DASH-Chapter 153
“.......”
Jiheon stared at the bloodstain with a blank expression, but soon snapped back and hastily put his pants back on.
Exiting the private stall, he stopped for a moment when he saw his reflection in the mirror. Now he understood why Jaekyoung had that expression. His face was not only swollen, but the skin had burst, and blood covered one cheek. His lips were torn, with blood reaching the collar of his shirt. Manager Yoon had even taken a picture to submit to the police as evidence, but Jiheon didn’t realize how severe it was since he hadn’t seen it himself.
With no time to examine closely, he grabbed a few paper towels, dampened them with water, and took them with him as he left the building. Hailing a taxi, he spoke politely to the driver who was shocked to see his appearance.
“I’m sorry, sir. Could you please take me to a large hospital nearby?”
“A large hospital?”
“Yes, a general hospital or a university hospital, a big one.”
Explaining that he needed a medical certificate for court, the driver agreed to go to a general hospital, a ten-minute drive away.
“Yes, please go wherever.”
Barely managing to speak, Jiheon leaned against the seat. He wiped his chapped ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ lips and cheek with a wet paper towel, surprisingly feeling no pain at all. Until now, his face had been so sore that talking for long was difficult, but that wasn’t the case anymore. The same went for his mouth, torn to the point of tattered flesh, and burst lips. No matter how much he touched it, he couldn’t sense anything, let alone pain, as if his nerves were paralyzed.
It wasn’t just the nerves that were paralyzed; even his thoughts seemed to be paralyzed. A few minutes ago, his mind was tangled with calculations about the vice chairman, what to do to get him as heavy a sentence as possible, and how to ask for help from KSC. However, after seeing the blood on his underwear, he just blanked out. No thoughts came to him. He was just dazed, as if his mind had gone completely blank.
It would’ve been easier to keep his mind blank, but there was no way that was possible. Jiheon closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and felt anxiety and despair creeping into his thoughts.
‘It’s okay. I knew something like this could happen. That’s why I didn’t even tell Jaekyoung. It’s common. Just looking at the probability, many people go through it. There’s no need to be so disappointed and frustrated.’
Jiheon tried to brush it off and distract himself. But it didn’t work. The more he tried to calm down, the more his guilt and suffering seemed to tighten around his heart.
The reason was obvious. Unlike other people’s situations, this was a tragedy caused by his own mistakes. Even if it wasn’t intentional, his actions ultimately put the baby in danger.
‘I shouldn’t have done that.’
In the end, Jiheon covered his eyes with one hand and swallowed hard. He should’ve let it slide, just responded with the usual, “Yes, yes, you are right, sir.” That way, that person wouldn’t have picked a fight with him. When the man fell, he should’ve acted like he didn’t see anything and left quickly.
The more he dwelled on it, the more it felt like he was going crazy. Until now, he thought that if he could just endure a few slaps to the cheek and completely send the vice chairman away, he’d gladly take on more trouble. But now, that seemed like a better idea.
He didn’t care about the vice chairman; he just wanted the baby to be safe. That was all he wished for. If only he could turn back time. The regret was overwhelming. He regretted everything.
While Jiheon grappled with belated regret and self-loathing, the taxi pulled up in front of a hospital. It was a smaller hospital than expected, but he had no choice. He thanked the driver and got out of the car.
Perhaps because it was early in the morning, there were few patients. Jiheon first went to the obstetrics and gynecology department, not the surgery department. The treatment was originally scheduled for 9:30, but when Jiheon said he was in the early stages of pregnancy and had bleeding, the checkup was conducted right away without having to wait.
“Oh my goodness, what happened to your face?”
The doctor exclaimed in surprise upon Jiheon’s entrance into the ultrasound room.
“I was caught up in an assault.”
Jiheon replied calmly as he climbed onto the bed.
“Oh dear, you must have been very shocked. Oh my gosh....”
The middle-aged doctor frowned, appearing more distressed. While the nurse applied gel to Jiheon’s stomach, the doctor asked a series of questions, and Jiheon answered in as much detail as possible.
“How much bleeding did you experience?”
“It wasn’t too much.”
When Jiheon mentioned that it was slightly sticky when he touched it, the doctor nodded.
“Let’s observe for now.”
The nurse left the ultrasound room, and the doctor approached the bed as if taking a turn. In the politest and calmest tone possible, Jiheon asked the doctor handling the ultrasound probe.
“Doctor, I’m asking this just in case. If I have a miscarriage because of this, will it be stated on the medical certificate?”
“Well, typically, the medical certificate doesn’t specify that a miscarriage is resulted from assault or shock. Since miscarriages can occur for various reasons in the early stages of pregnancy, it’s difficult to attribute them solely to shock.”
The doctor explained cautiously.
“However, if a biopsy [1] proves that the miscarriage wasn’t due to chromosomal problems or other reasons, the possibility of it being linked to the assault becomes higher. The court can examine the timing and circumstances of the miscarriage and determine that it is resulted from the shock of the assault.”
“I see....”
Just as he was about to inquire, “If I undergo a biopsy, how long does it take to get the results?” a probe touched his stomach. When a whitish screen appeared on the monitor, Jiheon was startled and quickly turned his head away.
He was scared, fearing that the egg yolk-like thing he had seen during an ultrasound scan two weeks ago might no longer be visible. He had already considered this possibility, but seeing it with his own eyes was another matter. Jiheon remained still, his gaze fixed on the wall next to the bed.
As the doctor stayed silent and the probe pressed harder on his belly, Jiheon grew more nervous. His mouth and throat were dry, making it difficult to swallow dry saliva, and his hands holding the hem of his clothes were sweaty. His heart was beating so fast that it was difficult to breathe.
After what felt like an eternity, the doctor finally spoke in a gentle tone.
“The baby is all well and healthy, right?”
“......Really?”
Only then did Jiheon turn his head to look at the monitor. He couldn’t tell what was what, so he squinted, and the doctor adjusted the machine to zoom in on the whitish parts.
“Have you ever seen a baby on an ultrasound before?”
“No. Last time, all I could see was an egg yolk....”
“I see. This is the baby.”
The doctor pointed to a vague shape adhering to what resembled a cave wall.
“Here is the head, here is the butt. And this is the arm. Can you see it?”
The source of this c𝓸ntent is frёeweɓηovel.coɱ.
Jiheon forgot to answer and just nodded frantically. Although he wondered, “How come those look like arms and butt?” he eagerly agreed that they did.
“And this spot I’m pointing to right now is the heart. Would you like to hear the baby’s heartbeat?”
As soon as the doctor mentioned it and touched the machine, a powerful thumping sound resonated from the speaker connected to the ultrasound equipment.
“This is the baby’s heartbeat......?”
Jiheon asked, surprised. The doctor chuckled.
“No, no. This is the father’s heartbeat. You’ll hear it now. Listen carefully.”
As Jiheon listened again, he soon started hearing other sounds. The moment he heard the heartbeat of the baby, much smaller than his own but much faster, he stopped and cried.
Seeing Jiheon quickly turning his head in embarrassment, the doctor handed him a tissue with a smile on her face.
“I’m sorry.”
Taking the tissue, Jiheon turned his head again. He tried to hold back his tears, but it didn’t work. His relief made him relax, and all the tears he had been holding back since he was in the taxi seemed to pour out all at once.
“You must’ve been so worried. Oh dear.”
The doctor nodded understandingly, handing him a whole bunch of tissues. When Jiheon showed signs of calming down, she looked at the monitor again and continued her explanation.
“Anyway, that’s it. No issues on the ultrasound, and the baby is fine. The heartbeat is strong as well. I can see movements, and it looks very healthy, right? Development is good for the weeks of age.”
Wanting to cheer Jiheon up, the doctor smiled, mentioning that the baby was already showing signs of being a healthy baby.
“Yes, if the baby takes after his father, he’ll be tall and healthy.”
Jiheon was proud of the compliment, but felt strangely embarrassed, so he laughed with a slightly red face.
“Of course, since it’s early in the pregnancy, we have to wait and see, but there are no signs of bleeding or delamination on the ultrasound.”
After that, the doctor queried Jiheon again.
“You said you had bleeding. What color was the blood?”
“It was dark. Almost brown.”
“Oh, well, I think that’s probably what was coming out of the congealed blood.”
The doctor reassured Jiheon once more, mentioning that even if it hadn’t happened this time, it would still have come out at some point.
“But you must have been very surprised today, so please rest until you’re stable. You live in Seoul, right? Are you going to leave today?”
“It was originally planned that way.”
The doctor crossed her arms, then spoke in a cautious tone.
“I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to be hospitalized for a day. Something like that happened a little while ago, and it’s not good to ride a car for three or four hours right away. I think it would be better to stay in the hospital and monitor the situation for a day or two. You have to get the medical certificate for the injury now anyway.”
The doctor patted his cheek and asked, “Right?” and Jiheon nodded eagerly.
Note:
[1] biopsy: an examination of tissue removed from a living body to discover the presence, cause, or extent of a disease.
