Saving the Doctor Pt. 11

"No. You don't. You need to rest, and recuperate, and not stress yourself out with worrying about work and everything else."

"I can handle a phone Elaina. I don't have a concussion."

She gasped and looked at him like he had slapped her. "How DARE you bring that up!"

"I... I just meant that there's no reason t-"

"I've done SO MUCH for you, and I'm trying SO HARD to be good to you and HELP you and you throw THAT in my face?!" she shouted, starting to tear up.

He backed up, striking his back against the fridge.

"Okay, Jesus, I'm sorry. I know you've changed for the b-"

"You're GODDAMN RIGHT I've changed. I've recovered. I've moved on. That was the hardest time in my life and you did NOTHING to help me through, other than CHEAT on me and leave me! Here I am trying to forgive you and you just seem... THANKLESS!"

"Elaina, look I can appreciat-..." he was interrupted by her slamming the door to her office.

He sighed and stared at the door, deciding to give her some time to settle down. He turned back to the kitchen and slowly cleaned up the dishes and put his omelette in the fridge.

He ran through the same questions in his mind without getting any further. He told himself again he just needed to last a few days until home care was available. He was almost relieved to see her perfect caring demeanour break and prove that she could still be volatile like he remembered. Memory was a double-edged sword however. Hearing her sobs had made his body jerk instinctively in a desire to go and comfort her. Remembering those rare tender moments, in a forgiving embrace. Sometimes escalating into wild passionate make-up sex...

He exhaled and told his cock to shut the fuck up and made his way to the living room and collapsed on the couch, already sick of TV but turning it on anyway. He eventually heard her phone ring and she was now talking pleasantly with someone, but couldn't tell who.

After a while she finally walked back into the living room, leaning against the corner of the wall until he looked back up at her. Even after crying her face was still beautiful. He turned the TV off and slowly stood up, wincing again from the pain. Her eyes seemed to drink him up as he walked slowly towards her. He opened his mouth but she spoke first to his surprise.

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely.

"I... forgive you," he said, thrown off and simply saying what seemed appropriate.

He was instantly snagged in her eyes as they shone at him with an approving smile.

"Thank you," she whispered, and smoothly stepped forward to wrap her arms around him in a hug.

He hugged her back, and she held on longer than he expected. She breathed on his neck and very gently massaged the muscles on his back. He found himself responding instinctively, and had to stop his hands from caressing her lower back, but couldn't stop his cock from twitching. Finally she pulled away just enough to look up at his face expectantly, but he tore his eyes away.

She read his reaction and slid her hands off his neck to his chest. "So, how should we spend the afternoon?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

He cleared his throat. "Finally checking my emails?" he said with a smirk.

She rolled her eyes.

"Come on you know you would be asking the same thing," he said.

She gave him a playful sour look, "Okay but how about going for that walk first?"

"You know what? Fine. Some fresh air would be nice." he admitted, eager to push his body harder. "Where to?"

"I was just thinking down to the building's courtyard for today. It's quite a nice little area, and some of the flowers have just started to bloom."

"Sounds good," he said, and was rewarded with another glimpse of the gorgeous smile he had fallen in love with years ago, as she took his hand.

At first she seemed to genuinely be holding his hand to help him walk, but as they waited in the elevator it was clear she had no intention of letting go. Their conversation was simple and friendly. She talked about the hospital and some interesting cases they had had recently. Jon did the same but she seemed to have the better stories. He was honestly interested about where some of their fellow residents had ended up and she seemed to find his interest in the local medical community particularly exciting. She mentioned the downtown clinic by the shelter he had done some rotations at, and that there were a lot of other options for clinics in the area to work at. Her implication was annoying, but he shrugged it off pleasantly, and smoothly changed the subject.

She seemed to draw out their time there, convincing him to take a rest on the bench and enjoy the sunshine for a while. As they chatted she seemed more interested in what he had to say then he ever remembered her showing before. She laughed at anything that approached a joke in a way that was almost off-putting with how out of character it was for her. It might have almost been a breath of fresh air if he could only have brought himself to trust it.

After a bit more slow arduous exercise, they slowly headed back inside and up the elevator, and she held his hand the entire way. He both wanted to pull away and didn't, hating that he was caught where he was, but part of him loving the familiar comforting feeling.

When they got back in he laid down, frustrated at how much he needed a rest after the paltry walk. He spent most of the time staring at the ceiling as he lay on the bed, knowing he couldn't sleep despite how exhausted he felt. Finally, he found her and insisted on borrowing her laptop for what felt like the hundredth time.

"Who do you think you'll be responding to?" she asked, sounding like she was trying to be laid back, but needing an answer.

"Anyone and everyone," he chuckled, ignoring her tone. "Like, I want to let the other docs at the clinic know how I'm doing. Jeff and Grace for sure, then there's Rob, Ben and... whoever else," he said, leaving out the one name he had in mind more than any other.

Elaina's face turned more sour and she made a heavy sigh as she looked at him with almost threatening eyes.

"What?" Jon asked, crossing his arms.

"Jon... you know how I feel about some of your so-called friends," she said with a glare.

Jon sighed, "Still?"

"What do you mean STILL!? They turned you against me and especially that bitch Grace was part of that bunch of employees that I KNOW had me fired from the hospital. Of COURSE I still hate them."

"THEY had you fired? Elaina you tried to-..." Jon took a breath and stopped himself from starting a shouting match, "Look... you have every right to your opinion and to choose your friends, but so do I. They've been really supportive over the past few months and they deserve to know that I'm okay."

She froze for a long moment with the laptop in front of her but finally relented and held it out to him, but still held on as he tried to take it. "Okay. On ONE condition. That you do NOT give them my address or phone number. You may still have some inexplicable use for them, but I do NOT want them knowing where I live, or any of my contact info. I don't trust them."

Jon gave her an impatient look but she only intensified her glare. "Fine, I promise," he said, then sighed in relief when she nodded and then handed him the laptop.

His inbox was a shit-show. It was like combing through rubble as he was reminded how many superfluous emails he weeded out on a daily basis. He decided to work from the bottom up and finally came across a message from Jeff, sounding concerned and asking him to contact him whenever he could. He was tempted to reply right away but decided to continue on. He eventually came across a few more, from Doug and a couple other docs from the clinic, one from Rob, and finally the most recent one from Grace. She was more candid. The rest had been general well wishes and an overall concern for his health, but she went into detail, saying they had all been spending tons of time with him at the hospital and were devastated when Elaina 'took him away'. That they were so hurt that they hadn't been allowed to visit him after he was transferred, that Carly was most devastated of all, and that he should talk to her as soon as he could. His eyes froze on that sentence until Elaina spoke.

"Is something wrong?" she said, looking at his face from across the room.

Jon snapped out of his shock, "Um... yeah just reading through stuff," he said, sounding more nervous than he intended, and quickly clicking away from the email as Elaina walked up beside him.

"Any emails from your... friends?" she asked.

"Yeah, quite a few," he said.

"What did they say?" she asked smoothly.

"Just general well wishes and wanting to know how I was doing," he said.

"...Okay. That's nice of them I suppose," she said, seeming to examine his eyes.

He ignored her and turned back to the laptop. She stayed near him as he looked through the next few, until he finally lost his patience.

"Can I have a bit of privacy Elaina?" he asked, feeling more irritated.

She gave an embarrassed but angry look and finally moved to the couch opposite from him. He continued silently through the emails and suddenly Elaina spoke up.

"Jon, I need to tell you something," she said, a suddenly very serious tone to her voice.

"O...kay," he said, not sure what to make of it.

"I need to... confess something," she said, not sounding the least bit regretful.

He was suddenly much more interested

"I lied... a little bit, about the other hospital," she explained seriously, "Some of your friends WERE there, but they weren't really doing anything. They had barely been there but were trying to act like they could make medical decisions for you. They were letting the doctors there make ridiculous mistakes in your care, completely clueless as to what was going on. When I finally stepped in to help you they came at me so... aggressively. They just hate me so much, and they have it in their mind that I should never be allowed near you again, even when I'm trying to help. I'm worried they're going to fill your head with lies and stories about how I 'stole you' from them, but Jon... they're just trying to make me look like a villain, if they do. Like some petty revenge. Please believe me, Jon."

He stared at her for a long moment, not knowing what to say and finally simply nodding, "Okay."

"...Okay?"

"I'll keep that mind," he said, flat-faced.

"...Thank you," she said uncertainly, but left it at that and stood up to leave.

Jon finally finished going through the emails and typed up a reply to everyone. He told them he was gradually on the mend, that Elaina was helping to look after him for a few days in the city, but that he'd be back home soon and he couldn't wait to see them all again. He left it at that. He opened a blank email and stared for a long time wanting so bad to write something to Carly but unable to decide where to start. Suddenly he noticed the internet had gone out.

"Elaina? The internet cut out, could you reset it?"

"Oh. Really? Hmm, it's been doing that every now and then. Usually you just have to wait and hour or so. You looked like you were done anyway though?" she said.

He admitted to himself that he would need more time to think on what to write, so he relented and gave her the laptop back.

He spent the next hour or so staring blankly at the TV, deep in thought, while a show he was barely interested in played. Deep down he felt he knew who to trust and who not to trust, and his situation was making him feel more and more uncomfortable. Finally at the end of the afternoon he confronted Elaina in her office.

"Elaina, I want you to drive me back to my house."

"Jonathon please, don't be foolish."

"To get the stuff I need, and come right back here," he clarified, trying to stay tactful.

She sighed, almost seeming annoyed that he was being reasonable.

"We'll make it back by late evening if we leave now and pick up something to eat on the way, and I only take an hour or so to get some essentials. Again, my laptop and my birth certificate and passport, which we'll need to get a new I.D., which I NEED," he emphasized seeing her face take on a dismissive look, "It'll make everything easier as we get my bank and credit cards sorted out."

"I though you were just going to wait a couple days and sort it out when you got back?" Elaina said.

"I changed my mind," he said bluntly.

She crossed her arms, "You've only been out of hospital for a day. I'm worried that's going to be too much for you."

"I'll be fine Elaina. I promise you, we'll come right back here. Plus I can collect my mail, and check on the house. There are so many reasons to do it. If you want me to trust you and rebuild... our friendship, then please, do this for me."

She squinted her eyes, seeming to mistrust him, but eventually decided to take the words to heart and smiled. "Okay. If it'll help you to feel more comfortable here, I'll do it."

"K, let's leave right away then," he said.

"Um... sure just let me finish what I'm doing here and get some things together and um... yeah then we can go," she said nodding uncomfortably and turning away.

He let out a sigh of relief and went to find his jacket.

He waited near the doorway for what felt like an awkwardly long time, finally she came out with her jacket with a bothered look on her face. She put it on and then said she forgot her keys were in her office. He rolled his eyes and waited near the door but then heard a sudden thump from the room.

"Elaina?" he called with a frown.

When there was no response he walked through the door to see her on the floor.

"Elaina! Dammit are you okay?" he said rushing over to her fallen body and hearing her groan out in confusion.

"Jonathon?" she said confused.

"What happened?" he asked, helping her to sit up.

"I... I must have fainted I don't know," she said, sounding groggy.

"Did you hurt yourself?" he asked.

"No... No I think I'm gonna be fine. I just have to rest for a bit," she said, opening her eyes and quickly seeming to have more life in her.

"I'll get you some water, maybe some juice if you have some," he said, trying to rush back to the fridge but wincing at the effort.

He eventually got her sitting on the futon and she thanked him gratefully as she drank. His supportive hand on her arm had turned into her leaning on him, and almost snuggling.

"Thank you so much Jonathon, I'm sorry I just felt suddenly light-headed," she said softly.

"You didn't eat much lunch from what I remember," he said.

She smirked, "Yeah, we should order in some supper, get my phone and we'll choose a place together. I um... shouldn't be driving tonight though."

"Yeah, yeah of course," he agreed.

They decided on food and made the order. After they ate she admitted she was feeling better. She kept thanking him with long apologetic looks. There were a few brushes of her foot with his under the table that were only just light enough to be innocent.

"Don't worry, Elaina," Jon reassured her. "We can make the trip tomorrow. Do you think you were just dehydrated or low on blood sugar then?"

"I suppose," she said. "Honestly though Jonathon... I know I haven't been showing it, but this has been a really stressful and exhausting time for me too. I'm spending so much time and energy caring for you that I think it's taking it's toll on me. I slept really poorly last night not knowing if you were okay in the other room. I kept wanting to check on you more and more.

He nodded and cleared his throat as he chewed thoughtfully.

She held his gaze for a moment then continued, "I don't know, maybe a long drive isn't the best idea, and maybe another couple days off work after tomorrow too."

"Elaina if this is really that hard on you then let's find someone to help, and get me out of your hair. I actually think my friends can help me out back home, they said as much in their emails, I can work out h-"

"No!" she stood up angrily. "Didn't you hear a THING I said about them? They don't CARE about you Jon. I DO! I'm the only one that can properly take care you right now! I'm the only one that l-..." she paused and then broke into tears. Before he could say anything she rushed into her office and slammed the door.

Jon silently finished his meal with a rigid set to his face. He forced down the urges to go comfort her and apologize. Urges that still kept coming against his will, in instinctual waves as visions of her crying face flashed in his mind. He didn't owe her anything.

He needed her right now though. He had no money, no I.D., no phone, barely able to walk. She almost seemed to prefer it that way, keeping him as her pet fiance again, he thought.

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe she was simply worried about him and being extra careful. Maybe ordering the phone instead of buying one had been an honest mistake. Maybe she hadn't 'fainted' on purpose. Maybe he was just being paranoid and held too much of a grudge. He definitely knew his mind was still recovering from the ICU and he didn't know what thoughts to trust; whether he was being too trusting or not trusting enough.

He had finally cleaned up supper, having gotten nowhere with his circular thoughts. He noticed her coat was still draped over a chair and opened the entrance-way closet to put it back. Elaina suddenly appeared in her office doorway, with a look of teary-eyed concern.

"Jonathon? You're not... going are you?" she reached out with a look of pure gut-wrenching remorse.

Jon stared at her, floored at how defeated she seemed.

"Please don't. Please I'm sorry for the outburst, I'm so sorry, I know what I said was too much. I'm trying not to be that woman anymore I swear. Please Jonathon..."

He stared for a moment, then shut the closet. "No, Elaina. I'm staying... for now. I... AM going to be leaving though, eventually," he said, cautiously raising an eyebrow.

"Of course. I know," she closed her eyes and nodded. "I'm sorry if I acted otherwise I just... Look just give me a few more minutes and then we'll talk some more okay?"

He nodded silently and she closed the door again. He wandered back to his room and noticed the shopping bag next to the dresser. He picked it up out of curiosity and pulled out a shirt Elaina had bought him. It actually looked perfect. Nice colour, his style. He tried it on and it fit seamlessly. He thought back to the tight gaudy t-shirts Beth had wanted him in, and sighed. He rolled up the sleeves, unbuttoned the collar and shrugged, deciding to keep it on, and wandered back to the living room and turned on the TV.

He had almost fallen asleep when he heard the fridge open. He looked up despondently to see Elaina padding smoothly to the living room with a wineglass in one hand, a beer in the other, and an apologetic look that he was still getting used to recognizing.

She spoke timidly, "Hey, thanks for being patient, I..." she stopped, almost looking like she was going to drop the beer.

Jon looked in her eyes and saw... a look that he definitely recognized. He knew she had no idea, and had barely believed him when he'd commented on it in the past. But those bedroom eyes, and that look of pure sexual hunger had always preceded their most intense passionate romps. Despite the moments of tension that had come already this was the first time he'd seen it.

"That shirt looks really good on you," she said quietly.

Jon couldn't tear his eyes away from her. Her look was triggering every inch of his skin into an anticipation of so many good memories. For a split second he let himself take in the tight curve of her hips and her long skinny legs, seeing a woman simply standing before a man... his cock pulsed in response.

He cleared his throat to break the silence, "Thanks, ...for getting it, I like it."

She seemed to break out of her stare as well and handed him the beer with a smile and a nod.