“You’re Korean!” my mother said, switching to her native language as soon as she saw his name tag. Luckily, she was still signing, or I might not have understood.
I surreptitiously looked him up online as they shared small talk about his parents, who had immigrated here back in the 80s. According to the internet, this guy was the best oncology surgeon in Texas. Not Dallas—the whole state of Texas. In fact, from what I could tell, he worked out of a hospital in Houston.
There were a bunch of sentimental stories online about how he’d saved one person or another from certain death by cutting out malicious tumors and cancerous tissues. Many of these grateful people had driven and flown in to Houston from other states and countries to have him perform their surgeries.
But here he was in Dallas. I wasn’t even sure how he’d gotten privileges at this hospital.
Actually, I was sure.
I looked over to where Victor stood on the other side of the bed, impassively watching my mother’s hands as she spoke with the doctor. With the view of Dallas framing him from behind, he looked like an all-powerful titan of the industry. Untouchable and cold.
Yet, here he was, going above and beyond to help someone I loved…again. Confused thoughts swirled around my head, trying to settle on how I should feel about all of this. And Victor.
Dr. Kim had a warm bedside manner, and my mother visibly calmed down as he went through the procedure with her. After he finished his explanation, he asked in English, “Do you have any questions?”
“Yes,” my mother answered, also in English. Her voice was gravely serious. “I noticed the rainbow flag pin on your lapel. Does that mean you’re gay? If so, I have a son. Very handsome police officer. And he dates men sometimes.”
“Mom…” I warned. But then, I made the mistake of glancing over at Victor. His shoulders were shaking with silent laughter, and I had to clamp my lips to keep from doing the same.
The doctor blushed. But then admitted, “I am gay. But I’m already dating someone.”
My mom looked legit disappointed. “That is too bad. I would forgive Byron for liking men, too, if he married a doctor like you. Are you happy with this other man? He’s probably not as handsome as my son. Here, I’ll show you a picture so you can see.”
“Wow. Mom, please stop,” I snatched her phone away before she could shove my brother’s picture in poor Dr. Kim’s face. I’m pretty sure he hadn’t come here from Houston to get bombarded with my mom’s dating schemes.
Dr. Kim laughed good-naturedly and told her that he’d see her upstairs for surgery.
“Mom, tell me you didn’t,” Byron signed-said when she FaceTimed with him about fifteen minutes before she was due to go upstairs.
I noticed that she was careful to keep the room beyond the hospital bed out of the frame as she spoke with my brother. That meant Byron couldn’t see Victor, who was sitting on the couch.
“I did!” she answered, her tone belligerent and self-righteous. “At this point, it’s the only way I’m going to get a doctor in this family!”
Byron took her ribbing with his usual good nature. And after they talked for a few minutes, he asked her to give the phone to me. I also made sure nothing beyond mom and me made it into her Android’s frame. Yep, we were still a family that kept everything from each other.
“Thanks for going down there to be with her,” Byron said. “I would be there if I could, too.”
“Seriously, it was no problem.” This lie slipped off my tongue easier than any of the other ones I’d told over the past few years. I glanced at Victor on the couch. “I’m just glad I could be here.”
“Me, too. Plus, you and Mom are good now, right?” he asked as if our nine-year silence had just been a ripple in our family pond.
Nonetheless, I answered, “Yes, I think so.”
After a few more moments of small talk, Byron made me promise to call him after the surgery and we hung up.
I was glad we got the chance to talk with him together. He’d sounded so relieved.
But the smile fell off my face when I saw how scared and small my mother looked in the hospital bed.
She had seemed relaxed and in a good mood when she was talking to Byron. But I guess that was just a mask she was putting on for her baby son.
“Mom, everything is going to be all right,” I said-signed to her.
She shook her head, her eyes shining with fear. “I haven’t been in a hospital since I got my implant. What if they put me under, and I don’t wake up? I’ll never see either of you again. Or your father.”
