AAE -- Wishes Of The Heart

Chapter 175

written by LoveCR2 -- 2005

edited by All-About-AAE -- 2018

 

"It's possible Sun-Mi never regains consciousness. If you're Catholic, I'd call in a priest, just to be prepared." -- Doctor Bong Dae-Sung

 

 

SURGERY WAITING ROOM, MUN-YUNG HOSPITAL ...

 

... 'This is what has to be. This is our fate ... So let's both accept it, and find a way to be happy'...

 

Remembering Sun-Mi's words, Hyung-Chul paces by the windows, staring out into a cloudy, cold night that offers no consolation.

 

 

... how did I ever think I could be happy without Sun-Mi? ... why did I listen to her, and walk away? ... he berates himself with unanswerable questions, concluding, too late ... I should've carried her off while she was in my arms ...

 

Instead, he went into the church, expecting Sun-Mi would be gone before the wedding was over, that the next time they met, they would each be committed to -- as she'd expressed it -- 'a new life, a destiny with someone else'...

 

Then in the chaos of a single moment, the unthinkable had happened, and she was in his arms again, but with her life draining away as he helplessly watched...

 

 

Perhaps it was foresight on Min-Cho's part, or just Sun-Mi's good luck, that the chauffeur, Oh Sang-Woo, formerly a corpsman in the army and a certified EMT, had brought a full emergency medical kit in the limo's trunk...

 

The limo, waiting right outside the church doors with its engine running, had served as an impromptu ambulance for a high-sped dash to the rendezvous with the air ambulance dispatched from Chuncheon.

 

Kui-Sung and Jin-Suk had left with Sun-Mi on the helicopter, while he had continued on to Seoul in the limo.

 

Later, others had arrived from the wedding -- Sun-Dal and Joo-Hee, followed by Cho-Jeh and Jin-Soo, and Kyung-Hee and Ki-Jong -- gathered in a circle of chairs, listless from fatigue, to keep vigil together.

 

Separately, sharing a couch, Kui-Sung and Jin-Suk doze, given in to exhaustion...

 

 

The MBS News at Nine comes on the muted waiting room TV, and Jin-Soo uses the remote to turn up the volume...

 

"Good evening, this is the MBS Weekend News at Nine," the male anchor, Park Tae-Won, opens the newscast.

 

"Tonight's top story -- a shocking end to a celebrity wedding," the female co-anchor, Do Ga-Eul, reads from the teleprompter script as press release photos for the occasion appear behind her on the video wall. "Earlier today, the private wedding of MBS Announcer Huh Young-Mi and MBS Director Yoon Hyung-Chul was interrupted when convicted felon Bae In-Soo invaded the church with a knife..."

 

"Bae first attacked Announcer Huh, wounding her in the face after a verbal dispute," Tae-Won gravely reports. "MBS reporters were on the scene as police took both Bae and Announcer Huh into custody..."

 

The video wall switches to footage of police leading Young-Mi -- still wearing her blood-smeared wedding dress, her face bandaged over the wound -- to a waiting squad car with lights flashing.

 

"Bae also stabbed MBS Correspondent Jin Sun-Mi when she tried to intervene in the assault," Ga-Eul reads on as stock video of a helicopter landing at the hospital plays behind her. "Correspondent Jin was flown by Medevac helicopter to Seoul's Mun-Yung Hospital, where she is reported to be in critical condition and undergoing surgery."

 

The background screen begins playing a montage of video clips -- Sun-Mi as a rookie News announcer, in the radio studio, hosting Art Club, reporting at the Paris Fashion Week, during 9-11 in New York, and introducing the renovated News Studio -- as Ga-Eul appeals to the viewing audience...

 

"Announcer Jin began her career at MBS Seoul in 1999, also working in our London and New York affiliates... Please join all of us here at MBS, and send your prayers and good thoughts to support Jin Sun-Mi in her desperate state..."

 

"Although some witnesses reported the stabbing appeared to be accidental, authorities have confirmed they will charge Bae In-Soo with Murder in the First Degree if Announcer Jin dies," Tae-Won states. "Now for an update on the situation in Kangwon-do with Lee Seung-Kul..."

 

 

The TV screen cuts from the video montage to the reporter standing in front of the orphanage church with a microphone and prepared script in hand, which he begins reading...

 

"All appears quiet now at this quaint chapel set amidst a picturesque orphanage and convent in rural Kangwon-do. But just hours ago, blood stained the sanctuary as witnesses told of the shocking carnage from what may prove to be an unprecedented crime of passion and revenge..."

 

 

Sun-Dal grabs the remote from Jin-Soo and turns off the TV. "I can't believe this coverage!" he complains. "And it's our own station!"

 

 

Then he stands up and trudges over to Hyung-Chul...

 

"Get some rest, okay?" he urges, "It's driving me nuts, watching you pace in circles. Worrying won't help."

 

"I know," Hyung-Chul replies dejectedly. "It's just that I can't sit still, doing nothing... not while Sun-Mi's life is in the balance."

 

 

Sun-Dal's mobile rings, and he pops it from his suit pocket, speaking in a rapid, clipped manner...

 

"Yes? ... At the hospital ... We'll issue a formal statement tomorrow afternoon... Yes, move everyone you can spare to take calls until midnight... I want a remote team on standby here, first thing in the morning... Right... "

 

He closes his phone and reports on his brief conversation to Hyung-Chul, "After that segment ran, the print media started clamoring for more, and the switchboard is being inundated with callers concerned about Sun-Mi..."

 

Then he adds, as an ironic note, "It seems Sun-Mi still has her star pull... tonight's News At Nine topped this week's ratings chart."

 

"How can you think about business, at a time like this?" Hyung-Chul remarks testily.

 

"Because a situation like this IS our business," Sun-Dal reminds him pointedly. "Even when it hits close to home."

 

"You're sounding more like Kim Eun-Ki every day," Hyung-Chul grumbles.

 

"Well, someone has to make the hard decisions these days," Sun-Dal replies, indirectly criticizing his friend and colleague's spotty performance since returning to work.

 

 

While the two men are bickering, a doctor in white lab coat appears at the waiting room doorway...

 

"Hello, I'm Doctor Bong Dae-Sung," he introduces himself. "I came out to speak to you directly about Jin Sun-Mi."

 

 

Kui-Sung and Jin-Suk rouse themselves from the couch to approach the doctor.

 

"How is she?" Jin-Suk asks worriedly.

 

"Resting in the ICU for now, still unconscious from the anesthetic," Dae-Sung informs them of Sun-Mi's current condition. "Although the operation was a success, I wish I had better news for you. Because of the massive blood loss, she's had a serious stroke. We can't be sure of her final condition."

 

Hearing this, Kui-Sung is shaken. "What are you saying, Doctor?"

 

"We'll have to wait until Sun-Mi regains consciousness and we can conduct some tests," Dae-Sung explains. "But even in the best circumstances, severe brain and organ damage is possible."

 

"And in the worst?" Hyung-Chul speaks up hopefully.

 

"It's possible that Sun-Mi never regains consciousness," the doctor gives the dire prognosis. "If you're Catholic, I'd call in a priest, just to be prepared."

 

The possibility hits like a bomb, exploding the hopes of everyone in the room...

 

"Doctor, is there nothing more you can do?" Kui-Sung pleads. "Can't you save her?"

 

 

"Under the circumstances, she was lucky to even get to the operating room alive," Dae-Sung answers. "We did our best, but we're just human. I know how difficult it is for you to hear this, but I won't gloss over the severity of her situation."

 

"And we know how difficult for you to say it, too," Jin-Suk replies gratefully. "We appreciate everything you've done for Sun-Mi."

 

"Then, I'll leave first," Doctor Bong says, his purpose for coming finished. "She can have one visitor at a time in the ICU. I'll check in with you again, first thing in the morning."

 

 

After the doctor leaves, Kui-Sung glares angrily at Hyung-Chul...

 

"This is your fault, Director!" he bellows, venting his pent-up fury and frustration. "If it wasn't for you, this wouldn't have happened!"

 

He raises his fists threateningly, issuing a warning through clenched teeth, "Get out of my sight, before I do something I'll regret later!"

 

 

Seeking to defuse the situation, Sun-Dal urges Hyung-Chul, "C'mon, let's go out for some coffee."

 

 

Leaving the waiting room, they head for the lifts to go down to the cafeteria...

 

"He's right," Hyung-Chul admits dispiritedly. "I messed up everything for Sun-Mi by what I did, and didn't do..."

 

"You can't know that," Sun-Dal remarks positively. "Realistically, who could've predicted this? It's like some crazy TV drama! ... What did Sun-Mi think she was doing?" he questions her reckless behavior. "Why risk her own life like that?"

 

"Let's hope for a miracle, so we'll have the answer to that question soon," Hyung-Chul replies wearily, speaking to Sun-Mi's dismal chances. "I'll never forgive myself if she's not all right...

 

 

Rounding a corner, Sun-Dal sees Min-Cho just a step away, his face cast in a dark scowl.

 

Ignoring Sun-Dal, he goes right up to Hyung-Chul, getting in his face...

 

"Director Yoon, I agree with those words completely... and I'll never forgive you either!" he growls, following up his words with a quick, hard punch that solidly connects...

 

As Sun-Dal watches in amazement, Hyung-Chul groans as he doubles over, then crumples to the floor...