The Doctor's Reckoning

Joaquin pushed open the door to his apartment as the exhaustion clung to him like a second skin. 

His day at Villareal Medical Hospital had been grueling, and all he wanted was a quiet evening with Mikyla. But before he could call out her name, faint voices filtered through the hallway—coming from the bedroom.

He froze. The voices were muffled but unmistakable.  

A man and a woman, their tone teasing, urgent, and far too familiar. His chest tightened as realization dawned. Heart pounding, he moved closer, the words becoming clearer.

“So, you think he’ll figure it out?” the man chuckled.

“Joaquin?” Mikyla’s voice replied with a scoff. “He’s clueless. The guy’s too naive to suspect anything.”

A cold chill swept through Joaquin’s body.

‘What?!’

“And the position?” the man asked.

“There’s only one permanent slot,” Mikyla said smoothly. “Serena might back him, but your dad has the final say, right? That fool doesn’t stand a chance.”

‘How can she do this to me?!’

The man was Andrew Alvarez, a doctor in the surgery department, infamous for his arrogance and for using his father’s position as vice dean to get ahead. Mikyla, the woman Joaquin had trusted, had chosen him.

“Don’t forget, I slept with you to make sure I got my spot,” Mikyla added with a laugh that felt like knives slicing through Joaquin’s chest.

The betrayal was suffocating, but it wasn’t over.

“Does he even know who his father is?” Andrew sneered. “Imagine being such a bastard that even your dad didn’t stick around.”

Joaquin staggered back as though the words had physically struck him. 

He had always carried the weight of not knowing his father, but hearing it weaponized against him by these two was unbearable.

‘I can’t believe this!’

Anger boiled over, drowning out the pain. Without thinking, Joaquin kicked the bedroom door open.

Mikyla and Andrew's shocked faces greeted him, both frozen in a moment of guilt and panic. 

Mikyla wrapped herself in a towel, her lips parting as though to explain. Andrew, shirtless and smug, leaned against the counter with a grin that only fueled Joaquin’s fury.

“Joaquin, wait—” Mikyla started, but Joaquin cut her off, his voice cold and steady despite the storm within him.

“Don’t bother! I see now how blind I’ve been. I was never good enough for you!”

Mikyla’s expression hardened, her guilt quickly morphing into disdain. 

She removes the gold ring Joaquin had gifted her, an heirloom that had once belonged to his mother—a gesture of love and commitment.

“This?” she scoffed, tossing it at his feet. “You thought this was romantic? How pathetic! It’s not even worth anything! I’m sure it’s fake!”

Joaquin clenched his fists, the sting of her words driving deeper than he wanted to admit.

“That’s our engagement ring, Mikyla!”

“It’s over, Joaquin!” she continued, her tone sharp and dismissive.

“Over?” Andrew interjected with a laugh. “It never started. Honestly, Joaquin, you should thank me. At least now you know what a joke you are.”

The taunt was too much. 

“Shut up!”

Joaquin lunged at Andrew with a roar, swinging with every ounce of his pent-up rage. But Andrew was bigger, stronger, and ready. He caught Joaquin’s fist mid-air, twisting it painfully.

“That’s it?!” Andrew jeered. “This is the best you’ve got?!”

Before Joaquin could retaliate, a sharp jab to his stomach sent him sprawling to the floor. 

The world spun, but Andrew wasn’t done. He grabbed Joaquin’s hand, pinning it against the cold tiles, and stomped hard. A sickening crack echoed in the small space.

Joaquin screamed, pain radiating up his arm as two of his fingers gave way.

“Worthless fool!” Andrew spat, kicking him again for good measure. “You’ll never be more than a failure! Just give up already!”

The edges of Joaquin’s vision blurred as the pain overwhelmed him. 

Blood from his injuries seeped onto the floor, pooling around the ring. The metal gleamed faintly, almost as if reacting to the crimson liquid.

Joaquin’s consciousness began slipping away, and his gaze lingered on the ring. Something was happening to it—something he couldn’t explain. 

A strange, almost imperceptible hum filled the air, and the instrument seemed to pulse with energy.

Then, everything went black.