She was wearing her own clothes and had a bag on her shoulder, so she couldn't be there to see a patient.
Xu Qinghe sidestepped the issue. "I need to see your Director Shi about something."
Ding Qihang naturally assumed she was there to discuss an anesthesia plan with Shi Wenli. "Director Shi hasn't left yet. He's in his office."
Xu Qinghe reached the door. Shi Wenli was organizing the medical records on his desk.
He had changed out of his scrubs and was wearing a thin black sweater under his white coat.
She stood at the door without entering, lightly tapping the door frame.
"Director Shi." She smiled, trying to sound as casual as usual.
Only she knew how eager she was to see him, and how hard she had to suppress it.
Shi Wenli looked up and smiled apologetically. "Need to wait a few more minutes. Almost done."
"Take your time."
Xu Qinghe walked in slowly.
He busied himself while she stood by the desk, her gaze accidentally falling on the uncapped blue-black pen.
She reached out and capped it for him.
Shi Wenli turned his head at that moment. In the past, when they were just colleagues, she never touched his personal items.
Now that their relationship had changed, she was starting to get closer.
Xu Qinghe's eyes then swept over the pocket of his white coat. It was empty, not a single pen.
The only person in the whole hospital who never lacked blue-black pens was Shi Miao. No matter when you saw her, her white coat pockets always had a neat row.
Of course, Xu Qinghe had plenty of pens too.
"You only have one pen?" she asked casually.
"I had three at the morning meeting, but the other two disappeared somewhere."
Xu Qinghe planned to give him some. "I have two unopened boxes at home, the ones from the old general surgery guy. I'll give you one."
In the past, Shi Wenli would have politely declined, but today he didn't. He smiled gently and said, "Then I won't have to go looking for pens anymore."
Once the records were organized, he took off his white coat, put on his own jacket, and they left the office together.
Passing the nurse station, the head nurse looked up from the computer screen and casually remarked, "Together today?"
Shi Wenli replied naturally, "Just a coincidence."
The head nurse sighed. "It's rare for both of you to finish work at the same time."
Normally, walking together in white coats didn't feel strange, but today, wearing their own clothes and going downstairs together, Xu Qinghe couldn't help feeling a little self-conscious.
"From now on, I'll wait for you in the parking lot," she said in the elevator lobby.
Shi Wenli said, "It's fine. If you come down more often after work, they'll get used to it."
After all, the entire neurosurgery department knew he treated her differently.
Xu Qinghe suddenly remembered to ask, "Does Shi Miao know?"
"Not yet. I'll tell her and Min Ting in person when they get back from their honeymoon."
Shi Wenli could already imagine how shocked his sister would be.
Even he hadn't imagined that one day he'd end up with Xu Qinghe, let alone his sister.
Coming out of the complex, Shi Wenli walked beside her to his car, not deliberately avoiding other colleagues.
Sometimes, the more open you are, the less others think.
Once in the car, Shi Wenli didn't start the engine immediately. Instead, he turned to her and said, "Let's talk for a bit?"
"Sure. About what?"
"At lunch, you said we should keep it quiet for now. I didn't have time to ask then—are you worried about something?"
Xu Qinghe put the down jacket she had just taken off on her lap. While fastening her seatbelt, she met his gaze, thinking about how to respond.
The down jacket on her lap wasn't steady and started to slide off. Just as it was about to fall completely, Shi Wenli reached out and caught it.
He then placed it in the back seat.
He actually guessed what she was worried about.
Lately, her rotations had caused frequent surgery cancellations, making her the hot topic in the OR. She didn't want to drag him into the whirlpool.
"Are you worried that your reputation will affect my popularity? Is that why you chose not to go public?"
He said this in a light, teasing tone. "Dr. Xu, is this your first day knowing me?"
Xu Qinghe smiled.
Shi Wenli: "Don't you know what I care about and what I don't?"
Xu Qinghe admitted, "That's part of it, but not all. Mostly, it's because our relationship isn't stable yet."
She hoped they could have enough time and space to get to know each other without outside disturbance or judgment.
What she wanted wasn't just to be a little special to him; she wanted him to love her.
Preferably, love her very much.
As for when to go public, she planned to wait until after she finished all her rotations, caught up on her surgery count, and things calmed down.
By then, their relationship should be relatively stable.
She asked for his opinion: "How about we go public around April or May next year? What do you think?"
Shi Wenli was fine with it. "Sure, April or May it is."
He started the engine.
The car turned out of the hospital and merged into traffic.
Today was lucky; they hit all green lights all the way to the neighborhood.
It was usually just over ten minutes on foot, even faster by car.
Xu Qinghe felt like she had just sat down, barely catching a glimpse of the lively street scenes, when his car stopped in the parking spot.
She leaned down to unbuckle her seatbelt, her fingers pausing on the buckle for a few seconds.
She wondered how couples who came together through blind dates actually interacted initially.
Shi Wenli didn't hurry to turn off the engine. He was thinking about the same question.
After a brief consideration, he turned to her and said, "It's still early. If you don't have anything to do, how about coming to my place for a while?"