Chapter 177
Possession ended.
Whoosh-
“Ugh….”
My legs gave out.
It felt like gravity had suddenly doubled.
“Phew….”
Leaning against the wall, I let out a sigh.
Cold sweat was pouring off me like crazy.
‘I’m alive.’
The patient was alive, and I was alive too.
Now there was only one thing left.
RUN.
Before the backlash hit.
Clunk.
When I pressed the operating room automatic-door button, the door opened and the familiar sight of the ER corridor began to appear.
And so I dragged my feet like a zombie toward the ER station.
“Hey! Han!”
Park Se-young, who was standing at the station, spotted me and shouted.
“Ah, yes, Professor….”
I weakly raised a hand and waved.
I didn’t even have the strength to speak.
There was only one countdown running in my head.
The severe muscle pain that usually hits in about five minutes.
“You… you really okay?”
Park Se-young came over, grabbed my shoulder, and looked me over from head to toe.
“You really assisted in there? The director’s surgery? And you didn’t get kicked out?”
“Ah, yes. Well… more or less….”
“More or less? The anesthesiology professor said he thought you were crazy!”
“That gentleman tends to exaggerate a bit….”
With dim eyes, I looked past Park Se-young.
Far away, beyond the curtain in the ER treatment area, I saw a familiar face peeking out.
It was Baek Eun-seo.
“Huh?”
I rubbed my eyes.
Why is Eun-seo in the ER?
Wasn’t Eun-seo off today?
“Professor. Why is Eun-seo….”
“Ah.”
Park Se-young rolled their eyes.
“If you go into the operating room, who’s going to fill in here? You want me to see all the patients by myself? This mess is yours.”
“Then could the first-years, Tae-hyun or Seoa, also… Ah.”
As soon as I said it, I realized my mistake.
“Exactly. If it were you, would you call them?”
Park Se-young folded their arms.
‘Probably not.’
“So I called Eun-seo, who’s the fastest and best at following directions. Sorry it’s Eun-seo’s day off, but what else could I do?”
“Ah… I understand.”
So Baek Eun-seo’s day off got wrecked because of me.
Sorry, Eun-seo.
I’ll buy you something good later.
But right now, I’m the one dying.
“Professor.”
“What.”
“But could I… rest for a bit?”
“Huh?”
Park Se-young asked back.
Instead of answering, I headed straight for the farthest corner of the ER.
“Hey! Hey! Where are you going!”
“I’m exhausted.”
A top-tier skill usable only on Park Se-young.
Throwing a tantrum.
I threw myself onto the bed.
Then, lying there, I gave Park Se-young a thumbs-up.
…
Park Se-young looked down at me, dumbfounded.
A resident sprawled out flat on an ER bed during work, of all things.
Normally I would’ve gotten smacked right there, but I must really look awful right now.
“You do look a little… really bad. No, seriously, are you actually going to lie down? Here? For real?”
“Professor.”
With my eyes closed, I made my final proposal. This was a negotiation for my survival.
“If you cut me some slack today… I’ll take a 24-hour shift next time.”
“…!”
At that moment, Park Se-young’s eyes lit up.
“24 hours?”
“Yes. No complaints. Full shift.”
“But you’ve already got a 24-hour shift this Saturday, aren’t you….”
“I’ll do one more day.”
“Deal.”
Park Se-young’s answer came in less than 0.1 seconds.
Park Se-young immediately turned and signaled to Baek Eun-seo.
“Eun-seo, draw the curtain. Dr. Han passed out. Hang a bag of fluids for him.”
“Yes!”
Swish-
And then.
“Ah…!”
Hell arrived.
That damn muscle pain.
“Kgh….”
I buried my face in the pillow.
“Damn it… could you at least cut me some slack on the penalty….”
The service is way too stingy.
My consciousness gradually blurred.
…
***
“Ugh….”
When I forced my heavy eyelids open, the horrible pain had eased quite a bit.
Instinctively, I groped the bedside table for my phone.
Tap.
When the screen lit up, the numbers caught my eye.
Blink.
“5:22 p.m….”
I blankly did the math.
Since the day shift ends at 7:00 p.m.… there was still about an hour and forty minutes left until clock-out.
I was lucky; I’d woken up within work hours.
“Heave-ho….”
I groaned and stretched.
With a series of cracking pops, it felt like my stiff bones were being put back into place.
I gathered strength in my unsteady legs and pulled back the curtain.
Swish.
“Awake?”
Park Se-young, seated at the station and sorting charts, smiled at me.
That smile looked oddly brighter than usual.
“Did you sleep well?”
Why was Park Se-young smiling like that?
Did I drool in my sleep or something?
“Hyeonjae.”
“Yes, Professor.”
“You know.”
Park Se-young pointed toward the ER entrance.
“The medical center director was looking for you just now. He’s waiting outside the ER. Go out there quickly.”
“Looking for me?”
The director?
Personally?
“Not through the secretary’s office?”
“Yeah. Go quickly. He’ll be waiting. Seems like he has something to say.”
“But my day shift time isn’t over yet….”
“Forget it, just go. Don’t waste time here. Sounds like he has something to say.”
Park Se-young waved me off, shooing me away.
In a daze, I straightened my coat and started walking.
“Ah… ah, yes. I’ll be back.”
“Be careful! Watch in front of you and to the side!”
What is that supposed to mean…?
Front and side?
Okay, fine, front makes sense, but why the side?
Is she telling me not to trip in the hallway?
Tilting my head, I walked toward the automatic door.
Whirr-
The automatic door inside the emergency medical center opened, revealing the corridor connected to the hospital lobby.
And the moment I stepped outside, my gaze naturally drifted to the large bulletin board on the right wall.
In the center was a single fresh sheet of paper that looked like it was still drying.
[Notice of Personnel Appointment]
‘Even the title feels ominous.’
「Name : Park Gwang-seok
Affiliation : Cheongjin University Geoje Hospital Emergency Medical Center / Cheongjin University School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine
Rank : Associate Professor
Post : Director, Geoje Hospital Emergency Medical Center」
And below that, the decisive blow in bold red type.
[Disposition]
Relieved of his position as Director of the Emergency Medical Center.
Relieved of his faculty appointment at Cheongjin University.
Ordered to remain on standby until referred to the Disciplinary Committee.
“Huh?”
A dumb sound slipped out of my mouth.
‘Relieved of his post and relieved of his appointment?’
The grounds listed below were even more severe.
A. Private School Act, Article 58-2 (Relief from Office)
B. Emergency Medical Service Act, Article 12 (Prohibition of Obstruction of Emergency Medical Care, etc.)
C. Cheongjin University Faculty Personnel Regulations, Article 32 (Duty of Sincerity)
D. Cheongjin University Faculty Personnel Regulations, Article 33 (Duty to Maintain Dignity)
E. Cheongjin University Hospital Medical Affairs Regulations, Article 20 (Prohibition of Abuse of Command and Supervision)
‘They even slapped obstruction of emergency care on him.’
The act of blocking the medical team going in to operate on an emergency patient.
They had interpreted that as obstruction of treatment and used it as grounds.
I wasn’t sure it would hold up as a legal basis in court, though.
At the very bottom was the stamped seal.
Cheongjin University Medical Center Director / Cheongjin University Vice President for Medical Affairs Lee Jae-yoon (seal)
…
I ran a hand through my hair.
This was from earlier today.
Just a few hours ago.
In that short time, they finished the legal review and had HR write this up?
‘It got resolved this fast?’
Then, seeing someone’s shadow reflected in the bulletin-board glass, I turned around in surprise.
“Ah, jeez—!”
…
“No, Director. Good afternoon.”
“You awake?”
“I just got up.”
“How’s your body?”
“I feel refreshed. I’m fine.”
A lie.
I still ache all over.
“Come with me. For a moment.”
“Yes… yes? Yes!”
Lee Jae-yoon walked off without any explanation.
I followed behind the director, none the wiser.
He headed straight for the elevator.
Ding-
The door opened and we boarded the elevator.
‘A second interview? Like when I was at the main hospital? Another life-talk over tea?’
I’m losing it.
I have no idea what kind of situation this is.
Is he here to praise me, or to scold me for overstepping?
Or is he trying to keep me quiet about that personnel notice?
But the button Lee Jae-yoon pressed wasn’t for the top-floor director’s office or an administrative department.
[5F]
‘The fifth floor? That’s the ICU and the wards… huh?’
A thought flashed through my head.
On the fifth floor were the medical ICU and the surgical ICU.
Ding-
The moment the door opened, Lee Jae-yoon headed without hesitation to the ICU intercom at the end of the hall.
“Oh, right. Dr. Han?”
Lee Jae-yoon stopped just as he was about to press the intercom and turned back to me.
“Yes, Director!”
“Your employee badge.”
“Ah. Yes!”
The director probably hadn’t even brought his badge, so getting in would be difficult.
I hurriedly held the badge hanging from my neck up to the reader.
Beep.
“The door is opening-”
Tap.
Tap.
We put on sterilized gowns over our clothes and went inside.
The on-call resident sitting at the station jumped up when they saw us.
“Huh? Director?”
Lee Jae-yoon raised a hand to stop the resident from rushing out.
He meant for us to be quiet.
Then he led me to one of the beds inside.
A bed with the curtain half drawn.
The patient lying on it.
[32M / Han Seung-ho] [Attending Physician : Hong Seon-ho / Department : Cardiothoracic Surgery]
It was the same patient that my hands and the director’s hands had touched earlier today.
“The vitals are stable too.”
Lee Jae-yoon said, looking at the monitor.
“Chest tube output has dropped to under 100 cc an hour, and the color has cleared up too. Urine output is over 50 cc an hour, so the kidneys seem fine. Creatinine is normal as well.”
‘He’s not even the ICU doctor, and this isn’t even a patient under his care, yet he’s watching him this closely?’
He must have been checking on him continuously after the surgery.
“No other pressors besides Cefa have been needed, and the bloodwork keeps coming back good.”
“I see, Director.”
“Come closer.”
“Pardon?”
I asked back blankly.
“Me? You mean me?”
Why me?
“I said go on.”
Lee Jae-yoon nodded toward the bed.
I cautiously approached the bedside.
The patient’s eyes were closed.
‘Is he asleep because the anesthesia is still wearing off?’
As I approached and held the side rail, the patient’s eyelids twitched ever so slightly.
And then he slowly opened his eyes.
His pupils wandered through the air before stopping at my face.
He couldn’t speak because of the oxygen mask, but it seemed his consciousness had returned.
“Can you hear me? Can you see me? If you can, blink twice.”
I asked in a trembling voice.
Blink.
And once more.
Blink.
No brain damage.
“Haa….”
A deep breath escaped me before I realized it.
We saved him.
‘We really saved him.’
The heart that had been bleeding out and dying was beating again.
When I turned my head, Lee Jae-yoon was standing behind me, a satisfied gleam in his eyes.
“Director, why did you….”
“He just regained consciousness. He’s still a little sleepy, but there are no neurological sequelae.”
“Then….”
“Here.”
Lee Jae-yoon pulled a phone from his pocket and tossed it to me.
“The guardian’s number is saved there.”
“The guardian’s number?”
“Tell them he’s awake. The guardian lives in Seoul, so he said they’d only arrive tonight.”
“Ah….”
Lee Jae-yoon had handed over the privilege of delivering the happiest news—the highest privilege of all.
“Ah. Yes! Understood!”
I pressed the call button with trembling hands.
“Ring-ring-ring-”
The call connected before it even rang once.
“Click.”
“[Hello?!]”
“Yes. This is Cheongjin University Geoje Hospital.”
“[The surgery! What happened with Seung-ho’s surgery?!]”
The guardian’s voice cracked.
I looked into the patient’s eyes.
The patient looked at me and faintly blinked.
“He just regained consciousness in the ICU.”
“[What?]”
“For now, the bleeding has stopped and there’s no brain damage. The complication we were most worried about in his case was acute kidney failure, but that isn’t present either. He’s also being given prophylactic antibiotics to prevent infection.”
“[Oh, thank you… thank you so much, doctor….]”
A wail burst out on the other end of the line.
“Please come down safely.”
I hung up and set the phone down.
I straightened my clothes once more and turned my head.
Director Lee Jae-yoon was staring at me with his arms folded.
“Dr. Han. Are you crying right now, by any chance?”
“Pardon? Director? No, I’m not crying! Why would I….”
I hurriedly rubbed at the corners of my eyes.
They’re wet.
Damn it.
“I think I got dust in my eyes. The ICU air is a little stuffy.”
Lee Jae-yoon chuckled and gave my shoulder a light tap.
“Yeah. There sure is a lot of dust. My eyes sting a little too.”