When I'm on the night shift, all the department heads can't sleep.

Ma Hao leaned over and tried to take another look at the schedule, but the door to the demonstration room had already opened from the inside.

A teacher from the Science and Education Department came out with the list, glanced at the names, and said, "Next, Ma Hao."

The relaxed smile that had been on Ma Hao's face vanished instantly.

He shoved the backpack into Lin Ye's arms, took two steps out, then turned back and pulled out a rotation manual from his side pocket.

"Wait a minute."

Jiang Peng looked up and joked, "Didn't you just say, 'The sooner you go in, the sooner you'll be free'?"

"Will you go in and relieve me?" Ma Hao walked towards the door with the handbook in his arms, turning back before closing the door, "Don't leave my bag here."

After the door closed, the sound of flipping through documents remained in the corridor. Lin Ye didn't rush to leave. He sat down on the bench with Ma Hao's backpack in his arms and unfolded his work schedule again.

At the bottom, it not only says "Emergency Room Observation," but also includes the date on the right. I arrive at work at 6:20 PM on Friday, work a full night shift, and leave after handing over the shift the next morning.

Today is Wednesday, and there happens to be no Thursday in between.

Lin Ye read the message twice to make sure it wasn't tonight before taking out his phone. His mother had asked him what time his defense was that morning, but he hadn't replied yet due to being busy. The chat window showed a time after 11:00, with only a simple reminder on the screen: "Don't go in on an empty stomach."

He thought for a moment, then typed a few words and sent them.

"Mom, come home for lunch tomorrow, don't cook too many dishes."

The message had barely been sent when my mother called.

The sound of running water came clearly from the other end of the line, as if someone was washing vegetables or doing housework. The mother's voice was somewhat anxious: "Is the defense over? What did the hospital say? Did it go smoothly?"

"Successfully, it's passed for now."

"What does 'first pass' mean?" The mother's tone was tinged with worry.

Someone walked by in the corridor, and Lin Ye stood up and stepped aside to let them pass. He walked to the window with his backpack and said, "I passed the defense, but I still have to do another round of night school. Whether I can stay in the hospital is still undecided."

Only the sound of water could be heard from her mother's side. After a while, she spoke again.

"So, you've passed one hurdle, right?"

"Yes, that counts."

"So you don't have to go to work tomorrow?"

"I'm not scheduled to work tomorrow; I start work on Friday night."

"Okay, you can come back tomorrow. Your dad said this morning he wanted to buy a fish, and I told him to pick a big one."

"Don't prepare a special meal. Just eat the way you two usually eat tomorrow."

"Okay, you go ahead with your work," the mother replied readily, adding before hanging up, "Drive carefully on the road, and remember to let me know when you get downstairs."

The conversation inside the demonstration room was inaudible, with only the occasional soft rustling of chairs being moved. After a full twenty minutes, the door finally opened.

Ma Hao walked out with the handbook tucked under his arm, a layer of sweat on his forehead, and a slightly tense expression. He ignored the people who gathered around to ask about the results, took the backpack from Lin Ye, unzipped it, and rummaged through it for bottled water.

He chugged half the bottle in one go before wiping his mouth and letting out a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness, I wasn't eliminated."

Lin Ye looked at him: "You want to be a follower too?"

"Saturday." Ma Hao pulled a piece of paper from the handbook and waved it. "One day later than you, Director Zhou spent a long time asking me questions about my surgical progress notes. If Director Wang were here, he would definitely have sent my materials back for revision."

"So what was your answer?"

"What else can I say? Just tell the truth that I accidentally forgot to write it, and it was returned for revision before I added it. At a time like this, how could I dare to make something up?" Ma Hao stuffed the paper back into the handbook. "Anyway, I'll be on duty on Saturday. Whether I stay or leave depends on my performance."

Jiang Peng, who was standing to the side, sorted through the documents in his hands and joked with a smile, "It's rare that this time they didn't try to shift the blame to Director Wang."

"Can't you wish me well for once?" Ma Hao retorted irritably.

The three of them exchanged a few words in the corridor, and then another name was called. Ma Hao didn't linger any longer, slung his bag over his shoulder, and headed towards the stairwell, asking Lin Ye what he wanted for dinner as they walked. Lin Ye said he'd just grab something to eat in the dorm, but Ma Hao immediately thought he wasn't being sincere. In the end, he followed him to the cafeteria anyway.

The next day, around 11 a.m., when Lin Ye arrived home, the door had already opened from the inside as soon as he raised his hand.

Her mother's hands were still damp, and she opened the door so forcefully that one of her slippers was knocked askew by the door. She quickly pulled the door open wider, her eyes brimming with undisguised joy, and urged, "Why didn't you call ahead? I heard the elevator moving and was worried it would stop upstairs and not move."

"I was worried you'd be busy in the kitchen." Lin Ye called out "Mom," bent down to straighten the crooked slippers, "Besides, we haven't moved yet, I know the way very well."

"You still know this is your home?" His mother scolded, taking his slippers out of the shoe cabinet and placing them beside his feet. "Last time you came back for a meal and left, this time you can at least stay for the night, right?"

"Okay, I'll stay one night and go back to the hospital tomorrow afternoon."

Hearing this, his mother's smile deepened, and she reached out to take his coat and hung it behind the door. Lin Ye changed his shoes and went inside. The kitchen exhaust fan had just been turned off when his father came out carrying a steaming plate of fish.

"dad."

"Wash your hands as soon as you get back; the soup is still warm." The father placed the fish in the center of the dining table, then turned and went back into the kitchen.

Lin Ye followed her in to help, but his mother blocked him with her arm: "Don't touch it. You just got back, so rest well. The chopsticks are in the sterilizer; take three pairs."

"Didn't I tell you yesterday not to cook too many dishes?" Lin Ye said helplessly.

"Is that all? Just one fish and two plates of home-style dishes." The mother glanced back at the father. "It was all your dad's doing. He said the small fish had too many bones, so he went to the market at seven o'clock to pick out the fresh ones."

The father brought the soup to the table: "You're waking people up at seven? The fishmongers are almost packing up their first day."

"Alright, alright, you know best. Let's eat first."

After the three of them sat down, the mother first served Lin Ye half a bowl of hot soup, and carefully moved the bowl to the side of the table so as not to burn him. The question she had been holding in all night finally couldn't help but ask.

"You were unclear on the phone last night. Does that 'staying for observation' mean the hospital wants you, or do they need to observe you further?"

"You've passed the defense, and now you're on probation. We'll have another night shift tomorrow, and then we'll see your rotation evaluation and the handbook." Lin Ye didn't brush it off with "it's not decided yet." "The final list hasn't been released yet."

After listening, his mother looked at him and asked, "So, can I at least be happy for once?"

Lin Ye smiled, his eyes crinkling: "Okay. Let's be happy for now, and we'll make up for the other half once the result is completely finalized."

"How can you calculate it like that?" His mother scolded him, but she picked up a piece of the tenderest, boneless fish from the belly and put it in his bowl. "Your second aunt asked me this morning if I heard you defended your thesis yesterday. I was afraid that if I spoke too soon, it would be a mistake, so I didn't dare to answer her."

"Just tell her you've passed the defense and are still waiting for the final result. If she asks again, I'll call her myself once I'm sure she will."

His father spent a long time picking out fish bones before finally looking up at him and asking, "Do you really want to stay in the ER?"

"I want to," Lin Ye answered without hesitation. "I'm tired, but if I were to go somewhere else, I wouldn't want to leave."

The father placed the cleaned fish bones into the bone dish and instructed, "Since you want to stay, then focus on doing well in the following classes. Don't spread the word before the results are officially announced. Your second aunt and the others keep asking questions, and your mother tends to overthink things and won't sleep well at night."

"When did I ever have trouble sleeping?" the mother retorted, flipping her phone over from the table to reply to her aunt's message again. "I just said I passed the defense, but they'll be observing me afterward. That's not exactly making things up, is it?"

"No, that doesn't count." Lin Ye peeked over and said, "Add another sentence: we don't know when it will be finalized yet, so she won't call you again this afternoon."

After her mother finished writing the missing parts and sent it, she put down her phone, laughing and joking, "Isn't that clear enough now, Dr. Lin?"

"That's enough, Mom."

The father took a sip of soup and casually asked, "When is the next shift?"

"Be here at 6:20 tomorrow night, and hand over the shift the day after tomorrow morning."

"All night?"

"We can take turns resting, but if there are many patients and things get busy, it's hard to say." Lin Ye put some fish on his father's plate. "Don't just focus on picking the bones out of me, eat more yourself too."

His father ate the fish he had picked up, then removed a boneless piece from the fish's belly and put it back in Lin Ye's bowl: "I eat this at home every day, I'm not missing out. Don't go out and wander around today, take a good nap this afternoon."

The mother quickly chimed in, "Don't go out with anyone tonight either. I just aired out your blankets this morning, so go and rest if you're sleepy."

"Okay, I just came back specifically to freeload on meals and sleep," Lin Ye replied with a smile.

"You're so self-righteous," the mother said with a playful laugh.

The conversation gradually relaxed, shifting from work to everyday trivia.

The mother kept mentioning that the father had gone to buy fish that morning but had forgotten to bring any change. Lin Ye understood immediately; it was because his father habitually left his change in the pocket of his old coat.

The father refused to admit it, so the mother urged Lin Ye to search the doorway. Sure enough, she found more than ten yuan in change in the pocket of the old coat.

"See, I told you you left it in there!" The mother gently patted the change on the table.

The father lowered his head and drank his soup: "Why bring up these old grievances while we're eating?"

Lin Ye pushed the change into his hand and couldn't help but laugh: "Next time you go grocery shopping, remember to change your clothes first."

After dinner, the father went to the balcony to collect the laundry, while the mother packed the remaining fish into a food storage container and asked Lin Ye if he wanted to take it back to the dormitory the next day.

Lin Ye said he didn't need the fish, just two apples would be fine. His mother didn't listen to him. She found a small box in the kitchen, filled it with some untouched vegetables, and put it along with the apples into the outermost shelf of the refrigerator, telling him not to forget to take it when he left.

Lin Ye went back to his old room and took a nap.

Half of the desk was occupied by his father, who placed a blood pressure monitor, reading glasses, and several bills on it. The other half had just been wiped clean, and even the charging cable had been found for him. The sheets smelled of sunshine. He plugged in his phone, intending to lie down for a while, but when he opened his eyes again, it was already dark outside.

The TV in the living room was on a low setting. Father sat on the sofa watching the news, while Mother heated up the leftovers from lunch in the kitchen. Hearing the door open, Mother turned around and asked, "Why did you sleep so long? Are you exhausted?"

"I've been working non-stop lately and haven't had a proper rest." Lin Ye walked into the living room and sat down next to his father.

His father glanced at him, picked up the remote, and turned off the TV: "Get up and have dinner when you've had enough sleep."

The next morning, his father handed him the phone, saying that the text in the vegetable market group was too small and difficult to read.

Lin Ye increased the font size, but his father glanced at it and complained that only a few lines could be displayed on one screen. The two went back and forth three times, while his mother, speaking through the kitchen door, said that he could see everything with his glasses on.

"What do you know?" The father pushed the phone towards Lin Ye again. "Let him make the call."

Lin Ye suppressed a laugh and finally adjusted the weather forecast to the middle setting for his father, then moved it to the homepage for easier viewing. After lunch, he packed his things and prepared to return to his hospital dormitory.

Just before leaving, his mother packed the food container and apples into a bag and handed it to him.

His father followed him to the door, watched him change his shoes, and asked in a low voice, "Is your phone battery charged enough? Don't use your phone on the way."

"Fully charged." Lin Ye nodded, looked up at his parents, and instructed them, "Remember to eat well tonight, don't just eat anything."

"I know." The father gently closed the door and urged, "Let's go quickly, it'll be hard to get a traffic jam if we're late."

Lin Ye carried the bag downstairs. Someone had just returned from outside in the hallway, so he stepped aside and waited for the person to pass before continuing down.

I had just reached the bottom of my apartment building when my phone vibrated in my pocket.

Qin Hai sent a message.

[Be there at 6:20 tonight, bring your shift watch.]

Lin Ye replied "Received," turned off his phone, and walked towards the entrance of the residential area with the bag of apples and the food container.