CHAPTER 3
There’s a hospital in a place like this?
Seyeon slowly looked around.
The modern building standing alone among a handful of similarly sized shops reminded her of someone.
Attached to one side of the hospital building was a pharmacy with a sign that read “Seoul Pharmacy.”
In Seoul, hospitals and pharmacies like these were everywhere, but seeing one here made her strangely happy.
Staring at it with curiosity, Seyeon followed the two elderly people toward Seoul Clinic.
Perhaps because she had been tense for several days, she had been feeling slightly feverish.
Since she had already come all the way here, she decided she might as well get checked out before heading back.
“You’re the young lady who moved into the house where Grandma Seungho used to live, right? I heard you came down from Seoul for work.”
“Yes, hello.”
An old man she met on the way to the clinic greeted her warmly.
He wasn’t the only one.
For a while now, the gazes of everyone around her had been following her like magnets.
Seyeon felt as though she had become the star of some reality show.
It was as if multiple cameras were pointed at her.
“Did you come to Seoul Clinic to get sweet potatoes too, miss?”
Why would anyone go to a hospital to get sweet potatoes?
“No, I’m here to see the doctor.”
“Then did you get one of these? Without it, you’ll have to wait a long time.”
The old man pulled a pager out of his pocket.
It was the same type of pager that the corn-selling grandmother had been carrying earlier.
When Seyeon shook her head, the old man looked disappointed.
The first thing she saw after opening the outer glass door of Seoul Clinic was a long, elegant sink stretching along one wall.
She noticed patients beside her washing their hands with hand soap before entering through the inner door.
“You have to wash your hands thoroughly here before going in.”
“The director and the nurses are extremely strict about that.”
“If you spread a virus to someone else, you’ll become a traitor—a traitor.”
“Director Lee is the only doctor around here, so you’d better listen to him.”
As she listened to the old man’s explanation, an empty spot opened up at the sink.
Just as Seyeon absentmindedly reached for the hand soap, she froze when she saw the brand name.
“The scent is so nice and subtle.”
“Using it even makes you feel better.”
The hand soap that the old man pumped into his palm was a luxury product sold exclusively in department stores.
It was the kind of expensive gift people exchanged during holidays.
That wasn’t the only unusual thing.
One wall was lined with KF94 disposable masks in various sizes.
The individually packaged masks usually cost two or three thousand won apiece at pharmacies in Seoul.
As Seyeon stared at them in confusion, the old man kindly explained.
“If you’re coughing, the director says you have to wear a mask so you don’t spread your cold to other people.”
“Oh, right, but those aren’t free.”
“They cost one hundred won each.”
“You’ll have to pay the nurse later.”
Since she had been feeling under the weather, Seyeon took one of the masks from the display.
A mask of this quality for only one hundred won?
Unable to understand it, she stared blankly at the mask in her hand when the old man leaned over and whispered.
“The director pays the rest of the cost himself.”
“So only take one if you really need it.”
“If you take two, that makes you a traitor too.”
“You should remember that.”
Was washing your hands and wearing a mask really important enough for people to call someone a traitor?
Nodding, Seyeon put on the mask and walked through the inner door.
The spacious waiting room was crowded with people.
The monitor displaying the waiting list was packed with names.
The corn-selling grandmother was nowhere to be seen, probably because she had already gone into the examination room.
“Anyone who wants sweet potatoes, please take as many as you need from the waiting room on the left!”
A nurse stood up at the reception desk and shouted.
Turning her head, Seyeon saw several people filling black bags with sweet potatoes in the room separated by glass doors.
It seemed to be some kind of free giveaway.
“…”
In another corner, three full-body massage chairs were busily running.
The capsule-shaped chairs looked exactly like the one Chairman Myung, Seyeon’s grandfather, used at home.
Because of that, Seyeon roughly knew how much they cost.
The three chairs together had to be worth at least one hundred million won.
Is he running a hospital just so he can spend money?
At this point, she was desperately curious about the identity of the clinic director.
Seyeon walked over to the reception desk and wrote her name and resident registration number in the notebook.
After briefly explaining her symptoms, she accepted a pager from the nurse and sat down on one of the sofas in the waiting room.
The eyes following her did not change, even inside the hospital.
Pretending not to notice, Seyeon kept her gaze fixed on her phone as she waited for her turn.
Ever since arriving in Cheonghae-ri, she had unintentionally been experiencing life as a celebrity.
“Ms. Myung Seyeon, please come into the examination room.”
When her name was finally called, Seyeon stood up.
She casually grabbed the doorknob and stepped inside, only to freeze and spin around in shock.
Cold sweat ran down her back at the unexpected encounter.
Director Lee was him?
“Ms. Myung Seyeon.”
The doctor called her name from behind.
For a moment, she considered simply leaving, but after remembering that this was the only hospital nearby, she let out a sigh and sat down in the patient’s chair.
The doctor, who had been staring at his monitor, finally turned to look at her.
Before her eyes could meet those of the rude man from across the street, Seyeon quickly lowered her gaze.
“What brings you here today, Ms. Myung Seyeon?”
Without the slightest change in expression, the man asked in an emotionless voice.
Doesn’t he recognize me because I’m wearing a mask?
If that’s the case, then that’s a relief.
“Ms. Myung Seyeon.”
Only after hearing her name a second time did Seyeon raise her head.
“…I think I’m coming down with something.”
Get a grip.
The rude man from across the street is the only doctor in the only hospital in Cheonghae-ri.
“When did it start?”
“About two days ago.”
“You don’t have a fever.”
“Let’s take a look.”
“Take off your coat and turn around.”
After checking her temperature, Yujin gestured for her to turn around.
Seyeon took off her thick hoodie and held it in her hands before turning her back to him.
The cold stethoscope touched several places on her back.
“Turn back around.”
This time, he pressed the stethoscope lightly against her upper chest.
It was nothing more than a medical examination, yet she found herself strangely tense.
“Your breathing sounds fine.”
“How’s your throat?”
“Any coughing?”
Yujin asked as he removed the stethoscope from his ears.
“I haven’t started coughing yet, but my throat stings a little.”
“Take off your mask and open your mouth for a moment.”
Seyeon gave up and removed her mask.
She expected him to say something immediately, but surprisingly, he remained silent.
When Seyeon opened her mouth and said, “Ah,” he gently pressed down her tongue with a tongue depressor and examined her throat.
Watching him with his eyes lowered, she suddenly felt her throat go dry.
“Your right tonsil is a little swollen.”
“It’s not serious, so I don’t think you’ll need antibiotics yet.”
“I’ll prescribe three days’ worth of painkillers and anti-inflammatory medication, so drink plenty of water and don’t overexert yourself.”
Yujin spoke calmly as he typed on the keyboard.
Seyeon nodded, picked up her coat, and hurriedly started toward the door when his voice stopped her.
“By the way, what does your father do for a living, Ms. Myung Seyeon?”
“Why are you asking that?”
Why is a doctor asking about my father’s job?
Completely bewildered, Seyeon simply blinked.
“You definitely look like someone who grew up comfortably.”
“But you don’t seem like a daughter who was truly cherished.”
A look of contempt soon landed on her.
Only then did Seyeon realize that he had recognized her all along and had merely pretended otherwise.
Whether he intended to or not, his words struck exactly where it hurt.
“…This is the only hospital in town.”
After a brief silence, Seyeon finally spoke.
“So?”
“It means I’m willing to overlook your rudeness this one time.”
Half turning his chair toward her, Yujin tilted his head.
“And if you don’t?”
“I’m sure there’s at least one thing in your life that hurts when someone pokes at it.”
He let out a mocking laugh.
“Medicine is for pharmacists, and troublemakers should be dealt with by troublemakers.”
“What does that even mean?”
“You can ask outside.”
After muttering those cryptic words, he immediately put on a cold expression and made it clear that the conversation was over.
Holding together her shaken emotions, Seyeon stepped out of the examination room.
The small-town hostility she had never seen or heard of before left her completely dizzy.
