Neri Medical Hospital
Neri Medical Hospital was infamous for two things: its sky-high treatment fees and its reputation for having the best facilities and doctors in the city.
Since the incident had taken place in one of the wealthiest districts, many of the victims were either affluent residents or well-connected individuals.
The hospital lobby was crowded with patients, families, and staff rushing about, the atmosphere buzzing with urgency and low murmurs.
Originally, the Zhi siblings and Venice were to be transferred from their previous hospital to Neri after a few days. But unexpectedly, the Zhi couple were informed they had been given priority, and the three were moved that very day.
The couple were baffled. With only superficial injuries, they knew how the system worked, priority in a prestigious hospital usually meant either a hefty bribe or strong connections. They had offered neither. Still, they followed the procedure without protest.
Yeri had her suspicions. In a nationwide-covered incident , there was no way Shin Keir wouldn’t hear about it and even more impossible for him not to interfere. If she had to guess, he had quietly pulled strings behind the scenes.
Jj and Yeri were placed in one private room, while Venice was in a shared ward down the hall.
That day was exhausting with another endless medical checks, scans, and tests. Venice, however, made the process far more difficult than necessary.
She burst into hysterics every time a nurse tried to approach her, forcing the staff to coax, persuade, and nearly beg before they could take her vitals.
Yeri wasn’t sure whether Venice truly had PTSD or was simply pretending. Either way, she just wanted to get through her own tests and rest.
That morning, Jj woke up complaining of a pounding headache and sore muscles as if he’d been working out nonstop for days. But apart from that, his condition was much like Yeri’s.
"Do you need a wheelchair?" Jj asked as they walked along the polished hospital corridor.
Yeri shook her head, dragging her IV stand with visible irritation. "Why’d they remove yours and not mine?"
Jj chuckled. "Unlike me, you’re pale as a ghost. And in case you haven’t noticed, you’re also running a mild fever."
Before Yeri could retort, someone slammed into Jj’s chest.
She clung to him like a lifeline, her body trembling, tears streaming down her face as she muttered incoherent words. Behind her came two nurses: one looking exasperated, the other visibly annoyed.
"Miss Ryung, please cooperate with your treatment," one pleaded.
Jj stiffened at the sudden physical contact but didn’t push her away, she was still technically a patient, after all.
The nurses tried to pull her back. One even gave a subtle signal to sedate her, but Venice only clung harder, wailing, "Don’t leave me alone! I’m going to die! I’m really going to die!"
Yeri stayed back, arms crossed, watching. She didn’t want to jump to malicious conclusions... but it was hard to tell if this was genuine trauma or a performance.
Yes, what they’d gone through was terrifying, but if Venice was using it as an excuse to latch onto Jj and later manipulate him with guilt...
The idea of her cousin as a future sister-in-law was enough to make every hair on her body stand on end.
Watching Venice resist the staff’s every attempt, Yeri finally spoke, her voice soft and concerned. "My cousin has always been mentally fragile... perhaps it would be better if she were admitted to the psychiatric ward."
The staff exchanged glances and, to Yeri’s satisfaction, seemed to agree. With her physical injuries being minor, the problem clearly lay elsewhere.
That was when Linda appeared out of nowhere, her voice sharp enough to cut glass. "Yeri, you dead girl! How dare you say my daughter’s crazy?"
Yeri blinked. When she’d mentioned the psychiatric ward, she’d caught a flicker in Venice’s eyes, a sudden clarity that didn’t belong to someone lost in trauma.
So... she was pretending after all.
"Auntie, when did I ever say she was crazy?" Yeri’s voice trembled, her eyes misty as she bit her lip like a wronged child. "Being admitted there doesn’t mean a person is crazy. Dad’s already covering her bills here...if you’re worried about the cost, I can ask him to continue supporting her treatment."
"Shut up, you dead girl! There’s nothing wrong with my daughter, she’s just traumatized!" Linda wrapped her arms around Venice protectively, glaring like a mother hen guarding her chick. "If you dare send her there, I’ll sue every one of you!"
Venice, face buried in her mother’s shoulder, whispered urgently, "We have to run."
"Auntie," Yeri tried again, "every hospital has departments for different illnesses—"
"Stop talking, you jinx!" Linda snapped. "If she hadn’t gone to see you that night, she wouldn’t have been caught in that mess! You’ve always been jealous of her for being healthy while you—"
"Enough!" Jj’s voice was sharp.
The first time Linda had accused Yeri of being a jinx, Jj’s been asleep. He was hearing it now and it infuriated him.
"Auntie, are you even listening to yourself? Don’t twist the truth. Venice wanted to go to the night market. If we hadn’t invited Yeri along, she wouldn’t have almost died. And you should be thanking her instead because at that moment, we could’ve run, but Venice refused. When the madman saw us, do you know what she did? She pushed Yeri forward like a shield."
Venice flinched, but saying anything now would risk shattering her fragile ’trauma patient’ image.
The staff were stunned. The night market case had been all over the news, and these three were among the most vital witnesses. Just that morning, the police had been in their rooms for questioning.
Linda recovered quickly and hissed, "Just because she’s your sister doesn’t mean you should lie for her! My daughter would never do such a thing!"
The commotion was attracting attention. Patients, visitors, and even a few staff members began gathering nearby.
"You dare bully us just because your father’s paying my daughter’s bills? Yeri, don’t get too arrogant," Linda cried dramatically.
Jj looked ready to explode, but Yeri stopped him. For more chapters visit NoveI★Fire.net
There was no reasoning with someone like Linda, someone so bitter that she dragged others down just to feel less miserable herself.
A bitter woman taking out her failures on the wrong person.
Wait. A thought struck Yeri. Could it be Linda didn’t even realize Venice was acting?
Great, better if these two be admitted together to the psychiatric ward.
"Auntie," Yeri said, her voice trembling, "you say I bully you, but what exactly have I done? You’ve called me a dead girl, a jinx, told me I’ll die soon. If you hate that Dad pays your bills, then tell him you don’t want our help. Your problems with my uncle have nothing to do with me. Why blame me? I’m not the one who cheated on you, my uncle was. Or... do you hate him because he didn’t marry you?"
The words hit like ice water.
Linda froze. Venice’s grip on her sleeve tightened.
If there was one truth they feared above all, it was people knowing that Linda had been a homewrecker, and Venice the daughter of a mistress.
Yeri hid a smirk. Sometimes, being a pretty, pitiful girl had its uses.
Whispers broke out in the crowd, their sympathy shifting.
"Did she really call her those names?"
"Yeah, she was so loud earlier. She’s crying over her daughter’s trauma but can’t see she’s traumatizing this one with her insults?"
"Covering medical bills is bullying now? If so, I wish someone would bully me like that."
"The girl said her man cheated? Figures. With her temper, who’d stay?"
Linda’s face flushed scarlet, but she bit her tongue, this wasn’t the place to have their dirty laundry aired.
Yeri, this dead girl, everytime they argued in public, she would always imply about her Uncle like a warning.
Unfortunately, it always worked.
Venice suddenly collapsed into a faint, giving the nurses an excuse to whisk her away. Linda followed, glaring daggers at Yeri as they went.
The crowd gradually dispersed.
"Does Aunt Linda always insult you like that?" Jj asked, still fuming. "Why didn’t you tell Dad?"
Yeri shrugged. Truthfully, she found it amusing watching their smug expressions crumble when their schemes backfired.
"I think Venice is faking it," she said. "Be careful, or one day you won’t even know how you got bitten."
Jj frowned. He understood the "faking" part, but what did she mean by "bitten"?
"Believe it or not, she’s scheming against you. Call it a girl’s instinct."
Better to warn him now than let him be blindsided later.
On their way back to the room, Yeri spotted the hospital’s garden, a tranquil patch of green amid the smell of disinfectant and blood, suddenly she decided to sit there for a while.
Jj nodded and went ahead, he had to check his phone for school matters.
The garden was peaceful, sunlight filtering through leaves, the scent of flowers carried by a light breeze. Yeri had just settled onto a bench when she heard a man’s voice from behind a tree, harsh and sharp.
He was cursing at a nurse, who looked moments away from tears.
Yeri’s mood soured. So much for fresh air and calm.
A man in a patient’s gown emerged, an unlit cigarette dangling from his fingers.
As he passed, he glanced at her. Then he stopped, his lips curling into a sleazy smile.
"You look familiar... do I know you?"