Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 310

311. Are You at the Hospital Now?

“Who is it? Teacher Choi? Teacher Lee? Or both of them together?”

“They should be here soon, so you can see for yourself.”

The staff naturally scattered, pretending to work, but their eyes were all glued to the entrance.

Gradually, a shadow appeared in the streetlight, and someone entered through the main gate.

“It’s Teacher Choi.”

“Is that Teacher Choi?”

The person who entered the hospital was indeed Choi Mona.

“Yes. Teacher Choi came alone.”

As Tae-kyung and many others had expected, Choi Mona and Lee Chan-hee did not arrive together.

It was a strategy the two had decided on after some serious, albeit brief, consideration. Ridiculously, the staff had already seen right through their intentions.

“……!”

“Heh!”

“Wh, what’s wrong, everyone?”

Choi Mona, upon entering the hospital, looked around at the assembled staff and asked.

“Oh my, Teacher Choi? What is it?”

“Right. What did we do?”

“Aren’t you all staring at me a little too intently as I come in?”

“Oh, it must be your imagination, Teacher Choi. How was the blind date?”

“Blind date?”

“Weren’t you out meeting Kim Mal-soon’s younger brother?”

“Ah! Is that why you’re all gathered here like this? I didn’t go on that blind date. My older brother was nearby, so I just met him briefly on the way back.”

“Then why are you coming in alone?”

“Who else would I come with if not alone?”

“Teacher Choi left earlier, and Teacher Lee also left… Weren’t you two together?”

“We thought Teacher Choi would come in with Teacher Lee.”

Following the receptionist, even Euijin asked Choi Mona about Lee Chan-hee’s whereabouts.

“No, why are you asking me about Teacher Lee? As I said a little while ago, I’m coming back from meeting my older brother.”

It was then that Choi Mona, who usually didn’t show her emotions much, spoke with a hint of being wronged.

“I’m back.”

At a perfectly terrible moment, when everyone’s suspicion had solidified into certainty, Lee Chan-hee, seemingly devoid of any tact, greeted everyone cheerfully as he entered the hospital.

His facial expression was so bright that anyone could easily tell something good had happened.

“Teacher Lee, you suddenly ran off without even taking off your gown. Where have you been?”

“When I saw Teacher Lee running, I thought he was Usain Bolt.”

“……!”

Contrary to expectations, Lee Chan-hee was momentarily flustered by the sudden attention of the staff.

“Teacher Lee! Where did you go?”

“Ah! Me? Where did I go? That is…”

Lee Chan-hee’s gaze darted to Choi Mona as he hesitated, and Choi Mona quickly sent him a signal with her eyes. It was a silent instruction not to give in to the staff’s questioning.

“Oh my! Why can’t you say it?”

“Could it be that Teacher Lee and Teacher Choi were together?”

Team Leader Choi, who had been observing the two with her arms crossed, asked with a suspicious look.

“Absolutely not!”

“Absolutely not!”

The two answered simultaneously. Their adamant denial only made it seem all the more likely.

“Heh!”

“What, what! Why are you two so in sync?”

“Answering like that makes it seem like you two planned it.”

In an instant, the staff burst into laughter, and the two looked at each other in embarrassment.

“Whatever you’re thinking, it’s absolutely not true. I’ll go back to work now.”

“Y, yes! I’ll go in now too.”

“Teacher Lee, just a moment! So why won’t you tell us where you’ve been?”

“Me? A friend. You know Ilsang, who came to get treatment for a buttock cyst last time? That friend came by, so I went out for a bit.”

“Your friend came to visit? Suddenly?”

“I know, right? He must have been in a hurry to come so suddenly. Then I’ll be going now.”

Embarrassed, Choi Mona went into the doctor’s office to change her clothes, and Lee Chan-hee hurriedly entered the emergency room, conjuring up a friend who hadn’t even been there.

“Aren’t those two so cute?”

“They are.”

“Let’s protect our Teacher Lee and Teacher Choi.”

“Okay. Let’s pretend we don’t know for the time being. And Team Leader and Jang Bowan are the winners of the late-night snack.”

Despite Choi Mona and Lee Chan-hee’s vehement denials, none of the staff believed them.

“Choi Mona?”

Tae-kyung, who had been watching the whole scene from the side, hurriedly called out to Choi Mona as she left the doctor’s office.

“Yes, Doctor.”

“You heard from Chan-hee that you need to study LT [liver transplantation], right?”

“Yes, I heard the whole story about patient Go Myung-hwan. I will study hard.”

“It’s good to study hard. But it’s strange…”

“Yes?”

“You said you two weren’t together, so how did you hear about it?”

“Ka, KakaoTalk [a popular Korean messaging app]. Teacher Lee sent a KakaoTalk earlier. Shall I show you?”

“No need to go that far. He sent it via KakaoTalk. Okay, I understand. Fighting! [a Korean expression of encouragement]”

Choi Mona, her eyes wide with embarrassment, quickly headed to the emergency room, and Tae-kyung suppressed a laugh and enjoyed the moment.

“If you look closely, you know you’re the most mischievous, Doctor?”

Nurse Lim Jung-sook approached, commenting as if it was a bit much.

“They’re pretending not to know, but I keep wanting to tease them.”

“Still, seeing their reactions makes me feel good that things are going well.”

“I know.”

“Oh my! Everyone’s gathered, is there something good happening?”

A patient who had booked an outpatient appointment approached with cautious steps while Tae-kyung and Nurse Lim Jung-sook were talking.

“Hello.”

“Yes, are the director and our head nurse doing well?”

“Of course. Go straight to the examination room.”

“Thank you.”

Click-

“Doctor, can I lie down here?”

“Yes.”

The woman went up to the examination bed as if she was used to it, lowered her pants, and lay on her side facing the wall.

“How is it?”

“It’s healing well.”

“Doctor. But I don’t think all the stitches have fallen out yet.”

The woman carefully got off the examination bed and sat on a donut-shaped cushion.

She, who runs a small beauty salon in the neighborhood, had recently undergone hemorrhoid surgery, which she had been putting off for 10 years.

“Don’t worry about it, they’ll fall out naturally while you’re doing sitz baths [a warm, shallow bath to cleanse the perineum]. How’s your bowel movement?”

“Doctor, what you said was exactly right. On the day I came home from the hospital, it felt like a pencil was coming out, and my butt felt like it was tearing, so I cried as I went to the bathroom. I wondered what kind of wealth I would enjoy to deliberately cause myself this suffering by having hemorrhoid surgery… But after a few days, it gradually got better.”

“Right? Many people are scared of hemorrhoid surgery, but they have a harder time with bowel movements after the surgery.”

“That’s right. You don’t even know it hurts during the surgery because you’re anesthetized. But Doctor, I pulled out a snake for the first time in my life while going to the bathroom.”

“Is that so? Good job.”

“Oh my, I’m saying all sorts of things in front of the director. I’m a bit scatterbrained. I’m sorry.”

“No. It’s okay.”

Kim So-hyang, who likes to chat with customers while running her beauty salon, tends to be talkative even when she comes to the hospital.

Tae-kyung doesn’t have time to talk when there are many patients or when he’s busy, but when it’s late or when he has time like today, appropriate conversations with patients can chase away drowsiness.

In particular, conversations with patients who have outgoing and bright personalities like Kim So-hyang are pleasant.

“You came with your husband last time, but it looks like you drove yourself today.”

“I closed the salon an hour early and came alone from home. My husband is so obsessed with fishing that he went fishing even though his wife is sick.”

“Fishing is good. I want to try it sometime if I have the chance, but I don’t have time.”

“Doctor, don’t even say that.”

Kim So-hyang waved her hands vigorously and stopped Tae-kyung.

“When I first met my husband, he said that his only hobby and joy in life was going fishing occasionally, and he asked me to understand that. I said I would, but I didn’t know that this man would be so serious about fishing. He suddenly grabs his fishing rod and goes fishing on weekends and weekdays.”

Kim So-hyang spoke as if she was fed up with fishing.

“He must really like fishing. He had a very good impression when I saw him last time.”

“He has a good impression and is a good person except for being crazy about fishing. He’s never looked at another woman in his life and has been working steadily at one company, although it’s a small one… That darn fishing is the problem. But what can I do? I live thinking it’s better to be crazy about fishing than to be crazy about drinking or gambling.”

“That’s great. You have a good husband.”

“Right? Whether I like him or not, he’s my husband, so I live saying he’s the best. Hoho! I’ve been chatting too much, holding up our busy director. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t mention it. Don’t forget to do sitz baths and take good care of yourself. I’ll give you a prescription today. Take your medicine and fiber well. I’ll see you at the next outpatient visit.”

“Thank you. Doctor, I’m not just saying this, but come get a haircut sometime. I’ll cut it nicely for you.”

“Okay. Be careful going home.”

After patient Kim So-hyang left the examination room, Nurse Lim Jung-sook came in.

“She’s full of energy every time I see her.”

“Patient Kim So-hyang?”

“Yes. What was the topic today?”

“Her husband’s fishing.”

“I knew it. She was telling me about her fishing trip while I was guiding her earlier. She’s a really fun person.”

“I know. Is that the end of outpatient appointments for today?”

“Yes, Kim So-hyang was the last patient with an appointment.”

“Then I’ll look at some papers.”

“Yes, Doctor. And this.”

Nurse Lim Jung-sook placed a thick hamburger set on the desk.

“It’s the late-night snack you bet on earlier. Team Leader and Jang Staff are treating.”

“I was a little hungry, so that’s good. Tell them I’ll enjoy it.”

“Yes.”

“By the way, how are those two doing?”

“Teacher Lee and Teacher Choi? Don’t even mention it. They’re talking less than usual and are subtly awkward, but it’s so funny to watch.”

“I can imagine. Call me if there’s an emergency.”

“Yes, Doctor.”

After Nurse Lim Jung-sook left the examination room, Tae-kyung started looking at data by going to medical books and thesis sites.

Except for emergency calls for an hour, Tae-kyung concentrated on the monitor without getting up from his chair.

After another hour or so, he took his eyes off the monitor for a moment to eat the hamburger he had forgotten.

“Is it because I haven’t eaten it in a while? It’s delicious even when it’s cold.”

The ringing of his cell phone caught Tae-kyung, who was getting up from his chair to stretch after finishing his hamburger.

Rrrrrrrrrr

“Why is he calling at this hour?”

Tae-kyung looked at the caller on his cell phone screen and answered the phone with a puzzled expression.

“Yes, this is Kim Tae-kyung.”

-Doctor, this is Gam Deok-chan.

The person who called was Congressman Gam Deok-chan, who had played a big role in the JQ Department Store incident.

-Are you doing well?

“Yes, are you doing well, Congressman?”

-I’m doing well too. Were you surprised that I called you so suddenly at this hour?

“No. It’s okay. I understand because you’re a busy person.”

-You’re busier than me, Doctor. Do you have some time now?

“Yes, I’m not that busy right now.”

-Then are you at the hospital now?

“Yes, I’m at the hospital now.”

Tae-kyung looked at his watch for a moment as he answered.