As soon as SinB saw Kyulkyung during their next shift together, she told her what had happened with Eunha. The two of them were getting drinks and snacks from their usual coffee cart, heads leaned in as they whispered to each other.

“How do you do it?” Kyulkyung said in a yelling whisper. “Please give me your luck in running into pretty, rich women. I need a sugar mommy for all my medical school debt.”

SinB snorted as they moved up in line, telling her, “I don’t do anything. It just happens, and I’m definitely not going to help you with getting a sugar mommy.”

“You like living with hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt?” Kyulkyung asked with a disbelieving scoff.

“No, but I have enough pride to want to pay it off myself,” SinB replied before ordering her coffee. She gestured for Kyulkyung to give her order as well. They usually switched off who would pay, finding it easier if they don’t have to wait for one another to pay. “Besides, something tells me your holy trinity has better things to do than running around paying for medical school debts.”

“You’re probably right,” Kyulkyung sighed. “Besides, rumor has it that Eunha and Sowon are dating. I don’t stand a chance against either of them.”

“Aw, don’t say that. Who wouldn't want your hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt?” SinB teased as they were handed their drinks and snacks. She took a long sip of her coffee, humming as she did, then took a big bite out of her muffin. This coffee cart was definitely the best. Walking away, SinB said, “I’m sure one day you’ll find someone to share your debt with.”

“When you put it that way, it sounds so romantic,” Kyulkyung rolled her eyes.

SinB grinned, ready to give a witty reply, when her pager went off. She waved goodbye to Kyulkyung, telling her she’d see her later. SinB quickly shoved the rest of her muffin in as she read what she’d been paged. Jogging off to the surgical pediatrics wing of the hospital, SinB found her attending glaring at an MRI scan.

“There you are,” Dr. Baek said as SinB stepped into the room. “Sorry to make you run all over the place, but tell me what you see.” SinB took one look before screwing her face up in a confused grimace. Dr. Baek laughed and said, “Exactly. I need you to find Dr. Kim for this case. He’s probably the best help for this.”

“Yes, sir,” SinB nodded.

Dr. Baek smiled slightly and said, “He should be taking his lunch break right about now. I know it’s a bit of a walk, but he likes to ignore his pages when he eats.”

“Eating is very important,” SinB said with an amused smile.

SinB took a moment to down the rest of her coffee with a wistful sigh before heading down to the cafeteria. She hadn’t worked with Dr. Kim in a while, so she was excited to call him in for this case. Honestly, most of the doctors were not only competent but good company as well. SinB often felt a swell of pride at getting into the surgical intern program here.

As SinB walked into the cafeteria, she looked around for Dr. Kim. She spotted him in a corner table and started walking over. However, her steps became hesitany when she realized he wasn’t alone. Sitting across from Dr. Kim was his daughter Sowon and none other than Yerin. As she slowed her pace, SinB took the chance to take in how Yerin looked. It’d been a while since she’d seen her around the hospital, especially from close-up rather than from a distance. Yerin was smiling brightly, curled hair framing her face as she laughed. Just like every other time, Yerin was dressed elegantly. Today her outfit was a simple skirt and blouse combination, but she still looked breath-taking.

Dr. Kim noticed SinB as she awkwardly waddled up to the table, hands shoved into the pockets of her white coat to hide how they were clenched.

“Hwang!” Dr. Kim greeted her jovially. “Long time no see. How’ve you been, kiddo?”

“Good, Dr. Kim,” SinB replied politely with a small smile. While Dr. Kim smiled back, SinB noticed Sowon watching her with blatant interest while Yerin seemed to be trying to stare straight into SinB’s soul. “I just came to ask you for a consult on Dr. Baek’s case with the nine year-old from the amusement park. The MRI is… a mess, to put it lightly.”

“The poor kid,” Dr. Kim sighed. “Let me finish up this lunch. It feels like I hardly get to have lunch with my daughter nowadays. Nothing urgent right?” SinB shook her head, and Dr. Kim nodded, saying, “Great, just give me an hour tops.”

SinB nodded, trying not to mumble as she said, “Yes, sir.” She gave a bow to not only Dr. Kim but to Sowon and Yerin as well. When SinB stood back up from bowing, her eyes met Yerin’s. For a moment, it felt like she was frozen in time for a moment. Yerin had always been such sunny person when SinB had seen her, but as their eyes met, SinB felt a shiver run down her spine by the intensity Yerin looked at her with.

Giving another quick goodbye, SinB nearly sprinted from the cafeteria. It’d been weeks since she’d interacted with Yerin, but she still reacted like this. They hadn’t even talked to each other, yet SinB had felt weak in the knees as her heart had nearly pounded out of her chest. It wasn’t just because Yerin was pretty. There was something about her that just drew SinB in, and she’d lying if she said that wasn’t a terrifying feeling at times.

SinB made it back to the surgical pediatric wing, only to find Dr. Baek with a panicked look as she nearly slammed into her as she walked out of the elevator. SinB’s quick reflexes allowed for her to catch her, even if they did stumble a bit.

“Are you okay, Dr. Baek?” SinB asked as she steadied the older woman.

Dr. Baek shook her head quickly, normally steady hands shaking as she ran them over her face. “We have a problem, a big problem.”

That’s how SinB found herself wearing cat ears and having to crawl under a series of gurneys to find a four year-old patient that had escaped his room. How the kid had even gotten there in the first place, SinB didn’t want to know. All she wanted was the kid to take her hand and to come with her back to his room.

Earlier, after an hour of searching the pediatric wing top to bottom, SinB and all of the other interns had gotten a pair of cat ears because apparently the kid really liked cats. The interns had reluctantly donned the ears before splitting up, taking turns wiggling into tight spaces that a four year-old could fit into. It was just SinB’s luck that she happened to absentmindedly look under some gurneys they’d walked by, only to have to do a double take at the sniffling four year-old five gurneys back. They could’ve just moved the gurneys, but they feared that the kid would try moving too and end up hurting him. Since SinB was the one who found him, she was naturally voted the one to crawl under to get him.

After an embarrassing number of meows and promises of ice cream, SinB managed to get the kid to come with her. She hadn’t really paid attention to what was happening above the gurneys, so when SinB stood up with the kid in her arms, she hadn’t expected to find a small crowd of hospital staff applauding her for getting the boy. SinB blushed under the attention, and in the crowd, she spotted Yerin.

SinB couldn’t help but stare at the way Yerin looked at her with a fond smile. Then Yerin waved to her head and gave her a thumbs up. Realizing she was still wearing the ears, SinB tore them off and stuck them on the kid’s head. After being congratulated by a few members of the staff, SinB carried the boy back to his room. As she left the hall where she’d found him, she looked for Yerin but the other woman was already gone.

Sometimes, SinB felt like she was seeing a ghost. Beautiful yet unattainable.

The rest of SinB’s shift went smoothly, running labs and listening in on Dr. Kim’s plan for the surgery on the amusement park kid. SinB even got invited to scrub in on it and the appendectomy for the little boy she’d found. Getting to scrub in made the cat ears worth it.

At the end of her shift, SinB grabbed a cup of tea as she went out to the front of the hospital. She usually just took the bus, but today she asked Umji to come pick her up after such a hectic day. Maybe if she played her cards right she could convince Umji to stop by a McDonald’s on the way home for some fries and ice cream.

As SinB waited for Umji, people came in and out of the hospital. SinB was playing on her phone when she noticed someone had also stopped outside the door. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, SinB realized it was Yerin. She slowly put her phone away and shoved her free hand into her hoodie’s pouch. SinB debated whether to say anything or not, but it was decided for her when Yerin also realized who SinB was.

“Hello, Eunbi,” Yerin greeted politely, less enthusiastic than the past times they’d talked. SinB couldn’t blame her though. She’d be less than pleased to talk to someone who was awkward and avoidant too.

“Evening,” SinB replied, bobbing her head nervously as she spoke. “Are you waiting for your ride?” She hated small talk, but it seemed too awkward to leave it at hello.

“I’m waiting for my father actually,” Yerin said with a slight shrug. “We have family coming into town, so I stuck around after lunch to make sure he didn’t stay too late.”

“That’s very kind of you,” SinB said honestly, smiling.

Yerin blushed, really blushed with rosy cheeks in the chilly night air. She stared down at the ground and smiled shyly as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Yerin looked back up at SinB and said, “What you did for the little boy today was very kind.”

It didn’t take a genius to realize that Yerin was referring to the cat ears and crawling all over the place, so this time it was SinB’s turn to blush. “I just did what anyone else would’ve done,” SinB shrugged.

“I don’t know if you realized it, but the interns were the ones who made you do it because they didn’t want to,” Yerin replied with an amused laugh. “Although, it didn’t save much of their dignity since they were all already wearing the cat ears.”

“I don’t even think the cat ears helped,” SinB admitted. “The kid didn’t budge until I mentioned ice cream.”

This got Yerin to give her a full laugh, and SinB watched in muted awe at the way it lit up Yerin’s entire face. Yerin always looked bright, but there was something especially heart-warming about how she looked when she laughed.

“Ice cream is always a good bribe,” Yerin told her. She smiled, eyes curving into little crescents, and SinB found herself smiling back. “You know,” Yerin said after her laughter had subsided, “I thought I had upset you that day.”

“What?” SinB said without thinking.

Yerin shrugged, looking back down at her feet with an unsure frown. “I thought you were upset I told my father who you were. When I ran into you later, you seemed mad.”

“No, I wasn’t,” SinB reassured her. She bit her lip and lied, “It was just a long shift, you know? I wasn’t exactly in a chatty mood.”

Yerin smiled slightly, but SinB wasn’t sure she’d completely bought the lie. “I’m glad I didn’t make you mad,” Yerin told her.

“Why would you care?” SinB can’t help but ask.

“Why shouldn’t I?” Yerin countered with a shrug.

Before SinB could think of a reply, a black car, that probably cost more than SinB’s annual pay times a hundred, pulled up. The window rolled down to show Director Jung in the back seat.

“Come on, Yerin,” Director Jung called. “We have to go pick your aunt and uncle from the airport now.”

“Coming,” Yerin said. She turned to SinB and gave her a short bow and a bright smile. “I’ll see you around?”

“Sure,” SinB replied, unable to say no to that smile. She gave a shy wave and bow to Director Jung when he looked at her then watched them drive away. As soon as they were out of sight, SinB heaved a heavy sigh and rubbed at her temples.

That woman was going to be the death of her.