Beep beep.
Beep beep.
While everyone was chatting, Christina's pager went off again, buzzing at her waist.
"Damn it! This never ends!"
Christina shoveled a big bite of food into her mouth, then jumped up, ready to bolt toward the ward.
"Hold up, no rush!"
Adam grinned. "Don't you want to put an end to this miserable life of yours?"
"You've got a way out?"
Christina's eyes lit up with hope.
"Heh."
Adam chuckled mysteriously, not quite answering. "If you wrap things up now, you might still make it to Mr. Herman's surgery. I mean, you did snag that one for yourself, right?"
"Obviously!"
Christina nodded, glancing at her pager. Seeing it wasn't a 911 emergency, she plopped back down, flashing her sweetest smile. "Adam, you've got a plan?"
"Mhm."
Adam hummed smugly. "Too bad someone hurt my feelings this morning."
"Sorry about that!"
Christina apologized without missing a beat.
"If I'd known about this surgery earlier, I would've picked it hands down," Adam went on.
"…"
Christina's lip twitched. She cut to the chase: "Adam, what's it gonna take for you to help me out here?"
"One rare surgery!"
Adam dropped the act, holding up a finger. "Next time you stumble across a juicy case like this that I've got my eye on, you've gotta let me have it—just once!"
"Yeah, in your dreams!"
Christina's eyes widened in disbelief. "You already swoop in and steal all the good surgeries! I finally dig up one for myself—risking a write-up, no less—and now you want me to just hand it over?"
"Think it over."
Adam smirked. "If you ditch all this petty grunt work now, you've got a solid shot at joining the first-ever adult male teratoma removal. A surgery like that—do you really think you'll get another chance at it? Trading some vague future rare case for a guaranteed first-of-its-kind right now… are you sure you're the one losing out?"
"Loss or no loss, you're the one raking it in either way!"
Christina nailed the truth without hesitation.
"It's a win-win for us."
Adam grinned shamelessly.
"Christina, the patient comes first!"
Liz snapped out of it and urged her on. Whether it was a win for both Adam and Christina or just Adam winning twice, it definitely wasn't good news for her.
"They're not dying."
Christina shot her a look, then turned back to Adam. "Fine, I'm in—but only if I actually get in on the surgery afterward."
"Deal."
Adam nodded.
"So, what's your plan?"
Christina pressed.
"Heh."
Adam couldn't hold back a laugh. "You're totally missing the point. You think you pissed off Dr. Bailey and now she's punishing you?"
"Isn't that it?"
Christina froze. "Who else could possibly punish me like this…"
Then it hit her. She gritted her teeth. "The nurses!"
"Bingo."
Adam grinned. "Think back—how'd you tick off the nurses when you nabbed Mr. Herman's case?"
"For confidentiality, I didn't tell them ahead of time that I was transferring Mr. Herman over. Are they seriously that petty?"
Christina couldn't believe it.
"That's it?"
Adam snorted. "That's not the version I heard. What are nurses to you? Not colleagues, huh? No need to explain anything to them—until you need a bedpan changed, then you'll call?"
"Whoa!"
George let out a gasp. "Christina, that's straight-up insulting!"
"What's the big deal?"
Christina got it but doubled down anyway. "Am I wrong? That's their job! If they don't want to be nurses, they can go to med school and become doctors!"
"With that attitude, I can't help you."
Adam shook his head.
"I don't need your help."
Christina smirked triumphantly. "Now that I know it's not Dr. Bailey punishing me, I don't have to bother with their pages. I'm going straight to Bailey to clear this up and join Mr. Herman's surgery! Our deal's off!"
"You're so naive."
Adam gave her a half-smile. "Looks like I'm upping the stakes now. To fix this mess for you, it's one rare surgery plus a favor."
Oh, and here's a quick plug—pat-reon:belamy20—right in the middle of the drama!
"I think you're the naive one. What if I don't agree?"
Christina laughed.
"You think spilling the truth to Dr. Bailey will fix everything?"
Adam shook his head with a grin. "Let me break this harsh reality to you: even if you tell her, Bailey's not gonna step in to sort out your beef with the nurses. As long as they page you, you're stuck running. Believe it or not."
"No way!"
Christina was stunned.
"Nurses are the backbone of this hospital. They handle all the dirty, exhausting work."
Adam reminded her. "Only a cocky intern like you would dare piss them off this bad. Ever hear of Dr. Benton?"
"Nope."
Christina shook her head, clueless.
"Exactly."
Adam grinned. "He was your predecessor—used to be a top surgical resident here at the medical center. But one day, he was in a foul mood, couldn't keep his temper in check, and let it rip on the nurses. He chewed them out for writing orders in his place, saying he could do it himself—only he could do it! And oh boy, did he pay for it.
The nurses hit back hard. Every patient encounter, they made him write every single order himself. They flat-out refused to trust his verbal instructions—everything had to be written, crystal clear. Sloppy handwriting? They'd grill him word by word. IV issues or tricky treatments? They'd 'worry' they couldn't handle it and insist he show them how it's done. Any tough case? They'd page him first—especially when he was sneaking a nap in the on-call room. They'd buzz him relentless!"
"What happened after that?"
George asked, hooked.
"He was stubborn, just like Christina."
Adam glanced at her darkening expression and grinned. "Refused to apologize, took it all on himself, gritted his teeth through it—until he became a 'former' colleague of ours. Without the nurses' support, everything took double the time and effort. You can only hold out so long.
When the cracks showed, they were big. Exhausted, Dr. Benton slipped up—caused permanent harm to a patient that never should've happened. The review board didn't yank his license, but the medical center 'encouraged' him to resign."
"That's brutal."
George sighed. "Guess you really can't piss off the nurses."
"Wrong."
Adam corrected him. "It's not about never upsetting any nurse—it's about not screwing over the whole group. Especially the way Christina did, trash-talking them like they're just bedpan changers. That's the ultimate sin. She's offended the entire nurse squad with that one. What's happening now? It's just the appetizer."
"Ugh!"
Liz gagged, catching a glimpse of the anal exam lube on Christina's chest.
"One rare surgery, plus a favor."
Christina's face went from dark to pale. Meeting Adam's teasing gaze, she caved. "Fine, I'm in."