SinB practically stumbled out of the operating room, starved and just a tad dizzy. It had totally been worth it though.

For her shift, SinB had been both surprised and terrified to hear that she’d been requested. It wasn’t often that an attending asked for a specific intern, so it either meant the intern was either doing really well or really poor. Not only that, but SinB was requested by the head of neurological surgery, Dr. Kim. Apparently he had heard SinB was one of the best interns and asked to see if she was as good as they said.

Talk about massive pressure.

Dr. Kim Dongmin was an older man with an intimidating height that was offset by the fact that he was rather clumsy for a surgeon and often laughed at himself with a dorky chuckle. He had greying hair and a pair of thick-framed glasses, giving him the overall feel of an endearing father figure.

Meeting him made SinB briefly think of his daughter that Kyulkyung had mentioned, Sowon. He seemed like a kind man and an even kinder father. SinB wondered if he was as nice as he looked. Sure, he was polite, even friendly, to SinB. He called her ‘kiddo’ and bought her pudding before the operation, but SinB also knew that people could be charming to one person then cruel to another. Before she could stop herself, SinB thought of Umji’s parents before immediately shutting them out before she could get too far. It wouldn’t do to lose her temper at work because of them.

Instead of thinking about parenting, SinB let her mind wander to Yerin. From Dr. Kim to Sowon, her mind naturally led her there. It bothered her to know she was daydreaming about Yerin at work when she was supposed to be getting rid of her crush, but SinB couldn’t help it. She’d already been avoiding Yerin at all costs around the hospital, practically sprinting in the opposite direction whenever she saw her. SinB thought she could at least have the option to think about how pretty the other woman was.

Despite SinB’s drifting attention, the case SinB had been working on with Dr. Kim went incredibly well. She was able to answer all of his questions, gaining a shower of compliments as well as an invitation to scrub in on the surgery.

Scrubbing in on surgeries was what SinB thrived on, so in the operating room, SinB was only focused on the brain in front of her. No matter what kind of man Dr. Kim was, there was no way to deny he was an amazing doctor. Despite his clumsiness outside of the operating room, his hands were swift and efficient, seamlessly working as he quizzed SinB on the surgery. He even let her hold a clamp or two during it.

Now, over three hours later, Dr. Kim congratulated her on a job well done and told her he looked forward to working with her in the future, patting her on the back. It had been amazing to work with him, but SinB was now exhausted and starving, having missed lunch for the surgery.

SinB trudged through the halls to the cafeteria, already mentally planning out all the food she was going to grab. However, when SinB walked into the cafeteria, she perked up at the sight of Umji sitting at one of the tables. With a sudden burst of energy, SinB bounced over to the table and tackled Umji with a hug.

“What are you doing here?” SinB asked as she pulled away from Umji and sat down across from her. Then her eyes landed on the box of fried chicken, half plain and half with sauce. “You didn’t,” SinB said with a wide grin. When Umji just laughed, SinB nearly jumped out of her chair as she cheered, “You did!”

“I texted Kyulkyung when you didn’t reply to any of my texts,” Umji explained as SinB started eating the chicken. SinB nodded as she chewed. Umji and Kyulkyung had exchanged numbers a few months ago for emergency purposes concerning SinB, not that SinB thought it had been all that necessary at the time, but she was suddenly very thankful if it meant she got good food after tiring surgeries. “She said you’d been in surgery and missed lunch. I figured I’d come surprise you.”

“How’d you know I’d be here?” SinB asked as she took a sip of the coke Umji had also brought her. What had she done to deserve such an angel as her best friend? This meal was the best food she’d eaten at the hospital.

“You skipped lunch,” Umji replied with an amused grin. “Naturally, your first priority would be to get food.”

“Thank you for feeding me,” SinB said as she reached for another piece of chicken. “This is delicious. Possibly even tastier since I thought I was about to collapse to the ground from starvation.”

“I wasn’t doing anything anyways,” Umji shrugged. “By the way, I’m meeting Yuju for dinner tonight, so you’re on your own when you get home.”

“Ah, feeding me now out of guilt since you won’t be feeding me later,” SinB teased. When Umji rolled her eyes, she reassured her, “It’s very much appreciated. I’ll probably just order a pizza or something.”

“You could cook something for once,” Umji pointed out.

SinB snorted, “Right, and burn down the apartment? No thanks.”

Before Umji could reply, SinB felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked up, expecting it to be Kyulkyung, but instead it was Jung Eunha staring back at her.

Stumbling to her feet, SinB gave a hasty bow and said, “H-hello.”

“No need for such formalities,” Eunha giggled, waving off SinB’s bow. “I’m just asking if you know where Yerin is.”

The question stumped SinB immediately, not only because she had no idea where Yerin was but also because there was no reason for Eunha to be asking SinB of all people.

With an awkward smile, SinB shook her head and said, “No, I’m sorry. I have no idea where she is.”

“Ah, well it was a nice try,” Eunha said. “Thanks anyways.” Without any introduction or explanation, Eunha walked away, leaving SinB feeling utterly perplexed.

SinB watched her walk away before slowly sitting back down. She turned back and scooted her chair in, staring at her chicken like it could tell her what just happened. When she looked up, Umji looked just as confused.

“Yerin, as in Jung Yerin?” Umji asked. When SinB only stared at her with growing bewilderment, she asked, “Why would you know where Yerin is? Why would she think you know where she is?”

SinB couldn’t give her an answer, telling her so as she finished her chicken. She tried to puzzle out the whole interaction, but neither of them understood it at all. After eating, SinB hugged Umji goodbye and told her to tell Yuju she said hi.

The rest of SinB’s shift was spent filling out charts. Sometimes, SinB grabbed a coffee from the cafeteria and did them there. Other times, she just ended up wherever it was quiet enough for her to do them. Today, SinB found an almost empty hallway with an abandoned gurney. She plopped herself onto the gurney and started diligently writing out her notes for all of the patients.

When she was almost done, SinB heard a footsteps approach her. She looked up to see who it was and was surprised that it was Eunha once more. It looked like Eunha had been searching specifically for her too, so SinB was impressed she managed to track her down to this random hallway.

“Hi,” Eunha greeted as she sat down next to SinB on the gurney. She was wearing skirt and blouse, both pieces of clothing looking just as expensive as Yerin’s had. “I’m sorry for my behavior earlier. I was just so focused on finding Yerin.”

“No worries,” SinB told her as she scribbled her signature at the bottom of a page. She closed the binder and smiled, aiming for something friendly. “I was a little confused, but that’s me on a daily basis.”

Eunha laughed at the joking self-deprecation and leaned back to rest against the wall. She turned her head to look at SinB and stuck out her hand. “Hi, nice to meet you. I’m Jung Eunha, heir to Diamond Inc.”

“Hwang Eunbi, heir to a cozy house back in Cheongju and hopefully a puppy.”

Eunha laughed again, seemingly charmed by SinB’s wit. “You’re the intern everyone is always talking about,” Eunha said.

“I guess,” SinB shrugged, ignoring the way she blushed. “I’m just doing my job.”

“You’re doing a rather good job at it,” Eunha replied with a curious smile. “You know, I pictured you to be a bit more arrogant.”

“Eh, I’m not all that impressive,” SinB said. “Still just an intern, still learning.”

“I guess that’s true,” Eunha hummed. She dug into her purse and offered her a mint. SinB took it and popped it into . “You know, you’re pretty interesting for an intern. You’re talented but not conceited. You’re respectful but not embarrassingly deferential.”

SinB was flattered by the description but still confused as to why Eunha was talking to her about it in the first place. She just shrugged and said, “Thank you, I guess.”

Eunha grinned and grabbed something else from her purse. It was a business card she handed to SinB this time, with both her business and personal number. “I’d like to have coffee with you sometime, Eunbi. I could use another friend.”

“Um, sure,” SinB nodded, still baffled by what was happening. Then she added, “Call me SinB.”

“Alright then,” Eunha nodded. “See you soon, SinB.”

For the second time that day, Eunha walked away from SinB, leaving her utterly perplexed. How did SinB keep managing to run into this confusing and rich women?

A/N: I'm sorry about the lack of Yerin in this chapter, but I promise she'll be in the next one! I just really want to flesh out all of the characters in this story because I feel like it'll make what happens later more meaningful. Thank you for being so patient and supporting this story!