Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 350

351. Uncle or Mister

Guardian Waiting Room-

“Please help me. Please, I beg you, let Saechan’s surgery go well.”

Saechan’s family, gathered in the waiting room, still looked worried, hoping for a successful surgery.

His mother was praying with her hands together, and his sister was watching the monitor displaying the surgery status in the waiting room, occasionally calling out her brother’s name.

“Saechan, it’ll be alright. The surgery will go well.”

“…….”

And Saechan’s father, with his arms crossed, remained silent with a stern face.

“Oh!”

The daughter, who had been watching the monitor, reacted as the text next to her brother’s name changed and turned her head.

“Mom, Dad? It’s over.”

“What?”

“Saechan’s surgery is over. Look at the monitor.”

[Mr. Gong Sae*’s surgery has been completed. The patient will be moved to the recovery room and then to the hospital room. Thank you.]

“That’s right. He’s being moved to the recovery room. Honey, Saechan’s surgery seems to have gone well.”

“I saw it too.”

“You’ve been waiting a long time, right?”

While the whole family was watching the monitor, Taekyung, who came out of the operating room, entered the guardian waiting room.

“No, Director. We haven’t been waiting long.”

“Mom is right. I thought it would take longer. I was thinking it ended sooner than expected.”

“Since it’s dangerous to leave the blood vessels severed for a long time, the surgery was performed quickly, so it ended early.”

“Then, the surgery went well?”

“Yes, the surgery went well. The severed blood vessels were reconnected, and the fractured bones were fixed well.”

Taekyung carefully explained how the surgery went, the future treatment plan, and rehabilitation to the family, so they wouldn’t worry.

“Oh, my goodness! Thank you, Director. Thank you so much.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

The mother and sister, hearing the explanation, were sincerely grateful and bowed their heads repeatedly.

The mother, who had been worried that her son’s leg might be damaged, showed a slightly tearful expression. And while the wife and daughter didn’t notice, Saechan’s father, who was standing behind and listening to Taekyung’s explanation, also showed a relieved expression for a moment before leaving the guardian waiting room.

“As I explained earlier, we need to keep a close eye on his progress for a few days. And rehabilitation is also important.”

“Of course, Doctor. I will make sure he receives treatment diligently by his side.”

“Mom, Saechan can’t ride a motorcycle anymore.”

“Of course not. I will never let him ride a motorcycle. Thank you so much, Doctor.”

“You’re welcome. Gong Saechan will be able to see you in the hospital room soon. Then, I’ll see you again.”

“Yes, Director. Thank you so much.”

“Thank you.”

After finishing the explanation and leaving the guardian waiting room, Taekyung stopped walking.

He had spotted Saechan’s father standing alone on one side of the hallway after leaving the guardian waiting room a little while ago.

“Father?”

“Ah, yes……. Thank you for your hard work on the surgery.”

“It’s no trouble. The patient’s the one who suffered. More than that, were you worried? As you heard earlier, the surgery went well.”

“Worried? I wasn’t worried about that guy at all. He’s a guy who ignores his parents and does whatever he wants.”

“Please encourage him with his rehabilitation. Then, I’ll see you again.”

Gong Saechan’s father raised his voice again at Taekyung’s words, still looking upset.

After that, Taekyung headed to the recovery room, not the examination room, the ward, or the emergency room.

The recovery room was a place where patients who had undergone surgery woke up from anesthesia and were briefly monitored before being transferred to the ward.

“Oh my, Director. What brings you here?”

The nurse in the recovery room approached Taekyung.

“I’m just here to see a patient for a moment.”

“A patient? Are you talking about Gong Saechan?”

“Yes, how is he?”

“He asked if his legs were okay as soon as he opened his eyes. He’s a very brave patient.”

“That’s a relief. I’ll have a quick chat with him before he moves to the ward.”

“Yes, Director.”

After talking to the nurse, Taekyung headed to the bed where Gong Saechan was lying.

The reason he deliberately came to the recovery room to see the patient who would be moved to the ward soon was because he had something to say directly in the absence of his parents.

“Patient?”

“Oh! Director…….”

“Can you talk? Is anything uncomfortable?”

Taekyung took a seat next to Gong Saechan.

“Yes. I feel better than I thought.”

“It must have been hard to have surgery, right?”

“No. What’s hard for me?”

“The anesthesia must be wearing off; are you in pain?”

“It’s bearable because of the painkiller.”

“Weren’t you scared to have surgery? I saw you calmly receiving anesthesia earlier.”

“This is my first time having such a big surgery and general anesthesia, but I was more worried about what would happen if my leg was damaged than the fear of surgery, so I calmly received the surgery.”

“You received it bravely.”

A little while ago, Gong Saechan had shown an unexpected side before entering anesthesia in the operating room.

‘Okay! Now that everything is checked, I will start anesthesia for Gong Saechan. Don’t worry and count slowly from 1 to 10 with a comfortable mind.’

‘Wait, excuse me? Doctor?’

Gong Saechan said urgently just as Euijin was about to administer anesthesia.

‘Wait a minute!’

‘Why? Are you uncomfortable anywhere?’

‘No, that’s not it, can I just say one thing?’

‘We need to get into surgery quickly because of the patient’s injured area.’

‘I’ll make it short. Excuse me, Director?’

Gong Saechan turned his head slightly and said to Taekyung, who had just entered the operating room and was preparing for surgery.

‘Yes, patient.’

‘I’m sorry for what happened in the emergency room earlier. And I’m really sorry, but I don’t want to live without my leg. So, Director and all the doctors here, please take good care of my surgery. Please save my leg.’

‘I’ll do my best.’

Taekyung answered quickly because time was of the essence, and Euijin started anesthesia right away.

“Do you know that the medical staff was surprised by Gong Saechan in the operating room a little while ago?”

“I thought the doctors’ expressions seemed embarrassed at that time.”

Taekyung thought about what happened a little while ago and asked Gong Saechan.

There are quite a few patients who express their nervousness or worry when standing by before entering the operating room.

But Gong Saechan was the first patient he had ever seen who suddenly said that right before surgery.

Because it was a surgery where every moment mattered, he didn’t show any particular expression, but everyone on the medical staff was slightly taken aback by Gong Saechan’s sudden remarks.

“I don’t know where I got the courage to do that all of a sudden. I just thought that the fate of my leg was in the hands of the director and the doctors, so I felt urgent and wanted to ask you to take good care of me. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. Let me see… calling you *hyung* [older brother, used as a term of endearment] is too much, so uncle would be good.”

“Yes?”

“From now on, think of me as an uncle or a friendly neighbor and speak comfortably. Is that okay?”

“Ah……. Yes. Of course.”

“Saechan, will you promise me one thing?”

Taekyung’s tone was friendly and kind, but his expression was serious.

“A prom…ise? With me?”

Gong Saechan asked, slightly nervous about suddenly speaking comfortably and making a promise.

“What is it?”

“Don’t ever ride a motorcycle again after you leave the hospital.”

“Motorcycle?”

“Yes. Motorcycle. I’m not saying this because you had a motorcycle accident, but the patients who died most horribly while working as a doctor were traffic accident patients. Among them, motorcycle accident patients are seriously injured when they have an accident.”

“I’ve seen it on YouTube too. Patients who had traffic accidents were broken and flew away, and some foreigners had accidents to the point where they couldn’t even recognize their faces.”

“Yes. You know it well.”

“But Doctor. Other things are dangerous too.”

“You’re right. Of course, cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and scooters are all dangerous. But bicycles and scooters are more likely to travel on bicycle lanes or general roads than on car roads where cars and motorcycles travel. These days, no matter how well I drive, I can’t avoid accidents. Don’t you know from your accident? You ran a red light, and the driver who collided with you was driving safely at the right speed, but suddenly an accident happened. There is no way to prevent a sudden accident.”

“…….”

Gong Saechan, who had been answering back, couldn’t say anything to the undeniable facts.

Even if the road was deserted and there were no cars, he couldn’t deny the reality that it was his fault for running a red light and speeding.

“Have you heard this saying too? If a car and a motorcycle collide, the motorcycle driver is always more injured.”

“Doctor, you sounded like my mom just now.”

That was the word Gong Saechan heard the most from his mother after he started riding a motorcycle for the first time and got caught by his parents.

“Saechan, I’m not kidding right now.”

Taekyung’s tone lost its kindness as he looked at Gong Saechan, who still didn’t understand how badly he was injured in the motorcycle accident.

“You, it’s a really good thing that the surgery went well, but you need to keep a close eye on your progress for the next few days. The operated blood vessels can cause problems inside, and unexpected things can happen.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m not saying this because I want you to feel sorry, but I’m telling you not to ride a motorcycle in the future.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Do you know why I came all the way to the recovery room to tell you this?”

“Because motorcycles are dangerous.”

“No! That’s not it. You already know that motorcycles are dangerous.”

“……Then?”

“Because I’m worried that you’ll ride a motorcycle again after you leave the hospital. Honestly, didn’t you think that you could ride a motorcycle again after seeing that your leg was okay?”

“…….”

Gong Saechan’s heart was pounding.

To be honest, the moment he opened his eyes in the recovery room and saw that his leg was intact, a motorcycle came to his mind.

It was really like that after going to the bathroom and after coming back.

He had broken bones while riding a motorcycle, but it was the first time his blood vessels had been severed. So, before the surgery, he vowed that he would never ride a motorcycle again because of the fear.

But seeing his intact leg, his heart wavered.

“Saechan, listen to me. I once operated on a patient who was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident.”

It was a long time ago, but Taekyung still had vivid memories of that friend.

He was a patient who was severely injured in various parts of his body, including his spine, in a motorcycle accident and was hospitalized for a year.

As a result of gritting his teeth and making bloody efforts, the patient was able to walk again.

The young man even shed tears of emotion on the day he was discharged.

He went to the medical staff, including Taekyung, who were happy about his discharge, and even swore that he would never ride a motorcycle again.

“Do you know where I saw that friend again after he was discharged?”

“From what you’re saying, Doctor, didn’t you see him again at the hospital after another accident?”

“No, exactly…….”