Miho the Killer
Chapter 32: Miho’s Condition

Chapter 32: Miho’s Condition

After the talk about my own test results and experiences was over, I finally changed the topic to Miho.

"Dr. Yang, there is something I wanted to ask - something that’s not directly about myself."

The kind doctor didn’t even look at the watch and told me.

"Please go ahead. We can talk as long as you feel it is needed."

By this time my cynicism died out and my heart opened up to Dr. Yang. I would have normally thought that a doctor like her would just try to hold on to the patient as long as possible so she could charge more for consultation, but now I felt that she was genuinely interested in helping.

"I brought a list of medicine that... erm... I wanted to learn something about it. Could you have a quick look, please?"

"Oh? What is this for?"

"My good friend is taking them but she wanted a second opinion to see if these medicines were appropriate prescriptions for her."

"Well, I would not want to meddle with another doctor’s patient, especially when I have met the patient myself. So my ’second opinion’ would be meaningless, Ms. Han."

I looked at Dr. Yang’s lips nervously, hoping that further words would come out from them.

"But... I suppose I can give you general information on the medicines."

"Thank you, Doctor."

Then I handed over the list to the helpful woman.

"Ok, let me see... Quetiapine, benzodiazepine, and aripiprazole...."

"What do you think?"

"This is not the full list, is it?"

I suppose real doctors would pick on such things.

"It’s just what she could remember."

"Right. Just from the look of it, and I really have to stress that this is general information, not patient specific - I would say these are for someone with either bipolar disorder or schizophrenia as well as major depressive disorder."

The depressive disorder didn’t seem to fit Miho from what I have seen of her and my layman’s understanding of ’depression’, but it seemed both bipolar and schizophrenia could be the case for Miho. If I were to place a bet on it though, considering that I’ve never seen Miho show any sign of delusions or hallucinations before her head injury, I was leaning toward bipolar disorder.

"What would it imply if it were bipolar disorder? And what if she stops taking these medicines without approval from her doctor?"

"That would be highly objectionable. If she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, without the medicine she could experience extreme and uncontrollable mood swings. Contrary to what people might think, this doesn’t mean she’d be depressed in the morning and full of extreme energy in the evening. Cycles often last weeks or even months. However, it is also possible for a patient to experience both mania and depression simultaneously. Stopping the medication without doctor’s supervision can lead to severe problems."

Gotcha.

"Right, thank you, Dr. Yang. I need to tell you just one thing more though."

"Yes?"

"These are the medications list given to me by Jin Miho, your patient."

Dr. Yang realized what I made her do. She took off her glasses, frowned, and rubbed her eyes followed by a double face palm.

"I will add another trait to your test result. Manipulative."

"But Dr. Yang, she’s in serious need of help. You said it yourself, not taking the medication can lead to severe problems."

"Sigh... and knowing Ms. Jin, ’severe’ for her is not the same as ’severe’ for others."

I wasn’t sure how she much knew about the ’real’ Miho, but in any case she probably wasn’t wrong.

"But Ms. Han. I still must tell you that I cannot prescribe you medicine for someone else. The patient has to be here. It’s the law. Unless-"

"I have the authorization letter and ID card from the patient herself."

"You had it prepared all along, haven’t you?"

I presented her with the letter and Miho’s ID card, which was probably a fake one she’d been using for this particular clinic.

"Please. You know that she received a serious head injury and cannot visit here in person."

"Couldn’t she get them from the hospital where she’s staying?"

"She’s staying with me. She does not need an operation or hospitalization anymore, but she’s recovering at home."

"Yet not in good enough condition to make the visit herself."

"Exactly."

Dr. Yang put her glasses back on.

"Legally, procedure wise... yes, we can do it. But I would like to see Ms. Jin as soon as she is able to move."

"Thank you so much."

I bowed deeply in sincere appreciation and got up to leave. Dr. Yang stopped me just before I closed the door behind me.

"Ms. Han-"

"Yes, Doctor?"

"Please don’t do this again. We need to establish some level of trust between us. It seems Ms. Jin is very close to you - despite what I saw here last time. I would appreciate it very much if you kept your word and brought her here."

"Yes. You have my word for it."

After that, I had to wait a little to receive Miho’s medication, which seemed to include more pills than the three that were listed by the poor girl back home.

"Could I have the prescription list for it as well?" I asked the receptionist.

"Sure."

Right, now even if something goes wrong with Dr. Yang - although I sincerely hoped it would not - we could secure correct medication for Miho.

I took an elevator to the basement where Shin waited in a car, and as soon as I got in I asked the old man.

"Do you know if Miho sees any hallucinations or has cognitive problems?"

"What are you talking about? She doesn’t do drugs. It dulls the senses. It’s a career suicide."

"Is she delusional?"

"Well, she certainly is. Thinking that she can get any job done and keep this up forever."

"Not that kind of delusion."

"Beats me. What are you onto? A little talk with the shrink suddenly made you an expert?"

"Don’t be so sarcastic. This is important. Do you know if she has exceptional mood swings?"

That made Shin immediately chuckle, letting down his guard.

"Like nobody I’ve ever seen."