Yamazaki Seiji was genuinely gobsmacked for the first time in his life. He looked at the girl conversing at the podium with one of the hospital directors. Even if he was far away, he could see the respect that the old guy displayed before Hina.
The young woman turned her head toward him, and she winked covertly with a subtle smile before turning back to that director. Seiji's face could not maintain its usual cold demeanour.
"Dr Yamazaki, are you even listening to me? So, will you be my cardiovascular consult?" Dr Nomura asked with a hint of whining at Seiji's inattention.
"Sure, I will come to your clinic after checking up on my patients," Seiji responded distractedly.
He did not hear Dr Nomura's exact question before agreeing. However, he always consulted with the cosmetic surgeon whenever he needed someone to handle cardiovascular issues. They had worked on multiple projects together already.
Therefore, he did not think it was a big deal to accept Dr Nomura's request for a consultation without knowing the specifics.
Unfortunately, he would later discover that this casual answer meant that he would spend countless hours, days and weeks with Dr Nomura staring at a certain male organ. When he found out, he was furious with the innocent Nomura for tricking him.
However, for the moment, he was focused on the beautiful lady, who was both strange and familiar.
The hospital director took the centre stage. He tapped gently on the podium with a small gavel to attract attention from the doctors and other caregivers in the auditorium.
"Good morning. Thank you all for your attendance of this lecture." The old man spoke with pride. "Dr Nishimura Hina is a young but incomparable physician, surgeon and researcher. It is the pride of the Stillwater Medical Research Institute to call her our own."
"We hope that Dr Nishimura will remain with us for the foreseeable future and bring glory to our small hospital and our city. For the moment, she will be with us while working on a clinical trial on thalamic brain stimulation on comatose patients."
"Please give a warm welcome to Dr Nishimura Hina." The old man declared.
He bowed to Hina, and she bowed back with a smile before standing at the podium. She looked at the auditorium with numerous faces with diverse expressions. Her eyes found the handsome face of Seiji, and her smile widened.
The pride in her heart soared because she had managed to crack the indifferent face. It seemed like she was the slayer of the cold Yamazaki family members.
After looking at him superiorly for a long moment, she reclaimed her composure and began her presentation with the bearing of an acclaimed neurosurgeon.
"The use of electrical pulses is not a new technique in the management of both neurological and psychiatric disorders. Deep brain stimulation has been proven safe and efficient for treating conditions such as epilepsy, essential tremor, dystonia and obsessive-compulsive disorders."
"Electroconvulsive therapy is also not an unfamiliar subject, even for the layperson. ECT is often included in thriller books, horror movies and the occasional psychological manga, and many think of it with fear and disgust. However, those of us well-versed in medicine know the potential benefits of the therapy."
"While the introduction of high electrical charges can lead to the results displayed in pop culture, controlled introduction leads to a change in brain chemistry, allowing for the improvement of conditions like mania, catatonia and severe depression."
"In the recent years, there have been explorations into the stimulation of the thalamus of comatose patients to induce consciousness. One of the successful approaches used ultrasound, and the acoustic waves were key to promoting brain excitation."
"However, the limitations of this approach are obvious, especially when dealing with patients in a deep coma. My research is designed to harness the knowledge of electrical effects of the brain to trigger activity in the thalamus which mediates consciousness."
As Hina continued with her presentation, Seiji remained dazed because he could not understand the changes in the crazy girl before him.
He still remembered when he first saw Hina. She was a punk with spiky hair, strange jewellery and questionable black clothing. Furthermore, the careless image was enhanced by that ridiculous sports car.
The discrepancy was just too wide: he could not reconcile with it.
For this reason, Seiji was bewildered throughout the presentation. He was only startled when people stood up to clap when Hina finished her presentation.
"Dr Yamazaki, I think that Dr Nishimura has the hots for me." Dr Nomura spoke up as soon as the presentation finished, and the director dismissed them.
Seiji's face darkened at the words even though he was uncertain why he was annoyed by the harmless but ever pompous cosmetic surgeon.
"Why do you think that?" He bit out.
"Didn't you notice? First, she winked at me while talking to the director. Second, she stared at me with satisfaction before she began the presentation. What shall I do? I am a married man who is loyal to one tiger wife." He sighed
"But on the other hand, I can't bear to break Dr Nishimura's heart. What if she gives up medicine because of me? I will have sinned against the world. What should I do? What should I do, Dr Yamazaki? Tell me!" Dr Nomura continued, his crazy imagination unstoppable.
Seiji could not bear the person twisting and turning like a little girl after being hit on for the first time. He knew that Nomura was wrong in his ȧssumptions, but he still felt uncomfortable. There was an impulse to punch the obnoxious guy he sometimes called friend.
"Seiji, Seiji, she is coming over!" Dr Nomura forgot to address Seiji correctly as he pulled on his sleeve excitedly.
Hina did not pay attention to the other doctors who were eyeing her like a delicious piece of steak. She went directly to Seiji and smiled at him happily.
"How was it, my dear Seiji? Was it a good surprise?" Hina laughed.
Dr Nomura looked between the two of them, and the truth sunk in. His maiden heart shattered like glass. But as usual, he recovered fast, and his ears became longer and wider as he tried to gather fresh gossip.
"So, last Saturday, you did not come specifically to pick me up for the party?" Seiji asked darkly.
Hina laughed awkwardly.
"I was finishing up some administrative procedures first and thought it was a brilliant idea for us to go together." She said. "Anyway, I look forward to you taking care of me."