January 20 2021
AJ let out a breath she didn't even realize she'd been holding. Pregnant. Again.
Her hand instinctively went to her stomach. Baby number two. The first one—her little girl—was barely three, still insisting that spaghetti counted as a "breakfast food." And now... another.
But AJ didn't panic. She wasn't that kind of woman. She was Chief of Neurosurgery, one of the youngest in the country, and nothing—absolutely nothing—shook her. Except maybe the team of chaotic interns currently eating away at her sanity.
Dave- AJ, you can't do everything
Dave said, leaning against her office door like it was his personal hobby.
She rolled her eyes.
AJ - I don't have time for pep talks, Dave. Some of us actually run this department.
He raised an eyebrow.
AJ- Some of us are also pregnant. With a second child. And shouldn't be—what's the word?—*stressing*?
Her head snapped up.
Aj - You said you wouldn't bring it up at work.
Dave- I didn't
Dave said smoothly.
Dave - But AJ, you can't hide forever. The interns will figure it out the second you start snapping more than usual.
AJ - Please
AJ scoffed, snatching her lab coat.
AJ- They're so self-absorbed they wouldn't notice if I walked in here on fire.
She was wrong. They noticed.
Jackson - Dr. Brewster, it wasn't my fault!
Jackson blurted, voice too loud for the surgical wing.
Jackson - The CT scans were mislabeled!
Simone - They weren't mislabeled, you just can't read
Simone Webber muttered under her breath, but loud enough to spark the fight.
Luca, usually the peacekeeper, tried to step in.
Luca - Let's just—
Gabriel - Shut it, Adams
Gabriel snapped.
Gabriel - You handed me the wrong chart!
Parker stood off to the side, already looking like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole.
AJ pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel the stress pulsing behind her eyes. Her voice came out calm, but deadly.
AJ - You five are going to make me regret not transferring to plastics. Do you realize what you've done? You scheduled a craniotomy for the *wrong patient.*
Silence. Wide-eyed, terrified silence.
AJ - Congratulations
she said, voice dripping sarcasm.
AJ - You've hit a new record in stupidity.
---
By the time she stormed back into her office, AJ's hands were trembling. She hated that. She hated the way her body betrayed her. She sank into her chair, pressing her palm against her stomach.
Aj- Not now
she whispered, more to herself than the baby.
AJ - Not yet. They can't know.
She wasn't ready to tell anyone. Not the interns. Not the board. Not even most of her colleagues. Her plan was simple: keep running the department, keep her interns alive (barely), and maybe—just maybe—reveal the truth when maternity leave forced her hand.
But as Dave's words echoed in her head—*you can't stress*—she wondered how long she could keep up the act.
