Heads turned, both big and small. Gawain, clad in a white coat over his scrubs, felt surprised, then helpless as he shook his head and returned his attention to his clipboard. Ignoring his friend who, in his eyes, seemed too idle, he finished writing his observations, then looked up at the child on the bed before him with a gentle smile:
"You have been a good boy, responsible like a little man, and now you are healing well. Keep it up and soon, you will be healthy enough to go back to playing like before. I will come check on you later, alright?"
"Yes, doctor Cullman~"
The bright voice of the boy brought a smile to the lips of the nurses in the ward. Beside the bed, the woman who might be the mother of the boy smiled in relief at the favourable verdict and wrapped all her emotions in a single sentence in the end:
"Thank you, doctor."
Gawain nodded, then turned to smile at the rest of the children in the ward:
"And you guys too. Be good and remember to listen to the kind nurses. I will check on you all in a few hours."
"Understood, Dr Cullman~ Goodbye, doctor Cullman~"
Responding with a smile, Gawain turned around and walked out of the ward, speaking as he passed by Alex:
"Stop pretending, let's go."
Alex blinked with a casual smile. Standing up straight, he winked at the nurses who remained behind to do their work in the ward, leaving them blushing to go after his friend.
Glancing sideways, Gawain looked at Alex's face now devoid of his mock look of pain, then lowered his gaze down to the left side the playboy had been holding. Taking his gaze back, he calmly asked:
"What happened to you?"
"An accident. I played the hero and I ended up with a wrecked body. Sigh, nobody showed how troublesome it actually is in the movies and the animes."
Gawain threw Alex a sideways glance, then led him to a consultation room:
"Sit down and let me see."
Alex sat on the bed. Taking off his top, he laughed in amusement:
"It reminds me of my youth."
Gawain let out with an eye-roll while wearing his gloves:
"Is that why you came to me even though I am only a pediatrician?"
"Yeah."
The answer came fast and certain, making Gawain pause, then shake his head despite his inability to muster any feeling of surprise at Alex's antics.
"Anyway, you are one of the best pediatric surgeons at the moment, one of the youngest associate professors ever and the youngest assistant department director of Arland Hospital. I'm sure you will have no trouble taking care of a big kid like me. Let's get started."
The corner of Gawain's mouth twitched at the string of accolades. He was just 'one' of the assistant directors.
Emphasizing that in his mind, he ignored Alex and lowered his head to the large purple area on the left side of the latter's torso.
The bruise there was large and deep-colored. Gawain frowned, then pushed Alex's left arm up to feel the traumatized area with his gloved finger. Pressing on the ribs through the skin, his frown deepened, but Alex's expression didn't change. He even laughed while looking at Gawain's bent form:
"You won't be opening me up, will you? I only wanted you to make sure it is nothing serious like an internal injury. For the bones, at most I will get a few scans later to check them. I don't think I have more than just some fissures there."
"Stop talking and let me finish my work."
*Knock~ knock~*
"Dr Cullman–"
The female doctor who opened the door with a smile more aimed at a crush than at a fellow professional froze.
Alex met her gaze, blinked, then raised his right hand with a grin:
"Hi~"
"Sorry, I will come back later."
*Bam!*
"Pfft!"
Stifling a laugh, Alex looked at his doctor with a teasing smile. Gawain glanced at the door as he stood up, then gave his friend an impassive stare in response to the teasing:
"You are really not suited to spending time here. Go get your scans and scram. Even if it is your family hospital, bringing chaos with your presence is still not allowed."
Alex simply smiled and wore his top back. Gawain made to turn around as he took off the gloves to throw them away, but then he saw Alex shaking his head, with a look of disappointment directed at him.
He frowned, then couldn't be bothered to guess Alex's thoughts. He asked directly, dirty gloves still in hand:
"What?"
"Every time I see you in a white coat, I find you almost as handsome as me. And that only makes your singlehood even more disappointing. I am really disappointed in you."
Gawain froze, speechless, then retorted:
"Look who is talking. First, stop playing around with your many… friends with benefits and get a true girlfriend before lecturing me, okay? At least I have a target now, unlike you, mister famous playboy."
Alex's smile faded and he gave the blond doctor a flat stare:
"Your target is my sister. Remember what that means?"
Gawain's lips twitched. He looked into the brown eyes across from him, then let out a breath:
"You win."
Alex's flat expression immediately melted away, giving way to a smug smile:
"That's more like it. Anyway, your colleague won't think that we, handsome guys, are more than a patient and his doctor, will she? That will chill the hearts of all your pretty admirers."
Gawain threw the gloves into the trash bin with a helpless look on his face and walked to the door while casually remarking:
"You should be right when you say that you just have a few cracked ribs, but you really have a way to chill people's hearts."
Ignoring the dry comment at the end, Alex came to throw his left hand around Gawain's shoulders with a grin as he opened the door. Looking around in amusement as they stepped outside, he offered with a generous expression:
"To thank you for your contribution to the freedom of relationships, let me make some modest contribution to the funds of your pediatric department. What do you say?"
Alex didn't lower his voice when he spoke. He didn't avoid the nurses who were already gossiping in low voices while sneaking glances at them with bright eyes.
Gawain could only swat the hand on his shoulder away after a sidelong glance filled with exhaustion. He looked around, then shook his head with obvious helplessness in the sigh he held back.
He decided not to care about the trouble he called friend anymore.
"Keep your money to fund your life as a playboy. Unless you want to use another identity to make the contribution."
Alex recoiled and looked at the blond with exaggerated skepticism.
"Wait, what happened to my friend who wanted me to stop being a playboy just now? What happened to the associate professor and assistant director of the pediatric department for whom children have always been the priority? You are refusing money that could help just to let me keep being a playboy?! I am shocked, doctor Gawain Cullman, honestly!"