Love In Every Season

Eastwood General Hospital always smelled faintly of antiseptics and brewing coffee. The night shift had its own rhythm — rapid pages, clattering carts, murmured diagnoses, and the occasional burst of laughter from exhausted staff who had nothing left to lose. It was on such a night that Dr. Adrian Cole, second-year emergency physician, stepped into the cafeteria carrying three charts and a pounding headache. He had planned to grab something resembling food and sprint back to the ER. Then he saw her. She sat alone at a corner table, a tall cup of black coffee steaming beside her, eyes fixed on patient notes. Her posture was straight, elegant; her ponytail was sleek, and her brows were furrowed in that adorable way people wore when they were completely absorbed. Dr. Liana Matthews, the new internal medicine resident. Adrian had heard her name whispered like a rumor — brilliant, composed, intimidatingly focused. But no one had mentioned how breathtaking she was, or how the air seemed to change when she walked into a room. He tried not to stare. Failed. His friend, Nurse Priya, nudged him with her hip as she grabbed a bottle of juice. “Still stalking the new doctor with your eyes?” she teased. “I’m not stalking,” Adrian muttered. “Just… noticing.” Priya laughed. “If you noticed any harder, the sprinklers will go off.” But Adrian couldn’t help it. Something about Liana pulled him like a tide. He squared his shoulders and walked over. “Hi,” he said. She glanced up, eyes cool, unreadable. “Hi. You’re… Dr. Cole, right?” “You know my name?” “You’re the one Ramos keeps calling the ‘ER golden boy.’ In a half-mocking, half-admiring way.” Adrian rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. “Please don’t encourage him.” A ghost of a smile touched her lips. It was… devastating. He gestured to the chair opposite her. “Can I sit?” “You already are,” she pointed out as he settled without waiting for permission. He chuckled. “I figured if I wait for you to say yes, I may be standing forever.” Her lips twitched — almost a smile. Almost. But Adrian wasn’t discouraged. Something in her eyes told him she wasn’t indifferent. Guarded, yes. But not immune. And later, when he returned to the ER with a heart beating far too fast, Priya followed him to the trauma bay and muttered: “Oh no… you’re already gone.” She was right. He was.