“It’s not like there are no other doctors in Korea who can perform that surgery on the baby, and your career as a doctor won’t be over if you don’t do it. But if you think you can’t perform that surgery, then let go of Moon Na Young too. Don’t force on her what you can’t do yourself.”
Tae Hyuk stood frozen, looking at Cha Hyun’s retreating figure. Every word from Cha Hyun stung him painfully. At times like this, a friend felt more like an enemy.
Unable to just sit and wait, Na Young walked out to the hospital’s main entrance, pacing back and forth, waiting for the two to return. However, only Cha Hyun came back alone.
Confused, Na Young asked, “Where is Professor Choi Tae Hyuk?”
Cha Hyun nonchalantly pointed towards the emergency room and said, “I’m leaving now. It was nice meeting you today.”
Na Young was unable to determine whether Cha Hyun had successfully persuaded Professor Choi Tae Hyuk. She watched Cha Hyun leave in his stylish Porsche, just as he had arrived, and then ran off to find Professor Choi Tae Hyuk.
When she found him, he was sitting alone on a bench near the emergency room where they had met before.
“Professor,” she called out.
Slowly, Professor Choi Tae Hyuk lifted his head to look up at Na Young.
Na Young observed his expression and spoke.
“The decision to proceed with the surgery as the operating surgeon is yours to make, but I was too harsh in my words. I apologize.”
“No, you weren’t wrong. I feel just as pathetic about myself right now.”
This was the first time Na Young had seen Professor Choi Tae Hyuk be so harsh on himself, and she felt guilty, thinking she had driven him to this state.
Taking a deep breath, Na Young began, “I also have a past that I dread to recall.”
It was the first time she had ever initiated such a conversation. Talking about it made her feel like she was suffocating, but she continued.
“That incident affected my entire family. My mother suffered from guilt, my father became overprotective, and my once mischievous younger brother now constantly watches my parents and me.”
This was why she had developed a defensive personality. If she hadn’t seen him so weakened, she probably wouldn’t have shared this.
“But there’s someone I’m truly grateful to. The person who saved me then. I want to meet them again to say thank you.”
Tae Hyuk just stared at her, not expecting her to open up first. She always tried to maintain a distance from him.
Her words struck a chord in his most sensitive areas.
“Aren’t you grateful to your mother? Because she saved you, you became a doctor who saves many others.”
His eyes reddened as he looked at her. This moment of sharing their deepest wounds felt unbearably painful yet incredibly transparent.
It felt like their relationship had transcended mere physical attraction to a genuine connection of hearts.
“You decide,” Tae Hyuk said, looking at her.
“Me?”
Confused, Na Young met his gaze.
“If you say I should do the surgery, I will.”
The immense decision now rested on her, causing her heart to race. Yet, she didn’t hesitate.
“Then do it.”
Her firm response seemed to push him to the edge of a cliff, but she couldn’t take it back. As a doctor, she couldn’t keep avoiding such patients.
She wanted Doctor Choi Tae Hyuk to be proud of his abilities.
“I believe you will successfully perform the surgery.”
She truly thought that. Surgeon Choi Tae Hyuk was invincible.
When Professor Choi Tae Hyuk decided to conduct the 12-month-old baby’s liver transplant surgery, the hospital staff’s reactions were divided.
Some believed in ‘Choi Tae Hyuk’s abilities, while others suspected he was forcing himself into the surgery to avoid hearing that he lacked skill.
Regardless of what anyone said, the preparation for the surgery proceeded quickly. The baby didn’t have much time left.
Standing before the operating table, Tae Hyuk looked down at the tiny patient and thought to himself, ‘After this surgery, you’ll be healthy, and I’ll go to the beach with Moon Na Young.’
He decided to focus only on positive thoughts. In this sense, Moon Na Young had become a significant source of strength for him. Perhaps she was the first stroke of luck he ever had in his life. If she weren’t his good fortune, how else could he have met her that day? So, if he couldn’t trust his own luck, he decided to believe in the luck she brought him.
Tae Hyuk deeply closed and then opened his eyes, now calm and focused, and asked the anesthesiologist, “How’s the patient’s condition?”
“Stable. You can start the surgery.”
The moment he held the scalpel, his mind quieted, just like during any other surgery. That’s when he realized Moon Na Young was right. He would succeed in this surgery. As a surgeon, Choi Tae Hyuk was incomparably stronger than Choi Tae Hyuk the person.
When Tae Hyuk went to the family waiting room, the baby’s father, also the donor’s husband, was praying with his hands clasped. Only he knew what he must have felt, having his entire family undergo surgery on the same day.
“Are you Hanul’s guardian?”
Hearing his baby’s name, the man stood up abruptly. “Yes, I am the father. How did the surgery go?”
Tae Hyuk, as usual, briefly informed him about the results. The liver transplant was successful, and the baby would be moved to the intensive care unit for recovery.
Hearing that the surgery went well, the baby’s father burst into tears, repeatedly bowing and expressing his gratitude.
Only then did Tae Hyuk feel he could properly tie the emotional knot of this surgery. Though he didn’t wish to encounter young patients in his future work in hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery, he felt more prepared to face them with a doctor’s heart when he did.
Having completed what he had to do, Tae Hyuk felt relieved and reached for his phone to contact Na Young, only to find a message from her already waiting.
The corners of Tae Hyuk’s mouth lifted into a smile.
Yes, if she calls, I must go.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
