KIBM Ch 4

The emergency roadside assistance worker straightened up.

“The repairs are finished.”

The worker thumped the inflated tire with his foot.

“You shouldn’t have any trouble driving for a while.”

“Thank you.”

As Bosung offered a polite thank you, his phone rang. The worker, having removed his gloves, answered the call.

“Oh, yes!” the worker said, his voice as loud as the ringtone.

“I was just about to call you.”

Bosung examined the replaced tire and the condition of the car.

Seeing this, the worker gestured vaguely.

The meaning of the gesture was difficult to decipher.

When Bosung looked at him quizzically, the worker lowered his phone briefly and said curtly,

“Start the car, will you?”

It was unbelievable.

Bosung hadn’t expected exceptional service, but there were limits to incompetence. He could overlook the lack of proper work attire and the complete absence of professionalism, but talking loudly on the phone before finishing the job was too much.

On top of that, being told to check if the repairs were done properly himself? Seriously?

Frowning deeply, Bosung sat in the driver’s seat. As he started the car, he thought to himself that this time he would definitely submit a service evaluation, something he usually avoided out of laziness.

Vroom—

As the engine started, the worker pointed at the dashboard through the open car window, wiggling his fingertip.

It was a clear signal to check it himself.

While Bosung checked the tire pressure gauge, the worker’s voice rose.

“I’m telling you, it needs to be scrapped.”

The tone was incredibly grating.

“Pulling a car out of a ditch isn’t easy. Let’s say we ignore the damaged driver’s side door, but the car is so old the engine’s shot.”

The man spoke dismissively.

“Sir, you don’t seem to understand what I’m saying.”

Bosung looked at the old SUV parked in front of him.

Like a fish caught on a line, the SUV was hooked to the tow truck.

It was the car Songju had crashed into the ditch the previous day. This meant that the person on the phone was Songju. Of course, it had nothing to do with Bosung.

“Well, then tow it yourself!” the worker yelled.

Bosung’s brow furrowed.

I can’t listen to this anymore.

Bosung rubbed his ear with his index finger and looked up at the worker.

“Excuse me.”

The worker held up a hand to stop Bosung, signaling him to wait.

But Bosung didn’t want to waste any more time waiting.

He began to speak, ignoring the interruption.

“If you’re going to talk on the phone, at least move the car first.”

A subtle mix of formal and informal speech. Bosung was mirroring the worker’s tone.

Perhaps sensing the frosty atmosphere, the worker hurriedly ended the call.

“Fine, I’ll leave the car here. Do what you want with it.”

The call was rude to the very end.

Hanging up, the worker pulled a business card from his chest pocket and offered it to Bosung.

Bosung didn’t take it. There was no need.

With an awkward expression, the worker put the card back in his pocket. Then, out of habit, he said,

“Please give us a good service evaluation.”

Without replying, Bosung pointed at the car in front, indicating he should move it quickly.

The worker walked slowly and lowered the SUV from the tow truck.

Bosung didn’t wait any longer and put his car in reverse.

Then, he zoomed past the tow truck and the shabby SUV.

A cloud of dust rose and settled on the already unsightly SUV.

˚⊹🩺₊˚⊹♡

“What did he say?”

Jiyu’s sudden question brought Songju back to reality.

“He said to scrap it.”

“Scrap it? He said it’s beyond repair?”

Songju tilted her head.

Besides the scrapping issue, she had definitely heard a familiar voice.

‘If you’re going to talk on the phone, at least move the car first.’

The tone immediately reminded her of Cheon Bosung, but Jiyu interrupted her train of thought.

“Just scrap it. There are so many nice cars out these days.”

“I can still drive it.”

“But he said to scrap it, right? I would have already replaced it.”

“Even though it still runs fine?”

“You just don’t get it. You don’t replace a car because it breaks down. It’s about trends. The dignity, the class appropriate for my age. Don’t you know where that comes from?”

Just then, the smooth purr of an engine drifted in through the open window.

Seizing the opportunity, Jiyu pointed her chin towards the window.

“Look.”

A gleaming white sedan pulled into the Cloud Clinic parking lot.

Cheon Bosung got out of the car.

“How classy and handsome.”

Jiyu scanned Bosung with admiring eyes as he exited the vehicle.

“That’s what you call sophistication.”

Then, she continued in a savoring tone,

“Good looks, great physique. Skills, wealth… he’s got it all.”

Jiyu’s words went in one ear and out the other. Songju had only one thought as she watched Bosung get out of the car:

“He got his car fixed.”

Even if he walked to and from work for exercise, it was a difficult place to live without a car. It was a good thing he’d gotten it fixed quickly.

˚⊹🩺₊˚⊹♡

There was someone in a nurse’s uniform at the Cloud Clinic reception desk. She had assumed the position was vacant, but apparently, it had an owner.

But something was…off.

Their build was…imposing, to say the least. Like a mountain, not just a hill.

“Hello.”

The nurse turned around, revealing a thick mustache and a deep voice.

It was a man.

She had worked with male nurses before, but never one quite like this.

“You’re Dr. Cheon Bosung, right?”

“Yes.”

He was easily a head taller than Bosung, who was well over 180cm, and his build was massive. Not just bulky, but pure muscle. It looked like the buttons on his uniform might burst at any moment.

The nurse openly scrutinized Bosung.

“You look better in person than on screen.”

“On screen?”

“I saw you on YouTube a while ago.”

Bosung frowned at the dialect in his accent.

Actually, it wasn’t so much the dialect as the mention of seeing him on YouTube that made him frown. It was undoubtedly not good publicity.

“There was a big article about you in the newspaper too. Said you’re a very famous plastic surgeon.”

It wasn’t worth responding to.

Bosung asked in a strictly professional tone,

“Where’s the director?”

“Follow me.”

The nurse led the way. The hallway, which wasn’t narrow by any means, seemed to shrink around him.

His thick hand knocked on the director’s office door.

Knock, knock.

There was no response from inside, but the nurse barged in as if he didn’t care.

“Go on in.”

Leaving behind his deep baritone voice, the nurse turned around coolly.

Bosung slowly shook his head. None of the people he had met here so far were ordinary.

Bosung entered the director’s office.

The spacious, sunlit room had curtains instead of partitions. The breeze from the open window gently swayed the thin curtains. And beyond those curtains was the director. Even from behind, he was instantly recognizable.

Short stature, round physique, flamboyant clothes and shoes.

It was Director Heo Junhee.

“I’m here.”

“Oh, Bosung, you’re here?”

The director replied casually and, instead of turning to face Bosung, lay down on the floor.

He grunted as he fumbled around, seemingly searching for something, his hand disappearing between the wall and the bookshelf.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m… rescuing… Lily…”

His muffled voice came out in broken phrases.

The bookshelf shook intermittently, and each time, the ornate ornamental stones precariously perched on it wobbled. It was a wonder they didn’t fall.

It didn’t look like it would be over soon.

Bosung was particularly impatient when it came to waiting.

“Call me when you’re finished.”

The director had a habit of focusing on one thing until it was resolved.

Even as Bosung turned to leave, the director was still grunting between the bookshelves, indicating that his personality hadn’t changed.

Bosung hung his jacket on the coat rack and took a stack of papers out of his bag.

It was up to him whether he wasted his time here or used it meaningfully. And, as always, Bosung made the efficient and rational choice.

He decided to read the papers he hadn’t had time to go through, watch videos of procedures and surgeries, and run simulations—in short, to accumulate various inputs before returning to his own position.

He intended to turn what others considered a crisis into an opportunity and a stepping stone for growth.

As Bosung looked over the papers, he popped a handful of assorted supplements he’d brought. He swallowed them with water, and the door opened as if on cue.

The owner of the blue bow tie. Director Heo Junhee.

“Could you knock?”

At Bosung’s words, Director Heo belatedly mimed knocking on the door with his plump hand.

He entered slowly and said in a welcoming tone,

“It’s been years, hasn’t it?”

“Seven years to be exact.”

“You remember that? I must be someone special to you, Dr. Cheon.”

Bosung put a damper on Director Heo’s self-satisfied mood.

“I have an unusually good memory.”

He had met Director Heo during his residency. It was nothing more than an ordinary memory.

“I look forward to working with you while I’m here.”

“The pleasure’s all mine.”

It was a meaningless exchange. What was there to look forward to in a place he was only staying temporarily?

“We’ve been a bit weak in the surgical department, so it’s reassuring to have you here, Bosung.”

“I’m a plastic surgeon. I won’t be that much help.”

So don’t get your hopes up. He hated being bothered with extra work.

“You met Dr. Kwak Giwoo yesterday, right? He’s internal medicine and has been working here for about two years now. If you have any questions, feel free to ask him. He’ll be happy to help. Oh, and you saw our Mr. Nurse earlier, right? He’s the pillar of our clinic, so be sure to share important schedules with him.”

Come to think of it, the word “pillar” perfectly suited his physique and presence.

“And the general hospital rules and guidelines are posted on the waiting room wall, so please take a look.”

Director Heo smiled genially and held something out to Bosung.

“And this. Say hello.”

Caught off guard, Bosung’s eyes widened.

“What is…”

“This is Lily. My fifteen-year-old friend, Turtle Man. Haven’t you seen her before?”

It was a good thing he hadn’t cursed.

He wondered if carrying around unusual animals was a trend here.

“You’re…keeping this…in the hospital?”

“Not ‘this,’ but Lily.”

Lily was Director Heo’s pet turtle.

It was rather large to be held in one’s hand. Its limbs and head seemed to float in the air.

The turtle craned its neck and looked up at Bosung. Bosung quickly averted his gaze from Lily’s.

“I let her out for some exercise this morning, and she disappeared without a trace.”

He added that he’d had a hard time finding her.

After rambling on about the irrelevant Turtle Man, Director Heo suddenly asked,

“Oh, did you get the towels and water?”

He had received them. The problem was that they were more thrust upon him than handed to him.

“Yes.”

“The person who gave them to you was Dr. Yoon Songju. You saw the Wildlife Rescue Center right next door, right? She’s a vet there. Get along with her while you’re here. You might need her help with this and that.”

“Not likely.”

He wasn’t interested.

Sensing Bosung’s reluctance, Director Heo patted him on the shoulder.

“You’ll die alone around here if you try to be a lone wolf.”

“If I’m going to die alone, I’d prefer it not be here.”

Director Heo threw his head back and roared with laughter, as if Bosung’s comment was hilarious.