Faceless

I. The accident

It was in the midst of the December exams session and I couldn't focus on my anatomy revisions so I had decided to visit an exhibition at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts.. While passing by in the tramway, I noticed there was an exhibition of Korean painters from the Joseon era, and my curiosity was immediately piqued. Fortunately, the ticket wasn't expensive.

While I strolled leisurely inside the museum I heard a deafening noise and saw a cloud of dust escaping from a neighboring room. And then, nothing. Maybe they were doing some renovations but the room didn't seem to be closed to the public. I was all alone, and no staff members seemed to be rushing over. I cautiously entered and noticed that a section of the ceiling had collapsed. And then I saw him. A tall figure lying on the ground, motionless. My reflexes kicked in. I checked his pulse, his pupils; he had lost consciousness. I took out my phone and dialed 112. After giving my location, I began CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. After what felt like an endless five minutes, his heart started beating again, and he was breathing, but he still hadn't regained consciousness. I heard the sound of the paramedics arriving.

"Did you call, Miss? Do you know him? What happened to him? One of the paramedics asked."

"I was in the neighboring room when the ceiling collapsed. I administered CPR, and his pulse came back, but he's been unconscious for nine and a half minutes."

"How did you know what to do?"

"I'm a medical student. I acted on instinct."

"You did a great job; you saved his life. Will you accompany us to the hospital?"

"Yes, gladly."

In the ambulance, I could finally get a good look at him. He was young but probably older than me. Very tall, almond-shaped eyes, black hair, thin lips, and high cheekbones. I began to wipe the dust from his face with a wet cloth. He had an open head wound, but it wasn't bleeding anymore, and I hadn't even noticed it in my haste. He probably had a concussion. The paramedic searched his pockets and found a plastic card with a photo. It clearly wasn't a passport.

"I wonder what language this is? It looks like Chinese. Can you read what's written? I need to identify him to notify his family."

"It's Korean. I can tell you his name. Lee Rowoon. He's 27 years old. It's an insurance card."

"Ah, he must be a tourist. The hospital will then notify the consulate or the police. But how do you know it's Korean?"

"It happens that I learned this language out of passion. I could help with the formalities and stay with him in case he wakes up and is too disoriented."

"You would do that? That's kind of you. You should notify your parents or friends."

"It's already done."

At the hospital, they tended to his wound, took a blood sample, and placed him in a two-bed room. The ER doctor praised me again for my quick actions and told me what I already knew. We couldn't be sure when he would wake up. They were going to check with a scan for any head trauma. I crossed my fingers that it wouldn't be the case.

In the early evening, a representative from the consulate arrived and explained that the young man was a South Korean citizen on a tourist visit, but his family wouldn't arrive until the end of the week. He thanked me for my assistance and said they would take care of his situation. I asked if anyone would visit him regularly. He replied no but mentioned that they would cover the hospitalization costs, and the hospital would notify them if there were any changes.

At that moment, I decided not to abandon him and to visit him regularly.