87 Flawless Makeup and Synthetic Tears (1/2)
Unity Hospital- Monday- 8:30 am
Li Xiuying entered her office with a large rucksack on her back.
She glanced at Jiang Huan briefly before walking to her desk.
Jiang Huan looked troubled. Her eyes were glassy and she was staring at her screen unmoving.
Li Xiuying sat in her chair and logged onto the computer. She completely ignored Jiang Huan.
An uncomfortable silence descended upon the room. Five minutes had already gone by.
Jiang Huan realized that her plan A had failed. Li Xiuying wasn't going to say anything to her.
Jiang Huan began putting plan b into action.
Jiang Huan pretended to accidentally push her pen off her desk. She then proceeded to get off her chair and looked under her desk. She grabbed the bottle of moisturizing tear drops she had placed there earlier and quickly applied them to her eyes.
She grabbed the pen and returned to her chair. Jiang Huan began typing on her keyboard and sniffing loudly.
Li Xiuying still said nothing she could clearly see through Jiang Huan's antics. She was waiting for Jiang Huan to start sobbing and crying about how her grandmother had taken a turn for the worst. Li Xiuying guessed that Jiang Huan would ask her to take the next few days off perhaps even the whole week.
Two minutes later Jiang Huan began gently sobbing. She continued typing on her laptop with the occasional use of her sleeve to wipe away her tears.
Jiang Huan turned around and faced Li Xiuying. In her mind she repeatedly called Li Xiuying cold and unfeeling. 'Who wouldn't respond to someone crying right in front of them?'
Jiang Huan spoke between sobs and sniffing: ”Dr. Li I'm sorry but my, my... my Grandmother's health has taken a turn for the worst.”
Li Xiuying stared at Jiang Huan before her. Maybe she should play with Jiang Huan a little.
Li Xiuying: ”Home visit.”
Jiang Huan hadn't expected Li Xiuying to make such an offer. She momentarily looked like a deer caught in headlights.
Jiang Huan resumed her pitiful act: ”Dr. Li are you offering to make a home visit? Thank you so much for your offer but we've already had a doctor make a home visit. He said that all we can do now is to make my grandmother comfortable.”
Li Xiuying: ”Medication?”
Jiang Huan: ”The other doctor had already provided medication for grandmother to make her comfortable in her final... her final moments. We don't think she'll make it past today.”
Li Xiuying: ”That unwell?”
Jiang Huan: ”None of us expected grandmother to become like this. We thought it was just the flu. Who could have known this was going to happen? I wish I spent more time with her. I should have spent more time with her.” She put her head down and sniffed.
Li Xiuying: ”I'll drive. Informing Director Qin.” Li Xiuying grabbed her phone and started typing away.
Jiang Huan started sweating. She hadn't expected Li Xiuying to offer to personally drive her home. How was she going to get out of this?!
Li Xiuying could sense Jiang Huan's frustrating and worry.
Jiang Huan looked up. She wiped the non-existent tears on her face: ”Dr. Li thank you so much for your kindness but I'm fine. I'll continue working. You've already allowed me to leave early tomorrow. How could I ask so much of you? Besides they're understaffed in A&E today. I couldn't possibly ask you to leave when the patients need you.”
Li Xiuying nodded: ”See you on Wednesday.”
Jiang Huan facade slipped for a split second.
Li Xiuying smirked but soon returned to being expressionless.
Jiang Huan was too concerned about herself to have notice Li Xiuying's taunting smile. All she was thinking about was how she needed to take the rest of the week off. Tang Tingzhe was whisking her way to a surprise location later this evening. They would be going away for six days. For Six whole days she would have Tang Tingzhe to herself.
Jiang Huan: ”Dr. Li I know it's shameless of me to ask but could you please allow me to have the rest of the week off? We'll need to sort out the funeral arrangements and I really would like to be with my family during this difficult time.”
Li Xiuying felt smug inside. She clearly had the skills to be a soothsayer.
Li Xiuying nodded. She opened the large draw of her desk and placed her rucksack inside before locking it.
Jiang Huan grabbed her bag from under the table and stood up. ”Dr. Li thank you so much for being so understanding. I appreciate it so much.”
Li Xiuying recited the second line of the proverb in a cold and low: ”While the dropping flowers pine for love, the heartless brook babbles on.”
Jiang Huan stilled her movements. She looked over her shoulder and found that Li Xiuying had already turned her attention to the screen. She frowned and assumed she had imagined hearing Li Xiuying speaking.
She put her bag on her shoulder then practically ran out of the office not giving LI Xiuying the opportunity to change her mind.
Li Xiuying smiled as she watched Jiang Huan's antics. In Li Xiuying's eyes Jiang Huan looked completely foolish.
Jiang Huan could have just asked to take the rest of the week off to be with her family. Was there a need to lie in such a dramatic act? Who did she think she was fooling with her flawless makeup and synthetic tears?
Li Xiuying couldn't fathom why Jiang Huan had behaved in such an exaggerated manner. Li Xiuying wondered when she would recite the final line of the proverb to Jiang Huan.
...
9:25 Accident and emergency department
Li Xiuying had just finished seeing a patient when she heard the crash call.
Crash call: ”Adult cardiac arrest private room 4. Could all available staff please make their way to private room 4. Adult cardiac arrest.”
Li Xiuying and several doctors ran to private room 4.
There was already a doctor taking charge of the situation. One of the residents was performing chest compressions on the patient.
Another doctor was establishing venous access.
The doctor in charge: ”Shave the patient's chest and apply the defibrillator pads.”
She pointed to some of the residents: ”You, you and you form a line to take turns performing chest compressions. Swap every two minutes. If you start tiring out let us know and we'll swap you out. Don't feel bad if you can't do the full two minutes.”