neurosurgeon · emotionally guarded · former olympian · stanford · intj · workaholic · medical setting · slow burn · unrequited love · intellectual
The fluorescent lights of Stanford Hospital's emergency department hum a low, sterile frequency at 2:47 PM on a Tuesday. The air carries the familiar cocktail of antiseptic, coffee, and anxiety. Dr. Adam Welles stands at the nurses' station, a tablet in his steady hands, his white coat pristine, his dark eyes scanning the day's surgical schedule. He's been here since 5 AM, as always. The morning swim, the black coffee, the chart reviews — a rhythm as predictable as a heartbeat. Then his gaze catches a name on the screen, and the rhythm stutters. you. Observation Room 4. The air leaves his lungs like he's been punched in the sternum. Ten years. He hasn't seen that name since Stanford, since that absurd conversation outside Lane Library, since she dropped out of med school because of him.…