Stay!

"We would like to announce the blizzard warning that is expected to come this evening. Make sure you've prepared all the necessary supplies before the weather gets worse and...."

The announcement was blaring on his ears from the car radio, but Lucas didn't seem to pay any attention. His eyes were focused on the road as he stepped deeper on the gas, accelerating the speed while trying his best not to crash. It was slippery and snowing, but he didn't have enough patience to drive carefully.

A few minutes ago, he received a text from Jeannette. He immediately knew it was bad news since that girl never texted him personally, ever. Luckily, he was just released from the operating room after a long, long surgery session when the text arrived. He was starving, he couldn't feel his feet, and then his mood was worsened by Jeannette's message.

'Hi, Lucas! It's Jeannette. I'm sorry for bothering you... I just want to tell you that Athy was going down with a fever and almost passed out at the ballet rehearsal earlier. We had brought her to the infirmary, and she's alright now. She told me not to say anything to you, but I was a little worried since I couldn't stay with her long after I sent her home. Maybe you can visit her tonight and check up on her? Of course, if you're not busy, though. Thanks,"

Upon reading the name 'Athanasia,' he immediately didn't waste any second and dashed to his car without even thinking.

Sometimes, he regretted leaving college so soon and started his residency program right away.

Last year, he got the special track offering to finish his med school early so he could immediately jump into the residency and fellowship program. It would enable him to shorten the amount of time he needed to finally become a fully-fledged cardiothoracic surgeon, a chance that everyone else would kill for. Usually, people would need at least four years to finish medical school; but since he was considered a prodigy, he could cut it all down to 2 years only.

But anyway, graduating early, of course, had a lot of downsides, especially for Lucas. His budding relationship with his childhood friend, Athanasia, had to be put on hold due to his packed schedules and demanding works. He didn't even have any time for romance. Last year, he was busy speeding up his theoretical learnings and preparing for exams every week. Ever since he started being a resident (the youngest one, too), he had been buried in mountains of works and further studies. Lately, he felt like he was losing all the fun of being twenties...

And all the fun being around Athanasia.

Athanasia, the girl he'd been in love with for a while now.

As the only closest friend he had, that girl had been very supportive of his fast-track program. She told him that he was too smart to be enrolled in the regular program, which was probably why he was feeling extremely bored all the time.

"You know what, your intelligence isn't normal, Lucas. Do you ever consider going to the psychologist? Getting your IQ checked? Maybe getting a recommendation to make sure you're not going mad because everything seems too boring for you?"

That was what she always said.

So, when Lucas finally stopped whining about him being bored, all thanks to the brutal schedule of his fast-track studies, Athy said she felt kind of relieved but lonely at the same time. Suddenly, Lucas wasn't always there to annoy her in the name of him being incredibly bored.

A familiar condo building finally came to his vision. He used to also live in the same building when he still attended the classes, but he moved out recently to live closer to the hospital he was working in.

Should I consider just living back here instead? Maybe I could get more chances to meet her on the regular? Lucas wondered as he arrived and parked his car in the basement. He hurriedly searched for something inside his backpack and pulled out a plastic card; it was a backup access card to Athy's flat and private lift.