Chapter 17

HEART BEATS
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A Deal For Kim Taeyeon

"How does it go?" With an open tube of choco mint ice cream in one hand and two spoons in another, Taeyeon comes to sit beside Yuri. The girl is currently sitting at the nurse station, typing a patient's name into the chart on the computer.

"She just tried to take her first step." Yuri grabs one of the spoons and scoops a heap of ice cream into .

"And?"

"Failed miserably." Sighing deeply, Yuri stops typing. "She's crying about it now."

Tilting her head to peek from behind the high reception desk, Taeyeon does see Jung Jessica sobs in Dr. Park Shinye's arms. She then copies Yuri's deep sighs before scooping a spoonful of ice cream into .

"Hey, Yuri! Are you gonna use that computer or not? I need to chart my patient too."

"Go away, Jay!" Yuri glares at the intruder. "There are so many other computers on so many other floors."

"Why are guys here anyway? This is the Orthopedic floor. Shouldn't you use the computers on the Cardio floor instead?"

"Park Jaebum!" Taeyeon tilts her head back, narrowing her eyes at the man hovers over them. "Go away or I won't help you get into surgery anymore."

Mumbling, Jay leaves the two. Yuri continues with the task of fake typing patient information while Taeyeon gets on with her ice cream, both sometimes crane their neck to see how Jessica progresses with the physical therapy. From where they sit, they both can tell that Jessica is failing hard.

"Oh, you guys are here too." Dr. Shim comes and joins them behind the desk, clearly not surprised by Yuri and Taeyeon's presence there. "I see Callie hasn't moved Jessica's therapy to the VIP room. The bullet didn't hit any vital nerve right? Why does it seem so difficult for her to walk again?"

"Dr. Shim. Welcome to our unsolicited patient-observation." Taeyeon grins at the handsome doctor while offering the tube of sweet treat. "Ice cream?"

"I don't share spoon unless it's with Yuri." Dr. Shim grins back.

"In your dream." Yuri grabs the ice cream tube from Taeyeon's hand and puts it on her side of the desk so Dr. Shim can't reach it. "No. The bullet didn't damage any nerve. What do you guys think the problem might be?"

"It can be something mental." Taeyeon chirps in, staring at her hands "Remember my trembling hands? Mental."

"Yeah. Maybe you can do your magic on Jessica too, Dr. Shim." Yuri suggests rather too enthusiastically. "Gets Jessica into a life-threatening surgery then force her to use her legs."

"Only if you share your spoon with me." Dr. Shim grins again, patting Taeyeon's shoulder. "Come with me, Taeyeon. I need a little help."

"Come on, Max," Yuri whispers as Taeyeon stands up. "I'm being serious here. You can help Jessica."

"Ah, Kwon Yul. You only call me Max when you want something from me." Dr. Shim steps away with Taeyeon follows him closely behind. "I feel used."

"It might work, you know? Putting Jessica under a circumstance that forces her to use her legs." Following Dr. Shim into the elevator, Taeyeon throws in the suggestion again. "Why don't you plot the same stuff you did to me in that OR again?"

"I did nothing to you, Taeyeon."

"But you forced me to join Mrs. Kwon's craniotomy. You must have known that I would be able to use my hands."

"I didn't."

"What?"

"I didn't know if you will be able to use your hands or not. It was an emergency and you were the closest trustworthy surgeon available."

"Okay, that sounded like total BS." Hands on hips, Taeyeon stares judgingly at her senior. "If you didn't know that I'll be okay, why did you let me come close to Mrs. Kwon's brain? I could have killed her."

"I had my eyes on you, Taeyeon. Every second of it." In his signature smile, Dr. Shim leans on the wall and folds his hands in front of his chest. "Had your hands show any kind of trembling, I would have stopped you immediately."

"You gotta be kidding me. Gambling on Mrs. Kwon's life just like that."

"Hey. I'm a senior attending. I know what I'm doing."

"Your eyes were glued to the microscope that day." Frustrated, Taeyeon glares at the handsome doctor. "You didn't even look up at me for a second. I could have butchered Mrs. Kwon."

Arriving on the Neurology floor, Dr. Shim simply leads Taeyeon into his office. "I didn't need to look up to see how steady your hold on the suction was. Man can multitask too, you know?"

"Oh, God." Sitting on the chair in front of Dr. Shim's desk, Taeyeon pinches the bridge of her nose. "I thought you know something I don't know about."

"I know you're a real hard worker, though. I know you are the kind of surgeon that will give your 110% to any patient any day. Therefore, I trust you more than others."

Feeling a little strange at the statement, Taeyeon straightens up on the chair to stare into Dr. Shim's eyes.

"You sense something coming up, don't you?" Smiling, Dr. Shim pulls out a large envelope from the desk drawer. "Smart girl."

Can't help but stare at the suspicious envelope, Taeyeon groans. "Don't make me do anything stupid, please."

"Relax. I just need a few favors from you today. First the easier one."

Taeyeon accepts the folder and pulls out its content. It's a form, signed by Yuri on the bottom. She gasps. "She applied for Neuro?"

"Yep. As happy as I am right now to gain such a beautiful prodigy. I can't help but think it's not a choice she made by heart."

"It is a choice of the heart." Taeyeon sighs, returning the form into the envelope and put it on the desk. "Choosing Cardio would have broken her heart even more now Dr. Park Shin Ye is our attending cardiologist."

"How bad she takes it?"

"We're talking disaster scale here." Rubbing her face, Taeyeon tries not to recall Yuri's recent antiques. "She almost fall into her old habit of and drinks, I have to literally lock her in her room every night."

"Instead of stopping her, you should call me instead."

"Hey!" Taeyeon glares at the snickering Doctor. "I thought we both are Yuri's friends here."

"I am her friend." As an amused grin replaces the snicker, Dr. Shim leans forward and whispers. "A friend that may come with benefits."

"Please tell me you are kidding." Grimacing, Taeyeon leans back. "There's no way I can save Yuri from your charm. Stay away from her, please."

"Don't you think it's time for her to move on? Jessica is clearly not available anymore. Am I not the best person for her to move on to?"

"With all due respect, Dr. Shim. She's not ready to move on."

"Alright. Alright." His teasing grins morphs into a serious expression, Dr. Shim puts the envelope back into the desk drawer. "This brings us to favor number two"

Taeyeon groans inwardly. This is gonna be bad, she can feel it in her bone.

"I need your help to not testify against Yunho shall the trial come for his father's crime."

"What?"

"I even want you to bury your knowledge of Yunho's possession on African Paragonimus in the past."

"I can't do that. I know he had his hands on that worms before. If the time comes for me to testify on the case, I'll surely tell nothing but the truth."

"Please understand, Taeyeon. Yunho was just a pawn in his father's scheme. He still is."

"He could have said no to his father."

"It's not that easy. If you saw the environment Yunho grew up in, you would understand some of his weaknesses."

"Always that lame excuse."

"He's a kid born out of an illicit affair, brought by his father into the care of a step-mother who simply hated him. Throw an overbearing step-grandma into the mix and you get a suppressed man that is my best friend, Jung Yunho. Don't you care about him at all?"

"How could you ask me that?" Taeyeon can feel annoyance rising in her chest now. Looking away, she continues bitterly. "You know Yunho and I shared a past. A bitter past. Still, I wouldn't mind helping him. Not this kind of help though."

"Let's put it this way. If you agree to stay out of this case. I'll accept Yuri's application while also stop trying to get into her pants."

"What the heck?" Annoyance turning into anger, Taeyeon stands up. "That's unfair."

"What has happened to Yunho is totally unfair too, Taeyeon. Besides, this is not just for him. It's for your safety too. Jung Jaehyun's heart might have turned a little soft after almost losing both his children in one day but he still has a set of mean lawyers and crooks behind his dirty business. Take this deal he offered so you can avoid being tangled into this mess."

"I'm not afraid."

"You should. This might involve your friends and family too. I heard your boyfriend and your sister are both involved in the investigation that flung Yunho's father into jail."

Suddenly, the image of Hayeon's smiling face comes to Taeyeon's mind, followed by Jiyong's and Yuri's. Shaking her head, Taeyeon sits back down. "I don't like this, Dr. Shim. This is not right."

"It is very wrong and I hate being the messenger of such a dirty deal." Dr. Shim sighs. "If Yunho's name is wiped out of the Worm case, his father agrees to cooperate on the other cases."

"Cases?"

"The state attorney has been targeting Yunho's father for so long. This whole mess re-opens so many old investigations and pokes at a few sleeping lions of this country. The main reason why I agree to present this deal to you is that I know Yunho so well. I have started to know you too. Both of you are too precious to get tangled in this."

"Stand back, Taeyeon." In a soft stare, Dr. Shim leans forward and holds Taeyeon's hand gently. "I beg you."

Shaking her head, Taeyeon pulls her hand out of the comforting hold. She can now understand how Yuri seems to always fall for Dr. Shim. The man's got some undeniable natural charm. Even a simple look into Dr. Shim's eyes is testing Taeyeon's resolve.

"Taeyeon, think of all the people you care about."

Standing up and leave, Taeyeon closes the door behind her. It feels like the burden of the world suddenly has fallen onto her shoulders. Her phone chirps and she immediately gets it out of her coat pocket. It's a text from Jiyong.

Are you still at work?

With annoyance, she types a response rapidly.

Yes.

Dr. Shim just asked me to not testify against Yunho. Jung Jaehyun wants me to get out of the case completely.

So upsetting.

Dr. Webber just asked me to do the same. I think we should agree.

Taeyeon can't believe the text she just read. How come Jiyong let it go so easily? Upset, she tucks her phone back in. It rings again though. This time, it's Jiyong's call.

"It's for your safety, babe. For Hayeon's too." Jiyong says the minute Taeyeon picks up the call.

"I hate it."

"Let's talk about this in a better mood. What time will your shift end? Let's have dinner together."

"I'm clocking out at the moment."

"Good. I'll be there in twenty minutes. Let's go somewhere fancy."

"No." She sighs upon arriving at the changing room. "I'd rather have dinner at home."

"Really? I can make a reservation at The Atlas. Fancy food. Fancy rooftop view. You know you want it."

"Nah. I'd rather have you cook me some rustic meal that we can eat while watching TV."

"Alright then. I'll whip something up. See you in a few minutes babe. I love you."

"I love you too."

Yuri (Tries To) Take It Casually

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll be back later." Yuri turns on her heels upon seeing Jessica in Mrs. Kwon's room. Even a single second sight of the beauty plays with Yuri's heart. She wants to bolt away before further impact.

"It's fine," Jessica calls out from inside the room. "You can come in."

"I... um... It's okay. I can come back later."

"Please, Dr. Kwon. Come in."

It's so bitter in Yuri's ear, the way Jessica addressed her as Dr. Kwon instead of just Yuri. Sighing as deep as she can, Yuri turns around and enter the room. Her eyes dart on the wheelchair Jessica is sitting on. Another sight that plays with her heart.

"It's been a while since I check on my grandma. Will you walk me through her progress so far, Dr. Kwon?"

"Of course." Trying to still her heart, Yuri gets her tablet out and types in her password. "Now that her post-craniotomy stats have been back to normal, we're restarting the therapy. Dr. Shim has given her a dose of Zoltidine on Monday while Dr. Kim and I gave the initial transcranial direct current stimulation session yesterday."

"And the result?"

"I was about to do some EEG but didn't want to interrupt your private moment with her."

"Oh, I thought you were just trying hard to avoid me."

"I was busy... I didn't...."

"I've been trying to find a moment to thank you, Dr. Kwon. Why it seems so hard to see you in this hospital lately?"

Yuri gulps. Even in that wheelchair, Jessica still looks fierce. Her beautiful eyes bore into Yuri's soul, so deep Yuri has to look away.

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windflower01
#1
Chapter 29: This story is truly a gem.
soshifiedpixie #2
Chapter 29: reread parts of this today. you did so well authornim!
forgotme #3
Chapter 29: Request for a sequel??😁 or another yulsic.. You did great..
starfl
#4
Chapter 29: It’s been what? Five months I think! I’m so sorry. I got stuck at chapter 27 I guess… :( I have a trip and also continue with my studies! I’m so sorry but finally I finished this…

…and it was soooo awesome! The best! THE BEST! I loved so much. Thank you for writing an awesomely piece like this. :’) I’m sad because this is the end!!! I got emotional
langsircoklat #5
This story is so exciting to read..please make another yulsic story..😍
kun90ero
#6
Chapter 29: wii happy ending, makasi penulis terbaik deh kamu
SoneBuddy
11 streak #7
Chapter 29: Happy ending for everyone. Thank you author 😊
soshifiedpixie #8
Chapter 29: taeyeon and jiyong's having a baby and yuri and sica's getting married🥺💖 thank you so much for this great story!
kimtaeny1110 #9
Chapter 29: Gosh i love this gang..., so sad that it ends here
Keichan13 #10
Chapter 29: Five years of dating before meeting Yuri’s mother ahahaha far out! How did they do that for so long! Absolutely happy with the ending and also praying for your next story to be yulsic!