Chapter 2 The First Meeting.

Lian got in the car and, through the window, gave Luísa another quick peck. He drove in silence for a while. Lis had her head against the car window, looking outside, lost in her thoughts. Lian glanced over at her and then refocused on the road but decided to break the silence.

"Hey! Are you excited about your first patient?" The silence continued, and Lian looked to see why. He saw Lis still gazing at the horizon.

"Heyyy! Lis speaking!" He speaks in a louder tone.

Lis startles and redirects her attention to Lian.

"What's up? Sorry, I didn't hear you!" She speaks with a slightly squeaky voice.

"I'm sorry, didn't mean to startle you. I just asked if you were excited for your first appointment."

"Oh, yes, I am. I'm just a little scared of messing something up. These are lives. I can't afford to make any mistakes."

"I'm sure you'll do great. It's no wonder you're Luísa's sister!" He says, all proud.

Lis falls silent. She hates being compared to her sister because everyone has been doing that to her for as long as she can remember. Since Luísa is always in the spotlight, everyone expects Lis to be the same and succeed at everything she does. While Luísa juggles multiple roles and excels in all of them, even as a homemaker, she still manages to excel in the real estate market as a real estate broker. Lis just wants to be herself, without pressure. She is Lis, not Luísa. She wishes everyone understood that she has a completely different personality from her sister and that she's going to do things her own way. The hospital comes into Lis's field of vision, and she quickly says to her brother-in-law.

"You can drop me off here. I'll walk the rest of the way."

"None of that. It won't cost me anything to take you to the door. Besides, it's just a few meters." Lian turns the car around and stops right in front of the main entrance.

"Alright, you're here. Good luck!" He says as he says goodbye.

"Thank you!" Lis replies as she gets out of the car and looks at the grand entrance.

Lis enters the large reception area and walks up to the receptionist.

"Hello! I'm Lis Bailey. I'm the new medical resident."

"Yes, Dr. Lis, Dr. Jack Hart, who is the director of this hospital, is waiting for you in his office. Go down that hallway, the third door..." She gestures with her hands.

Lis walks down the long corridor and soon arrives in front of the door. She stops there, places her hand on the doorknob, takes a deep breath, and knocks twice on the door. She hears a deep voice instructing her to enter. She turns the doorknob and comes face to face with a young man. She's surprised because she didn't expect someone so young to be the director of a hospital. Nevertheless, she enters and sits in the chair in front of him.

"Pleasure to meet you, Lis. I'm Jack Hart, a cardiologist and the director of this hospital."

"I've heard about you already."

The two of them have a lengthy conversation, and Jack provides Lis with all the information she needs to know about the hospital. He mentions that she will be supervised by Dr. Acacia Connolly, a renowned obstetrician specializing in high-risk pregnancies. Lis is quite pleased, and after being instructed on where Dr. Acacia's office is, she heads to the accommodation to change and then makes her way to Dr. Acacia's office.

Acacia has been working at the hospital for seven years. Today, she is thirty-three years old and feels that age is demanding a lot from her. She's in a hurry to get married, has always been vain, and enjoyed standing out in what she does to catch Jack's attention. So far, she hasn't had any luck with him, but she never gives up easily. She has always invested heavily in her seductive charms to try to win over the millionaire. Acacia is very beautiful, standing at 5 feet 8 inches tall, with a sculpted body, green eyes, fair skin, and long curly blonde hair that adds to her charm. She dresses with uncommon refinement and elegance. She is coveted by her colleagues but never gives any of them a chance because her focus has always been on Jack. Any female employee she considered a worthy rival, she made her life a living hell until they couldn't take it anymore and asked for a transfer to another hospital.

Lis knocks on the door, and after a few seconds, a voice tells her to come in.

"Hello, my name is Lis..." She is interrupted by Acacia.

"Yes, I already know who you are. Come in..." Acacia gestures for Lis to approach. "Take a seat; I'll talk to you shortly."

Lis sits in the chair next to Acacia's desk and thinks about the rudeness her colleague just displayed towards her but prefers to believe it was unintentional. Acacia continues with her head down, her gaze fixed on some papers, and Lis feels a bit uncomfortable. After a few minutes, someone knocks on the door, and Acacia, without even looking at the door, asks the person to enter. Lis observes and sees a nurse bringing in more paperwork and handing it to Acacia, who, without looking up, speaks to her.

"Eva, please show Dr. Lis where her office is and explain everything she needs to do. If you have any doubts, clarify them for her. Only come to me if you really need something..." Acacia finishes her statement and continues with what she was doing.

"Alright, Doctor! Come, Lis, I'll assist you with everything you need."

Lis accompanies Eva and leaves the room feeling somewhat frustrated. Outside, Eva speaks to Lis while observing her dissatisfaction.

"Don't mind Dr. Acacia; she's always like that. She probably believed you would be a rival for her in here. But don't worry; I'll be here whenever you need."

"What do you mean, adversary? I barely even talked to her!"

"I don't know, but the way she treated you, I thought that might be it. But never mind. Come on, this is your office."

Lis looks around and really likes the environment. It's a place with plenty of natural light and ample space to work. Eva stands there waiting for orders, and Lis tries to understand why Eva is there, until she decides to ask.

"Thank you! But may I know what you're doing standing there?"

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry! I'll be part of your team and I'm waiting for your orders..." Eva explains.

"I see. Do I have any patients scheduled already?"

"Yes, you do, but it's set for ten o'clock. I didn't want to schedule it too early so you could get settled."

"That's very kind of you. So, bring me all the patient records scheduled for me, and I'll review them."

"Alright, but I should let you know that Dr. Acacia transferred more than half of her patients to you so she could get more rest. I'm really happy to be working with you."

"I'm the one who's happy to have you on my team, such a nice person. And hey, you don't need to call me 'senhora,' okay? Just 'Lis' is fine..." she says with a smile.

Eva leaves the room happily because she can see that Lis is quite different from her current boss. She's in paradise now.