Fifth Vital [EN]: Chapter 87

87. Stabbed by a Knife

“Looking at the photos, it’s not a disc issue.”

“Really? That’s a relief.”

Tae-kyung was seeing patients, moving between the outpatient clinic and the emergency room.

“I’ll prescribe some medication. Take it for a few days, and don’t lift anything heavy for a while.”

“Yes, thank you, doctor. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.”

“Please pay at the cashier before you leave.”

“No more outpatient appointments, right?”

“No, doctor. Are you going somewhere?”

Nurse Im Jung-sook asked Tae-kyung as he headed out of the examination room.

“I’m going to the ward and then the emergency room.”

“Doctor, you know you have an interview in 30 minutes, right?”

“Ah! Right. Has it already been that long?”

“I thought you might forget.”

Perhaps because it was Friday, more outpatient patients than usual visited, starting with Choi Seon-hae in the morning. Tae-kyung had been seeing patients non-stop, so it was no wonder he had forgotten about the interview.

“If I go to the operating room after the interview, it’ll be just right. It’s a simple one, so Soo, please lend a hand in the emergency room today.”

“I will. By the way, I’m really looking forward to seeing who comes. Aren’t you, doctor?”

“Me too.”

Because it was an interview for a security guard position that had been vacant for a long time, the hospital staff were all looking forward to it.

* * *

“Our hospital… our hospital, huh? Oh, there it is!”

Jang Deuk-chil, who got out of the taxi, looked around and found the hospital.

‘The person who introduced me to Mom said it was just a small local hospital. They said it’s been around for quite a while in that neighborhood.’

He clearly remembered hearing last night at dinner that it was a small local hospital. But no matter how he looked at it, it wasn’t a small hospital.

Unlike the real local hospitals that occupy one floor of a building, the entire building was the hospital.

“This is not small at all…”

Wondering if he had the wrong address, Jang Deuk-chil checked the address again.

“It’s right.”

After checking the address several times to be sure, he entered the hospital building.

“What, am I here too early? Ha, damn it. What should I do?”

Having arrived a whopping 30 minutes early, thinking he had plenty of time, Jang Deuk-chil stood in the hospital yard for a while before walking over to a bench and sitting down.

Tuk- tuk-

Sitting still, he started tapping the bench with one finger as time passed, his leg shaking.

“Ha! Damn it.”

At first, he thought he was just coming for a comfortable interview with a light heart. But as the interview time approached, he unknowingly started to get nervous.

“What’s this? Why am I so nervous?”

It was strange. He had been all over the country collecting money, and there had been countless absurd situations.

He had fought with loan shark gangsters, jumped into the sea to catch gamblers, and been beaten to the point of death for refusing to pay back borrowed money.

He hadn’t even blinked an eye back then. But his heart was pounding strangely, second only to when his junior was almost killed.

In fact, Jang Deuk-chil wanted to do well in the interview, though he didn’t show it to his mother.

He wanted to quit his job and work in a proper place before it was too late.

But the biggest reason was, of course, his mother.

‘Deuk-chil, it’s my wish. I want to see my baby working in a normal place. If something happens to me again while you keep doing that kind of work, I won’t be able to close my eyes even when I die.’

They say you grant the wishes of the dead, so he figured he could at least try to grant the wishes of the living. That’s why he thought he should try his best, as Kim Kkot-bun said, no matter the outcome.

“It’s almost time. I should have a smoke before going in.”

Checking the time, Jang Deuk-chil took out a cigarette from his jacket and put it in his mouth.

Tat-

He brought the lit disposable lighter to the end of the cigarette.

“Hoo!”

But a short, thick gust of wind blew out the lighter.

“Hey!”

A nurse was standing in Jang Deuk-chil’s lowered gaze.

“What is it?”

“What is it?”

Nurse Im Jung-sook, who was seeing off an elderly patient after their appointment, had spotted Jang Deuk-chil trying to smoke.

“I think you just put out my cigarette.”

“That’s right. I put it out. Do you know where you are right now? It’s a hospital. A hospital.”

“Ah!”

In that moment, Jang Deuk-chil had thought it was okay because he was outside the hospital building.

“Don’t you know smoking is prohibited in the hospital? What if a fire breaks out because you’re smoking here?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t ever smoke in the hospital again. Got it?”

“Yes. I understand.”

“That’s good.”

“Hey, excuse me? You took my lighter…”

Jang Deuk-chil called out to Nurse Im Jung-sook, who had naturally taken the lighter, but it was no use.

“It’s a waste, it was two thousand won [Korean currency, roughly $1.50 USD].”

Jang Deuk-chil, who had been sitting on the bench, stood up again and turned around to look at the hospital building before heading towards the main entrance.

“Come to think of it, Kim was a doctor too. I wonder how he’s doing? Coming to the hospital makes me think of Kim Tae-kyung.”

* * *

“Lee, why do you seem so happy today?”

“Do I look happy?”

Lee Chan-hee, who was looking at the monitor at the emergency room station, raised his head.

“Yes, is there something good happening?”

“There is something good. And it’s not just good for me, but for all of us.”

“For me too?”

“Of course. Here, take a look at this.”

Lee Chan-hee took out his phone from his gown, clicked on the weather forecast, and turned the screen.

“It’s the weather forecast? Why is this?”

“Look at today’s forecast.”

“Today, strong rain is expected across the country from the afternoon. This rain is expected to continue throughout the weekend…”

The expression on the nurse’s face, who was reading the weather forecast, gradually brightened.

“That means it’s going to rain today. And it’s going to be heavy rain.”

“That’s exactly it. Now you know why I’m happy, right? I’ve been happy since I came to work this morning.”

There’s a kind of unwritten rule in the emergency room.

For example, you should never say, ‘The beds are empty?’ or ‘There are no patients?’

Because the moment you say those words, patients magically start pouring in.

Conversely, there were rare cases where the number of patients decreased, and that was because of the weather.

On days with heavy rain, the number of patients visiting the emergency room was lower than usual, perhaps due to the weather.

Especially when it rains heavily.

“I’m starting to feel good too.”

“I told you earlier. The even better news is that it’s so cloudy that it wouldn’t be surprising if it started raining from the sky soon.”

“I don’t think it’s time to be happy yet.”

Nurse Im Jung-sook approached Lee Chan-hee, who was very excited.

“There’s one thing Lee is overlooking.”

“One thing? What is it?”

“What else could it be? The fact that today is Friday. Isn’t that right, Choi?”

“That’s right.”

Choi Mona, who had just finished a procedure on the bed, shook her head once and continued.

“I don’t know why he’s acting like this; it’s not like he’s been working in the emergency room for a day or two.”

“Lee, we all know the power of Friday.”

Because there are more patients on Fridays, the medical staff are busier that day.

“That’s why it needs to rain even more.”

“Lee Chan-hee?”

Tae-kyung, who had come down from the ward, checked the patient status in front of the monitor and only moved his mouth.

“Yes, doctor.”

“If you say the word ‘rain’ one more time, I’m putting you on duty all weekend.”

“What? Duty all weekend?”

It would be better to be hit with a homework bomb. Duty all weekend? Lee Chan-hee almost fainted.

“The more it rains, the more traffic accidents increase, and then the number of TA [traffic accident] patients also increases. Drivers or passengers who skid on the rainy road are more likely to get hurt. But knowing this…”

Tae-kyung, who was talking, moved closer to Lee Chan-hee.

“Are you still going to keep wishing for rain?”

“No, doctor. I was short-sighted. From now on, I’ll pray that it doesn’t rain.”

“Right? That’s a good attitude. And I’m going to go to the interview now, so you two take good care of the emergency room.”

“Yes, have a good trip.”

“Have a good trip.”

Tae-kyung left the emergency room to attend the security guard interview after receiving a call from Team Leader Choi.

* * *

“Excuse me?”

“Yes, welcome. Are you here for a checkup…?”

The receptionist paused for a moment after looking at Jang Deuk-chil’s face and continued.

“Not really, I’m here for an interview?”

“Are you here for the security guard interview?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Do you see the chair on the left? If you sit there, the person in charge will guide you.”

“Thank you.”

“Daebak [Wow/Amazing]! Did you just see that?”

As soon as Jang Deuk-chil left the reception desk, the staff whispered to each other in small voices.

“Of course, I saw it. It’s not nice to say this to someone I just met, but he has a really fierce impression.”

“I know, did you see the scar on his face?”

“Maybe he was a gangster or something?”

“No way. But I just hope I’m the first person to come.”

“Me too.”

* * *

“Hello.”

After a while, Team Leader Choi approached the two people sitting in the chairs waiting.

“You’re the ones who came for the interview today, right?”

“Yes.”

“That’s right.”

“What are your names?”

“I’m Kim Geon-hoon.”

Looking at the applicant who greeted him politely with a neat appearance, Team Leader Choi responded with a pleased smile.

“Then this person must be Jang Hyun-soo.”

“Yes, I’m Jang Hyun-soo.”

Team Leader Choi was surprised to see the unusual visual, but he didn’t show it outwardly.

“Excuse me, Jang Hyun-soo, may I ask you something?”

“Ah, yes. It’s okay.”

“May I ask how you got the scar on your face?”

After hesitating for a moment, Team Leader Choi asked about the long scar on his left cheek, which was not ordinary.

“Ah, this? I was stabbed by a knife a long time ago.”

“A kn-knife? I see. I understand.”

Team Leader Choi wrote the following on the paper he was holding.

-The scar on the left cheek is from a knife, so he is judged to be a slightly dangerous person.

“I’m Choi Byung-geun, the team leader of the General Affairs Team. Nice to meet you both. I’ll give you a brief explanation and then start the interview right away. I told you to look at our hospital’s website before you came, did you see it?”

“Yes, I’ve seen it all. I learned that our hospital has a long history.”

“Kim Geon-hoon has studied properly. Jang Hyun-soo, did you see it too?”

“I looked over it roughly.”

“Roughly, well, that’s good. Our director will conduct the interview, and you will both see it together. Then just a moment.”

Knock knock-

“Director?”

After finishing the explanation, Team Leader Choi knocked on the examination room door, and a reply was heard immediately.

“Yes, come in.”

“Our applicants, please go in and sit in the chairs in front of the desk.”

Creak-

Kim Geon-hoon and Jang Hyun-soo each sat in a chair, and Team Leader Choi sat next to Tae-kyung.

“First, I’d like each of you to introduce yourselves.”

Tae-kyung said to the applicants, but he hadn’t actually seen their faces yet. He had been urgently contacted by the ward and was giving orders regarding a patient.

Tuk- tuk- tuk-

His hands were tapping on the keyboard, and his eyes were on the monitor, so the applicants couldn’t see Tae-kyung either.

“The director is busy checking something right now. Shall we start with the person sitting on the left?”

Seeing this, Team Leader Choi continued the interview.

“Hello, I’m Kim Geon-hoon, an applicant. I graduated from the Department of Physical Education at a four-year university in Seoul and have worked as a security guard at banks, hospitals, and cram schools [private tutoring academies]. I am applying to start working again after taking some time to recharge.”

The applicant in his early 30s finished his self-introduction smoothly with proper eye contact, as if he was familiar with interviews.

“Is it my turn? I’m Jang Hyun-soo. I graduated from Seoul oo University, and my major is Judo. After being discharged from the military, I worked as a security guard and then applied after doing other things.”

Jang Deuk-chil briefly finished his self-introduction based on what the person in front of him had said.

Tuk- tuk-

“Sorry for the sudden interruption during the interview. I listened to both of your self-introductions well. I’m Kim Tae-kyung, the director of our hospital.”

Tae-kyung, who finally took his eyes off the PC, pushed the monitor aside and turned his head towards the two people.

“I was curious because there were no photos on your resumes, but here I am seeing you like this.”

And at that moment when his head was completely facing forward,

‘Kim Tae-kyung…?’

Tae-kyung and Jang Deuk-chil’s eyes met exactly.

Creak-

Jang Deuk-chil, who was so surprised at that moment, jumped up from his seat without realizing it.