The Hospital

The Game Starts

"Do you know why you were brought here?" asked Dr. Krishna to the girl sitting before him.

The girl comfortably kept her hands on the brown table before him and looked at him.

"Honestly, sir, I don't know." She replied, coolly.

"Dr. Sneha, are you thinking that I am a fool?" He snapped at her.

"No, you are one of the most brilliant doctors in our country." 

"In the world!" Corrected Dr. Krishna.

"Sir, I don't understand why I am here." Said Sneha with furrowed eyebrows.

"I'm not one for idle gossip, Dr Sneha," Dr Krishna rumbled, his voice low and dangerous, "but my guards informed me that you followed a nurse and walked into a vital room. Care to explain yourself?"

"With all due respect, sir," Sneha began, her voice steady despite the accusation in his eyes, "I did follow a nurse, but I certainly did not walk inside some treasured room. That is the records room where old files were kept. I kept asking almost everyone for directions to the archives, and it seemed like no one knew."

"Why? Why did you keep asking for that room? What did you want from there?" Asked Dr. Krishna suspiciously.

He looked intently at Sneha as though he was expecting something from her.

"Old records, of course! Why else do you think I was there?" She said, annoyed.

"Why did you want the old records?" Asked Dr. Krishna, glaring at Sneha.

"Sir, I need to see old files to expand my knowledge. Also, after Dr. Meenal left, we were all swamped. We have many pregnancies with polyhydramnios, too. I just thought I could use any reference to old files, it would be a great help."

"You are telling me that instead of assisting or asking your seniors, you want to take the whole matter into your hands?" Snapped Dr Krishna.

"No, what I meant is take charge properly until the senior doctor comes." Explained Sneha.

"Dr, are you playing some game with me?"

"No, Sir, I am not." Said Dr Sneha, raising her eyebrows.

 She then threw her hands up in exasperation, as she got up and began pacing the small office. "Honestly, I am surprised. Why wasn't this mentioned by HR that there are some places we mustn't go? Why so much security for an old records room? I mean, some doctors want to go through old cases for their research? It's crazy!"

"Dr Sneha, sit down." Said Dr Krishna, rolling his eyes.

Sneha stood before Dr Krishna's desk, the weight of the interrogation pressing down on her. "I've been escorted here as though a criminal, simply for crossing the threshold of an old room," she began with her voice tight. "And now, I'm being questioned as if I've committed some grave transgression. I must ask—what is the true nature of this fuss?"

"Don't you think there is protocol for everything? Is that how you did your internship as well?" He asked Sneha.

"Yes, there was protocol. Before entering such rooms, we used to write our names in a register." Replied Sneha.

"And all were allowed to visit such rooms? There were no rules for it?"

"Sir," she began, her voice a fragile whisper against the sterile silence of the office, "I've never worked or studied in a corporate hospital, so I don't know if any such protocol exists."

"You're telling me you went into that room for old records," Dr Krishna began, his voice flat. "Then why did you follow that nurse so sneakily? You could have gone in with her, or even just spoken to her. I have you on camera. Tell me the truth. Be honest, Doctor. It looked like you didn't want her to know you were there."

"The hospital's a chessboard," Sneha said, her voice a low, steady hum as she met Dr. Krishna's gaze. "And you, well, you're the undisputed king. Everyone wants to be like you or at least stand close to you. I'm no different; I want to work with you and impress you. But then there are the others, the ones who question me, who don't want me to succeed, or even shine a little."

"What are you trying to imply?" Dr. Krishna asked, his eyebrows raising a fraction.

"I've noticed certain people here don't like to see others succeed," Sneha continued, her voice laced with disappointment. "Some have worked here for years and refuse to impart any knowledge, treating even minor things as if they're state secrets. When I asked this nurse before, she told me she didn't know anything about old records. I've had similar experiences with some of the doctors as well.  They would ask too many questions or, if I tried to discuss a case, they'd put me down and walk away. How is a person supposed to expand their knowledge like that? I'm sorry, sir, but I joined this hospital solely to work with you, and now I feel disappointed."

"Since she wasn't telling me anything, and no one else was helping, I thought I would do it myself," Sneha said, her head bowed. "I admit I followed her to get into that room, but I had no wrong intentions. Nobody ever told me we were restricted from going there, so I had no idea it would upset you. If you still think I'm wrong, then fire me. After all, you have every right."

Dr. Krishna's confusion was a heavy cloak, settling over him where certainty had just been. The culprit he'd been so sure of, the one he'd cornered with his irrefutable video evidence, was now an enigma. Her confession, laced with a plea of genuine naivete and a desire to learn, had disarmed him. He realized his net had been cast too wide, too soon. He needed to watch her more closely, to understand her motives, and to wait for a moment where her actions, not her words, would reveal the truth.

For the first time in his life, Dr. Krishna felt the sharp sting of being challenged. It wasn't from a rival or a board member, but from a junior doctor, a woman whose authority was a mere whisper compared to his booming reputation. She stood before him, a portrait of innocence and vulnerability, yet her words felt like a gauntlet thrown at his feet. A casual observer, he realized with a jolt, wouldn't see a senior doctor upholding the hospital's rules; they would see a powerful tyrant cornering a young woman who had nothing left but her medical degree. The narrative had shifted, and he was no longer the hero of this story, but the villain.

"Dr. Sneha," he said, a bright smile spreading across his face. "Would you like to work with me in the emergency department?"