“Honestly, I doubt if such a luxury car is hers. And her high-end dress was probably gifted to her by a rich person. By the way, since Dr. Wilson arrived at Silver Boulder Private Hospital, besides providing some assistance to Gil in a few surgeries, she doesn’t seem to have much to do in the Cardiac Surgery Department, right?”
“I work in the Cardiac Surgery Department, and I can tell you that Dr. Wilson simply writes up cases in the department every day. Since she came, she hasn’t had a single chance to carry out full surgery.”
The group members were all excited about Norah, and a flood of messages kept coming in as they discussed her.
As Norah, now dressed in a white coat, walked into the department, she caught, out of the corner of her eye, Jolie and Baylor glancing at her.
Confused, she wondered if something major had happened in her absence.
Swallowing hard, Jolie approached Norah and noticed the high-end luxury brand dress she was wearing under the white coat. It was exactly the same one she had seen at the Splendor Building, worth exactly one hundred and eighty thousand!
As Norah took her seat, she looked up at Jolie and asked, “Can you tell me why you and Baylor are looking at me like that? It’s not like I’m late, right? Or did Jamison say something?”
Baylor shook his head. “Dr. Wilson, did you join the chat group of Silver Boulder Private Hospital when you arrived?”
“No,” Norah simply replied. For her, chat groups were just gossip and a source of headaches. Since she had used Akin’s account to send those pictures to the group, she hadn’t heard anything from them since.
After being lectured by Norah, Akin had been avoiding her, and other curious doctors around the hospital didn’t approach her but simply observed her cautiously. So far, her time at the hospital had been uneventful. A chat group, at best, would just be another experience to endure.
“Wow, the dress you’re wearing looks exactly like a dress from Is’s wardrobe. In fact, I think it costs one hundred and eighty thousand, right?” Jolie asked cautiously.
Norah shook her head and replied honestly, “I don’t know where it came from. Someone gave it to me as a gift.”
Hearing this, Jolie and Baylor glanced at each other knowingly. So that was it-Dr. Wilson had someone who cared enough to give her such an expensive gift.
“Can you guys spill the beans already? What’s going on?” Norah asked irritably, lowering her eyes as she began to organize her desk.
“Well, when you were dropped off this morning by a luxury car, someone took a picture of you and posted it in the chat group for a moment. Now everyone is claiming that you’re either the lover of some wealthy person, or you’re just a mistress to a married man whose family you’re trying to wreck,” Baylor explained, giving a detailed rundown of the chat group’s speculation about Norah.
Jolie blinked and took a few steps back, saying softly, “I only asked you about the dress because I had seen it before at the Splendor Building. I didn’t know it was a gift.”
Realizing that the duo had misunderstood, Norah interrupted Jolie’s rambling. “The car is simply that of a friend, and I had no idea where the dress came from. Also, I’m not a mistress.”
Jolie nodded and chuckled awkwardly. “Of course, you’re not. Though, the way they were talking about you being a mistress, one would think they caught you red-handed. They’re just jealous of your beauty and seek to damage your image.”
“So what? Should I become ugly?” Norah asked coldly.
Jolie shook her head and hands vigorously. “That’s not what I mean. I’m just trying to say, if your beauty makes them jealous, that’s their problem, not yours.”
“Add me to the chat group,” Norah requested, pulling out her phone, curious about the rumors they were spreading.
Jolie sensed a shift in Norah’s demeanor, feeling somewhat intimidated by Norah’s newfound assertiveness. As they exchanged a glance, Baylor chimed in, “Dr. Wilson, you didn’t come to work yesterday. You might not know, but Aikin has left Silver Boulder Private Hospital.”
Norah responded indifferently, “Left the hospital? Did he go somewhere else to learn or something?”
“He was dismissed by Silver Boulder Private Hospital,” Baylor added.
It was only then that Norah glanced up at Baylor with surprise. “Dismissed? What did he do wrong?”
Norah didn’t know much about the Neurosurgery Department, but she was aware that Aikin had his demons, despite his commendable professional achievements. Gil often spoke highly of Aikin’s proficiency and his skillful surgeries.
“Why did Silver Boulder Private Hospital kick him out? He had been there working just last Friday.”
Jolie had already added Norah to the chat group and locked her phone when she explained, “The higher-ups directly dismissed him. It’s unclear what he did to upset them.”
Baylor looked over at Norah and hinted, “Who can say?”
“At least now the new staff won’t be harassed by him,” Jolie said as she headed back to her desk. She continued to tell Baylor about Aikin’s unsavory character, painting him as a man who manipulated the feelings of young, inexperienced girls.
Norah found it surprising that Aikin had been expelled, but it didn’t bother her since she barely knew him.
Soon after Norah was added to the chat group, it was flooded with messages about Norah’s supposed wealthy benefactor and guesses about the benefactor’s financial worth. Unfazed, Norah casually switched her group name and sent a single message.
The message read, “Billions.”
The chat group went silent immediately, with several members quietly exiting the chat group. Norah, having already taken screenshots of the members and the message history, prepared to confront each one about their ill-intentioned speculation.
Even as an ordinary person, she was resolved to make them answer for their baseless claims. After a final look at her phone, Norah tucked it away, ready to start a new day at work.
She mainly handled tasks like drafting case studies and making hospital rounds in the department. She was never once allowed to assist in the operating room of the Cardiac Surgery Department.
The Cardiac Surgery Department was always swamped, as evident from Baylor’s and Jolie’s workload. They dealt with numerous patients weekly, drafting various reports, tracking patient progress, and compiling discharge summaries, all while keeping up with academic literature.
Outside of surgeries led by Gil, Norah’s contributions were less crucial tasks in the department.
After a bit of time had passed, Baylor called Norah over. “Dr. Wilson, since you’ve been with the Cardiac Surgery Department for some time, I’ve decided to entrust you with several patients. Examine them thoroughly and…”
“With the surgeries,” Baylor continued. “I’ve seen your work with Gil. You’re skilled, and even though there’s a difference between neurosurgery and cardiac surgery, your expertise is universal. I have confidence in you.”
Jamison had previously doubted Norah’s competence, especially since Gil often took her for neurosurgical surgeries. Yet, Norah longed to be a part of the Cardiac Surgery Department. After all, it was where her true interests lay.
“I’ll arrange for someone to give you the patient details later. You may leave now.”
“Thank you, Jamison,” Norah replied, feeling a sense of accomplishment.
Meanwhile, back at Derek’s house, Kathy lay on the couch, grumbling. She had felt like luck was never on her side. Her two boyfriends had found out about each other’s existence, which led to endless fights and even threats, one of them threatening to show up in person. Then, the fashion design course she took in preparation for the Grace Cup competition had turned out to be a scam, taking her money and disappearing without a trace.
“Norah won’t just go away,” Kathy muttered to herself. “She even took photos of you two. She’s clearly after the Carter family’s fortune. Such a shallow person. I can’t understand what Mr. Scott sees in her.”
In Kathy’s eyes, Sean, with his exceptional allure, wealth, and looks, was every girl’s dream in Glophia. She was skeptical of the possibility of Sean falling for Norah.
Madeline, fiddling with her nails, said, “Mr. Scott likes Norah? Kathy, you’re giving her too much credit. Given her appearance, even Derek wouldn’t give her a second glance. Mr. Scott has access to much better than Norah. He’s probably just playing with her.”
Pushing the door open, Derek overheard a bit of their conversation. Seeing how pretty Norah was, he wondered if she was Sean’s lover. This thought made Derek’s hands ball into fists. A woman who couldn’t stand being alone, disgracefully leaving the Carter family, now supposedly with Sean. Shame on her.
Kathy greeted Derek at the entrance. “Derek, come over and take a seat.”
Derek moved to sit by Madeline and turned to Kathy, asking, “What brings you here again?”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.