Endless Tears: Chapter 11

“Ho… ya?” she muttered my name, as her eyes widen.

My lips curled into a smile when I saw her. “Hyemi!” I mentioned and walked towards.

“Un… ni,” she whispered, in horror, while looking up at Hyojin nuna.

I stopped walking after I saw their reaction. Hyojin nuna walked towards me.

I looked at them, respectively. I was confused, as Hyojin nuna grabbed my arm and started to drag me out.

“Nuna,” I uttered. She didn’t stop. “Hyemi,” I called her as I was right beside her wheelchair.

“Get… out,” she stuttered, as she slowly turned her head away.

Hyojin nuna dragged me out to the hallway.

“How did you come here?!” she yelled at me, looking all worried.

“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “The thing is you lied to me, Joanne Shim!” I shouted at her.

“This is for your own good!” she objected. “You shouldn’t know about Elle,” she whispered, looking away.

“Don’t call her Elle. She’ll reminded to her mum,” I said, as I knew about that fact.

“She had moved on, long ago, Hoya,” she said, trembling in despair.

“I want to meet her,” I said, giving in. “I want to meet my Hyemi,” I begged.

“She’s not your Hyemi anymore,” she said, with unbalanced breath. “She’ll Elaine Shim, she’s my sister, Elle,” she said, pressing on the word sister and the name, Elle.

“Please, I beg you,” I pleaded, kneeling in front of her, forgetting all my pride and holding her hands, pleading with all my heart.

“Hoya, please,” she said, keeping her eyes closed. “It has been so hard for us, don’t make it harder,” she mumbled. “If you truly treasured Hyemi, my Elle, please go and don’t come back,” she said, slowly let go of his grip.

I sat there, on the floor in the hallway of the hospital, clenching my fist in despair.

I walked to the receptionist.

“I want to meet the attendance doctor for Elaine Shim,” I ordered.

“But, mister, only family member can do that,” the nurse told me as she looked close at me, which I guess, she already recognized me.

“I don’t care! I want to meet the doctor, right now! I’m more than a family to Hyemi, damn it!” I yelled my heart out.

She trembled and nodded, holding up the phone and started to dial.

“Hello, Doctor Jung?” she greeted. “There’s someone here, would like to meet you, on Miss Elaine Shim’s case,” she said through the phone.

She placed back the phone. “You can come with me, Mr. Lee,” she said, and escorted me to the doctor’s office.

I read the plate name.

Mr. Jung Jaehyuk
Neurologist

She knocked and opened the door.

“Please come in and sit down,” the doctor said as I sat down on the chair.

He sat on his chair, right in front of me. He looked at me. “Mr. Lee Hoya, right?” he said, chuckling.

“Lee Howon is my real name,” I said.

“I got it,” he said, smiling. “How can I help you, Mr. Lee?” he asked me.

“I want to know about Hyemi’s condition,” I said, desperately. I saw him, with questioning look. “I mean, Miss Elaine Shim,” I continued.

“Mr. Lee, as you know, as a profesional doctor, I can’t just give away information about my patient to a stranger,” he said, casually.

“I’m more than a family to Hyemi!” I objected. “I mean, Miss Shim,” I continued. “Please doctor, just tell me generally,” I begged.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Lee,” he apologized again.

“I was there all the time for her in the past, doctor,” I started off. “Tell me, what is it?” I pleaded. “I saw her, falling without a reason, stumbling on her own foot, dropping everything that was in her grip. I heard she complained about her eyesight and movement. I was there when she choked her own food,” I poured my heart out on the doctor.

“How long she had been that way?” the doctor shocked.

“5 years ago and beyond that. I met her when she was 12, she was already had those clumsiness,” I answered, even though a bit shocked with the doctor’s sudden question.

He wrote something on his note. “No wonder the disease progress so fast already,” he said.

“What disease?” I asked, in desperation.

He sighed. “3 years ago, Miss Elle was admitted here after she had a few tests because we suspected her has Spinocerebellar ataxia, after several tests, it was confirmed that she suffered this disease,” the doctor started to tell.

“I don’t understand,” I said. “What is this about? Can it be cured?” I asked eagerly.

“This is a disease that attacked the brain cell. Her brain cell is degenerated and gradually died, causing her to lost control of her own movement,” he explained. “Actually, we already sent her to abroad, to Tokyo and London, for examination. But, there is still no cure for this disease,” he said, sighing.

“She will die?” I asked, in horror. “But, she just fall and stuffs, how can that kill her?” I asked again.

“This is all related to her brain. If she diagnosed with this disease, she started to lose balance and stability. After that, she had the difficulty in her movement in daily life, including swallowing, walking, seeing, gripping things and even breathing,” he explained again, long.

“Then, why would we do now?” I asked again.

“Until now, we have prescribed her with medicine to slow the progress, also rehabilitation for her movement. In her case, it progressing a little fast as you said she already had the symptoms since we was 12. We only knew about this when she was sent to hospital when she was 17. It was 5 years late already,” he said, which just killed me inside. “Now, she had lost her ability to walk properly. Sooner or later, she will lost her ability to talk and she will be bedridden, if she continued her life,” he pointed out.

I got it crystal clear. She would gradually die. I was afraid, scared of the future. God, why did you do this to me? Why did you chose Hyemi of all people?