The Haze

스물 여덟 (2)

28 Part 2

Doctor

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I stepped in a puddle as I ran into the road, my leg practically soaked, just like my hair that's still exposed to the pouring sky. However, the cold and mugginess of that don't register with me, as I make my way to the scene.

Already my mind whirrs at the endless possibilities of injuries, and how I'll need to treat them, if I even can.

From the way the body is splayed out I can guess multiple fractures and breaks, the head could've impacted the ground too harshly leading to haemorrhaging, there could be paralysis, pneumothorax or a cervical fracture.

I run faster to try and reach them, before my mind wanders to... Death.

Immediately, I kneel next to the person, letting him know I'm there. "Mr Jang! Can you hear me?"

No response. I check to see if he's breathing and exhale in relief when I feel that he is.

As I scan his body for signs of injury, I try to catch the driver's attention. He's standing above us in shock, eyes wide and mouth trembling.

"Ajusshi [sir], call an ambulance!"

Even shouting over the rain isn't snapping him out of his daze. My hand comes away from Mr Jang's head, covered in blood. I take my coat off and hold it tight against the wound, looking to a pedestrian to help, "hold this."

The girl around Kiah's age immediately bends down to help, using both of her hands to keep the coat in place.

I'm painfully aware that no one has called an ambulance yet, so I shout into the immediate vicinity as I feel his chest for any wounds or broken ribs, "someone call an ambulance!"

Suddenly the rain coming from above stops, and I register a figure behind me, "I've got it."

Jungwoo stands next to me, holding the umbrella over Mr Jang's body as he takes his phone out and starts dialling.

I quickly turn back to the body when I feel that one of his ribs isn't in place. Ripping his shirt and tie off, I put my ear to his chest where the rib is broken, but give up straight away since, because of external noises and the lack of a stethoscope, I can't hear what I want to hear.

Desperately in lack of equipment and help, I sigh as I try again. Placing both of my hands across his chest, with my thumbs pointing at eachother in the middle where the sternum is, I feel for whether both lungs are rising as Mr Jang breathes.

As he takes short, hardly noticeable breaths, I have to wait for any abnormalities to make themselves known.

Then I feel it.

The right side, where the rib is broken, isn't rising as much as the left. "He has a punctured lung," I turn to Jungwoo, "I need a pen."

He doesn't question me as he takes one from his pocket, handing it to me. As I unscrew it apart, I don't miss that it is indeed an expensive branded pen, with golden edges around a sleek, black body.