Starting Point

Beep beep, the sound of electronic noise. The sound of people bustling around in the midst of tranquility. The sound of curtains opening and closing.

And the strong smell of alcohol.

A sharp sting on the back of the hand. A slightly cold feeling. The texture of the rustling fabric.

And the strong light that comes down like a piercing glare.

It felt as if someone had grabbed my hair, which had been deeply asleep beneath the surface, and pulled me out, as my consciousness returned without any warning.

“……..”Where is this place?” What was I doing?

I felt dazed as if I had a very long dream.

Slowly examine the body. It was throbbing, but fortunately, my body can still move.

First, a long string attached to the chest comes in.

As I turn my gaze along the line, I see a familiar machine. Is it an electrocardiogram?

Next is the uncomfortable right hand. The syringe is connected.

Is it a ringer? It must be glucose, right? That was expensive.

“…Hospital?It is a hospital. 갑자기 왜 Hospital? What happened?

It felt like there was fog in my head, and I could only see the outlines of my memories.

I definitely went out for a quick break from work. And… And I think I bought a cup of coffee.

What comes next? I had entered the alley to take a big turn… Coming back again….

As I stumbled forward along the bridge of broken memories, the curtain opened and someone leaned in.

A tall man with a clean hairstyle and traces of a dark beard.

“Did you wake up?”He looked down at me with a face full of relief.

“……..”I stared blankly at his face.” It’s a face that looks familiar, or rather, someone I’m very close to.

The name did not come to mind right away.

“You still haven’t come to your senses.” Do you know how many of these there are?”He folded and unfolded his fingers a few times and brought his hand close to my face.”

“You have expressed the mountain.””Looking at the towering mountain, I murmured.”

Senior. I just remembered. As if booting up late, I recognize him.

Why is the gentleman who should be at the company in the hospital?

“Cognitive ability seems to be normal.” I can be discharged. I heard that you didn’t get hurt anywhere. Isn’t it complete luck? The sign fell above my head, but how is it that I have no injuries?Sign… Now that I think about it, it seems like something fell.

“It sounds like you were hoping for someone to get hurt.””You can’t be serious.”She gives a wink. Winking at the same guy makes me feel like I’m going to throw up.

As the two men were joking around, a tired nurse approached.

Patient. Are you okay? First of all, the electrocardiogram and blood pressure are normal.She mechanically checked the electrocardiogram and blood pressure monitor.

Yes. Well, I don’t think there’s anything strange.”But teacher. A bruise or something like that doesn’t show symptoms later on, does it? Shouldn’t we conduct a precision inspection or something?She had an indifferent expression. It seems that I often get such questions.

“We only make judgments on urgent matters.” I think you need to have a separate examination for more details.”Then is it okay if I go out?””I’ll let you know after the teacher comes and checks for a moment.””As I shook my painful right hand, which was pierced by the needle, I asked, and the nurse hurried off somewhere again.”

“But is it okay to come out like this?””After paying 150,000 won for the emergency room costs, my senior and I left the hospital.”

He poked my body and suggested that we get an X-ray or a CT scan.

“I can’t take pictures here anyway.” I need to make an appointment at the local hospital.”Is that so?” Anyway, make sure to go to the hospital. Surely, I must be hurt somewhere.”It’s been happening repeatedly since earlier.”.. But why did you come to the hospital, senior?”While I was smoking a cigarette, I heard a thud, so I went to check and found you lying on the ground.” I showed my employee ID and said I knew the person, so I came along in the ambulance.”Let’s go smoke a cigarette.” The senior went to a suitable corner and took out a cigarette from his pocket.

In today’s world where electronic cigarettes are becoming more common, there is a person who steadfastly smokes traditional tobacco.

“Hey, I’m going to act over there.” Come over here.”The senior sucked on the end of the red-stained cigarette.”

Whether feeling shame for an act lacking delicacy, Yeoncho’s face turned bright red and burned.

Hoo-

The senior turned their head to the side and exhaled smoke.

“Has the company been contacted?””That’s right.” I talked to the team leader. I heard that Hana collapsed, and everyone was jumping around. It seems that they are in a mood to allow it if I say I will take a break until the day after tomorrow.”What about the ace?”I stretched while smiling slightly. I felt my stiff body loosen up.

“Ace said that to make you feel good.” Anyway, the employee almost died down there, how shocked do you think the team leader was? Send me a message later.”Of course, that should be done.””So, how many days are you going to rest?””Rest?””We have to inspect it.””Hey, I’m fine.””No, you idiot.” The bruise will come later, right? If you live alone, take care of yourself. Don’t just brush it off as okay. Being of a certain age.”Lost for words at the sharp reprimand, I only kicked the innocent pavement with my shoes.”

“Is it okay to rest for about 3 days?” Taking a break from Wednesday to Friday is perfect because it leads right into the weekend. You don’t have any work these days.”It’s not that there is no work.” Can’t you just say that it’s all done?Either one. The senior spat on the flower bed.

“I’ve been looking really down since the breakup.” Think of it as a change of mood and take a break. I will also go to the hospital.”One more fact that I had forgotten came to mind after what my senior said.”

“…It was quite noticeable. It seems like there was some talk going on behind the scenes.”Well, it’s best to pretend everything is fine.” It’s not a bad thing to show your feelings. Instead, I made it too obvious.”The senior smiled slightly.”

Anyway, take a rest.”Yes, I will take a break for now.” But I think the manager said he would give me some work.”It seems like they are saying that the department’s new employee training will be entrusted to you.””Newcomer?” Did you hire someone for our company?”That’s right. Let’s see… You sent me a message earlier.”The senior bit on a cigarette and tapped on the phone to open the messenger.”

Every time he tapped the screen, thick cigarette smoke billowed out of his mouth.

“There is a new item here.” There are two people.He would suck on the cigarette for a long time and then roughly shove it into a paper cup placed in the flower bed.

“Two people?” It’s hard to educate Hana.”I guess I have to do that.” One is a newcomer. It feels like I just graduated from college and came here right away. Another person is experienced but applied as a newcomer. Hey, but both of them are women. That would be nice.”It’s good.” It’s just uncomfortable.”Anyway, training the chicks is easier than starting a new project.” Take some time to heal for now.”

“…If you say so, then I will.”Pretending not to be good.” Let’s go. What do you want to eat?”How about lunch?””Okay.” I’m craving something spicy. Do you want to eat sweet and sour pork too? Let’s do it in moderation. The small ones are too few these days.”If you’re hungry, I think a large one would be fine.”.. By the way, what are the names of the new hires?”While looking for a nearby Chinese restaurant, I asked my senior.”

“Name?” Wait a moment. The one who came after graduating from college… Kim Sung-ah, and for experienced positions, Lee Mina.”

“Kim Sung-ah, Lee Mina….”Why, do you know the person?””No.” It’s a name I’ve never heard before.”It was a familiar name.”

I feel empty inside; I think it’s because I’m hungry.

It feels as if everything that was carefully built up has vanished in an instant, leaving a void.