But when Michael saw cases like this, he always stepped in to help. This surgeon with golden hands couldn’t ignore someone’s suffering – his heart wouldn’t allow it. Over his years in medicine, he’d seen it all, but something like today was new even for him.
“Who was supposed to take her?” Michael asked, entering the room ten minutes later. “Linda Carter,” replied the orderly Sarah, sighing softly, and began explaining what had happened. “Dr. Thompson, please don’t scold her, I beg you.
Understand, we’re all exhausted. This week has been absolute hell. We’re barely standing. Linda’s been on shift for two days straight – she slept two hours in the break room on a chair and went back to work. The one covering for her is still on sick leave – got ill last fall, and we haven’t heard from her since.”
“Alright, enough,” the doctor said, waving his hand to cut off the flustered orderly. “Now’s not the time to sort this out. We’ll deal with it later.”
A few hours later, Emily was holding a little miracle – a rosy-cheeked boy with curly hair, quietly snoring. “Well, congratulations, young mom!” Michael said with a warm smile. He was genuinely glad the delivery went quickly and without complications. “Congratulations for what?” Emily replied sadly.
Her eyes were full of tears she barely held back. For a moment, it seemed to the chief physician that she might break down sobbing. He couldn’t take his eyes off her – something in her features made his heart skip a beat. “Could it be her?” flashed through his mind when he first looked at Emily, but there was no time for reflection then.
When they finally got her to a room, her contractions were in full swing – no time for emotions. Now, with everything over, there was a chance to talk calmly. But Emily clearly wasn’t eager to open up to a stranger.
“What do you mean, for what?” Michael asked, surprised. “Look at this handsome boy you’ve got! Have you thought of a name yet?” Emily stayed silent, unsure what to say. This man was the first in a long time to show her such genuine kindness. Without his help, she wouldn’t have made it – nowhere to go, no one to turn to.
She couldn’t even grasp how she’d ended up in this situation. Though, if she thought about it, there was little to be surprised about. Her trusting nature and lack of a strong support system had left her vulnerable. Things could have been much worse, but she didn’t want to dwell on that.
The reality she faced terrified and paralyzed her. Before Michael’s eyes, his entire life flashed – memories, losses, hopes. For some reason, he was certain: this resemblance to someone from his past wasn’t a coincidence.
“It’s impossible,” he thought. “This just doesn’t happen.” In his fifties, he remained alone. His wife’s betrayal had left such a deep scar that no woman could get close to him again. And he didn’t hide from himself: despite everything, he still loved her – his Natalie.
She had left him for a dream of a better life, and he’d long believed she’d return. If only he’d known she was no longer among the living. Natalie had always been out of place in this world.
As a young woman, she felt the small town in Indiana suffocated her dreams. She yearned for more, but her mother quickly clipped her wings. “We don’t have money for your whims or moves,” she snapped. “Settle down and live like everyone else. Finish the nursing program in Muncie, then dream about Indianapolis or a career.”
Natalie didn’t want to rot in the local clinic, but she had no choice.
“What’s the point of this training?” Natalie thought, sitting through lectures at the Muncie nursing school. But escaping the town was impossible. She hoped her mother would relent and give her some money – enough for a bus ticket to Indianapolis and a few weeks’ rent – but it was futile.
Her mother was unyielding as stone. “You’re not going anywhere,” she said. “Stay here and stop dreaming.” Natalie had to accept her fate.
Barely making it to graduation, she met Michael – a guy who wasn’t content with just a nursing degree. Right after getting his certificate, he applied to the Indiana University School of Medicine – and got in on his first try. How could he not? Michael was the kind professors praised and students respected – talented, driven.
“Guys like him are worth their weight in gold,” they said at the school. “Look at the guy chasing you,” her mother kept repeating, noticing Michael bringing Natalie flowers and inviting her for walks in the park. “Let him slip, and you’ll regret it. Young, promising!”
Natalie only smirked. Prospects in this town? Who’d believe that? But she didn’t reject Michael’s advances – he was sincere and handsome.