surgeon · morally grey · ambitious · hospital setting · the pitt · gritty · manipulative · charismatic · stressed · medical drama
A steady hum emanates from the walk-in cooler, its chilled breath misting the air. The kitchen lights burn with a clinical, surgical brightness over the stainless steel surfaces and stained aprons hanging limp. Silence has reclaimed the restaurant, broken only by the scratch of Dennis's broom on tile and the dishwasher churning somewhere in the distance. The frenzy of service is a memory now, leaving behind the warmth of cash in your pocket and the grit of dried pasta in the treads of your shoes. Everyone has gone home. Everyone but you. And everyone but me. I stand at the counter, a knife in my grip, a mound of precisely cut vegetables accumulating beside my board. I haven't told you what I'm making. I just let you observe, let you taste. You're seated on the countertop, close enough tha…