Dr. Shin Seonhan: The Doctor Who Sees The Future [EN]: Chapter 9

#9 Seeing the Future (2)

My vision blurs.

Soon, a scene like an old film reel unfolds.

It’s exactly like before!

Some of my intern colleagues are gathered right in front of the pub.

Does that mean… the time is right now?

I pulled myself together and focused on their conversation.

Soon, the interns light their cigarettes.

“Why is Jo Jin-gi acting like that to Seon-han?”

“I don’t know.”

“He’s always been out of it when he drinks since college.”

“Still, being that much of a jerk is too much. Does he have some kind of grudge against Seon-han?”

Everyone seems displeased with Jin-gi’s behavior.

Then, Joong-won hyung [older brother/friend], who was in the group, speaks up.

“That’s because he likes Yeon-seo.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t you guys know? Jo Jin-gi confessed to Yeon-seo three times in college and got rejected every time.”

“We know. It’s famous.”

“And as you guys know, there’s been a rumor going around the hospital lately that Yeon-seo and Seon-han are kind of seeing each other.”

“Ah….”

The interns nod as if they finally understand.

I, who am listening like an invisible man, can only feel absurd.

What, that’s what it was?

‘This is ridiculous.’

It’s not like he’s a ten-year-old.

In the end, he attacked me because of jealousy.

It’s the same everywhere, but the medical community doesn’t only consist of people with mature personalities.

There are many guys who haven’t fully developed as people because they only studied at their desks for 3 years of high school and 6 years of medical school. Test scores and character aren’t proportional.

Jo Jin-gi seems to be one of those guys.

‘By the way….’

I didn’t know there was such a rumor going around about Yeon-seo and me.

I should keep that in mind when I continue my intern life.

If the rumor gets too big, it could become uncomfortable for both of us.

“What time is it? I think it’s about time to wrap up.”

“It’s 10 o’clock. Let’s go in.”

The moment the interns put out their cigarettes, a loud voice is heard from inside the pub.

“Hey, catch that bastard!”

“Whoa!”

Thump!

Someone seems to have fallen down the stairs coming down from the second-floor pub. And quite badly, too.

“Jo Jin-gi, you crazy bastard. How can you drink so much that you can’t even stand up straight!”

“Hwaaa….”

A drunken Jo Jin-gi wails at the bottom of the stairs.

Well, he’s doing all sorts of things.

This is the kind of scene you only see in college towns.

“Is anything broken?”

“He seems fine.”

“Call a taxi!”

The interns help Jo Jin-gi into a taxi, and with that scene, my vision clears again.

* * *

“……”

I quietly returned to reality.

The glass I had filled with alcohol remains as it was.

As if nothing had happened, the conversation of the colleagues around me continues as before.

It’s as if I pressed the pause button and then released it.

Swish—

I picked up my phone and checked the time.

9:50 PM.

If the contents of the dream materialize this time as well, I have seen the future about 10 minutes from now.

Will the same thing really happen again this time?

I calmly grabbed my coat and got up from my seat.

“I’m going out for some fresh air.”

“Okay, sure.”

The interns glanced at me and nodded.

“Hoo.”

The outside air was chilly.

Feeling the cold wind clears my head a little.

I sat alone on the roadside divider, taking deep breaths. I needed some time to sort out the situation.

…Let’s think.

Last time, I saw the future a whole 20 hours later.

But this time, it’s only 10 minutes.

There’s no consistency.

‘If I had to find a common point….’

Something is happening around me.

That’s all.

Of course, last time it was a big accident where a patient died, but this time it’s a small accident where someone slips on the stairs.

It’s relatively minor, so it’s comparable, but there is a common denominator.

‘This is driving me crazy.’

I ruffled my hair.

Why is this happening to me?

It’s not like I was bitten by a spider like in a movie, or exposed to radiation.

I haven’t been hit by a truck, I haven’t picked up a strange object, and I haven’t encountered a miraculous opportunity.

But, why?

I took a slow breath.

Let’s calm down.

It’s too early to jump to conclusions until I see it with my own eyes.

Maybe it’s all my delusion, and the future won’t be reproduced this time.

As I thought that.

As if to mock my thoughts, intern colleagues walk out of the pub and light their cigarettes.

“Why is Jo Jin-gi suddenly acting like that to Seon-han?”

“I don’t know.”

“He’s always been out of it when he drinks since college….”

Damn it, the lines are exactly the same, word for word, giving me goosebumps.

At this point, there is no room for doubt.

I sighed and approached them.

“Don’t you guys know? Actually, Jo Jin-gi in college… Oh, Seon-han was out here.”

Joong-won hyung was about to excitedly start talking, but he hesitated, noticing me.

I asked directly.

“Joong-won hyung.”

“Yeah?”

“Is Jo Jin-gi acting like that because of Yeon-seo?”

“Huh… how did you know?”

His eyes widened.

How did I know? Well, I know because you told me in my dream.

Joong-won hyung scratched his receding hairline and said.

“I guess you heard it from somewhere too. Anyway, please be understanding. We’ll be seeing each other for the next year.”

“Yeah, sure.”

I lied.

Understand?

Why would I?

I have no intention of being friendly with Jo Jin-gi in the future.

I’m not nice enough to extend a hand to someone who openly showed me malice.

Don’t associate with people whose character is trash!

That’s what my father, who has met all kinds of people in the Garak Market [large agricultural and seafood market in Seoul] for 30 years, always emphasized.

Joong-won hyung rubbed out his cigarette and playfully asked.

“But do you really have something with Yeon-seo?”

“No, we just got close because we were in the same internal medicine department during the first rotation.”

“Really?”

“I had a hard time adjusting to Yonsei University [prestigious university in South Korea], so she helped me a lot. Yeon-seo is originally friendly to everyone.”

Then, as if they had been waiting for it, everyone nodded.

“Well, that’s true.”

“She’s kind of nice.”

“Yeon-seo is even very close to the assistants who work in our hospital.”

Everyone is in agreement.

I drove the point home.

“I’m from another school, so I’m too busy just thinking about surviving here. Please answer that way if anyone asks.”

“Okay, okay.”

At my words, Joong-won hyung and the interns nodded with relieved expressions.

What, looking at their expressions, it seems like everyone is interested in Yeon-seo?

I chuckled inwardly.

Anyway, Yeon-seo is going to have a hard time in the future. Being too popular must be tiring.

Anyway, this cleared up the misunderstanding about me and Yeon-seo.

I’m glad I could sort it out in advance before unnecessary rumors spread.

And, the main event is next….

At that time, a loud voice is heard from inside the pub.

“Hey, catch that bastard!”

Thump!

After a while, seeing Jo Jin-gi wailing at the bottom of the stairs, I could be sure.

That I have gained the ability to see the future.

* * *

“It seems like his wrist is shattered.”

“What?”

“I heard he’ll probably have to wear a cast and suffer for a month.”

I was speechless at what Geun-wook told me when I returned to the dorm.

Of course, when you drink alcohol, your reflexes are impaired, so it’s true that you get hurt more than usual.

But a cast for a month?

That’s a bigger injury than I thought.

“The internship is ruined.”

“It’s ruined. His first career as a doctor is totally screwed. Hahaha!”

Geun-wook burst out laughing.

Hands are very important to a doctor.

An intern who can’t use their hands can’t do any chores such as blood draws or dressings.

At best, can they only only get consent forms from patients?

“They were dumbfounded in the emergency room too. They said it’s the first time an intern has gotten drunk and crawled into the emergency room.”

“I guess so.”

“The rumor will probably spread throughout the hospital tomorrow, kekeke [onomatopoeia for laughter].”

For at least a month, Jo Jin-gi will be treated like a cancer cell.

His reputation will inevitably plummet as much as he failed to manage himself during an important time.

“Well, what can he do if it’s his fault? I didn’t like that bastard from the start. Serves him right.”

Geun-wook chuckled and lay down on the bed.

“……”

On the other hand, I was lost in thought.

As Geun-wook said, Jo Jin-gi dug his own grave.

He’s not even a college student, but he drank without knowing his limits, so he has nothing to say even if an accident happens.

Besides, considering his words and actions towards me, there is even less room for sympathy.

‘But….’

If I had actively stepped in, I could have prevented the accident.

Should I have?

I don’t know.

Honestly, even if I went back an hour, I don’t think I would have helped Jo Jin-gi.

However, I was confused about how to think about this ability in the future.

“Seon-han, where are you going?”

“Just going to sober up for a bit.”

I headed to the lounge.

After confirming that no one was around, I picked up a pen and calmly started organizing in my notebook.

[1. Precognition happens suddenly.]

[2. During precognition, the time in reality seems to stop.]

[3. Precognition shows events and accidents that will happen around you.]

[4. The timing of precognition is irregular. It can be 10 minutes later, or 24 hours later.]

‘Is that all… for now?’ I stared at the notebook.

This is all the information I can find out so far.

Of course, I can’t be sure yet because there have only been two cases.

If my thoughts are correct, this phenomenon may occur frequently in the future.

Because accidents happen frequently in hospitals.

‘And if I see the future again next time….’

I’ll have to choose.

Whether to change the future with my own hands, or to pretend I didn’t see it and leave it as it is.

Thinking about it that way, my life suddenly becomes interesting.

I picked up the pen and wrote the last item.

[5. The future can be changed by my actions, and if I do nothing, the future will not change.]

Yeah, what the heck.

Now that it’s come to this, I might as well enjoy it.

My optimistic personality, which I inherited from my father, is very convenient in times like these.

“Won’t you tell me the lottery numbers?”

Even if I muttered to the empty air, the answer that came back was, of course, nothing.

* * *

The first rotation passes quickly.

Now, as soon as you get used to it, you have to prepare to move on to the next department.

“Mr. Shin, is it true that today is the last day we’re seeing Mr. Shin?”

“Oh, how did you know?”

“I heard it from the nurses. I’m so sad.”

The elderly patient sadly grabs my hand.

I smiled and held the old woman’s hand in return.

The last week of March.

Today is my last day as an intern in internal medicine.

Internal medicine has many elderly patients and many patients who are hospitalized for a long time.

Some doctors hate internal medicine for that reason.

It’s because there are only so-called ‘wrinkled patients.’

But I didn’t hate it.

Maybe it’s because I grew up from a young age in the market, surrounded by the hands of the neighborhood elders.

Their frailty doesn’t feel like someone else’s business.

When I see elderly patients who have worked their whole lives thinking only about their children and are suffering from illness in their old age, I feel sorry for them.

I’ve become attached to our ward patients now.

“Okay, then, let’s draw our grandmother’s blood for the last time.”

“You’re always drawing blood… I’m going to die from lack of blood.”

“You need to be discharged soon and get healthy.”

I coaxed the old woman, who was whining like a child, and rolled up her sleeve.

Blood draws are one of the most basic intern jobs, like dressings or electrocardiograms.

Because it’s a painful task to prick the skin with a needle, the relationship with the patient can be ruined with one mistake.

Therefore, you must pay new attention every time, no matter how many times you do it.

The old woman stared at my hand and said.

“Why are your hands so soft? Like a woman’s hand~ Maybe that’s why, but it doesn’t hurt at all when Mr. Shin draws blood.”

“Really?”

“It hurts when other doctors prick me.”

“I’ll have to do my best not to hurt you until the end.”

I said, inserting the needle into the patient’s wrinkled arm.

Fortunately, the blood draw was successful in one try.

The old woman asked with regret.

“So you’re not coming anymore?”

“If I go to another department, I’ll be too busy there too. But I’ll stop by once in a while when I have time.”

“Oh, that’s a shame. I wanted to marry my granddaughter off to Mr. Shin….”

“If your granddaughter looks like you, she must be very pretty.”

“Of course, she looks just like me.”

“How old is she?”

“11 years old.”

“Oh my, Grandma. I’ll get arrested.”

When I answered with a groan, even the patients in the next bed burst into laughter.

I said goodbye to the patients I had grown fond of and left the hospital room.

At that time, the head nurse quietly approached.