Youngsoo looked at Haru with both confusion and disgust as her comment seemed very unusual for the dazzling man they were looking at.
"Mr. Who?" Haneul asked again, just in case she hadn't heard right.
"He's the patient from the ER!" Haru said, "Why didn't I notice before?"
"But last night you said you saw him on TV." Haneul said.
"Oh my God, Haneul." Haru clenched her teeth. "I asked the patient if he ever showed up on TV or not."
"Wait girls, what is this about?" Youngsoo interrupted.
Haneul snatched her phone away and looked at Yeom Tae again. She recalled Haru had just told her that the patient appeared in formal clothing. That was 3 hours before their meeting too, the man was dressed formally indeed.
"Haru…" Haneul gulped. "What were his symptoms?"
"Uh," Haru cleared her throat. "He had whooping diarrhea, nausea, constant stomach pains along with headaches. His BP was slightly high and his temp was normal. Why?"
"What did you prescribe him?" Haneul asked.
"Loperamide, what else?" Haru shrugged.
"We had cream pasta last night…"
A sudden silence grew among the friends. Haneul and Haru, staring at each other, absolutely devastated and desperate that a patient probably had a rough night while Youngsoo was left as confused as ever.
"My birds answer more clearly than you guys." Youngsoo muttered amidst the tension.
The stares only became more intense, with Youngsoo being ignored. The only thing they could hear were the clattering of the kitchen and the gossiping of the customers in the crowded restaurant. Their table at the end, nowhere near the center of attention and as quiet as a library.
"Choi Haru." Haneul gulped.
"Kim Haneul." Haru gulped.
"What do we do?"
Youngsoo shrugged visibly so the girls would explain to him too but they just kept sharing glances at each other.
"Now you guys are doing it on purpose." Youngsoo laid back in chair, giving up trying to know anything.
"Do you have his phone number?" Haru asked as she stood up suddenly.
Haneul processed her question for a while before swiftly nodding. She quickly scrolled through the contacts in her phone, trying to search for Yeom Tae but she found none. She even typed it out but there was no contact of that name.
"Are you sure you guys exchanged numbers?" Haru asked, overlooking her phone.
Haneul gasped. There it was, the awakening. How could she have forgotten about the highlight of last night's interaction?
She quickly searched for 'Future Husband', making Haru cough as she stared at her phone.
"No way." Haru blinked several times.
Haneul looked at Haru's flustered face. "I-It was him who set it up… Do I call him?"
"I mean, if you don't want him to die, yes?" Haru shrugged.
It was chaotic. The waiter had arrived at their table with their order. Oh the scent of black bean noodles along with spicy seafood noodles paired with the heavenly crispy sweet and sour pork only made the girls nauseous as the stress in the air was thicker than the scent of the food.
Haneul sluggishly pressed on the call button and let it ring. While she wanted him to pick up right away, she also felt nervous. She shook her head in harmony with the rings of the phone. She was calling him as a doctor, not as his future wife.
"Hello?" A husky voice from the phone spoke.
His voice felt different every single time she heard it. She almost forgot to reply back but Haru loudly cleared her throat.
"H-Hello, Yeom Tae." Haneul hesitantly replied back, without honorifics, surprising both Haru and Youngsoo.
"Missing me already?" His voice wavered, as if he was getting up from somewhere, possibly lying down.
"No." The doctor in Haneul spoke. "Yes, I mean." She shook her head awkwardly. "No…" She shut her mouth in embarrassment.
His soft chuckles followed right after, very attractive to listen to but filled with different tones, mostly tones of weariness.
Frustrated by the shy Haneul, Haru snatched the phone from Haneul's hand and brought it next to her ear.
"Hello, Mr. Bowel Movements." She started off dynamically, embarrassing Haneul further. "I am your doctor from yesterday, the one in the ER."
"Oh." He suddenly seemed alarmed.
"Did you take the medicine I prescribed you?" She asked professionally.
"Yes." He replied.
"Did you also eat cream pasta later?" She asked.
He coughed. That was a blunt yes. Their conversation was fluid. Haru looked up at Haneul and returned her phone.
"Your turn." She muttered.
Haneul received the phone and put it against her ear.
"Yeom Tae, how are you feeling now?" Haneul asked. "If you were sick, you should've let me know."
"It's discourteous of me to call off the dinner like that." Yeom Tae replied. "And I'm alright now."
"Are you sure?" Haneul asked.
Yeom Tae cleared his throat. "Well…"
"You should see the doctor again." Haneul said.
"Can I see you?" He asked.
Haneul paused for a while. Why was he so good at talking? She quickly shook her head. This was serious.
"No. I am a pediatrician." Haneul said. "It's better to see a gastroenterologist." She added.
"If I was a child with the same issue, would you have seen me then?" He asked.
"Depends." Haneul replied. "Go to a General Practitioner if you don't want to see a specialist."
"It's not that bad." He chuckled. "But don't worry, I'll see someone."
"Thank you." Haneul said, her two friends eyeing her down. "Yeom Tae, I'll call you back later. Take care."
"I'll be waiting." Yeom Tae replied.
Haneul quickly ended the call and exhaled.
"You're in love." Youngsoo said.
Haneul confusedly looked at him, before looking straight at the glass door of the restaurant behind them. Her reflection was clear, with her poppy red cheeks being the most prominent color to be reflected.
"I'm not." Haneul denied, sitting down. "It's the hot black bean noodles for me."
"Let's eat up." Haru chuckled.
Such chaos, even their food was chaotic.