Director Evelyn pushed up her slipping glasses and said, "Ava, the person you're gonna introduce isn't your boyfriend, right?"
Ava's the hospital's resident beauty, and she's got mad skills to boot. She snagged first place in the city's nursing skills competition after just three years on the job.
Besides her sweet personality, Ava's got a lot of fans around here. Evelyn's one of 'em, so when Ava said she wanted to introduce someone, Evelyn was all in.
Ava's face turned red, not saying yes or no, but Evelyn figured she was just too shy to admit it, so she let it slide.
"Thanks, Mrs. Thompson! I'll treat you to a meal sometime!" Ava said, sounding pretty happy. She couldn't help but think of Benjamin's handsome face. But then she thought, "But he's my son!"
Evelyn chuckled, "What? Trying to bribe me, the department head? Nice try!"
Ava knew she was joking. The head of the department wouldn't care about a free meal. Tons of people probably try to take her out every day.
"I'd love to bribe you, but on a nurse's salary, I can only afford one meal! So, consider it a thank you. Don't overthink it, Mrs. Thompson!" Ava said sweetly.
"You're really something!" Evelyn shook her head with a smile. "Alright, no need for a meal. I gotta do rounds soon. Have your boyfriend come by another day."
After thanking Mrs. Thompson again, Ava left. She whipped out her phone and called Benjamin, "Hey, kiddo, you up? Mom's got some good news for you." Benjamin had been up for a while. When he got up, Ava was still asleep. He gets up at six every morning, even when he's abroad, so he's used to early mornings. He went for a run and came back, but Ava had already left for work.
Benjamin wanted to look up some stuff online, so he went into Ava's room to use her laptop. Just as he walked in, she called. He freaked out, thinking she had a camera in there, and quickly backed out.
But Ava didn't seem to care about that. Benjamin took a deep breath, "I've been up for a while, making breakfast. What's the good news?"
"Listen up, the head of the gynecology department said you can try out for a bit. If you do well, you might get a permanent spot. Benjamin, you gotta nail this!"
Ava didn't hold back and told Benjamin straight up, reminding him to do his best.
Benjamin was shocked. He didn't expect Ava to move so fast. He said happily, "Thanks, Mom, I won't let you down!"
Ava said, "I gotta go to a meeting now!"
And with that, she hung up.
Benjamin felt a mix of nerves and excitement. He used to be a hitman, but only took out the bad guys. Now he was gonna be a doctor, saving lives— a total 180. He wasn't sure if he could pull it off.
Benjamin decided to swing by his old buddy Logan's place after hanging up the phone. He felt kinda bad for not visiting since he got back. When Benjamin first went abroad, he was so broke he could barely afford to eat. Logan had his back, lending him money a few times. Benjamin would never forget that brotherly bond.
Following his memory of the address, Benjamin rolled up to Logan's neighborhood. Seeing the slightly run-down area, he felt a mix of nostalgia and sadness. This place held a ton of good memories. Back in junior high, they were both wild and full of crazy fantasies about girls.
Logan might not have been as good-looking as Benjamin, but he had a way with the ladies. In ninth grade, he even managed to get a girl into bed, making him almost a legend among the guys.
When he got to the apartment, Benjamin looked at the familiar yet kinda unfamiliar door number, rang the bell, and soon a girl in a cool outfit opened up. As the door swung open, a faint, sweet scent hit him, the kind only a young girl has. She was rocking a sexy black tank top, showing off her tanned arms and shoulders, paired with denim shorts and yellow flip- flops. She looked fresh and stunning.
This girl seemed about sixteen or seventeen, but she was already pretty developed. Seeing Benjamin, she blinked her big, watery eyes and asked, " Hey, who are you looking for?"
Benjamin remembered Logan, like him, came from a single-parent family. His dad bailed when he was young, and he lived with his mom, no siblings. So, who was this pretty young girl?
Thinking he might've messed up, Benjamin checked the door number again. Nope, this was definitely Logan's place!
"Hey, I'm looking for Logan. Is he around?" Benjamin asked with a charming smile. Seeing his sunny grin, the girl's cheeks turned a bit pink, her heart racing. It was the classic reaction of a girl seeing a hot guy, just like a guy would get excited seeing a beautiful girl.
"Hi, um, my brother went out to grab some groceries. Who are you?" The girl was nervous and stuttered a bit.
Brother? When did Logan get such a pretty sister? Benjamin was confused!
"I'm a friend of your brother, I'm Benjamin. Are you really his sister?" Benjamin hesitated for a moment and asked. If Logan's mom had another kid, she wouldn't be this old. He remembered Logan's mom was still single back in junior high.
"Oh, so you're Benjamin, my brother's friend!" Isabella had seen Benjamin in her brother's photo album and heard about him before. She quickly invited him in, saying, "Benjamin, come on in. Have a seat, and I'll explain everything."
Once inside, Isabella poured a glass of water for Benjamin and sat down to share her story. "My brother and I have different moms but the same dad. Our parents split when I was in junior high because of some issues. Later, my mom remarried in Stellaria, and three years ago, my dad died in a car accident. After that, my brother and his mom took me in."
Isabella talked about the past with a hint of sadness, but it had been years, and now it was just a memory. Benjamin couldn't help but feel emotional too.
"Yo, Benjamin, you wanna see my bro? Why not just hit him up and tell him to get his butt back here?"
Isabella was always super polite, calling Benjamin "brother" every time, which made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Benjamin waved it off with a grin, "Nah, no rush. I'm chillin'. This time, I' m back for good, so I've got all the time in the world. By the way, what's your name again?"
He was so caught up in checking out the pretty girl that he realized he didn't even know her name after all this chatting.
Isabella beamed, "I'm Isabella. You can just call me Isabella, Benjamin!"
She was bubbly and couldn't stop talking. They were sitting face to face, and Benjamin noticed she wasn't wearing a bra under her tank top.
From his angle, he could see the slight bumps on her chest. It wasn't super obvious, but Benjamin had sharp eyes. Her chest was still developing, looking kinda like a budding flower.
"So, what does your brother call you?"
"He calls me Isabella too!" Isabella answered without thinking much about it.
Benjamin chuckled, "Alright, Isabella it is. I didn't bring any gifts this time, so consider this a little something for our first meet."
He pulled out a special gold card and handed it to her. It wasn't real gold, just a gold-colored card.
It looked like a credit card but smaller. A woman from his mercenary group had given it to him, saying her family was in the cosmetics business. The card could be used worldwide for a 50% discount at any store, but it could only be used once a day to prevent abuse.