Chapter 200

Chapter 200

It was possible that Jin-Seo hadn’t disappeared. Instead, she might have been discharged early, or she might have gone outside. Considering that the needle for the IV tube was lying on the floor, the possibility of that being the case was low, but we went to the receptionist to ask, just in case.

We asked the receptionist whether a patient named Jin-Seo had been discharged.

"What? She disappeared again?"

The receptionist seemed a little surprised, but considering that a patient had disappeared, their reaction was quite calm. Moreover, the fact that they used the word again meant that this was not the first time that Jin-Seo had disappeared. The receptionist began tapping on the keyboard before glancing at Yu-Hyun and me.

“But there was no one scheduled to visit Jin-Seo today... May I ask what your names are?” the receptionist asked.

The receptionist’s face was filled with suspicion and caution. There was a brief silence.

As I tried to find a suitable excuse, Yu-Hyun took something out of his pocket and handed it to the receptionist.

He smiled affably and said, “We came here because we had something to deliver to her from the school... But we didn’t know there was a procedure that we had to go through. We’re really close friends, so we knew her room number.”

What Yu-Hyun handed over was his Florence Academy student ID. The receptionist looked back and forth between the ID and his face, then nodded with a small smile.

"I understand. Next time, please come to me first before visiting, or make a reservation by phone. Is the person next to you also from the same school?"

"Yes, he's also from Florence Academy. This is a secret, but he's the boyfriend of the admitted patient."

"Really?"

The receptionist seemed surprised as they looked at me with wide eyes. I was so taken aback that I was unable to speak. I couldn't understand why Yu-Hyun was saying such nonsense to the receptionist.

Yu-Hyun maintained an affable smile and innocently said, "Yes, we wanted to surprise her, so that’s why we came here without any prior notification... However, we didn’t know it would turn out like this.”

"Ah... then, should I contact you during the visiting hours that are available tomorrow or the day after tomorrow?”

"Yes, I would appreciate that."

The receptionist handed us a piece of paper. Yu-Hyun wrote his phone number on the memo with a pen.

He casually handed the memo to the receptionist but suddenly stared at the receptionist's face and said, “By any chance, could you call us with your private phone instead of the hospital phone?”

"Huh? Um... it's possible, but why?"

"I don't have a girlfriend yet, you see."

After belatedly understanding Yu-Hyun’s words, the receptionist’s pupils shifted left and right due to being flustered.

"...I will contact you using the hospital phone during visiting hours."

"Ah... yes, I understand for now," Yu-Hyun said with a smile.

It was difficult to call it a relief, but due to Yu-Hyun’s nonsense, I made it through this dilemma without being questioned or having to verify my identity. However, it was hard to say that the predicament had been resolved well because the nonsense that Yu-Hyun had spouted was bothering me.

As soon as we left the hospital, I asked, "What were you thinking? Are you insane?"

"Why are you suddenly swearing at me?"

"Why did you tell that unnecessary lie?”

"Oh, that?"

Yu-Hyun took out his phone and aimlessly stared at it as he said, "The receptionist was pretty, so I tried to rizz her up a little. And in situations like this, leaving a favorable impression on the other person is more comfortable and faster than approaching it logically.”

"Is that so? But it seems like you didn’t leave a favorable impression either.”

"Well, it doesn't matter. We made it through that situation, so all is well that ends well.”

“All I’m saying is that using me to get through that situation just felt messed up.”

"Then next time, you can use my name too. If you use it well, you can get through most situations, you know?"

"..."

I decided to stop talking to him midway through the conversation. There was simply no way to get through to this guy.

Yu-Hyun silently stared at me, and then he grinned by raising one side of his lip in a bizarre manner. "But you do this kind of thing often too. Am I wrong?"

"Get lost if you don't want to die."

"Alright. I don’t really want to die yet.”

Her weight settled on my back.

"Don’t make such an exaggerated grunt. I know I’m not that heavy.”

"You’re heavier than I thought."

"...It’s because I’m tall," Jin-Seo said as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Why are you wrapping your arms around me?"

"It's more comfortable this way. Isn't it more comfortable for you too?"

"I guess so."

It was definitely easier to carry her like this. However, it felt uncomfortable to have her body pressed against mine. I carried her up the stairs. I had told her earlier that she was heavy, but in reality, she was quite light compared to her build, so I could climb the stairs without difficulty.

She pressed her chin against my shoulder from behind and said, "But I’m a bit disappointed."

"Why?"

"Because you never came to visit me at the hospital."

"I went, but you weren't there."

"Huh... really?"

I nodded.

"Where did you go? I asked the receptionist, but they didn't know where you were."

"...Um, I went for a walk?"

"Why’d you go for a walk when you were injured?"

"It's like exercise for rehabilitation."

“If you wander around like that and then get...”

I stopped talking at that point. Everyone knew that she had been hospitalized after getting injured, but only I knew that demons had injured her. I might spark unnecessary misunderstandings or suspicions if I spoke too hastily. After a moment of silence, I faintly heard Jin-Seo laughing.

"Why are you so nosy? Are you obsessed with me?"

"What? Who said that..."

"So, did you wait for me at the hospital?"

"Why would I wait? You weren't there, so I went back out."

"That's a shame."

"I was a little worried, though."

I honestly expressed the emotions that I felt at that time. I thought that if I said this, she might be more careful in the future.

At this point in time, we had already arrived in front of Jin-Seo's classroom. I carefully helped her down and handed her the crutch I was holding. She took the crutch and looked at me intently with a strange expression.

"What’s wrong?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Huh? No, nothing," she said, lowering her gaze.

Then, she murmured, "...This is really bad."

"What’s really bad?"

"It’s worse than I... um, never mind," Jin-Seo said, shaking her head.

Then, she walked toward her classroom. She was walking in a much more natural way than before. In fact, it was a healthier stride than most students. I had vaguely known that her condition was alright, but seeing it with my own eyes made me feel betrayed.

"Hey, you're walking just fine."

"Yeah," Jin-Seo casually replied. "I wanted to get carried around just once. Thanks."

She smiled and waved at me. Then she entered the classroom.

I glanced at the hallway for a moment. Her smile still lingered in my mind. It was the first time she had shown such a carefree smile.