Chapter 38, Part 3: Fracture (3)

The moment I saw Park Jung-hoon in pain, my heart sank.

But as a former thoracic surgeon, I quickly and skillfully composed myself.

Just because the situation was urgent didn’t mean I should let it control me.

A surgeon must be able to control the situation.

And the emotions a surgeon needs are not fear, tension, or anxiety.

The determination to save the patient with my own hands was enough.

I approached Park Jung-hoon, knelt down, and met his eyes.

My demeanor was calm and collected.

"Park Jung-hoon, where does it hurt the most?"

Despite my question, Park Jung-hoon couldn’t meet my eyes.

He was pressing his hand to his chest and looking down at the classroom floor.

His mouth was open wide, and he was breathing heavily, like a fish that had just come out of the water.

"Jung-hoon, can you hear me?"

When I asked again, Park Jung-hoon weakly nodded.

He seemed disoriented, but he was conscious enough to understand what I was saying.

It didn’t seem like an emergency that would cause a commotion around him.

A more thorough examination would be needed to reach a definitive conclusion, but...

A condition that looks normal on the outside but is actually severe.

A condition that looks serious on the outside but is actually mild.

A skilled doctor is one who can accurately distinguish between these two.

Speaking of myself, who has returned, I’m a pretty good doctor.

Physical examination.

I am quite skilled at making a tentative diagnosis through questioning, inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation.

"Do you have chest pain?"

Park Jung-hoon shook his head, his face drenched in sweat.

His breathing was as rapid as if he had run around the track more than five times.

I ruled out the possibility of a heart problem.

Kim Yo-han, who has Brugada syndrome, is a special case, but heart disease in teenagers is extremely rare.

The next suspect was asthma.

If it were an asthma attack, it would best explain Park Jung-hoon’s current condition.

But I boldly ruled out asthma as well.

If Park Jung-hoon had asthma, he would produce wheezing sounds when breathing heavily.

Wheezing is a whistling sound made when air passes through narrowed airways.

But Park Jung-hoon didn’t produce any wheezing sounds.

After ruling out all the suspected conditions, only one remained in my mind.

The answer fit perfectly with Park Jung-hoon’s symptoms and the situation he was in.

I couldn’t tell if this was fortunate or unfortunate.

"Kids, why aren’t you preparing for class?"

As the class period began, the moral education teacher entered the classroom.

The teacher, sensing the commotion and chaos, looked displeased.

"Teacher, Jung-hoon seems to be in a lot of pain."

"Jung-hoon?"

The teacher approached the back of the classroom and, realizing the situation was serious, blinked in surprise.

But I had already completed the diagnosis and determined the treatment.

Ending this situation was not difficult.

I calmly looked around and called out to Kang Yong-ho, who was holding a plastic bag.

"Yong-ho."

"What? Why?"

"Can you give me the bag for a moment?"

* * *

"Lee Min-seok, what the hell is that kid doing?"

"Fuck, how should I know?"

In response to the question from his delinquent friend, Shim Byung-soo frowned.

His mood was already sour because Lee Min-seok had found out that he was bullying Park Jung-hoon.

Not only that, but he had even reported it to the homeroom teacher, leading to a summons to the office.

"Min-seok, you said you were bullying Jung-hoon?"

"No, teacher. I feel wronged. The delinquents were the ones bullying Jung-hoon, and I just happened to be nearby."

"..."

"You know I’m the second-best student in the school. What would I gain by bullying a classmate?"

"Then Min-seok must have misunderstood?"

"No, I really didn’t. Please believe me, teacher."

Shim Byung-soo’s desperate defense made the teacher nod in agreement.

It was a natural outcome.

Shim Byung-soo was a model student with no faults during class.

After easily clearing the teacher’s suspicion, he immediately called Park Jung-hoon to the bathroom with his delinquent friends.

He showered Park Jung-hoon with insults and a few punches.

He made Park Jung-hoon pay for the trouble he had caused.

Only then did he feel a bit relieved.

It felt like a heavy stone had fallen from his chest.

But then, what happened?

When Park Jung-hoon, who had just been bullied, returned to the classroom, his face suddenly turned pale.

He knelt on the floor and began to breathe heavily, as if he were about to suffocate.

Is this going to get me in trouble?

This anxiety put Shim Byung-soo on high alert.

What made his heart race even more was...

Lee Min-seok.

When the class started, Lee Min-seok approached Park Jung-hoon and began asking him questions.

It was a ridiculous action.

Just because he was the top student in the national mock exam, did he think he was a doctor?

An even more shocking event happened a moment later.

"Yong-ho."

"What? Why?"

"Can you give me the bag for a moment?"

After receiving the plastic bag from Kang Yong-ho, Lee Min-seok suddenly placed it over Park Jung-hoon’s face.

It was a ridiculous and pitiful action.

What could placing a plastic bag over someone who can’t even breathe properly change?

"Min-seok, isn’t this a bit strange? Why is he doing this?"

"He might make it worse for Jung-hoon."

The other classmates also thought the same as Shim Byung-soo.

So, Lee Min-seok’s actions were completely out of the ordinary.

When Shim Byung-soo glanced at the moral education teacher, who was observing the situation,

The teacher was asking the students if they had called 119.

The students said they hadn’t.

Park Jung-hoon, with a black plastic bag over his head.

Lee Min-seok, standing by his side.

The moral education teacher and the classmates, watching the two of them in silence.

The atmosphere in the classroom was becoming increasingly tense.

After what seemed like a short but long time,

"Jung-hoon, are you feeling better now?"

Lee Min-seok boldly removed the plastic bag from Park Jung-hoon’s head.

"Yeah, yeah."

A miracle had occurred.

Park Jung-hoon’s rapid breathing, which seemed to require 119, had completely disappeared.

Not only Shim Byung-soo, but the other classmates and the teacher were also amazed.

'What the hell is this?'

Shim Byung-soo found it hard to believe even though he saw