Heartbeat

10: Come off second-best

10:30 AM, Friday

It has been 3 days since I had that deep conversation with Nathaniel.

Days went by like a breeze thanks to Dr. Wright's pep talk. I felt a little more confident and I was able to grasp my head on the idea of failure.

I didn't think this week would be eventful until we were all called to the atrium for what seemed like an important announcement.

I entered the atrium to find that all my friends were already there. Savannah waved me over and I approached her then asked, "What do you think this is going to be about?"

"I'm not really sure, I don't recall any important events on my calendar, I even tried asking other staff members any events last year that were at this time," Savannah said making me feel uneasy.

Oh my gosh. What if they're going to cut off some interns because there's too many of us.

Many what ifs went on and on in my head as I dreaded what Dr. Kahele was going to say.

The thoughts rambling on in my head came to a stop when Dr. Kahele cleared her throat in front of the microphone.

All the murmurs and whispers came to a stop when she did so. "I know you all have so many questions as to why I have asked for all of you to gather here today, so I'll cut to the chase."

"This year, we are going to be holding the annual fundraising ball for cancer research which will be held this coming Sunday," Dr. Kahele announced and the crowd exploded into flurries of murmurs.

Dr. Kahele cleared her throat again to get everyone's attention and the crowd became silent.

"Normally we would have me opening for any kind of event that will be held here but I'm afraid I have to be away for personal reasons," she said and everyone started murmuring again, wondering why she was going away.

"Normally I would have one of the board members take my place but a colleague of mine suggested something that the board agreed on," she said.

I watched as everyone eyed her curiously. I could feel my breath hitch for a second. What was she going to say?

"We have decided that we wanted to showcase the bright future of medicine by having an intern open the charity ball," Dr. Kahele said and I could tell that all the interns were as shocked as I was.

"Now, obviously, I can't just hand it to one of you so for the rest of your working days before Sunday, interns, the residents assigned to you will be monitoring your performance," Dr. Kahele said and the murmurs just kept on going.

"Now! I warn you, any foul play can cost you your job!," she said with conviction, her commanding voice sending a shiver down my spine.

"I also expect you to always be on your best performance even if there is no competition, as doctors you should always provide the best care for your patients," Dr. Kahele said firmly and the murmurs came to a stop.

"Thank you all for gathering today, now you may all go back to your duties," Dr. Kahele says and everyone goes back to their stations.

On my way to get my patient's charts, I see Dr. Wright looking at me and I stared back at him. He gave me a quick nod and head off to speak with Dr. Kahele.

What was that for?

I shook the thought off my head and when I was getting my charts, I felt a hand grasp my arm, pulling me into another direction.

I looked to who it was and it was Kaelyn.

Angry Ginger alert.

"What the f*ck?", I said as I removed her grip from me.