“Huh……”
A groan escaped from Michal’s lips.
His eyes, fixed on the monitor, seemed devoid of a soul.
The heads of the conjoined twins, once attached at the crown, were being separated.
Both could die.
Or at least one of them had a high chance of dying.
The twins’ heads, which they thought would never be able to face each other again, were being separated.
“Wow! He did it! The surgery was a success.”
“As expected, Professor Austin is on another level. It was like watching a movie.”
“I didn’t know such a major surgery was possible… I’m learning again today.”
The pediatric neurosurgeons who were observing each said a word or two.
Everyone was praising Austin as a hero.
Eventually, someone started clapping, and the applause spread like wildfire throughout the room.
Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap.
The observation operating room quickly became as lively as a concert hall.
If there was champagne…
It felt like they would pop it open and share celebratory drinks.
Amidst all the excitement,
only Michal, Austin’s rival, had a stiff expression on his face.
His lips were so tense that he couldn’t smile.
He only pretended to clap.
‘Is the gap widening again like this… Is that bastard running away again?’
Michal glared at Austin in the monitor.
How exactly would Austin operate on conjoined twins attached at the crown?
While other surgeons came to observe out of curiosity,
Michal’s intention was the opposite.
He came to observe, curious to see how Austin would fail.
The foolish other surgeons didn’t know
how difficult the surgery was.
They simply optimistically assumed that Austin, being the number one surgeon at the moment, would somehow succeed in the surgery.
But Michal knew.
That the success rate of this surgery was less than 10 percent.
Yet Austin and his staff succeeded in breaking through that 10 percent probability.
Michal suddenly had a stomachache.
It wasn’t from eating the wrong food, nor was he hungry.
It was clearly a stomachache caused by his jealousy of Austin.
“It’s no wonder the guardians and other surgeons keep calling him Professor Austin, Professor Austin,”
Jimmy, who was sitting next to him, said with admiration.
Jimmy was from the same Cleveland Clinic as Michal and was one of Michal’s students.
That guy was praising Austin, unaware of Michal’s burning insides.
“Your eye for surgery is still far off.”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you really think Austin is the top contributor to this surgery?”
“Except for the dura [the thick membrane that surrounds the brain and spinal cord] resection, wasn’t Professor Austin’s performance perfect?”
Jimmy tilted his head, looking confused as to what was wrong.
“There was a savior in between. If it weren’t for him, this surgery would have failed a long time ago.”
“Are you talking about the Asian guy who is the first assistant?”
“Yes.”
Michal nodded.
His gaze returned to the observation monitor,
fixed on Jun-hoo, not Austin.
Since the twins’ heads were separated, there was no need to share the operating table.
Now the twins were using their own operating tables.
Austin took charge of one child.
Jun-hoo took charge of the other child.
The two were restoring the dura of each child on operating tables placed side by side.
Vital signs and oxygen saturation.
The electrocardiogram and electroencephalogram results seemed normal.
The surgery was going smoothly and heading towards a happy ending.
‘If it weren’t for that guy…….’
Michal’s eyes narrowed like slits as he looked at Jun-hoo. His eyebrows furrowed, and unpleasant wrinkles formed on the bridge of his nose.
There were a total of two crises in this surgery.
When performing the dura resection and when separating and suturing the shared middle cerebral artery [a major artery in the brain].
But each time, Jun-hoo, not Hector, played a crucial role.
Especially his suturing skills were fantastic.
It was fantastic how he calmly caught up with Austin even when the suture came loose in the middle.
His dazzling hands were almost invisible.
At least in terms of suturing skills, it felt like Jun-hoo was a step above Austin.
A monstrous guy.
He’s not even a professor yet, but he has that much skill…….
“Didn’t that Asian friend mess up the sutures and have to redo them?”
Jimmy continued, looking suspicious.
“When I saw it, it didn’t seem right? Surely Professor Austin will undo it and re-suture it later when he does the cranioplasty [surgical repair of the skull], right?”
“You’re so stupid. Do you think Austin would do such a troublesome thing?”
Michal sneered.
“Then does that mean it will stay like that?”
“Of course. The reason he undid the suture in the first place wasn’t because the suture was wrong, but because the suture material was defective.”
“What? Defective suture material?”
Jimmy asked with a look of disbelief.
Some of the surgeons who were eavesdropping on the conversation around them were greatly surprised by the words ‘defective suture material.’
They shrugged their shoulders, showing their agitation.
Tsk tsk tsk.
How can they not see like that?
“I already know Austin’s skills, so I only watched Jun-hoo’s suturing.”
“And?”
“There were no problems with knots, tension transfer, or blood leakage during the suturing. If there were no problems with his hands, it means there was a problem with the suture material.”
“But isn’t it extremely rare for suture material to be defective?”
Jimmy immediately retorted.
“Even I have never had such a case before.”
“That’s why that friend Jun-hoo is even more amazing.”
Michal crossed his arms and couldn’t take his eyes off Jun-hoo.
If he has this much skill at this point,
how much more will Jun-hoo grow in the next 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, or even the 7th year when the boost-up program ends?
Michal couldn’t even imagine Jun-hoo’s skills at that time.
Maybe the real rival won’t be Austin, but Jun-hoo.
“Jimmy.”
“……Ah. Yes, Professor.”
Jimmy’s answer was a beat late.
He must have belatedly realized Jun-hoo’s performance and was spacing out.
“Search the world for conjoined twins with attached heads.”
“Does that mean…….”
“We can’t lose either. We’ll counterattack immediately.”
* * *
“Everyone worked hard.”
“Thank you for your efforts.”
The staff began to encourage each other.
After a 20-hour journey, the curtain fell on the separation surgery of the conjoined twins.
Jun-hoo was looking down at Sophia with a satisfied expression.
As she was separated from Emma, the hair on the crown of Sophia’s head was dented.
But there was nothing to worry about.
Because they would correct the shape of her head later with cranioplasty.
The children, who had been the focus of the American continent, would return to their normal lives in a few years.
No one would remember the twins from this time.
Not even the twins themselves.
And that was the life that the children, their guardians, and Jun-hoo wanted.
Jun-hoo covered Sophia’s head with several layers of gauze soaked in physiological saline solution [a solution of salt in water, similar to bodily fluids].
He had restored the dura, but he was not planning to restore the skull yet.
This was to prevent the unfortunate event of the children’s intracranial pressure [pressure inside the skull] suddenly rising.
“Jun-hoo, what are Sophia’s vitals?”
Austin, who was on the operating table right next to him, asked Jun-hoo.
“No problem. Everything is normal.”
“Same here. Everyone worked hard.”
Austin took the lead and left the operating room, followed by the staff.
Jun-hoo, who came out of the operating room, took off his mask, surgical cap, gloves, and gown as if he were shedding his skin.
Sweat was thickly soaked into the surgical supplies.
The smell of sweat was also strong.
They were the symbols of a difficult and arduous battle.
“I benefited from you again at the end.”
Austin smiled and put his hand on Jun-hoo’s shoulder.
“My benefit, you mean……?”
“The massage, I mean, the massage. Thanks to you, I was able to maintain my concentration until the end.”
“I agree.”
“Me too.”
Hector and Raymond also agreed with Austin.
Jun-hoo replaced his answer with an awkward smile.
A minor yet important turning point in this surgery.
That was the stamina of the staff.
High-difficulty surgeries such as conjoined twin surgery are usually operated by 2-3 teams.
Because the surgery time is so long, the teams are rotated to prevent the staff from losing concentration or stamina.
In fact, almost all high-difficulty surgeries were using this team surgery and rotation technique.
But Austin was an exception.
He was a perfectionist.
He wanted to be involved in everything from A to Z of the surgery.
And he demanded the same from his staff.
The most elite staff must be in charge of the surgery to ensure consistency.
Misunderstandings can arise from communication between teams, and so on.
As a result, there may be problems with stamina.
Thanks to Jun-hoo’s use of Chugung Blood Activation and Heart Internal Medicine [likely a reference to a specific medical technique or practice, possibly traditional], the staff were able to successfully complete the surgery without experiencing a decrease in stamina and concentration.
After the small talk, the staff all left the operating room.
Two beds followed behind them. A ward attendant was pulling the beds.
The children will be receiving intensive care in the intensive care unit for the time being.
“Doctor. How are our children?”
The guardians, who were sitting in the waiting room, jumped up and rushed towards them.
The guardians’ faces were more haggard than the staff’s. Their cheeks were sunken and there were dark shadows under their eyes.
They too must have had a hellish time for the past 20 hours.
Jun-hoo knew that feeling well.
In high school,
because he had watched the surgery waiting room when his mother had cerebrovascular surgery [surgery related to blood vessels in the brain].
The fear that his mother might die.
The desperate feeling of wanting his mother to survive.
He never wanted to feel those emotions again in his life.
“Both children are healthy. Their heads have been successfully separated, and we will be monitoring their progress in the intensive care unit for a few weeks.”
“Thank you. Doctor.”
“Thank you.”
The couple bowed to Austin several times, then hugged each other and began to shed hot tears.
Jun-hoo couldn’t bear to look straight at the guardians.
Because he felt like he would fall into a sea of tears himself if he did.
* * *
Since the surgery time was 20 hours,
the surgery that started in the morning ended in the morning.
The staff each washed up, took a short break, and then went out to the city.
Austin decided to buy brunch to commemorate the end of the difficult surgery.
The means of transportation was Austin’s car.
Austin was in the driver’s seat, Hector was in the passenger seat, and Jun-hoo and Raymond were in the back seat.
Thanks to the success of the surgery, the conversation was cheerful and full of life. Like lively teenagers, laughter bloomed no matter what they talked about.
The meal was delicious.
In fact, it couldn’t have been bad.
Because all the staff had been starving during the surgery.
As much as it was a long and arduous surgery,
rest was guaranteed for all staff today.
After the meal, Jun-hoo, who had returned to the clinic, headed to the dormitory with Raymond.
“I used to feel sorry.”
Raymond suddenly apologized in the middle of it.
Jun-hoo tilted his head.
“What suddenly?”
“For looking down on you because you’re Asian.”
“I didn’t care.”
“Really?”
“Does a rabbit think a lion will even blink if it ignores it?”
“You son of a bitch. You have to make analogies like that.”
Raymond chuckled and continued.
“You probably already know, but I had a severe inferiority complex towards you. But my thoughts have changed a bit as I’ve spent time with you.”
“In what way?”
“There are walls in the world that can’t be overcome. There’s no need to go through unnecessary hardships to break down that wall.”
Raymond looked at Jun-hoo seriously and continued.
It doesn’t seem like he’s just making up stories…….
Is he serious?
“If you think about it, a wall can also be a fence. I want to learn a lot from you in the future.”
“…….”
“I know that these words won’t erase the humiliation and hurt you’ve received, but I’ll still sincerely apologize.”
Raymond bowed his head towards Jun-hoo.
It seemed like he had been studying Eastern etiquette.
Raymond’s relationship, which started as a bad relationship, how should we continue that relationship in the future?
The 고민 [Korean word meaning ‘worry’ or ‘concern’] didn’t last long.
The logic of the human world was an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
“I’ll accept your apology. But if you do anything stupid again, I’ll harass you so much that you’ll want to leave the boost-up program.”
Jun-hoo stopped and offered Raymond a handshake.
Raymond awkwardly smiled and accepted the handshake.
6 years and 2 months have passed since then.