“Hey,” he says, offering a small but real grin.“Good to see you.”
“You too.How’s everything been?”
“Same old.”He shrugs.“They heard about you and Harrison.”
“Yeah,” I groan.“Apparently, good news spreads faster than an infection here.”
“The media’s definitely eating it up.”He grins.
“I’m guessing I’ll be old news soon,” I reply.“Honestly?Fine by me.”
But even as I say it, I know I’m lying a little.
Because being back here, being with Brant again, isn’t just news.
It feels like coming back to myself.
I used to care what people thought, especially Dad.His approval felt like everything.And at the beginning, everything felt fragile and new.So in my head, the issue was always about work, his job more than mine.But not anymore.
As I step onto the ward, I hear a low voice behind a privacy curtain.
“He acts like he’s better than everyone,” someone mutters.“I don’t get it.Why does he think he can boss me around when he’s the freakingnurse?”
My eyebrows lift.I pause at the curtain.
“Ordering me around like I’m stupid or something,” she continues.“I hate it.”
Before I can stop myself, I say, “Everything alright in here?”
There’s a sharp inhale.Then the curtain whips open, revealing a young intern… wide-eyed, cheeks already flushing red.
“Oh, my God.Dr.Thomas, I—”
I give her a small grin.“Don’t worry.Secret’s safe with me.”
She laughs awkwardly.“It’s not really a secret.He just gets under my skin.”
“Fair enough,” I say with a small smile.“We’ve all been there.”
As I walk away, I realize that I’ve missed this.The banter, the drama, the not-so-subtle venting between shifts.I’ve missed the people, too… Dad, Scarlet, the other residents.There’s something about being back that feels so different from New York.
Like I’ve come home to a big, nosy, but supportive family.
And that?That’s a pretty good feeling.
Mason catches up with me, and we dive straight into patient rounds.I reintroduce myself like a new face and tell patients I’ll be their doctor during the day shift for the next couple of days.It feels good to say it.
“Tomorrow, I’ll be with Harrison, doing inpatients,” I tell Mason as we move room to room.“He still likes to handle some of them.”
“Not many, though,” Mason replies.“You’ll be taking on most of it soon.”
“Yeah, I heard.Days I’m with you, we’ll split the load, right?”
He nods.“And a couple months from now, you’ll have your own office, your own caseload.Everything.”
That thought makes a mixture of excitement and terror flutter in my chest.
I turn a corner and practically collide with my dad.
