The Question That Changed Everything
Ten Days Left.
By now, the hospital had stopped trying to convince them to stay.
The reality was simple:
Su Yan and Lin Kai were leaving.
No one could stop them.
The only thing left to do was learn as much as possible before they disappeared.
But something else had changed.
Something deeper.
Because in those last few days, as doctors pushed themselves beyond their limits, a question emerged.
A question that none of them had ever bothered to ask before.
Dr. Wallace: "What Does It Mean to Be a Doctor?"
It hit Dr. Wallace during a midnight shift.
He was in the ICU, reviewing a patient's vitals when he saw it—
A nurse, carefully adjusting an oxygen mask.
She wasn't rushing.
She wasn't distracted.
She wasn't just doing a task.
She was watching the patient.
She was checking his breathing.
She was making sure he was comfortable.
And for the first time in years, Wallace really looked.
Not at numbers.
Not at charts.
Not at statistics.
At the person.
And it shook him.
Because for so long, he had believed that being a surgeon meant being the best.
The fastest hands.
The sharpest mind.
The highest success rate.
But now, after watching Lin Kai and Su Yan work, after seeing what they were truly capable of, he realized something terrifying.
He had been measuring the wrong thing all along.
Dr. Patel: "It's Not About Winning."
Dr. Patel had always seen surgery as a challenge.
A battle against disease.
A war against mortality.
A fight to see who was good enough to stand at the top.
But then he watched Su Yan perform the impossible, over and over again.
And something changed.
Because she never saw it as a fight.
She never treated medicine as a competition.
She never cared about recognition, prestige, or proving herself.
She simply did what had to be done.
And Patel realized—he had been wrong.
It wasn't about winning.
It was about being needed.
It was about becoming the kind of doctor people could trust with their lives.
And for the first time in his career, he wondered—
Had he ever truly been that kind of doctor?
Dr. Evans: "Maybe We Were the Ones Who Got It Wrong."
Dr. Evans had spent most of his life trying to prove himself.
That he was good enough.
That he was worthy of standing in the OR.
That he belonged among the best.
But now, after spending weeks watching Lin Kai and Su Yan operate, he realized something painful.
He had never been trying to save lives.
He had been trying to protect his own pride.
And maybe—that was why he had always fallen short.
Maybe it wasn't about talent.
Maybe it wasn't about speed.
Maybe it wasn't even about skill.
Maybe the reason Lin Kai and Su Yan were different was because they had never cared about being 'the best.'
They had only cared about the patients.
And suddenly, Evans felt small.
Because he had spent years trying to compete.
But maybe, just maybe—he had been competing with the wrong people.
The Interns' Perspective – The Silent Revolution
The interns were different now.
At the start of their rotations, they had been like any other group of medical students.
Chasing prestige.
Fighting for opportunities.
Trying to impress their attendings.
But after watching the last few weeks unfold, their priorities had shifted.
Jason, once obsessed with specializing in high-paying fields, was now studying emergency trauma cases.
Sarah, who had dreamed of working in private practice, was considering critical care instead.
David, who had planned to leave for another hospital, was suddenly applying for a longer rotation here.
Because for the first time, they had seen what it meant to be a doctor.
Not just to be a technician.
Not just to be a skilled worker.
But to be someone who could hold life in their hands—and never let go.
And none of them could walk away from that.
Not anymore.
Dr. Monroe: "Maybe She's Not a God. Maybe She's Just What a Doctor Is Supposed to Be."
Dr. Monroe had been listening to the conversations.
The rumors.
"Su Yan isn't human."
"She's not just a surgeon—she's something else."
"She sees things we don't."
And finally, she spoke.
"Maybe you're all thinking about this the wrong way."
Dr. Wallace, Dr. Patel, Dr. Evans—all of them turned to her.
"What do you mean?"
Dr. Monroe crossed her arms.
"Maybe she's not a god. Maybe she's not an anomaly. Maybe she's just… what a doctor is supposed to be."
Silence.
Then Dr. Patel frowned.
"That's ridiculous. No one else operates like her."
Dr. Monroe raised an eyebrow.
"No one else tries."
She leaned back.
"Think about it. Why do we accept the limits we do? Why do we assume surgeries must take hours? Why do we think certain techniques are impossible?"
She gestured toward the OR.
"Su Yan doesn't believe in those rules. She doesn't think about what she 'should' do—she just does what's necessary."
She met their eyes.
"So tell me—what if she's not an exception?"
"What if we've all just been thinking too small?"
Silence.
Then—Dr. Wallace exhaled.
Because the thought was terrifying.
Not that Su Yan was beyond them.
But that she wasn't.
That maybe, just maybe, she was simply what they should have been striving to become all along.
Elsewhere – The Genius Herself (Who Had No Idea About Any of This)
Su Yan sat on the hospital rooftop, staring at her phone.
Lin Kai leaned beside her. "You've been quiet."
She yawned. "I was just reading something stupid."
Lin Kai raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
Su Yan showed him a message from a junior doctor.
"Dr. Su, I've been thinking about what it really means to be a doctor. I feel like I've been wrong this whole time. I want to learn. I want to understand. How do I get there?"
Lin Kai smirked. "Looks like you've started a revolution."
Su Yan snorted. "I just did my job."
Lin Kai chuckled. "Apparently, that's enough."
Su Yan shrugged. "They're overthinking again."
Lin Kai smiled. "And yet, you still love me."
Su Yan grinned. "That line is getting old."
Lin Kai leaned closer. "And?"
She rolled her eyes but didn't argue.
Because for once, she didn't have a comeback.
And in seven more days, they'd be gone.
But maybe, just maybe—they had changed this place forever.