Chapter 9
Just as Daeho gave that meaningful smile,
Shhh!
The curtain was pulled back, and Nurse Nasanju came in first, syringe in hand.
“Here’s the bupivacaine!”
“The emergency surgery kit is here too!”
Rustle.
Nurse Lee Suyeon followed closely behind.
At the same time, the patient seemed to make a decision, letting out a scream-like shout.
“Ugh… I want to run, I want to run out!”
“Okay. Let’s face this crisis together.”
“Crisis…”
“Let’s go.”
Honestly, it was just talk.
Daeho masked it with bravado, but the situation was quite dangerous.
Then, suddenly, Daeho’s atmosphere became as heavy as a mountain.
‘The patient has the will, the doctor has the skill… when these combine?’
That’s medicine.
In an instant, Daeho put on surgical gloves and stood before the patient.
“Emergency treatment starts now.”
The scalpel in Daeho’s hand cut into the patient’s dark, swollen calf.
Thud… splat!
Blood spattered the curtains, turning them bright red.
After that, the silhouette of someone frantically moving their hands filled the curtain.
Some time later.
Two doctors came running across the ER.
“We’re from orthopedics! Where’s the patient?”
“The one with the leg injury!”
As they searched anxiously,
Rustle.
The curtain at the side pulled back, revealing Kang Jinsu.
But his white coat was soaked with blood.
Kang Jinsu, still a little dazed, gestured to the orthopedic doctors.
“Ah… seniors, here… here he is.”
“Jinsu! What… what happened to the patient?!”
“This way.”
“Okay, let’s go!”
Paba-bak!
The orthopedic doctors rushed to the curtain.
Inside, blood filled the scene.
It looked like a gruesome crime scene.
But as doctors, this didn’t shock them in the usual way.
No, they were surprised for a different reason.
The patient’s leg was tightly wrapped with a compression bandage.
The patient?
“Pfff…”
He had exhaled deeply and fallen asleep.
His face was pale, but his expression was peaceful, without any sign of pain.
One orthopedic doctor stammered, asking Kang Jinsu,
“Dr. Kang… did you do the emergency treatment? Was it you?”
“No. Not me.”
“You were here though. Then who else could it be?”
“Richard Choi.”
Kang Jinsu managed to say the name, eyes wide with shock.
“He was like a beast… no, just a beast. That aggressive… that fierce emergency treatment… ughhh.”
In a studio apartment with a view of Seoul at night,
Daeho came out of the shower, showing off his toned muscles.
Plop.
He sank onto the sofa and frowned as he looked at the clock.
20:00
“Don’t tell me this keeps happening…”
Daeho valued punctuality highly.
Today, he was late because of an unexpected emergency.
He hoped that from his official first day, nothing like this would happen.
Just then.
Growl.
His stomach growled loudly from hunger.
“Heh, I need to eat.”
Daeho got up with a sullen face to head out again.
A little later, he sat at a gukbap (Korean soup with rice) restaurant near his apartment.
“First meal back… sigh. I’ll have one gukbap and a bottle of soju.”
After ordering, he pulled out his phone to check a conversation with an American friend.
Lione: When you’re in Korea, soju!
Richard: Soju?
Lione: Didn’t your siblings tell you?
Richard: My brothers still treat me like a baby. They think if I drive, the world will end.
Daeho smiled at the memory of the people who cared for him deeply.
He hadn’t told them he was back.
‘Let me live a little peacefully.’
If they knew, he wouldn’t be able to relax like this.
Then the gukbap and soju arrived.
Tap, tap.
“Eat plenty.”
The server’s blunt yet kind words accompanied the food.
Daeho blinked in surprise.
“Fast food?”
The food was ready in less than a minute.
The surprise was brief.
He had eaten gukbap in the U.S. before.
“Add some radish kimchi juice, sprinkle some pepper… ah, this is it.”
He slurped, enjoying the soup.
Next came the soju.
Daeho examined the bottle curiously.
“The bottle is small, the alcohol is moderate… okay.”
He opened it and drank straight from the bottle.
Gulp.
The sharp burn going down his throat felt surprisingly good.
“Ah… not bad at all.”
