There is something amiss in the air that day.

Alma had a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach that he could not shake off for his entire shift. The interns had managed not to mess anything up during rounds. All of his requests for lab tests had been approved without a single hitch and now he had nothing left to do for the day. No one was loitering in the hallways. The supply closets and on-call rooms were empty, to his relief. He even managed not to raise his voice at anyone which, he now realized, was an achievement all on its own.

He went over his case documents one by one once more, making sure he is not imagining it. Rinka, his wife, stood in front of his desk in her beige trench coat, which covered her from the neck down to her thighs. She looked restlessly from one side to the other, as if waiting for something to happen.

Honestly, that is the entire problem, Alma concluded. If every good thing that happened today, up and including the sudden visit of hers, were presented on its own, he would be glad and think nothing else of it. The shifty eyes, though, are too conspicuous not to notice.

He loosened his tie and tugged at his collar as if he was feeling the intense summer heat for both of them.

"Are you going skiing after here?" He said, looking at her over his glasses.

The young woman shrieked, as if surprised to hear his voice. "What?"

"Your coat, Rinka." He pointed out, rather frustrated with it. "Why are you wearing this thing? It's hot today."

"Oh, that?" She asked, lightly. "I spilled some coffee on my shirt on my way here and I didn't have extra clothes, so I'm covering it up."

Months of dating also made Alma immune to her brand of clumsiness. This was nothing new. Still, it was strange: why would she carry a coat around in the middle of Summer?

"Dr. Fudoh?" The head nurse called from the other side of the door after a couple of knocks. "Are you free right now?"

He looked over to his wife, who smiled softly.

"Don't mind me." Rinka instructed, sitting on a couch out of the way. "I'll wait over here for when you're done."

"Come in." Alma said.

The woman came in followed by a few other interns.

She bowed politely. "We just wanted to give you some final updates on your patients before you leave for the day."

The interns took turns speaking, and Alma double-checked everything they said, analysing to see if any of them screwed up something and were trying to hide it from him. Once they were done, he cleared his throat.

"Very well. Now, who is going to tell me what is going on?" He said as he stood up.

"What?" Rinka squinted her eyes, confused.

"You are all remarkably well-behaved tonight." He leaned forward and his hands pressed against the clear top of the table. "What did you do?"

He tried to meet everyone's gaze but, aside from his foolish wife, all the people in the room were looking down and avoiding his gaze. He sighed, whatever it is, they would not tell it, but he also knows that she is on it, and he knows how to press it out of her.

He dismissed them all except for Rinka. He closed his blinds, turned on the lights, took off his white coat and hung it neatly near the door, where he usually keeps it.

"Now, Rinka, tell me. What is up with you today?" Alma asked, sternly.

"I don't know what you mean." She responded, much too quickly.

"Rinka, please. Don't insult my intelligence." He glared at her. "You came around my job, stood around in the way and refuses to talk to me whenever I pay any attention to you. Instead, you keep looking to the side, as if you're looking for someone to shoot you. What's up?!"

"Frankly, I'm a little hurt." She huffed, petulantly. "I just wanted to see you. Is the idea of me missing you that inconceivable?"

He placed his hand on her arm. "Rinka, don't be so prickly! I just…"

She pulled her arm off of his a little too quickly for his own comfort and raced out of the office. Sighing, he followed her, hoping to catch her in a few larger steps, due to their difference in height.

As soon as they stepped into the hallway, though, Alma noticed that it was mostly empty, save for a few nurses on duty. Rinka walked ahead of him toward the cafeteria while he chased after her.

"Rinka, hold up!" He shouts from behind her. "I didn't mean it like that, I'm…!"

Alma jumped at popping sounds as he reached the doorway. His eyes widened at the sight of golden balloons shaped in the letters of his name floating above a table in the middle of the room. Around it was everyone he knew at the hospital, including patients who were well enough to attend the gathering.

"Happy birthday, Dr. Fudoh!" They all shouted in chorus.

In the centre of it all were Rinka, the head doctor and the head nurse. The ones responsible for the whole mess. He smiled despite himself.

Defeated, he finally joined in on the celebration, which may have only lasted a few minutes, three fourths of an hour at most, but it was long enough to make him realize how much he thought of this hospital as his second home, and its people his family.

Right after the party, as the overworked staff returns to its posts, he and Rinka went straight to their apartment. The clock had struck six and it was time for his shift to end, and his wife had promised a celebration of their own at home.

Alma placed his shoes on the armoire, sat down on the armchair and watched as Rinka walk past him toward the living room.

"Ready for my gift to you?" She asked, a wicked smile on her face.

He looked at her with playful suspicion. "Now you'll tell me what's with the coat?"

"What, this old thing?" Rinka ceremoniously unbuttoned the trench coat.

When it quickly fell into a heap on the floor, Alma's jaw dropped. She was wearing nothing but lingerie.

"Wait. At the hospital, you… All this time?" He stammered before attempting to steady his breathing with a heavy sigh. "Why?"

"Well, how else was I going to get that kind of reaction from you?"