No matter how frivolous and competent Katie was, she was still a very young woman who was barely hanging on. This was not a situation that she was ever prepared for. But, with resilience, she hung on with bloody fingertips until reinforcement showed up in the form of a Seulgi.

  Now that the older woman was here, she could start relying on others again.

  Seulgi stood her up, much to her confusion, moved her one seat to the right, and sat her back down. This mystified her until she sat back down and the other two became a pair of book ends. Seulgi put her arm around her shoulders and Nayeon grabbed one of her hands.

  Having support and no longer needing to be the strong one, Katie gave into one strangled sob before pnting her head onto Seulgi’s shoulder. Seulgi took her hand off the girl’s shoulder and cradled and cuddled the back of her head. She started softly crooning to her just as her mother did when she was a child.

  Katie cried, quietly, for a while. Seulgi and Nayeon just let her. Their presence was all that they could offer at the moment and that was enough. For the moment.

  “Have you called her family yet?”

  Negative head shake.

  “Do you want me to?”

  Katie looked up and asked, “Would you?”

  Nodding her head, Seulgi asked, “Do you have their number?”

  It was Katie’s turn to nod. She handed her Wendy’s phone. It was already unlocked. Seulgi took it and headed outside so she would not force the girl to relive the experience again tonight.

  As Seulgi headed outside, she told Nayeon with her eyes to keep an eye on the girl. Nayeon just nodded.

  After opening the phone app, she found the listing for Daddy. She took a deep breath and hit Dial.

  After four rings, a husky male voice said in English “Wendy? It’s four a.m. here. What’s wrong?”

  In less-than-perfect English, Seulgi said, “I’m sorry, sir, but Wendy has been in an accident. This is her friend, Kang Seulgi.”

  A much more awake voice said: “Excuse me? What did you say? What’s wrong with my Wendy?” It would be excusable to note that the man’s voice was starting to grow hysterical.

  However, in a very odd moment, Seulgi noted that her father also had a gorgeous voice. She had an inappropriate thought that at this moment she had a desire to hear him sing with his daughter.

  Shaking off that thought, she said “I am not sure if my English is good enough to expin.”

  He said, in Korean “Is this better?”

  “Much, thank you.” She proceeded to tell him all of the medical facts that she knew. She deliberately left out the attempted murder aspect for just now. She informed him that she was currently in x-ray and then would get a CAT scan for further details. He soaked all of the details that she had like a sponge. He even corrected a few things that she said. She was surprised until he chuckled a bit and said that he had been her doctor since before she was born.

  He asked her to hold on for a moment. She heard him wake someone up and hear him tell this other person “Honey, our daughter has been in an accident. Get ready, pack for us. Don’t forget our passports. I’ll get us a flight as soon as I am done with…?”

  “Seulgi, sir.”

  “As soon as I am done with Seulgi. Thank you.”

  “Sir, this phone is obviously not mine. Let me give you my personal cell number. May I take your number from her phone so I can call you with updates?”

  She received an affirmation. She also heard the typing of a ptop. She correctly assumed that Daddy – she still didn’t have his name – was looking up tickets.

  “Do you two have a pce to stay yet?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Unless you are allergic to cats, you can stay with me.”

  “My wife loves them.”

  “Deal. I do not live too far from the hospital, so will be convenient. Go ahead and call or text me when and where you are flying into. I’ll pick you up from the airport. If I don’t answer, I’ll be in the emergency room with your daughter and there is no cell service in there.”

  A simple thank you followed by a click was all the answers that she received.

  She took out her own phone, found the ID for The Boss, and called.

  “This had better be good,” a voice growled.

  “It’s Seulgi. I won’t be in tomorrow. My friend is in the ER having not died. I’ll be staying here until her parents arrive from Toronto.”

  “Do you need anything?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Take your time, Seulgi. Your mom was plotting to see you this weekend. I’ll tell her not to.”

  “Thank you. I don’t think I could deal with her right now.”

  “You know that she loves you.”

  “Not right now, sir.”

  “Fine. Update me when you can.”

  They disconnected the call. Seulgi leaned back against the rough stucco wall. She exhaled a deep sigh. This was NOT how she wanted to end her evening. She gnced at the clock on her phone. This was not how she wanted to start her morning.

  She shook herself back upright then brushed herself off, both mentally and literally, and then headed back inside the waiting room. Katie was gone. Wendy had finished the images and was heading back to her room. Katie was in the room, waiting for her return.

  Seulgi thanked Nayeon for being with her during this. She smiled weakly and said that this was not how she pnned the evening to go. She just wanted to have a smile, a ugh, and a good dinner. Not….this.

  She then told Nayeon to go home. She was going to stay here. She let her know that she had already spoken to the Boss and told him that she’d be here at least for the day. She also informed her that Wendy’s parents are already making pns to fly in today. She will take a taxi home in a bit, take a shower, and then come back in her car because she’ll be picking the parents up from the airport.

  They discussed some practicalities. They discussed what needs to happen in the office, who needs to know what, that sort of thing. Mostly they needed to know that Seulgi would be out for the day for personal reasons.

  They heard Katie’s voice, ”Seulgi! She’s up and asking for you!”

  Seulgi may well have teleported, leaving Nayeon with her jaw agape.