Chapter 2

Zara Voss saw the pen in Kellie's hand and misread the situation entirely. She took a step forward, her voice rising, sharp and accusatory.

"Doctor, I know you're in a hurry, but I'm the one signing that! That's the rule!"

Caleb shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He stared at Kellie, his brow furrowed. Dr. Walter was a stickler for protocol. She never cut corners. She never broke the rules.

Kellie didn't even glance at Zara. Her gaze remained fixed on the paper, the black lines and boxes blurring slightly as her pulse throbbed in her temples.

"I know the rules," Kellie said. Her voice was ice.

Zara's face flushed with anger. "Then why are you holding the pen? You can't just override family consent because you're in a rush! Do you want to get sued?"

Kellie finally looked up. She met Zara's furious gaze head-on. There was no warmth in Kellie's eyes, no apology. Just a cold, unyielding authority that made Zara take a half-step back, the words dying in her throat.

Kellie didn't hesitate. She pulled the cap off the pen with her thumb and pressed the tip to the paper.

In the blank space labeled "Relationship to Patient," she wrote, in clear, block letters: WIFE.

Then, she moved down to the signature line. She signed her name. Kellie Walter. The strokes were sharp, forceful, slashing across the paper.

The silence that followed was deafening. It pressed down on the small bay, suffocating the beeps of the monitors.

Caleb's mouth fell open. He stared at the clipboard, his eyes bugging out so far they looked like they might pop out of his skull.

Zara's anger evaporated, replaced by sheer, utter disbelief. Her mouth opened and closed, gasping like a fish out of water. "What... what did you just write?"

Kellie handed the clipboard back to the nurse, who stared at it with wide, unblinking eyes.

"Prep the OR," Kellie ordered. "Now."

The nurse nodded mechanically. She clutched the clipboard to her chest and scurried away, practically running down the hall, desperate to escape the suffocating tension.

Caleb finally found his voice. It came out as a shocked whisper, almost to himself. "Wife?"

Kellie reached up and unbuttoned her white coat. She slid it off her shoulders, revealing the plain black scrub top underneath. She moved with a casual, unhurried grace, as if she had just finished signing a routine discharge paper.

She turned to face them. Zara looked like she was about to faint. Caleb looked like he was about to explode.

"Exactly what it says," Kellie said, her tone flat and final. "I am Jeffry Alston's wife."

The words hung in the air, detonating like a bomb in the quiet hallway.

Zara shook her head slowly, her face twisting into a mask of absurdity. "Wife? That's impossible! Jeffry isn't married! I would know! I'm his best friend!"

Kellie raised an eyebrow. "Is he legally obligated to report his marital status to you?"

Zara flinched. The question was a slap, and it shut her up instantly.

Caleb's brain was spinning out of control. Dr. Walter was married? Since when? There had been no announcement, no ring, no engagement party. He looked down at her left hand. It was bare. No diamond, no band, not even a tan line.

Kellie had no desire to stand around and debate her personal life. She looked at Caleb, her expression brooking no argument. "Dr. Fletcher, monitor the patient. Page me the moment the endoscopy is done."

Caleb snapped to attention, his reflexes taking over. "Yes... yes, Dr. Walter."

Kellie turned on her heel and walked away. She had taken three steps when Zara's voice chased after her.

"Wait!" Zara ran up and cut her off, blocking her path. "You have to explain! When did you get married? Where?"

Kellie stopped. She turned her head slowly, her profile sharp and unforgiving. "A month ago. City Hall." She paused, letting the silence stretch. "Any more questions?"

She didn't wait for an answer. She walked past Zara, her stride long and purposeful, disappearing around the corner.

Zara stood frozen in the hallway, staring after her. "A month ago... City Hall... this is insane," she whispered to herself.

Caleb stood alone by the gurney, his heart hammering against his ribs. He felt like he had just stumbled into the middle of a movie. He looked at Jeffry, who was being wheeled away by the orderlies, a mysterious aura now surrounding the unconscious man.

Caleb couldn't contain himself. He pulled his phone out of his scrubs pocket, his thumbs flying across the screen. He opened the private group chat he shared with the other interns.

"Explosive news!" he typed, his fingers shaking with excitement. "Our ice queen Dr. Walter... is MARRIED!!!"