Carol's Second Act

Anyone know why they called us all in here?

Uh, probably hospital stuff.

I bet Carol knows, since she's been spending

so much time with her boyfriend

and his cool older friends.

It's nice Carol has people her own age to talk to.

Sometimes I think it's hard for her to relate to us.

I don't know. I'm exactly your age,

and I can't relate to you at all.

All right, everybody, everybody.

We have some big news for you all today.

We have an annual tradition here at Loyola

where we choose an intern to present at Grand Rounds.

One of us gets to present

in front of all the senior doctors in the hospital?

And the rest of you will get to watch me do it.

Congratulations,

Dr. Kenney!

Oh, my gosh! Oh.

- This is so excit... In sadder news...

What? No.

I'm still taking in the happy news.

... our beloved chief of staff

of 30 years, Dr. Herman, died at the tender age of 97.

I know you'll all need a moment to absorb this.

Thank you.

Wow.

He looked great for 97.

I wouldn't have guessed he was a day over 93.

It's surprising how sad I am given that I...

thought he was already dead.

Yeah, it's such a loss.

If only there was something more positive

that we could focus on so we could start the healing.

Guys, you're missing the important thing.

Now that Dr. Herman's gone,

the chief position is up for grabs.

We've had a long era of peace.

: Storm's coming.

You're right.

There's a power vacuum.

Chief of staff is the top job here.

Every senior doctor's gonna be gunning for it.

- Lewis. - Frost.

Oh-ho-ho, it is on.

I am so proud of you, Mom. I only just heard of Grand Rounds,

but now that I know what it is, I am super impressed.

What do you guys think I should present?

I mean, I could discuss a patient.

My rickets case was interesting, but is it sexy?

Oh, I definitely do not want to talk to you.

Ooh, is it "unknown number"?

Because I love answering those.

It's like a friend you haven't met yet.

No.

It's my ex-husband, Richard.

He probably senses something good happened to me,

and he's excited to ruin it.

I'll silence it.

- (RINGTONE PLAYS) - And you made it louder.

Ooh. I bet it's about my birthday next week.

My dad always wants to split a gift

with my mom because he doesn't want to spoil me.

I'm not splitting a gift with your dad.

He still hasn't paid me back

for the mattress we got you last year.

: That must have set you back.

It is like sleeping on a cloud.

Daniel, what did we talk about?

: Boundaries.

Mom, just tell Dad

to give me cash... he can afford it.

It's not like he's scraping by on his anesthesiologist's salary.

Oops.

I'm sorry, Mom.

Hold up. Carol, your ex was a doctor?

Barely. I mean, he basically does crosswords

and tries not to lock people into a living coma.

Wait, so your ex is the reason you went to med school?

No. And that's exactly why I never told any of you.

Yeah, that's kind of a sore spot.

And now she's gonna tell you why she went to med school.

I went to med school

for myself, not for revenge, not to compete with him,

not because I have anything to prove.

: Oh, like you'd have anything

- to prove to an anesthesiologist. - Yeah.

You have two responsibilities: put people to sleep

and remember to wake them up.

Oh. And now you've got her started on anesthesiologists.

It's gonna be a while. Bye, guys.

Well, Carol, you certainly have a type:

tall, dark and doctor.

Doctor is the only thing they have in common.

My ex never believed I would really do this.

I just wish he could see me now:

an intern doing Grand Rounds.

He would choke on his driving scarf.

Especially if he knew that your new boyfriend had a hand in it.

What's that supposed to mean?

Oh, come on, do we really think it's a coincidence

that the intern who was chosen happens to be the same intern

who's dating a powerful senior doctor?

You're just jealous. You know I didn't get this

because I'm dating Victor.

Carol, we're not saying you did it on purpose.

You're just making the most

of something that fell into your lap.

Yeah, it's just the hand you were dealt,

by the dealer, who you are dating.

Dr. Lewis, good luck with your chief of staff interview.

Thank you. Mine's at 10:00.

Oh, mine's at 11:00.

Save the best for last.

Well, good luck following me.

- (CHUCKLES) - I'm not worried about following a man

who can't handle even a single percentage of fat in his yogurt.

Personally, I'm a two-percent man,

not a zero-percent boy.

Oh, I thought they were out, but they have one more full-fat

left on the shelf... oh, and it's blueberry.

- Antioxidant. Nothing better. - Mm.

: Oh, look. Here's pomegranate.

Yeah, it's a superfood. Beats all other foods.

Guys, they only give me 20 minutes to eat.

He started it.

I know. I saw.

You know, you guys are just destined

to keep competing for things, huh?

This job. Carol.

As we discussed, Dennis, I am not interested in Dr. Kenney.

Just admit you have a schoolboy crush on Carol.

I do not have a schoolboy crush. I have an adult male enemy.

Okay, here's a casual topic.

What's the most impressive birthday gift

you ever got from a loved one? Go.

Well, if you're talking about birthday presents,

nothing'll ever top the very first one I got:

the gift of life.

What have you given girlfriends in the past?

You know, the usual stuff, like a...

an old sweatshirt that smells like me.

And then I say, "Now we'll always be close".

Yep, that tracks.

Okay, maybe I'm not the best at gift-giving.

But this is different; I want to get Jenny something special.

Well, girls love it when you adopt a goat in their name.

Honestly, I'm surprised

a woman's ever touched either of you.

Ms. Molina is 53. She presented

with abdominal pain and shortness of breath.

Oh, fun fact: her book club just finished reading The Kite Runner

- for the second time. - So, Ms. Molina,

we'll order an X-ray

to rule out a small bowel obstruction.

Hey, Dr. Gilbert, I'm a little worried

about Ms. Molina's blood pressure.

It's high, and it sounds like her pain

- is exertion... - Trust me, Dr. Kenney,

everything here points to constipation.

- Oh. - We'll see a large stool burden on the X-ray.

Given her age and the fact that she's in a book club,

my guess is that she went hog wild on a cheese board.

You know, I think it's possible we might have a cardiac issue.

And I think you should stop worrying about her

and start prepping for your Grand Rounds.

- Oh. - Dr. Lewis

must have gone out on a limb for you,

so you don't want to disappoint him.

Hey. I got this on my own.

If I disappoint anybody, it's gonna be myself!

Hey.

Well, there she is... the woman of the hour.

: Yeah. It's not that big a deal.

Actually, it's a huge deal,

but I'm getting a very strong vibe

that people think I got Grand Rounds...

because of you.

I was afraid of this.

Did I get it because of you?

No. Of course not.

But hospitals

are hotbeds for gossip... and disease...

but mostly gossip.

I would hate to think that people thought I got it

- because we're dating... that's not fair. - No.

It's not. But honestly...

the optics aren't great for either of us.

I'm under a lot of scrutiny for the chief of staff job.

- Well, I'm sure. - Dr. Herman had this job for 30 years.

This comes along only once in a lifetime.

Especially now that nobody smokes anymore.

Wait. A-Are you saying I shouldn't do Grand Rounds?

I hate even suggesting it,

but it might be the best thing for both of us.

Yeah, I know. I mean, I get it.

It's a big opportunity for me, but a bigger one for you,

and I-I'm sure there are gonna be

plenty of Grand Rounds in my future.

Hey. If I'm chief of staff,