While Noah was dealing with the two old men who were going into a state of shock every once in while, Aria could not stop blushing as she read through her messages. She scrolled through her chat and bit her lip as she wondered what Noah would do to her once she reached home, later in the day. 'What does Noah have in mind? Does he want to....' She shook her head at once, her eyes widening, thinking about what lay ahead for her.

Ian observed her myriad expressions and he blinked in surprise. 'Now, what is wrong with her? Why is she behaving strange?' Not making any noise, he padded towards her, and unintentionally, his eyes fell on her phone.

A smirk made its way on his face as he took a glimpse at the contents. "Best of luck, Aria." He wished her and his sudden interruption startled the girl. She jumped in her place, taking deep breaths when she found out that it was Ian.

"Ian, you scared me." She patted her heart, trying to soother her scared heart. "Why did you sneak behind me? You could have talked to me directly."

"Don't blame me, Aria. You were the one who was behaving weirdly and abnormal. I just wanted to find out what was wrong." Ian defended himself, looking at her sternly, although amusement was dancing in his eyes.

"I was not behaving abnormally. I was just...I was just..." Aria averted her gaze when the embarrassment settled in and she closed her eyes tight. 'What did I do? This is so awkward.'

"You were just blushing and scrolling through your messages. Am I right?" Ian finished what she wanted to say and Aria had the sudden urge to bury herself in the ground.

"What? Yes, I mean no. No. No." Aria shut her mouth when she realized that her words were not helping her and she was only making Ian's suspicions come true.

"It's okay, Aria. I completely understand you." Ian smiled at her and Aria narrowed her eyes at once seeing his playful smile.

"Are you teasing me?"

"Not at all. How dare I tease you!"

"You better not be teasing me."

"I was just having my share of fun. Noah is not fun at all. At least his girlfriend is not as bad as him. Thank the Lords."

"Ian," Aria lowly warned him which had no effect on the man. He just brushed it off with a chuckle.

"You are bullying me too." Aria made a crying face and wiped her nonexistent tears.

"Correction. I am only teasing you. Noah is the one who is bullying you. And that reminds me." Ian added, taking a quick glance at the girl who was waiting for him to continue. "Best of luck."

Confused by his words, Aria blinked at him. "Why are you wishing me luck? Is something going to happen?"

"Yeah," Ian whispered and held his hand out. Ian and Aria started walking towards the ICU. "You will be getting bullied today."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Aria stopped walking. "How did you know that?" She whispered, almost squealed, her eyes wide in surprise. However, the next second, she realized what she had done and she gritted her teeth in frustration. 'Get a grip of yourself, Aria. What is wrong with you today?'

Ian stifled a smile seeing her cute expression and he tilted his head slightly. Unable to meet the man in the eye, Aria hurried towards the ICU. Ian chuckled lightly and followed her closely. "I think you know why I was wishing you. And if I am not wrong, you need all the luck in the world to face Noah today."

"What do you mean?"

"You will find out about it after you reach home. I would not like to comment about it." Ian replied with a mysterious smile and Aria glared at him.

"Tell me. What are you talking about."

"No. It's better I keep it a suspense. You will find out soon anyway." Ian did not elaborate more and the duo entered the ICU.

"Dr. West," Ian switched on his work mode at once and Aria waited for her next orders. "This is the case I was talking about. The patient here has a hole in the heart and his left lung is completely infected, while his right lung is partially infected. Although we have stabilized him for now, he is still not out of danger. We need to operate on him soon."

"But that will only add to the complications. His left lung has to be cleaned first." Aria added, taking over the report that was hung beside the bed. "This is bad." Aria read through the reports, a frown making its way on her face.

"Yes, he has hypertension, and operating in him in any case is risky." Ian sighed lightly.

"What are the odds?"

"It's twenty against twenty-five."

"That bad? Can't we first cover the hole and then operate on his lungs?" Aria questioned, her eyes not leaving the report.

"No, there are high chances of him having a cardiac arrest and...."

"And his lungs may collapse." Aria finished his words.

"The report shows he was operated in the chest once. Reason?"

"I am not sure though. Neither his family nor the patient himself is willing to reveal more about it."

"This is bad."

"Yes."

"Give me his reports. Let me study it."

"Will do."

Aria and Ian left the ward, each lost in their own thoughts. "By the way," Aria was the first one to break the silence when she remember something. "Wasn't Mason the one who left the job?"

"Yes, what about it?"

"Then, why did the management hire Stuart? I mean Mason was a heart specialist while Stuart is into neurology."

"Ah that, the neurology was running short of good doctors. And moreover, our department has doctors for now. We can wait until the next assessment."

"I see. That sounds fair." Aria smiled at him.

"Aria, you can take the day off," Ian stated suddenly making the girl halt in her place.

"What? Why?" Aria was flabbergasted and she gaped at him.

"You are done with your work and I think you should not overwork yourself on the first day of your return."

"But I had made all plans to work overtime. You are ruining all my plans."

"Nothing doing. You are going home like a good girl and taking rest."

"No. I don't want to go home yet." Aria wailed and Ian let out a helpless laugh.

"Then, what do you want to do?"

Aria thought for a while. "I have an idea. I could meet my friend who I haven't seen for a long time."

"Who?"

"Ah, someone. You don't know her. I guess I will take my leave then." Aria winked at him and Ian shook his head helplessly.

Aria packed her bag, a mysterious smile making its way on her lips. 'Let me send a message to Noah first. Otherwise, he will start to worry unnecessarily.'

'I am done with work. Ian let me leave early. I am going out to meet a friend. Will meet you at home.'

Aria, then, sent a message to the number she was all too familiar with. 'Can we meet?'

'No, I cannot sneak out of work. Anything the matter?' She got her reply at once.

'Yes, had somethings to discuss.'

'Can video call you if it's urgent.'

'Great. I will text you once I reach home.'

'Okay. Take care, Aria.'

'Take care, Maggie.'