Jihyo's Pov:
"Some people say relationships happen naturally, like the pull of gravity. You don't see it, but it exists, drawing people together without effort. But sometimes... sometimes relationships take more than that. It takes an unspoken pact-a commitment to weather the push and pull of personalities, ambition, and emotion. And if you're a surgeon? Well, everything's a little more... complicated."
Jihyo sat at the cafeteria table, absently pushing her food around on her tray. Her friends-Sana, Dahyun, and Yoongi-were engrossed in a conversation about their latest cases, yet her mind was elsewhere, or rather, on someone across the room.
Kim Jun-wan had just entered, his expression composed as ever. He moved through the lunch line with a sense of calm purpose, the type that was somehow intimidating. Jihyo couldn't help but watch him.
"You've been staring at him for a while, you know," Sana teased, breaking Jihyo's focus.
Jihyo scoffed, forcing herself to look away. "I wasn't staring. I was... observing. Academically."
"Observing?" Dahyun leaned in, her eyes gleaming with amusement. "You look a little too invested for this to be academic."
"Don't get any ideas. He's an attending," Jihyo replied sharply. "Off-limits. Not that it matters-I'm here to be a surgeon, not to start some soap opera romance."
"Sure," Yoongi drawled, looking up just in time to catch Jun-wan's subtle glance in Jihyo's direction. He smirked. "Seems he didn't get the memo."
Jihyo felt her cheeks flush slightly but quickly masked it with a roll of her eyes. "Enough. Relationships are distractions. And I don't need distractions. Plus, look what happened to Dahyun and Dong Joo"
"Hey! Not everyone is engaged you know!" Dahyun said sulking
"I don't need men, I need surgeries. I need cool heart surgeries to feel alive!"
Her friends exchanged knowing glances but said nothing more. They could tell she wasn't ready to admit what was so obviously brewing under the surface.
---
When Jihyo walked into the operating room later that afternoon, she found herself face-to-face with Jun-wan. He was scrubbing in for the procedure, a calm, focused look in his eyes. He glanced over at her as she joined him at the sink.
"So, you're scrubbing with me today," he said, his voice steady. "Let's see if that confidence of yours matches your skills."
Jihyo met his gaze with a slight smirk. "You'll find I don't do mediocre, Dr. Kim."
Jun-wan raises an eyebrow, silently impressed but cautious, as they begin. The surgery began, and as they worked, the rhythm of their movements fell into a perfect synchrony, each step flowing seamlessly into the next. For a while, the OR was silent, save for the soft hum of the machines.
But then, a complication arose. A vein bled more than expected, and the tension thickened. Without missing a beat, Jun-wan spoke, his voice calm and controlled.
"Hold the clamp tighter. Trust your instincts, Jihyo," he said, his gaze steady on hers. "You're better than you think."
Surprised by his encouragement, Jihyo tightened her grip, pushing aside any self-doubt. The issue was handled smoothly, and the surgery continued without further complications. From across the table, Nayeon watched them with a small, amused smile.
"You two look like a surgeon match made in heaven," she observed dryly. "Just keep it professional."
Jihyo shot her a glare, though she masked it by focusing on the task at hand. "I'm here for the surgery, Dr. Im, nothing else."
"Good to hear," Nayeon replied with a chuckle, "because the last thing this hospital needs is another 'surgery fling' waiting to combust."
As the surgery concluded, Jihyo and Jun-wan shared a brief, unspoken nod-a moment of mutual respect. Yet, she could sense something else there too, an undercurrent neither of them seemed willing to address.
"Surgery is about control. Controlling the blood, the movement, even the room. It's clean, clear, and satisfying. But people? People are messy. Unpredictable. They make you second-guess yourself, and for a control freak... that's terrifying."
---
In the evening, Jihyo was in the lounge, her nose buried in a medical journal, when Jun-wan entered and took a seat across from her. She pretended not to notice, focusing intently on the page in front of her.
"You're always studying," he remarked, leaning back in his chair. "Not something you see every day."
"You don't get good by half-trying," Jihyo replied without looking up. "There's no room for 'good enough' in surgery."
Jun-wan nodded, as if considering her words carefully. Then, in a thoughtful tone, he said, "You know, not everything in surgery is black and white. Sometimes it's about instinct. And that... I see in you-something beyond just skill."
Jihyo finally looked up, taken aback by his words. "Instinct isn't measurable or reliable. I trust science."
Jun-wan's gaze softened, and a slight smile touched his lips. "Maybe. But sometimes instinct is all we have. And maybe... it's what makes us human, even in a world of metal and data."
For a moment, they held each other's gaze, neither speaking. But then Jihyo, clearly flustered, quickly returned to her journal, feigning focus. Outside the lounge, Dahyun and Jungkook passed by and caught a glimpse of the exchange, each grinning to themselves.
"If that's not chemistry, I don't know what is," Dahyun whispered to Jungkook.
He chuckled. "Jihyo and Jun-wan, huh? They're like opposites."
"Sometimes opposites balance each other out," Dahyun replied. "And if anyone can challenge her, it's him."
"Why do you guys like to date the attendings? You got Dong Joo and Jihyo might get Jun-wan."
"At least, hers is not engaged. Plus, I don't have him anymore okay. We're done!" she whined as they left.
"Whatever you say."
Inside, the tension between Jihyo and
Jun-wan's Pov
People say the surgical field demands a hardened heart. But what they don't realize is that even the toughest surgeons need something to come back to-a connection. Jihyo might think she can avoid that, but no one can operate in isolation forever."
