The door to the otherwise empty surgeons' lounge swings open with slightly more force than necessary, causing Micah to look up from the newspaper he is reading while he eats his lunch. "Ugh!" huffs Emily, plopping unceremoniously into the chair next to him and reaching for the untouched half of his sandwich. "Are all interns ridiculously hard to deal with or did I just get lucky?"
Micah can't help chuckling at her frustration as he carefully folds the paper. "Well, as I recall, our very first conversation happened in a stairwell where you were stuffing your face with vending machine comfort food and ranting about the hardships of having to work with both your high school nemesis and your med school crush. Wouldn't you call that a little ridiculous?"
Emily suddenly assumes what he calls her "know-it-all" face. "Actually," she says while carefully picking the tomato out of his sandwich. "Our very first conversation happened in the morning during rounds when you told me to breathe."
He stares at her, lost in thought for a moment before a sudden grin crosses his face. "I had forgotten that." he says watching her take another bite of sandwich. Just as quickly, the grin disappears.
"You do remember that you have a lunch over there in the fridge, right? The sandwich you made this morning WITHOUT tomato?"
Emily looks at him and pouts. "I don't want to walk all the way over there and get it."
Micah sighs and rolls his eyes at her before getting up to retrieve her lunch from the fridge. "If I called you Dr. Kopelson right now, you would completely deserve it."
"Mean!" says Emily, her mouth full of his sandwich. Micah sets her lunch in front of her, carefully removing half. He puts the tomato she has previously discarded onto the new sandwich and exaggerates placing his plate outside of her reach. She responds by plopping her feet up onto his lap.
"Give the interns time" he says seriously, giving her ankles an affectionate squeeze. "Put yourself in their shoes and remember how scared you were and how new everything was. What they really need right now is an ally, someone they know will have their backs no matter what. If they feel that from you, they will be more likely to come to you with their problems."
Emily smiles at him lovingly. "Thank you" she says. "I always thought you were a fantastic resident."
"Just don't fall in love with any of your interns" suggests Micah drily, reopening his newspaper. "I hear it can get messy."
Emily laughs just as her pager begins to beep. "Why would I need one of them when I have you?"
"Gotta go." She groans, getting up and giving him a quick kiss. "And just so you know," she whispers seductively in his ear "I never actually gave up the vending machine food". As she reaches the door, she grabs the ring dings package out of her lab coat pocket and waves it at him before exiting.
As the door closes behind her, it is Micah's turn to laugh.