Capítulo 13: Arc II - By a Thread - Part 7
Xiao Zhan jumped to his feet and frantically pressed the nurse call button. Resisting the urge to touch Yibo, he grabbed his glasses, then pushed the chairs out of the way and rushed to the curtain. Before he could even touch it, it opened in his face to reveal Nurse Jang and Dr. Park still dressed in their evening clothes. They didn't pay any attention to him as he flattened himself against the wall and side-stepped out of the cubicle. Once across the way, he stood at the foot of the empty bed staring as if in a dream at the scene unfolding in front of him.
More nurses rushed in and crowded the small space around the bed. Their movements seemed perfectly rehearsed, not responding to Dr. Park's commands but anticipating them. He watched as they started to wheel Yibo's bed out, doing their best to control his still-thrashing body. Suddenly, he stiffened and went limp. A loud, solid beeping sound was heard.
Xiao Zhan's eyes fell on the flatlining ECG monitor. Time slowed down.
Dr. Park barked orders. The bed, having stopped right in front of him, Xiao Zhan got a front-seat view as a nurse ripped open Yibo's hospital gown and began performing chest compressions. He followed Nurse Jang with his eyes as she ran to a cabinet, grabbed an injector, unwrapping it deftly before handing it to Dr. Park, who jabbed the patient's upper chest. All of a sudden, a tremor went through Yibo's body as the ECG resumed its erratic but rhythmic beeping. Time accelerated again, and the bed was whisked out of the ward under Dr. Park's constant orders and monitoring.
Xiao Zhan, his breath shallow, limbs trembling, slowly let himself slump to the floor. The tiles were hard and cold, and he shivered in his sweat-drenched clothes. He stared across at the empty cubicle. Empty sterilization wrappers lay where they had been left.
"Are you ok?"
The robotic voice made him jump, and he looked up to find Mrs. Min standing next to him, her phone pointed in his direction. It took him a moment to understand she hadn't said the words, but the app had. He pinched his lips and nodded tentatively as if the movement was new to him. She said something else into her phone, which again translated for her.
"Help need you getting up?"
He would probably have laughed at the clunky sentence in any other situation, but he just shook his head. She nodded once and sighed, her eyes filled with compassion and pity for him. Then she went back to her husband's bedside.
With unsteady hands, Xiao Zhan got to his feet and staggered to Yibo's cubicle. He sat on one of the chairs and took out his phone. With a calmness he couldn't explain, he called Auntie Wang. It rang a few times before going to voicemail. No matter how many times he tried, the result was the same. Finally, giving up, he set the phone down and stared ahead. He had no idea how long he remained that way. His mind was utterly blank. Any attempt at thinking just led to static noise. Eventually, feeling the need to occupy himself, he got to his feet and started picking up the trash left by the nurses.
"You don't have to do this," said a soft female voice as his hand reached for a piece of plastic.
He straightened up and found himself facing Nurse Jang. She was slightly dishevelled, and her makeup was smudged around the eyes. However, she was now dressed in scrubs, her high-heels and dress long gone. She extended her upturned hand towards his. He looked at it, confused.
"Give it here," she said, gently taking the scraps from him. He let her.
She quickly shoved the lot in her pocket and then took his wrist.
"You should come with me," she said.
He shook his head and freed himself as if her small fingers had been burning like hot brands. He didn't like this kind version of Nurse Jang. Her gentleness dizzied him. It felt wrong. No. It meant that something was wrong. And that scared him more than her anger ever could.
"I have to stay here. Auntie Wang…"
"She's already here. I called her. Come," she said, as if to a small child.
She put a hand on his lower back and gave him a little push. He started to move.
Had he been asked how far or how long he'd walked, Xiao Zhan wouldn't have been able to answer. He was still in a daze when they reached a small windowless room furnished with comfortable chairs and a couch on which Auntie Wang sat, wringing her hands. She stood up as soon as she saw him.
"Xiao Zhan!"
She rushed to him and took his hands. Tears flowed down her face.
"Are you alright?"
He didn't have time to respond before she continued.
"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. Oh, Xiao Zhan! I should've stayed. I'm so sorry. I knew. I should've stayed… I should've told you…"
Her words soon devolved into sobs. She shook him, her grip on his hands so tight that it began to hurt.
"Auntie…" he said, unable to find anything else to say.
He tried to free himself, if not to hug her, at least to try to calm her down, but she held on.
"I should've told you," she wailed. "BoBo… BoBo…"
Nurse Jang, who'd stayed at a distance until now, stepped in, putting her hands atop Auntie Wang's and Xiao Zhan's.
"Auntie. Auntie. Look at me. Auntie," she said in a calm voice.
The older woman followed her command, tears still spilling onto her cheek uninterrupted.
"We have to calm down, alright? So we're going to let go of Mr. Xiao's hands, alright?"
"But I have to…" she protested.
Nurse Jang shook her head.
"I will tell him everything he needs to know. Alright? Let's just calm down now and sit."
Auntie Wang looked the other woman in the eyes and nodded, sniffling. She slowly released Xiao Zhan. As soon as she did, Nurse Jang took his place and put her hands in hers.
"Good, now let's sit down. Here, let me help you."
The nurse helped Auntie Wang sit back down. The latter immediately covered hid her face in the collar of her sweater and started to sob uncontrollably. Nurse Jang sat next to her and petted her back.
Xiao Zhan had witnessed the whole scene as if he'd been having an out-of-body experience. He couldn't reconcile himself with what had and was taking place. All this couldn't possibly be happening to him. This was all make-believe. They were pretending. Soon, someone would yell, "Cut!" and real life would resume. It had to.
"I have to go now," he heard himself say.
Spurred by an inexplicable urge to move, he turned away from this scene of grief and stepped out of the room. He had no destination in mind; he just walked. Nurse Jang immediately caught up with him and grabbed his wrist. This time, her grip was firm.
"Mr. Xiao, where are you going?"
He looked down at her.
"I…" he tried to think but hit a wall. Where was he going? "I don't know," he finally said, looking down into her eyes.
"Here."
She guided him to one of the chairs that lined the dimly lit hallway. He sat down, his body shivering lightly. She crouched in front of him and observed his eyes. Then, she took his wrist and, looking at a clock on the wall, she checked his pulse. He suddenly found the whole situation hilarious.
"Are my meridians ok, shizun? Will I lose my vital force?" he asked with a weird laugh.
She only sighed, her gaze moving from the clock to his eyes.
"You're in shock. Stay here."
As soon as she got up, he made to follow. She firmly pushed him back down in his seat.
"Stay," she repeated in an authoritative voice closer to what he was used to.
This time, he obeyed.
She was gone only long enough to get another nurse at Autie Wang's side and grab a blanket and some warm tea. When she returned to Xiao Zhan, he was in the same position she had left him in. She handed him the paper cup before covering him. She sat next to the man and, seeing that he was just holding the beverage, made him drink. She then took the cup out of his trembling hands and set it on the floor.
For a while, they sat, Auntie Wang's sobs the only sound breaking the silence. After a bit, they quieted down and finally stopped. In time, Xiao Zhan's body's tremors subsided, leaving him exhausted but also allowing his mind to slowly clear up and engage anew.
"What did she mean by 'I should've told you', " he asked, staring at the wall.
"I can only assume she meant she should have told you about the risks of the medicine they started giving Mr. Wang this morning."
He turned to her.
"What risks?"
She faced him.
"I don't know if you're aware Mr. Wang suffered from myocarditis in the past.
Xiao Zhan nodded. Yibo hadn't liked to talk about it because it brought back painful memories, but it was a well-known fact in the industry.
"The drug he was given this morning is very effective but can also have negative side effects in patients with heart conditions. The risks were minimal as Mr. Wang's heart was in good health and considered recovered. But no matter how advanced medical science is, there are still imponderables. We informed Mrs. Wang of the low possibility of an adverse reaction, and she agreed to the treatment knowingly. However, she asked us not to tell you. She didn't want to worry you. "
Xiao Zhan was left speechless, unable to deal with the mix of complex emotions her words had awoken. He could only continue to move forward with his inquiry.
"Back there. His heart…"
His face scrunched up, but he quickly composed himself anew. She nodded and put a hand on his forearm.
"His heart stopped. But Dr. Park restarted it."
Before Xiao Zhan could react, a nurse walked up to them and said something to Nurse Jang. The latter nodded and stood up.
"Dr. Park has news. Let's go."
In the small room, Xiao Zhan found Dr. Park talking to Auntie Wang, who stood supported by a nurse. Tears ran down her cheeks again, and her lips were tightly pressed together. The moment he saw her, he feared the worst. His vision darkened for a split second, and he had to right himself onto Nurse Jang to avoid collapsing to the floor. She helped him to the closest chair and, yet again, had him put his head between his knees. This time, however, no quip escaped her lips.
When Xiao Zhan had finally recovered, Dr. Park cleared his throat. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his face lacked the vivacity it usually exuded. He began to speak but stumbled over the words, his exhaustion proving too great for him to speak Mandarin. Finally, giving up, he addressed them in Korean, Nurse Jang interpreting for him.
"We have managed to stabilize Mr. Wang. However, he's still not out of danger. He suffered a short cardiac arrest, and although we've taken measures to minimize the risks of another episode, until the drugs are completely cleared from his system, the possibility remains. I also have to tell you that the epinephrine we used to restart his heart, although very small in dose, could lead to permanent cognitive damage. This is unlikely for various reasons I won't go into right now. However, as Mr. Wang's cognitive abilities were unknown before the administration of adrenaline, due to the head trauma and his current comatose state, it'll be challenging to ascertain the cause should there be permanent consequences. We will keep him under observation for the rest of the night. Nurse Jang or I will inform you should any change occur. I recommend you rest for now. "
With these words, Dr. Park gave the nurses some instructions and left the room.
With each word that had escaped Nurse Jang's mouth, Auntie Wang's demeanour had grown calmer and more composed. It was as if having exact knowledge had enabled her to quiet her mind and see the situation for what it truly was. On Xiao Zhan, however, Dr. Park's relayed words had had the opposite effect. His body had grown uncomfortably warm, and he had started sweating profusely. Moreover, the pain in his stomach had come back in full force, making him feel as though a red-hot poker had been thrust all the way through to his back. He was nauseated, and all his agitated mind could think of was that if Yibo didn't die tonight, he might wake up a completely different man, his mental capacities significantly reduced. The thought dizzied him.
Xiao Zhan stood up, breath shallow. He needed to get out of this small room where the walls appeared to slowly be closing in. As Nurse Jang had momentarily stepped out, following after Dr. Park and the other nurse was busy taking care of Auntie Wang, he made his escape unhindered. Once again, he didn't know where he was going. However, he knew what he was looking for this time: a bathroom.
Hospitals being designed with the sick in mind, it wasn't long before he found a restroom and was able to lock himself in. Then, as if his body had sensed that he was now safe from prying eyes, Xiao Zhan was assailed by a violent wave of nausea and retched in the sink.
When he finally emerged on the other side and looked up into the mirror, he was shocked to see that his pallid reflection had blood on its lips.
PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES 
kanmuriwrites
kanmuriwrites I started this chapter with a good idea of where it would go, yet it still managed to surprise me. Putting Xiao Zhan through this really took it out of me, and I was a bit shaky myself once I was done with the first draft.
**About the medical stuff**
As I’ve mentioned to a reader in the comments before, I’m not a doctor, nor am I even remotely connected to the medical field. (I hate hospitals.) So even tho I did quite a bit of research for the medical stuff in this chapter, I will probably have gotten something wrong.
Apparently, epinephrine can be administered straight to the heart through the chest if other ways are obstructed. It usually seems to be injected intra-muscularly, but nowhere I looked said where on the body exactly, so I had to improvise. The part about permanent brain damage is also true, although the research papers I skimmed seemed to say there were many variables involved.
Lastly, as for Yibo’s broken leg raised above the bed, I had first envisioned a sling hanging from the ceiling, but a little googling revealed that frames can be attached to hospital beds to support the slings. So, in case you thought I had forgotten about his poor leg, be reassured, I hadn’t. It didn’t get yanked, but at first, I almost had him kick Nurse Jang in the face. She’s probably glad I changed my mind, and he didn’t.
Happy readings!
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