Chapter 84: I Have to Go to America (1)

‘Did I do the right thing?’

After finishing dinner with Hayun and dropping her off at the dormitory, Suhyuk returned to the hospital.

He had been asking Baruda for advice the whole time, but to be honest, even Baruda found it difficult to give a clear opinion.

[No idea.]

‘You don’t know? An AI doesn’t know such things?’

[Hayun’s reaction was not typical… Normally, the game would have been over when you brought up the genetic trait thing.]

Baruda recalled the countless dramas, comics, and movies he had observed from inside Suhyuk’s mind.

It seemed that a relationship like the one between Suhyuk and Hayun had never appeared in any of them.

A male lead who constantly steers the conversation to strange topics.

And a female lead who, instead of scolding him, lights up with interest.

It’s the kind of story that would fail miserably if it were in a movie.

‘Wasn’t the atmosphere good, though?’

[Well… it seemed that way.]

Reality was a bit different.

Even Baruda had to admit that the dinner went quite well.

The conversation flowed continuously.

It was quite strange that most of the conversation was about diseases.

But the fact that it continued was important.

[Hayun’s expression was particularly good.]

‘Right? That’s how it was.’

Suhyuk could vividly recall Hayun’s smile, which he had seen for almost an hour.

Baruda, seeing Suhyuk’s dreamy expression, spoke again.

[Still, don’t get too… carried away.]

His tone was not as sharp as usual.

Instead, it was filled with concern.

‘Why?’

[Suhyuk, isn’t your leg inconvenient? It will be a significant disadvantage in a romantic relationship.]

‘Hmm. That’s… true, I guess.’

[I’m looking into research related to your leg, but currently, there’s no cure. The atmosphere was good today, but don’t get your hopes up. I’m worried you might get hurt.]

The thought of getting hurt was touching to Suhyuk.

Of course, Hayun’s tone of not even dreaming about it was a bit bothersome.

‘What’s going on? You’re worrying so much about me?’

[According to data analysis, Suhyuk’s intellectual abilities after a breakup are less than half of what they were before. Since this is based on past data, I can’t help but worry.]

‘This guy is really going all out to tease me, isn’t he?’

[It’s not teasing…]

‘Just wait. Do you think I have no dating experience? I know what a favor is, too.’

Suhyuk briefly recalled his dating experiences from his pre-med days and then slumped into the computer at the ward station.

This was the ward station where he practically lived, in the on-call room he had been staying in since his first year.

Now, this computer was almost like Suhyuk’s personal computer.

Being the son of the director, who would dare to use it?

So, it was always available, and Suhyuk could use it whenever he came.

‘Let’s check the patient’s CT scan.’

[Ah, the patient you mentioned earlier? Sure.]

‘Oh… the extent…’

[This isn’t a typical aortic dissection. It’s consistent with Loey’s-Dietz syndrome. The post-surgery tissue examination will likely show similar findings.]

‘By the way, is the surgery going well?’

While thinking this, Suhyuk opened the patient’s chart.

The nursing records showed that the patient had already entered the operating room, but the surgery had not yet ended.

[You must be curious about how it’s going.]

‘Yeah, I am.’

He wanted to go into the operating room right away.

But his damn leg was a problem.

He could force his way in, but it would be too exhausting.

Walking around with a cane would be a nuisance.

‘I’ll just have to wait. It’ll probably end in the early morning… or maybe at dawn.’

[That’s right. In cases of aortic dissection this advanced, a reconstruction procedure is necessary, and the average surgery time is over 8 hours.]

‘Okay, then let’s get some sleep.’

So, Suhyuk tried to soothe his restless heart and fell asleep.

He dreamed of running with both legs, but upon waking, it was just a dream.

All he could see was his left leg, which had become thin due to nerve damage.

Every time he saw that leg, the accident came to mind.

Sometimes he thought it would have been better if the accident hadn’t happened.

‘No… If it hadn’t, I wouldn’t have met Baruda.’

Of course, legs are a very important part of the human body.

But to Suhyuk, who had chosen the path of an internist and decided to become the world’s best internist, Baruda was more precious.

After all, thanks to Baruda, he had received all sorts of benefits.

Tap.

Tap.

Having thought this far, Suhyuk roughly tied his hair and left the on-call room.

He then sat down at the computer he used like his own.

‘The patient’s surgery…’

[It’s over. Three hours ago.]

While Suhyuk was having gloomy thoughts, Baruda, who had been unusually quiet, finally spoke up.

Suhyuk, feeling a bit fond of this guy, continued the conversation.

‘At least it’s not a table death. They went to the ICU.’

[Let’s look at the surgery record.]

‘Okay.’

[They reconstructed about 2.6 cm of the ascending aorta… and also the aortic valve. They reconstructed 7.2 cm of the descending aorta. It was a massive surgery. The thoracic surgery department at Taehwa Medical Center is indeed top-notch. To save someone with such a surgery…]

Suhyuk, who was about to mention that it was all thanks to Hyunjong, decided to keep reading the surgery record.

‘The aorta’s expansion was visible to the naked eye… Hmm? The genetic test hasn’t been ordered yet?’

[The surgery ended in the early morning, so that’s understandable. Leave a note in the consultation notes, just in case.]

‘Right, that’s a good idea.’

Although Suhyuk was currently working in hematology-oncology,

it was a bit too quiet just seeing the patients under Professor Jo Taejin’s care.

Checking routine patients was now too simple for Suhyuk and Baruda.

So, Suhyuk was looking for patients, feeling a bit like he was going through the motions.

Baruda called it data collection.

<Conduct a genetic test to rule out Loey’s-Dietz syndrome. Given the high clinical probability of this condition, it would be good to start with an ‘angiotensin receptor blocker’.>

Just as Suhyuk was writing this, someone behind him cleared their throat.

Turning his head, he saw Hyunjong standing there with a very amused expression.

“Loey’s-Dietz syndrome? There was such a patient?”

His expression also suggested, ‘If there was, you should have told me right away.’

If Suhyuk was looking for patients due to Baruda’s request and his own needs,

Hyunjong had been doing this for half his life out of his own will.

“Ah, yes. I saw the patient briefly in the ER before going off duty yesterday.”

“Without a genetic test… how can you diagnose it?”

“The patient came in with chest pain, and the aortic dissection was almost throughout the ascending and descending aorta.”

“Were there any specific features on the face or elsewhere?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm…”

Hyunjong’s expression became increasingly interested.

He tilted his head from side to side and then made a call.

“Hey, what’s my morning schedule?”

“Director, you have a department meeting today.”

The person on the other end of the call was the secretary.

The secretary, with a deep, deep sigh, informed him of the significant department meeting.

A typical director would have said, “Got it,” and hung up.

But Hyunjong was different.

“Start without me.”

“What? That’s not possible! How can we have a department meeting without the director?”

“I didn’t even know there was a meeting today. What difference would it make if I went in?”

“Well… that’s true.”

Indeed, Hyunjong often skipped meetings.

Even in meetings he was supposed to lead, he was often indifferent to the point of falling asleep.

He had heard complaints many times, but it didn’t change anything.

Hyunjong’s logic was just too solid.

“Tell the business strategy department to handle the money-making. Why should the clinical department talk about money? Everyone is busy with patient care. I’m not going to do something else; I’m going to see a patient. Handle it. Handle it.”

“But… Director…”

“I’ll bring sandwiches and coffee. Ham and mozzarella cheese. That’s your favorite, right?”

“That’s true, but that’s not the point.”

“I’m going.”

“Director!”

Hyunjong, having dismissed the meeting of department heads, looked at Suhyuk again.

Suhyuk had known from the start that this director would join him to see the patient,

but he was still surprised that he would skip such an important meeting.

“What are you doing? Guide me.”

Hyunjong spoke very confidently.

This was a bit of a difficult situation for Suhyuk.

“Well… yes. But the patient is in the thoracic surgery ICU…”

“What? Why? Didn’t we take the case?”

Hyunjong believed that he should see all heart-related patients.

While the thoracic surgery department might find this absurd,

Suhyuk also found it absurd.

“They had surgery. We don’t do surgery, do we?”

After all, they were internists.

He couldn’t understand why they were getting involved in surgical cases.

“We can do the post-surgery management. Is there a department better at ICU care than us?”

Of course, Hyunjong’s logic was always perfect.

Or rather, he could always find a way to justify his actions.

“Well… that’s true.”

Moreover, in the case of Hyunjong and Suhyuk, it was true.

Currently, no one in the entire large Taehwa Medical Center could take care of patients as well as these two.

“Right. So, let’s go and see. Let’s take the case.”

“But… I’m still in hematology-oncology.”

“Huh? Oh, right. You’re still a resident.”

“Still? I’m in my second year now. Don’t you care about your own son?”

“Haha. You’re just too good. Haha.”

Hyunjong laughed awkwardly and made another call.

This time, the person on the other end was Jo Taejin.

“Hey, Taejin.”

“Yes, Director.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m… about to start my ward rounds.”

“With Suhyuk?”

“Yes. Ah, with him, this month is really easy.”

Jo Taejin replied with a very lively voice.

It was natural. Suhyuk was practically a professor.

The patients Suhyuk was in charge of required no attention at all.

“Ah… right, do the rounds yourself today.”

“What?”

“I’m borrowing Suhyuk for a bit.”

“No… no, that’s not possible.”

“Just for today.”

“No… no, why!”

“Hey. Shouting at the director. Are you becoming like Hyuntae? Getting aggressive?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Then hang up.”

“Ah…”

After completely ruining Jo Taejin’s mood, Hyunjong looked at Suhyuk.

Was he feeling good because he had made someone else feel bad?

Or was he happy about seeing a rare disease patient?

His face was very bright.

“It’s all set. Let’s go, Suhyuk.”

“Ah… yes.”