•How long till you start falling apart?•
Min Sehyuk, a new transfer student from the U.S. joins Hanhwa university and entangles himself with the resident bully after defending a student. He becomes the new target, taking each punch with a smile, ask...
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'Yes.'
'Yes.'
'Yes.'
His father's words have been playing like a tethered curse in Sehyuk's mind. It's been three days since and they haven't left his side even for a moment. The only change is the increase in his sleeping pills dosage. He's treading a dangerous track when it comes to the said pills but Sehyuk's desire to block everything from his mind is strong just as his willpower to fight against the urge is weak.
"Parents of a Kenyan girl were moving to another country for work purposes, leaving her behind with her grandmother in Kenya." No Garam pulls Sehyuk out of his thoughts with the abrupt sentence. This is his third visit to her office. "After some days, the girl lost her eyesight. She was taken to the best doctors but they couldn't find anything wrong with her functioning. They declared she was fine but her blind condition said otherwise."
Sehyuk lifts his head at that, squinting and nodding slowly.
"Since her blindness was taking a toll on her and her grandma, the girl's parents booked a flight and flew her to where they were. Within a few days after she reached the country, the girl got her eyesight back without any treatment. Does this case sound familiar to you?" The psychiatrist asks as she folds her arms over her chest.
"I guess, somewhat. Except my legs aren't recovered." Sehyuk replies, connecting what Kim Haneul had said when his reports came in and now Bo Garam trying to explain it to him.
Garam chuckles light-heartedly, eyes glowing. "One would say gaining her eyesight was magical but her condition has a name in the psychological catalog of disorders." He taps her fingers on an A4-sized, thick, purple book, gesturing towards it. "Psychosomatic disorders. It's when something physical is caused due to psychological factors which may or may not be paired with another physical condition. But in your case, I believe it's what we call conversion disorder. The paralysis of your legs is rooting from psychological aspects."
Sehyuk once again dips his head, eyes focusing on the black track pants he's wearing.
"The girl I just mentioned went blind because she hated being away from her parents but couldn't tell that out loud. She stressed and tried locking her feelings. This type of condition is a rare case but it does happen." Garam hums and blows cool air through her lips. "Somatoform disorders are triggered by strong emotions of anxiety, stress, anger, guilt, or grief. That is why I asked you to think if any incident that occurred previously falls into this category. Something maybe even months or years ago which has been on your mind."
"Yes, Yeonwoo died because you were careless. But you were a child, he protected you by pushing you away when a car was about to hit you."
Another memory from years later.
"I hope you'll never stay happy!"
Sehyuk fiddles with his fingers, peeling his eyes shut, feeling the heaviness behind them as the memories rush to him. The incident with Kihyun triggered his memory of the accident with Yeonwoo. He didn't remember the man all these years but as if to punish him, the memory popped up.
