dical Center.
Hallway.
redith and Liz leaned against the wall, slumped on a gurney, staring blankly ahead. Both of them looked drained, their moods in the gutter.
Adam walked up.
"redith, you worked on a TTTS case this afternoon?"
TTTS—twin-to-twin transfusion syndro. A rare condition where twins sharing a placenta are connected by blood vessels, but the balance is off: one gets too much blood, the other too little. It's dangerous for both.
Sheldon often joked about how he should've taken out his twin sister, Missy, back in the womb, but that was a flawed flex. For one, he probably couldn't have beaten her—Missy would've laid him out with a swift kick to the jewels. And two, if sothing like TTTS had hit, trying to hog more nutrients might've ended with both of them toast.
Separating the twins' blood vessels is insanely tricky, so TTTS is usually untreatable—unless you've got a top-tier OB-GYN. Enter Dr. Montgory, Shephard's wife. Surgical Chief Richard had invited her for two reasons. First, he knew Shephard was ssing around with intern Grey—redith—and as the boss, he hated seeing hospital rules broken. Plus, Montgory was his friend, and he didn't want their marriage to tank, so he figured she could reel Shephard in. Second, they'd just admitted a pregnant patient with TTTS, and Montgory was the best in the ga.
Bringing in elite doctors to boost the hospital's rep? That was Richard's job. When Shephard confronted him, he had a rock-solid excuse. Business is business!
"Yeah, I did," redith said, her voice flat. No trace of the excitent you'd expect from assisting on a surgery that big.
What a waste! Adam thought. If it were him—cluelessly getting cozy with a hotshot doctor's wife, only for her to slap him with a rare, high-level procedure and demand he scrub in—he'd be over the moon. Sign
up for a dozen of those!
"So, how'd it go?" Adam asked, swallowing his inner comntary. "Give
the surgery details."
"You only care about the surgery details!" Liz cut in, glaring at him. "Don't you get redith's situation? Don't you care how she's feeling?"
"Alright, my bad," Adam said, raising his hands in surrender. Then he pivoted, all concern: "redith, how'd you feel during the surgery? What did Dr. Montgory do—every move—what ran through your head?"
"…" Liz's face darkened.
"I'm fine," redith said, forcing a tough front. "I'm good."
"Glad to hear it," Adam nodded, then got serious again. "So, what was Dr. Montgory doing when you felt that? Oh, I bet it was when she made the incision, right?"
"…" redith's fake smile cracked. Sure, the patient had ripped into her with snide remarks and public humiliation, but she wasn't petty enough to feel glee over Montgory cutting into soone.
"Okay, enough about my feelings—let
just tell you the surgery details!" redith blurted, cutting Adam off before he could ask another nerve-jangling question. She launched into it: "We started with a laparoscopy, using a thin blade for a three-milliter incision… The surgery went perfectly. You know what I felt then? Watching her, so focused, I forgot she was Shephard's wife—my rival. Forgot the hostility. I just stared, totally caught up in it. It hit —my aunt used to say all the ti: 'It's always the n and their brothers' fault, never us won. Never!'"
"Heh," Adam chuckled, satisfied with the detailed rundown. Then her last bit sank in, and he couldn't hold back a laugh.
"What's so funny?" redith snapped. "You don't think it's the n and their brothers' fault?"
"Nah, not that," Adam grinned. "I'm just thinking—you were so srized by her focus, saying it's all the n's fault, never the won's, ever? Sounds like you might've awakened your inner lesbian. If that's the case, you two could ditch Shephard and live your own legendary love story."
"I'm here for it!" Liz chid in. "n are unreliable anyway—that's why so many won are going full-on lace-curtain these days."
Adam shot her a sideways glance, wondering: Is this solidarity with redith, or is Alex about to transition, and Liz is laying the groundwork for her own lace-curtain era…?
"I just admire her skill and authority," redith said, shaking her head. "And her courage."
"Courage?" Adam raised an eyebrow. "How so?"
"After the surgery, Mrs. Phillips—the patient—lost it," redith said, her expression tangled. "She didn't want
anywhere near her. Montgory could've piled on, but instead, she shut her down. Said it wasn't my fault, that she wouldn't have had my grace or patience. Said it wasn't
or her husband cheating—it was her who cheated first. Told Mrs. Phillips she owed
an apology."
"She actually said that?" Liz's jaw dropped.
"Yeah," redith nodded.
Whoa. This redheaded doctor had so serious guts. Adam was impressed.
"So, are they divorced or what?" Liz asked, still confused.
"No idea," redith said, lost.
"Definitely not," Adam said, breaking it down. "If they were, this whole scene wouldn't be happening. From what we know, it sounds like Shephard found out Montgory cheated, stord off in a rage, and she showed up two months later—probably after he'd cooled off—to patch things up."
"Then what's redith in all this?" Liz asked, indignant.
"Probably a tool to smooth things over with Shephard," Adam said matter-of-factly. "Otherwise, no woman—well, most won—would treat their husband's mistress like this…" He didn't say the rest out loud: redith should know—she's the queen of using tools herself.
redith froze.
A tool? ?
Just then, a sweet lody floated in through the window—soone strumming a guitar.
"Hold
close and hold
tight,
Whisper softly by my side,
Life blooms sweet like roses bright.
Kisses deep, the heavens sigh,
Eyes shut tight, my heart's alive,
Life blooms sweet like roses high.
When you stord into my soul,
Joy flowed free like rivers roll,
Roses blossom, full and whole.
Soft words hum, angels take flight,
Daily chatter turns to rhy,
Stay with , body and mind,
Life will bloom like roses, ti after ti."
The song—"La Vie en Rose"—was sung with a aching, tearful beauty. Everyone who heard it stopped in their tracks, mouths shut, ears tuned in. The woman's voice carried a sadness so raw it hit straight to the core.
Adam just zoned out a bit, lost in it.
redith and Liz, though? They were already sobbing…
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