Interview with the Doctor
"Huh..?"
"It's closed?"
Ha-yoon and Seol-ah muttered in unison. The shutter was down, the lights in the upstairs windows were out. And at some point, Sung-hoon—who'd come with them—had vanished too.
Just as the two stood there in a daze, a familiar voice called out.
"Why are you just standing there like idiots? Come over here."
Sung-hoon waved from the edge of the hospital building. Seol-ah and Ha-yoon naturally followed his lead, drawn to his hand, until they reached the back door.
Clunk. Sung-hoon gave it a push. As expected, it was firmly locked. Seol-ah looked at him.
"Isn't it closed today?"
"Yeah. The hospital's off today."
Sung-hoon replied matter-of-factly. A question mark practically floated above Seol-ah's head. Then why the hell are we here?
Before she could voice it, Sung-hoon rummaged in his pocket. Out came a key, which he slid into the lock above.
"That's why I scheduled it for today. He's usually pretty busy."
Click! The lock disengaged with a satisfying sound. Sung-hoon pulled the door open again, and this time it swung smoothly. He stepped inside first.
"Alright, let's go in."
He entered the hospital as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The girls followed, trailing behind their leader. They hesitated a bit, whispering to each other.
Seol-ah pointed at Sung-hoon with a finger.
"He just... does these insane things like it's nothing."
"Yeah. I was thinking the same. How'd he even get a key to this hospital?"
It was a feeling hard to put into words—something tremendous, fearless, with surprises popping up in the most unexpected places. What kind of life has he lived? Question marks began hovering over the two high school girls' heads.
Of course, oblivious to their inner thoughts, Sung-hoon dangled the key on his finger, spinning it idly.
"If you're not coming in, I'm locking it."
He urged them to hurry.
Vrrr... The hospital interior was dead silent. Not that it was surprising—the lights were off, no patients in sight. It was a small neighborhood clinic, no wards or inpatients. Just the hum of machines in the background, accompanied by the faint footsteps of the three intruders as a subtle rhythm.
Swish. Ha-yoon glanced sideways. Nothing but empty air.
"H-Ha-yoon. Is there something there?"
"...Probably nothing."
"Can you say that with a little more certainty..?"
Ha-yoon and Seol-ah were glued together. The empty hospital felt eerie and chilling—who could blame horror movies for picking hospitals as their backdrop? Experiencing it in real life was scarier than any contrived scare.
"S-Sung-hoon. How much farther?"
"......"
"Sung-hoon..?"
Sung-hoon stayed silent even to Ha-yoon's question. He didn't turn, just kept walking forward like a robot. Like a monster deaf to the world, he pressed on.
"Hey..! Quit messing around!"
This time, Seol-ah yelled. Her voice echoed off the walls, turning the air even more sinister.
Then.
"......"
Sung-hoon's movement halted abruptly. Frozen like time itself, not a single step forward.
The two stopped too. Neither approaching nor fleeing.
" "
"......"
" "
Silence enveloped them all. Tension built—what was about to happen?—as the girls' bodies stiffened.
"It's there, huh!?"
Sung-hoon whipped around and bolted. The girls' legs gave out in shock, and they collapsed.
"Waaah!"
Right after, a loud crash from behind them. They instinctively turned to see a man in a doctor's coat striking a spooky pose. Sung-hoon grabbed him by the collar in an instant.
The doctor flailed in panic.
"...W-Wait, timeout!"
"Timeout my ass!!"
He was slammed onto the tile floor. Sung-hoon had yanked him down the second he grabbed the collar. It all happened in a flash.
Seol-ah and Ha-yoon just stared blankly. Sung-hoon looked exasperated.
"Teacher. I told you you'd get it bad one day."
"Sung-hoon... A man has to do what he must sometimes."
"Is that so? Then let's take one more solid hit."
"W-Wait..!"
"Bite down. Jeon Teacher."
A sharp crack echoed through the empty hospital. Sung-hoon exhaled like he'd accomplished something great, then remembered something.
"Oh. Introductions are late."
He pointed at the limp Jeon Young-ha.
"This is my doctor teacher. Name's Jeon Young-ha."
He casually bobbed the doctor's dangling head in greeting. The wide-eyed girls, caught up in the moment, bowed briefly.
"H-Hi. I'm Park Ha-yoon."
"Her friend, Lee Seol-ah. Nice to meet you...?"
They greeted the unconscious man. With intros done, Sung-hoon slung him over his shoulder like luggage.
"Let's go. I know where the interview room is."
He led the way. The two girls followed.
. . .
A few minutes later, Young-ha came to and looked at Sung-hoon.
"Ow.. That really hurts."
"Who told you to hide?"
Sung-hoon shot back, equally exasperated. He gestured at Ha-yoon and Seol-ah.
"I said I was bringing friends, so why turn the hospital into a horror movie set?"
He asked, genuinely curious. Young-ha flashed a thumbs-up.
"'Cause I wanted to."
The two girls thought the exact same thing:
'Idiot!'
True idiot. Weird for a doctor, but the label fit perfectly.
. . .
After that brief idiocy, Young-ha donned his coat properly and pulled glasses from his pocket.
Seol-ah asked why.
"Makes me look way more trustworthy like this."
A reasonably convincing answer. He rearranged the furniture for the perfect interview setup.
"Well... shall we start?"
The interview began with a hesitant Ha-yoon.
Career Project Assessment
Job Interview: Doctor Edition
Filming: Kang Sung-hoon | Interviewers: Park Ha-yoon, Lee Seol-ah
Sung-hoon hit record. Ha-yoon cleared her throat lightly.
"First, could you introduce yourself?"
"Name's Jeon Young-ha. I'm a doctor by trade."
The interview proceeded smoothly. Basic intro, a few questions, natural responses.
"I see."
"Teacher! I've got a question!"
Ha-yoon handled the formal ones; Seol-ah the fun, student-curious ones.
The formals were standard: How'd you become a doctor? Any special reason? What emotions come with the job? Sung-hoon had prepped him, so Young-ha answered effortlessly.
But Seol-ah's...
"How much do you make a year?"
"Any memorable crazy patients?"
"What's your deal with Sung-hoon?"
Pure curiosity-driven. Yet Young-ha dodged with seasoned doctor eloquence.
"Salary... As the director here, I'd have to check with my accountant."
"Most memorable patient... A young guy who devoured an entire pack of dried seaweed."
"Relationship with Sung-hoon... Hard to sum up in one word."
That last one's getting cut. Sung-hoon marked the edit point on camera.
The interview continued. All for the project grade—Young-ha answered every one kindly, no signs of annoyance.
Minutes later, Seol-ah raised her hand. Young-ha looked questioning.
"Another question?"
"N-No, it's just.."
Sung-hoon paused recording. Raising a hand meant stop filming.
"Teacher. That's the pause signal."
"...You guys really prepped properly, huh?"
"For grades, you gotta do what it takes."
Sung-hoon shrugged. Seol-ah explained her hand.
"Something sticky got on my hand.."
She hid it. Everyone caught the subtext:
'Gotta pee.'
No more hiding after that, but saying it outright was worlds apart. Young-ha tossed it to Sung-hoon.
"Sung-hoon. Show Seol-ah around the hospital."
"This way. It's confusing, so stick close."
Seol-ah protested.
"N-No, just tell me the way.."
But the machine hum and dark halls convinced her. The two left the room.
The girls missed the brief eye contact between Sung-hoon and Young-ha.
The two were gone. Ha-yoon tensed slightly, eyeing Young-ha. A doctor—the clinic's director, no less. An invisible wall. She hadn't felt it with three around, but now pressure built.
Young-ha spoke.
"Pretty nervous?"
"Y-Yes?"
"Well, I've got something I'm curious about too."
He grinned like a villain—the same foolish expression from earlier chats, now wicked.
"Kang Sung-hoon. What do you think of him?"
"...Pardon?!"
"Oho~ Sounds like you do have thoughts."
Young-ha pounced. To the flustered Ha-yoon:
"He's kinda mysterious, right?"
"Y-Yeah? Kinda fascinating?"
"Don't you wonder why he's like that?"
Ha-yoon's ears perked. She did wonder. Curiosity sparked. At his beckoning gesture, she leaned in instinctively.
Whoosh! He seized her hand before she could react. Yanking off her wristband.
"But first, let's talk about this."
Countless scars etched across Ha-yoon's wrist were laid bare.