Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 332

333. Daddy-Long-Legs

“Oh! That’s right! It is!”

The woman, who had been approaching while staring intently at Kim Sun-min’s face, closed the distance and added with a voice full of certainty.

“You! You’re Kim Sun-min, right?”

Kim Sun-min, who had been focused on her rice ball, hadn’t really looked at the woman’s face.

“You are Kim Sun-min.”

As the woman spoke her name again with even more conviction than before, Kim Sun-min looked up at the woman.

“……!”

And the moment she looked up and recognized the woman, Kim Sun-min froze instantly.

“But why are you here?”

The woman’s stiff tone continued as she looked at Kim Sun-min, who was instinctively tense like a cowering puppy and unable to say anything.

“Do you live in this neighborhood? Are you perhaps…….”

“No. You’ve mistaken me for someone else.”

Kim Sun-min denied it even before the woman finished speaking. She quickly put down the rice ball she was holding, pulled her hat down low, and quickly left the spot.

“Hey? Excuse me? Are you sure I’m wrong?”

The woman kept calling out from behind, her voice echoing, but Kim Sun-min’s hurried steps only increased in speed.

The rumbling in her stomach that had been going on all day, and even the rice ball she had barely taken a bite of, were no longer important.

Right now, Kim Sun-min’s priority was to get out of there as quickly as possible.

It was just a fleeting moment, but the unexpected encounter with the woman was so shocking that she even momentarily forgot about Seung-woo, whose existence she always thought about and cherished in her heart.

After leaving the apartment complex, Kim Sun-min ran and ran. She had no energy to run because she hadn’t eaten anything, but she gritted her teeth and ran and ran.

She ran aimlessly for a long time and stopped, as if hiding, in a small parking lot between buildings.

“Haa! Haa!”

She barely managed to exhale the breath that had reached the tip of her chin and collapsed to the ground.

‘A young thing with no fear, huh? Huh! Doesn’t know how scary the world is?’

‘Raised by her grandmother, so her education is like this.’

‘Trusting only in her pretty face and causing trouble like this, your life is a gutter too.’

‘You! Keep your promise. Or you’ll regret it. Got it?’

Like clothes forcibly stuffed into a faded drawer, the memories of that day, which she had tried so hard to ignore and turn away from, awakened like an awl and pierced her heart.

“Haa!”

Kim Sun-min bit her lower lip tightly and took out Seung-woo’s photo.

“No. I don’t…… regret it. I don’t regret it.”

She muttered to herself as if casting a spell, caressing Seung-woo’s face in the photo, and calmed her startled heart in that spot for a while.

Kim Sun-min was forcibly suppressing her difficult feelings.

* * *

Our Hospital-

“It was an emergency surgery, so I thought it would be difficult because there wasn’t enough information, but I’m glad it went well.”

“…….”

Tae-kyung and Ui-jin, who had just finished the emergency surgery and came out of the operating room, were talking and walking down the hallway.

“Oh! Earlier, Dr. Lee came to me again asking me to persuade you about the surgery issue.”

“…….”

When Ui-jin turned her head, Tae-kyung was still walking with a serious expression without any reaction.

“Sunbae [term of endearment used for senior colleagues or mentors]? What are you thinking so hard about?”

“…….”

“Sunbae!”

“Huh? What? Did you call me?”

“Do you know that I’ve been talking to myself all this time?”

“Oh, really? Sorry.”

“Were you thinking about Seung-woo again?”

“Well, yeah.”

These days, Tae-kyung was constantly thinking about Seung-woo, except when he was in the operating room or seeing patients.

To be precise, it was about how he could provide practical help to Seung-woo.

At first, he thought about donating to the hospital in the hospital’s name, but in the end, he decided that it was a one-time thing and there was a limit to the help he could give.

“Isn’t there something like national support?”

“I’ve already looked into it.”

Just in case, he also looked into national support.

There were several programs such as after-school care through local governments and psychological counseling for families.

The programs had good intentions, but it seemed that they were a little far from the parts that Seung-woo urgently needed right now.

“It’s similar in any field, but in reality, there will be limitations to what the country supports. In the end, it all costs money.”

“That’s right.”

“It would be nice if Seung-woo had a Daddy-Long-Legs [a benefactor who provides support anonymously].”

“Daddy-Long-Legs?”

“Yes. It’s one of my favorite books, and my sister gave me the original when she went on a business trip to the United States, so I’m reading it again these days. But suddenly I thought of Seung-woo. If there was a Daddy-Long-Legs who recognized Seung-woo’s brilliance and intelligence, I thought the child could experience a wider future.”

“That’s right. Seung-woo really needs a Daddy-Long-Legs right now. That way, his sister will feel more comfortable too… I wonder if there’s really someone like that?”

“Actually, there’s exactly one protagonist who is suitable as Seung-woo’s Daddy-Long-Legs.”

“There is? Who……!”

Tae-kyung, who was thinking after hearing Ui-jin’s words, suddenly had someone come to mind. At the same time, a brilliant idea sprang up.

“You’re thinking of the same person I’m thinking of, right? Someone who has everything in Korea except what’s missing.”

“Ui-jin, you’re a genius. You’re my girlfriend! So pretty.”

“Sunbae, really. Are you that happy?”

“Of course. I’m going to the guardian waiting room and then go scout a Daddy-Long-Legs.”

Tae-kyung, feeling relieved as if the blocked part had been cleared, hugged Ui-jin, who had given him a good idea, and ran down the hallway happily.

“Jung Ui-jin is a genius!”

“Sunbae, please be quiet. Why is he so happy? Well, that’s Kim Tae-kyung’s charm.”

Ui-jin smiled contentedly as she watched Tae-kyung’s back.

* * *

Our Hospital-

“That’s a terrible guy.”

“Chairman, be careful of your head.”

Chairman Kim Gun-hyung of Woori Group was stopping his car in the parking lot of Woori Hospital and getting out.

“Who’s such a terrible guy?”

“Who else could it be?”

Kim Gun-hyung pointed to the Woori Hospital building with his finger and continued.

“It’s the director here. Team Leader Go, you know better than anyone what kind of person I am, right?”

“Of course. I know very well.”

The security team leader casually agreed with Kim Gun-hyung’s words.

In fact, he was not at all serious because he knew that Kim Gun-hyung was deliberately saying that.

“Kim Tae-kyung is the only person in Korea who can call me around like this. Everyone else knows I’m busy, so they even set the meeting date according to my schedule at the business world gatherings.”

“I know. But unlike what you’re saying, you look very happy.”

“Is it obvious?”

“Yes, you’ve been happy since you received a call from Director Kim. When I look at it, the chairman, who is like a tiger, is like a gentle sheep to that friend Kim Tae-kyung.”

“Of course. To bring in a coveted talent, you have to act in a way that pleases them to get points, right? You know that when I want to acquire a company, I give in to their conditions as much as possible, right?”

“I know.”

“It’s the same as that.”

“Chairman, you still haven’t given up on Director Kim?”

“Who said I gave up? I’ve never given up in my life.”

“That’s true. But we haven’t heard from the hospital’s chairman, have we?”

Kim Gun-hyung, who had conveyed the detailed contents regarding the hospital acquisition to Kim Cheol-gi a few months ago, had not yet received a definite answer.

“It’s not that there’s no contact, it’s that I’m waiting. In my opinion, that man seems to be a very cautious person.”

“It’s natural to be cautious since it’s a hospital he’s been with for a long time.”

“He’s no ordinary man. Anyway, he said he’d think about it and contact me, so let’s wait patiently for now. These things are easy to go wrong if you rush them.”

“But why did Director Kim contact you to meet him?”

“Why else? He felt sorry for rejecting the old man’s appointment twice.”

Kim Gun-hyung used to stop by the doctor’s office whenever he had time to have a light cup of tea.

It was just a cup of tea, but it was to periodically show his face to Tae-kyung and talk about the hospital merger.

But recently, Tae-kyung had no choice but to reject the appointment due to busy hospital work. Kim Gun-hyung thought that he called him because he felt sorry for that.

“So, are you going to talk about the hospital again today?”

“I have to. I’ll talk about this and that, but in the end, isn’t that it?”

“Chairman, you never get tired.”

“A businessman shouldn’t get tired. You have to constantly think about developing the company by continuing to recruit and discover good talent.”

“Yes. Of course.”

“What, Team Leader Go. Are you listening to me?”

“Of course. Let’s go in, Chairman.”

Kim Gun-hyung entered the back door of the hospital with Team Leader Go.

“Hello. Chairman.”

As he entered the hospital, Team Leader Choi greeted the two people happily.

“It’s been a while. How have you been?”

“I’m always the same. It’s been a while, Team Leader Go.”

“It’s been a while, Team Leader Choi.”

“It looks like there are a lot of outpatients today.”

Kim Gun-hyung asked, looking at the people sitting in the waiting room waiting for their turn.

“Yes. There are more outpatients than usual because there are many patients with enteritis [inflammation of the small intestine] these days.”

“The hospital should have a lot of patients. So, is our Director Kim in consultation?”

“Yes, Chairman. The director is in consultation right now.”

“Then, the waiting room is for patients to sit in, so should I have a cup of coffee in the cafeteria while waiting?”

“Let’s do that.”

“No. Chairman.”

That was when Team Leader Choi was about to guide him to the cafeteria naturally.

“Just a moment!”

Nurse Lim Jeong-sook, who had just come out of the emergency room, blocked Kim Gun-hyung and Team Leader Go’s path with a gentle tone.

“You’re Head Nurse Lim.”

“Yes, hello. But Chairman, what should we do? The cafeteria is so chaotic right now that it might be difficult for you to wait there.”

“Yes? No, Nurse Lim? What’s going on in the cafeteria?”

“Team Leader, what are you talking about? The cafeteria is always ch. ao. tic [chaotic].”

Nurse Lim Jeong-sook said each word clearly with wide eyes to Team Leader Choi, who was asking back with a bright expression. Then, Team Leader Choi, who didn’t know what it was, but thought there was something going on, appropriately matched the atmosphere.

“I forgot. That’s right, it’s the time when the cafeteria is exactly chaotic.”

“Then what should we do? Team Leader Go, should we go wait in our car?”

“I think that would be a good idea.”

“The car is stuffy. Don’t do that and wait comfortably in our doctor’s office?”

“The doctor’s office?”

“Yes, the doctor’s office.”

When Kim Gun-hyung asked again, Nurse Lim Jeong-sook answered clearly once again.

“No, the doctor’s office is a space exclusively for medical staff, so can we go in?”

“All the teachers are seeing patients right now, so it’s okay. Are you uncomfortable?”

“Uncomfortable. I’m grateful that you’re taking care of me.”

“Then wait in the doctor’s office for a while. I’ll let you know as soon as the director’s consultation is over.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

“Chairman, please come this way.”

Nurse Lim Jeong-sook grabbed the neck of Team Leader Choi’s jacket and closed the door of the doctor’s office as he tried to enter the doctor’s office following Kim Gun-hyung and Team Leader Go.

“……!”

“Team Leader~~nim [term of respect]!”

“Ah! Nurse Lim? What’s wrong?”

“Please read the room [understand the situation].”

“Read the room. What on earth is going on that you’ve been shooting lasers from your eyes since earlier?”

“How important is this right now, and you’re trying to follow me into the doctor’s office. Yes?”

“I was just trying to be a conversational partner for the chairman in case he was bored. But it’s important. What is it?”

“It’s a matter of a child’s future.”

“A child… Seung-woo’s future?”

“That’s right.”

“What are you talking about? No, it seems like there’s something important that only I don’t know, right?”

“Yes, it’s a very important matter. So don’t even go near the doctor’s office. Got it?”

“I need to know what’s going on so I don’t go near it. Tell me too.”

“I’ll tell you later. Go over there.”

Lim Jeong-sook forcibly dragged Choi Team Leader, who was looking at the doctor’s office with a curious expression, and cheered for Seung-woo in her heart.

‘I hope it goes well. Seung-woo fighting!’