Medical Center. ICU.
After Adam insisted, Liz stormed off in a huff.
Not long after, Meredith and a few others showed up.
"Adam, what's going on?" Meredith asked, totally confused. "How did things get this messy? 😕"
"What have you guys heard?" Adam replied, keeping it cool and neutral.
"You kicked Liz out and told her she can't go near the patient," George said, clearly ticked off. "Do you have any idea how bad this looks for her? 😡"
"And do you know what she did?" Adam shot back.
"She… what did she do?" George faltered, his anger fizzling out under Adam's glare.
"She's gotten emotionally attached to the patient, Danny," Adam said, shaking his head. "That kind of attachment is seriously clouding her judgment as a doctor. It's dangerous! When the patient first came in, she rattled off three different treatment plans, desperate to wake him up right away. Sure, it looks like it could lower his mortality rate, but that's just textbook theory. The real, solid option? Wait patiently."
"She's lost her cool and her professionalism. She's acting like a patient's family member who's read a couple of medical blogs," Cristina chimed in with her usual sharp tone.
As doctors, the last thing they wanted was some half-informed patient or relative stirring the pot. With the internet blowing up with info, it's gotten way too common. Everyone's Googling their symptoms, and the ones who really dig in can sound like they know what they're talking about—enough to question the doctor's every move.
It's exhausting. Doctors end up spending extra energy dealing with these "expert" challenges from patients and families. And half the time, the stuff they find online is either kinda right or flat-out wrong. If every patient and their mom pulled this, the workload for medical staff would skyrocket. Explaining basic medical facts over and over? Anyone would lose it.
Plus, if this keeps up, being a doctor might mean adding "debate champ" to the job description. Can't convince the patient or their family? Good luck moving forward with treatment. But the best doctors aren't always the best talkers—or the most patient when it comes to arguing medical 101 with someone's aunt.
Anyone who's tutored a kid knows the drill. Sometimes you explain the simplest thing a million times, and they still stare at you like 😶. Then, if they hit you with a barrage of random "whys" and weird questions, it's enough to drive you up the wall. Bad-tempered folks might just snap—rain or shine.
Doctors, though? They're not parenting. They can't vent that frustration—they just have to suck it up. So yeah, they hate this kind of thing.
Adam remembered a time from his past life when he'd asked his sister—a doctor—a medical question. He'd Googled it first, thinking he'd get a pro's take. But his sister, usually the chillest person ever (yep, his real sis), got super annoyed. "Where'd you hear that?" she'd snapped. When he admitted it was from online, she went off: "That's not even how it works…" Turns out, she'd answered that same question a million times at work and was just done. 😂
"Exactly," Adam said, his voice heavy. "The kicker? She doesn't even have the skills to back it up. She's just an intern! She's freaking out, trying to throw every treatment she can think of at the patient. That's not medicine—that's chaos. Dr. Burke put the patient under my care. I'm his attending intern now, and I'm responsible for him. I can't have Liz jumping in during a crisis, doing whatever she thinks is right. What if she screws up? Then what?"
"No way it's that bad, right?" George said, hesitating.
"Not that bad?" Adam gave a cold laugh. "You guys might not know this, but Liz—who used to be so caring with patients—actually said, 'We treat idiots every day, fix them up, send them off, whether they deserve it or not. Danny's a good guy, and all we can do is wait.' Can you believe that?"
"Whoa!"
"No way!"
"That's nuts!"
Cristina, George, and Meredith couldn't believe their ears. 😲
"Those were her exact words," Adam said, locking eyes with them. "Now you see how over-the-top Liz is acting. With her like this, I wouldn't be shocked at anything she does. Would you let her near your patient?"
"How did it come to this?" Meredith muttered, looking like her whole world just flipped. "I thought Liz had only been this patient's attending once before."
"Danny's a smooth talker," Cristina said, thinking back. "Last time, he had her blushing the second they met. Guy's got charm for days."
"And he's a patient with that whole brooding vibe," Adam added, shaking his head. "Liz eats that stuff up. Love at first sight? Totally her thing."
"Maybe we should talk to her," Meredith sighed.
"You go ahead," Cristina said, clearly not interested.
"Did I just hear Liz's name?"
Right then, Danny—the patient who'd been out cold—slowly woke up, a faint smile tugging at his lips. He glanced around. "Huh, Liz isn't here? I thought I'd open my eyes and see her first thing. 😏"
Meredith and the others exchanged looks, like, "Okay, no wonder Liz is losing it. This guy's half-dead and still flirting like a pro. I'd cave too."
"I'm Dr. Adam Duncan," Adam said, stepping up to check him over. "Dr. Burke assigned me as your attending intern."
"What about Dr. Stevenson?" Danny asked with a weak smile. "I remember her being my attending last time."
"She's tied up," Meredith jumped in.
"I'm old-fashioned," Danny said, struggling to get the words out. "I'd really like Dr. Stevenson to be my attending. No offense, Dr. Duncan."
"No worries," Adam nodded. "I'll let Dr. Burke know. It's up to him how we handle it."
Dr. Burke showed up fast. Danny wasn't just a long-time patient—he came from money, so Burke was all about giving him top-tier care.
"Danny," Burke said after hearing him out, "Dr. Duncan's the best intern we've got. Honestly, I'd say he's the best in the whole damn world. Having him on your case is a win for you. Dr. Stevenson's too emotional—it's not good for you or her."
"I get it," Danny said with a faint, tired smile. "I know all that. But I don't care. I've been waiting forever for a heart, and I'm not holding my breath anymore. All I want now is for Dr. Stevenson to take care of me. Can you make that happen, Dr. Burke?"
"Here's a deal," Burke said, meeting his gaze. "How about Dr. Duncan and Dr. Stevenson both be your attending interns? Sound good?"
"I don't agree!" Adam cut in before Danny could even nod. 😠
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