I pressed the stethoscope against little Tommy's chest, listening to the steady thump of his heart while he clutched his mother's hand with the other.
"You're doing so well, sweetheart," I murmured, offering him my warmest smile. "Such a brave boy."
Tommy's lower lip trembled, but he managed a wobbly grin. His fever had broken overnight, and the infection was finally responding to treatment.
There was relief on his mother's tear-stained face. She gave me a smile as she brushed her son's hair with her hand.
This is why I became a doctor, I thought, gently ruffling his hair. This moment right here. Not pack politics, not Alpha commands, just... this.
"The worst is over," I told his mother. "Keep him on the antibiotics for another week, plenty of fluids, and he should be back to terrori
