CH 8

"It's still not too late to go back. If you're bored, you could find someone and ask them to be your guide."

Ibella, standing in front of the hospital for disabled veterans, asked Tay again. He refused to ask if he could follow her because he was bored, but he persistently followed her.

"If I was going back, I wouldn’t have come this far. And the joys of travel are about the experience, not the sights."

"Don't blame me if you regret it."

Ibella let out a short sigh, and scowled at him. This was a specialized hospital for soldiers who were disabled due to the aftermath of the war, or whose injuries had not yet healed. There were many people who had a lump inside even if they were smiling, and even if they were not bad people, they often spoke harshly. She was used to it and rarely got upset, but Tay, who seemed to have lived only while hearing good things, might be surprised.

"Lead the way."

Tay smiled leisurely, pointing at the path with his palm.

She thought nothing bad would happen, but from the moment Ibella entered the hospital, she regretted bringing Tay with her. Among the female nurses and patients who were rougher and wilder than soldiers, he stood out too much. Tay received intense attention, and as he followed Ibella, her cheeks were stung by their arrows.

"Who is it? Your lover?"

Tasha, the most senior among the nurses, asked Ibella with a smirk. Naturally, her gaze was not on Ibella.

"It’s not like that. This person is..."

"A friend."

Instead of Ibella, who wasn't sure how to introduce him, Tay created a relationship between the two. It wasn't a relationship where they could consider each other friends, but Ibella didn't retort. Because there wasn't any other way to explain it.

"He came to help with the hospital work today. I'll make sure this won't cause any trouble."

Embarrassed for nothing, Ibella smiled awkwardly, and said.

"Hm... Then, we are the ones who should be grateful. It will be good for our eyes too."

Tasha, who was usually shameless, smiled as she looked Tay up and down. Embarrassed by her actions, Ibella glanced at Tay's face. Fortunately, he was just smiling lightly as if he wasn't offended.

Thank God. Relieved, Ibella unknowingly wiped her chest. Then, after realizing that he was looking at her, she felt strange.

"What about the doctor?"

"He will be coming a little late today. Since it's the day Belle comes, he is being lazy, I guess. Oh, this is the list of hospitalized patients. As usual, please check the dosage and precautions of the medicine written on here, and disinfect the affected area."

"Got it."

Ibella took the file from Tasha, and moved on. Tay, who had been listening quietly by her side, followed closely like a chick behind a hen. Of course, the eyes of the people pouring down on them didn't stop.

She was more concerned about the heated gazes than she thought, and slightly turned her eyes to look at Tay. He didn't show any signs of hesitation despite being forced to do an unplanned hospital job. He put his hands in his pants and walked with regular steps, a happy expression on his face. Tay's composure rather prevented others from approaching him recklessly. It is highly likely that this confidence was instilled in him through the environment in which he grew up.

Does this person know what it means to be lacking? Has he ever been surprised or embarrassed in his life?

Just because you have a good and wealthy family doesn't mean you don't go through ups and downs. But this man seemed to be an exception to those exceptions.

"Belle. You've become prettier in the time I haven't seen you."

The sudden voice greeting her pulled her out of her thoughts.

In the hallway on the second floor attached to the hospital rooms, patients who could not overcome the feeling of stuffiness spoke to Ibella. Most of them had become acquainted with her by going back and forth from the hospital for a long time, or repeating hospitalization and discharge.

"Is the handsome guy next to you your lover? You won't feel lonely at night."

"You said you weren't interested in men, how can you betray us like that?"

"I heard that Bane prays every night, but he will be crying when he hears the news."

One by one, they took turns throwing jokes at Ibella. The sound of giggles spread throughout the hallway. It's not like she's experienced it only once or twice, so Ibella put her hands on her waist and approached one of the men.

"I was about to leave since it wasn't funny, but there is a weird smell. Dwayne?"

Ibella stuck her head out to Dwayne, and sniffed him. He changed his expression and stepped back, but the clear smell of alcohol emanating from him didn't go away. Dwayne had internal bleeding and was completely barred from alcohol, but it seemed that he had sneaked out and drunk anyway.

"What, what are you talking about, Belle? I quit drinking!"

"Then did the alcohol follow you because it couldn’t forget you?"

"No, I just tasted it, just a taste."

"Don't you know that you can die? You know that you will get discharged if you don't listen to the instructions? Shall I tell Tasha right away?"

Ibella pushed Dwayne into a corner, harder and faster than usual. She usually had a calm personality, but naturally became like this when dealing with tough men. Still, not many of them had a bad character. Likewise, Dwayne's mouth spout rough words but he was a soft-hearted person in reality. Ibella was genuinely worried about him.

"I wasn't going to drink, but Ray lured me. I'm saying the truth!"

"When did I do that? You told me to trust you, and that we would never get caught!"

"Both of you come to the treatment room when I call you later."

Ibella glanced at the two of them alternately before delivering a chilling threat. They try to heal the aftereffects of their injuries, but they cannot overcome their old habits and end up taking harmful things. Today, she was going to nag them until they shed tears.

She gave Tay a signal to go, and they started walking back to the treatment room. But within a few steps, she was caught by another person.

"Hey Belle, it's been a while."

At that moment, she heard the voice of the person she hated the most. She was going to pass by, but an unforgivable remark made her stop.

"Your butt is pretty. Your lover must have touched it a lot, huh?"

He whistled at her, and threw out deafening remarks.

Ibella turned around. Rusty, who had just come out of another hospital room while in a wheelchair, smirked at her. He often caused trouble inside and outside of the hospital, spent way too much time at the police station, and taught bad things to the other patients. Even the slightest mistake would result in violence, so other people tended to avoid Rusty when he appeared. Originally, he was not an inpatient, but it seemed that he came in after causing yet another accident.

"Shut, up, Rusty."

Ibella glared at Rusty, and clenched her fists.

As if her words sounded funny, he made a lewd gesture with both of his fingers and moved them. It was a hand gesture implying sexual intercourse between a man and a woman.

"If he can't do his best, come to me. I will wear you out all night... heut."

Rusty, who was spouting lowly words without hesitation, froze like a person who was beaten. His eyes were on Tay, not Ibella. He had an uneasy gaze, as if he had seen a ghost, and his trembling hands were gripping the wheelchair tightly. His face looked servile enough to overshadow his loudness from a moment ago.

Instinctively, Ibella's gaze turned to Tay. He was looking down at Rusty with a nonchalant expression. There was no word or movement, but the pouring eyes were like frozen iron spears. The anger in his sharp, cold eyes was overwhelming not only to Rusty, but to her as well.

"Hey, hey. It's a joke, a joke."

Rusty, whose face had turned pale, stuttered as he felt conscious of Tay.

"You have to be careful. There's nothing worse than dying while joking, don't you think?"

Tay's voice was steady and calm. Rather than swearing loudly, that appearance made the opponent's hamstrings numb.

"I, I have to go."

Rusty rolled his eyes, and hurriedly pulled back his wheelchair. Soon he was gone and there was only a strange silence in the hallway.

"Let's go."

In the frozen atmosphere, Ibella tugged at Tay's arm. Seeing him being led obediently, she deliberately put on a bright expression.

"Are you in a bad mood?"

"Isn't it strange to feel fine after hearing such words?"

"The others don't mean it in a bad way. As for Rusty, I can just ignore him."

At first, she didn't know how to properly respond to unexpected situations, so she went through a lot of trial and error. She cried, got angry, and reported them to her superiors so they could be punished. What she eventually learned was that among the people with lewd mouths, not many were genuinely bad people. The only difference was in the way they expressed themselves which was due to the poor environment they lived in and their lack of education. Of course, she didn't close her eyes to the ones whose nature was of low quality either. If something happened even after warning and ignoring it a few times, they were expelled. She was known as an angel to her patients, but when she turned around, she was colder than anyone else.

"So, be a little indulgent."

They lost what was most precious to them while fighting for their country. Although their future became uncomfortable, the compensation was absurdly small, so sadness, anger and resentment were piled up inside. Isn't it fine to try understanding those who express themselves in a different way?

Hearing Ibella's words, he turned and stood facing her. She stopped at his gaze, and looked up at him with innocent eyes.

"Why, did you decide to work here?"

"What?"

"I am asking why, unlike other women, you didn't get married, have children, and build a happy family, but instead went through such a difficult path."

Tay's gaze, demanding an answer, was serious as never before. Today, this man was showing her many sides. She answered, feeling a sense of wonder at the appearance of the man who seemed to be as immutable as a rock.

"I just go on the path my heart tells me to."

There was no long-winded reason about a mission or fate. It wasn't like there was a big opportunity that would change her life either. She just saw the burden that people who were at the bottom of their lives were carrying, and wanted to walk by their side. She just did what she wanted to do while leading her own life.

*****

There was always a shortage of workers at the hospital, so Ibella continued to work without a break.

She was busy talking to patients, giving them medicine and tending to their wounds as written in the records. Tay, who was by her side helping her with her work, went outside after being called by Tasha.

"Belle! Belle!"

It was a short, whispered call, as if fearing someone would hear it. As Ibella looked back with a puzzled look on her face, Rusty's face appeared in a wheelchair by the door.