※ The disease names and medical conditions are purely fictional.
“Chika-sensei1‘sensei‘ is an honorific commonly used in Japan to refer to teachers, doctors, and other professionals.! Chika-sensei!”
I heard a voice calling me.
“Please wake up! Chika-sensei!”
This was the department head’s voice.
I hurriedly got up from the desk where I was lying face down.
“You stayed overnight even though you weren’t on duty again.”
“Yes, sorry. Some people were concerned about the post-op process, so…”
“It’s great that you’re so dedicated to your work, but at least use the nap room. All the nurses are worried. They’re afraid Chika-sensei will die of exhaustion soon.”
“Oh no, I haven’t been working that hard. Now that the department head has come to see me, does that mean it’s almost time for your rounds?”
“Yeah, there’s still time, but I just wanted to be sure.”
“Thank you for your time. I also had a patient that I wanted to see before my rounds.”
Advertisement“It’s Yuuki-kun, isn’t it? You’ve been visiting him every day since he was hospitalized… Please don’t push yourself too hard.”
The department head placed the tea and homemade onigiri on my desk and quickly returned to his work.
I lightly freshened up at a nearby water tap and took a bite into my onigiri, grateful for the department head’s thoughtfulness.
The comforting flavor of the rice spread in my mouth, and I could taste the slightly salty salmon inside.
I looked over the patient’s chart while eating rice balls and sipping my tea.
About a month ago, 17-year-old Shindou Yuuki, suffering from chronic headaches, came to our hospital accompanied by his school nurse.
After a thorough examination, the diagnosis was that it was a malignant brain tumor.
His tumor was a glioma2a type of tumor that forms in the glial cells(the gluey supportive cells that surround nerve cells and help them function) of the brain or the spinal cord.. It was the worst one and was highly malignant, so even if all of them were removed by surgery, he would not be able to avoid radiation therapy or chemotherapy.
AdvertisementThe prognosis is not the worst, but it is by no means a complete cure.
The disease usually occurs in children under the age of 10, and it is rare to see it in a child his age.
Coupled with this, the professors above have also taken a great interest in his condition.
As his attending doctor, I am deeply concerned about him, not to mention the difficulty of his treatment.
Saying this might make people think he was a patient with complicated problems, like a monster patient, but he wasn’t.
In fact, there were only a few problems.
Due to the strong requests of him and his parents, He was informed about his condition and treatment plan.
I was really worried about whether a teenager would be able to accept this cruel truth, but he listened to it without lamenting his misfortune, shedding tears, or becoming distraught.
On the contrary, I was the one who started to worry when I informed him.
AdvertisementEven after being hospitalized, he hasn’t been selfish or bothered the nurses. He either spent his days lying in bed, staring out the window, or reading a book.
If this were all, you might wonder what is there to worry about, but as someone who has treated patients for many years, patients like him scare me very much.
It was because I didn’t feel an attachment and desire to live from him.
It felt like he didn’t want or expect anything from those around him.
I soon found out that part of the reason was his parents.
His father, who worked at a trading company, rarely stayed in Japan and spent most of the year abroad.
On the other hand, his mother, who was apparently a famous actress, wasn’t only busy with her work, but also had a flashy relationship with another man, so she rarely came home.
It turned out his father was also having affairs in various countries, and it seemed that both parties were in a state of tacit approval of each other’s behavior.
I knew all of this because of the information I got from the nurses, and as always, I am amazed at their ability to gather information.
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Well, that must be true.
In fact, I became convinced of this when I scheduled an appointment to discuss his future treatment plan with his parents.
I thought it was odd when his father didn’t cut short the discussion time because he had to return to work immediately, but it turned out that the one who showed up was his father’s subordinate and his mother’s manager.
When I was irritated and asked why the person in question hadn’t come, his father’s subordinate told me that he had left Japan because he had an urgent business matter to attend to.
Meanwhile, his mother’s manager said that she couldn’t take the time off because she had a sudden recording.
They showed me the documents from the attorney, and the enclosed paper stated that they would leave the treatment to me and didn’t care about the cost as long as everything was good at the hospital.
What’s more, they also told me to send the consent form for surgery by mail if necessary.
I couldn’t help but yell at them.
I have been a doctor for a long time, but this might be the first time my gut has boiled to this extent.
No, I knew they were not to blame.
AdvertisementI regret what I have done to them.
However, it was about their own son’s future, or rather, their son’s life.
How could any sane person in their right mind not be present in this situation?
The two agents were frightened, but they gave me their contact information, and the situation was somehow settled.
After all, I haven’t seen his parents even once since he was hospitalized.
“I was surprised that even Chika-sensei can get angry. But I was also thinking the same thing, so I felt relieved.”
The nurse in attendance laughed and said I was surprisingly fierce.
His attitude of resignation about everything, rather than being optimistic, was probably largely due to his relationship with his parents.
Although I knew it was not suitable for a doctor to become too involved with one patient, I couldn’t help but be concerned about him.
And so, I visited his hospital room every day.
I knocked lightly and waited for his response.
Since he has no financial concerns, including his medical condition, he has been allocated a special private room.
“Come in.”
I heard an emotionless response from inside.
“Yuuki-kun, how are you feeling?”
“Jeez, it was Chika-sensei, huh. Hmm, nothing much has changed.”
“What a rude response. It’s fine if you don’t feel any different. But if you notice anything unusual, call the nurse immediately, okay?”
“Yeah, but even if I don’t press the nurse’s call, the nurses still come to check on me often…”
“The nurses want to come often to see your face because you’re so handsome.”
Perhaps because he inherited it from his mother, who is an actress, so even as a man, I thought he was a beauty.
I even often see the younger nurses scolded by the senior staff and the department head for acting like meeting an idol.
“Handsome…huh…. I’m not at all happy to look like that woman.”
“Yuuki-kun…”
“I would have been happier if Chika-sensei was my parent instead of that thing.”
“You shouldn’t refer to your parents as ‘that thing’. Well, I’m certainly old enough to have a child your age.”
I replied with a wry smile.
It was only recently that he opened up so much to me.
At first, I only received curt answers to my questions, and I was also called Shinra-sensei instead of Chika-sensei.
“Hey, haven’t Chika-sensei thought about getting married? Or are you dating someone?”
“W-what’s going on all of a sudden?”
“Huh? No, I’m just curious.”
The unexpected question made me act unnaturally.
“I… well, I’m prepared to live alone. Maybe I was too busy working, so I didn’t have any effort or time to find an important person for me.”
“Hmm, important person, huh…”
He was muttering something, but I couldn’t catch it.
“Did you say something?”
“No, it’s nothing. But I heard that Chika-sensei has a reputation for being adorable among the nurses, right? Even though you’re a doctor, you’re not overbearing and are kind to everyone.”
“Can I even consider that as a compliment…? Most of the nurses are younger than me, but to think that they say I’m adorable…”
“Nah, I can see why the nurses are saying that, you know? Chika-sensei may be an old man, but even I feel like protecting you.”
“…is that so, thanks…”
I replied with mixed feelings, but Yuuki-kun turned his gaze out the window.
“Hey, Chika-sensei. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t afraid of surgery, but there is something that I’m more afraid of.”
“Something scarier than surgery?”
“My parents are like that. I’m not good at socializing, and I don’t have any friends. If I die like this, I will die without being needed by anyone, right? Sometimes I get terrified and wonder why I was born.”
Those words took my breath away.
I have my dear mother, but I’ve had similar thoughts myself.
Even though I have a job, I will be all alone once my mother is gone.
At times, it felt so empty that it blew through my heart like a gust of wind.
However, I tried to somehow forget that by finding purpose in my life to help others with my job, but I never thought a teenage high school student could be feeling this way.
“Yuuki-kun, you are still young. I understand how anxious you are before the surgery, but it’s not good to think like that. There will always be someone who needs you and cares about you. Well, it may be something you’ll find on your own, and you will not know when it will appear in front of you, like fate. In the meantime, I care about you. Please don’t forget that.”
“Mn, thank you, Chika-sensei.”
“―kay”
At that time, I remember Yuuki-kun was smiling, looking terribly lonely.
Then I realized.
Yes, I’ve experienced this before.
“He ――, ―― kay”
The scene before me faded away, and my consciousness gradually became cloudy.
“Hey, are you okay!?”
Those words brought me out of my clouded state of consciousness.
When I opened my eyes, the dragon tribe man who had kidnapped me was there.
Oh, that was a dream.
I didn’t know why I remembered that so vividly now.
If I remember correctly, that happened right before I came to this world.
On my way home the next day, I…
“You’ve finally woken up. I never thought humans would be so weak that you would lose consciousness over such an injury.”
When the dragon tribe man saw me, he smiled with a big, rough grin on his face.
1‘sensei‘ is an honorific commonly used in Japan to refer to teachers, doctors, and other professionals.2a type of tumor that forms in the glial cells(the gluey supportive cells that surround nerve cells and help them function) of the brain or the spinal cord.Sponsored Content
