Chapter 1: With the Pencil, She Writes
Chapter Text
I don't understand why I'm even here. All that I know is that I get to play with my dolls and color and take medicine here. It's not that bad really. I also get to be a princess which is really amazing!
My fairy godmother helps me take my medicine and makes sure that I'm safe in my castle. I love her. She's very nice to me and listens to my stories. Sometimes she even plays dolls with me when she has the time. I'm happy that she's my fairy godmother. I don't know what I would do without her. She's better than my scary family. I don't want to see them. They made me feel like Cinderella, which isn't good at all because in the story, Cinderella was mistreated by her evil step family. But eventually she gets saved by a very handsome prince, well not exactly saved but it was similar to that. She actually got a fairy godmother put on a magical spell that helped her become pretty, attended a ball and then she met the prince. Then she had to go back home at midnight because the spell would wear off, leaving a glass slipper behind. After that the prince searched the entire kingdom for her, her only remains being that glass slipper. Eventually he found her since the glass slipper fit, then they got married and lived happily ever after. I want that! Maybe this place is the ball that I attend and then I find my prince! My fairy godmother helped me after all! Everything will be perfect! I'm happy that I'm getting what I want! Although I want to be done writing now.
I watched as our new patient concluded her writing session. She lifted her head fondly and smiled brightly, giggling as she happily handed back the notebook in my direction. With a steady grasp, I accepted the notebook into my hands, smiling gently back at her. She then held her comfort doll closely to her body as she rocked back and forth in her chair.
Kang Yoon-ah. She was admitted to this hospital shortly after a suicide attempt. She was then diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder based on the responses she was giving to the psychiatrists. According to the documents, she struggled with a difficult home life, being born into a family of corrupt CEOs to multiple big enterprises. She hasn't opened up much about her childhood yet, but from the raw, vulnerable moments that I've observed her having on her own, I could tell that there was something way deeper than what those documents were stating.
I took a quick glance at the paper, then looked back up at her. “Thank you, Ms. Kang–”
“No. Don't call me that. Yoon-ah. Call me Yoon-ah.” She demanded with a deep glare, crushing the neck of the doll that she was holding.
I escorted her out of the meeting room, allowing her to go back to her comfort spot of the recreational room. She began to continue working on the picture she was drawing, scribbling with a content expression on her face as she held her doll securely in the other arm.
I let out a soft sigh as I proceeded to the nurses office, sitting back in my spot. One of my colleagues, Jeong-Ran, peered at the notebook in my hands.
“You got her to write that much? That's a milestone! When I tried to get her to write some stuff, all she did was stare at the paper with a blank expression on her face!” She chuckled, bewildered by the amount that Yoon-ah wrote down.
“She seemed really into it when she was writing. Now we'll actually have to take a look at what exactly she wrote about.” I replied, content with the progress I was able to make with her. Yoon-ah wasn't always this excited to do anything, she was extremely antisocial when she first came into our care.
My head lowered and my gaze fixated on the words written on the paper, thoroughly reading excerpt to excerpt. As I read, I could notice the pattern that she had in her thinking. She constantly referred to me as her fairy godmother and that she was a princess in need of rescue. One part that really caught my attention was her whole explanation of the fairytale Cinderella.
“She said that she feels like Cinderella.. because her family treats her like that…this is a part of her delusion right?” I mumbled to my colleague, seeing her nodding her head in agreement.
“Yeah, it does apply to that. Maybe it's her subconsciousness trying to say something. ..A cry for help? This is also important because it shows her opening up about her childhood. We should probably keep doing this exercise with her so we can fully understand what exactly happened to this poor girl..” She responded back, her hand to her mouth as she continued reading.
I gave a small nod of approval as I handed her the notebook.
“Please show this to her psychiatrist, as you said, it's crucial information. I'll just go check up on what she's doing.” I requested, getting up and heading towards the recreational room.
At my arrival, I saw her still coloring. She took notice of my presence and smiled brightly, waving in a fast manner and allowing me to sit near her.
“Look at what I'm drawing. I drew me and my dolly and you!” She explained quickly, pointing to various parts of the picture. She stared at me, waiting for a reaction from me.
I smiled, making sure to give her that approval that she craves.
“Wow! What a pretty drawing! Would you like me to put it up on the wall with all the other drawings?” I asked, being careful with my wording. I've learned from past mistakes that saying something could possibly be misinterpreted and cause a patient to go into a manic episode.
She gave me a small thumbs up, smiling ear to ear. She intently watched as I hung up her drawing, labeling it with her name below.
I could feel her suddenly clinging tightly to me, jumping up and down in pure delight.
[Brief Time Skip]
As the sun began to set, I walked her back to her room, situating her at her bed. I gave her the necessary pills before she fell asleep, it was ordered that she was given pills more frequently than other patients or else she could resort to her destructive-impulsive behavior.
“Goodnight, fairy godmother! I'll miss you in my sleep!” She yawned, her eyes growing heavy as she hugged her doll tightly.
I simply smiled as I proceeded to bed-check the rest of the patients that were in the room with her. I then turned off the lights as I wished them all a gentle goodnight.
Alright, just a few more hours until my shift is done. I thought to myself as I continued to bed-check various rooms.
The corridors fell silent as the day came to an end, the moonlight seeping into blue tiles, casting a subtle glowing baby blue. I freshened up the recreational room, putting everything into their respective places and making sure everything was ready to be used for the upcoming day. Some patients get irritated if things aren't in the right places, so I made sure to respect that.
It sort of feels awkward during this time, since I have absolutely nothing to do but to file more paperwork and prepare for the next day. Although, a feeling ignited in me. A feeling that was purely unexplainable. I shook it off immediately, it couldn't have been anything that important anyways.
Chapter 2: Geeks In Love
Notes:
hello everybody ! chapter 3-4 may be delayed due to me having school soon . I'll make sure to update you all if anything else happens . thank you for reading and enjoy this chapter !
- lots of love, yoonskii ! <3[yes, the chapter name is a lemon demon reference .]
Chapter Text
It has been around 2 weeks ever since Yoon-ah was admitted, and her mood swings have been reoccurring more often than usual. I observed her becoming more irritated towards other patients and nurses, sometimes completely isolating herself from times of social interaction. She also seems to isolate herself even more when there are mainly men present in the situation. Almost like she has an evident hatred towards men somehow. Although this short-lived phase abruptly came to an end today. Just this morning I saw her communicating to one of my other patients, Kim Seo-wan. She seemed very happy when speaking to him and had no problem socializing with him at all. I also observed her sudden bursts of shyness whenever he passed by her. I contemplated whether I should ask her about it or not. I didn't want to be the cause of any manic episodes— at least not again.
I was able to catch her by herself in her room, sitting criss-cross in her bed and reading one of the books she brought along with her. I gave into my curiosity and sat on the edge of her bed.
“What's that book that you're reading? It looks good.” I smiled, starting up a conversation with her in hopes that it could get to a point where I could ask about this presumably developing crush.
She had a smitten expression on her face, mumbling incoherent words before speaking to me. “It's my favorite story! You should know what my favorite story is, right?” She replied, her last few words being quite intimidating.
I scoured through my memory, trying to remember her favorite book. Suddenly it came to me.
“Oh! Cinderella, right? That's your favorite story.” I replied, trying to match her overall tone and mood so she would have no suspicion of what I was trying to get out of her.
She nodded, giggling. “Yay! You got it! I really like reading it. I've read it 5 times today. I need to get to 10,” she commented, rocking herself back and forth in place, “My favorite part is the ending. Because it's like me! Because I'm a princess and I'll get my happy ending. It's really close, don't worry!”
My curiosity peaked, my mind urging to get to the point. I reluctantly commented on her remark “Ooh, really? That's wonderful news! Do you possibly have an idea of who your prince may be?”
“YES.” She exclaimed with no hesitation, but was suddenly stopped by an internal force. The expression on her face became to one of reluctance, the tips of her fingers finding their way to her lips. She spoke wearily, having rapid head movements as if she was afraid that something was watching her.
“..sorry miss fairy godmother. ..I can't tell you who it is. ..My dolly said that I have to keep it a secret.”
Her grasp on her doll tightened, and her hands made their way to her own neck. She forcefully choked herself, crushing her throat so tight to the point that she was coughing up clots of blood.
At this sudden reaction, I called out for help in hopes that somebody would hear and assist me. I tried prying her hands from her neck, but got kicked in the stomach instead. The sound of hurried footsteps filled the room, my colleagues strapping her into a stretcher as her movements consisted of sudden jerks and trembling murmurs. Her head tilted down to her hands, looking at the shades of red that stained her fingers. She stared in horror, causing her to scream frantically as she tried to pace herself back and forth. Although the restraints of the stretcher limited her ability to move.
“SOMEBODY FUCKING SAVE ME!” She yelled as her words were embedded with a tragic plea and laced with a veiled anger that periled beneath. Tears trickled like bullets down her face, her sweat colliding with the blood. Yoon-ah's screeches echoed down the corridor as she was strolled to the medical department.
I clenched my stomach, uncomfortable by the pain. Mr. Yoon, took notice of my action.
“Hey, what happened? Are you okay?” He checked up on me with concern.
“I'm okay, thank you for asking. I'm also sorry.. I don't know what I did but I caused a patient to go into a manic episode again.” I apologized, feeling guilty for being at fault again.
“No, it's really fine. Yoon-ah is quite the difficult patient, there isn't really any telling on how she'll react to even the slightest of words. Now.. what exactly happened?” He comforted me, unbothered by my mistake.
“..I've noticed today that she may or may not be developing a crush on one of the other patients. I know I shouldn't interfere but I got a bit too curious. I chatted a bit with her while she was reading, and she referred to herself being a ‘princess’ and getting her ‘happy ending’. I asked who the ‘prince’ might be and she was about to tell me. But.. that doll of hers stopped her entirely. She said that she couldn't tell me because her doll said so, then she began strangling herself. Almost as if the doll was doing that to her.” I explained thoroughly, a lingering feeling of guilt still present in the air. “I think that doll is no good for her at all. But.. yet.. she won't let go of it.”
He sighed, absorbing all of the information I stated. “Hm.. I understand. Thank you for this, I'll note it for the next time I see her. ..Not to budge in or anything.. but.. do you know who she likes..?” He whispered, genuinely interested.
“Kim Seo-wan. She's been getting really close with him, she's become really clingy as well. We'll just have to wait and see if this is reciprocal.” I whispered back, making sure nobody was near. Mr. Yoon nodded, gave me a thumbs up and exited the room. I followed behind, on my way to the nurses office.
I unlocked the door and sat in my seat, noticing that my colleague Jeong-Ran was inching close to me.
“..Da-eun.. what happened back there?” She mumbled, trying her best to be secretive.
“Yoon-ah was acting out again. It started because I noticed that she might like Mr. Kim..” I spoke back in the same secretive tone. “I asked her about it and then she went crazy. It was because of that doll again.”
“Ohh.. do you know if he likes her back?”
“..I dunno.. we'll just have to find out. I really do hope that she's alright though. She choked herself and spat out alot of blood. Hopefully she'll be back by this afternoon..”
I entered documents into the computer and took apart pill packages for the daily pill intake. I was then suddenly interrupted by a knock on the window.
“Mediator..! ..Are you busy right now? Can I talk to you?” A familiar voice urged out, knocking on the window repeatedly. My eyes met with Seo-wan, a worried expression on his face.
“Ah, of course I can talk with you. Is something bothering you?” I asked in a soft tone, making my way out of the office and facing him.
He kept silent for a few moments before beginning to walk, I followed behind him carefully.
“..Mr Kim?” I spoke, noticing the conflicted state he was in. I noticed the slight shake in his hands, mind rambling on something. Almost like this thought was colliding with his delusion in a way. It took him a few moments to form a thought, his mouth opening.
“I.. met this.. princess.. today. I knew she was always here, but she really just started talking to me today. She's.. very pretty and very nice..” He rambled, muttering some words before speaking in a normal tone, “ I can't really figure out why she would talk to a mage like me. I mean.. she's a princess, after all.”
This revelation caught my attention in the best way possible. I wanted to see if I could try and pry even just a little bit more out of him.
“Really now? What exactly makes you feel this way?” I asked in a gentle tone.
“She's just.. so amazing. ..She has this really nice smile and there are butterflies that swirl around her. I'm sorry but it's hard to further explain. There's just something about her that is so beautiful.” He concluded, visibly nervous despite having a calm exterior while actually talking to her.
“Mr. Kim... that's wonderful! I'm so happy for you! I may have an idea of who this princess might be, but could you please remind me of who the lucky lady is?” I smiled as we continued to walk down the never-ending corridor.
“..Yoon-ah. ..That's her name.” He mumbled, fidgeting with his hands while looking down at the ground.
I mentally sighed in relief. This love was reciprocal. I felt so happy for the both of them, hoping that what they have will carry on for as long as possible.
From past records that we managed to uncover when Yoon-ah arrived, she had 5 restraining orders from different people— specifically boys. She had allegedly stalked them, which could've stemmed from her need for affection. I hoped that this time, she can receive the love and reciprocate it in a way that's healthy and positive. Seo-wan could definitely use some love too. He's the type of person that, despite his condition, would be able to openly love a person to the fullest. I hoped that he could see a much more beautiful world with the princess that came into his life. They both compliment each other in such a way that it's almost perfect. Even with their respective differences, the worlds they see line up so well. I wanted to make sure that they'd both have maximum support on the journey they'd hopefully embark on during their stays in the ward.
“I do hope she's alright though. Last time I saw her, her mana was critically low. Hopefully she'll be able to slay dragons with me later on. I'll just complete side-quests in the meantime.” He added, genuinely concerned for her. She was acting out to an extreme level, so it was only natural to evoke attention in the corridors.
Seo-wan took a deep sigh, then raised his gaze to look in front of him.
“I'll be on my way now. Thank you for your words, O great Mediator.” He smiled, proceeding to walk away.
I happily watched him walk farther away, feeling relieved. Now I'll just have to wait and see which one of them confesses first. I made my way back to my respective station, continuing to once again prepare packets for daily pills.
Unt1edC0nvers3 on Chapter 1 Tue 19 Aug 2025 05:59AM UTC
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