Chapter 169: Getting Heated (2)

Yoo Jisang hurried towards the first underground floor. Although he was entering his third year as a resident doctor and might appear relaxed, that perception was outdated. The Internal Medicine department had been facing chronic staffing shortages since transitioning to a three-year residency program. Consequently, both Yoo Jisang and Suhyuk were still assigned primary physician duties despite their seniority.

“Am I walking too fast? Should I help you with support?” Despite the busy situation, Ji-sang showed concern for Suhyuk.

Normally, Suhyuk would have appreciated this gesture, but unfortunately, there was no such memory from before.

“You’re quite insincere. Suddenly being friendly just because you’re curious about something?”

Moreover, Suhyuk not only relied on his fading human memories but also possessed Baruda’s consistently clear data, which Baruda generously shared without hesitation.

I didn’t feel grateful as Baruda freely provided this type of data without hesitation.

“N-No. It’s okay. I am getting used to it now.” Suhyuk forced a smile and followed Ji-sang.

As he mentioned earlier, it wasn’t difficult. All he needed was his staff.

“Ooh. Today is boiled pork.”

“Really? That sounds good.”

Ji-sang hummed as they entered the employee cafeteria.

Suhyuk felt the same way. One might wonder why doctors would be so happy about boiled pork, but their salaries were similar to residents’. Moreover, there was hardly any time for them to eat outside. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they lived off hospital meals, making delicious menus a small pleasure in life.

“Ah…the auntie still serves your food separately?”

“Huh? Ah, yes. This…at first, I tried to bring it myself, but it was difficult. After spilling my meal while carrying it with one hand using my staff, I started asking for help.”

“Right…that’s good.”

Both Ji-sang and Suhyuk felt embarrassed by this situation. Despite being colleagues, they realized that this might be their first time properly eating together. They couldn’t even remember sitting close during team dinners.

‘Why is that?’

[During your first year, you were always surrounded by professors, and now as a senior, you’re often surrounded by junior residents.]

‘Ah…’

Suhyuk suddenly recalled that he usually sat with Shin Hyun-tae, Lee Hyunjong, or Taejin Jo at meals. He had thought it was great due to the attention from professors, but reflecting back, he wondered if his hospital life had been slightly lonely.

[“Aren’t you lonely without me?” ]

Of course, Baruda denied it.

Suhyuk easily ignored Baruda’s denial and asked,

“Hey, what was with that patient earlier?”

“Oh… Yes. I admitted her to the hospital.”

“To whom did you notify?”

“I initially categorized her as general admission.”

“You placed her under your care?”

“That… Ah, honestly, I’m not sure if we should just let her go…”

As a chief resident doctor, which meant he had reached his third year in Internal Medicine, Ji-sang had the authority to admit patients to the hospital. However, technically, he didn’t have the right to assign specific doctors. The best approach would be to notify someone beforehand or, if unable to do so, admit the patient first and report later. Despite having the capability, Ji-sang chose to admit the patient without prior notification.

There was no other interpretation than Ji-sang not wanting to admit his lack of knowledge.

“He has a strong ego?”

‘He wasn’t like this before.’

“If I teach him something, he might take credit for it.’

‘Let’s hear what you have to say first. There may be things I don’t know.’

“Would he really do that? Suhyuk might, but I…”

‘Ah, stop being noisy… Just listen.’

“Well, understood. I respect your decision.”

While Suhyuk and Baruda debated Ji-sang’s choices, Ji-sang continued speaking without any discomfort. Suhyuk had become proficient at conversing with Baruda, so Ji-sang felt entirely at ease during their discussions.

I was just thinking that he listens well to my words.

“I think it’s fine to send him home? However, I have this feeling… My heart is too uneasy. It feels like something bad will happen if we discharge him now.”

“Hmmm…”

“You might find it amusing, but this sensation is real.”

“No, no. You mentioned ‘feeling’, right?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.”

The term used for this ‘feeling’ could vary among hospitals - some call it intuition or gut instinct. Regardless, an internal medicine doctor’s ‘feeling’ should not be dismissed lightly. After all, there are legends passed down about doctors with exceptional instincts.

[Why do you place such high value on something unproven by data?] Baruda often grumbled about this.

According to Suhyuk, Baruda was just a superstition like a ‘knock on wood’. Suhyuk decided to ignore him as he didn’t want to argue with Baruda about this topic.

[Huh, you are ignoring me and what? You’re talking to someone whom you usually don’t bother with? Is this love?]

Baruda wasn’t easy to deal with, but Suhyuk wouldn’t be swayed by such idle chatter anymore.

“So how is it going? With your fever.”

“Uh… It has been around for about a week now.”

“A week?”

“Yes, a week?”

“Hmm, that’s long? Haven’t you received any treatment?”

“Nope. I got painkillers from a local clinic.”

Painkillers. One might wonder why they were taken despite no pain being present. In fact, painkillers could also help reduce fevers.

Most viral infections would resolve within a week if one rested properly. However, having a fever despite this was unusual.

“Is he old? Or does he have any pre-existing conditions?”

“No, he is 31 years old and doesn’t have any known diseases.”

“Hasn’t there been a diagnosis yet?”

“He receives regular health check-ups at his workplace. He mentioned that no warnings have ever appeared.”

“Hmm.”

The usefulness of these health check-ups seemed greater than I thought. If nothing showed up during the check-up, it could be taken as genuinely clear. Moreover, given his age of 31, even without the check-ups, suspecting him to be healthy would have been reasonable. In medicine, youth often held significant advantages.

“[He’s young, has no pre-existing conditions, yet experienced a persistent fever for a week.]”

At this point, Baruda must have found the case intriguing enough, as instead of making unrelated comments, he started summarizing the details.

[Possibility of infection or acute leukemia.]

‘Ah…acute leukemia…’

Non-specific fevers at a young age could sometimes indicate acute leukemia. It might seem unlikely, but Suhyuk had recently seen a similar patient with these symptoms.

Ji-sang’s expression hardened as if he also considered this possibility. “So I don’t think it’s leukemia…but they did some blood tests?”

“Blood tests? Really?”

“Yeah, just a simple CBC from a local clinic.”

“Oh…let me see.”

“Here.”

Suhyuk looked down at the paper swiftly handed to him by Ji-sang. The handwriting was atrocious, resembling chicken scratch.

Fortunately, the numbers were clear, making it easy to understand the values.

[WBC 3300, Hb 12.8, platelet 161,000. White blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets are all low.]

‘He has pancytopenia (decrease of all types of blood cells). However…these numbers aren’t that bad?’

[Still, the possibility of acute leukemia increases. I initially thought he was completely incompetent, but as a third-year resident, his assessment seems reasonable.]

Baruda re-entered the numbers and slightly revised his evaluation of Jisang. It appeared Baruda had initially held him in very low regard before this slight adjustment.

“How is it?”

“Indeed, there seems to be a need for work-up? Oh, you have a call.”

“Huh… It’s from Byung-dong.”

“Answer it. I’m fine.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

Ji-sang answered the phone and immediately spoke towards Suhyuk.

“It appears he has been hospitalized. If you aren’t busy…”

“You want me to go with him?”

“Yes.”

“Mm…” Suhyuk briefly recalled his schedule.

[All patients in the hospital rooms are stable.]

‘Research?’

[Well, data needs to accumulate. Besides, engineers will create them, right?]

‘What do you mean by “engineers”?’

[The creators of Baruda can be considered as gods.]

‘Those…’

How could this program have such strong narcissism? Suhyuk really wanted to see the faces of those involved in its development someday.

[Anyway, there is no special schedule.]

‘Got it.’

However, he couldn’t hate Baruda since it consistently provided useful information promptly. Consequently, Suhyuk confidently responded within a short period:

“Alright then? Let’s go now.”

“You finished eating?”

“Yeah.”

“Thank you. I’ll buy coffee.”

“Cool. Can I have cold brew?”

“Sure, thank you so much. Knowing you’re supporting me feels reassuring.” Ji-sang spoke genuinely, his face visibly brightening with relief - a change noticeable even to Baruda.

The change was so drastic that Baruda noticed it immediately.

[Isn’t this bastard annoying?]

‘He is still my colleague.’

[Anyway, he will join the army soon. After his service, he’ll be considered three years younger than you.]

‘Ah.’

Suhyuk had been cautious around Ji-sang because colleagues could cause trouble when vying for professorship positions. However, Suhyuk hadn’t considered the impact of military service.

Seeing Suhyuk’s flustered expression, Baruda burst out laughing. It sounded like laughter from someone familiar, although Suhyuk couldn’t place who exactly. Regardless, the laugh was irritating enough to make him want to punch whoever let out such a sound if they were present.

[Indeed, your heart remains pitch-black, Suhyuk. I’m glad some things never change.]

‘Pitch-black?’

[I wondered why you were being nice without expecting anything in return.]

‘Shut up… I’m going to check on the patient.’

Regardless of what happened, Suhyuk had committed to visiting the patient. Moreover, his curiosity had already been piqued.

Moreover, Suhyuk’s interest had already been piqued. While Ji-sang went to buy coffee on the ground floor, Suhyuk headed towards the hospital room.

“Is the patient who was just admitted here?” he asked a nurse with whom he was acquainted.

The nurse tilted her head, wondering why this man was asking about the patient.

“That… Yoo Jisang’s patient?”

“Oh, yes. That’s right. The new patient.”

“Hmm… Yes, I believe so. They were brought up just now.”

“Have they changed their clothes yet?”

“Ah… Let me check. Please wait a moment.”

“Yes, thank you.”

While the assigned nurse checked on the patient, Suhyuk sat at the computer and reviewed the medical chart. Although he had heard details from Ji-sang earlier, he wanted to ensure nothing was missed.

‘Hmm, the outpatient records… Here they are.’

[He hasn’t traveled abroad either. Your friend is quite thorough than I expected.]

‘Jisang is from Taehwa Hospital. If you work there for two years, whether you like it or not, you become meticulous.’

[I see…]

Suhyuk checked if there was any other information available. Unfortunately, that was all. The tests conducted at another hospital were indeed limited to CBC (Complete Blood Count). There wasn’t even a common chest X-ray taken. It seemed as though aside from questioning the patient further, there wasn’t much else he could do.

“Doctor, the patient has arrived now. We need to attend to them anyway.”

“Oh… Yes, thank you. May I ask a few questions first?”

“Yes, of course. Hopefully, you can diagnose them accurately with just one examination again. It’s convenient for both the patient and us.”

“I’ll do my best.”