Medical school was more difficult for Karin, though she very much enjoyed the subject matter. Now she was given the opportunity to work with real people and on real bodies. For the most part, her professors were kind and knowledgeable, though there was one older professor – Dr. Mikogi - that she didn't care for very much. She couldn't quite figure out how someone that miserable and sarcastic in real life could turn around and be a friendly, helpful doctor when it came to his patients.
One day, Karin sat in Professor Mikogi's class in the back row with her friend and fellow medical student Nagisa.
"….and that's why a diagnosis of epilepsy should be made as soon as possible," said the professor.
Karin turned to Nagisa and began to speak lowly back and forth.
"Ms. Kurosaki, is there something you'd like to share with the class?" Dr. Mikogi asked.
"Um, no, professor," she answered.
"Come, come now. You have a bad habit of challenging me, Ms. Kurosaki. At times, I think you think you know more than me. What is it this time?" he asked.
"Dr. Mikogi, I'm a bit confused. I read in one of the medical journals that a patient exhibiting the symptoms you described could have a number of issues with them, not just epilepsy," Karin replied.
"Yes, but with a diagnosis such as epilepsy, the tests that will be run immediately afterwards will immediately correct the misdiagnosis if it is truly not epilepsy. The epilepsy diagnosis will clear the way for the payment of the services by the insurance companies," said the professor.
"But is that ethical?" asked Karin. "Purposely diagnosing knowing the possibility of error just to get the expensive tests run?"
"Aahh, you've found the slippery slope, Ms. Kurosaki. That is medicine these days. You appear to still live in a world of doctors working in their own practices with all the resources they need available to them and no malpractice lawyers in sight," said the professor. "You must open your eyes to reality. Medicine is now more of a corporate entity. Doctors are sued all the time, even if they make an honest mistake or tests take longer than they anticipate."
"I refuse to believe it has to be that way," said Karin aloud to the class. "I know being a doctor isn't all it used to be. But many of us are here for the right reasons…because at the heart of it all, we want to help people."
Karin could have sworn she heard the professor cackle after she made that comment. "How naïve you seem, Ms. Kurosaki," he said. As his laughter died down, he dismissed the class for the day.
Karin and Nagisa gathered their textbooks and notebooks and started putting them in their backpacks.
"I can't believe you challenged him again," said Nagisa to her friend.
"I didn't mean to," said Karin. "He kind of drew me out. I think he'd end up picking on me in class no matter what. He drives me crazy with his pessimism and view of doctors in this world."
"At least this trimester is almost over," said Nagisa. "I can't wait for the next break."
"Oh, are you doing something interesting?" asked Karin as the two friends slowly walked out of the lecture hall towards the outside world.
"My parents are taking me to the US," said Nagisa. "My brother is an pre-med undergrad on the east coast there and he's going to arrange for me to tour a few facilities so I can see the difference between American medicine and Japanese medicine."
"Oh, that sounds so interesting!" said Karin. "You'll have to e-mail me and let me know how it goes."
"Do you have any plans?" asked Nagisa.
"Not yet. My boyfriend is probably coming to visit," said Karin. "I don't get to see him very often and we spend most of our time together during my breaks."
"Ah, I see," said Nagisa. "I'm impressed you can carry on like that while in medical school. My last boyfriend couldn't stand that I had no time for him and he broke up with me."
"I don't have that problem. Mine doesn't live near Karakura, so we hardly ever get to see each other unless it is on break. He pops in now and again, but it's not frequent. So it works out," explained Karin.
"The perfect relationship for a medical student," remarked Nagisa.
OlOlOlOlOlOlO
Karin got her first "C" grade ever in Dr. Mikogi's class. It should have been highly distressing to her, but she didn't like the guy and didn't like the message he was sending when he lectured. Isshin flipped out a bit when he saw Karin's grades, but Karin successfully calmed him down and got him to promise that he wouldn't go give the professor a "piece of his mind."
Still, the trimester was tough and Karin was mentally worn out from it. She had to admit that her rosy view of medicine and about it being about helping people was shattered albeit just a bit. Some of classmates had spoken about the subject as well and had seemed to adopt similar views as Dr. Mikogi. Some decided to stick with it, but others were affected enough that they decided to choose some other vocation altogether.
Toshiro showed up at the Kurosaki home the very next day. When he entered the house, Yuzu was busy making breakfast for her dad and sister.
"Mmmm, smells good," remarked Toshiro as soon as he walked in the door without knocking.
"Toshiro! You're back!" shouted Yuzu as she dropped her spoon in the pot and went over to hug him.
"Karin's here, right?" he asked. "I have it marked on my calendar that she should have gotten home yesterday."
"She's here, but she's still sleeping," said Yuzu. Then she smelled the slight odor of burning. "Oh!" she ran and retrieved the spoon from the pot and began stirring the eggs once again.
"Sleeping?" he said. "But it's nearly ten!"
"I wouldn't wake her up if I were you. For one, she kept saying how tired she was last night. Oh, and she got her first 'C' ever!" said Yuzu. "She wasn't in the best of moods last night – though I'm sure she'll feel better now that you are here."
"Is that so?" remarked Toshiro. "I'll just let her sleep then."
There was peace in the Kurosaki household for the next half hour….then Isshin Kurosaki decided to wander up to the residence from the clinic to see what, if anything, was going on.
"Toshiro Hitsugaya! It's been awhile!" he said a little too loudly.
"Hi Isshin," answered Toshiro flatly. He was busy reading the local newspaper at the kitchen table after he had finished with Yuzu's breakfast.
"How are things in the Soul Society? Any gossip to share today? How's my son anyway? He hardly ever comes home anymore…" asked Isshin.
"No, no gossip. I don't really see Ichigo all that much…he is usually hanging out with squad 6, 11 or 13," answered Toshiro.
Karin emerged from her bedroom and walked to the top of the stairs. She rubbed her eyes as she was still mostly asleep. "Dad, can't you let me sleep for once," said Karin. "Every time I come home…," she started. Then she saw Toshiro. She ran towards him and they met in-between and hugged each other tightly.
"Awww," said Isshin seeing his daughter and the Shinigami hug.
"I missed you Toshiro," she whispered into his ear.
"Me, too," he whispered back.
"Ok, break it up you two," said Isshin.
The couple broke apart, both with smiles on their mouths.
"I need to get something eat," Karin noted. "I can smell Yuzu's cooking but by looking at the time, I probably missed breakfast, huh."
"There are lots of leftovers," said Yuzu. "I knew you'd want some when you finally woke up." Yuzu started getting the food ready for Karin as she sat down at the table.
"You slept a long time," noted Toshiro. "I was beginning to think you were never going to get up."
"Sorry," she said. "I guess I needed the rest. This trimester from hell is finally over and I guess I just crashed."
"Trimester from hell? That's not like you to say something like that," said Toshiro. "What was so bad?"
"Oh, lots of things. During my entire four years as an undergrad and even the first year or two in med school, everyone seemed to be going into medicine for the right reasons. Our professors and mentors were cool and seemed very knowledgeable. But this last semester, all the bad stuff about being a doctor started to come out," said Karin.
"Aww, it can't be that bad," added Isshin from the living room couch, eavesdropping as usual. "I'm a doctor after all."
"Yeah Dad, but you are in charge of your own clinic. I hate to say it, but medicine is turning more corporate and money is becoming more important. You still do it for the right reasons and you actually care about the people you treat," said Karin.
"I guess you're right, hon," Isshin answered. "They've been saying that the neighborhood clinic is going by the wayside at some of the conferences I've attended. Pretty soon you won't have a choice but to work for the big corporations."
"So what does all this mean?" asked Toshiro. "Are you questioning becoming a doctor? If you aren't, it sure kind of sounds like you are."
"I'm probably just tired," said Karin. Then she laughed lowly to herself. "It's nothing; don't pay any attention to me." She didn't want to talk about it anymore.
Toshiro's mind was churning. All this time he had already imagined Karin loving medicine and wanting nothing more than to become a doctor. Now it seemed she was questioning it all. Was it a passing phase? Or was she serious? Then an idea popped into his head….
"Isshin, what are you watching?" asked Toshiro.
"Some stupid game show," Isshin answered.
Toshiro feigned interest and left the table to take a seat next to Isshin in the living room.
"I need to talk to you," was the first thing he said, low enough so that Karin could not hear.