Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 410

Fifth Vitality – Episode 411 (410/502)

411. More Than Twenty Years Ago

“Hello…!”

“……!”

Tae-kyung and Nurse Im Jung-sook, opening the sliding door of the hospital room with a casual greeting, were momentarily taken aback.

The man and woman inside were sitting on one bed, clinging to each other like thread and needle, deeply engrossed in a display of affection.

Creak-

The sight was so startling that they immediately closed the door.

Of course, it wasn’t an excessive act that would make anyone frown—just a peck on the cheek—but Tae-kyung and Nurse Im Jung-sook were taken aback because they had never encountered patients like this during their rounds.

“Did I really see that?”

“I saw it too, so you probably did.”

“That’s surprising.”

“Indeed.”

Creak-

As they hesitated about whether to enter, the hospital room door quickly opened, and the woman inside came out to apologize.

“Oh my! Director, Nurse, I’m so sorry. Are you here for rounds?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Please, come in.”

“I’m sorry, Director.”

As the two entered the hospital room, the man, introduced as the woman’s husband, stood up and apologized.

“How’s your back feeling?”

“The pain has decreased a lot since the first day, and it’s easier to move around. It feels much smoother.”

The man was hospitalized for treatment of a herniated disc, and the woman was hospitalized for a comprehensive health checkup from head to toe.

“Are you keeping up with your physical therapy in the mornings and afternoons?”

“Of course. I’m receiving excellent care from the physical therapist and the manual therapist.”

“Ms. Lee Ye-rim, you know you have a colonoscopy tomorrow, right?”

“Of course. I’ve already taken the prescribed medication.”

“Excuse me, Doctor. After the endoscopy, could she get a good IV drip?”

“Is there anything in particular you’re concerned about?”

“She’s a bit weak. She’s been feeling tired lately and doesn’t have much of an appetite, so I was hoping she could get a good one [IV drip].”

“Yes. I’ll explain the options to you after the endoscopy tomorrow.”

“Thank you. Director, this is my first time having a colonoscopy. Will it be very difficult?”

“If you have it done with sedation, it won’t be too uncomfortable, so you don’t have to worry.”

“No, Director, it’s not that…”

The woman, who had been listening to Tae-kyung’s answer, trailed off and glanced at her husband, hesitating.

“It’s okay.”

“Honey, I’m embarrassed.”

“The director is a doctor; you should tell him.”

“Oh, come on! It’s still a bit… Nurse, can I borrow your ear for a moment?”

“Yes?”

“Can I whisper something to you?”

Hesitating, the woman whispered into Nurse Im Jung-sook’s ear in a small voice.

“I actually have a small… issue down there.”

“Ah! Ms. Lee Ye-rim says she has hemorrhoids.”

“Oh my! Nurse, you could have said it more quietly. How embarrassing.”

“Having hemorrhoids won’t significantly affect the endoscopy.”

“Oh, really? That’s a relief then.”

“Well, we’ll see you again.”

“Excuse me, Director?”

As he was about to leave after the rounds, the woman called out to Tae-kyung again in a rather small voice.

“Yes?”

“I have something to ask.”

“Go ahead.”

“Actually, it’s nothing.”

The woman, who had just called Tae-kyung, said she had nothing to say again.

“I’m sorry.”

The two finished their rounds and came out of the hospital room.

“Director, do you remember me mentioning earlier that the ward is ‘hot’?”

“When you said it was ‘hot,’ you meant…?”

“Yes, that’s right. Those two are the talk of the ward these days.”

“Is it because they’re unique? Or is it because of their relationship?”

“Well, that might be part of it, but I think it’s mostly because they’re always clinging to each other.”

“Clinging to each other?”

“Yes. Usually, when people come to the hospital, even if they’re close, they don’t usually cling to each other like that.”

“That’s true.”

“But those two are always together, whether they’re going to the bathroom, in the lounge, or in the elevator, so I guess there’s a lot of talk among the patients.”

“Then, are those two the couple the staff mentioned in the emergency room earlier?”

“Yes, that couple is them.”

Koo Dong-gon and Lee Ye-rim, whom they had just seen on rounds, were arguably the most talked-about patients in our hospital these days.

From the medical staff to the employees, as well as the male and female patients hospitalized in the ward, there was no one who didn’t know them.

Lee Ye-rim’s flamboyant appearance was eye-catching, but it was inevitable that people would notice the couple with such a significant age difference.

Even if young men and women are constantly together, people’s attention is drawn to them, but a man in his 60s and a woman in her 40s, constantly together in a hospital, couldn’t help but attract stares.

“There have been some complaints about the two of them being so close, so Team Leader Choi spoke to them politely.”

“Is it that serious? I didn’t know that happened.”

“You’ve been very busy lately, Director. I thought you’d be too preoccupied with preparing for the surgery to bother you with such trivial matters, so I’m telling you now.”

“Indeed. Nurse Im is the best.”

“Isn’t Nurse Jung the best?”

“That’s right. Then Nurse Im is the second best.”

“Nurse Soo?”

As the two were joking around and about to go down the stairs, a nurse at the ward station followed them and called out to Nurse Im Jung-sook.

“Yes?”

“I have something to tell you…”

“I’ll head down first.”

Sensing that they had something to discuss privately, Tae-kyung excused himself.

“What!”

But as soon as Tae-kyung took a few steps, he heard Nurse Im Jung-sook’s voice behind him, sounding greatly surprised.

Nurse Im Jung-sook, who rarely raised her voice, had spoken loudly, making him wonder what was going on.

Tae-kyung wondered if it was about a patient, but he didn’t think the nurse would only tell Im Jung-sook if that were the case, so he decided to go down.

“Hello.”

“Yes, hello.”

“Director!!”

As he greeted a guardian coming up the stairs and descended to the intermediate staircase on the first floor, Nurse Im Jung-sook called out to Tae-kyung with hurried footsteps.

“Director?”

“Yes, what’s wrong?”

“Ha! Well, that’s… Haa! I’m out of breath.”

Nurse Im Jung-sook, who had run down the stairs several steps at a time, was out of breath and couldn’t speak properly.

“Catch your breath and speak slowly. What’s wrong?”

“I just heard something about patients Koo Dong-gon and Lee Ye-rim.”

“Yes.”

“I really don’t know how to say this.”

“Why? What’s the matter?”

“That’s…”

Nurse Im Jung-sook, with a troubled expression, sighed and finally told Tae-kyung.

“What!?”

And upon hearing those words, Tae-kyung’s expression froze completely, and he couldn’t help but exclaim loudly.

“Is that true?”

“It seems to be true, since it wasn’t just one person who said it, but it’s a blind spot, so it’s not caught on the CCTV camera, so it’s not certain, it’s a bit ambiguous.”

“I see. I’ll go check it out.”

“Are you going to ask them directly?”

“I have to ask them.”

Tae-kyung, his expression completely hardened, strode up the stairs and knocked on the door of the hospital room he had just left before entering again.

Knock-knock-

“Yes.”

“I have something to confirm with you two; please answer honestly. If you lie, I’ll check the CCTV right away.”

Tae-kyung deliberately mentioned the non-existent CCTV to encourage the two to speak honestly.

“Is this… true?”

Tae-kyung had an expression he had never shown to a patient before, and the atmosphere was heavy with a cold gaze.

“What!?”

After a moment, the two who heard his words were greatly surprised and waved their hands with an indignant expression.

“What are you talking about? Absolutely not.”

“That’s right. It’s true that we’re always together and that we show a lot of affection, but we didn’t do anything like that.”

“Director, I know that people may not like the fact that I love this person at this age. But that doesn’t mean we’ve been doing anything shameful.”

“That’s right. I have a flamboyant appearance and tend to attract attention, so people often misunderstand and insult me even if I don’t do anything… But I’m not that rude or immoral. Ha!”

The woman, who had been complaining with her husband, began to cry and continued.

“No matter what, I never thought I’d come to the hospital and be treated like this.”

“Ye-rim, don’t cry.”

“Honey, I, I… I’m so upset! Sniff!”

“Don’t cry. Director, are older people not allowed to date? We’re really being wrongly accused [冤枉 – yuan wang in Chinese, meaning to be treated unjustly].”

“So, you’re saying you didn’t do anything like that?”

Even seeing the two people looking like they were about to die from injustice, Tae-kyung was not greatly shaken.

“Really.”

“I understand. And I’m not talking about your relationship. But as you know, this is a hospital, and many people, from children to adults, come here for treatment. So, please refrain from excessive displays of affection.”

“Yes, Director, I understand what you’re saying. I’ll be careful from now on, both of us. I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too.”

Tae-kyung, having received a promise from the two, repeatedly warned them and left the hospital room.

“People are really too much. Sob!”

As soon as Tae-kyung left the hospital room, the woman cried more bitterly than before, shedding tears.

“Honey, stop crying.”

“Ah! Whatever.”

“A pretty person should be patient.”

“How can I be patient with this? It’s not like you and I did anything weird; we just expressed affection naturally like other couples, but they’re treating me like I’m some kind of freak. I think that young nurse from earlier? She must have snitched to the director. I didn’t call her ‘nurse’ and called her ‘sister,’ so she looked a little displeased.”

“Stop it and cheer up.”

“I don’t know! It’s all because of you.”

Lee Ye-rim, who had been turning her back, suddenly turned her head towards Koo Dong-gon and glared at him fiercely.

“Okay. I’ll be careful. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not that; it’s because you don’t acknowledge me that people look down on me.”

“Who’s looking down on our Ye-rim? That’s not true.”

“Enough! When are you going to let me hear the word ‘Madam’? When are you going to sort things out?”

“If you wait a little longer, I’ll take care of everything.”

“You’re still saying this when you said you’d take care of it? It’s been almost a year!”

“Just wait a little longer. I have my reasons. I’ll tell you when I get discharged this time.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Really.”

“Indeed. You’re the best.”

Lee Ye-rim softened her laser-like gaze and kissed Koo Dong-gon on the cheek.

“But I thought the director here was a nice person, but when I saw him getting serious earlier, I felt a bit… They say the rice plant bows lower as it ripens [a Korean proverb meaning the more mature/experienced you are, the more humble you should be], but his vessel is small [meaning he lacks generosity/understanding].”

“He’s the hospital director, so he might be like that. The director here is known to be a good person. I asked around and came to this hospital on purpose.”

“Really? Okay.”

Lee Ye-rim, who had been complaining with tears in her eyes, suddenly blamed Tae-kyung and stopped crying with Koo Dong-gon’s comfort.

At that moment, Tae-kyung, who had come out of the hospital room, approached Nurse Im Jung-sook, who was waiting at the station.

“Ha! Geez.”

“Geez!”

The two made eye contact, and before either of them could say anything, a short, absurd laugh burst out.

“People from all walks of life come to the hospital, but I’ve only heard about things like this; I’ve never experienced it myself.”

“I have, for the second time.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Something similar happened in the emergency exit stairs during my internship. It was over twenty years ago, but I was so surprised that I can’t forget it.”

“I’ve only heard rumors about it before, but it really does happen.”

“It happens more often than you think. In the past, stories about hospital romances were often featured on the radio and TV.”

“You really meet all kinds of people when you work in a hospital.”

“That’s right. I think I’ve met many unimaginable people while working as a nurse. But I never thought they would pretend to be a couple and even do such things.”

“I know.”

“Like the song title, the world is really a bizarre place.”

Nurse Im Jung-sook’s words were true.

Koo Dong-gon and Lee Ye-rim, who had just been warned by Tae-kyung, were not a married couple.