8:52 a.m. - J Med & Co Headquarters
Jay Carson stood still at the glass wall of his office, the early sunlight reflecting off his silver watch. Below him, the city pulsed like a living organism, order and chaos interwoven. But his focus wasn't on the skyline.
It was on the folder in his hands.
MistTech Company: Medical Division Collaboration Proposal.
"CEO Carson," his assistant, Li Na, stepped in quietly. "The MistTech package has arrived. Inside are the team profiles for the upcoming selection."
Jay glanced at her, then nodded for her to continue. She placed a thinner file onto the desk. "They're assigning two internal teams. Medical Team A and B. MistTech wants to give us a choice on who we'd rather collaborate with. Each team will present their prototype and clinical plan next week."
Jay flipped through the pages, his eyes scanning swiftly. Names. Credentials. Years of experience. Research focus.
Two separate columns. Two paths.
Team A - younger, more experimental, bolder in scope.
Team B - steady, traditional, led by Dr. Ren Wu.
His eyes hovered over a name in Team A.
Serena Sherran.
He paused but not long. The name pulled at something in the back of his mind, but nothing surfaced. Just silence.
Jay gave a small nod, lips tightening into a line. "Get me the full profiles for both teams. I want to study them before the internal review."
"Yes, sir," Li Na replied crisply.
As she turned to leave, Jay remained at his desk, fingers lightly tapping against the MistTech logo stamped on the folder's cover.
Something about that name...
A quiet nudge inside his head. A strange heaviness in his chest.
But the memory never came.
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Aiden sat quietly in his wheelchair, a small blanket draped over his legs. The sunlight warmed his pale skin as he watched the other children playing a few meters away laughing, chasing bubbles, their footsteps echoing off the garden walls like tiny heartbeats.
He didn't speak. He didn't need to. His eyes said everything.
Serena knelt beside him, gently adjusting the edge of the blanket. "You'll be up and running like that again soon," she whispered, brushing his hair back from his forehead. "Just give it a little time, alright?"
Aiden didn't look at her. His fingers fidgeted with the thin fabric of his hospital gown, a pout forming on his lips. "I just want to run again," he finally said, his voice small, like the whisper of a dream left outside too long.
Beside them, Dr. Yuan leaned on the railing, arms folded, watching the scene unfold with quiet empathy. "You're healing, Aiden. I've seen a lot of brave kids in this ward, but you?" He smiled warmly. "You're one of my favorites."
Aiden glanced up at Yuan, just a flicker, and the corner of his mouth twitched up just barely.
Serena rose and joined Yuan at the railing, her eyes never straying far from her son. "He hasn't smiled much since the surgery," she admitted, arms crossed over her chest. "He's doing well physically... but emotionally? I don't know."
She let out a deep sigh, her gaze softening. A mother's mind never rested, not when her child was hurting.
Then, suddenly struck with an idea, Serena turned back to Aiden, crouching again beside him with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Okay... what if mommy buys you your favorite dark chocolate?" she offered, raising a brow. "As much as you want. After you're discharged, we'll have a chocolate feast."
Aiden's head turned so fast she nearly laughed.
"Promise?" he said, eyes suddenly lit with that spark again. "Even the really dark one?"
"The really dark one," she nodded solemnly. "The one that's more chocolate than sweet."
He gasped, delighted. "Even the one that makes Dr. Yuan do that funny face?"
Yuan held up both hands. "Hey now, it's not funny, it's a mature adult reaction to bitterness."
Serena smirked. "You spat it out."
"I evaluated it with urgency," Yuan corrected with a mock frown.
Aiden giggled. The sound was light and free, and for a moment, everything felt normal.
Serena reached out and ruffled his hair gently. "See? That's the smile I've been waiting for."
Aiden looked up at her, cheeks slightly flushed.
Her heart melted over that adorable expression her son just make.
They stayed there like that for a few more moments-basking in the sun, in laughter, in the fragile peace that came after pain. The kind of moment Serena wished she could bottle up and keep forever.
From a distance, one of the nurses glanced over and smiled. And as the bubbles floated higher into the air, so did the weight that had sat so heavily on Serena's chest.
At least for now, the clouds had parted.
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