Rehabilitation-1

Yoon Sia didn’t send the hospital bill right away. Instead, she left the cafe earlier than planned.

She boarded a bus, and after transferring three times, each ride lasting about 15 minutes, she finally arrived at the hospital.

In front of her father’s hospital room, she could see her mother dozing off in a corner of the six-bed ward.

Yoon Sia couldn’t bring herself to step into the ward. Entering this room, filled with gloomy and sickly energy, felt like she herself would be consumed by it.

As she stood there awkwardly, unable to go in or out, her mother, who had been dozing like a chicken, opened her eyes.

“……..”

The two women looked at each other.

Yoon Sia mouthed that she had arrived.

Her mother, with fatigue deeply etched around her eyes, slowly roused her rusty body.

She glanced at her husband, then shuffled out of the ward in her slippers.

“Did you eat?”

It was the first thing she said to her daughter.

“Yes. What about you, Mom?”

It was a dinner of Americano and cookies.

“I had a good lunch, so I’m not really hungry for dinner.”

It was already past sunset. Yoon Sia didn’t add anything to her mother’s lie.

The two women walked down the hallway. They entered the lounge and sat in empty seats.

Then came the silence.

As Yoon Sia took in the quiet yet busy atmosphere of the hospital corridor, her mother suddenly spoke.

“His condition has worsened. They said they’re changing his medication starting tomorrow.”

Her father’s condition registered in her ears. She felt a sinking feeling in her chest.

“So, you need more money?”

“The accounting department is pressing us… we’re behind a lot.”

Deep fatigue and resignation were embedded in her mother’s eyes.

“Okay. I’ll send more.”

Yoon Sia felt a pang of bitterness.

Not because she was sending more than half of her earnings, but because she thought the situation of having to earn that money was cruel.

“I’m going to work more hours, now I’m working until the afternoon.”

Her mother worked as a cashier at a supermarket.

“What about Dad?”

Yoon Sia asked, tapping the floor with her heel.

“Sia, that’s why I’m saying….”

Her mother trailed off again.

“Could you possibly look after Dad in the afternoons? We can’t afford a caregiver for much longer.”

“…I’ll ask if I can adjust my tutoring schedule.”

“Okay, thank you.”

With those words, the mother and daughter’s conversation ended.

Yoon Sia sent the remaining half of her money, then got up and left the hospital.

“……..”

Her mother listlessly watched her daughter’s retreating figure without a word of farewell.

Only empty helplessness remained in her eyes.

For the woman with deep wrinkles around her eyes and mouth, the spirit and love of her youth were long gone.

After agonizing over what to eat, I ended up choosing a cup ramen.

My soul craved the taste of artificial seasoning that I hadn’t been able to properly enjoy since the Dimensional Shift.

Perhaps because the house was located in such an affluent neighborhood, the convenience store was quite a ways down the hill.

As I walked down, I wondered why the hill was so steep, then realized that people who lived here probably never walked up hills.

They’d all drive.

Lamenting the fact that I still couldn’t escape my petty bourgeois existence even after being possessed, I trudged down the hill.

When I reached the bottom, a convenience store with a familiar logo greeted me.

Feeling a mix of excitement and welcome, I was about to go inside when I noticed a dog bowl placed next to the entrance.

I wondered if they raised a dog and looked around, but there was no dog or even a leash in sight.

-Ding-dong

The door opened with the sound of a bell, and I filled my lungs with the familiar air of the modern world as I wandered around the shelves.

I filled a basket with a bunch of spicy and stimulating things and put it on the counter.

The part-time worker mechanically scanned the barcodes.

“That’s 32,300 won.”

I had bought quite a lot, carried away by my desires.

“Here you go.”

I held out my card, and the part-time worker pointed to the card reader with his finger.

Ah, I have to insert it myself.

“What’s the dog bowl for at the entrance?”

I asked as I inserted the card.

“The Boss gives food to the cats.”

The part-timer said, sounding bored, as if he had heard the question many times.

“Cats?”

“Yeah. It’s like a street cat feeding station or something… so we also have things like cat treats in the convenience store.”

It seemed like the Boss was a cat lover.

I took my card out of the reader and left the store.

It was already getting dark.

It would take a while to climb the hill, so I hurried my steps.

-Meow

As I climbed the hill, I faintly heard the sound of a cat behind me.

I had gone back about halfway up the hill when I received a call from Yoon Sia.

I answered the phone with my free hand.

“Hello?”

[Ah… Inho, are you free to talk?]

Her voice sounded low.

“Yes, I am.”

There was still a long way to go up the hill.

[Actually….]

Yoon Sia trailed off. Did she have a favor to ask?

[Actually, could you possibly move the tutoring time to the evening? Like around 8 or 9 o’clock….]

“Uh… why?”

[I, I have something to do.]

“Hmm….”

When I hesitated to answer, I heard a sigh from the other end.

[Right now, you’re on suspension… no, you’re resting at home, so we’re doing it in the afternoon, right? Anyway, once your suspension is lifted, we’ll have to adjust the time again… so I was wondering if we could move it in advance….]

Yoon Sia sounded desperate through the phone.

“Well, I don’t mind.”

I couldn’t find a reason to refuse, so I answered her.

[Oh? Really?]

She didn’t miss my ambiguous affirmation.

“But is it okay?”

Well, I’m a troublemaker anyway, so I guess it doesn’t matter.

[What do you mean?]

“Doesn’t it get past 9 o’clock when you come back from mandatory self-study?”

I mentioned the one thing that bothered me.

Silence fell on the other end of the phone.

During that long silence, I climbed the hill and waited for Yoon Sia’s reply.

[Inho.]

When I was almost home, Yoon Sia asked me in an incredulous voice.

[Mandatory self-study… what era are you talking about?]

Ah, there’s no mandatory self-study?

I’m old.