After parking, Seulgi got out of the car. There was a grey, overcast sky, which matched the mood perfectly. A cold breeze flirted with their colrs, making them gd they had an overcoat on.

  Sung-Hoon got out at the same time as Seulgi, after doing so, he turned and proffered his hand to his wife whom accepted it to assist in exiting the vehicle. It was not needed, but it was curtsey that was so ingrained after decades of marriage, it was basically muscle memory for both. It was also such an unconscious statement of love and respect that had the essence of old-school css.

  Seulgi took a moment to ponder what it would be like to have someone love you so much that opening a door for her and treating her like royalty would feel like. For just a moment, she was insanely jealous. But, then remembered that she didn’t have the time for flights of fancy. She can worry about her love life ter.

  How these two interact was a very broad expnation of why Wendy acted as she did. With these two as an example, all social interactions had an inherent formality that was understated and just…css. No wonder Wendy, had that odd formality to her even when cracking up at some joke that Katie told.

  Sung-Hoon tucked Jeong-Hui’s hand into his elbow, again without thinking about it. Her grip tightened indicating that she was ready to proceed. That was just how it should…no, that’s how it would be. Anyone who was so stuck on the forceful formality of these two would miss that they were just as desperately in love as the first day that they first met. There was a seriously romantic story behind them, but they were here for Wendy, not her parents.

  Jeong-Hui clung to Sung-Hoon like a remora fish, but he took as much physical comfort from her presence as she did his. Both of them were powerful personalities by themselves. Rather than one eclipsing the other, they strengthen each other. Separate, they were powerful entities that needed no help nor brooked any decent. Together, the best way to describe them is Formidable. These two, with the presence of Titans, followed behind Seulgi into the hospital hallway leading to her friend's room.

  The hospital was a mix of sterile, antiseptic white with quiet pools of silence mixed with the chaotic madness of emergencies. There were also pockets of color in the forms of paintings or pnts to make the pce less intimidating and lifeless.

  Seulgi was used to people looking at her and gawking. What she was not used to was being the prow of a boat that scattered people out of the way. They walked to the elevator together to get to the appropriate floor.

  It was hard for the crowd to decide if this regal couple was more majestic or intimidating. The wise one just decided both and went on with their day.

  They waited for the lift’s doors to open. They got on and after a moment, the lift closed. Seulgi pushed the button for the appropriate floor. There were mirrors on the walls of the elevator. Seulgi noted with annoyance that they looked just as good from the back as the front.

  “Do you ever get used to that?”

  “Used to what?”

  “All of those people getting ready to bow and scrape to you two? While at the same time, they are all trying to get out of your way as if you are some lord gracing them with your presence. What sorcery is this?”

  “Excuse me?”

  Jeong-Hui entered the conversation, “He didn’t notice. He is too focused on what we are about to find out to pay attention to any mere surroundings.”

  “Is he normally like this?”

  “Yes, he is. You’d think he’d pay more attention to the surroundings, but he gets so focused that he stops paying attention to the things and people surrounding him. It’s a bad habit, but after so long, what can you do?”

  Frowning. “He is standing right here with you, you know?”

  “Yes, dear, you are.” She then patted his arm in a comforting way. Both comforting and exasperated, and in a loving, yet long-suffering way.

  Fortunately, that was when the elevator’s door opened and the conversation stopped. The hand returned to the elbow it detached from.

  Seulgi waved her elders out first, giving them the respect due.

  A few nurses saw them and stood up respectfully. One nudged the su ganhosa, who they warned “Ganghan namja incoming.” So, she quickly stood and straightened her crisp, white, starched uniform.

  They all sighed in relief when Seulgi popped out from behind them and asked them to follow her. They were not too sure if they wanted to interact with these intimidating people. When they walked off, the charge nurse instructed one of her juniors to call the on call doctor to let him know that he probably wanted to make himself avaible, in case these people these people had a question.

  She had a feeling that they would.

  As they approached Wendy’s room, Seulgi stopped them from entering by blocking the door. “I know that you are a doctor, sir. You have seen more horrible things than I can possibly imagine, and that’s before your residency was even done. However, none of those were your daughter. Please ready yourself. She is battered, bruised, and broken. She looks simply awful.” Looking at this power couple in the collective eyes was one of the scariest things that she had ever had to do. The anger, the rage, the elemental fury was not directed at her, but it was still present.

  He was a monster in human form. Ready to be bellicose and rip and tear anything offensive in his sight. He had the power and the will to draw and quarter any miscreant that offended him or his. As much as he loved, cherished and even worshipped his wife, she was not his daughter.

  She was the calm fury. She matched his fury into a brighter, yet darker presence. No one would ever confuse her with some weak hot house flower. While they would watch him rage, anyone with self-preservation would watch out the corner of their eyes for her, instead. He would be in the middle of the floor bellowing. She would come after someone from an oblique, darkened corner.

  Either way, whomever caused their collective attention to be drawn upon them would not have a pleasant end.

  Both took a deep breath and exhaled. They took a moment to steady themselves and prepare themselves for what they were about to see. They had both seen death before. They have seen maimed and mutited bodies. They have had to comfort the broken, bloodied, and dying. But, there was always that impersonal separation of Not Mine to remove themselves from the situation.

  This time, this was a situation involving Mine. And a very personal Mine as they could possibly get. The only way this could be any more personal would be if it were either of them.

  But, still, this was their much-beloved daughter. Both nodded in unison. That nod was to acknowledge what was said and to thank her for the reminder to steel themselves. They both have already come to trust Seulgi. They knew that she would not exaggerate this to them.

  Seulgi stood aside as they drew a mental shield around themselves to prepare themselves.

  Rather than immediately entering as expected, the doctor took the medical chart and was immediately got lost in hieroglyphics and ancient Greek codes. Both women looked over his shoulders. The older woman had a much better idea of what it all meant, but the younger did understand one in three words and all of the numbers. But not much else.

  He would go from frowning to fury and back with maybe two signs of relief. He simply said, “It’s as bad as she said.”

  Then he follows with a simple “Right.”

  Knowing what that meant, both he and his wife did an abrupt turn and headed to the door. Seulgi was a split second behind them.