Panchali’s POV

I was looking the looming structure in front of me. There were numerous glass panes and you could see nurses bustling about inside. Occasionally a coughing person would come out and make a beeline for their vehicle.

There were two types of people coming out. One were the happy ones. They were holding a baby or were being supported or wheeled out by their loved ones to go home. Then there were those people who had lost their own. Coming out dejected, clutching their coats tightly and wiping tears out of their eyes. I couldn’t help but glance at each one thinking that once I entered I would be one of the reasons for those smiles and possibly those tears.

I took a deep breath and clutched my file tightly. I gulped again and glanced above at the huge sign which announced that this was the ‘Seoul Institute of Medical Sciences’. One of the best hospitals in Korea. I took steady steps towards the gate but noticed a board to my right and stopped to look at it. It had names of doctors. I glanced again at the little slip in my hand.

My resident was… Dr. Komal Jung.

I glanced again at the board and instantly found her name. She was scheduled for surgery in two hours.

I took a deep breath again and then decided to give myself a little pep talk.

“Okay Panchali dude. You can do this. You’ve done very well in MBBS and this is going to be an all new adventure. You’re going to have fun okay? Now walk through that door.”

I took long strides towards the door now.

I knew the reason I would make a good neurologist. It was because I was very close to becoming a patient myself. I laughed to myself at the thought and pushed the large glass doors open.

Hustle, bustle and a blast of hospital air greeted me.

I glanced around. Nurses were here and there going about their own business. The lady at the reception was talking into three phones. Doctors were marching with their sparkling white lab coats purposefully going to their surgeries or consultations. I wondered when I would be assigned mine.

“Panchali?” I heard a voice behind me and whirled around to see a smiling face.

She was wearing a lab coat. I wondered if she was a fellow intern.

She had dark curly hair and a wide smiling face. She seemed to be very kind. She had her hands inside the pocket of her lab coat but extended one to me to shake.

I shook her hand firmly and smiled.

“Do you know where our Resident is?” I asked her.

“Well you’re looking at her!” she said cheerfully.

The smile left my face instantly and I stuttered “S-sorry ma’am. Its just you look so young that I thought.”

She laughed a little “Its all right. I didn’t do MD as the chief, Dr. Miryo,  thought I should start Residency early. Anyways the rest of the interns are all in the intern’s room. Come along Dr. Panchali.”

It felt so strange. ‘Dr. Panchali’ but I followed her anyways.

“May I ask you Dr. Panchali if you’re from India?” she asked politely.

“Uh no. I’m half Indian. I’ve lived in Seoul all my life though.”

“Ah. Dr. Diksha Lee the head radiologist and I are Indian- Korean too.” She said but provided no further explanation. I didn’t bother asking. I would find out if I got the chance to work with her.

I kept looking around at the various rooms passing by. There were various operation theatres and consultation rooms along with a resource center and a large open terrace like area which had a large heading labeling it the ‘Cafeteria’.

I wondered when I would consult patients in those rooms and ask their families to wait in the cafeteria. I was lost in thought about how I would break it to the patients if they had a tumor when Dr. Jung stopped suddenly and said “Here we are!”

I almost bumped into her but stopped at the last minute as she walked into the room titled ‘Interns’.

I entered quietly behind her and all eyes turned to us. Or should I say to me. I guess they were examining their competition.

There were four guys in the room and I glanced here and there to see if there were any more girls but I could locate no one.

They all stood up when we entered.

I looked at each one in turn.

There was one guy with curly hair and a very wide smile. He seemed to radiate happiness and positivity. He was leaning against a locker when we’d walked in but now had both hands in the pocket of his jeans and was looking at us with a large smile. “Annyeong hashimnikka Dr. Jung! Annyeong female intern!” he yelled and waved.

I gave him a quick bow, smiled and said “Annyeong haseyo.”

The second one seemed to look like a complete gentleman. He looked very mature and gave a small curt and respectful smile. He had his hands respectfully behind his back as he bowed at both of us and said in a velvety smooth voice “Annyeong hashimnikka Dr. Jung, my fellow intern.” He smiled at me.

I smiled back and bowed.

Then another guy with bee stung lips came forward. He looked like that kind. The playboy kind. But he bowed slowly, came back up smirking, fixed his glasses and said “Anneyong haseyo.”

The only guy left, this quiet guy, got up silently and bowed without saying anything. He was ridiculously good looking and I was wondering what he was doing here becoming a doctor when Dr. Jung said suddenly.

“Okay all of you! Your briefing!”

We all sort of gathered in one line in front of her. The curly haired guy was standing next to me and was smirking for some odd reason. I frowned and focused on Dr. Jung.

“Okay. I will be calling out your names. Please take your pager, badges, uniform and your lab coats.” She said gathering stuff from a locker.

Looking at one badge she announced “Suho!”

The gentleman came up and collected his stuff.

“Luhan!”

The quiet boy collected his things.

“Chanyeol!”

The curly haired boy winked at me then went to collect his belongings.

“Kai!”

The playboy went to collect his items.

“Panchali!”

I went up to collect my stuff and stared at the badge. ‘Dr. Panchali Cho’ The lab coat had the little emblem of the hospital and I felt a certain sense of pride in taking them from her hands.

“All right everyone!” Dr. Jung smiled cheerfully “Your briefing!”

“Firstly you will all call me Komal since I’m not that much elder to you. I will be your Resident and I will be responsible for all of you. You will get your assignments from me and I will try to give you the best I can. But this is a hospital and there will be no fooling around. You are to report to me for anything. All of you will have to attend the day duties and night duties will be assigned in shifts. You will all live together in the intern dorm joint to the hospital since you should be here to help the Residents and Attendings whenever there is any need. You will have to successfully finish this year here and pass to attain your degree and get a job and of course, get money. All the knowledge of your four years in medical school has to be focused here. All successes and all mistakes will be recorded and at the end of two years you will be placed or thrown out of this hospital on that basis. Learn as much as you can but remember you are not supposed to do anything without the consent of the doctor you are assigned to. Now that we’re clear about that I have a surgery to go to. Get ready and meet Dr. Donghae Lee in the lobby.”

I was silent and trying to absorb everything and didn’t notice Dr. Jung, er, Komal walk out of the room.

I was jolted out of my stupor as I heard a heavy voice say “So Dr. Panchali are you excited?”

I whipped my head around to see the curly haired boy standing in front of me.

I blinked twice at the proximity, took a step back and then said “Well yes Dr. Chanyeol.”

“Yah don’t be so tense!” he swung one arm around me and whirled me to face the other interns as I gave him a death glare which he failed to notice.

“You see him?” He said pointing to Luhan who was sitting on a bench sorting through the stuff he had gotten.

Without waiting for an answer he continued “He’s a crazy kid. Looks quiet and innocent but he’s VERY brainy. Wants to become a pediatric oncologist.”

He pointed at Suho next “That guy is a complete gentleman-ish dude. He loves to cut stuff up. No wonder he wants to do surgery. Cardiothoracic at that.” He snorted and pointed at the next guy- Kai.

“Kai. That dude looks like a playboy doesn’t he?”

I nodded.

“Poor little guy’s harmless. He’s just a flirt. He doesn’t sleep around or go on dates all the time. He wants to do neurology.”

“What? Me too!” I gasped and started to examine the guy.

Yep. He looked just like me. Psycho.

“Whoa! Nice!” he said grinning “I want to become to specialize in intensive care. Panic cases and all.”

“Intense reminds me.” I said whirling around so that his arm dropped off me “How do you even know all this?”

He blinked at me and then said “I stalk them.”

I wouldn’t have believed him had he not said it with a straight face but he burst out laughing.

“I asked silly. And Kai and I were in the same med school.”

Before I could retort all our beepers buzzed and we all glanced at them.

‘OR2.- DR. DIKSHA LEE. EMERGENCY.’ It said in flashing red letters.

“Well look at that!” Chanyeol exclaimed “Our first case!”

Okay my first chapter! I hope you liked it! ^-^