A competent doctor can cure everything - Chapter 69

The item Kim Jin-ah handed me was an envelope.

On the front of the envelope, in crooked handwriting, it said, “To Doctor Seon-Joon.”

“It’s a letter I wrote myself. My hand movements are still a bit unsteady, so my handwriting is a mess…”

It was almost unreadable handwriting.

I could only imagine how difficult it must have been to write with her hands in that condition.

“Can I open it now?”

“Ah! It’s a bit embarrassing…”

Jin-ah shouted, so I stopped opening the envelope.

She then squeezed her eyes shut, as if making a big decision.

“Okay, you can read it now.”

Inside the envelope was a letter, also written in crooked handwriting, just like the outer envelope.

Each letter felt filled with sincere emotion.

I slowly etched the words into my memory.

“…”.

How boring life had been when she could only lie in bed.

How happy she was now, even though she was still clumsy, to be able to move on her own.

How grateful she was for being able to repair her relationship with her father.

At the end of the letter, there was a small transparent piece of tape with a light purple petal attached.

“This flower is…?”

“It’s the creeping rosemary you gave me. It bloomed just recently.”

“Really? In this season?”

“Yes! So, I had to send it home in advance.”

I realized I hadn’t seen the plant lately.

I was sure rosemary bloomed in the spring, though.

I tilted my head and murmured.

“Hmm. Maybe it’s because the hospital room is well air-conditioned?”

“No, it’s a miracle. I even had a prophetic dream.”

Jin-ah shook her head firmly, then asked.

“And Doctor, do you remember the meaning of rosemary’s flowers?”

“At the time… you said it meant ‘regeneration,’ right?”

“There’s another meaning. It means, ‘You revive me.'”

“…!”

“I think of you whenever I see rosemary from now on.”

For a moment, I was speechless.

“Thanks to you, I’ve been given a second chance at life. I’ll live my life to the fullest.”

A second life—such an extravagant expression.

It’s moments like these that keep me going, making me want to continue treating patients.

I smiled as I placed the letter back into the envelope.

“This is more precious to me than all my possessions. Thank you.”

However, there were two business cards inside the envelope.

One was from a flower shop, and the other was from an auto repair shop.

“Doctor, if you ever need anything, come here. I mean it, okay?”

The flower shop must be Jin-ah’s, and the auto repair shop must belong to her father.

“It seems like your guardian runs the repair shop?”

“Yes, it’s not far from here. Please come by sometime!”

I was grateful, but I had a feeling they’d insist on doing something for free again if I went.

For now, getting a coffee at the hospital café was more than enough.

If I kept accepting free things, I might end up with a bald spot.

So, I smiled politely and responded.

“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind.”

It seemed like the mention of the auto repair shop had caught the attention of Jin-ah’s father, who had been packing up.

He grabbed both of my hands excitedly, almost spitting as he spoke.

“Doctor. Thank you so much. You’ve saved our family. A doctor like you should be on TV. I even sent a tip about you to ‘TV Human Victory,’ so you’ll probably get a call from the station soon.”

“What? ‘TV Human Victory’?”

It must be a joke, right?

I blinked in surprise, but then even the caregiver joined in.

“I knew from the last patient, Kang Eun-jung, that there was no other doctor like you. Your skills are undeniable, but it’s your character that really sets you apart. From now on, I’m going to recommend you to all my patients. I’ve recommended professors before, but recommending an intern—this is the first time. Truly.”

“Haha…”

The loud praise was starting to draw attention in the hospital room.

I wished they’d stop.

To be honest, I had been tempted to take them up on the offer for a quick car check before the weekend, but…

‘I definitely can’t go to that repair shop. It would feel too much like a favor.’

I made up my mind to just go to the place I usually visited.

At that moment, I thought that was the right decision.

Little did I know that by the weekend, I’d be frantically searching for that business card.

Standing on the shoulder of the road in the early hours of Saturday—what a stupid sight.

I got out of the car and muttered a curse under my breath.

The KOVO Cup opening game is at 1:30 PM on Saturday.

‘I left early to check the players’ condition, but now look at this.’

I hadn’t been driving for long when I suddenly smelled something burning.

At first, I thought it was something burning outside, but the smell kept getting stronger.

Eventually, I saw smoke coming from the car hood and had to pull over to the shoulder in a panic.

‘This is the car I just had inspected last night—what the hell’s going on?’

A sharp pain started to throb in my head.

There probably weren’t any auto repair shops open at this hour.

If I waited too long, the traffic would build up, and I’d be late for the game.

‘Should I take a taxi to Suncheon? But then what do I do with the car?’

On top of that, having car trouble was affecting my mental state more than I expected.

It seemed like my past stressful experiences were still etched into my body.

My mind kept telling me to stay calm, that this was something I could fix.

But my body, as if struck by a natural disaster, began to escalate in panic, my heart rate rising as I slipped into emergency mode.

In reality… my breath became shallow, and my hands started to tremble.

‘Calm down, there’s no accident. It’s just a car problem.’

I muttered to myself like a mantra, but my mind couldn’t settle.

Then, I remembered the business card from Jin-ah’s father that I’d kept in my wallet.

Wasn’t the repair shop nearby?

Once the thought crossed my mind, I found myself almost hypnotically reaching for the contact number.

Normally, I would never do something like this—bothering a patient’s guardian at such an hour.

But in that moment, it felt like the only solution.

I pressed the call button with trembling hands.

When I held the phone to my ear, I heard the dial tone.

Trrr…

After a few more beeps, I started to regain some clarity.

‘What the hell am I doing, calling a patient’s guardian at dawn on the weekend? I’ve lost my mind.’

Just as I was about to hit the end button with regret, something happened…

“Hello? Who is this?”

“Good morning, it’s me…”

I was caught off guard since I hadn’t expected anyone to pick up the phone, so it took me a moment to respond.

But it seemed the guardian recognized me just by my voice.

“Oh my! Is this Dr. Lee Seon-Joon? A call at this hour, is something wrong?”

“Well…”

Since I had already dialed the number, I decided to just be honest and explain the situation.

I told him I had to travel a long distance.

“Huh, smoke coming from the hood sounds pretty serious. Stay right there, don’t move. Please send me your location via your phone.”

Jin-ah’s father shouted this and abruptly hung up the phone.

I sent him my coordinates and waited. Soon, a car arrived.

Jin-ah’s guardian got out from the driver’s seat.

“Doctor, get in this car. Quickly.”

“Huh?”

“I’ve got daily insurance coverage. I always keep the car well-maintained, so there shouldn’t be any issues even if you’re traveling far.”

“But…”

“I’ll take your car to the repair shop, just leave the keys and go.”

When I hesitated, Jin-ah’s guardian raised his voice.

“Didn’t you say you have something urgent? The roads to Seoul are going to get crowded soon.”

Hearing that, I suddenly snapped to attention.

“…Thank you. Then, I’ll take advantage of your kindness and ask for your help.”

“Kindness? Don’t mention it. For you, Doctor, you can call any time, 365 days, 24 hours.”

As I got in the car and started driving, I was still a bit dazed.

Who would have thought I’d be receiving help from Jin-ah’s father like this?

As we merged onto the highway, my mind slowly regained its composure.

The fact that I wouldn’t be late for the game was one thing.

“Actually, I was worried whether I’d even be able to drive to Suncheon in the condition I was in earlier.”

Unexpected help had warmed my heart.

It wasn’t just the car that was fixed, but I felt like I received energy beyond that.

Suddenly, I remembered Lee Haet-nim’s words: “It’s okay to ask for help sometimes.”

As I pressed the accelerator, I unknowingly smiled slightly.

The car ran smoothly, which made me feel that it had been well-maintained.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the same time that Lee Seon-Joon was heading to Suncheon after a series of twists and turns, there was a commotion at the Blue Whales’ gym.

“Alright, you all know how important today’s match is, right?”

“Yes!!”

“Don’t underestimate the opposing team just because they were 7th last year. That’s why we can’t afford to lose. The KOVO Cup is only a one-week tournament, so we won’t get a chance to make up for a loss.”

At a gym in Suncheon.

Head coach Han Mi-young gathered the Blue Whales, who were warming up on the court.

While the coach was giving a speech, the head Athletic Trainer (AT) rushed up to her.

“C-coach!”

“What’s going on?”

The head AT stood next to the starting setter, who was grimacing and holding the back of their neck.

Noticing the situation, Coach Han let out a sigh and touched her forehead.

The setter plays the role of tossing the ball to the attackers, and is often referred to as the “commander of the court.”

It’s such an important position that there’s a saying in volleyball: “If the setter isn’t good, the game is lost.”

“Coach, I’m sorry. I think I pulled a muscle in my neck. It hurts so much, I can’t move my neck.”

“A pulled muscle? Can’t we do anything to ease it?”

“I tried massaging my neck and shoulder muscles as best as I could, but it’s not helping.”

The head AT looked down, as though taking the blame for everything.

“…Ah. I guess we can’t avoid acupuncture after all. Has Dr. Lee Seon-Joon arrived yet? I think he could do something about this.”

“They said he’s on his way.”

“That’s strange, he’s usually on time… Well, for now, let’s have So Min (Soso) play as setter.”

At Coach Han’s words, the backup setter, So Min,’s eyes went wide with surprise.

“Wait? You want me to go in?”

“Yeah! Who else is going to do it? You’re the backup.”

“Th-that’s true…”

So-min, still in her early 20s, didn’t have much real-game experience.

She often envied the starting players, always saying that she wanted to play in a game too.

But she never imagined she would actually be put into the game today.

For a moment, her mind went blank and her heart began to race.

“What do I do…?! I can’t think of anything all of a sudden!”

Maybe Dr. Lee Seon-Joon would come and fix the starting setter before the game started?

She secretly hoped for that.

However, for some reason, the team doctor didn’t show up until just before the game.

“So-so~! Stop looking like that! Are you going to the court to die or what?”

“You’re always so cheerful, but what’s up with you now? I think we need to change your name to So-Shy!”

Even though her teammates teased her, So Min’s nerves didn’t ease.

Eventually, time passed and it was time for the game to start. The player entrance ceremony was approaching.

“Am I… really going to play?!”

In a corner of the gym, Soso looked around, feeling overwhelmed.

The stands were packed, probably because it was the weekend and the opening game.

It felt like thousands of eyes were all focused on her.

Wooooo—!!

Clap, clap, clap!!

The sound of the crowd’s cheers and the noise from the support tools made her dizzy.

The loud speaker announcement was overwhelming.

“The KOVO Cup opening game is about to start! The players are entering the court.”

A man’s voice boomed into the microphone as he introduced the players.

The player being called out high-fived the other players and staff as she ran onto the court.

So Min’s back was drenched with cold sweat, and goosebumps ran down her spine.

Suddenly, the ceiling of the gym seemed to spin.

She felt nauseous and dizzy, her chest tight.

“I feel like… I can’t breathe properly…”

“Blue Whales’ setter, So! So! Min!”

As her name was called, So Min collapsed right there.

Amid the sharp screams of her teammates, the world seemed to flip upside down.

And just before she hit the ground, she felt someone rush to her and grab hold of her.

A man with black hair and glasses.

“Dr. Lee Seon-Joon…?”

With that memory, she lost consciousness.