Chapter 114
Chapter 114
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 114
Chapter Title: Scared of Cats
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“The kids are at home.”
“Ah, that’s a shame. I thought I’d get to see them today…….”
Cha Da-jeong let out a soft sigh.
Yu Mu-hwan, who had been walking out of the exam room, sighed as well. It was a sigh of relief.
‘Phew, thank goodness.’
Yu Mu-hwan had been on edge ever since stepping into Meongmeong Animal Hospital.
People figured it was just first-day jitters, but that didn’t faze the usually unflappable Yu Mu-hwan.
What had him tense was Gray and Shadow.
He was deathly afraid of cats.
No idea why.
Other animals? No problem.
Not every vet student loves every animal.
Plenty adore dogs and cats but won’t touch anything else.
Some freak out over birds like chickens, rodents like guinea pigs or mice, even reptiles.
But not Yu Mu-hwan.
Cats aside, nothing scared him. Indifferent was more like it.
Lab sessions meant he was the one grabbing mouse tails or handling chickens and other test animals.
His undergrad classmates loved being grouped with him.
No hesitation, thorough work, solid results.
When assigning lab teams, Yu Mu-hwan was the golden ticket.
So few knew about his cat phobia.
Cats showed up, he’d hang back—and friends called him the polite one yielding for the group.
Seeing Yu Mu-hwan approach, Cha Da-jeong called out.
“Senior must be disappointed too?”
“Ah…….”
Yu Mu-hwan’s face twisted awkwardly, so Cha Da-jeong pressed on.
“But Senior rushed here early to see Gray and Shadow too, right?”
“Ah, I…….”
As Yu Mu-hwan stammered, Go Gi-jin let out a hearty chuckle.
“Hey now, our cutie pies sure are popular. You haven’t seen how affectionate they are…….”
Go Gi-jin pulled out his phone and showed a video of the three cats waving their front paws from the car, greeting the Go Pan-seok Animal Hospital crew.
‘Eek!’
Yu Mu-hwan recoiled in horror.
The cats on screen were blinking and glaring right at him.
Right beside him, Cha Da-jeong let out a squeal of a different sort.
“Ooh~!”
A dolphin-like burst of excitement followed by applause.
Lee Jun, Go Gi-jin, and Jang So-ra’s eyes went wide. Then came the laughter.
“Hahaha, looks like Cha Da-jeong’s a true fan of our kids too.”
“Of course. Why do you think I applied to Meongmeong?”
Cha Da-jeong kept her eyes glued to Go Gi-jin’s phone as she answered.
“Well then, we owe it to our kids. Thanks to them, we snagged a radiology prodigy.”
“Hehe. Looking forward to working together.”
Cha Da-jeong grinned. But Yu Mu-hwan just stood there like a statue.
Lee Jun spoke to him.
“Mu-hwan, looking forward to working with you.”
“No, no—please take care of me.”
“Good. Let’s make it work together.”
Go Gi-jin chuckled heartily and piled on.
“Hey, the boss was over the moon when he heard you two were coming. Diagnostics and readings are set for our clinic now.”
“I’ll do my best.”
As Cha Da-jeong smiled and replied, Go Gi-jin continued.
“But ain’t it nice?”
“What?”
“Y’know. Ain’t your brother’s clinic callin’?”
“Nah, he just finally moved out, and I can breathe again…….”
Cha Da-jeong shook her head.
“Yeah?”
“Everyone knows how much he grills people.”
Cha Da-jeong’s brother was Cha Uk, one of the directors at Daehan Animal Hospital.
There was a time when pet owners whispered that Daehan had top-notch skills but a director too obnoxious to work for.
Now it was everyone’s dream spot.
That obnoxious director? Cha Da-jeong’s big brother, Cha Uk.
“People aren’t machines! How’s anyone supposed to live like that?”
“That’s why it’s impressive, ain’t it?”
“No way I’m working under him. No, nope.”
Friends always said how Haenguni she was to have a talented Benevolent Brother.
But they had no clue.
The second she asked about something she didn’t know, his stock response was always:
‘You don’t know that? It’s obvious.’
That’s when Cha Da-jeong vowed never to work under him.
“And they don’t need me there anyway.”
Daehan Animal Medical Center was already renowned for radiology reads.
“I’m burying my bones here. So please take care of me.”
Lee Jun chuckled, remembering Cha Uk’s call the day before: *Take care of my wild little sister.*
“And teach me plenty.”
“Please take care of me too.”
“Alright, let’s tidy up your rooms and grab some food.”
“Yes.”
Lee Jun watched his new juniors turn to go, swelling with pride.
‘Solid lineup.’
With those two handling diagnostics, he could take on way more cases.
***
A few days later, as the sun began to set.
Jamongi’s owner brought him into Meongmeong Animal Hospital.
[Woof! Meongmeong!]
It had been ages since Jamongi last visited, and he wagged his tail furiously, sucking in a deep breath of the air.
Familiar scents—missed scents.
Friends he hadn’t seen: Woof Teacher and the bros.
Leash off, Jamongi set off after the nostalgic smells.
[Man, this place is huge! Killer!]
Kkakongi bounced into the hospital, short legs pumping excitedly.
He wanted to sprint, but he remembered Woof Teacher saying no running inside.
[Where the bros at? Close by?]
He’d caught Ttangkongi Bro’s scent, but no sign.
Kkakongi wandered the hospital searching for friends.
[Where Gray Bro and Shadow Bro?]
Even the cats he always saw here were MIA.
[Huge, right? For real.]
As Kkakongi roamed, a voice called from afar.
[Kkakongi lil’ bro here?]
Ttangkongi Bro.
[Bro! Where you at?]
[Right here.]
The voice swelled then faded, but Kkakongi soon pinpointed Ttangkongi.
Arriving where Ttangkongi was, Kkakongi’s eyes went wide.
[Whoa, where’s this? A park?]
Fluffy grass floor, huge tree too.
[Long time no see! Meow~]
[Good to see ya.]
The cat bros he’d looked for at the entrance greeted him from the tree.
[Bros! Good to see ya.]
[Me too, meow.]
[But what’s the deal? Where we at?]
[Playground, I heard.]
[Playground?]
That’s when it happened.
[Bros! Come here!]
Jamongi yelled.
[Super fun over here!]
Even Mongi hollered excitedly.
Grass, trees, warm sunlight pouring down.
Gotta be okay to run here.
Kkakongi flapped his long ears and bolted toward the voices.
He skidded to a halt in front of a long tunnel.
[What’s this?]
Suddenly, Mongi popped out the end.
Then Chihuahua Haenguni followed.
[I won!]
[One more time!]
But spotting Kkakongi, Mongi dashed back to him and Ttangkongi.
[Hehe, Kkakongi, tunnel race. So much fun.]
Kkakongi, though, was already hooked on something else.
Jamongi dashing around.
Jamongi zigzagged through tall poles lined up in a row.
[Vet said play here from now on.]
Somehow up top, Ttangkongi strolled casually on a balance ball.
[Said walkin’ here strengthens legs.]
Namgung Hyun’s pet project.
A rehab playground for mostly indoor pets.
Fun facilities focused on low-effort, safe rehab gear.
Lee Jun had asked for an animal break room.
Ideally not boring, he’d said—and Namgung Hyun delivered this jaw-dropper.
[For real cool.]
Kkakongi gaped, tail thrashing as he whipped his head around, taking it all in.
[But where Sapsari Bro? Gone?]
[Sapsari’s with Boss! Meow!]
***
“Sapsari’s such a good boy.”
Yu Mu-hwan praised the dog, who calmly let him take a front paw for blood pressure.
“Our boy’s a handful usually. All good?”
“Yes, same as last time. Perfectly normal.”
“Big dogs, small dogs—they all take to you, Yu.”
He’d just handled the rascal trio like pros.
“They’re all so sweet…….”
“Alright, now let’s check the cats.”
At Lee Jun’s words, Yu Mu-hwan’s shoulders twitched.
“Y-Yeah.”
Cats still terrified him.
But with feline cases on the rise, he couldn’t dodge them forever.
“Wanna try Gray?”
Thump-thump.
Yu Mu-hwan’s heart suddenly raced.
Morning flash: those yellow eyes staring him down.
As Yu Mu-hwan’s face stiffened, Lee Jun jumped in.
“Let’s skip cats for now and handle other exams.”
His voice brimmed with affection for his junior.
Lee Jun already knew—from Eom Jin-han—that Yu Mu-hwan feared cats.
And that he wanted to work under Lee Jun to conquer it.
Yu Mu-hwan had seen Lee Jun’s guest lecture at school, mesmerizing dogs effortlessly.
*Gotta learn from him.*
How to connect with animals.
That’s why he’d picked Meongmeong over other clinics.
He wanted to stop fearing cats.
No more putting it off.
Yu Mu-hwan clenched his jaw, then spoke.
“No. I’ll do it.”
“Good. We’ll take it slow.”
Moments later, Gray hopped onto the table and eyed Yu Mu-hwan.
Their eyes met—and a squeak escaped Yu Mu-hwan’s throat.
‘Eek!’
But he clamped down fast.
Then opened his mouth.
“G-Gray, nice to meet ya.”
*Please don’t scratch.*
With that plea in mind, Yu Mu-hwan gently grasped Gray’s tiny front paw.
Hated to, but blood pressure meant no choice.
He braced for resistance.
“Huh?”
Gray stayed perfectly still, watching curiously.
Calm till the end. Then Shadow too.
Yu Mu-hwan felt a spark of courage.
After that, he shadowed Lee Jun’s exams whenever he could.
Especially cats—he made every one.
Weird thing about Meongmeong: not a single mean cat.
‘Cats like these? I could handle ’em.’
Days passed, and Yu Mu-hwan told Lee Jun straight.
“Director, I think I can manage the calm cats.”
“Good. Let’s try.”
Perfect timing—a cat in for vaccines.
Yu Mu-hwan took a huge breath, prepped the shot.
Before injecting the neck scruff, he swabbed with alcohol.
Then—
Slap!
Lee Jun snatched the alcohol Somi from his hand.
“Not there.”
“Huh?”
“AAFP guidelines?”
AAFP: American Association of Feline Practitioners vaccine guide.
“Saw ’em.”
He knew.
“What do they say?”
“Uh, recommends against between scapulas, reduce dose... ah!”
“Right. Best avoid it.”
Lee Jun pointed at the cat’s neck scruff.
“Plenty still do...... yeah.”
Guidelines pushed legs or tail base, but scruff shots were common.
Scruff stretches easy, simple for cats, less fight-back.
“But dodge the risks. You seen a FISS case, Yu?”
Lee Jun mentioned feline injection-site sarcoma.
Yu Mu-hwan shook his head.
“No. Had some cats with nasty neck masses, but all benign thankfully.”
“Yeah. Most are. FISS from shots is super rare.”
Yu Mu-hwan nodded.
“But better safe.”
“Ah, yes.”
Lee Jun nodded back, stroked the cat’s head, and went on.
“Rare don’t mean impossible. And scruff FISS? Nightmare.”
With that, Lee Jun injected the leg.
Yu Mu-hwan’s eyes bugged out.
How? Solo, no towel, no e-collar?
At school, shots meant e-collar, towel-mummify, peek leg out.
Cats still went berserk.
Oblivious to Yu Mu-hwan’s stare, Lee Jun petted the cat’s head.
“Good job enduring.”
Purr. The cat rubbed harder, begging for more.
Stroking away, Lee Jun told Yu Mu-hwan.
“So vaccines go here from now on.”
“......Yes.”
Yu Mu-hwan’s voice lacked conviction.
*Sigh, cats still seem impossible......*
Maybe best to give up cat work. That’s what he thought.