Fortunately, Dr. Schmidt let his curiosity end there.
“Yes. Once you’ve unfolded it with your hands like that, it’ll be easier the next time.”
“I’ll have to keep studying and working at it.”
“You’re already doing that well enough. And Dr. James asked me to tell you that you did an excellent job.”
At the sound of James’s name, Taesu’s ears perked up.
“He already called?”
“He did a while ago. I contacted him to report after the last surgery was over.”
“It says on the schedule board that it ended at dawn.”
Swoosh.
Taesu pointed at the whiteboard with his finger.
There, various things were written out: the dispatch status, the patients assigned to each doctor, and even a rough schedule.
Among them, yesterday’s schedule had already been documented.
Since yesterday couldn’t be changed, it was certain information that would remain unchanged from now on.
Dr. Schmidt knew where Taesu’s fingertip was pointing, so he nodded without turning his head.
“Yes. It ended a little after one.”
“Then when did you report it?”
“Around three?”
That meant the NGO’s leadership had been unable to sleep at that late hour, dealing with the aftermath.
Hearing that, Taesu smiled faintly.
“We young doctors should reflect on ourselves a little.”
“There’s no need to rush. Later on, it will all be something you’ll have to do.”
“We should get used to it in advance.”
“When the time comes, you’ll naturally do it.”
Dr. Schmidt expressed the word responsibility in a roundabout way.
Taesu understood it in that sense as well.
Everyone was given a role suited to the time, and with it came responsibility.
After taking that principle to heart once more, Taesu asked,
“Did Dr. James say anything else?”
“Like what?”
“I wasn’t sure what our schedule would be.”
Taesu casually mentioned what he was curious about.
After handing over the patients, the helicopter medical team had no work left to do.
They had tried to slip into the work since everyone was busy, but they had all been refused. It was a question he asked because they had suddenly become idle.
Dr. Schmidt answered with a smile, as if he had expected it.
“You’ll be returning with the patients sometime this morning.”
“Yes. If it’s morning, there isn’t much time left.”
“Then you’ll be leaving soon.”
“Being told to go so suddenly makes me feel strangely bittersweet.”
It was a situation Taesu faced every time, but it was always bitter.
Dr. Schmidt, on the other hand, spoke calmly.
“Won’t we meet again in some place where time and circumstance allow?”
“I suppose so. Our lives have become the sort where even making promises has no meaning.”
“Do you dislike that?”
“No.”
Perhaps Taesu’s answer was unexpected, because Dr. Schmidt asked in return,
“Why don’t you dislike it?”
“Just because we’re running now doesn’t mean we’ll spend our whole lives doing nothing but running ourselves to death.”
“That’s true.”
“If we keep running, we’ll come across stretches where we can rest for a while.”
“Right. And?”
“Wouldn’t it be more enjoyable if we each worked hard in our own places until then, and met again afterward?”
When Taesu subtly turned it into a question, Dr. Schmidt shook his head.
“You shouldn’t end it like that.”
“Pardon?”
“If you’re going to say it, you should bring it to a proper finish. Try again.”
Dr. Schmidt’s face was filled with a warm smile as he urged him once more.
It seemed he liked Taesu’s answer.
So Taesu polished it up neatly and said,
“Work hard, and play hard.”
“That’s the correct answer.”
“Then I’ll hurry back and fly all over the place again. I’ll make plenty of heroic tales, so you’ll have to buy me drinks.”
“I’ll rent out an entire bar. Will that do?”
When Dr. Schmidt responded just as boldly, Taesu smiled brightly and answered with vigor.
“Yes.”
“Then…”
“We’ll be leaving right away this time, too. I’m off.”
Taesu called out briskly in a voice full of energy and left the large medical tent.
Regret?
He had forgotten it.
He was already excited for the moment in the future when they would meet again with even greater joy.
That was the life of the doctors who had chosen the NGO.
For now, Taesu was one of them as well.
Afternoon.
A transport vehicle arrived at the NGO camp.
Screech.
Patient transfer came first.
The patients Taesu had given emergency treatment to were first.
“Let’s go.”
Happy to have returned to NGO headquarters with them, Taesu volunteered to take the lead.
The time spent guiding the patients to their assigned ward tents lasted even longer than the travel time.
The three of them arrived in front of James’s clinic tent.
Since it was winter, the medical tents had changed appearance, now reinforced with thick insulation.
Taesu gazed at them sidelong and spoke in a voice tinged with emotion.
“It’s been a while.”
“Quit acting sentimental and let’s go in.”
Flap.
Kim Hyeokgwon entered as confidently as if it were his own home.
Shaking his head, Taesu followed him inside, and someone was there to greet them.
It was Dr. Ozma.
“Hey, rumors are already everywhere that yesterday’s dispatch was a success.”
Tap, tap.
A handshake was a given.
As Taesu exchanged greetings, he also asked about James.
“Is Dr. James in surgery?”
“That’s right. It’s the polyp patient who was admitted a few days ago. The polypectomy started thirty minutes ago.”
“A polyp?”
Taesu tilted his head.
At that moment, the smile vanished from Dr. Ozma’s face.
“Dr. Choi, who used to know every admitted patient inside and out, doesn’t know that patient?”
“It’s been almost a month since I came back here.”
“Ah, right. You were undergoing rappelling training all this time. Look at me.”
Tap, tap.
Dr. Ozma even lightly tapped the side of his head with an awkward expression.
Taesu grumbled with a slightly hurt look.
“No matter how busy you were, how could you forget that?”
“It feels like Dr. Choi is always here with us.”
“Well, ahem.”
It wasn’t something he disliked hearing, so Taesu subtly turned his gaze to the side.
Dr. Ozma smiled gently and added,
“It’s a patient with a polyp about five centimeters in diameter found in the enteric tract, the small intestine.”
The moment those words ended—
Whoosh.
Taesu quickly turned his head in surprise and asked,
“Five centimeters? Then…”
“We’ll have to do a biopsy to know for sure, but there’s a considerable possibility that it’s cancer.”
“That’s true, but isn’t the surgery the more immediate problem?”
“For now, we’re prepared for massive bleeding. They even prepared thirty transfusion packs.”
Thirty blood packs was roughly twelve liters.
It was an enormous amount, enough to replace the blood in an adult man’s body twice over.
That was why Taesu couldn’t stop being shocked.
“That’s incredible.”
“Everyone’s been on edge for days preparing for it.”
“Whew. Just imagining it makes me dizzy.”
Taesu was deeply sympathetic.
At least here, because it was the NGO, they could gather blood packs.
But thinking back to when he worked at Dongseong Medical Center, it would have been impossible.
Back then, Taesu had been the youngest resident.
His biggest task for every surgery had been going around to secure the necessary blood.
The smaller the hospital, the fewer blood packs they had to spare.
It was only natural for the departments to wage subtle battles with one another.
They had to cling desperately to even a single blood pack.
Perhaps that was why he was still sensitive about transfusions even now.
The dizziness lingered on Taesu’s face.
Misunderstanding that, Dr. Ozma reassured him calmly.
“The results of the surgical simulation weren’t bad either, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
“I’m not worried. The operating surgeon is the world’s greatest surgeon.”
“Your expression and your words don’t match at all.”
“It’s just that the surgical process won’t be easy.”
Dr. Ozma agreed with Taesu’s answer.
“That’s true. That’s why I’m standing by here right now.”
“I see.”
“More importantly, Dr. James said that when Dr. Choi arrives, I should send you to the NGO headquarters office.”
It seemed Dr. Ozma wasn’t waiting solely because of the surgery.
Taesu asked with a puzzled expression,
“The headquarters office?”
“Yes. He said not to wander off anywhere else and to make sure you go there first, so do that.”
“Understood.”
When Taesu answered, Dr. Ozma added,
“He said the surgery would probably be over by evening, and that you should have dinner together.”
“It must be a difficult surgery. Ah, of course, I’m not doubting Dr. James’s skill.”
“Who would misunderstand it that way? It’s just that surgery doesn’t always go the way we want, so you’re worried.”
Dr. Ozma did not deny that he felt the same way.
Taesu’s expression had also turned bitter before he knew it.
“Exactly.”
“Still, since it’s what Dr. James said, keep it in mind.”
“Keep it in mind? It’s unconditional.”
The conversation between the two of them was gradually coming to an end.
Perhaps his body had warmed up enough, because Kim Hyeokgwon slipped into a gap in the conversation.
“If you’re going to keep talking, why don’t you just sit down?”
“We’re done.”
“That’s how it looks to me, too.”
Kim Hyeokgwon agreed with a confident expression.
Behind him, Jeong Minsu waved his hand broadly.
Whoosh, whoosh.
He was emphasizing that the remark had nothing to do with him.
At the sight of them, Dr. Ozma smiled and said,
“If I keep holding you back any longer, I’ll be in trouble.”
“We just came back after a long time, so we’re missing something called a bed.”
“I know exactly how that feels. Go on. Mr. Kim, it really is over now.”
Dr. Ozma deliberately informed him.
Kim Hyeokgwon answered with an expression that said it was only natural.
“Thanks for welcoming us. We’ll excuse ourselves first.”
“Dr. Ozma, I’ll be going as well.”
The two of them gave clean farewells and left.
When Taesu remained standing still, Dr. Ozma asked,
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Ah, no. Then I’ll see you again.”
Just as Taesu was about to hurry and say goodbye—
Dr. Ozma’s question came first.
“Is it because of Brad, by any chance?”
“That… How did you know?”
“Heh. Dr. Choi, when you’re off guard, your expression shows plainly on your face.”
“Is that so?”
Taesu rubbed his bare face and smiled awkwardly.
Dr. Ozma smiled softly and added an explanation.
“Anyone who saw your expression right now would probably notice.”
“I didn’t know I was that obvious.”
“More than that, it was just a guess that since Brad went out on dispatch, the two of you must have talked.”
At Dr. Ozma’s guess, Taesu realized his mistake.
There was nothing good about such words being exchanged in the current situation, so he quickly tried to smooth it over.
“The truth is…”
“You don’t need to go out of your way to make excuses.”
“It’s not an excuse.”
“From Brad’s point of view, it’s only natural that he’d feel frustrated and wonder if he could get some kind of source.”
What Dr. Ozma had guessed was in a completely different direction.
Even so, it was still the same in that Brad Kim could be misunderstood.
Taesu took that part upon himself.
“I was the one who asked Brad first.”
“Really?”
“I asked him incredibly persistently until he told me. We even linked pinkies and promised it was a secret.”
Taesu subtly emphasized that it was a secret.
On the other hand, there was no great change in Dr. Ozma’s expression.
“Are you worried I’ll make an issue out of that?”
“I’m saying we should avoid misunderstandings.”
“Let’s say that’s the case. What are you curious about?”
Dr. Ozma urged him in an easygoing manner.
If one considered the meaning behind those words, they implied that the conversation they had here would be kept confidential.
Taesu clearly noticed that, but he still wanted to make sure one more time.