“Oh, the doctor has arrived.”
“Have you been uncomfortable in any way?”

“Yes, Doctor. Ah, just a moment, please.”
Miran hastily said her farewells to Eun Jae, asking Hye Ji for understanding.

[Are they doing rounds? Anyway, I’ll go during lunch.] “You’re coming at lunchtime?”
[Yeah. Mom, don’t eat the hospital food and wait. I’ll bring something tasty.] “No, what. Alright, let’s hang up. See you later.”
Miran, who hung up the phone in a hurry, gave an awkward smile.

“I’m sorry, you must be busy. She’s my only daughter, so she’s a bit spoilt.”
“Not at all. Your daughter is really beautiful. I happened to meet her the other day and exchanged greetings.”
“Ah, is that so?”
Hye Ji, who was subtly smiling, flipped through Miran’s chart and spoke.

“The results of your lung function test from the last time came out. Your FCV (forced vital capacity) ratio was 42.3% last time, and fortunately, the number did not decrease any further. Even though it’s difficult, you need to keep doing your rehabilitation exercises. Even though it might be hard at first, if you gradually increase your exercise, you will get better.”
“Thank you. Ah, doctor, it’s not much, but please have this.”
Miran, who picked up the orange juice that had been on the bedside table and placed it in Hye Ji’s hand, smiled brightly.

Hye Ji, smiling brightly, accepted the orange juice that Miran offered.

“Thank you. I will drink it well.”
“Yes, Doctor, thank you always.”
“No need for thanks.”
The moment she closed the door to Miran’s hospital room, the smile that had been on her face quickly faded.

Hye Ji, who had been staring at the orange juice in her hand for quite a while, threw the bottle into the trash can in front of her.

As lunchtime approached, Sun Woo, whose clinic hours had ended a little earlier, was stretching and loosening up his body. A call came from Eun Jeong.

[I’m on my way from visiting Dad and Eun Jae’s mom.]

It was because they couldn’t arrange a formal meeting with Eun Jae’s mother, who had difficulty moving. Still, Sun Woo thought it was only polite to at least greet them before bringing Eun Jae home, so he asked Eun Jeong to do so.

“Why, you should have stopped by.”
[No, you were in the middle of seeing patients, and we can see each other again later.] “You’ve worked hard.”
[Hey, Sun Woo.] Eun Jeong, who seemed to hesitate, cut off her speech and opened her mouth again.

[Eun Jae’s mother… she didn’t look too well, is she okay?] Eun Jeong’s voice was full of worry. It seemed that even to a layperson with no medical knowledge, her complexion didn’t look good. Sun Woo sighed briefly and answered.

“She’s suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Her lung function has dropped below 50 percent. The situation isn’t very good.”
There was a moment of silence. Although there was no sound, it seemed like Eun Jeong’s sigh was reaching him.

[Does Eun Jae know?] “Just that it’s not good.”
The rate of decline in lung function was remarkably fast, and they were even considering lung transplantation in the worst case. They had already placed her on the waiting list just in case.

[Eun Jae is her guardian, she should know.] “I’m also a guardian. This is my field. She could get better…”
Sun Woo stopped himself from speaking.

The words that she could get better…

Isn’t it a part that can’t be guaranteed in reality?

[That’s not like you, Sun Woo.] Because of his distinctive straightforward and brusque way of speaking, Sun Woo often had trouble with patients.

Before receiving surgery consent, he always had to explain the worstcase scenario to the patients, and it was not a part that could be sugarcoated.

Contrary to his troubled face, Sun Woo smirked and ruffled his hair.

“You’re right.”

I didn’t even know why I was acting like this.

I just wanted to see Ji Eun Jae smiling, that’s all.

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