— Basics
Name: Noor Hassan Khalaf Age / D.O.B.: 34, May 16, 1989 Gender, Pronouns & Sexuality: Cis woman, she/her, bisexual Hometown: Queens, NYC Affiliation: Civilian Job position: Emergency physician @ NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center
Education: Doctor of Medicine from NYU Grossman School of Medicine Relationship status: Single Children: None Positive traits: Compassionate, dedicated, open-minded, reliable, resourceful. Negative traits: Domineering, obstinate, self-critical, tense, withdrawn.
— Biography
trigger warnings: accident mention, hospital mention, pregnancy mention, miscarriage mention.
The experience of falling from a tree and breaking an arm could have been traumatic to a child who had barely gotten a paper cut prior to the accident, but both the ambulance and the emergency room proved to be nothing short of fascinating for five-year-old Noor Khalaf. With her arm in a cast and a sticker she had received for her bravery, Noor informed her family she would become a doctor when she grew up. Her collection of dolls and stuffed animals became her patients until she decided she needed to practise on actual people, meaning her younger siblings and parents were often covered in bandages and forced to sit still as she took their temperature. Once her poor family could no longer stand to be prodded and poked at, Noor would hide behind the sofa to catch a glimpse of her mom's medical dramas.
The firstborn of the five Khalaf children, Noor took on the role of a responsible if bossy older sister with ease. She was studious and disciplined, anxious and burned out before high school. Her parents were “do it well or not at all” people, and while they never meant for their expectations to weigh so heavily on their children, Noor couldn’t help being affected. She had to do everything well – no, as close to perfect as possible - and make sure no one had any reason to question her character or capabilities. She has since come to realise her parents would've loved her all the same even if she hadn't tried so hard to be the model oldest sister, but the relationship she has with her family is still somewhat complicated despite the deep love and respect they all have for each other.
Noor's dedication to her studies was rewarded when she was accepted to NYU at first for her biology undergrad, and subsequently for medical school. While she had at times dreamt of leaving the city and moving far, far away in the hopes of starting from a clean slate, she had come to realise running from her problems would only make her more anxious and far less capable of completing the gruelling years in front of her. At 26, Noor packed her bags for the first time and moved to Baltimore for her residency, both fearful and excited for the future.
She's not entirely sure how she actually managed to have a social life let alone go on a first date during her residency, but she found herself doing just that six months into her time in Baltimore. He was a breath of fresh air, something she was doing just for herself and not for her parents' approval or for some strange sense of accomplishment. They were engaged within a year, and planned to start wedding planning after Noor was done with her residency. However, things started to slowly fall apart after a positive pregnancy test. It was during the last year of residency, and it took her weeks to realise something was off. As shocking as it was, the couple were delighted.
Miscarriage. Realistically she knew they were common and it didn't have to mean anything. However, this knowledge didn't help to ease the pain and guilt she was dealing with, suddenly convinced she had caused it to happen. She started to pull away from her fiancé, dedicating herself to her work and becoming increasingly unresponsive at home. When her residency was done Noor announced she would return to New York City. He did not move with her.
She has now been back for around three years or so, working as an emergency physician at the NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center. She likes her job and enjoys the challenges, but the all-consuming passion she once had for it has dimmed. She has dedicated her life to being the very best, most competent version of herself, but now believes that might have been a mistake.
tl;dr: noor is a textbook sufferer of an eldest daughter syndrome & slightly disillusioned emergency room doctor. she has spent almost her entire life in nyc and is not having a very good time as of late.
Headcanons
Her father's from Saudi Arabia, her mother a native New Yorker of mixed European ancestry. The Khalaf children grew up speaking both English and Arabic and were brought up Muslim. All of the children also share their father's name as their middle name as is customary in the Arab world.
Does not drink, she never has, but can be seen chainsmoking cigarettes when particularly stressed or irritated. Happens more often than you would think.
She's regularly sleep-deprived and drinks far too much coffee. A good dark roast & really gross and burnt gas station coffee are her ultimate favourites.
She had a pretty major growth spurt at 12 and was 5'9'' on the first day of seventh grade. She was definitely a pretty awkward, gangly teenager and spent a good few years moving like a newborn deer.
While far from openly emotional or expressive, Noor is genuinely very caring and will go out of her way to help, especially those near and dear to her. She does her very best to appear more approachable and personable at work.
Click here for her Pinterest!
— Wanted connections
Frequent flyers at the ER. Noor is good at not asking too many questions and keeping her mouth shut.
Her ex-fiancé from Baltimore. Will be submitting a connection request for him at some point. I just need that angst in my life, okay.
Childhood friends & acquaintances. She has spent most of her life in NYC, leaving only for four years during her medical residency. Could even be an old friend who has since gotten involved in something unsavoury and now needs her medical help or opinion.
TBA
