Wanfahmai has been working at the hospital alongside with Prof Sahat for about a year. The mutual respect that they had for each other was the driving force behind the rapid growth of their department. They had been treating patients suffering from simple all the way through complex cases. Since it was a new department, the lack of doctors allowed Wanfahmai to have plenty of hands-on practice under Prof Sahat’s tutelage, which she greatly appreciated and carried out with much vigour, as she was able to hone her skills further.  

*Knock knock*

“Come in~”

“Prof~”

“Oh, Wanfahmai… What is it?”

“I just came back from the A&E… We’ve got an interesting case to look at.”

“Okay, give me a moment…” before he stopped his work and put on his coat as he uttered, “Let’s go…”

And as they were walking towards the accident and emergency department, Wanfahmai gave him a rundown of the patient that had just came in.

“Prof, he came in conscious and he was having a severe nausea… On a scale of 1-10, he mentioned that his pain was an 8… And based on his medical history, he has been living with the tumour at the base of his skull and neck for the past five years. No doctors within the area where they live wanted to operate on him since it’s risky.”

“Have you ordered a scan on him?”

“Yes, I have… And we’re waiting for the result to be out…”

“Okay… Good call…”

“I hope that the tumour has not gotten bigger or even spread…”

“Let’s hope so…”

They finally reached the A&E department and Prof Sahat performed a few more basic physiological tests on the patient. When he was done checking, they were told that the patient’s result was out and the two of them stood in front of the computer screen to view the images.

“It doesn’t look too good, Prof…”

“Tell me about it…” with a hint of sarcasm which Wanfahmai was already used to as a friendly banter as he continued, “It’s tricky to remove this… There’s a major vessel within the tumour… The possibility of impairing his other brain function is high… And the chances for…”

“Chances for is there… And it has gotten bigger as compared to his last scan which was already five years ago…”

“Yep… Sometimes, patient will really wait until they can no longer handle the pain any more…” said Prof. Sahat before he continued, “So, what do you think is the best method to overcome this?”

“Create another pathway for the vessel… We just can’t remove the tumour without excessive bleeding but at the same time, we can’t stop the blood from flowing since we cannot allow the other parts of her brain to be starved of blood…”

“I agree… Let’s do skin drafting…”

“Before the bypass, I’ll book the OR (operating room) for the coil embolization first to prevent excessive bleeding…”

“Great… Update me on the date while I’ll speak to the patient’s family…”

“Will sure do, prof…”

After she managed to book the room, she informed Prof. Sahat and told him of the tentative schedule. The first step to be done was booked for the next day.

“You will take care of this patient, alright?”

“Prof, are you serious?”

“Yes… You’ve been assisting me for a year…  You are already on your way towards becoming a fully fledge attending physician based on your skills alone.”

“But this is like a huge case…”

“I trust you, Wanfahmai…”

The words of Prof. Sahat assured her as she gave a smile before closing the door. That day, when she was done with her work, she stayed behind in her office to read up on the procedures that she will be carrying out for the patient to prepare herself better. Her reading was finally stopped when her personal mobile phone rang, as she took a look at the incoming call.

“Hello, P’Arthit…”

Are you still at work?

“Yeah… I am…”

Are you on night shift again?

“Nope… Not today…”

Then?

“I stayed behind to do some work… Why did you call P’Arthit?”

Let’s eat…

“Auw~ I told you… If you need company to eat… I shouldn’t be your first choice…”

Too bad… I’m already here…

“What?! What if I refuse to come down…?”

You know I’ll wait… Oh come on, Ice, it’s been some time since we last ate together… It won’t take long…

“Okay~ okay~ Give me ten minutes…” replied Wanfahmai begrudgingly before she took off her clothes and gave her face a quick wash as she packed her belongings.

There, waiting at the pick-up and drop of point was Arthit.

“Why didn’t the security officers fine you for parking here? You’re like obstructing other’s path.” lamented Wanfahmai.

Arthit let out a laugh as he said, “I told them my girlfriend was already on her way down…”

She glared at him as soon as she heard what he said to which he quickly retracted it immediately, “Ok, fine… I actually didn’t say that… I told them that my friend who is a doctor is on her way down… And since, there’s no traffic here, they said okay… Let’s get in before I get fined for real…”

“Aren’t you rich? Let the hospital earn some money…” remarked Wanfahmai making Arthit laugh as they entered the car and drove off. While he was driving, she quipped,

“Why didn’t you wait at the carpark?”

“Because then you would insist on driving your own car and to just tell you the location that I intend to eat at.”

“Auw~ What are you? Are you writing a thesis on me?”

“I don’t have time for thesis… I have too many paperwork to even think about a thesis…”

“Oh ya~ Oh god… I sometimes forgot… And I always thought the only paperwork that you’d be busy with is counting money…” as she .

“Hey~ Wanfahmai…”

“Honestly, isn’t that a better choice though? As compared to tonnes of other kinds of paperwork?”

“True in a way… Superficial pleasure…”

“So how are you coping with work?” asked Wanfahmai sincerely.

“It’s okay. Business venture grew… Return of investment is as expected.”

“P’Arthit…”

“Yes?”

“I didn’t ask about your business dealings… I’m asking about you… How are you coping?”

Wanfahmai always knew to ask the right questions to Arthit. The conversation he had with her always made him felt a certain kind of way. He always felt that she was able to extract all these emotions within him that he never felt with others, but he still insisted on answering in an impartial way,

“I’m doing good. Why do you ask?”

“Because you look tired… That’s why… And should I drive instead?”

“No… I’m fine, Wanfahmai… Maybe because I didn’t have enough cups of coffee today…”

“Were you that busy?”

“I had a business meeting… And it dragged on for some time… So yeah… I couldn’t get my usuals…”

“But it’s already late, you shouldn’t be drinking any coffee later…”

“I can sleep with coffee…”

“Nope… I won’t allow any coffee… Decaf is fine... But why would you drink coffee if it’s not for the caffeine? Anyways, I just need you to rest… Okay?”

Just through her simple words and presence had made his day that much different. He smiled to himself as he drove on to a restaurant for dinner.

“Is this where you want to eat, P’Arthit?”

“Why? You don’t like it?”

“You know how I am with fancy places?”

“But this place serves good food and nearest to the hospital… The nearer it is the faster you are able to go back to your reading?”

“Oh ya~ Okay…” said Wanfahmai hurriedly.

They sat down and he queried her, “What would you like to have?”

“Any recommendations?”

“Then, let me do the ordering for you?”

“Okay…”

Arthit called the waiter over as he placed the order before ordering a glass of wine,

“And kindly serve the rest of the bottle of Pinot Noir…”

“Sure, will do, sir…”

The wine was served first before the food. The waiter was about to pour a glass for Wanfahmai when she stopped him.

“It’s okay… Thank you…”

When the waiter walked away, “Why