going regularly for the past few years. It would usually takes him thirty minutes to reach the place, and he would usually call her to tell her that he have reached but this morning, she waited and waited, for almost an hour, and there was no call from him.
She thought, that maybe he was caught in a traffic jam but calls to him went unanswered. It was only when she received a call from the hospital then she found out that he was involved in a car accident.
"Your dad is a careful driver. Why, how did this happened?" Her mum cried out.
Jihyo held back her tears, and hugged her mum tightly. "Appa will be fine." She whispered.
They anxiously wait for the operation light to dim. It has been more than three hours, but they have yet to hear any news from the doctor or the nurses. Gary tried asking one of the nurse who came out of the operating room but she told him to wait for the doctor to be out.
Another hour went by, and finally the doctor walk out of the operating room. He removes his surgical mask and walked towards them.
Gary stood up while Jihyo and her mum remain seated.
"Family members of Song Gyeong Il?" Asked the doctor.
"We are. How is my father-in-law?" Gary asked.
He adjusted his spectacles then clasped his hands together in front of him. A rather solemn expression on his face.
"He had a punctured lung and lost a lot of blood. We did the best that we could to save him but he was already in a bad condition when he was sent in. We're sorry." The doctor bowed his head.
Jihyo's mum got up from the chair and grabbed the doctor's arm. "What do you mean? He can't possibly be dead. He's a careful driver. How can this happen to him?" She cried hysterically as Jihyo and Gary tried to restrain her, trying to get her to release her grip on the doctor's arm.
"We are very sorry for your loss." The doctor said again before taking his leave.
The nurses wheeled out the gurney carrying Jihyo's dad body. In unsteady steps, Jihyo's mum went up to the gurney, with Gary and Jihyo supporting her on each side. She slowly pulled down the white sheet, just enough to expose his face. She covered her mouth with her hands, unable to accept that her husband, who was fine just hours ago, is now lying motionlessly in front of her. His eyes closed, his face drained of colour and his lips were blue.
"Yeobo, let's go home. You said you will come back soon! Why are you sleeping here? Wake up. Wake up!" She wrapped her arms around his cold, lifeless body, clutching him tightly while shouting hysterically.
