Doctor Choi Daeho - Chapter 53
Seo Juran thought she had gotten a decent grasp of Daeho's personality by now, so she stubbornly held onto the phone.
"I'll try to convince them. No, it's fine. I've got this."
"Seo Juran."
Daeho called her full name in a voice so cold it seemed to drip with ice.
Seo Juran had already experienced the force behind that tone before.
She couldn't resist.
Her hands trembled.
"H-Here."
She carefully held out the phone, and Daeho immediately snatched the receiver from her hand.
Then he slowly raised it to his ear.
...
In that brief moment, everyone watching unconsciously swallowed.
Please, just handle this nicely.
Don't get into another fight.
They begged inwardly.
Then Daeho finally spoke into the receiver.
"Ah, you must be having a hard time working this late at night. Nice to meet you. This is Richard Choi from the emergency room."
His voice came out gentle and warm.
For a moment, Seo Juran and Nurse Lee Suyeon, who had been bracing themselves for disaster, stared at him blankly.
"Huh?"
"What?"
The person on the other end couldn't see their shock and introduced herself in a somewhat blunt voice.
"This is Oh Hyeonjeong from the operating room."
"Nurse Oh, is there some kind of problem?"
"No, we did hear about it from Dr. Hong. But that only applies to emergency general surgery. Neurosurgery is..."
"You're saying it's difficult?"
When Daeho calmly summarized the situation, Nurse Oh Hyeonjeong responded with a hint of regret.
"I'd like to open the OR for you too, but under our hospital regulations, it's difficult to open an operating room for surgery led by a resident."
"The patient's pneumocephalus is already quite advanced."
"I'm sorry to say this, but we don't really know the details of that condition over here. Just a moment, please."
Oh Hyeonjeong hurriedly asked him to wait.
Daeho didn't even frown.
"Take your time."
After saying that, he quickly moved elsewhere.
Seo Juran stared blankly after him.
"Where is he going?"
"No idea."
Nurse Lee Suyeon looked just as confused.
A short while later, Daeho returned and even had the leisure to flip through a chart.
Rustle. Rustle.
"Hm. This part needs to be corrected."
He took a pen, crossed out part of the paper chart, and revised it.
Seo Juran and Nurse Lee Suyeon stared at his calm behavior in disbelief.
"Senior Richard."
"Dr. Richard."
They glanced at each other, almost wondering if this was really the same person.
Then Oh Hyeonjeong's confused voice came through the receiver.
"Oh... Come up. We'll open it right away."
"Thank you. I appreciate it."
Daeho answered smoothly and lowered the receiver.
Click.
The instant he hung up, Seo Juran and Nurse Lee Suyeon both rushed to ask him.
"What do you mean, 'I appreciate it'? They're opening the OR?"
"They really said they'd open the operating room?"
Neither of them looked like they could believe it.
Daeho pointed to one side with a faint smile.
"What are you doing, Dr. Seo? Explain things to the guardian and move the patient to the OR."
"Ah, yes. But..."
"Do you have time to waste?"
His gaze turned fierce in an instant.
If anyone delayed even for a moment, his temper immediately flared.
Seo Juran screamed inwardly.
That's the real you! That's your true personality!
She genuinely wanted to shout it at the top of her lungs.
That was when a doctor came running toward the nurses' station from the back of the emergency room.
Tap, tap, tap!
The doctor looked around Daeho's age and had a solid, sturdy build.
Nurse Lee Suyeon recognized him immediately.
"Chief Kang Dongyeon from Neurosurgery?"
Apparently, she was right.
Kang Dongyeon urgently asked her,
"Nurse Lee, who here is Richard?"
"What? Uh..."
Nurse Lee Suyeon quickly pointed at Daeho.
Daeho was already holding out his hand in greeting.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Richard Choi."
"Hoo... Hoo... Damn, I'm out of breath. We just talked on the phone. Let's drop the formalities. I'm Kang Dongyeon."
Tap.
Still catching his breath, Kang Dongyeon lightly slapped Daeho's outstretched hand instead of shaking it.
It wasn't exactly a rejection.
It simply showed his straightforward personality.
Daeho smiled lightly.
"Looks like things worked out."
"You really think you can stabilize an emergency case of pneumocephalus?"
"You asked me that on the phone too. Did you really have to run all the way here just to confirm it again?"
Kang Dongyeon stared at him, somewhat dumbfounded.
"That's... whatever. We'll talk later. I came to move the patient."
"You came yourself?"
"Damn it, I was too embarrassed not to. Where's the patient?"
"Hm. Dr. Seo."
Daeho called out to her.
Seo Juran stepped forward, hiding her surprise.
"Senior Kang, this way!"
"Good. Let's go!"
Tap, tap, tap!
Seo Juran ran ahead, and Kang Dongyeon followed closely behind.
Daeho watched Kang Dongyeon for a moment with curious eyes.
"So it's not like there aren't any real doctors here."
As soon as he muttered that, Nurse Lee Suyeon hurriedly asked,
"Dr. Richard, what exactly happened?"
"I contacted NS. I told them we had a pneumocephalus patient who needed emergency surgery."
"And then?"
"Dr. Kang asked me what pneumocephalus was. To be fair, it isn't a common condition."
Daeho explained it as if it were nothing.
Only then did Nurse Lee Suyeon understand Kang Dongyeon's reaction.
"So that's why he said he was embarrassed. And then?"
"The call ended for a moment, and then an attending specialist called me directly. Lee Seokhyeon? Something like that."
Nurse Lee Suyeon corrected him.
"Professor Lee Seonghyeon from Neurosurgery?"
"Ah, yes. Lee Seonghyeon. That's right."
"He called you personally?"
"Yes. He said he'd come in shortly and asked me to keep the patient stable until then. Now, if you'll excuse me."
Daeho answered calmly and turned away.
At that exact moment, the patient's bed was being moved through the back door of the emergency room.
Rattle!
"Emergency! Please move!"
"Ugh!"
Kang Dongyeon and Seo Juran were pushing hard while shouting at people to clear the way.
Daeho quickly joined them.
"Move aside! Make way!"
Rattle, rattle.
The bed disappeared from the emergency room at tremendous speed.
Nurse Lee Suyeon was still standing there with a confused expression.
"What in the world is going on?"
Until now, Daeho's usual pattern had been to act first and deal with the consequences later.
But this time, he had handled everything in an incredibly systematic way.
His sudden one-hundred-and-eighty-degree change left Nurse Lee Suyeon completely shaken.
A short while later.
The door to Operating Room 2 opened.
Grind.
Daeho entered through the door with both hands raised.
"..."
His lips were pressed tightly together beneath his mask as he carefully looked around the operating room.
Jo Hyeri was lying on the operating table, her long hair spread out beneath her.
Beside her, the anesthesiologist on duty was preparing.
Beep. Click, click.
The ECG monitor, general anesthesia machine, and various other surgical devices were being tested.
A nurse holding out a surgical gown approached Daeho.
Her eyes were unfamiliar.
When their gazes met, she introduced herself first.
"I'm Oh Hyeonjeong. We spoke on the phone earlier."
"I'm Richard Choi. I look forward to working with you."
"I should be saying that. I was shocked when the NS resident suddenly came running in. Anyway, give me your hands first."
"Of course."
Daeho slipped both arms into the surgical gown and continued preparing for surgery.
Meanwhile, Seo Juran approached the operating table with electric clippers in hand.
She looked at Jo Hyeri's thick, long hair with regret.
"It must've taken so much effort to grow it this long."
Kang Dongyeon frowned.
"Hair grows back."
"That's because you've never grown yours out. Do you know how much effort it takes to get hair this long?"
"Is that really something to say in front of a patient about to undergo emergency surgery?"
Kang Dongyeon glared at her with narrowed eyes.
In the middle of their bickering, Jo Hyeri's slurred voice came through.
"Doct... or... I'm okay..."
Seo Juran immediately stiffened.
"Oh. I'm sorry. I made you worry about something unnecessary."
"It's... okay..."
Jo Hyeri's pronunciation was becoming more blurred, and her voice was growing weaker.
It was evidence that the pneumocephalus was getting worse.
Her condition was changing in real time.
She truly was an emergency patient who needed surgery immediately.
Reminded of that fact once again, Seo Juran gripped the clippers with determination.
"I'll make it look pretty. Even with a cap on, you'll look really stylish."
"Hey, Dr. Seo. What are you..."
Kang Dongyeon called out in disbelief.
But Jo Hyeri herself managed to draw a faint smile onto her stiffening face.
"Then... please..."
"Yes. I'll make it look nice."
Bzzzz.
With determination in her voice, Seo Juran turned on the clippers.
"..."
Jo Hyeri had already closed her eyes.
Without shedding a single tear, she quietly accepted what was happening.
That was when Daeho, now fully prepared for surgery, approached them.
And he sincerely praised Seo Juran.
"Dr. Seo. Great. Perfect."
He was praising her for calming the patient and preventing unnecessary emotional shock before it could happen.
Kang Dongyeon, however, didn't seem to understand that.
He immediately challenged Daeho.
"We already wasted this much time, and you're saying she did well?"
"Dr. Kang. If you're not going to help, how about stepping back?"
"I'm here because I am going to help."
Kang Dongyeon showed both goodwill and determination to remain because this was an emergency neurosurgical operation.
Daeho coldly snapped at him.
"Then stop complaining and help."
"Richard, what are you..."
Kang Dongyeon's expression twitched with irritation.
But Daeho had already turned away from him and addressed Jo Hyeri.
"The emergency surgery should take about two hours at most. Including the anesthesia time, you'll probably wake up in the morning."
"Doct... or... I'll be okay...?"
"Of course. You'll definitely be fine. Can't you tell from how carefully Dr. Seo is cutting your hair? When you look in the mirror tomorrow morning, you'll understand what I mean."
Daeho spoke calmly and gently, offering reassurance.
Thanks to him, the tense smile on Jo Hyeri's face softened a little.
Her eyelids slowly lowered.
"Then... I'm counting on you..."
"Yes. I'll do my best. We're going to start putting you to sleep now."
Daeho spoke warmly and held one hand out behind him.
Kang Dongyeon, who had been watching silently, suddenly flustered and moved in a hurry.
"Oh. Here."
He quickly handed over the breathing mask.
Daeho placed it over Jo Hyeri's mouth and raised his other hand.
A simple signal.
The anesthesiologist responded immediately, as if he had been waiting for it.
"We're starting sedation. Three, two, one... sleep."
"..."
Jo Hyeri's body relaxed.
As if being drawn in by the anesthesiologist's oddly distinctive voice, she quickly slipped into unconsciousness.
Soon, the anesthesiologist reported her condition.
"Blood pressure okay. Pulse okay. Anesthetic gas okay!"
Kang Dongyeon then checked the printout from the EEG.
His eyes filled with surprise.
"Huh? This waveform... Doctor, the patient is showing a sleep response."
The anesthesiologist looked at him strangely.
"Chief, what are you talking about? Of course she's asleep. We just put her under."
"No. I don't mean anesthetic sleep. The waveform looks like she's actually sleeping naturally."
Kang Dongyeon stared at the EEG in disbelief.
