Medical Center.
Changing Room.
"Adam, what's that supposed to mean?"
Meredith frowned, confused. "George is our friend, and he's in a tough spot. Are you seriously still refusing to take him on as your intern?"
"Yeah," Cristina chimed in with a smirk. "Just thinking about dragging those clueless newbies around later gives me a headache. Having George—an intern with actual experience—would be a total win. Way too good to pass up! Hey, George, how about you just join me instead?" 😏
"No way, not happening!"
George shook his head fast. "I, George O'Malley, would rather quit than work under you, Cristina Yang."
"Oh, wow, excuse me?!"
Cristina had just been teasing, but now her eyes narrowed as she shot him a glare.
"Okay, enough messing around—let's get serious," Meredith said, playing peacemaker before turning to Adam. "So, what's the deal?"
"Well…" Adam hesitated. "You guys know I'm someone with ambitions…"
"What, and taking me on kills your ambition?"
George's pale face darkened.
"No, no, it's not about you specifically," Adam said earnestly. "But with this batch of interns I'm leading, I'm planning to set up a real 'survival of the fittest' vibe. Like, a legit competition where it's all about talent or grit—nothing else. That means no cozying up to senior doctors beyond a professional level…"
Cristina and Meredith's faces darkened too, so Adam quickly added, "Hey, I'm not targeting you guys! I just want to train some real top-tier doctor material."
Like he'd told Cristina before, Adam was gunning for the Chief Resident spot.
He had the energy and skills to take on that role—overseeing all the residents as a mini surgical boss, tackling problems they couldn't handle, coordinating surgeries, and keeping the whole department running smoothly.
In the process, he'd get first dibs on all the high-stakes, critical cases—totally fair and square.
Back when the Chief of Surgery was picking a Chief Resident, Adam was still an intern, not a full resident, so he'd been out of the running. Plus, the top pick back then was Dr. Bailey—someone Adam respected, and honestly, the whole hospital did too.
So, he'd shelved the idea of pushing for Chief Resident as an intern.
I mean, with pros like Bailey and Sydney—senior residents who were well-liked and close to Adam—waiting in the wings, him swooping in as an intern would've been a slap in the face. Super insulting and a total morale killer.
Adam wanted to earn Chief Resident with as little drama as possible. At the very least, he needed to be a resident for a bit, mentor some interns, and show off not just his medical and management skills, but the third big thing teaching hospitals care about: teaching.
That cruise ship accident a while back? Adam's insane medical skills and leadership in the field got everyone's attention.
Now, he was determined to nail the teaching part too.
What better way than to churn out a few universally recognized future star doctors?
Step one: set the rules. Make his interns compete purely on medical skill—pushing them to level up constantly for more opportunities, building a solid cycle. No sleeping with senior doctors to snag a spot.
And these three in front of him?
Meredith—dating Derek Shepherd, the Neurosurgery Chief.
Cristina—dating Preston Burke, the Cardiothoracic Surgery Chief.
George—dating Callie Torres, the current Chief Resident.
Yikes. 😬
Okay, Cristina? Her talent and hustle totally matched her rep as an amazing surgeon and future star.
Even knowing she was with Burke, people didn't have much to gossip about.
But Meredith and George?
If word got out that George flunked and had to redo his internship, you know the whispers would start: "Told you they just slept their way up…"
Training legit star doctors wasn't hard if you had the right approach.
Anyone who'd made it this far had decent talent—it came down to grit and drive.
Take Cristina: even with Burke as her boyfriend, they lived at the hospital. Their one "date" got cut short before dinner was over because they rushed back to save someone. All they ever talked about was medicine—pure dedication.
Meredith, though? She and Shepherd were always off being romantic, hitting the town whenever they had a free second, and don't get me started on the drama.
Even if her skills were legit, people would still call her a "watered-down" surgeon.
Adam wanted to prove his teaching chops and produce some undeniable stars. Set a high bar, stick to it—talent rises, weakness falls. With his skills and resources, it'd be a breeze.
Plus, there's a bonus:
These star trainees would become his loyal crew down the line, spreading out into a rock-solid network.
Future department heads at big hospitals, at least!
How do you think dynasties—money, politics, academia—get built? It's all about this.
Not that Adam was after anything specific from them—just that kind of network can work wonders sometimes.
"I can follow your rules," George said, gritting his teeth. "I swear I won't pull resources from Callie or mess up the competition."
"You sure?"
Adam raised an eyebrow. "Torres is Chief Resident right now—she's got a ton of resources. Even a little help from her would make people jealous. Over here, you'd be competing with three others. You've got a year of experience, but that doesn't mean you'd outshine them."
"I've got confidence!" George shot back with a self-deprecating grin. "If I can't beat them even with that, then I'll accept it."
"Alright, fine," Adam sighed, nodding. "But let's be clear: break the rules, and you're out. You'd have to leave on your own, or even if we're friends, you're benched. No negotiation."
"Deal!"
George agreed instantly, looking pumped.
Adam just shook his head inwardly.
He'd said all he could—turning George down now would be too harsh.
Truth was, he really didn't want to take George on.
Dr. Bailey was awesome, sure, but her old "Nazi" rep had been trashed by Meredith and crew. She could never stay tough on them.
George, the resident nice guy, had picked up some bad habits tagging along with them.
A whole year as an intern, and in Adam's eyes, that wasn't a plus—it was a minus.
Everything settled, they changed, and George eagerly trailed behind Adam.
"Adam, where are we headed now?"
"Sorry, George."
Adam stopped and turned, dead serious. "You should be calling me Dr. Duncan from now on."
In American TV drama land, first names mean closeness—friends, even family, use them all the time.
But in a hospital? No one's calling their boss by their first name.
Even senior doctors rarely use juniors' first names.
"Dr. So-and-So" is the pro move.
Starting now, Adam was fixing George's mindset.
(End of Chapter)