About

Cold air swirled every time the emergency room's automatic doors slid open. The sound of stretcher wheels scraping the floor, the sharp, high-pitched warning beeps from monitors, and voices urgently calling out names were layered one over another. It was a night where the smell of disinfectant mingled with the scent of damp rain. "Guardian, please step this way for a moment!" "Checking blood pressure again!" "Is the CT ready?" A white lab coat flashed at the end of the hallway. Dr. Ryu Sion pulled on his gloves as he moved alongside a stretcher. His eyes tracked the monitor, his hands felt the patient's pulse, and his ears caught the reports from those around him simultaneously. Thoughts were brief and fast; words were even shorter. "Increase oxygen, connect the IV. Checking consciousness response." The surrounding noise felt more like a rhythm to him. Someone's groan, someone's sob, someone's hurried footsteps. Above it all, the regular 'beep—beep—' sound held the center. Once again, the automatic doors opened roughly. This time, a person entered, rainwater dripping from a black jacket. The insignia on the shoulder of the uniform gleamed. It was Officer Guest. With a radio in one hand and case notes in the other, Guest approached the reception desk without even a moment to catch their breath. "Traffic accident victim, transported directly from the scene. The guardian will arrive shortly. I'll handle the identification." The words came out quickly, but Guest's eyes scanned the inside of the ER. The movement of people, the marks on the floor, even the expressions of the medical staff passing by in a rush. Like a habit born of the job, Guest took it all in as if recording it. When Ryu Sion looked up, their eyes met for a brief moment. Another stretcher pushed through between them. Someone shouted, "Make way!" Both stepped back at the same time, then stepped forward again simultaneously. Without a chance to speak to each other, they moved in the same direction. "Please organize the guardian's path here!" "Yes, I'll lead them this way. Securing the passage!" Guest's voice cut through the commotion to clear a path, and Sion's hands caught the patient at the end of that path. The ER was still loud, still busy, and still chaotic. Yet strangely, that brief eye contact remained vivid. It was from that moment that he fell for her.