Perhaps Meant To Be's Our Specialty.

Abigail's Point of View.

Six years of medical school. Six years. And now here I was. My heart thudded against my ribcage like I had never felt it before. It was in sync with my shaking hands. I quickly hid the left one in the pocket of the blue scrubs we'd been given earlier and I tried not to squeeze the plastic coffee cup in my right hand to ruin. Inhale. Exhale. That was all I could do. I knew I was going to have to step inside, yes, but in the meantime, I found comfort from the outside looking in.

The parking lot was almost filled to the brim, which gave me a little bit of understanding of what I was going to be facing once I stepped my feet into this hospital. I glanced around and quickly went to the bench that I found for dear life. Sitting down, I gripped the arm of the chair so hard that I was convinced it would have bled if it was human. I took another gulp of the carbonated caffeine, careful not to spill anything on my dress. I wasn't about to go in there looking like a child. On my first day! My left foot soon started tapping on the ground, following the rhythm of my heartbeat. Maybe I should have taken Dad's offer. Perhaps, it would not have been so horrible to go to a hospital where everyone knew and wanted my father's autograph. The workload wouldn't be too much and pressure wouldn't even make its way to me. But... I did want the pressure and the workload. I no longer wanted to find life too easy only because my father was a renowned actor in the US and my mother's book covers always made their way to some major billboard, along with a huge picture of her face. No, I wanted to work for this.

"Hey..." A voice called from behind me, startling me. She had a wide smile on her face. Perhaps it was too wide because my heartbeat only grew.

"Hi..." Cut me some slack. That was the best I could offer. I was not a people person. Never had been. Never will be.

"You look great in your wear. The changing room had no mirror so standing here right now, I have no idea what I look like. But seeing you now gives me a little bit of confidence." Her wide smile only widened as she spoke. "A girl always needs her mirror. Always. Surely, there must be some female doctors here who know this. She should rally for the changing room to have mirrors." She paused again, patting her lips together to give the top lip more moisture. Then she resumed.

"I would love to look great for my patients in the morning, then look absolutely better when heading home. This profession must be respected!" She threw her fist in the air. What? Okay, this girl could talk. My feet no longer tapped crazily. I had completely been carried away by her babbles.

I chuckled. "You do know why you're here, right? If you made it through medical school then surely you must know. In fact, you should know that it's only a matter of time before this stylish hair of yours grows into a bun and your eyes develop hideous bags, you'll probably cause the patient's concern." She drew back, stunned. Her hands flew to her pigtails and then she bursts into laughter.

"That's absolutely crazy." She held her stomach, possibly trying to quieten her loud cackles. She was absolutely goofy and I liked her already.

"But it's true."

"You talk like you've witnessed this before. So what, your parents are doctors?" She shrugged, then took a sit at the bench next to me. My heartbeat started ticking off again. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to recognize me. I loved my parents, but I wanted to be just Abigail here. Espérer stays at home. I mean I did cut my hair just to avoid looking too familiar.

"Nope, not even close. I guess you could say that I started watching a lot of doctor's stuff before I even got into high school. I would go to a local clinic and although the doctors seemed excited that I was pretty sure of my interest in medicine, I couldn't tell if the stories they told me were to motivate me or scare me to death." I shook my head. I didn't want to start remembering here. Please not here. Not now. "Plus, I watch a lot of G's Anatomy. Emphasis on 'a lot'."

She smiled. "You're funny. I like you." Okay, that was pretty forward. It wouldn't kill me to say it back, right? After all, I did like her goofiness.

"Well, I'm sure I like you just as much."

Her smile held and I wondered if her cheeks ever hurt from smiling all the time. I could smile for a minute straight. Not since high school. She held out her smile. "Normal people normally start a conversation with this part, but I guess maybe we're not normal. I'm Arty."

"Abigail."

"How do you feel now?"

"Huh?"

"I'm talking about your heart. I don't mean to be creepy at all but I sensed you were about to have a panic attack." Wait, what? Woah.

"So, you knew I was about to have a panic attack and you intervened with your babbling."

"Well, that is one way to put it. But before I sensed your panic attack, I saw your scrubs. So this is not just me being a caring medical student, it's me wanting to step into this place with a friend."

It was my turn to smile. I shook my head. She was absolutely good at what she does. She didn't try to buttheads with my feelings, no she just took my mind away from it. Maybe I had nothing to worry about. What were the odds that everyone inside this place was just as nice as her? "Thank you. I am hoping you would teach me that."

She nodded, smiling. "Maybe I'll start whenever we have coffee breaks and perhaps you can tell me more about this G's anatomy stuff." Her eyebrow hung.

"You have got to be the only person I know who has not seen G's anatomy and wants to be a doctor."

"Well, I guess that is what friends are for. To replace television."

I laughed at that. I had never thought of it this way, but if my panic episode just sent me a friend then perhaps it was not a bad thing. We grabbed our bags and made our way inside...

And just as I suspected, the place was loaded. Wheelchairs grew too much to count and the disinfectant tickled my nose. I sneezed once or twice. Arty, on the other hand, looked as confident as one could ever be. She didn't avoid looks before flipping her pigtails. No, she did them anyway. Even the squeaks her sneakers let out as she walked on the super neat floors sounded confident.

"You look like you have done this before," I whispered as we made our way to the elevator, which couldn't be more far away. This place was enormous.

"Look like I have done what before?"

"Like you've somehow been an intern before. Or maybe, you've been here before at least. Am I right or what?" She waved at the older doctor, who waved back. Huh.

"That is because I have been here before. Actually, since medical school, I've been coming to Graceland. It's kinda affiliated with my school, so..."

"Oh, why did you not say that when we were outside?"

She stared at me and smiled, pursing her lips. "Probably the same reason you failed to neglect that you are Joanna Espérer's daughter." Woah! Would it be crazy if I was to deny it? Just lie that I had no idea what she was talking about. That would be absolutely crazy. She didn't say it like she was unsure. She seemed sure. I didn't say anything until we were inside the elevator and moving. Before I could say anything again, she started.

"I hope that you know that I didn't recognize you from the first sit. It was absolutely not the reason why I sat with you. I pray that you know that, please." She looked sad.

"What? No. No, I'm not mad. In fact, I think I respect you more now that I know that this new haircut did not fool you and even at that your first action wasn't to ask for my mother's signature. I've had too many papers shoved to my face, asking for my parent's signature than I know what to do with seriously."

She chuckled softly. "Was that bad growing up, or did you sort of enjoy the attention, then?"

"Are you kidding me? I hated it as a child. I would make friends and then they would just turn out to be mad fans of my father's newest or oldest movie and just wanted to meet him." The elevator dinged, then halted.

"That must have been awful. I am a fan of your mom's books but I promise never to ask for her signature, if that makes you feel better. If I do get the signature, it would be a thing of my own trial and success, that is if she signs it." She chuckled.

"Thank you," I said and she nodded. The elevator doors slid open and a young man entered. He held his own bag and coffee and he had a hoodie over his scrubs. He exhaled and turned around to wave to us. He seemed nervous. He was nervous. Weren't we all?

"Hey."

"Hi," Arty called back and I nodded.

"You guys seem pretty chill about this." He said after a few seconds. His lips tugged.

"Hmm, do not judge a book by its cover." I chuckled. "You should see the turmoil going on in here." Those words seemed to loosen him up a bit because he turned around and smiled at me, then at Arty. He immediately looked away. Then back up again. Was he shy? He had to be. He wouldn't stop wiping his sweaty hands on his scrubs and avoiding gazes.

"I heard that the doctors that are in charge of internships are pretty strict around here. Like, I know they are not supposed to be all smiles with us but from what I heard, they are strict. Like hardcore strict. Scary strict."

Arty and I exchanged glances. By the mechanical way of things, we were the ones that were supposed to be shaken to their core. Yet, here he was. "Who told you this?" Arty queried. She sounded like she was holding in laughter.

"I know someone here. He says it gets bloody around here. Interns even end up dropping. Some fake injuries. They literally operate on a part of their bodies just to flee from Graceland. That's when you realize that the name of this hospital has nothing to do with the internship experience. Nothing at all!" He was freaking out. That was understandable.

"What's your name?" Arty asked again.

"Jacob."

"Jacob, calm down. I can assure you that nothing like that happens here. Maybe that person was just trying to scare you, hence the story. Calm down."

"Look, I'm telling you that he works here. I know what I'm saying."

"This is the USA, that would probably fall into abuse. Don't be afraid, tension only reduces your IQ by 16%, so if you do not want to start thinking low by the time we get to the famous third floor, I suggest you suck it up." When she realized she didn't sound as kind as she must have wanted to. She sighed softly. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound like that. It's just that I am a little bit tensed up and you freaking out is not helping out, ya know."

He smiled and shrugged. "I get it. I'm not being that much of a help. I just, I guess I just needed to let out a little bit of it and this is what I needed." He smiled and so did Arty. They must have realized I was staring at them because they both looked away and started chuckling awkwardly at the same time. That was a surprise.

"Um... I didn't quite get you guys' names. What are your names?"

Arty didn't speak, she just stared like she'd just forgotten her own name.

"Um... I'm Abigail and this is Arty."

"AA. What are the odds that you both are going to be a full force when paired together." He said and laughed at his own joke. "You don't get it? Oh, alright." His goofiness only matched Arty's. Was it weird that I wanted to see where that would lead?

With a couple more dings, we were there. And the more I walked, the more nervous I felt. Jacob too. The only person who seemed pretty confident was Arty.

"They seem pretty cool with all these, but why are we the only ones standing as a squad?" Arty glanced around. The other interns stared at us like we were crazy.

"You really need to start binging G's anatomy. This was one of the reason why I was pretty surprised when you started talking to me. Interns are pretty competitive against each other. They don't get to choose all of us to settle here, so it's more like a Darwin situation. Survival of the fittest and stuff."

"Oh."

"Wait, she hasn't seen G's anatomy before?" Jacob asked me, then turned to Arty. "You've really never watched G's Anatomy before?"

"No, why is that such a big deal?"

"Well, you have to be the first medical student I've seen that hasn't seen G's anatomy. It's kinda part of the drill. I think the only thing that hasn't been done is it being added to the curriculum. Even lecturers indulge their students to dip their feet in."

"Huh. That intense, huh?"

"Uh-huh."

"I don't-"

"Alright, listen up." A female voice called from behind. "You've found a friend and had your fun, but now is the time to listen up." The doctor looked average, but there was nothing average about her voice. No single noise was heard.

"I don't know where you all come from. I am not really interested in any of that stuff. I don't want to know who your family is. Do you know what matters? What matters is what you can deliver here. What you can make up of yourself here." She walked to and fro, determination set. Her co-supervisors nodded. Some frowned still. I swallowed. "I don't know If you have looked around, but you have competition. It's not just you here." I looked down my sneakers and just as I stared back up at her. I saw him. I saw Jack. That was the last thing I could remember. I saw Jack.

Abigail's Point of view.

"But why can't I read it? You read it don't you?" Six years old Abigail wailed from the backseat of her father's fancy car. She still wondered why it was black and not pink. It should've been pink. Her mother chuckled softly and shook her head.

"Well, honey, I write the novels. You really compare the role of a writer and the reader. They differ. A lot." Her mother said, staring at the rearview mirror. Abigail didn't blink. She wanted her mother to know how serious she was. And an unblinking Abigail was a serious Abigail.

"Why do they differ? What does that even mean?"

Confused, her mother's burrows furrowed. "What does what mean?"

"Differ."

Her mother sighed and only waved her hands in the air a few seconds, in an attempt to explain, before glaring at her father who sat behind the steering wheel, taking the mother-daughter conversation with a smikton on his face. His nose was almost red. He was holding in laughter.

"You know this should definitely be the place where you butt into this conversation. This girl's questions don't ever stop, I need backup already, you should know this."

"She's your daughter." Cackling, he takes his eyes off the road but only for a while.

"She's got the neverending inquisitiveness from you, ya know?"

"Hmm, tell me about it."

Her mother opened her mouth to answer, but Abigail just couldn't take it anymore. She needed answers. And she needed them now, before she forgets, like she always forgets her homework. If her parents were going to be throwing big words around, they should also explain it. "What does differ mean?"

Her mother thought for a while. "Um... You know what the word 'different' means, right, honey?" She nodded. "Great, I want you to take out the last three letters away from 'different', what does that leave you with?"

Abigail quickly flipped her drawing book and grabbed her pencil, bent on getting this task right. Her eyes itched but she paid it no heed. Maybe if she did this right, her parents would finally get rid of the maths teacher who was also obsessed with multiplication tables. "Differ, it leaves you with differ."

Her mother smiled while her father nodded slowly. Impressed. Her father was her favorite, he always gave her candies at night behind her mother's back and he could still throw her in the air. "See, you get it. Differ is taken from different, so it means that things are not similar."

"So, that's what you meant when you said that you and your readers differ?" She said and her mother clapped, excited.

"Yes, yes, Abby. Precisely what I meant."

She paused for a while. "Do I get to read the book now?"

"Still no. Honey, mummy doesn't want you reading things that are not good for you. Not now anyway, definitely another year. Another time. I promise you, you will get too. Alright?"

She nodded, but it didn't douse her curiosity. Not even a bit. "When?"

"When you have grown a little more taller than you are now."

"Okay." She murmured and stared at Fitz. The dog couldn't get enough of the fresh air this road trip brought, his eyes remained closed.

Her mother sighed and relaxed back in her chair. She stared outside the window and then at her father. "I am going to love it here and you are too, I just know it." Her hand hung outside. At that moment she looked like a Barbie Doll.

"I don't know, darling. Don't get me wrong, I like the quietness of the road and I'm not even there yet. I love that there's no traffic, waiting to drive me out of my mind, but at the same time, we're a long way from home. We're a long way from work, and it's just a little bit unnerving. It just keeps making me feel like I'm not prepared and you know how I hate being unprepared."

Her mother rolled her eyes and withdrew her hands back into the car.

"You're not going to say anything?" Her father asked after a while. Her mother shrugged.

"What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know... Something. Anything. A response, you know that thing that people get when they talk to someone? That's what I would appreciate at this moment." Her father said and laughed alone. Why was he laughing? Nothing was funny.

"You've hardly been with us for a day and you can't wait to get out and go off in front of some camera."

"That's not fair, Isadora. You know that is not true. I love spending time with the both of you, you're my girls and I love you both so much."

"Then act like it. Spend time with us. I mean it was the whole idea why we went ahead and bought a house in a rural town, in the middle of nowhere, where we've never been before. So that we could get quality time with each other, so that you can spend time with Abby. Get to know her a little bit more. A little bit deeper. I don't know if you see it, John, but your daughter is growing every day. It was just the other day that she was born, and now she's back there asking questions. A lot of questions. Like why are you not with us for eight to nine months in a year-" Her mother was trying not to raise her voice, but Abby knew she was failing. Her father, on the other hand, looked like he'd been slapped across the face. He glanced back at Abigail and then his wife and then the road.

"She really asked you that?"

"Yes. And I didn't know what to say to her because I didn't have any answers. You insisted you wanted her to be good at math, well, she's getting good at math. Really good, John."

"Woah. I don't know what to say to that. The last thing I want is for my daughter to think I don't want to spend time with her. I mean, when I'm on set, the thought of you both keeps me going. When I feel like quitting, I know I shouldn't. I hold on to the thought. I love her so much."

"Yeah, well, show her. Don't just tell her, show her. Or else one day you're gonna wake up and she's all grown and you're wrinkled and then she'll not want to spend time with you anymore." Her father's eyes widened. Her mother smiled slowly and her hand moved to the back of his neck. She caressed. "These years, you see, you can't get back. Once it's gone, it's gone."

Her father didn't say anything else. The car was awfully quiet and even the wind grew too loud to listen to. Fitz whined softly but didn't open his eyes. It was close to an hour before her mother spoke again. "I'm sorry I upset you."

He glanced at her. "Are you kidding me right now? You're trying to fix what I am ruining because I don't recognize a backup moment. You were a blessing back then. You are a blessing right now." He raised her hand and kissed it. "You didn't upset me. I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Something that would fix this. Anything at all that would just start the beautiful adventure I'm sure we're going to have in this small town."

Her mother smiled deeply. "That's my John. But you don't have to figure it all, right now, you know? You can take your time. Slow down. We have time."

Her father chuckled, shaking his head. "Okay, now you're just contradicting yourself. I know you're just trying to make me feel better but I don't want to wake up in the next twenty years to a daughter who hates me."

"She's not going to hate you."

"Yeah, well, if I find something fun for all of us to do, I know that she won't." He slowed the car down, moving at a steady speed, he pulled his phone out and started scrolling frantically.

"John, are you really doing this right now?"

"Yeah." He didn't raise his head. Neither did Fitz.

"What are you even looking for?"

"Aha! I've seen something. I've seen something really cool. They say a festival is happening just thirty minutes away from here." He smiled so widely. He turned to her. "Baby, what do you say we walk around and see different people, eat different people, taste different kinds of candy?" He had her in food, but Candy did it. It was her turn to clap now. She clapped, startling and waking up Fitz. His eyes were wide. Abigail leaning forward, she nodded.

"I'd like that. let's go, let's go, let's go!"

They were there in twenty minutes and Abigail couldn't hold in her excitement. The moment they left the car, the air was filled with baked goods aroma. The place was pretty loaded. Sellers, selling. Buyers, buying. Bargainers, bargaining. The children had the biggest smiles on their faces. We're there also having the baked goods? Was that the foundation of their excitement too?

"I thought they said this place is a small town? Looks anything but small to me." Her father peered over the flier he had in his hands. Her mother's hand gripped hers and she held Fitz's leash. "Where do we even start?"

"By asking questions. We can't just start wandering about, I don't know if you've noticed but this is not a movie set." Mom said. She looked like she immediately regretted it too.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. That didn't come out right. I was trying to be playfully sarcastic, I guess I carried it too far."

"Don't worry, it's okay. If you're getting cranky, we can just go home and return to this place tomorrow. I know that it's probably less crowded." Dad said, gesturing around him. Her mother stared down at her and shook her head. Abigail had one question, though. Why were they both on shades? The sun wasn't even out.

"Too late. We can't go back now that you've promised her all the foods and candies this place has to offer." She shrugged. "We're going to have to ask. Ask around, you know the drill. Some of us do it better." She said and her father chuckled softly.

"Stay right here, honey, and don't move, okay? We're going to get your candy."

"Don't you mean candies?" Abigail's eyebrow raised suspiciously.

"Sure thing, kiddo." She laughed. "Sure thing." Her father gave her a thumbs-up as they headed away. Abigail's stomach grumbled as the grows seemed to grow and she lost her parent's heads in them. She was too short to stand on her tiptoe and there was no bench around. Just as she left Fitz's leash, he ran. Running after a bunny. How had she missed that before?

"Fitz!" But her tiny voice got swallowed up by the crowd. With each breath, Fitz's figure became smaller and smaller. With one final glance at where her parents were supposed to be, she ran after him, passing some shops and houses. Just as her legs began growing wearing, she heard a bark. Fitz's bark. She stared at the homestead that sat there, it seemed to be coming from behind the house.

"Fitz!" She called. He barked. When she arrived behind the home, she saw Fitz hiding behind a worn-out table. He sat comfortably with his belly on the floor and his paws under his chin. He'd always been such a lazy dog.

"Why did you run off like that?" She scolded. He whined. He was not a puppy but somehow the look he gave her resembled that of a puppy's. She sighed. She couldn't stay mad at him. Even if she tried. It was just simply impossible. He was too sweet. She patted his head and stood up straight again. When she looked around, her heartbeat quickened. Where was she? She didn't even know her way out of this place. Looking around again, the sounds of the animals only made her anxiety grow. How far was she from her parents?! She swallowed. Hot tears formed in her eyes and the more she wiped her eyes, the more the tears came. With full force. She bent down and joined Fitz under the table. Maybe that would ease her. He looked pretty chill about their situation. But after she sat down, the tears increased. The whimpers and wailings did too. She cried and cried until she heard footsteps and then sighted a leg. The person bent down. It was a boy. About her age. His blonde hair was a little bit lighter than Fitz's fur and he seemed surprised to see her there.

Her wailings had stopped. They both just stared at each other. After a while, he bent his head more and came to sit beside her.

"What's your name?" He asked after a long silence.

"Abigail." Her mother said anyone around her age was her friend, right? Well, there was no need to be formal. "But my daddy, my mummy, and my nana calls me Abby. You can too."

He nodded. He offered his hand for a shake. That had to be her first handshake, she took his hand." My name is Jack." When he released her hand, her hands were no longer that sweaty and sticky. He'd taken some of that, but he wasn't complaining. "I guess you can call me Jack."

"Hi, Jack."

"Hi, Abby." More silence. "Are you new here?"

"Yes. I think so. I've never been here and I've never read about it, so I guess I'm new here."

He pursed his lips. "So if you read about a place, then you've been there?"

She nodded. "That's what mummy says. She says you don't need a plane ticket to go places. She writes stuff sometimes on the computer and publishes it. But she wouldn't let me read it, no matter how hard I try to give her puppy eyes." She wiped the remaining tears from her eyes. "Maybe Fitz is not teaching me well, he's pretty lazy, you know."

He smiled, reached close to Fitz, and scratched his head. "Hey, Fitz," Fitz whined softly. Lazily.

"Does your mummy write stuff too?"

He shook his head. "No. She farms. She goes to church. She farms some more and then she sees the town's doctor. That is it mostly every day."

Abigail frowned. "People only go to the doctor when they're not feeling good. Is your mummy not feeling good?"

He shook his head again. "They say she has cancel."

"You mean cancer?"

"Yeah."

Abigail patted his hand. "Sorry." She whispered. She knew cancer was bad. It was what took her Nana away to heaven after all.

He smiled and shrugged. "One day I'm gonna be a doctor and save her completely."

"Abby! Honey!" Her parents' frantic voices slashed through the silence she had no idea she'd been enjoying with Jack. That was until it was no more.

Abigail's Point Of View.

When I opened my eyes, I was staring at a white ceiling. It looked nothing like my bedroom, I immediately sat up, and my head thudded at the sudden movement. It seemed as though my eyes were swimming around my head. They stung. They stung really badly. I released my eyes from my hands and saw Arty and Jacob making their way hastily to the bed. I looked down at my feet. My sneakers were no longer on, but my scrubs were. Thankfully. Arty made her way first, sitting at the edge. She helped me sit up.

"Was it the panic attack? Do you usually have episodes like this?" She asked and I frowned, trying to make sense of what was happening. Episodes? The only episodes that were in my life were that of my favorite TV show.

"Huh?" That was all I could utter.

She frowned. "You fainted today. Do you even remember that?" She asked and Jacob placed a hand over hers.

"Take it easy. Maybe she doesn't remember." He whispered as though I was not there and hearing him perfectly.

"I can hear you, you know. And I perfectly remember everything that happened, even though I wish I didn't." Oh, I had been so worried about making a fool of myself on my first day. One glance at him, I do just that. Him. What was he doing there? Here?! I gripped the sheets so hard, I could feel my fingertips biting my palms in retaliation.

"Are you having another one?" Arty asked, pulling me out of the trance... No... More like a shock. She looked concerned. They both did and my heart warmed at it. I shook my head.

"No. I don't usually have it. I was not born with it, the panic stuff."

"You mean the episodes?" Jacob chuckled.

I frowned at him. Not because he laughed. "I think episodes make it sound a little more serious than it actually is."

"Wait, you don't think this is serious?" Arty asked, her eyes were squinted and her head tilted. "You're a doctor, Abigail. You're about to be a real one anyway, you're going to be seeing some things that may throw you off. And if the patient is having a panic attack and the doctor is having one, well we will have one big panic party. And those are no good. In fact, they're bad. Really bad. They usually lead to something uneventful."

"Was it your intention to scare me with that story? Because if your answer is yes, then congratulations. I think you've succeeded."

She sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Didn't mean to. But hey if you passed through medical school, which I know you did, how did you pass their scrutiny with panic episodes?" Well, the cause of it was not there and neither were my parents. There was nothing to scare me into one. I wasn't ready to talk about Jack to anyone. If he was a supervisor, then it had to be illegal to talk about. It happened a long time ago, yes. I know. But it still happened and besides, he could have been married, who knew. I felt a familiar twist of pain in my heart at the thought of that. I had absolutely no right. He didn't owe me anything. And even if he did, he didn't need to know that. He didn't need to know anything at all about the past.

"I don't know. I guess it's some kind of miracle. They stopped a few months before I headed to school. I didn't see them as serious then, but it started again. But I'm going to be okay. I'm just... I've been under much pressure today. I assure you there is nothing wrong with it. I just hope that it won't affect anything with my internship."

She sighed. "It wouldn't. I hope it won't. Can we look at the bright side?"

"There's a bright side? What is that?"

"Well, everyone held their eyes at this speech that the lady was going to be giving and then you come and everything gets called off till further notice. That is until you're feeling better. You are kind of a celebrity."

She said and I chuckled. So did Jacob. "I would hate to call what happened something fortunate enough to get me a good name. I'm going to be remembered as the nervous freak."

"Stop being so mean to yourself. Good things are most likely found in things that are really bad."

She said and I chuckled. "You always have something encouraging to say."

"Hey, that's me."

"Thank you guys for being here, seriously. I don't know why I fell, or why I fainted specifically-"

"It's stress." A deep baritone voice called from behind the curtain and I jumped. After intently gazing at the curtain for a while, I stared around the room, just to be sure I wasn't dealing with a ghost situation here. Arty's hand, once again, covered mine.

"It's okay. It's okay. Nothing is going on, it's just the doctor."

"Wait a minute someone has been there? And you guys didn't tell me? You guys didn't wait to have this conversation somewhere else?"

"Well, we were just talking. It's not like we were saying something crazy or stupid about anyone. Just a couple of friends worrying about their girl." She shrugged.

Couple friends? Wait, what? I rolled my eyes. "Still."

I had no idea my whispers had grown loud, Jacob was kind enough to tap my shoulders and then mouth the words to me: You're being a bit loud, he can definitely still hear you.

I immediately sat up straight when I heard him entering the room, my heart was hammering again.

The blue curtains opened and revealed Jack. Oh, boy, had he grown. He had a mustache. He once despised the face hair, now he proudly wore one. His hair was still as blonde as ever, just a little shade deeper. His shoulders were broader than the last time I'd seen him on Facebook. I had stopped stalking him, it only hurt me. It only hurt my relationship with my family...

"It has to be stress." He said again, snapping me back into reality.

"What? Uh? What... What stress?" I tried to understand. It wasn't working. Urgh!

"You remember you fainted right?" Arty asked again, her eyes squinted. Why did she keep asking that? And why did this one have to be in front of him?

I glared at her. Hard. "Yes, I'm well aware, Arty."

"Well, he said the reason you fainted was because you were stressed out."

I glanced up and found him peering over me. I immediately glanced back down. "Oh, okay. That makes sense." We both knew it was not stress. He had to know. His face wore no emotions and his left foot tapped continuously at the floor. He was anxious but was doing a pretty great job of hiding it.

The silence that followed was excruciating, and with each second, I couldn't wait to get out of that room. But I knew I had to talk to Jack. I had to say something to him. I was not going to play the game of not knowing who he was. He was the first friend I ever had, the first lips I ever kissed, the first heart I ever loved. I've only loved. I refuse to throw all that away. I stared up. Help me say something, Lord. Please, anything at all. Something okay. Something good.

"Can I-"

"Can we-" we both spoke at the same time. Then stared at each other for a while. He looked away first, then I did. Oh, this was so awkward. So, so, so awkward.

"What is it? What did you want to say?" Jack asked and I shook my head.

"No, you go first."

"You can really go first." He said again.

"Please, Jack..." I immediately regretted that. Jack's expression remained unmoved. Arty and Jacob, on the other hand, looked very confused. They shared a glance and then gawked at us. Jack opened his mouth and then closed it again. The intensity of their stares probably shut him up. He turned back to them and then me and then, them, again. It was excruciating to watch. "I mean sir Heartland." Sir Heartland? What was I thinking?

"You guys are her friends, huh?" He asked and they both nodded.

"That's us, the friends." Arty chuckled weirdly. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. How very 'smooth' of her.

"Can we have the room to ourselves, please?" He said and my heart raced all over again. Arty glanced at me in concern and then her eyes went back to Jack. Jacob looked like he couldn't wait to get out of there. I wanted to laugh but I was too scared and my head stung, and my eyes too. I knew he was concerned, he was here after all, he was just a little bit tensed. And probably swimming in gratitude for what my fainting caused. A distraction good enough to get eyes off him and unto me. Classic Jacob.

"Is she going to be okay? It's nothing so serious, is it?"

"No, absolutely, she will be fine. I just... I think I need a little bit of time with her." He said. He must have realized how weird that sounded and rushed to correct himself. "She is my patient after all, it is kind of my job to care for her, right?"

Arty paused and nodded. "Sure, doctor... Heartland?"

"Yes." With one more glance at me, they made their way to the door. I wanted to scream at them to come and take me with them. It had been long, so long we had been alone together. And the last time had to be the worst day of my life.

"Um... Hi." I said and he chuckled softly. Humorlessly. Which only added to my agony. Speak already! Don't laugh. Talk. If you hate me, say so. I knew there was a big change that he despised me. In fact, after everything that happened, he had to.

He stared at me for a while and then finally, "Your sugar level is low." Wait. That was it? That was all I got? Touché. I searched my head quickly for something to say.

"Um... Okay."

"I'm talking really low. It's almost as though you have not been eating for days." He said and looked away, shoving his fist into his pocket.

I scoffed and sat up more, ignoring my head and longing to lighten the mood. "Coffee and iced tea don't count as food?"

He stared at me like I had lost my mind. I knew. I understood him well, I had been wondering the same thing for a while now. I had a lot to do and sitting down one place to eat was a luxury I could not afford anymore. I was dealing more with grab on the go and coffee and iced tea were my best option. It was quick. That piece of information wasn't pleasing to Mr doctor here obviously.

"I'm not joking. And since you're obviously not hearing it from anyone else, I am going to be the one to break it to you. You're being irresponsible. As a doctor, you know some things are simply foolish to do." I didn't know why that surprised me, but it did. I didn't know what to say back to that, other than just stare. Jack was my longest friend and I had never, ever heard him speak like that. Maybe that was his doctor's voice. But... Whatever happened to that seven-year-old sweetheart she'd met under the table? What happened to him?

If he was my doctor, then he deserved an explanation. "I've just a lot to do and eating just seems to be a luxury that I can't afford. At least for now. Till I settle in and get my right foot on the floor, all set."

"That is until you faint again. There's no luxury for that here either."

He sounded... Different. Cold. I knew why. I just saw myself still letting it all sink in quietly. "Doctors fall sick, don't they? Or does that make us less of a physician?"

He shook his head. "They fall sick unexpectedly, they don't beg for it to come. You're being careless and as one of the supervisors here I'm telling you how crazy it is."

"Is this your way of showing me that you care?"

That seemed to surprise him. It left him speechless. He stared at me for a while, then at the floor. When he glanced up again, I saw a little bit of the person I knew.

"What are you doing here, Abigail?" Okay, that was quite not what I was expecting but hey, at least he was finally speaking.

"I'm here to learn, to be something that I have always wanted to be, and then give my services to people that need it."

He stared on. "And you couldn't go anywhere else. You had to come here? I thought your dad was renowned and all that stuff?"

He had to go there. He had to poke that wound. "That's not fair, Jack."

"Really? It's not? You know what I think is not fair? You slamming the door on my face all those years back and then you just get to waltz back in. As it is Abigail Espérer, I don't want to see you. I don't want to hear you talk. I don't want to look at you do anything because you just turn everything in my life upside down."

What was I supposed to say to that? I searched but no words came. The only thing that I felt coming was tears. I inhaled deeply, trying so hard to push the tears back in. That helped. They didn't fall. "Okay."

He shut his eyes tightly for a while. "I'm sorry. That was..." He paused. "Unprofessional."

I nodded. "It's fine, you are my supervisor anyway. Anything goes, right?" I swung my legs to the left side of the bed and ignored the headache that the sudden movement caused.

"You need to stay back in bed."

"I can assure you, sir, that I feel absolutely fine to be out of bed and walk freely. I am a doctor after all." I tried to walk past him but he grabbed my hand. That felt familiar. My hand in his. Under the stars, he held it. Running across the Field, he held it.

He immediately released it and cleared his throat. "Sorry."

But we still stood close to each other. Somehow, magically, I couldn't feel the headache anymore. His eyes moved back to the bracelet on my wrist. "You still wear it?"

"I promised never to take it out, didn't I?" My voice was now quiet. He looked back up at me with a pained expression and stepped closer. And closer. His hands started making their way to my cheeks, but the footsteps that approached made him withdraw.