Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 252

Fifth Vital Sign – Episode 252 (252/502)

Episode 252. A Strange Occurrence?

“Please double-check.”

“Yes, I understand.”

In the meantime, Mona Choi subtly shifted her body, blocking Yongjin Kwak’s view, and Taekyung moved closer to Jiae Shin.

“Patient, you mentioned having stomach pain earlier. I’d like to check if it’s due to something other than gastroenteritis [inflammation of the stomach and intestines].”

“Ah, yes, Doctor.”

While Nurse Jeongsook Lim and Mona Choi dealt with Yongjin Kwak in the back, Taekyung spoke naturally.

Jiae Shin, believing his words, replied without suspicion, her gaze fixed on Mona Choi.

“Alright! Please straighten your legs, and I’m going to press on your abdomen. Tell me if it hurts.”

Taekyung lowered his upper body slightly, explaining as he brought his left hand, with the writing on it, close to her abdomen. He then spread his palm so that Jiae Shin could see it.

From Yongjin Kwak’s perspective behind them, Taekyung’s palm was out of sight.

-If you need help, blink twice. And say it hurts no matter what when I ask if you’re in pain.

“Patient, please straighten your legs a bit more.”

Jiae Shin’s gaze remained fixed on Mona Choi, as if drawn by honey. Taekyung repeated his words, clenching and unclenching his fist on her abdomen to attract her attention.

“…….”

Finally, Jiae Shin saw the message on his left hand, her eyes widening.

“S…….”

The moment Jiae Shin unconsciously tried to say something, Taekyung shook his head subtly with a firm look.

Soon, her eyes, now understanding the situation, blinked exactly twice.

‘She really does need help.’

He now knew that what Mona Choi had said was true. It was time to separate Jiae Shin and Yongjin Kwak.

“How does it feel?”

“Ah! It hurts.”

“Does it hurt here?”

“……Yes.”

Contrary to his slight worry, Jiae Shin was quite perceptive. She matched Taekyung’s words and followed along well.

“Then how about this side?”

“Ah, ah…….”

“It hurts here too?”

“Yes. It hurts there too.”

“Can’t straighten your legs?”

“Yes, it’s a bit difficult.”

“What’s going on?”

Yongjin Kwak, having finished his conversation with Nurse Jeongsook Lim, asked curiously.

“It seems we need to do a CT scan [Computed Tomography scan, an imaging procedure].”

“A CT scan?”

“Yes, the patient’s symptoms suggest appendicitis [inflammation of the appendix] in addition to gastroenteritis caused by diarrhea. The physical examination revealed a different pattern of abdominal pain, not just from the diarrhea…….”

Taekyung’s explanation, filled with various medical terms, left no room for doubt.

“Then what happens?”

“I think the most accurate thing to do is to take a CT scan first. I’ll explain the results when they come out.”

“Yes, I understand. Jiae, are you okay? Are you in a lot of pain?”

“I’m still okay. Thank you for worrying.”

“No need to thank me. It’s only natural.”

“We’ll move you to the CT room right away.”

“Since the guardian has the patient’s belongings, would you please wait here for a moment?”

“Ah, yes, I understand.”

Yongjin Kwak, slightly surprised by the unexpected CT scan, thankfully didn’t insist on following.

After that, Team Leader Choi, having received Taekyung’s signal, quickly reported to the police, and Jiae Shin, after completing basic tests, left the emergency room with Taekyung and Mona Choi to move to another location.

Since Yongjin Kwak didn’t follow, there was no need to go all the way to the CT room.

Click-

“Patient, are you okay?”

“Thank……you.”

In response to Taekyung’s question about her well-being, Jiae Shin replied with a trembling, tearful voice.

“Patient, I have one question to ask. Did you ask us for help?”

“Yes, that’s right. I deliberately fell in front of this female doctor and asked for help.”

“Is the man who came with you not your guardian?”

“No……. He’s not my guardian. He’s my ex-boyfriend. That man is harassing me.”

“I see. We’ve already reported to the police, so please wait a little longer and tell them everything when they arrive. Fortunately, there’s nothing wrong with the patient other than the gastroenteritis symptoms.”

Taekyung, having received the basic test results from Nurse Jeongsook Lim over the phone, explained.

“Thank you so much. I actually kept eating spoiled and spicy food to come to the hospital.”

“So, you deliberately tried to get gastroenteritis?”

“Yes, I couldn’t find any other way to escape.”

“Patient, it’s not over yet, so please stay strong, and I’ll explain what we’re going to do from now on.”

“Ah, yes.”

Knowing that Yongjin Kwak might notice if they dragged things out too long, Taekyung explained how to completely separate the two and then returned to the emergency room together.

“I’ll tell you the results.”

Shortly after, Taekyung explained the CT results to Yongjin Kwak and Jiae Shin.

“If you look here, you can see this side, right? To put it simply, the patient currently has acute appendicitis.”
The CT scan was a picture of appendicitis found online. Taekyung explained the symptoms very sincerely and actively.

To the average person unfamiliar with medical knowledge, it looked exactly like appendicitis.

“So, we need to go into surgery now.”

“Su, surgery? Are you saying Jiae has to have surgery?”

Yongjin Kwak was quite surprised by the word surgery and asked back.

“Yes, that’s right. It’s urgent, so we need to go into surgery quickly. I’ll explain the surgical consent form to the patient. Dr. Choi? Please take care of it.”

“Yes, Doctor.”

After that, everything proceeded quickly, and Jiae Shin, wearing a cap, moved to the front of the operating room.

“Jiae, I looked it up, and appendicitis is nothing. Just think of it as taking a nap. Okay?”

“Yeah. Yongjin, don’t worry. I’ll do well.”

“Doctor, please take good care of our Jiae.”

“Of course. We’ll do our best.”

Jiae Shin entered the door marked ‘Restricted Area’ with Taekyung, and Yongjin Kwak moved to the guardian waiting room.

“The guardian should wait in the waiting room.”

Waiting room. He took a seat on one side, watching the words ‘Jiae Shin – In Surgery’ on the monitor, waiting for the surgery to end.

Meanwhile, Jiae Shin, with Taekyung’s help, was moved to a hospital room to ensure her safety and received an IV drip for her gastroenteritis.

“Doctor, the police are here.”

“Tell them to come in quickly.”

Click-

Not long after, two police officers, a man and a woman, entered the hospital room.

“Hello. We’re from the OO Police Station.”

“Hello. I’m Kim Taekyung, the director of this hospital.”

“You reported it?”

“Yes, the patient here requested help, so I reported it.”

“Did the woman report it?”

“Yes, I’m experiencing dating violence from my ex-boyfriend.”

“Dating violence?”

“Can you explain exactly what the situation is?”

At the female police officer’s words, Jiae Shin slowly nodded and began to tell her story.

“I met him a year ago.”
A year ago, Jiae Shin, who was working as a model, met Yongjin Kwak at a restaurant where he was a chef.

Jiae Shin, whose family was in the United States, and Yongjin Kwak, who came to Korea from Germany, quickly became close due to their shared empathy for working alone in a foreign country.

‘Yongjin, you’re really good at cooking. How can it be so delicious? It’s the best spaghetti I’ve ever had.’

‘Really? Is it that good? Aren’t you exaggerating too much?’

‘No, I’m not. It’s really the best.’

When the tough filming schedule ended, Yongjin Kwak would often invite Jiae Shin to the closed restaurant and cook dinner for her himself.

‘Jiae, I like you. I’ll cook you more delicious things in the future. So, let’s date. I’ll really treat you well.’

Watching Yongjin Kwak, who had a kind personality and always treated her like a princess, Jiae Shin couldn’t help but fall in love with him.

The two became a couple, and everyone around them envied them as a wonderful couple.

‘Jiae, that’s good. Close your eyes and lift your head. One more time. Good!’

‘Let’s take a break from filming.’

‘Hello, Writer.’

‘Isn’t that Jiae’s boyfriend? Did you bring a lunch box again today? Thank you always.’

‘What! Isn’t today your day off?’

‘I stopped by during my break time. I just need to give this and leave.’

‘Why did you come when it must be hard? Thank you so much, honey.’

‘I came to support our princess while she’s filming? You’re so pretty. I fell for you again just now.’

‘Oh, you! I can’t stop you.’

Whenever Jiae Shin had a filming, Yongjin Kwak would bring her homemade lunch boxes or snacks.

Also, he would put aside all his work and prioritize her when she had her period, buying her painkillers and porridge.

With the love growing more and more each day, Jiae Shin gradually fell more in love with him.

The two started living together a few months after they started dating.

However, the love that seemed like it would last forever didn’t last that long.

Around the time they started living together, Yongjin Kwak began to change little by little.

‘Jiae, your filming ends at 9 today, right? I’ll pick you up.’

‘But I have a get-together with the staff today. Important people are coming, so it’ll be hard to leave. Go ahead first.’

‘Really? Okay. But don’t come home too late.’

‘Of course. Don’t worry.’

Although she said she had a get-together, Yongjin Kwak appeared at the location a few hours later.

‘Oh my! Yongjin is here. Welcome.’

‘Hello. I came because I was worried that Jiae can’t handle alcohol well.’

‘Didn’t you know we’re having a get-together today? Come on in and have a drink with us.’

It was strange that he came to the place even though she clearly said it was a get-together and that she would go in alone.

‘Yongjin, I told you I had a get-together today? You didn’t have to come…….’

‘I was worried you’d have a hard time coming home since you’re not good at drinking. I shouldn’t have come. I was thoughtless. I’m sorry.’

She believed his words that he was worried and sorry. But it wasn’t worry.

One by one, strange things happened.

The positions of the items on the dressing table or in the drawers had changed, and she felt traces of someone searching through her bag and clothes.

At first, Jiae Shin felt that she was being too sensitive, but she marked the items and then became certain of the strangeness.

As her worries grew, an incident occurred that made her decide to break up.

It was the day she had a photoshoot with a male model.

‘Jiae, what should we do? I just got a call, and it seems we’ll have to postpone this photoshoot.’

‘Yes? Why?’

‘Jihoon had an accident.’
The close male model, with whom she had been filming couple concepts for a long time, had an accident in which he broke his leg.

The two were people in the same industry who had been close since they started modeling and supported each other.

Upon hearing the news, Jiae Shin visited her fellow model in the hospital a few days later.

‘Jihoon, are you okay? How could this happen?’

‘Noona [term used by a younger male to address an older female], I was attacked randomly. I feel like I’m going crazy.’

‘What! Random attack?’

‘Yeah. Who would have known I’d experience something like this in my life.’

‘Did they catch the culprit?’

‘I’m already upset about the accident, but they haven’t caught the culprit yet. The police say it will take quite a while.’

‘No, what crazy person would do something like this.’

‘I know. Usually, these things are done by people with grudges or people around them, so when they investigate, they eventually narrow down the suspects, but it’s not easy with random attacks. As you know, Noona, I don’t have the kind of personality that would make people hold grudges against me.’

That wasn’t wrong.

The fellow model was diligent, good at his job, and had a good personality, so he was always praised by those around him.

‘Geez. You seem well enough to joke around?’

‘It’s absurd, but I can’t just cry.’

‘That’s right! Wasn’t it caught on CCTV [Closed-circuit television]?’