A Thousand New Beginnings

1. "Love Hurts" - Ava

"Dr Rhodes, meet Dr Bekker."

So this is the hotshot surgeon I'm going to be working with. I know I was Dr Latham's first choice, but Rhodes, I'd heard, was an up-and-coming star after learning under the late Dr Downey. Such a famous surgeon, I thought, he can't be all that bad.

I turn, smiling, reaching out my hand to find out who exactly I was working with. Rhodes is somewhat tall, with dark brown hair and a neatly-trimmed beard. His piercing blue eyes and strong jawline create somewhat of an unfaltering appearance, and yet I could feel a certain tiredness radiating from him.

"Ava." I introduced, shaking his hand firmly. "Connor," he returned, meeting my gaze. His eyes were unique. Pretty, almost.

"I'm sure you two will enjoy working together," Dr Latham interjected. "I'll leave you two to get.. acquainted.". Latham smiled stiffly before walking away.

I grinned at his strange mannerisms, and at Dr Rhodes who was staring at me with a somewhat bemused look on his face. "He's very odd. Aspergers?" I ask.

"Dr Latham is a great surgeon, teacher, and friend." He replied firmly. From what I know, he's right - Dr Isidore Latham is a talented surgeon, and one who I would do well to serve under. But the other doctor's attitude is so uptight in comparison to my remark, and I can't help but chuckle to myself at Rhodes' response. He's in a lovely mood. I wonder if he's always going to be like this?

"Oh. Loyal. That's sweet." I teased, trying to pry at least a little bit of a reaction. Dr Rhodes looks irritated, which only left me feeling even more amused. He seems a touch full of himself. I'm only being friendly!

"You know what, Dr Bekker?" Connor replies exasperatedly. "I'm not sure we will enjoy working together." I'm a little taken aback by his response, but before I have the chance to say anything, Dr Rhodes strides away from me, an annoyed expression on his face.

I stared after him, feeling a mixture of confusion and amusement. Shaking my head, I muttered, "Well. This is going to be fun."

* * *

Connor and I hadn't talked too much throughout the day. So far, he had been fairly irritable, but at least we had managed to work through most of our patients pretty quickly.

I heard footsteps coming up behind us, and heard an unfamiliar voice.

"Hey, what are we looking at?"

I didn't bother to look up. It was probably another resident who had decided to get in my way. "He needs a new valve."

Clearly, Connor had decided my lack of interest was unacceptable, and he pried the tablet from my hands as he introduced me to the man behind them. "Ava Bekker, CT fellow; Ethan Choi, Chief Resident of the ED." Ah, so he was a chief resident. That must make him so much more important.

I nod slightly to acknowledge Choi before continuing my explanation. "So, we crack his chest, replace the valve." Putting my hands in my pockets, I waited for his agreement.

"Well, we don't need to crack his chest. Mr Crocker's been assessed as intermediate risk, and transcatheter aortic valve replacement, TAVR, is now FDA approved for patients at that level."

Already irritated at Rhodes' interruption, I noticed that he looked to Choi for support, as if to confirm his opinion. He shouldn't need backup from a resident. I'm not in the mood to argue, and I know I'm right.

"We get excellent results from open aortic valve replacement." I continued. "With TAVR you're just inviting complications." It's easy to see; the best option is the one with least risk to the patient. But something about Rhodes' stance told me he isn't exactly going to back down.