Golden Time

Chapter 117

Regrettably, Arum’s drawing was not sold. Instead, donations for her kept coming in.

Suhyuk immediately closed the bank account.

For he did not need it anymore as his original purpose was already fulfilled.

Several days pa.s.sed, and on the wall of the pediatrics building was hung a drawing.

It was the one drawn by Arum, which featured a big tree and a house.

Looking at it with Arum, he asked  her, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Arum’s eyes were glittering before her drawing.

“I want to be a painter.”

Nodding his head, Suhyuk looked at the drawing. Though he did not how to appreciate a painting, he could feel some sort of warmth from it.

“Arum!”

“Mom!”

Arum hugged her mother who just got back from work.

“What did you do today? Did you listen to the doctor well?”

“Yeah, mom. I got two shots, but didn’t cry.”

“Good job!”

Both of them stroked each other’s faces while they were sticking together.

Then, Suhyuk said, “Can I talk with you?”

At his words, she nodded and looked at Arum,

“Arum, I’ve got something to talk about with the doctor. Come inside first.”

Looking at her entering the patient’s room, Suhyuk said in no time,

“She looks healthy, right?”

She bended herself with sincerity, saying, “Thanks. I just don’t know how I can repay my debt to you… I won’t forget. Later I’ll…”

“Well, I just did my duty.”

With a smile, he turned over her chart and said,

“Even though her vital signs are normal, we have to check her condition for one week.”

She took out a white envelope from the bag that she was carrying, and gave it to him,

“This is not much, but please take this money…”

Suhyuk waved his hands, refusing to take it. The whole bill for her surgery and hospitalization was already paid for through the donations collected for Arum. Suhyuk was thinking of returning it to her when she was discharged.

“Please take this, such as it is…”

She continued to hand the envelop to him, but he refused it.

“You don’t have to give it to me. Please use it to buy her sketchbooks and crayons…”

Then Suhyuk’s eyes became wide, for she was suddenly moaning while offering the envelope.

Beads of sweat were formed on her forehead when she was looking down.

“Are you okay?”

At his voice, she raised her head, and tried to smile.

“I’m okay.”

But she was not, in his eyes.

She was holding her stomach with one hand.

“Looks like it’s menstrual pain. Have a seat here.”

He had her sit on the bench in the hallway, saying, “Do you usually have severe cramps like this?”

“Not as severe as this…”

Once a month when that very day came, she normally walked and ate well, and she did not feel her cramps that much, but today she felt different.

She could put up with it until the morning, but not now.

“Excuse me!”

Suhyuk grabbed a nurse pa.s.sing by at the moment.

“Looks like she needs blood collection.”

The nurse quickly disappeared, looking at her soaked with sweat.

“Are you okay now?”

At his words, she just nodded her head, but could not say anything.

The nurse reappeared with a syringe.

“Let me collect a bit of blood from you.”

Suhyuk put the needle right into her arm and drew some blood.

Then he gave it to the nurse.

“Please process it right away.”

“Yes, doctor.”

The nurse disappeared again with the syringe.

“Where do you feel uncomfortable?”

“On the lower part of my belly…”

She was grasping the lower right part of her belly.

“Let me touch it then.”

He put aside her hand and pressed it.

Knitting her brows, she was moaning.

Besides, when he took off his hand, her face was contorted with pain.

‘Appendicitis?’

“Doctor, her leukocyte value is above average!”

The nurse, who completed a simple test of the blood, appeared.

“Can you stand up?”

She stood up, helped by Suhyuk.

“It looks like appendicitis. But you need a CT for accurate diagnosis.”

“Mom?”

Arum who came into the patient’s room showed up.

“I’m okay, Arum. Stay inside.”

Did she feel her mother was lying?

Her eyes were welled up with tears.

“Are you sick, mom? ”

She smiled as if she was relieving her anxiety, but could not disguise the pain.

“Uncle doctor! Please give my mom medicine. Medicine, quickly!”

Taking a short look at Arum, Suhyuk opened his mouth,

“Looks like we have to go together.”

It seemed impossible to separate Arum from her mother.

***

The CT scan showed that she had acute appendicitis.

It was swollen to the point that it needed urgent surgery.

The procedure for surgery was done quickly.

Suhyuk contacted the staff of the surgery department and the anesthesia department.

Of course, the operating room was arranged.

Lying on the stretcher, with an IV hung on the back of her hand, she was soothing her daughter.

“I’ll be back soon. Okay?”

“Boohoo… Don’t go, Mom!”

Tears were running down her face, and her crying became louder as she came near the operating room.

Then Suhyuk held the stretcher to push it to the operating room and said to the nurse next to him, “Please take care of this child.”

“Mom!”

Arum was sitting on the bench, her face covered with tears.

She cried so much as to develop a hiccup, and now fixed her eyes on the red light sign: “In Operation.”

“Will my mom come out if the red sign is turned off? Boohoo…”

The nurse, who was rubbing her back gently, said with a smile,

“Sure, the light will be turned off soon.”

As soon as she said that, Arum’s eyes became wide because the light was turned off.

“Is my mom coming out soon?”

The nurse nodded her head. Her mother would come out once she regains consciousness in the recovery room. The surgery was most likely easy too.

About 10 minutes pa.s.sed.

Arum, expecting to see her mother, looked up at the nurse and asked, “Why is my mom not coming out?”

She gestured with her eyes toward the door.

The automatic door opened, and her mother lying on the stretcher was coming out.

“Mom!”

She got close to her who lay with her eyes half-closed.

“Did you wait for me long, Arum?”

“Yes! Did it hurt a lot?”

She made a smile, “I’m okay now.”

Then Arum, holding her hand tightly, turned back sharply and looked at Suhyuk.

“You’re a bad uncle. Don’t let her have any more surgery!”

Arum tapped his thigh lightly with her little hand.

Suhyuk thought her act was so cute, and laughed heartily, “Hahaha…”

The woman and her daughter are both now very healthy.

***

After checking the post-surgery condition of Arum’s mother, Suhyuk was back to the cardiothoracic surgery department.

While he was walking through the hallway, he ran into Park Sungjae.

“How are you, sir?”

Park greeted, bending himself.

He looked down and out, and Suhyuk could figure out why.

A series of mistakes by Park and the text messages sent by Im Gyongsu testified to it.

“I hear you administered the anaesthetic incorrectly.”

It was not a typical anesthesia.

It was the spinal cord subarachnoid anesthesia performed before the extraction of cerebrospinal fluid. How much pain was the patient in when Park administered the anesthetic in the wrong place and pierced a long needle into the waist?

Besides, Park wrongly touched the wound while he disinfected it, causing inflammation.

“I’m afraid I have to look for some other profession than a doctor…”

Park could realize why there were so few who applied for the cardiothoracic surgery department.

It was tough and exhaustive.

“You’re leaving tomorrow, right?”

At Suhyuk’s asking, Park’s eyes became wide.

“How did you know…”

Park was supposed to move from the cardiothoracic surgery department to the ob/gyn department tomorrow.

n.o.body knew about it until Park said it by himself.

With a smile, Suhyuk checked the time. It was 9pm.

Coincidently, the cardiothoracic surgery department was peaceful at the moment.

“Do you like meat?”

“Yes, sir…”

“Ok, let’s go. I know a restaurant behind the hospital known for delicious meat.”

Park followed Suhyuk.

When they arrived, the restaurant was crowded with customers.

They were clattering their gla.s.ses with happy looks after a day’s work.

Taking his seat, Suhyuk asked, “What would you like?”

“Any meat is okay with me, sir.”

“Please can we have pork neck for two, and a bottle of soju. Rolled omelet is sold separately, right?”

“Oh, are you talking about the omelet that’s 5000 won?”

“Yes, one omelet please.”

When the waiter disappeared, Park asked him with wide eyes, “How come pork neck for one person is 20,000 won? And the rolled omelet, too…”

Suhyuk smiled, saying, “Because it’s delicious…”

Soon thick pork neck was sizzling in front of them with a delicious smell permeating the air.

The waiter cut it into pieces so they could eat easily.

“Please help yourself!”

“Thanks for the meat, sir!”

Park began eating the meat hurriedly.

“Didn’t you have any lunch?”

“No, sir…”

“Hey, add another pork neck for two!”

How much time pa.s.sed…

They drank four bottles of soju, and Park put into his mouth lettuce with the pork neck.

“You have had lots of hard times, right?”

Park nodded slowly, and then began crying, “Boohoo…”

Tears were coming down his cheeks, and soon he began weeping.

Suhyuk patted him on the back quietly.