Chapter 41
It was the third night.
Past eleven.
Eunchae sat in front of her laptop as usual.
Tonight, for the first time, she had actually left a comment.
She had written and deleted it nearly thirty times before finally managing to post three lines.
[Comment] SaessakMom: I go to this clinic too, and the director is really thorough. Don't let weird rumors sway you.
Eunchae reread her own nickname in the comment section several times.
After three years of doing nothing but lurking, she had finally posted something.
Her heart strangely fluttered.
Her abdomen felt tight.
It had been happening often over the past few days.
Come to think of it, it had taken more than twenty minutes to count the baby's movements earlier.
Eunchae remembered the words written on the back page of her notebook.
[If counting takes much longer than usual, call me whether it's daytime or dawn.]
Eunchae picked up her phone, then put it back down.
It was already past eleven.
Could she really call someone who answered patients until dawn just because the baby's movements felt a little sluggish?
It took forty minutes on the first day.
Compared to that, twenty minutes isn't even long.
And the baby was moving well this morning.
Saessak must have fallen asleep early.
She also remembered reading somewhere on a pregnancy café that abdominal tightening became more frequent as the due date approached.
She would count again tomorrow morning.
If the movements were still slow, she would call then.
Having made up her mind, Eunchae kept watching the screen.
She watched new replies appear one by one before finally closing her laptop when her bladder began to feel heavy.
As she stood up, her lower abdomen tightened again.
It was the same sensation that had become more frequent lately.
She turned on the bathroom light.
Just as she was about to leave, she noticed something.
The space between her legs felt wet.
Thinking little of it, Eunchae looked down at her underwear.
Then she stopped breathing.
Red.
Not just a spot.
Dark red blood had soaked across the sanitary pad.
Her mind went completely blank.
Her heartbeat thundered so loudly it felt as though it were pounding beside her ears.
The trembling began at her fingertips and spread through both arms.
No.
No, no. This can't be happening.
She had felt the baby move that morning.
Everything had been normal yesterday.
Nothing had been wrong.
She had been smiling while posting comments just moments ago.
"Jihoon!"
Her voice cracked.
Even though it was her own voice, it sounded unfamiliar.
Her hand gripping the bathroom door had no strength.
Jihoon, who had been watching television in the living room, came running.
"What? What happened?"
His face turned white instantly.
Eunchae could not answer.
She simply stood there looking down at her underwear.
Her legs shook so badly she nearly collapsed where she stood.
"I'm... I'm bleeding."
Only after saying the words did reality finally hit her.
Calling it fear was not enough.
They had waited eight years for this child.
The third IVF attempt.
The first successful implantation.
The first heartbeat.
Every moment flashed through her mind.
No.
Not now.
There are still two weeks until the scheduled surgery.
With trembling legs, Eunchae walked to the bedroom and opened the drawer.
Her hands shook so badly she could not even open the zipper bag properly.
After two or three tries, she finally managed to pull out the envelope.
Gain's last words replayed in her mind.
If you see blood, even one drop, call 119. Day or night.
"Call 119. I'll call the director."
As Jihoon rushed toward the phone, Eunchae hugged the envelope tightly against her chest.
Right now, it felt like the only lifeline she had.
Gain answered after only two rings.
"Ma'am, has the bleeding started?"
"Yes. Just now. My underwear is soaked."
"Lie down right now. Keep your legs comfortable. Does your abdomen feel like it's tightening?"
"A little. It has been since earlier."
"When the paramedics arrive, tell them clearly that you have complete placenta previa. Use those exact words."
Gain paused briefly to think.
"The main hospital emergency room is about forty minutes from you, so in this situation you need to go somewhere closer."
Then she said firmly,
"Go to Hanguk University Second Campus Hospital. I'll call them right now too."
The call ended.
Eunchae grabbed Jihoon's hand.
At the training-center dormitory, Gain immediately dialed another number after hanging up.
It was the direct line to the emergency room at Hanguk University Second Campus Hospital.
"This is Im Gain from Hyundai OB-GYN Clinic in Somang City. I have a patient being transported to you by 119 right now."
Gain continued without hesitation.
"Thirty-four weeks pregnant. Complete placenta previa. Vaginal bleeding has started. She's carrying a copy of my referral letter. No vaginal examination. Prepare the operating room immediately upon arrival."
"Yes, yes. We've received the handoff. We'll page the OB-GYN resident on duty."
The resident's voice was businesslike.
Gain ended the call and looked out the window.
There were no stars in Seoul's night sky.
When I checked at thirty-two weeks, the placenta completely covered the internal os.
She calculated the timing in her head.
Twenty minutes for the ambulance to arrive at the hospital.
Ten minutes for registration and ultrasound.
If the operating room was opened ahead of time, the baby could be delivered within thirty minutes.
That would be safe for both mother and baby.
But there was one condition.
If they prepare the operating room ahead of time.
Gain sat on the edge of the bed, still holding her phone.
She had done everything she could from here.
She had given Eunchae the referral letter.
She had called ahead.
She had left her phone number.
"Haah..."
Gain checked the amount of divine power in her spring.
About half a small soy-sauce dish.
If she had been beside Eunchae, perhaps she could have used a drop to temporarily calm the area where the placenta was separating.
But divine power could only flow through something her hands could reach.
