Lend Me Your House
The operating room was filled with cold air, and the steady rhythm of the heart monitor only sharpened the tension in the air.
I stood in front of the operating table, my gown tightly fastened and sterile gloves on, positioned beside Professor Park Jung-hoon. As usual, my role today was that of an assistant.
The surgery was a complex fistulotomy.
While fistula procedures were fairly common in the colorectal department, this patient's condition was quite severe. Chronic recurrence had created multiple fistulous tracts, some of which penetrated deep into the sphincter muscle. It wasn't a case that could be resolved with simple excision; we had to remove the infected tissue while minimizing damage to the sphincter and preventing further infection.
Professor Park wielded the scalpel with practiced precision, excising inflamed and unnecessary tissue. I watched his hands closely, following the flow of the operation.
"Suction."
I immediately brought the suction tube to clear the bleeding area. It was one of the most familiar tasks for a first-year resident like me. I had to keep the suction away from areas where bleeding had stopped and quickly remove pooled blood where it threatened to obscure the field. Careful not to block the professor's view, I finished suctioning and swiftly wiped the area with gauze.
"Clamp."
I carefully picked up the clamp and handed it to him. The professor applied a sphincter-sparing technique to minimize muscle damage while cleaning the excised area. After removing the infected tissue, he used a seton drainage method in some sections to aid the patient's recovery.
I continued watching the thread and tissue moving at the professor's fingertips, sensing that the surgery was entering its final stage. As expected, Professor Park smirked and looked at me.
"Time to suture. Kim Jun-young, you do it."
I felt a flutter of nerves inside, but kept my expression as calm as possible while picking up the suture needle and thread. With his arms crossed, the professor watched me and spoke.
"You know this already, but suturing is critical in fistula surgery. Too much tension can cause tissue necrosis, and too little can lead to reinfection. Maintain just the right amount of tension."
I nodded slowly and began moving my hands. I sutured stitch by stitch, trying not to be overly conscious of his gaze, though the subtle tension at my fingertips refused to fade. The motions of tightening the thread and tying knots were steady enough, but the professor observed my technique with keen attention.
After the final knot, I cut the thread with scissors. Professor Park nodded briefly in approval.
"Not bad. Next time, make the knots a little tighter. That's it for the surgery."
I nodded with quiet relief. There was still so much to learn, but simply completing my first suture successfully made my heart race.
The steady beeping of the heart monitor continued to echo through the operating room. For me, it had been a significant procedure, and even after it ended, the morning of a first-year resident stretched on.
Rounding on patients to check drainage tubes and recording postoperative progress were also my responsibilities. I moved busily through simple wound care and treatment planning until I spotted a familiar silhouette while passing through the hospital corridor.
Seo Ji-hyun.
It was the same woman I had parted with awkwardly the day before. She was reviewing a chart on the urology ward side, just about to meet my eyes. I reflexively turned away. There was no need to run into her.
"Kim Jun-young!"
I heard her voice calling after my retreating back, but I pretended not to hear and kept walking. As I headed toward the nurses' station after leaving the corridor, Oh Ha-na approached me in her nurse uniform, flashing a bright smile.
"Doctor! Have you eaten lunch yet? Come eat with us!"
Oh Ha-na had her wavy brown hair tied back in a ponytail just below her shoulders. Her eyes sparkled with mischief, and her fair skin made her bright smile look effortlessly natural. The sight of her in that provocative nurse uniform sent blood rushing to my lower body.
The nurses at this hospital wore white mini-dress uniforms. While such designs had largely disappeared from the medical field elsewhere, this hospital stubbornly clung to the traditional style. The hem rode high above the knees, exposing the thighs completely, and the fabric hugged the body to accentuate every curve. Paired with the nurse cap and white stockings, it created a classic atmosphere straight out of an old hospital advertisement.
Of course, there had been voices opposing the uniform as sexualizing. Several incidents had occurred, eventually leading to an agreement to also provide alternative uniforms in pants and blouse form. Surprisingly, however, most nurses still preferred the mini-dress version. The combination of the pristine white dress, stockings, and cap gave off a proper yet subtly daring allure that heightened their charm. That was why the nurses favored this provocative uniform.
Thanks to that, the hospital enjoyed particular popularity among male patients, to the point where some joked that people visited more to see the nurses' uniforms than for the medical services. And Oh Ha-na, who looked exceptionally good in it, gave my arm a playful tap with a mischievous smile.
"They're serving chicken gangjeong today! Let's go together!"
I reluctantly nodded. It would give me an excuse to claim I had already eaten if Seo Ji-hyun asked me to lunch.
Oh Ha-na, two identical twin nurses, and I ate lunch together in the hospital cafeteria. I felt comfortable with Oh Ha-na since we talked often, but I had barely spoken with the twins. That made sense—Oh Ha-na worked in the colorectal surgery ward, while the twins were assigned to internal medicine. Our shifts rarely overlapped, and we seldom ran into each other on the wards. Though we exchanged occasional greetings, we had never really had a proper conversation. As a result, I still couldn't remember the twins' names properly.
To avoid revealing that I didn't know their names, I deliberately avoided speaking to them. The awkward part was that we had known each other for quite a while, so asking now would be strange. The safest way to hide my ignorance was to simply not engage in unnecessary conversation. Instead of addressing the twins, I focused my attention on Oh Ha-na while continuing my meal.
At some point, Oh Ha-na stared intently at my face and spoke with a playful smile.
"Doctor Jun-young, do you know how fascinating it is every time I see you? How can a guy look this pretty? Honestly, your skin is better than most women's, your eyes are big, your lashes are long, and even your short haircut makes me do a double take sometimes."
I stayed silent and quietly ate my rice. I had heard comments like this dozens of times before, but they always made me uncomfortable. Oh Ha-na paid no mind to my lack of response and kept chattering.
"Oh, really! Doctor Jun-young, you'd look amazing in the women's nurse uniform. It would suit you perfectly! With the cap and stockings, you'd become the hospital mascot in no time!"
I cleared my throat and looked at her.
"Stop joking around."
"I'm serious! Right?"
Oh Ha-na turned to the twin nurses for agreement. They glanced at me briefly before chuckling.
"Well… yeah, your face is small and neat, so women's clothes would probably suit you."
"Exactly. Especially your hairstyle—it already looks feminine. If we styled it a bit, people might actually get confused."
I paused with my spoon halfway to my mouth. Their casual agreement irritated me more than anything. It was always the case that the sister-in-law who stopped the beating was more annoying than the mother-in-law who delivered it.
"Enough. Where do you two live? Near the hospital?"
I deliberately directed the question at the twins to change the subject. Caught off guard by the sudden shift, they looked momentarily flustered but soon answered naturally.
"Oh, yes. We're about a fifteen-minute walk from the hospital. We live together."
"You live together? Don't you feel cramped as sisters?"
The twins shrugged and looked at me.
"Not really. We're just used to it. We've lived together since we were born."
I nodded appropriately and kept the conversation flowing. Fortunately, the topic of my appearance didn't come up again. Eventually, the conversation turned to my house, and I seized the opportunity to show them photos of my newly purchased officetel on my phone.
"Wow. You bought a place instead of renting?"
Oh Ha-na widened her eyes and leaned in to look at the screen. The twins also peered at the phone with interest.
"Yeah. I took out a loan, though."
I answered casually, but their reactions filled me with satisfaction. Even with a loan, owning my own home set me apart from others.
"Wow. As expected of a doctor. You must be loaded."
Oh Ha-na spoke with admiration.
"Not really."
I felt oddly pleased. Being acknowledged by others always felt good. Being a doctor really was an excellent profession. I hadn't become one out of any grand sense of mission or desire to help patients. It was purely for the money and social status. That was why I had decided to pursue medicine. Above all, both my parents were doctors, so the compulsion to become one myself had dominated me since childhood. In the end, I had become a doctor and would likely marry another doctor—or at least someone of comparable professional standing.
While I was lost in these thoughts, Oh Ha-na tapped my shoulder and spoke up.
"Doctor Jun-young, lend me your place for just one day."
I stared at her in surprise.
"What? What are you talking about all of a sudden? Absolutely not."
"Please~ I really need it."
"Let's hear the reason first."
Oh Ha-na smiled playfully and clasped her hands together.
"My boyfriend is coming over to my place today, but I don't want to show him my parents' house. I also told him a little white lie that I live alone. So I want to bring him over for just one day and say, 'This is my house~' It's an empty place anyway, so there won't be any problems, right? Please lend it to me for just one day~"
I sighed and shook my head.
"No. I can't lend it out for that reason."
"One hundred thousand won."
I froze for a moment. One hundred thousand won for one night… that wasn't bad at all. But I felt like I could get more.
"One hundred fifty thousand won."
"Come on, one hundred fifty thousand is too much for one night. The place doesn't even have furniture. One hundred twenty thousand!"
I thought for a moment before nodding.
"Okay, one hundred twenty thousand."
Oh Ha-na extended her hand with a bright expression, and I shook it lightly to seal the deal. After all, renting out an empty apartment for one hundred twenty thousand won and then staying in a motel for fifty thousand would leave me with seventy thousand in profit. The twin nurses stared at us in disbelief, alternating their gazes between Oh Ha-na and me.