It was a busy public holiday, and an emergency call came in: a child at the amusement park had a sudden accident, sustaining an arterial injury that led to massive bleeding. Halfway there, the head of the emergency team, Director Brenda, insisted on stopping the ambulance to take pictures. I urged her to hurry, that a human life was more important than anything else. But she just glared at me, her voice dripping with disdain, “Don’t think a fancy degree can replace me. I’m still the one in charge of this emergency room!” I had no comeback, only frantic worry. Finally, she finished her photoshoot and got back in the ambulance. I thought we were leaving. Instead, she told the driver to open the fuel tank. “Siphon some gas into a canister for me. My personal car is almost out!” 0 “Brenda, the child’s parents are calling non-stop. If we don’t get there soon, the child might…” I was drenched in sweat, but I could only watch helplessly as Brenda, the current emergency room director, casually snapped photos with her camera. “Stop rushing me!” She scowled, glancing at me with contempt. But her camera stayed firmly in her hands. “Chloe Roberts, don’t think just because you graduated from a prestigious university, you have the right to yell at me. Let me tell you, I still call the shots in this emergency room.” “Director Brenda, you misunderstand. I really don’t mean anything by it. It’s just that this child can’t wait. They just called, said the child is unconscious, probably from excessive blood loss…” Before I could finish, she cut me off sharply. “What ‘excessive blood loss’! Don’t you know how people exaggerate these days? They make a tiny scratch sound like a major injury!” “They’re just petty-minded, thinking a little trick will make us arrive faster. They don’t even consider that we’re not gods, we can’t just teleport there!” “I’ve been doing this for years, I’ve seen it all. You just haven’t seen enough!” “But…” I tried to continue, but she immediately flared up. “Chloe Roberts, if you say one more word, you can get an Uber back to the hospital yourself! Who do you think you are, telling me what to do on my own call?!” I didn’t expect her to say that. I bit my lip. Fuming, I slumped back into my seat. Today was my first day on the job, and I never imagined I’d encounter something like this. Brenda and I were old classmates, and in her eyes, “mortal enemies!” Ever since school, she’d loved to antagonize me, always competing. Even my current husband was the guy she’d been chasing for years, the one she considered her ‘Mr. Right,’ but never caught. Later, after college, she pulled strings to get a position at the top regional hospital thanks to her family’s connections. I went straight into my residency after medical school, and right after graduation, I was assigned to this hospital for further training. Just my luck, I ended up in her department. As soon as I sat down, my phone rang again. “Doctor! Are you there yet? My son… my son is fading… Waaah… he’s barely breathing…” Hearing the frantic voice on the phone, my heart clenched again. From previous calls, I knew the child had accidentally fallen from a Ferris wheel, bleeding profusely, and likely had a damaged major artery. His situation was critical. The accident site wasn’t far from our hospital, only about a 10-minute drive. But halfway there, Brenda spotted a newly built Transformers attraction through the window. To humor her own son, she actually ordered Mark, the driver, to stop the ambulance right there and go take pictures! And she’d been taking photos for a solid 20 minutes! During that time, I felt like I was sitting on pins and needles, urging her no less than ten times, only to be met with eye-rolls and dismissals. Helpless, I could only try to reassure the family. “Almost there, almost there! Please find some clothes or strips of cloth to wrap around the bleeding points, reduce the blood loss, and hold on a little longer. We’ll be there any minute!” I gripped my phone, my back soaked with sweat. If this child wasn’t saved soon, it would be too late. Without another thought, I “clunked” open the door and jumped out of the ambulance again, marching straight up to Brenda and snatching the camera from her hand. “Director Brenda, are you going or not?! If you don’t go now, I’ll report you for criminal negligence!” 0
I stood rigidly, my finger trembling as I pointed at the ambulance. My voice was loud, drawing a crowd of curious onlookers. “Oh! Isn’t that an ambulance? Why do the doctors have time to take pictures here? Is this a joke?!” “Right? They blare their sirens every day, making us pull over, running red lights, but then they stop halfway to enjoy the scenery! Talk about abusing authority!” “Looks like ambulances aren’t always in such a rush after all! Next time I see one on the road, I’m not moving!” People chattered amongst themselves, pointing fingers at us. Brenda hadn’t expected me to stand my ground. She’d probably wanted to put me in my place, but seeing the large crowd, she bit back her words to avoid suspicion. Honestly, I didn’t want to make a scene like this, but thinking of the life urgently awaiting treatment, I had no other choice. Regardless of whether Brenda was trying to suppress me, deliberately trying to make me look bad on my first emergency call, or whatever, it couldn’t be at the cost of a human life. Perhaps pressured by the crowd, Brenda finally put away her camera and got back into the ambulance. I checked my watch; almost half an hour had passed! But now, just a few more minutes, and we’d be there. The child could be saved! Thinking that, I was about to let out a sigh of relief. But a still-fuming Brenda gave another command. “Mark, pull over at that intersection up ahead!” At her words, my heart tightened again. I had no idea what new stunt she was pulling. The driver didn’t dare to disobey and dutifully pulled the ambulance to the side of the road at the intersection. I looked closely. Wasn’t this a grocery store? Before I could react, Brenda didn’t even glance at me, simply told Mark, “Wait for me a minute, I need to buy some shrimp. My son wants grilled shrimp for dinner!” I literally couldn’t believe my ears! The situation was dire, and she still had the nerve to come to the grocery store to buy shrimp! I thought I had taught her a lesson earlier, but it seemed she hadn’t taken it to heart at all. I figured Brenda, who’d gotten her job through connections, wasn’t afraid of being reported. Seeing her about to leave, I quickly stepped forward and grabbed her arm. “Director Brenda, the child is already unconscious. His blood pressure must be dangerously low by now. We really don’t have any more time…” I looked at her, practically begging. To try and persuade her further, I tried to make her empathize. “Brenda, you have a child too. Imagine if it were your child who was injured, wouldn’t you be just as worried…” My intention was to make her put herself in their shoes, but at my words, Brenda’s temper flared. “Chloe Roberts! Shut up! You yelled at me just now, and threatened to report me. I haven’t even settled that with you, and now you’re cursing my son, are you?!” “Let me tell you! My son is perfectly fine; my husband is at the amusement park with him right now!” “And another thing! You just want to steal my thunder like you always did, don’t you? Hmph! Not this time, you won’t!” With that, Brenda turned and disappeared into the grocery store without a backward glance. Watching Brenda leave, my heart sank. After two seconds of thought, I didn’t hesitate any longer. I got straight into the driver’s seat. “Mark! Let’s go now! Hurry!” At this point, I could only take a gamble. Although I didn’t have extensive real-world experience, I had always been top of my class. During my residency, I had participated in countless emergency simulations. Since Brenda wouldn’t go, I had planned to go myself and administer first aid to the child, because if we waited any longer, the child would likely be lost. But to my surprise, as soon as I finished speaking, Mark stretched, without even lifting his eyelids. He curtly replied with two words! “No way!” 0
The two short words from the driver’s cabin hit me like two heavy stones! They struck me hard! I stared at him in disbelief. “What did you say?! Why won’t you go?! The child can’t wait any longer, didn’t you hear?!” I craned my neck, questioning the driver with a frantic, hoarse voice. But he pulled out his phone and casually scrolled through TikTok, blandly muttering, “I heard you! But without the director’s word, I’m not moving!” “If something goes wrong, who’s going to be responsible?!” I was about to retort when I suddenly remembered an overheard conversation between two nurses in the restroom earlier. They were saying that Mark, the driver, was Director Brenda’s cousin or something… It seemed the driver and Brenda were indeed related; I certainly couldn’t order him around! I wiped the sweat from my forehead, my chest feeling like it was stuffed with a huge wad of cotton. Cramped and suffocated. Just then, my phone rang again. “Doctor! My son really can’t hold on much longer, my clothes are soaked red, there’s blood everywhere… We can only last 10 more minutes at most…” The man’s desperate cries came through the phone, Like a sharp knife piercing my heart. I paced frantically, wishing I could grow wings and fly there myself. I once again tried to calm the family, giving them simple first-aid instructions. After hanging up, I was about to call the hospital, asking dispatch to send another ambulance. Perhaps there was still hope. Just then, the door “bang!” opened. Brenda was finally back! I felt like I was seeing a savior, urgently beginning to explain the injured child’s condition. But Brenda’s mind was clearly elsewhere. She smiled, handed the shrimp to Mark, and only relaxed once she saw him place it on the passenger seat. After all that, she finally spared me a glance. “Director Brenda, the child’s situation is extremely critical. According to the parents, he likely injured a major artery and is probably going into shock. We have at most 10 minutes left…” I was on the verge of tears. To my surprise, Brenda snorted with laughter after hearing me out. “Chloe Roberts, you haven’t changed a bit, still so eager to show off!” She patted my shoulder. “Didn’t I just tell you, people love to exaggerate! Especially parents!” She gave me a sneer, like a seasoned veteran looking at a rookie. “No! I don’t think this is an exaggeration. I believe the real situation is probably even worse!” I directly stated my assessment. Brenda, however, calmly shook her head. “If it’s true, then it’s just fate.” “As the saying goes, life and death are predestined. If he can’t be saved, it just means that kid was meant to be a goner. Who can you blame for that?!” Listening to her words, my eyes nearly bugged out of my head. I couldn’t believe such words would come from her, the esteemed director of the emergency room. My soaked back felt even colder. But this wasn’t the time to argue. Seeing the ambulance finally start moving, hope surged in me again. It wasn’t far now; we’d be at the accident site in just 5 minutes. I watched my wrist-watch, time ticking by second by second. As the amusement park’s outline came into view, my heart grew even more anxious. I silently prayed in my mind. “Child! You have to hold on! We’re coming!” But at this critical moment, the ambulance slowed down. And then, it stopped moving altogether! 0 “Mark, what’s going on? Why are we stopped?!” “Are you blind? Can’t you see the traffic jam?”
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