Chaewon checks the numbers on the vital signs monitor and compares it against the numbers on her iPad. Her patient seems to be stabilising and Chaewon is relieved. The operation was as tough as she expected and even though she did everything she planned, she is still concerned about the patient’s post-op status. That is why it is currently 2am and she is still in the hospital. Her sister is surely going to scold her tomorrow but Chaewon will leave that as tomorrow’s worry - the tomorrow I still have… for now. 

Either way, Chaewon makes her way down to the 24 hour cafe on the ground floor. She has outpatients to meet starting 8am tomorrow and she hasn’t looked at their case files yet. She really doesn’t like to go unprepared no matter how good she is, and she thinks it is reflected in the long list of patients she has because they all like having her as their doctor. 

Chaewon thanks the cafe staff for the Americano she ordered and she cringes as she takes a sip. No matter how long she has had coffee, she still never found appreciation for it - all for the caffeine boost, she convinces herself. When she exits the cafe and enters back into the main lobby of the hospital, she takes in the space before her. The hospital she works in is the largest in the city - Seoul Hospital - and the scale is reflected in the lobby. If she ran rounds around the ground floor alone, she could probably complete a marathon with not too many laps. Even at 2am, there’s still a fair amount of people here - well, hospital never sleeps does it? Chaewon takes her eyes to the main entrance and gets slightly enticed to go out for some fresh air before starting on her long reading night. A 15 minute late-start wouldn’t do much. 

As she heads towards the exit, her eyes naturally get drawn to the always buzzling Accidents and Emergency (A&E) department. Seems like tonight is no exception. She doesn’t think much about it - usually she will be buzzed when needed and it doesn’t happen too often because of her seniority - so Chaewon is about to look away when her eyes match gaze with someone she vaguely recognises. The recipient also freezes as their eyes meet and it seems that the other person has put together the pieces together first. She bows even as they are practically in two different spaces and Chaewon does the same. She remembers her and well, now she can’t possibly walk away. That will be awkward so Chaewon takes a deep breath and pockets her free hand in her doctor’s coat pocket before walking into the A&E.

“Hi, it’s been a while. I couldn’t recognise you and thought I was wrong until you bowed.”

“Yes, indeed Chaewon ah. It’s been so long. I heard you became a doctor but wow, I never thought we would bump into each other here.”

Right before her is her old high school friend, Chaeyeon. They were pretty close then but drifted apart when Chaewon moved. But the warm look Chaeyeon is giving her is like nothing has changed and they are back to the old days. 

“The hospital is not the best place to bump into an old friend.” Chaewon says honestly. “Is something wrong?” Naturally Chaewon is concerned.

Then Chaeyeon’s eyes shift to the blinds beside her, unlike most of the others, the blinds are drawn up around this bed. It is not an unusual occurrence though because some treatment or diagnosis procedures require protecting the patients’ privacy. “It’s not for me but for my…” Chaeyeon pauses before she looks back at Chaewon. “I was looking for the doctor that came just now because she just woke- oh wait, you are a brain doctor right? For the head? The friends were talking about you during the high school gatherings.”

Chaewon cringes at the classification. Neurosurgeon, that’s what her job is. But brain and head do work too… and the other reminder about high school gatherings… yikes. “Yes. Can I-”

“Perfect! Then can you help us please? Nothing beats the help of a friend, plus I trust you, I know you can keep this secret.” Chaeyeon grabs onto Chaewon’s arm that is tucked in her pocket, pulling the smaller girl towards the blinds. 

Secret? Chaewon goes into the private space and when she approaches the bed, she knows why. She gives Chaeyeon a knowing look before deciding to focus on the priority. Chaewon puts her drink by the bedside table and takes fresh rubber gloves, donning them before approaching the patient. “Ma’am, I am Doctor Kim. Do you know where you are?”

The patient nods so Chaewon continues. “I need to do some checks on you to make an assessment. I will shine a light into your eyes, don’t worry you don’t need to do anything.” Chaewon does as she said, professionally shining a light into both pupils to check them. She continues by observing other injuries before concluding by pocketing her flashlight. Chaewon is in the midst of taking off her gloves when her younger colleague walks in, “Hi, oh! Doctor Kim.” The man immediately bows a full ninety degrees. “What are you-”

“Is that her file?” Chaewon sees the iPad in his hand, grabbing it before he can even respond. She reads through the details speedily and makes more sense of the case before her. Angel’s Kim Minjoo, I am right. I knew I recognised you. Chaewon looks to the man. “I’ll take it from here, Doctor Hong.”

“I c-can handle it, Doctor Kim. It’s just a concussion. I was tending to another patient while waiting for her to wake-”

“It’s alright, Doctor. You had a long night already, may as well let me. I am here anyways, you can go back to your other patient.” Chaewon smiles politely and the younger doctor relents.

“C-concussion?” Minjoo asks weakly from her bed. Chaeyeon too is worried. “Isn’t it that serious?”

That is a common misunderstanding of concussion, not that Chaewon herself is dismissing it. “There are different severity to concussions but fortunately for you Ma’am, my primary assessment is that yours is a minor concussion. Of course, we have to do some tests to verify but I don’t think you have much to worry about. I will need to keep you here for the tests and to monitor your condition as you rest.” Chaewon inputs the details of her assessment and her orders on what tests are to be done into the iPad application so the nurses can follow up. She sees certain missing blanks and this is the harder part. 

“But of course, concussion is the repercussion of something and it is always better to find the root cause. I see here that you fell down a couple of steps, is that right?” 

Minjoo looks to Chaeyeon and the other woman answers for her. “Yes, she did. I told the other doctor that while she was unconscious.” 

Chaewon nods. “Okay, when we run the tests, results can be skewed if the body is not in its natural state. So I like to check if there is consumption of any alcohol or medication or anything else you can think of?” Chaewon hates this part of the job but it is necessary to determine if this is just an accident or something more. Only then can she properly treat a patient.

“Chaewon ah, she didn’t-” Chaeyeon immediately responds but Minjoo gets defensive.

“Are you implying something, Doctor?” 

“No I am not.” She sees the agitation in Minjoo’s eyes and continues to respond calmly. “I just want to know all the facts in the case so I can provide the proper treatment.”

Minjoo purses her lips together. “Well, there’s no alcohol or drugs. Probably a lot of caffeine and if overconsumption of caffeine is a new cause for concussion, I may just stop.” She usually isn’t this sarcastic but don’t blame her when she is faced with a pounding head and an accusing doctor.

“Overconsumption of caffeine is not a direct cause of concussion, otherwise I would be here too.” Chaewon says it nonchalantly before keying in the additional details. “Okay then, a nurse will be here to guide you through hospital admission and brief on the tests to be done. We will speak again when the results are in. Otherwise, please stay in bed for now and rest.”

Chaeyeon stops Chaewon before she gets far. “How long does she need to stay? She has schedules-”

“She needs proper rest since I know now it is a lack of sleep that brought about her fall and then the concussion.” Chaewon takes a sip of her now cold cup of coffee and then she decides to ask. “Was I too harsh just now?” 

“Well, I thought it was then I also realised it was a necessary question. You were just doing your job. She’s cranky, I mean who wouldn’t be. I hope you can understand.”

Chaewon smiles. “Don’t worry, I have had worse.”

The two old friends both enjoy their reunion. “It’s really nice to see you again Chaewon and it is so timely too, given…” Chaeyeon awkwardly gestures towards the blinds and Chaewon knows. “I am very grateful that you helped.” Chaeyeon’s bright smile suddenly turns into one of hesitance. ”So I hope you understand if I ask if you can help arrange so you know… we get a private room for obvious reasons?” Chaeyeon hates to ask this of a friend she hasn’t met in a long while but she cares a lot for the patient inside too. 

Of course, Chaewon understands. “I’ll speak to the nurses, they should be able to arrange. But you can just let them know again when you do her admission procedures. I believe it shouldn’t be an issue. Alright then, I should process these and… we can talk more later?” 

Chaeyeon goes back to her familiar bright smile that hasn’t changed since years back. “We should. Thanks again Chaewon ah.”

Chaewon pats her friend’s arm before going to the nurses desk. She briefs them accordingly, “so beep me when the results are in.”

“Got it, Doctor Kim. Are you sure you don’t want me to beep another doctor instead? It is just a concussion.” The nurse asks politely knowing Chaewon’s stature.

The doctor only just hands the iPad over to the nurse. “I am sure. Thanks Minhee.” 

The procedures go by and Minjoo is feeling less groggy over time. Concussions aren’t as fun as they sound and if this is a minor one, she never wants to experience a serious version. Minjoo takes a sip of water that Chaeyeon offers her. “I am sorry I caused you more trouble, unnie. You can take a nap by the sofa or go home. The nurses will take care of me.” Minjoo is forever the considerate person and she feels guilty putting Chaeyeon through this with her.

“This is why I told you to rest more and not overwork but this stubborn girl chose not to listen.” Chaeyeon chides her playfully before yawning. “I may just take up your offer but let’s hear what the doctor says first so I know how to adjust your schedule.”

Minjoo huffs at the thought of that, more inconveniences to others because of her own carelessness. She glances out of the small window gap on the door; Chaeyeon had pulled the blinds of the glass window that separates the room and the hallway to get the privacy Minjoo needs - as little people as possible need to know she’s here. Now, where’s the doctor anyways? It is already 6am and she does not want Chaeyeon to stay up any longer. 

“Hey, you can’t get out of bed!” 

“I want to find the doctor.” Minjoo stubbornly continues even with Chaeyeon holding her back.

“We can just beep for the nurse!”

“Showing my face may help expedite it.” Eventually, Chaeyeon gives in and helps support her to the door. She knows enough to fight against a determined Minjoo. The pair pull the door open when they see a bunch of nurses talking around their station. 

“So Doctor Kim is still here? Wow, I have outpatients with her later from 8am till not sure when because you know how nice she is to listen to everything her patients say, even when they are unrelated to the illness!”

Another nurse nods. “She hasn’t left the patient she did the surgery on since last night because she wanted to monitor him herself and then suddenly, she picked up Kim Minjoo’s case!” 

“It’s really her? Wow, I should peek to see how pretty she is in real life. But Doctor Kim picking up a minor concussion case? Is it because it’s Kim Minjoo?”

“Nah, it’s because of her manager. I think she is old friends with Doctor Kim, that's why our top neurosurgeon… yes neurosurgeon and an attending...” The nurse emphasises. “Is treating a minor concussion case that a first-year resident can do.” Then the nurse widens her eyes. “Oh! She’s here. Go.” The nurses disperse upon the sight of Chaewon and Minjoo and Chaeyeon too decide against going out after overhearing everything. Chaeyeon is supporting Minjoo back to her bed when Chaewon knocks and enters. 

“You shouldn’t be walking.” Chaewon comments the moment she sees them. 

“She wanted to walk because she was getting numb.” Chaeyeon immediately helps cover for Minjoo and the manager-artist’s telepathy works in their favour. 

“Next time, call the nurse. They can adjust her to a better position because walking about after a concussion is not advised.” Chaewon gives the standard doctor’s advice no matter how well-intentioned their actions may be. “We got the results back. Thankfully, it confirms that it is indeed a minor concussion so I will just prescribe you mild painkillers for the headache, med