Sian – 5:37 AM, Harborview Medical Center
The alarm on Sian's phone went off like a fire drill. She was already awake, sitting at the edge of her bed, tying her hair into a tight ponytail with shaking hands. Her white coat hung by the door, still a little too crisp, like it didn't belong to her yet.
Today was Day One.
She grabbed her badge—Lee, Sian, M.D., Intern—and whispered something half-prayer, half-pep talk in Korean before heading out into the still-sleepy streets of Seattle.
By 6:12 AM, she was standing in the residents' lounge, surrounded by other interns in various states of caffeine dependence and panic.
Dr. Jules Monroe, their supervising resident, walked in like he owned the hospital. "You're mine for the next six weeks," he said with a grin. "Surgery track. No screw-ups. No crying in the OR. No dying in the hallway. Questions?"
Silence.
"Good. Let's cut."
The day blurred into scrubs, scalpels, and patient charts. Her first patient coded by 8:00 AM. She didn't even know his name yet.
⸻
Koray – 9:03 AM, Velta Engineering HQ
Koray walked into the glass office tower with a black Americano in one hand and his phone in the other. He was already juggling a call from an angry manufacturing client in Munich and a spreadsheet full of budget overruns.
"Tell them if they want precision, they have to pay for it. This isn't a garage startup."
He hung up and stepped into the boardroom. Ten eyes turned to him—his leadership team, waiting. Most of them older. Most of them still unsure how a thirty-two-year-old built a multi-million-dollar tech-engineering firm out of solar panels and steel.
He liked the power. But some days, he missed Seoul's chaos. Its late-night ramen and rooftop cigarette talks with Sian. She was the only one who knew him before he became this version of himself.
His assistant popped in. "Your father called again. Wants to know about Leyla."
Koray rolled his eyes. "Tell him I'm dating a neurosurgeon. She yells at interns and hates Turkish tea."
His assistant blinked. "Seriously?"
"Dead serious."
⸻
Sian – 12:19 PM, Trauma Bay 3
"Incoming GSW, male, 24, unstable vitals!" someone shouted.
Sian felt her stomach tighten. Dr. Monroe pointed at her. "You're on suction. Don't choke."
The trauma bay became a hurricane of blood, shouted orders, and beeping machines. She was elbow-deep in chaos, barely breathing.
"Clamp. Suction. No—not there, Lee! Focus."
She corrected her angle, heart hammering.
Then, silence. The patient's pulse flatlined. Someone called time of death. She had never seen someone die right in front of her before. It was surreal. Like watching a door slam shut that couldn't be reopened.
She scrubbed out in silence. Her hands were still shaking when she stepped outside to breathe.
Koray texted.
Koray: How's Day One? Anyone died yet?
Sian: ...
Koray: Oh.
Koray: That was a joke.
Sian: Not funny.
He didn't reply for a few minutes. Then:
Koray: Meet me on the roof at 8 tonight.
Koray: Bring junk food. I'll bring whiskey.
⸻
Koray – 2:47 PM, Velta HQ
While three engineers argued over a heat sensor calibration on a drone model, Koray's mind wandered. He thought about how Sian had looked the other night—exhausted, but glowing with purpose.
He didn't understand hospitals. Blood made him faint in the military. But he understood drive. He understood loneliness inside ambition.
"Gentlemen," he interrupted, "if you can't agree, build both versions. Test them. Whichever one doesn't crash wins. Next problem?"
⸻
Sian – 7:56 PM, Hospital Roof
Sian stepped onto the rooftop, hair messy, coat wrinkled, and fingers clutching a plastic bag of potato chips and overpriced boba tea. Koray was already there, leaning against the railing, two tiny whiskey bottles in hand like he'd robbed a minibar.
"You look like hell," he said.
"I feel like hell."
"Want to talk about it?"
"No," she said, flopping down beside him. "But I want to sit here for a while and remember who I am."
They clinked plastic bottles. The sky over Seattle was bruised purple, the city blinking below like a tired machine.
Sian stared ahead. "I watched someone die today."
Koray didn't try to fix it. Didn't tell her she'd be fine. Just sat there.
And that was enough.
BẠN ĐANG ĐỌC
Tangled Fates
Lãng mạnThis story follows Sian Lee, a young doctor who recently moved from South Korea to Seattle to start her medical internship. As she navigates the intense world of hospital life, Sian faces not only the challenges of her demanding career but also the...
