Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 320

Fifth Vital Sign – Episode 321 (320/502)

321. A Single Ten Thousand Won Bill

Kim Sun-min felt a wave of relief that she hadn’t collapsed while alone with Seung-woo. The thought of collapsing at home with him, unable to care for him, was terrifying.

Just as she was thinking this, Tae-kyung appeared, parting the curtains around her bed.

“Kim Sun-min, the patient?”

“Yes, I’m Kim Sun-min.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay. More importantly, Doctor, what were the test results?”

“It’s vasovagal syncope.”

“Vasovagal… what is that?”

“You can think of it as the most common type of fainting.”

Tae-kyung, as always, provided a clear and simple explanation for the patient.

“It’s not like you have any underlying health issues, so you don’t need to worry too much.”

“Really? Thank you.”

Kim Sun-min, who had been briefly worried about a serious illness, breathed a sigh of relief.

“However, you seem to be overworked and undernourished.”

“Ah, yes…”

It might seem odd for a grown adult to be told they are malnourished, but Kim Sun-min didn’t seem surprised.

She had been too stressed lately to have much of an appetite. She had barely eaten at every meal, so the word ‘malnutrition’ made sense.

“You don’t usually eat well, do you?”

“No. I’m not very hungry.”

“You shouldn’t do that from now on. Think about your health and eat something nutritious, even if it’s just a little. And make sure to finish the IV drip you’re getting now; it’s good for you.”

“Doctor, I’m sorry, but could you just take the needle out?”

“Take the needle out?”

Tae-kyung looked at the steadily dripping IV fluid and continued, “It will take about 30 minutes to finish the drip, and the solution you’re getting is beneficial, so please try to finish it.”

Tae-kyung said with genuine concern.

He felt sympathy for the young patient, who looked like a typical college student, collapsing from malnutrition. He wanted her to receive the full benefit of the IV drip if possible.

“30 minutes is too long…”

Kim Sun-min, who was listening to Tae-kyung, trailed off and glanced at the time on her phone. Honestly, she knew the IV drip would be helpful, but she was worried about Seung-woo.

She was thinking of picking up Seung-woo because the grandparents who were taking care of him must be tired.

“Doctor, I really need to go.”

After a moment of consideration, Kim Sun-min decided she had to leave.

“I’m sorry. I have something urgent, so I can’t stay at the hospital.”

“Then, how about this? Just five more minutes? Can you manage just five more minutes?”

“…”

“We’ll take the needle out in exactly five minutes. Okay?”

“Yes, I understand.”

With Tae-kyung’s gentle persuasion, Kim Sun-min agreed to continue the IV drip for a little longer. Exactly five minutes later, a nurse came in and removed the IV.

“Are you leaving now, patient?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a shame you can’t stay a bit longer.”

“No, I have to go now.”

“You must be in a hurry. Okay! All done. Please go to the reception desk to pay. Thank you for your cooperation.”

“Thank you. Take care.”

“Yes, goodbye.”

Kim Sun-min, after leaving the emergency room, headed to the payment counter to settle the hospital bill.

“I’d like to pay for my treatment.”

“You were treated in the emergency room, correct? What’s your name?”

“Yes, Kim Sun-min.”

“Including the test fees, it’s a total of 97,000 won [approximately $75 USD].”

“…”

Kim Sun-min paused for a moment when she heard the amount. It wasn’t that it was unexpectedly high.

She had anticipated the cost to be significant, given it was the emergency room, and she had undergone various tests and received an IV drip.

Her hesitation stemmed from realizing she didn’t have that much money in her wallet. She figured she would have to withdraw money from her bank account.

“Excuse me, can I withdraw money from the ATM and pay?”

“Of course. The ATM is straight ahead to your left, and if you turn right at the corner, it’s in the middle.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Kim Sun-min went directly to the ATM and entered her password to withdraw funds. But the moment she checked her balance, she sighed deeply.

“Hah… !”

Because there was exactly one ten thousand won bill [approximately $7.50 USD] left in her account.

Kim Sun-min, still somewhat disoriented from fainting, suddenly remembered that she was virtually broke after paying several months of overdue rent and various utility bills.

She had a credit card in her wallet, but it was useless.

Because her card was suspended, she couldn’t even get a cash advance.

‘I’m really going crazy.’

It was no exaggeration; she felt like she was losing her mind. In this unexpected predicament, she felt helpless, and her palms began to sweat with anxiety.

Kim Sun-min tapped her foot nervously and bit her lower lip as she desperately tried to figure out what to do. Time ticked by, and she felt trapped, unable to move forward or backward.

Ten minutes later,

“Hey, that female patient from earlier hasn’t come back yet.”

The receptionist remarked to the employee next to her when Kim Sun-min, who had said she was going to withdraw money, hadn’t returned.

“Right? She hasn’t come back yet, has she? I was wondering if she had already paid and left.”

“Maybe she just left? You know, like that homeless person who came to our hospital a while ago and ran away because of the bill.”

“That’s because he was homeless. That patient from earlier didn’t seem like someone who would do that. And young people usually don’t skip out on bills.”

“That’s true. Should I go and check?”

“What’s going on?”

Tae-kyung, who happened to be at the reception desk on hospital business, inquired about the situation.

“Director, the patient who came out of the emergency room earlier…”

The employees explained the situation to Tae-kyung.

“So, I was going to go and check on her now.”

“Instead of that, let’s wait a little longer.”

“Yes!?”

“The patient might have gone to the bathroom or is making a phone call. Ten minutes isn’t that long, and she probably didn’t just leave.”

“I guess so…”

“Wait a little longer, and if she still doesn’t come, let me know.”

“Yes, Director.”

Tae-kyung, having finished talking with the employees, went up to the second-floor ward and then headed to the ATM using a different set of stairs.

He had a hunch. And he found Kim Sun-min sitting with her head down across from the ATM.

“Excuse me… patient?”

Tae-kyung cautiously approached and called out. Kim Sun-min, who had been wearing a hat pulled down low, looked up, startled.

“Doctor?”

“Patient, excuse me, but would you follow me for a moment?”

“…”

“It’ll be quick.”

Kim Sun-min, briefly puzzled, followed Tae-kyung. Tae-kyung, bypassing the ATM and walking down a quiet hallway, stopped and spoke.

“Patient, if you go a little further this way, you’ll find the back door.”

“…?”

“Don’t worry about the medical bill; just go that way.”

“…!”

Kim Sun-min was taken aback by his words.

Tae-kyung had suspected that Kim Sun-min didn’t have the money for the medical bill the moment he saw her sitting in front of the ATM.

She was clutching a crumpled ten thousand won bill in her hand. More than anything, the desperate expression under her hat, as if she was on the verge of tears, seemed to tell the whole story.

“Doctor, I’m sorry…”

Kim Sun-min, listening to Tae-kyung, couldn’t bring herself to look up, overwhelmed with embarrassment, and confessed, “Right now… I don’t have the money to pay for the treatment.”

“It’s okay. You’re alright.”

Tae-kyung didn’t pry or ask questions. He didn’t want to make the patient feel more uncomfortable by pressing her for details.

He didn’t know the specifics of her situation, but the person standing before him with such a helpless expression didn’t seem to be dishonest.

“It’s late, so go quickly.”

“I will definitely pay you back. And Doctor, this…”

Kim Sun-min, clutching the crumpled ten thousand won bill as if it were her lifeline, offered the money to Tae-kyung.

“Please take it. I feel too guilty to just leave like this.”

The ten thousand won she held out was the money for her bus fare home and the ice cream she had promised Seung-woo.

It was a small but essential amount, but she couldn’t bear to leave without offering something.

“Do you live close to the hospital?”

“Excuse me? No. I live in Yeonhwa-dong.”

Yeonhwa-dong was not far from Yeoul-dong, where the hospital was located, but it was definitely not within walking distance.

“Then it’s late, so take a taxi.”

“Still…”

“Hurry. It’ll be hard to catch a taxi if it gets any later. If you go out the back door and turn left, you’ll see a bus stop and a taxi stand.”

“Thank you. Doctor, thank you so much. I will definitely pay you back for the hospital bill.”

“Okay. Pay it back slowly whenever you’re able to.”

Kim Sun-min bowed deeply, almost touching her head to the ground, and hurried out of the hospital.

“What’s troubling that young woman that she seems so despondent?”

Tae-kyung muttered to himself as he watched Kim Sun-min walk away with a heavy heart. He then took out two fifty thousand won bills [approximately $37.50 USD each] from the ATM and headed back to the reception desk.

“The patient who said she was going to withdraw money earlier, that’s Kim Sun-min, right?”

“Yes, Director, that’s right. But that patient still hasn’t returned, so I was about to call her.”

“There’s no need to do that. Here.”

Tae-kyung took out the two fifty thousand won bills from his gown pocket and handed them to the receptionist.

“This is the medical bill that Kim Sun-min gave me.”

“Yes! You mean she gave the medical bill to the Director?”

“Well, I needed to withdraw cash for something, so I went to the ATM, and Kim Sun-min said she had an urgent matter to attend to and had to leave right away. So she asked me to deliver the payment for her, and I agreed.”

The employees believed him without question because his explanation was plausible.

The reason Tae-kyung paid for the medical bill out of his own pocket was that the hospital, which had received a large donation in the past, used those funds to help patients, including covering medical expenses. However, the donation couldn’t be used arbitrarily, and there was a specific procedure to follow.

Furthermore, a small amount like this couldn’t be processed through the donation fund, so Tae-kyung decided to help personally.

“I don’t know what’s going on, but she seemed to be in a great hurry.”

“Yeah. She must have been in a hurry.”

“Oh! But that patient’s medical bill isn’t 100,000 won? There’s some change left; what should we do?”

“You can return it when she comes next time or send her a text message.”

“Ah, that’ll work.”

“Then I’ll go back to the emergency room. Take care.”

“Yes, Director, you too.”

In that way, Tae-kyung paid the patient’s medical bill on her behalf and headed back to the emergency room.

* * *

Kim Sun-min took a taxi and got off in her neighborhood.

It was already past the time when the ice cream store was closed, so she bought similar products and two bottles of drinks from the convenience store and headed home with heavy steps and a heavy heart.

As she was walking home, someone called out to Kim Sun-min.

“Excuse me? Are you the person who left the child in 303?”

“Who… are you?”

“The two people living in 303 are my parents.”

Kim Sun-min looked at the woman with a very curious expression.

“Ah… hello.”

“Hey. I wasn’t going to say anything, but isn’t this too much?”

“Hey! Honey, don’t.”

When the woman was about to say something with an unpleasant expression, her husband stopped her.

“Don’t do it; let’s just go up.”

“Don’t do it? What do you mean, don’t do it? I wasn’t going to say this as someone who raises two children, but you’re young; you shouldn’t do that.”

“Honey?”