C1 1

"This looks perfect," Jacob says as he admires his outfit in the mirror. He looks just like the typical doctor with his white collar shirt, a pair of black pants and not to mention a red tie. Walking out of the closet and over to his drawer, he picks up a couple of files and heads out.

Dashing into the living room, he sees his wife sitting on the couch and with the remote, flipping through the channels. He walks up from behind her and kisses her on the cheek which startles her. She quickly turns around only to realize that it's him.

"Aw, good morning handsome" she greets as she bends her head backward and kisses him on the lips, "You're all set?" She then asks.

"Yup, I got a big day ahead of me," he says as he dashes to the front door, "Your dad said he has something big to show me. A new project! I'm so excited" he exclaims in a fanboy sort of way.

"Wait! Aren't you gonna have breakfast?" She asks as he puts on his shoes.

"Don't have enough time. I'll have something to eat when I get there. Bye," he waves as he shuts the door and heads to the parking lot.

"Beep! Beep!" His black sedan beeps as he presses the unlock button on the key. He gets in and drives off.

About an hour later>>>>>>>>

He arrives at the hospital, takes the elevator up to the top floor, and then marches to Dr Richard's office.

"I wonder what he wants to show me," he thinks excitedly in his mind as he struts across the hallway.

On getting to the door, he meets the secretary, whose desk is just beside the huge doors that lead to his office.

"Good morning sir" she greets as she sees him approaching. Her pearly blue eyes meet with his as she flashes the typical beaming smile. Honestly, it was getting cliche at this point.

"Good morning Rebecca. Is Dr Richard in?" He asks.

"Yes, he is sir. He's been expecting you" she says with her smile still beaming. Frankly, it gets creepy with time.

"Okay, I'll just go in," he says as he knocks thrice on the door and slowly pushes it open, making his way in.

"Oh Jacob, you've finally arrived," Mr Richard says as Jacob walks in, "I was beginning to think you weren't interested any longer" he adds with a chuckle, which Jacob reciprocates as he walks over and takes a seat in front of his desk.

"Sorry, I'm late. There was a bit of traffic on my way here" he apologizes with a slight bow as Dr Richard nods his head.

"I know, I know. It was quite a hassle for me to get here myself" he says with a chuckle. "Now I promised I was gonna show you something, didn't I?" He suddenly asks.

"Yes sir" Jacob replies excitedly, "I have been thinking about it all night," he says which makes Dr Richard let out a chuckle.

"Looks like someone feels excited" he teases further as he laughs a bit. The laughter dampens eventually and They get straight to business. "Alright, now here's the deal. I am going to give you a promotion to the head of the surgery department if you do me a favor. Are you in?" He asks with a serious look on his face. The prospect of a promotion flies Jacob up to the moon in happiness. However, he remains calm and collected and then replies.

"Yes sir" he answers without much hesitation. After all, what could be better than a promotion?

"Alright then, follow me," Dr Richard says as he stands up from his swivel chair and picks up his lab coat. Jacob immediately stands up too and follows him out of the office.

___________________________________________________________

They get on the elevator and watch as the door slides shut. Just as the door closes, Dr Richard reaches for the digital interface where the icons for the floors are displayed, and just below the floor icons is a biometric fingerprint icon.

"How come I have never seen that before?" Jacob wonders as he stares intently as Dr Richard places his thumb on the icon for about a second or two. Immediately, the elevator lights turned dark red, almost as though there was an emergency. Jacob is a bit startled by the red lights but keeps his cool as he steals glances at the doctor. The elevator descends rapidly and soon the familiar 'Ding!' sound is heard as they come to a halt.

The doors slide open and lead into a dark hallway illuminated by a dangling white bulb with a conical finial. As they get off the elevator and begin to walk through the hallway, an identical light bulb turns on in front of them simultaneously as the one behind turns off and this pattern continues until they get to the end of the hallway, where there is a door.

"Are you ready Jacob?" Dr Richard asks as he stares at him.

"Yes sir" he replies.

"Alright then, let's go in," he says as he pushes the door open, admitting rays of bright white light into the dark hallway. They walk in and shut the door behind them.

Getting inside, it's like a new hospital altogether. It is very bright and there are a lot of medical personnel with disposable nose masks on and lemon-colored overalls.

"What in the world?" Jacob thinks as he looks around. "What the hell is this place?" He wonders.

"This is the backbone of this hospital and I want you to manage it," Dr Richard says as he walks slowly through with Jacob following behind. Jacob glances through the window of one of the surgical theatre doors and observes doctors carrying out an operation. Dr Richard chatters on in the background while Jacob looks around.

"Excuse me," a female voice says from behind causing Jacob to move aside.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he says as he moves aside, "Please go ahead...." He pauses in shock as he sees a nurse pushing a trolley whose tray is filled with human organs.

"......... it's how it is, alright Jacob? Jacob!" Dr Richard yells, snapping Jacob out of his space.

"Ye...yes sir" he answers.