Chapter 1

"Ms. Colleen Wright! You're next."

By the time the hospital nurse, Vanessa Powell, helped me into the doctor's office, it had been more than two hours since my doctor boyfriend, Aiden Foley, had left the consultation room with his intern, Tracy Olsen.

The pain made it almost impossible for me to straighten my back, and I was completely tensed up in my hunched-over posture. However, Vanessa didn't leave immediately.

"Morning, Dr. Cobb. This patient is having a fever and menstrual cramps, and she also has a history of hereditary diabetes and an allergy to penicillin. She fell down the stairs earlier due to the pain and injured her foot as well."

She then casually handed me a cup of soy milk. I felt a lump in my throat.

Even the nurse here remembered that my hereditary diabetes meant that I couldn't go on an empty stomach, yet Aiden couldn't even remember that about me. He had clearly seen me waiting in the lobby for my turn earlier, and yet he gave the only sandwich in his hand to Tracy instead.

"Also, she's Dr. Foley's—"

"Please prescribe me a box of sustained-release painkillers!" I cut Vanessa off at once before she could finish her sentence. "And a box of iron supplements too."

Aiden hated it when I leveraged his status as a chief physician at the hospital to seek special treatment.

In the past, I would have pressed the issue, feeling hurt and upset about his decision, and demanded an explanation for it. But now, I just felt a sense of resignation and acceptance whenever I thought about it.

Vanessa clearly sensed the situation and said nothing more about my relationship with Aiden.

As I stepped out of the consultation room, I bumped into Aiden. He was saying, "Remember to drink plenty of warm water when you get back. I already asked Dr. Herman to prescribe the iron supplements for you.

"Make sure you take them appropriately and also take care of yourself. You're always skipping meals and eating at irregular times, and that's not good, especially when you're on your menstrual cycle."

Then, he took off his doctor's coat and put it around Tracy's shoulders. He spoke to her so gently and caringly as though she were his beloved girlfriend instead.

"I got it, Dr. Foley," Tracy said with a smile. "My dear professor Dr. Foley, thank you for accompanying me to the doctor's even though you're so busy with surgeries all day. I promise that I'll take better care of myself to make you worry less about me."

The pills in my hand fell to the floor, the glass canister breaking upon contact and spilling the contents everywhere.

It was only then that Aiden finally caught sight of me. He immediately let go of Tracy's arm in panic and strode over to me.

"What are you still doing here? Wasn't it just a routine consultation? Forget about picking up the pills."

When he still didn't hear a response from me, he pushed his glasses up impatiently and said, "I'll write you another prescription to get a new one at the pharmacy. Stop being so clumsy next time and be more careful."

I didn't know if he did this to mask his guilt or if he was truly feeling guilty. After all, he never once took the initiative to write me a slip or bother to fast-track the process.

Even when I was in so much pain that I couldn't even straighten my back, he would still maintain a cold, strictly professional demeanor and say, "As the department head, I cannot show favoritism to even my family members. You ought to know better than to create an appearance of impropriety between us."

But now, I didn't care anymore.

"Forget it," I said, pushing away the slip he offered to me. I wasn't acting as hysterically as I would have.

"It's not like I have to get them at the hospital anyway. I can just go to a regular private pharmacy outside for the pills."

With that, I gathered up the shards on the floor and tossed everything into the trash can.

"Are you… Are you mad, Mrs. Foley?" Tracy asked, timidly approaching us.

I didn't know why she called me that when Aiden and I weren't married, but it was obvious she knew he and I were together.

She feigned an understanding air as she spoke, "How about… How about I give you mine instead? Please don't argue with Dr. Foley over this.

"He can be a bit stubborn and insensitive, and his words can be sharp at times, but over time, you'll realize that when he truly likes someone, he will take everything to heart and be really generous with her."

She said that as though she were extremely familiar with Aiden and knew exactly what kind of person he was, making me feel like an outsider.

I lowered my eyes and looked at the box of imported and specialized period medication she was holding out to me.

I felt my heart sink.

The last time I was writhing in bed in excruciating pain, I had specifically looked it up. That particular medication was the most effective for pain relief, and only the department head would have the authority to requisition it.

When I brought it up with Aiden, he chided me sternly and replied coldly, "Hospital regulations on medication control are very strict! There are fixed protocols for requisitioning supplies. We can't just dispense them privately at will.

"Besides, menstrual cramps are just a common ailment for women. There's no need for you to resort to special medication just for that."

And yet, the very medication he refused to make an exception to get for me was now resting securely in Tracy's hands.

"Tracy's cramps are worse than yours. Don't you kick up a fuss over nothing."

Before I could even speak, Aiden had already hurriedly pushed the box of medication back into Tracy's arms.

"The hospital recently loosen the quotas for special medication requests. I can put in a request for you to get some as well."