SHE | alex karev

chapter one

Now, as she recognized her surroundings, her breath hitched in her throat. This was her first ever operating room.

Billie spun around as if she didn't have enough eyes to check out everything she wanted to see, from the table to the surgical tools to the seats displayed through the glass on the OR gallery. She pictured herself in seven years as an attending, holding a scalpel, ready to cut someone open. The thought made her hands itch with desire and suddenly, she was stripped down of all the nerves, the anxiety, and the carelessness she previously felt, leaving her bare, with only her own enthusiasm to cover her naked necessity.

She held her breath and finally met eyes with Chief Webber. He met her gaze as well, and his eyes seemed to somewhat linger a little bit longer on her, his face flashing briefly with what Billie mistook as confusion, but was actually recognition.

Ivory LeBlanc's daughter. He'd know her anywhere.

The moment did not last long. Soon, Webber shook himself off and was speaking again.

"The seven years you spend here as a surgical resident will be the best and worst of your life. You will be pushed to the breaking point," he said. "Look around you. Say hello to your competition."

As in cue, everybody's eyes moved from the room around them to the people in it. Billie didn't pay much mind to the other interns, knowing she was here only for a sole purpose and competition was the least of her problems, but still, she couldn't help but admire a little.

"Eight of you will switch to an easier specialty. Five of you will crack under the pressure. Two of you will be asked to leave. This is your starting line, this is your arena," Webber added. "How well you play? That's up to you."

☆

After a tour around the hospital, the interns were all taken to the locker room. Billie had already picked out a comfortable locker for herself and was now making it her job to change into her scrubs without catching anyone's eye, but that was turning out to be harder than expected. Mostly because Alex had chosen the locker across from her and he now couldn't stop glancing at her over his shoulder, wearing simply a tank top and his scrub pants, which made it real hard for her to concentrate.

However, aside from that, Billie hadn't really talked to anyone yet. A beautiful blue-eyed, blonde woman had picked the locker right next to her and seemed friendly enough to approach, but she did not yet feel quite as comfortable in this atmosphere, so she was waiting (for what?, she did not know).

As she did so, Billie hastily removed her t-shirt, revealing a simple black sports bra (her favorite, hadn't yet washed it in about two weeks). But, much to her disgust, she was not able to properly toss on her light blue scrub top before she heard a whistle that called her attention. Once she was properly covered, she turned around and met eyes with none other than Alex himself, who winked scanned her over and winked.

Well, so much for that friendship.

"For Christ's sake," she mumbled under her breath, shaking her head in disbelief.

Much to her oblivion, the blonde woman next to her had also turned around to glare at the responsible for the whistle, and so had the woman two lockers away (Asian-featured, with wild brunette curls).

"Tell me about it," the blonde one huffed.

"Don't be surprised," the Asian woman spoke up as well.

Billie shook her head and slipped into her white lab coat. "Only six women out of twenty, can you believe it?"

"Yeah. I hear one of them's a model," the first answered, tucking her bag into her locker. "Seriously, that's gonna help with the respect thing?"

Billie snorted and slammed her locker shut with little care.