MAPH 4

"Yuge-sensei, the patient..."

"Thank you. Iwamoto-san, please take a seat on that side. I am Yuge, your OB/GYN doctor."

"..."

Tailing behind the nurse, Taichi Iwamoto looks even bigger when he is standing. Is he taller than me? So muscular. He is probably twice as heavy as any of us, makes me a bit embarrassing to tell him to sit on a towel to control his bleed.

The man bows slightly, looking at me in silence. His lips are thick. Healthy youthfulness overflows from his entire body. His eyes appear to be those of someone strong and determined. While his neck is thick just like his arms and legs. When he sits down, the steel furniture makes a loud noise.

"Oh, first of all, sorry to keep you waiting."

"Why am I in OB/GYN department?" he pretends to fix the hospital gown he is wearing, but in the end, he ends up making an almost broken voice. It must be so frustrating. "I came in for hemorrhoids, but it's not? Shouldn't you at least give me something to stop the bleeding?" A sigh. "I really want to ask if this is a joke? Shouldn't I be somewhere else―emergency?"

I chug down all the saliva that has built up in me.

Calm down.

If you're afraid he won't have confidence in you.

"I'll explain everything, I promise. Before that, Iwamoto-san...do you have any change of clothes? Did you arrive by car or is there someone I can call? I'll lend you something if you want."

"I don't need it..." Iwamoto closes his eyes and says, "I've had enough. I just want to go home."

In an almost violent gesture, he pulls the towel off his head to reveal rather short black hair.

"All right. Just tell me already...what's wrong with me? You don't have to go easy on me."

This time he is definitely looking me in the eye.

I very very understand his feelings. I wouldn't be able to keep my cool either if I were taken to an OB/GYN department being a man. Iwamoto's tone and attitude are not pleasant, but I don't feel uncomfortable being with him.

"I'll explain with the image of your X-ray, Iwamoto-san."

All I can do for him is to give a clear and precise explanation.

* * *

Iwamoto is speechless.

It is natural.

He opens his eyes as if he can't believe any of my explanations. His lips begin to tremble. His face is pale. I mean, very very pale. But with an embarrassed look, somehow, his expression makes him look quite young. Is it because he has a pretty face? Or maybe it's just me who is an old man?

I have to go on.

"I haven't confirmed it for 100% certainty. But from the symptoms, it almost certainly is. It isn't a life-threatening disease. If we state that you are an MFUU, then that would explain the bleeding. It's normal and doesn't mean there has to be a change in your male function, nor should there be a change in your daily life... You are menstruating. That's it. And it will continue to occur a few days a month, just like in a female body."

"But what the hell...I'm sorry! I really can't believe it. Isn't it just a bowel disease?"

"I know you're very confused right now, but it's unlikely to be anything else."

"Is my body like a woman's?"

"Yes..."

"And that thing you said about me being able to get pregnant? It really is true?"

"Yes, you can give birth."

"Give birth..."

Iwamoto opens his mouth and looks into the void.

"But that doesn't mean it's something you have to do."

The furniture makes another loud noise when the guy turns around. There's no way a guy like me can handle a man as big as him.

"Why...why did this happen to me?"

Finally, Iwamoto drops his head in his hands. His sunburned neck is all exposed in front of me.

"Sensei, what is the cause?"

"I myself don't quite understand either."

"I...I'm not a man anymore?"

"No, you are a genuine man...It's just that your body has 'extra materials'. There's nothing wrong with it."

"There's nothing wrong? Are you serious? I have a uterus and I bleed. That's not what a man is supposed to be!" Iwamoto's face is distorted as if about to start crying. "I mean, what is this MFUU thing? It gives impressions as if I have no other choice but to mess with a man and give birth! I really, really..."

"No. That's not the case."

"No kidding! I don't want to be different!" Iwamoto shouts. But then, he looks down at the floor and continues to say something in a weaker voice, "Well, then what do I do? How do I cure it? How do I explain all this if I get a girlfriend later? I menstruate just like a woman. I can give birth to a child...I'm, I'm a freak."

When the MFUU concept was first discovered, a state broadcast appeared and several documentaries about it were also aired. I think MFUU is not as unknown to the public as Iwamoto thinks. Also, men with this condition don't lose anything functionally, they just gain new skills. Some people are motivated by the possibility of getting pregnant and having children of their own. They may even find it a blessing. Although I think few women may feel disgusted by it.

But that is my knowledge as an OB/GYN doctor. The world he sees is different from the world I see. His native environment has different knowledge. And if he gets a surprise, then it must be very hurtful.

"Iwamoto-san, as I said before, it's still just our speculation. We are saying what we know. Although it's very likely, I can still run other tests on you."

"Really?"

He smiles, but still looks like he can't hold back the crying.

"It was a bad day. I came in too fast so I forgot my insurance card. I've had a stomachache for a while now. Right in this part. It's strange..."

Unfortunately, to me, it still sounds like Iwamoto is talking about menstrual cramps.

It's hard for me to see a person in pain who looks as scared as he does. Well, the world has sanitary products and painkillers. But, it would be useless to just give him those because I have to check his physical condition first before he accepts the reality.

"Iwamoto-san. The possibility of another disease is low, but there is. Let's make sure. You are young, but there is a possibility of a tumor."

"Eh...?"

I gently rest a hand on his shoulder, to reassure him.

"I think it would be better to observe the prostate with real-time ultrasound. That way, you can be calmer."

"Ultrasound?"

"Yes."

"What kind of procedure is it, can it be done quick?"

Finally! I am relieved to see Iwamoto's face. It looks like the light is returning to him.

"With a rectal probe. Here we almost always do it vaginally though. Because basically, this procedure is very similar to the one performed on a woman. There is a special chair in the next room, you just have to lie down and put your legs on either side, okay? It's very simple and we'll be done soon."

I stand up, put my hand on Iwamoto's back. Trying to give the guy all the encouragement in the world. However, he stops moving completely. He is rigid and suddenly rejects me by giving me a strong push.

"Don't touch me!"

Right when my back is slammed against the wall, my breathing stops for a moment. Iwamoto takes off his gown and quickly puts on a pair of pants. The steel chair next to him falls making a truly terrible sound. His eyes meet mine, so sad that I truly regret everything I've said. He looks like a child scolded by his mom.

"You think I'm a freak...You did not think any different."

"Excuse me?"

"And now, you even want to put something inside me. You said the procedure is the same as in women."

"No, wait a minute..."

Iwamoto is crying.

It's normal for men to use anal ultrasounds for this kind of procedure. But he doesn't know that, of course. It is completely my mistake. I explained everything to him the same way I usually did, without remembering that he is a man with a special condition.

I want to apologize. I really want to comfort Iwamoto...

Then, I notice him wiping his cheeks quickly, over and over again as he tries to hide from me.

"...I'm not...I'm not..."

Iwamoto is in a state of complete stress.

"Wait, wait! My way of saying things wasn't..."

Just as I try to explain everything better, a rattling sound and several footsteps are heard. A guard and a nurse start to shout. Iwamoto is running away.

"Yuge-sensei, are you all right? You have a bump on your head."

"It's...code yellow."

The door opens vigorously. A well-built security guard looks at me and then looks down the hall.

"Let's get him."

"No. Be careful! He's a patient too."

"He's bleeding, Sensei!"

"No, he's..."

"He got away! He got through the door!"

Da*n it, what do you mean he got away?

I look down. Bloody towels are scattered on the floor...

My chest is now more painful than any bump I might have. Because, after all, there's nothing I can do right.

Code Yellow: non-immediate danger within the building but the staff needs to stay alert. Like a patient is wandering and/or missing.