Time felt like it was flying by at a lightning-fast pace for everyone else in the city, but for some, every single second was a painful, agonizing crawl. Three whole days had passed without a single encounter, phone call, or visual contact between Dr. Choi Hyun-woo and Kim Seo-ah. Every single day, Hyun-woo would wrap up his brutal, physically exhausting 24-hour shifts at the university hospital, take off his white coat, and return to the quiet hollows of his completely empty apartment flat. But his brilliant medical mind completely refused to rest. The absolute milestone moment he sat down on his leather couch, Seo-ah's bright, radiant, smiling face would flash across his vision. Every hour of every day, he found himself thinking strictly and only about her. He couldn't comprehend how one single girl had taken absolute, unyielding control over his thoughts.On the other side of town, Kim Seo-ah had completely and aggressively buried herself under a mountain of heavy design work just to keep his lingering memory at bay. Her daily routine had become punishingly strict and mechanical. The exact microsecond she opened her eyes in the morning, she would rush straight to the corporate office, spending the entire day battling endless project files, blueprints, and computer screens. In the evening, she would drag her exhausted body back home to the apartment.The moment she arrived, she would immediately take charge of Junu's wheelchair, helping his build with his intense physical therapy routines, administering his heavy medicines, and making sure he was perfectly comfortable. But her chaotic day didn't end when Junu finally went to sleep. Late into the night, she and Ma Ha-rin would sit together flat on the living room rug floor, fiercely and tirelessly tackling leftover office projects. For the past three days, her life had been a relentless, suffocating loop. No proper sleep, and absolutely zero peace of mind.Walking down the sterile, bright hospital corridors, Dr. Hyun-woo's deep restlessness was now visibly written all over his handsome face. Finally, entirely unable to take the agonizing, heavy silence any longer, he cornered Choi Sun-woo right after their morning executive rounds. Peering around the hallway corridor cautiously to make sure no other nursing staff or doctors were listening to his voice, Dr. Hyun-woo stuffed his hands deep into his coat pockets and tried his absolute best to sound casual."By the way, Sun-woo..." Hyun-woo muttered, clearing his throat loudly as he looked away. "How is, uh... how is Kim Seo-ah doing? I haven't seen her build around the clinic lately. What exactly has she been up to these days? Is everything perfectly okay at their apartment house?"Sun-woo instantly caught the deep, hidden anxiety and raw panic dancing in Dr. Hyun-woo's eyes. He tightly compressed his lips to suppress a knowing, smug smirk, thoroughly and deeply enjoying his younger brother's rare, complete lack of professional composure.[Scene: INT. Kim & Ma Rin Apartment – 4th Day – Morning]The very first morning light filtered softly through the bedroom window curtains on the fourth day of their separation. Seo-ah's eyelids fluttered open, her entire body feeling incredibly heavy and drained with raw, deep exhaustion. She rolled over heavily across the sheets and groggily grabbed her smartphone device from the nightstand to check the time logs.The exact microsecond her blurry eyes focused on the digital screen, her heart skipped a violent beat. They were running incredibly, catastrophically late for the architecture office shift. She bolted upright on the mattress and began violently, aggressively shaking Ma Ha-rin, who was resting dead to the world right next to her."Rin! Hey, Ma Ha-rin, wake up!" Seo-ah shouted with full energy, her voice full of panic. "Wake up right now! Look at the digital clock screen! We are so entirely late for our deadlines!"Ma Ha-rin let out a low, muffled groan deep from underneath her thick pillow, completely half-asleep and refusing to move. "Ugh... Kim Seo-ah, please... just give my life five more minutes of peace. My sleep cycle is totally incomplete today. You go first, go get ready in the shower... I'll be up in literally five minutes, I promise on my purse."Ma Ha-rin pulled the duvet blanket entirely over her face, turning her back as she drifted right back into a deep sleep. Seo-ah let out a heavy, defeated sigh, slapped her own forehead in pure frustration, and muttered to the empty walls."Fine, stay there and sleep your entire life away. I'm going."She swung her tired legs off the bed, grabbed her toothbrush kit, and stomped firmly into the private bathroom, slamming the wood panel shut.Standing directly in front of the bathroom mirror, Seo-ah began brushing her teeth. But the moment her fingers turned on the water tap, her mind completely and totally drifted away from the room. Looking blankly at the flowing water cascading down the sink drain, she was suddenly hit with a vivid, exceptionally sharp memory of Dr. Hyun-woo's face and his breathless bedroom kiss. She froze completely in her tracks, completely forgetting to finish brushing, staring blankly at her own reflection in the glass.'Three days... three whole days,' Seo-ah thought to herself, her heart heavy with a profound sense of confusion. 'Why on earth hasn't he tried to meet my face or come down to the office block even once? Does his build not miss me at all after what happened? Am I no longer appealing to his eyes? Now that Junu is recovering and getting discharged, is his job with our family officially over? Ugh, snap out of it, Kim Seo-ah! Are you completely losing your mind? Why on earth are you waking up first thing in the morning and thinking about that stubborn doctor all over again?!'Scolding her own thoughts internally with fierce anger, Seo-ah violently ripped her gaze away from the mirror reflection and turned on the shower dial. As the warm water cascaded down her body, instead of calming her flustered nerves, it only amplified the emotional chaos tearing through her heart. Against the loud, rhythmic pattering of the water drops against the tiles, her own heartbeat felt deafeningly loud. She began talking out loud to herself in sheer, absolute frustration under the stream."I mean, seriously!" Seo-ah shouted out loud, gesturing through the steam. "He didn't even use checking up on Junu's cast as a basic excuse to see my build today. Does... does this mean I actually like him? Am I actually falling helplessly in love with that arrogant doctor?"The mere thought of that realization terrified her core. She gasped out loud under the heavy stream of water and vigorously shook her head, trying her absolute best to erase the romantic idea from her brain."No, no, no! This is absolutely, mandatory wrong!" Seo-ah argued aggressively with herself. "How on earth can I even think like that? I don't like his build. Not even a single tiny bit! He is strictly just a hospital doctor to our family and absolutely nothing more."In her frantic, panicked state of absolute denial, hidden anger, and emotional chaos, Seo-ah completely forgot that the tiled bathroom floor was covered in slippery, slick soap suds. The exact microsecond she took an aggressive, firm step forward to exit the stall, her foot lost all physical traction. Her balance shattered instantly. She flew into the air, her hands flailing wildly through the steam, and slammed violently straight onto the hard concrete floor, landing completely flat on her back."AHHH!" Seo-ah let out a house-shaking, blood-curdling scream of pure, unadulterated agony that tore through the morning silence. "Oh my god! My back is completely broken!"Her agonizing scream echoed violently into every single corner of the quiet apartment. In the bedroom, Ma Ha-rin jolted upright on the mattress like she had been hit by a massive electric shock wave, every single ounce of her deep sleep evaporating in a flash. In the adjacent room, Kim Jun-u bolted wide awake, his heart hammering wildly against his ribs in pure terror. He didn't waste a single fraction of a second of time. Disregarding his stainless-steel wheelchair entirely out of frantic brotherly panic, he dragged his weak legs out of bed, using the bedroom walls and the living room sofa cushions for desperate physical support.Despite the sharp waves of pain and his immense physical limitations, Junu stumbled, limped, and dragged his cast frantically until his feet reached the hallway right outside the bathroom door. Ma Ha-rin was already standing there on the rug, frantically pounding her fists against the wooden bathroom panel like an absolute maniac."Ma Ha-rin!" Junu panted heavily, his face turning pale with absolute terror as he leaned against the wall. "Rin, what on earth happened?! Who screamed like that inside?! Is Kim Seo-ah okay?! Open the lock!""Kim!" Ha-rin shouted out, rattling the metallic doorknob violently with her hands. "Kim Seo-ah, answer my voice from inside! What on earth happened to your build? Are you alright? Open the door right now, you are scaring me to death!"Inside the damp, steamy bathroom, Seo-ah was curled up tightly into a ball on the wet floor tiles, writhing in pure, agonizing pain with heavy tears welling up in her eyes. However, hearing the sheer, raw panic vibrating in Junu and Rin's voices right outside the wood panel, she bit her lower lip hard, forced down her painful cries, and tried her absolute best to gather her remaining strength. Clawing her fingers against the wall tile edges, she agonizingly, slowly pulled her bruised body up to a shaky standing position."Yeah... yeah, I'm completely fine!" Seo-ah called out in a highly strained, shaky, and uneven voice, trying desperately to sound normal. "It's completely nothing, guys... I'm coming out right now."A few agonizing, long minutes later, the internal bathroom lock finally clicked open with a soft metallic sound, and the heavy door slowly creaked inward. The exact milestone moment Kim Seo-ah stepped out into the hallway light, Junu and Ma Ha-rin's jaws dropped completely to the floor boards.Seo-ah had her left hand clamped tightly, defensively over her lower back frame, her face was completely drained of all color, and she was heavily limping, dragging her bare feet one agonizing inch at a time down the corridor. Seeing her pathetic, twisted posture, Junu and Ha-rin yelled out in perfect, synchronized unison."What exactly happened to your back?! What on earth did you do inside that shower?!"Seo-ah completely avoided eye contact, forcing a highly unconvincing, painfully fake smile onto her pale lips as she shuffled past. "It's completely nothing, seriously... I just twisted my foot a little bit against the mat. It's just a minor, casual sprain, it'll pass by noon.""Kim Seo-ah!" Junu barked, glaring straight into her face with a mixture of intense sibling anger and deep, protective concern. "Look me straight in the eye right now. Stop lying to my face. Tell me the absolute truth—you fell inside that tub, didn't you?"Cornered from all sides by their heavy gazes, Seo-ah's shoulders slumped in absolute defeat as she confessed in a small, completely embarrassed, and quiet voice. "Fine... there was a bunch of slippery soapy water on the floor tiles. I accidentally slipped and landed straight on my back."The exact microsecond the words left her mouth, the tense, heavy, and panicked atmosphere in the hallway shattered into a million pieces. Junu and Ma Ha-rin locked eyes for a brief split second, and looking at her ridiculous face, they completely and totally lost all control. They clutched their stomachs, bent over double, and burst into an absolute fit of hysterical, roaring laughter that filled the entire apartment.Seo-ah's face instantly flushed a violent, burning tomato red with intense embarrassment and sheer rage. Gripping her aching lower back even tighter as a fresh wave of pain hit her alignment, she yelled at them furiously."You two are absolutely, mandatory horrible human beings! Why on earth are you laughing at my pain right now?! I am in absolute, agonizing pain right now and you find it funny?! This is exactly... exactly the reason why I wasn't going to tell your loud mouths a single thing about my life! Hmph! I am officially not talking to either of you for the rest of the week!"
Junu instantly wiped the laughter off his face the second he realized Kim Seo-ah was genuinely furious and hurt. His eyes softened, reflecting a deep, protective brotherly affection for his sister as he took a slow step forward, leaning his weight against the wooden doorframe to steady his cast."Okay, okay, I am truly sorry," Junu said gently, his tone turning warm and sincere. "We aren't making fun of your pain, Kim. But you seriously have to be more careful with your steps. You always take absolute care of everyone else in this family but completely neglect your own physical health. Come on, stop arguing; we are going straight to the nearby clinic right now. You mandatory need to get checked by a medical professional."Seo-ah vigorously waved her hands in rapid rejection, her face turning pale. "No! Absolutely, completely not! I don't need a single hospital doctor. I am going straight to the corporate office floor right now. Once I get buried under a mountain of project deadlines and blueprints, the distraction will make the pain go away entirely on its own.""Are you completely insane?!" Junu scolded her sternly, his brow furrowing. "What if it's a dangerous internal injury or a hidden hairline fracture along your spine? Listen to my words for once in your life and just come with me to the clinic."Ma Ha-rin stepped gracefully between the siblings to de-escalate the rising argument, raising her hands. "Junu, calm down your posture. Look, we are already incredibly, catastrophically late for our morning shift, and the strict boss is going to be breathing heavily down our necks the moment we log in. Let me take Kim with me to the branch. If her back pain gets even a single fraction worse on the way or at the office, I promise you on my life I will personally drag her by her hair straight to a doctor's chair. Deal?"Seo-ah looked over at Junu with pleading, desperate sisterly eyes. "Yeah, Junu, see? Rin's layout makes perfect sense. Please just let us leave for the office."Junu let out a long, defeated sigh, running a hand through his hair, and finally relented to their pressure. With the family debate settled, the two girls quickly gathered their design folders, bags, and coats, and left the apartment building to catch the transit line.[Scene: INT. Hanseong Architecture Company – Creative Department – Day]Hobbling painfully across the polished floor tiles, clutching her lower back tightly with her left hand, and letting out muffled whimpers of raw pain, Kim Seo-ah finally entered the office building. She was heavily, awkwardly leaning her entire upper body weight onto Ma Ha-rin's shoulder for physical support.The exact microsecond she limped into the main cubicle area, her bizarre, completely crooked posture and awkward, staggering stride caused her nearby colleagues to stand up from their rolling chairs in sheer shock."Oh my gosh, Kim!" Colleague 1 gasped, leaning over the divider. "What on earth happened to your body? Why exactly are you walking in such a twisted way today?""Yeah, Kim, are you truly alright?" Colleague 2 added, her eyes widening in concern. "You look like you are experiencing a wave of severe, agonizing pain."Seo-ah was desperately trying to construct a dignified, highly believable corporate lie in her head to save her face, but Ma Ha-rin, standing right behind her shoulder, completely couldn't contain her loud mouth. Rin let out a loud, mocking laugh and waved her hand dismissively to the entire creative department, completely exposing her roommate's private morning accident to the floor."Oh, relax, everyone!" Ha-rin announced cheerfully at the top of her lungs, an excited grin spreading across her face. "The grand reason behind our brave Kim Seo-ah's new, awkward walking style is a highly hilarious and painful morning disaster. She completely lost her focus, slipped in the bathroom shower stall, and crashed flat on her back against the wet concrete tiles!"In an instant, the entire corporate office floor erupted into a roaring wave of loud, booming laughter. Co-workers chuckled, shook their heads, and began teasing her mercilessly across the cubicles.Seo-ah felt so intensely humiliated, embarrassed, and mortified that she genuinely wished the ground would open up right beneath her boots and swallow her whole. She painfully stumbled into her swivel chair, burying her face entirely in her palms as she ground her teeth together. She let out a furious, silent tirade of pure wrath inside her mind, her fingers clenching.'Ugh!' Seo-ah fumed internally, unleashing her full emotional wrath against her computer screen. 'This is all... entirely because of that stupid Dr. Choi Hyun-woo! His face was like a ghost haunting the frequencies of my mind first thing in the morning! I was so completely, hopelessly lost in his thoughts and that bedroom kiss that I completely failed to see the soap suds on the floor, slipped like an idiot, and now my entire professional dignity is permanently ruined in front of the whole department! I hope... I swear to God, I hope his medical day goes just as miserable, chaotic, and cursed as mine! I absolutely hate your build, Dr. Hyun-woo!'With an aggressive, violent slam, she flipped open her laptop screen, forced her mind to ignore the deep, throbbing ache radiating across her spine alignment, and began typing with furious speed—desperately trying to drown her embarrassment in endless corporate design files.