"It's okay."
"I'll give Grandpa and Grandma my phone number."
"When your mom and dad come back, just have your grandparents call me."
"Okay?"
The doctor smiled at the child.
She made it sound as if coming by that evening were no different from an ordinary visit.
The child nodded instinctively.
Then, as if he remembered something, he looked at his grandparents.
His grandparents nodded at him.
The child grinned. "Okay."
Grandfather Yu left the room with the child.
Once the door closed, Grandma Yu looked at the doctor. "Doctor, Lele..."
The doctor's expression grew a little more serious. "Let's see if we make any progress tonight."
"Mm."
Grandma Yu nodded.
"Doctor..."
Grandma Yu couldn't help clenching her fingers.
"Lele..."
"He'll be all right, won't he?"
Her eyes were full of hope.
"..."
The doctor sighed inwardly.
She couldn't give the old woman a definite answer.
Mental health issues were difficult to predict...
And the child's behavior just now made it hard to feel optimistic.
"We'll see how things go tonight."
The doctor's vague reply made Grandma Yu's heart sink.
The doctor could only pretend not to notice the disappointment on Grandma Yu's face.
There was nothing else she could do.
People gradually learned to... temper their words.
When she'd first become a doctor, she'd been especially confident with patients. She wanted to demonstrate her abilities and earn the trust of patients and their families...
She wanted to put their families at ease...
She tended to give definite answers.
Because of that...
She'd learned some hard lessons.
The one she remembered most vividly...
was when a patient's family member had cursed her to her face...
She'd given the patient's family hope.
But things hadn't turned out as well as she'd