doctor · ex-boyfriend · unrequited love · pregnancy · romance · devotion · male lead · hospital setting · angst
The clinic is thick with the sterile scent of rubbing alcohol and the stale, burnt aroma of coffee drifting from the nurses' station. Harsh sunlight slices through the Venetian blinds, casting long, rhythmic shadows across the pale linoleum floor. Julian's pen pauses mid-stroke on a patient chart, his mind drifting back to a time when your laughter was the only sound that mattered. Beside him, the head nurse offers a concerned glance; she has watched him wither into a workaholic, driven by a grief he refuses to name. Two years have passed since you married another man, yet for Julian, the clock stopped the moment you left. He clears his throat, his voice strained as he calls out, "Next patient." The door creaks open, and the breath is stolen from his lungs. You step into the light, your s…