"FUCK!" Connie cursed loudly, kicking her expensive heel against the corner of her desk and denting her shoe.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" She rubbed a tired hand over her face and through her hair as she sat down.
Connie loudly berated her recent actions, she really hated herself sometimes.
Less than 5 minutes ago she had basically told one of her best nurses that she was all but fired, after she severely broke almost every rule in the rule book.
But the more Connie thought about it, the more she realised exactly why Rita had done what she did.
She shook herself out of her thoughts and stood up.
She grabbed her thick coat and handbag, ready to trek through the falling snow to find her seemingly ex-friend.
She opened her office door, the other nurses bearing holes into Connie's side.
"Do any of you happen to know where Rita could be?" Connie asked politely, a slight choke in her throat making her stutter slowly over her words.
"Why, so you can have another go at her?" Robyn asked, walking away and pulling the other nurses away.
Connie dipped her head, in snow like this she had no chance if she didn't have a clue.
"Try the bandstand at the park." Charlie whispered as he walked past, knowing Rita's favourite thinking spot.
Connie nodded, she then sped out of the door, she passed the break room as she went, she saw Rita's winter coat, scarf and hat all still hanging on the hook.
Connie detoured into the room grabbing them quickly, cursing Rita for being so stupid, with any luck she'd have pneumonia and she wouldn't need to apologize, Connie thought sarcastically.
She walked briskly to the park, barely 5 minutes around the corner.
The park was deserted, apart from a single dithering figure sobbing loudly on the steps up to the band stand.
Connie tutted, almost jogging to the steps, praying Rita wasn't sat there freezing slowly to death.
She knelt down in front of the figure, titling up their chin.
"Oh Rita." Connie sighed. Rita was crying uncontrollably, she was so cold she didn't argue when Connie wrapped her up and pulled her up into her arms. "I am so sorry. I shouldn't have shouted."
Connie could feel tears of her own pricking into her usually unemotional eyes.
She could feel the coldness eradiating from Rita, she wasn't getting any warmer.
Connie willingly unbuttoned her coat and pulled Rita against her warm body, hoping to share some body heat.
"Rita, darling, my house is literally at the end of the park. I'm going to carry you…" Connie didn't leave room for negotiation as she picked up the tiny dithering nurse who seemed to be slipping unconscious from the cold.
Connie pulled Rita up, her arm resting underneath Rita's neck and in the crook of her knees, carefully walking in heels to her large house.
"Come on Rita, stay with me we're almost there." Connie encouraged Rita who was snuggled in the big coat, not really sure what was going on.
They finally arrived at Connie's house.
She fumbled for her keys and opened the door Rita still in her arms.
Connie kicked the door closed and ran into the living room.
She disposed of her heels en route, placing Rita on the sofa.
She shed her coat and Rita's, she cursed again when she realised Rita's beautiful suit was sodden from the falling snow.
Connie had no choice but to strip Rita of all of her clothes and snuggling her in a blanket.
She dashed upstairs, 2 steps at a time, grabbing a baggy top and a pair of thick joggers, then running back downstairs and clothing Rita.
Rita had started to become more aware of what was going on, she started to cry again, pulling the blanket close to her cold body.
"Hey, that's it, you're ok…" Connie placed her warm hands either side of Rita's frosty face, she was now sat up on the sofa, Connie kneeling before her. Rita's face scrunched up, like she was about to burst into tears, pushing Connie's hands roughly away from her face, even though she had been enjoying the warmth diffusing onto her face.
"Why didn't you leave me?" Rita asked, Connie bit her lip, wondering how Rita could even think that she would do anything like that! "You should've gone, you shouldn't be here, you should be at the ED."
"I wouldn't leave you. I'd never leave you…" Connie tried to reassure Rita but it was all in vain.
"Well you should've! Still you've missed your chance now, haven't you?" Connie just raised her eye brows at Rita's latest stupid question.
Connie and Rita had been good friends from the off, both of them determined, focused and just wanting to do their job as well as possible, every day.
But being friends with the boss wasn't always the best idea, things tended to get well… Complicated.
"I don't deserve your kindness. And I never will, I don't even know why you bother…" Rita started to cry, her tiny chest rising up and down quickly as she slowly degraded herself.
"I am a horrible, I am nasty and I'm a liar! I don't even like being with me…" Rita sniffed, Connie just let her go, knowing it would be better if she just got it all out of her system. "But you… you…" Rita's voice rose higher and higher as she tried to finish her sentence but she gave up. "You should have left me there, I wasn't worth it. Really I wasn't."
"You don't get it do you?" Connie took firm hold of Rita's cold, clammy hands, making her look her directly in the eyes. "You really don't get it. I love you Rita." Connie choked out, she always had, but she had just been too shy to say it.
Rita almost smiled.
Connie wasn't one to spread all her cards on the table at once, but it seemed it was the only way she was going to say Rita from herself.
"I love you." Connie said it again, with even more meaning. "I'd rather die, freezing my butt off looking for you than think that I'd irreversibly hurt you! I will never leave you Rita Freeman. Never. You understand me?" Connie ran a soothing hand over Rita's tear sodden face. "I want you Rita, all of your flaws and imperfections, and I want it forever ok?" Connie asked, Rita just nodded.
Connie knelt up on her knees, pushing up her lips so they crashed with Rita's.
Rita pulled Connie close, deepening the kiss.
When they eventually pulled back Connie crawled under the blanket with Rita and lay down.
Rita snugged on top of Connie's slim body, her tiny curves fitting magically against Connie's.
Connie kissed Rita's forehead.
"I will never leave you." She promised, pulling Rita even closer as both of their eyes started to drift shut.