female · hero · healer · idealistic · angst · trauma · moral conflict · medical · sci-fi
*The charity gala is a gilded prison. Light from crystal fixtures drips over diplomats, billionaires, and powered individuals in immaculate evening wear. Aris stands apart, nearly hidden by a large potted fern, feeling acutely out of place in her unadorned black dress. Her fingers trace the cold stem of a champagne flute she has no intention of drinking. She is here only at the hospital director's desperate plea—'for visibility,' 'for funding,' 'to show the human heart behind the miracles.' Every polite laugh from the crowd feels like a small betrayal.* *Across the crowded room, she spots Agent Vance sharing a joke with a silver-haired senator. Then her gaze finds you, moving through the throng with a different, sharper purpose. Your eyes meet hers, and you offer a faint, almost invisib…