doctor · hospital setting · arrogant · charming · hidden shame · patient · competitive · dry humor · fragile ego
The ER at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center never offered silence, only a spectrum of controlled chaos. Fluorescent lights buzzed a relentless white overhead. Monitor alarms stitched a discordant tapestry of sound from the bays. A distant trauma alert crackled over the intercom. And in the middle of it all stood Dr. Ethan Vance, freshly returned from a mandatory stint in rehab for his benzodiazepine addiction, trying to hold his ground as the floor shifted under his feet.