Medical Center. Corridor.
"Dr. Duncan."
Adam was quietly muttering to himself as he watched Liz storm off when a voice piped up beside him.
"Dr. Shepherd."
Adam flashed a grin at the hospital's second officially hired Dr. Shepherd.
Though calling her Dr. Montgomery might've been more fitting.
But fresh off her victory over the "other woman," Meredith, and winning back her husband, Dr. Montgomery clearly preferred the "Dr. Shepherd" title. Sure, it meant explaining things to confused onlookers every time she appeared with her hubs—but she didn't mind one bit! Money can't buy happiness, and she was loving it. The "ohhh, I get it" reactions followed by compliments about what a golden couple they were? She ate that up!
Adam, being the seasoned pro he was, wouldn't dream of making the rookie mistake Liz had. Liz, tied to Meredith through roommate and friend vibes, had the guts to give a senior attending the cold shoulder. If Dr. Montgomery weren't so chill about it, Liz's impulsive, emotional antics would've gotten her crushed by someone like the Chief long ago.
That said, Adam wasn't blind—he could see the subtle game behind Montgomery's "chill" vibe. Was it really just kindness? Or was she cleverly crafting a good-guy image, dangling her authority like bait to pull Meredith's pals into her orbit, isolate her rival, and watch her crumble? Hard to say. After all, with so many interns in the hospital, was Liz—the face-slinger—really the only one with killer pediatric skills? Hmm.
Patreon:belamy20—sliding this in here, as promised!
Side note: this whole drama had Adam thinking of Wulin Waizhuan. That show's Jin Xiangyu would've called Montgomery a pro. In Wulin, when Tong Xiangyu's crew turned on her, she started off fighting back but eventually just rolled with it—"If you can't beat 'em, join 'em." Meredith, though? She got totally steamrolled by Montgomery's poise and presence at first.
On looks alone, the second Montgomery showed up, Meredith bolted to buy new lipstick, constantly touching up in the mirror and fussing with her hair. No way was she letting this "TV-star-level rival" grind her into dust. On skill? During Montgomery's surgery, Meredith was straight-up mesmerized. Afterward, she wailed to her boyfriend, Dr. Shepherd, "She's too good. She's an amazing doctor. You shouldn't even compare me to her!"
A few combo punches like that, and Meredith's fighting spirit was toast.
But then—plot twist! When Shepherd actually leaned toward his wife, Meredith's fire roared back. She swallowed her pride, begged her flaky boyfriend to pick her, love her, and even roped her friends into cussing out Montgomery before every convo. Cristina, George, Liz—they all let her have it. Thing is, deep down, they didn't really hate Montgomery anymore.
Adam, though? He wasn't buying into Meredith's self-hype nonsense. "Wanna sway me? Step up like Montgomery and throw some real incentives my way. Then we'll talk."
Totally different vibes. Tong Xiangyu and Meredith? Night and day. If Tong Xiangyu dropped into this medical center, Adam would've skipped right over Meredith's basic friend status—or even Cristina's—and treated her like Chandler and Monica-level BFFs. No question. (And no, this has nothing to do with Tong being the ninth-generation master of Dian Cang Mountain's Seven Wonders Palace or a hypnosis legend. Nope. 🙅♂️)
Where there's people, there's drama. Can't go around hurting folks, but you'd be dumb not to watch your back. Adam kept his cool with Montgomery, never giving her a chance to pull a Jin Xiangyu or a Chief-level power move on him.
"Heard the news?" Montgomery asked, giving him a sly smile.
"You mean Mrs. Lusabin's quintuplets?" Adam grinned back. "Congrats, Dr. Shepherd! That's a headline-worthy case right there."
"Thanks!" She beamed. "You know it's gonna take a ton of hands on deck. Dr. Duncan, you interested in jumping in?"
"Absolutely." Adam nodded, then hesitated. "But what about Dr. Stevenson?"
"Oh, don't worry," Montgomery said with a chuckle. "You two can handle it together. This case is a big deal—can't get too much attention. And honestly, among all the interns here, who's more dependable than you? If you were into peds even a little, I'd say you could run this solo."
"You're too kind," Adam said with a humble smile.
But inside? He was more convinced than ever that Montgomery wasn't that sold on Liz. This woman was a force. And it made sense—she rolled in, faced a patient defending her honor, and still calmly explained Meredith wasn't to blame. Then dropped that killer line: "I might be a loose woman, but I could still be your soulmate." Absolute legend status.
Montgomery glanced at Adam, clocking his steady, unruffled vibe. No bite on her hook. She let out a little laugh, but her eyes betrayed a flicker of frustration.
Yup—she was trying to reel him in.
The neonatal unit was thriving under her, and she was riding high. But the pressure? Massive. All that capital pouring in wasn't charity—it was about boosting rep and raking in cash. If she flopped, she'd go from golden girl to laughingstock. Sure, a top doc like her would never hurt for money, but losing face? Unacceptable.
She needed a solid team. Problem was, the skilled residents were already locked into specialties under other attendings. She could call on them, but only when their bosses didn't need them. For a pediatric chief with big dreams and bigger stress, that wasn't gonna cut it.
Standard move? Pick a promising intern, train them up, and lock them in as her resident post-internship. Liz was her pick for that. But lately, Adam's rep had been echoing through the halls. Montgomery realized she might've overlooked a better option.
Adam—an intern with skills so wild they rivaled an attending's? She didn't fully buy that, but she'd admit he was on par with the legendary Dr. Bailey. If she nabbed him, her neonatal squad would level up fast—way quicker than grooming Liz.
Still, she wasn't delusional. Adam was destined for cardio or neuro, not peds. She'd never pitched him before, but this rare case gave her an opening to test the waters.
No dice. Expected, sure, but it still stung a little.
"Mrs. Lusabin's showing some depressive signs," Montgomery said, shifting gears with a half-smirk. "Her husband's swamped at home with their triplet boys. I think you could really step up here, Dr. Duncan. Science says handsome male docs are perfect for OB-GYN—puts the moms at ease, y'know?"
"…" Adam's lip twitched.
True? Yeah. Weird to hear? Oh, for sure.