The tips of Laura Lowell's ears flushed red. She turned her head away and gazed at the streetscape blurring past outside the window.
She felt a little flustered, and her heart seemed to be beating a bit faster.
...
The car soon pulled up to the hospital, and Aiden Shaw took Laura Lowell to the emergency room.
An examination confirmed that she had a high fever caused by an infected wound and would need to be hospitalized for treatment.
"You were injured, and you still dared to drink?"
Aiden Shaw's crisp, cool voice echoed in Laura Lowell's ears.
The ER doctor sized up Laura Lowell. He thought she looked familiar but couldn't quite place her.
What made him even more curious was that Dr. Shaw—their hospital's renowned top surgeon, an austere and aloof man—had unprecedentedly brought a woman in for treatment.
"So, Dr. Shaw, what's your relationship with this girl?"
Dr. Lorell from the ER pushed his black-framed glasses up the bridge of his nose and asked with a cheeky grin.
Aiden Shaw slid one hand into his pocket. His coolly handsome gaze subconsciously flickered to the girl in the chair. "No relationship."
'No relationship?'
'Who'd believe that?'
Dr. Lorell grumbled to himself. Determined to get to the bottom of it, he pressed on, "No relationship? Then why bring her to the hospital in the middle of the night?"
"I had nothing better to do."
'Heh, right. You had nothing better to do. So why did you have to be the one to bring *this* girl to the hospital?'
'There are plenty of aunties on the street, how come I've never seen you overcome with sympathy for them?'
Aiden Shaw took the prescription slip from Dr. Lorell and led Laura Lowell to a room on the fourth floor. After getting her settled, he personally started her IV drip.
Laura Lowell sat propped against the pillows, her posture as prim and proper as a well-behaved elementary school student.
Her gaze fell upon Aiden Shaw's face, a countenance so breathtakingly handsome it seemed almost divine.
His features were so exquisite they could have been sculpted by God himself. His brows and eyes were as dark as ink. Those deep, alluring eyes seemed veiled by a faint mist, giving him an air of cool, refined elegance. He had a high, straight nose and lips that were perfectly proportioned.
'He was drop-dead gorgeous.'
A few strands of hair fell across his brow, and the curve of his profile was perfect, creating an aura that was both untouchable and utterly captivating.
"Alright, you can lie down and get some sleep now."
Aiden Shaw finished setting up the IV with practiced ease. As he straightened up, his hands, with their well-defined bones, began to organize the medical kit.
"Um... so you're a doctor."
Laura Lowell had always admired doctors more than anyone. She'd once dreamed of growing up to be a doctor who could save lives.
But the sight of patients on an operating table, covered in blood or breathing their last, always brought back the memory of that year...
...of that scene on a rain-drenched street, her hands stained red with blood...
"Mm," Aiden Shaw affirmed, his clear eyes meeting hers. "Aiden Shaw. Surgery."
"You're in surgery, too? My best friend, Hannah Hale, is a surgeon at this hospital."
Another noncommittal "Mm."
"Patients need their rest. You should lie down and sleep. I'll watch the IV for you."
Aiden Shaw sat in the chair beside her bed and crossed his legs, exuding an air of cool, dignified detachment.
The room fell silent, and the air grew heavy.
Laura Lowell felt too awkward to let him stay and keep her company, especially after what had happened between them earlier.
"Dr. Shaw, you don't have to stay with me. I'll just call Hannah Hale and have her come over."
"Alright."