Chapter Text
Whoever said that a career in the healthcare sector was a fulfilling choice in life was obviously not a medical professional.
Meng Yao guesses he’s being unfair to his fellow doctors and nurses when he thinks this. Nothing feels better than the smiles of appreciation and words of gratitude he receives from his patients after more than thirty hours of footwork with less than three hours of stolen sleep. He will acknowledge the sense of fulfillment in knowing that his endless hours in the labor room results in successful deliveries with few to no complications to the mothers and their newborns. The fatigue is nothing compared to the sound of a first cry, the weight of a warm bundle of life in his hands as the first breath of life is taken. That moment when he knows he has brought a new life into the world leaves a feeling of accomplishment within him, as though missing parts of him that he never knew get filled up. That lingering weight in his chest, ever so constant since he grew old enough to be familiar with it, lightens for a while.
But the sacrifices he has to make—missed occasions, rejected invitations, forgotten promises—sometimes makes him question the path in life that he’s chosen. That’s not even taking into account the ups and downs of being up close and personal with extremely varied types of people on a daily basis. Some can be sweet and understanding; others are downright spawns of hell who are not satisfied until they see the medical staff on their knees. Maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it is absolutely true that coughs and colds do not warrant immediate attention in the emergency room.
Meng Yao has to resist rolling his eyes as he passes by the crowded room of hurrying nurses, waiting patients, and impatient relatives. One of the EM residents on duty is sitting at the desk across the double door entrance, scrawling notes and orders on a chart. The other resident is in a heated conversation with a man who’s pointing at a perfectly healthy-looking boy with a runny nose.
Meng Yao doesn’t need to listen to the whole argument to know that it’s just one of those difficult cases of either patient or relative demanding to be seen for a non-emergent condition. Fortunately, by rule of conduct, the resident is managing to keep his head and answering in an even tone. Meng Yao smiles to himself in bemusement, exiting the emergency room and stepping into the chilly night air of the city.
Lanling Jin Medical Center, or JinMed as it is more commonly called, is a complex of buildings and compounds that extends down to the base of the hill on which the institution was established. Within its pale yellow walls, the center is a conglomeration of medical colleges, research institutes, and smaller medical facilities surrounding a hospital complex with a bed capacity of one thousand and five hundred. It is considered one of the elite hospitals in the country, able to support its huge charity division and training department with income from the private division and considerable funds from its namesake sponsor organization.
LanlingJin Enterprises has been a long-standing investment company. With its sister companies GusuLan Innovations, QingheNie International, and YunmengJiang Industries, they make up a corporation that has been an economic pillar to the country throughout history. To be hired into one of these companies is a dream come true as well as an arduous feat.
Meng Yao, of course, doesn’t simply consider it luck that he managed to enter JinMed’s program. He doesn’t come from a family of doctors, not even from a rich family. He only has his mother, who made a mistake as a teenager but chose to give him a better future at the expense of her own, and his grandmother, who kept up odd jobs despite her age in order to help with the finances. Besides them, he doesn’t know any other relative, much less any connection he could have used to get into JinMed. But he knows, deep down, that he will work harder than the privileged airheads who know only of riding their parents’ coattails. He knows he has always been at a disadvantage, struggling on his elders’ hard-earned money. To not take the chance for a slot at the best place for training is an insult to himself and his family.
Connected by a single hallway to the main hospital, the Emergency Department is the section most intimate with the city. The facade’s double doors face a one-way circular driveway with gates at both ends, one entrance and one exit, both of which open into one of the largest main roads at the edge of the city. Meng Yao is walking down this driveway when he encounters Su She sitting on the footstep at the back of a waiting ambulance.
“Going home?” the paramedic greets. When Meng Yao shrugs and smiles, Su She lets out something like a whine of protest. “Wish I were you. I got the twelve hours tonight.”
“You’ll survive.” Meng Yao nods at the bag of chips beside him. “On healthier food.”
“You’re not taking my Cheetos from me, doctor.”
“It’s seven and I’m off-duty.” Meng Yao raises his hands in a gesture of defeat. “I have better things to do than mother your grown-up ass.”
Su She whistles. “If your patients can hear you curse.”
Meng Yao waves him off and continues down the driveway. “I’m only human. Let’s drink another time.”
Crossing the quiet road when he exits the gate, he enters a livelier, well-lit street of colorful lights where crowds meandered from one establishment to the next. Though the neighborhood is primarily residential, because of the hospital, numerous small businesses litter the district. A bar or a restaurant can be located every few meters and either side of the road is lined by cars and delivery trucks. There is a stretch of stores selling goods from the market. Meng Yao stops by his favorite fruit vendor and buys a handful of loquats and a few persimmons.
He finally stops several blocks away from the JinMed, in front of a large villa with walls painted a deep moss green and roof and columns a rich black. Acoustic music sways in the air and the small surrounding garden is awash with bright yellow light from the open windows.
Baxia is a rather peculiar name for a bar and restaurant, Meng Yao once told its owner. Nie Mingjue just laughed off the comment with an animated recollection of his days as a young man at odds with his father, who was not in favor of his decision to start a business in the outskirts. He glossed over the details of his success in making his dream a reality, but his bar was only going into the end of its first year when Meng Yao first stumbled into the picture. Nie Mingjue did not initially plan to have the spare rooms on the second floor of the villa rented, but at the sight of the shy and quiet Meng Yao, who was troubled by the living expenses in the city back then, he decided that it wouldn’t be so bad to at least be charitable.
Meng Yao stops on the walkway, a sudden realization dawning on him. Neither of them knew at the beginning how far they would go. Neither of them thought that their arrangement would become something more. He takes a deep breath, unable to stop himself from smiling as he stared up at the welcoming facade. The chatter coming from inside is soft. The swish of dark brown hair tied in a high ponytail flashes in one of the windows, and Meng Yao sighs when something warm bloomed in his chest. It takes no small amount of effort to hold it back from climbing to his face, and he only hopes his face isn’t red as he enters the bar. Nie Huaisang can be a little too observant for his own good and Meng Yao doesn’t want to be known for blushing just from a glimpse of his boyfriend.
Just as he predicted, there are only a few occupied tables and the stage is still empty. He finds Nie Mingjue in the kitchen, wearing his standard chef suit with his ponytail tucked under a chef’s hat and preparing several slices of pork belly with his house marinade. Meng Yao snakes his arms around the other man’s waist, startling Nie Mingjue a bit.
“Good evening, Chef,” he sings.
Nie Mingjue blinks several times at him and chuckles. He turns in his arms and holds his chin, running his thumb on Meng Yao’s mouth, covering it with sauce. Before Meng Yao can lick it off, Nie Mingjue is already doing it for him, the other man’s tongue massaging his lower lip before peeking into his mouth. Meng Yao easily melts into the kiss with a shiver. The taste of spices mixes with Nie Mingjue’s saliva, and he almost forgets that they’re in the kitchen as he grips onto his boyfriend’s uniform and demands for more by standing on tiptoe.
“Welcome back, Doc,” Nie Mingjue whispers against the kiss when he decides to give Meng Yao a breather. He moves his lips down to lick off the stains of marinade his hand left in his chin and jaws.
Meng Yao bites his lower lip to stop himself from moaning. He pushes back away from the chef. “We’re in the kitchen, Mingjue.”
“You started it.”
“I gave you a hug.”
“You’ve been gone for almost two days.”
“I was at work.”
“That’s the point.” Nie Mingjue noses his cheek.
“That’s my job, love.”
“You know you don’t have to deal with it if—”
Meng Yao cut him off with another kiss. He knows what he means. After three years of being together, they’ve had talks about their future. “Please, A-Jue,” he murmured softly. “I like what I do.”
“I know you do.” Nie Mingjue sighed. “Doesn’t mean I like how much it requires from you.”
“It’ll be over soon.”
“Not soon enough.”
Meng Yao chuckles softly and lightly taps Nie Mingjue’s cheek with a hand. “You’re a child. Is Huaisang back yet?”
“Yeah. He’s in his room. Wei Ying and Jiang Cheng are coming tonight. You up for some drinks?”
The prospect of connecting with his friends after a rough duty is always welcome. Meng Yao nods. “Let me change my clothes. I don’t want beer stains on my coat.”
Nie Mingjue kisses him one last time before waving him out of the kitchen. “Go freshen up. I’ll make you dinner.”
“Thank you, A-Jue.”