Chapter 3

Lucas looked a little embarrassed, but he kept his cool and said, "It's alright, really. I know a bit about this stuff myself. The dressing only needs to be changed once a day. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet. If we do it later, I suffer later too.

"I'm sure Dr. Dawson was just being considerate.

"But it's fine. I've handled tougher things on set. I can handle a bit of pain. Let's just change it now."

Emily shot Ryan a triumphant glance, as if saying, "See? I know what I'm doing."

Probably worried Emily would do something ridiculous, Ryan didn't dare leave. He just stayed put, keeping a close eye on her as she changed the dressing.

And Emily, true to my expectations, put on a confident, professional act as she began changing the dressing. From a distance, she looked competent, but I had to pinch my own thigh to keep myself from laughing out loud.

Because she was like a complete fool who had forgotten the most basic nursing skills.

She actually took the povidone-iodine swab and drew a big heart around Lucas' wound. "This is the love from all your fans. With this heart, you'll definitely get better soon."

Ryan almost blacked out on the spot. He shot me a desperate look for help.

I knew exactly what he wanted. He hoped I would lose my patience, take over, and fix the mess myself.

But I acted like I wasn't even in the room. Forget his look for help—I ignored even the little tug he gave my sleeve.

With Lucas right there, Ryan had no choice but to force a smile and change the dressing himself.

Once he finished, Ryan actually snapped at Emily for once, "Emmy, patients are the same to us no matter if they're men or women. If you're too embarrassed to even ask about basic stuff like bathroom breaks, how can you call yourself a doctor?

"And don't even get me started on that dressing change. Who told you to draw a heart with povidone-iodine?

"Since you're this unprofessional, starting today, you're not allowed to set foot in Lucas' ward again."

Emily's face darkened in an instant. Then, she burst into tears, stomped her foot, and snapped, "Ryan, how could you be so mean? Even Lucas didn't complain. Who are you to scold me? I'm never talking to you again."

With that, she ran out crying.

Ryan stood there, torn for a moment, then clicked his tongue and hurried after her.

I had no clue what happened after they left, but when they came back, they were glued together again. His order banning her from Lucas' ward had disappeared into thin air.

Still, after that fiasco, Emily did put more effort into caring for Lucas. She asked the right questions, did what she was supposed to do, and didn't miss a single step.

I almost laughed.

So she did know basic nursing and medical procedures. She had just been playing dumb to look cute.

*****

A week passed like that, and soon it was the day of Lucas' surgery.

This day, Ryan walked Lucas through the pre-op routine with Emily. When he asked Lucas if he had fasted like he was supposed to, Emily puffed up like a proud child. "Of course. I am not clueless. Ryan, stop treating me like I'm five, alright?"

Ryan pulled her aside and lowered his voice. "Emmy, you didn't lie, did you? This is serious. You like Lucas so much. You don't want anything going wrong during surgery, right?"

Emily scuffed the floor with the tip of her shoe, hesitating.

She wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, and under this kind of pressure, she always cracked. Previously, I'd only raised my voice a little, and she immediately admitted she'd fed Lucas apples before surgery.

As expected, Emily frowned and whispered, "Actually..."