Anonymous asked you: Dr Alison Cameron is on holiday to Miami after a bad break up with Dr Remy Hadley when she meets Dr Eva Zambrano. Can Eva heal Allison's broken heart?
AN: OMG…. Ever since I got this one I have been counting the prompts until I got to write it… I've been so very excited! PS I have done this before, but it is only because I do not know anything medical unless it comes from my many medical dramas, so the case is taken from Grey's Anatomy season 7 episode 11 (the one when Christina gets back on the surgical saddle). There's also bits and pieces and ideas taken from other episodes (I've been watching Grey's on Netflix), so if you watch Grey's and something medical seems familiar, that is probably what it is from.
AN2: Also, I couldn't really bring myself to completely have Camteen break up unless it was by death… So… There will be some mentions of Remy in this one. And I decided to have Allison move to Florida, not on Holiday—I hope that's alright… The Spanish phrases used in here are taken from the internet and looked right from what I could remember from my Spanish classes. If they are wrong, I apologize! There aren't too many though… And finally, I decided to play around with Allison. I feel like after everything she went through that she would be a lot different and a lot more damaged than she was in House… So, hope you enjoy.
Allison had never taken surgery as a specialty into account, but after she quit House and quit the hospital, and began another job as an ER head, she knew that surgery was her calling. She would get to fix people—maybe get that need out of her system.
She finished her surgical fellowship with a lot of offers from a lot of the best hospitals in the country including Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital and Seattle Grace Mercy West, but she decided on Miami Medical ultimately. The trauma unit was supposed to be the best in the states, and seeing as trauma was her surgical specialty, she knew that Miami was the right decision.
She also knew it was the right decision because her girlfriend of almost a decade decided to end things and not let her anywhere near her. She knew she broke up with her because of her disease but the fact that she wasn't even willing to see Allison's side was enough to make her do what she did when things got hard: Run. So she did. She told her ex-girlfriend nevertheless that she was running, so that she would know why Allison wasn't trying to drop in and see her everyday was because she was in a different state. Remy only encouraged her to leave and told her to have a nice life.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Allison was on her way for her first day. It was going to be a good first day. She was completely moved in to her new place, she could feel the sun and practically hear the waves of the ocean. She was walking passed a crowd when she heard a siren. She knit her brows as it got closer to her and turned in front of her. As she looked further, she saw a crowd gathered around a small store and jogged over.
As she saw the victim of a gunshot, and she heard the list of his conditions, she started taking her backpack off her shoulders, "You need to crack his chest!"
The paramedics looked at her with raised brows, "I'm a doctor." She showed them her ID, "Miami Medical Trauma One." She threw her bag into the ambulance and jumped in. She took some gloves from one of the paramedics and looked at them, "What are we waiting on? Go!"
~0~0~0~0~0~
Eva and Serena were waiting for the two patients that were headed to Trauma One.
"Did you hear about one of them doing a thoracodomy in the field?" Serena asked.
"What? The paramedics did that? Without authorization?" Eva looked at her.
"That's the word." Serena only lifted her hands in question.
"Did you guys hear about the thoracodomy in the field?" Chris asked as he came out in his trauma gown.
"It's ours." Eva gave him a stern look.
"Well, we'll just see about that, won't we?" He winked at her, causing her to roll her eyes.
The first truck rolled up and Chris sprinted over to it, "Mine!" He laughed as the ladies glared his direction. He helped open the back door as the paramedic exited.
"Gun shot to the thigh and abdomen. She's stable now, but she was a little rocky on the way over." She gave the chart to Chris who pursed his lips and took it begrudgingly.
Eva and Serena laughed as Chris trudged on, "Have fun!" Eva waved him off with a laugh and sobered as the other ambulance parked.
Allison heard the paramedic deliver all of the information to whoever was about to be her new coworker. She also heard the woman with a stern voice scold the paramedic, "Why would you do this procedure unauthorized?"
"I didn't do it!" He said then opened the door.
Allison looked out to see not one, but two beautiful doctors waiting on the other side, "I had to crack his chest." She said as she stood and moved carefully as they got the patient on the ground. She stood on the side and looked to the two doctors, "I'm good let's go."
It took them a moment, but the blonde came to her side to make sure she didn't fall as the brunette and a couple nurses coming out helped move them along.
"So, I can assume by the fact that you've pulled this off and not killed the guy, that you are a doctor." The brunette asked in a no-nonsense, authoritative tone.
"Yeah, I'm supposed to start here today: Trauma Team Alpha." She looked at the surprised exchange between the two surgeons, "And I can tell by your faces that Dr. Proctor has yet to tell you all that he was adding another doc…"
"It's the first we've heard." The blonde holding her back said quietly as the brunette pushed them into a trauma suite.
"Okay, while my hand is here, he's okay. I've blocked the hole in his right ventricle."
"You're a bit of a rock star, aren't you?" the blonde asked.
"I like to make an entrance."
"I'm Serena… Warren."
"Allison Cameron."
"Okay, we need to get him on bypass." The brunette's tone was hard once more and demanding… Allison liked it. She liked it a lot.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Allison absolutely loved her first shift. She loved getting hit on by Chris, she loved the conversation with Serena, she loved the quirkiness of Proctor—it was House-esque but nice, and she loved watching that sexy Latina of a doctor named Eva Zambrano work.
She was in the locker room, paperwork finally done, patients finally stable, stretching her body out when the sexy, smart Latina walked in.
"You uh… You're an amazing doctor…" Eva said as she walked in further, doing nothing to stop staring at the tight ass.
"Oh, thanks." The blonde looked at her upside down between her legs and smiled as she saw where the brown eyes traveled from before she stood and turned. She swung and arm across her body and held it there, "You're pretty awesome yourself. But, I probably don't need to say that."
Eva smiled, "It's always nice to hear." She looked at the blonde, "I'm sorry for being…" She trailed off.
"A bitch?"
Eva gave the other doctor a small, shocked smile that quickly grew, "Yeah. I just don't do change well. First I've had to adapt to Proctor and now you. There's been a lot of change lately. And not the kind I'm in need of. I was supposed to be chief and then Proctor came. I was supposed to be the best female doctor on staff and then you came." When Allison gave her a confused look, she admitted, "I had some of the nurses look into you. You're double board certified."
Allison smiled and nodded, "That's not impressive, that's a complete change of life…" she shook her head and looked down, "I know how you feel though. I've been through a lot of changes lately as well. But you have nothing to worry about, I'm not better than you. You…" She stared at the brunette, "You're…" She was at a loss, "I'm not better than you, I was in the same room as you today, I know what I can do and I know what you can do."
"So modest." Eva gave her a cheeky smile.
Allison chuckled, "One of my greatest faults."
"Faults?"
"Well, according to House, my ex-husband and my ex-girlfriend, yeah."
"According to who? House?"
"Yeah…" The blonde looked at her, "I thought you said you looked into me…"
"House… Like Greg House?" At the raise of Allison's brows, she nodded, "I've heard that he's an ass…"
"That may be, but he's an honest ass that tells you your faults like he's the magic mirror…" She shrugged and looked away. She gathered her bag that was stashed in the room hours before, "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Maybe you'll get here before the ambulance instead of with it… It was a dramatic entrance, but this wing gets its fill of drama…"
Allison stared into those brown eyes and nodded, "Yeah, maybe. Maybe not." She wasted no time as she took the brunette's face in her hands and pulled her in for a long, searing kiss. "I am definitely going to like working here though, that's for damn sure." She pulled from the shocked brunette and walked to the door.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Allison decided that she needed a better means of travel than foot alone, but she sold her car in the compulsive decision that she made when she decided she wanted to be more active after she got here—though that could be her wanting to keep Remy out of her head. So, she grabbed her skateboard (the one she used to get around her college campuses all 90 years she was getting her degrees), and her favorite baseball cap that had Tom & Jerry on the front, Tom chasing Jerry onto the bill.
She just ollied onto the curb and was on her way passed a few people parking their bikes when she heard a voice.
"There she is." She stopped her trek and turned to find Chris. He gave her a grin. "Hey superstar."
She laughed, "Oh is that what my nickname is going to be?" She popped the skateboard up and caught it before tucking it under her arm.
"I think so. I mean, you do a thoracodomy before you even actually begin work at this place and now you show up here on a skateboard? I'll bet you're really good too."
"How could you possibly know that?" She gave him a smirk.
"Well, when I was a teenager, I thought I was going to be the best pro skateboarder out there. Then I got hurt, went to the hospital and found a whole knew dream." He grinned as they walked inside, "I can tell you're good."
"Well, not as good as I used to be, but it will do well to get me from place to place." She smiled as they entered the locker room. Eva was already there.
"Eva." Chris greeted with that boyish grin as he walked in, "How are you this morning?"
Eva turned with a grin of her own, "I'm good, Chris." She turned to see who else entered only to find the woman that kissed her taking off her shirt and jeans to put on scrubs, "Dios mio…" She breathed out, hoping the blonde man next to her didn't hear. She gave a cautious glance to see a smirk spreading over his face.
"Something catch your eye, Eva?" He whispered so Allison couldn't hear.
"Shut up." She gave him a look that told him the many, many bad things that would happen to him if he didn't keep to himself.
He only nodded and raised his hands in surrender.
"Good morning everybody." Serena walked in and opened her locker next to Allison's, "You skateboard?"
Allison nodded, "It gets me places." She smiled.
Serena only gave her an impressed look and nodded, "So, I'm with you today. Proctor wanted me to see what else you're capable of after that grand entrance to Alpha for day one." She grinned.
Allison nodded, "Alright." She glanced to Eva who immediately looked anywhere but at her.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Allison was sitting on one of the cement tables during a break. Her feet were rolling her skateboard back and forth on the cement bench. She had her lunch with her, but wasn't eating because of the e-mail she got from Remy. She just kept reading it over and over again.
"You might try riding in circles…" The accented voice came from behind her.
"What?"
"Well. It appears that there is something bothering you. When we have to figure something out, we tend to ride our bikes in circles. It helps, and a skateboard will probably be the same…" He sat next to her. "What's on your mind?"
"Do you support physician assisted-suicide?" She asked.
He knit his brows, "Is one of our patients…?"
"No." She shook her head, "My ex… She broke up with me because of her disease and she just sent me an e-mail telling me that she got the two-doctor consent and she's going to end her life." She wouldn't look at the older doctor.
"What does she have?" He finally asked after realizing that she wasn't going to look at him.
"Huntington's."
"Who has Huntington's?" Serena asked as she sat down behind Proctor and Cameron.
"Huntington's?" Chris asked as he and Eva came out as well, "Why are we talking about that? That's not trauma. Does one of our patients have it?"
"No." Cameron got up and skated back into the hospital.
"What was that?" Eva asked.
Proctor had turned to watch her retreating form, "Dr. Cameron is going through something; let's all be a little sensitive, alright?"
"Does she have Huntington's?" Serena asked aloud.
Proctor didn't say anything; he only took Cameron's lunch and walked inside as well.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Eva was the last to leave the next evening. She loved 48 hour shifts, but she also hated them. She was always happily exhausted. So, as she staggered into the locker room, she was surprised to find Allison pacing and talking on the phone.
"No! Remy don't! Please! Will you just… Will you wait for me? Please? I'll grab a flight tonight just… Please! Wait for me… Please." Eva watched the visible physical relaxing of the blonde before her, "Thank you. I will be there as soon as I can, alright? Okay." She watched the blonde shake her head before turning around. "How long have you been there?" her tone held a bit of anger.
Eva raised her hands in surrender, "Not long."
Allison put her hand up, "Sorry, I just…" She shook her head, "Sorry."
"Is it something I can help with?"
"Do you have magical powers?" The brunette knit her brows, "Then it's something you can't help with." The blonde stood and opened her locker, grabbing her bag and board, "I have to go to Jersey. I have to go help my girlfriend die."
"You..what?" Eva crossed her arms and looked at her.
"Yeah." Allison nodded with a wildness in her eyes, "She just decided to tell me today through and e-mail. 'Hey Al, I just wanted you to know that I still love you and will always love you, but living in this world like I am is pure and utter torture. So, with the help of House, Wilson and Cuddy, even though I only needed two of their signatures, I'm going to kill myself. Love you. Remy.'"
Eva looked into the blonde's eyes, "Do you need a ride to the airport?"
"No." She then scratched her brow, "I mean, yes. But I'll just get a cab."
"No! I'll drive you." When the blonde tried to deflect the offer, Eva put her hands on the other woman's shoulder, "Yes. I will. It's fine."
They got into Eva's car and Allison kept it together through most of the ride, but sure enough, as they were pulling into one of the many parking lots of the airport, Eva saw her new coworker completely break. She parked and walked her inside.
"Are you sure you're alright?" The brunette asked after offering to go with her. She wasn't sure where it came from but there was this need to make sure the blonde was okay. She didn't know if it was the amazing kiss or just her nature in general. But she needed to make sure she was okay.
"I'm fine. I'll be fine. I'll be back in a couple days." She nodded assuredly.
Eva stared at her a moment longer before accepting it, and let the blonde make her way through security.
~0~0~0~0~0~
It didn't take much for Eva to put together that it was this girlfriend/ex-girlfriend that had Huntington's. She was reading in one of her medical journals on the disease eating her lunch a few days later. She didn't notice the sound of wheels on pavement coming closer, but she did notice the blonde hair that came into her line of vision as Allison looked over her to see what she was reading.
"She was advanced." The blonde straddled the bench and faced the Latina, "She, in her words, was on the quick bus to the dementia setting in so bad she wouldn't know if she was in Six Flags or her living room…" She sighed, "She was doing well, but it was getting worse fast." She shrugged, "She wanted to be lucid when she died. So she was."
Eva stared at her, "You seem wildly okay…"
"What do you want me to do? Sit here and cry and tell you all my feelings?"
"Well, if I were the one that just lost my girlfriend, I would not be as calm and collected as you are."
"She was my ex-girlfriend."
"Not the last time I saw you she wasn't." The Latina looked at her, "She was your girlfriend and she was in love with you."
Allison looked to the side, "Well, she's gone now so it doesn't matter."
Eva leaned towards her a bit and touched her arm, "It does." When she caught Allison's eyes she nodded and spoke again, "It does matter."
~0~0~0~0~0~
Cameron had had enough of her patient's family. She couldn't handle it anymore, "She's dying!" she cut the three people off, "Your daughter, your girlfriend? She's dying. I'm doing every goddamn thing I can to make sure she pulls through this, but coming out here to settle your bitching is not going to let me do the job I need to do at the quality it should be done. So if you'll excuse me!" She stalked back into the suite her patient was in.
Eva had seen the exchange and followed the blonde in, "Dr. Cameron?"
"Yes, Dr. Zambrano?" Allison was working deftly, putting her full concentration on her patient now.
"You wanna tell me what that was about?" When she didn't get a response, she looked to Tuck, "Keep me updated?"
Tuck started to nod, but the stern look from the tiny woman to his right made him stop cold. Allison huffed, "Thank you, Dr. Zambrano, but I don't need a babysitter." She went right back to working on the woman before her.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Eva walked in the locker room to find Serena rolling her eyes while Chris hit on Allison yet again.
"Chris? Leave her alone." Eva said with a stern, protective, mama bear tone.
"What? Come all, Eva, I'm only inviting her to the bar!" He looked to the blonde on his left, "Come on, Allison, what do you say?"
"Hell yes." She stared at Eva defiantly.
"Yes." Chris pumped his fist and walked to the exit, "Come on Serena, Allison. Proctor and Tuck already left."
Serena followed the blonde man out of the locker room and Allison slowly made her way towards the exit, "I told you once already; I shouldn't have to say it again: I don't need a babysitter."
Chris stuck his head back in, "Eva, Allison! Hurry up! We'll meet you at the car." He ducked back out.
"I'm not trying to be your babysitter, I'm just trying to look out for you."
"Yeah, well. I don't need someone to look out for me." Allison started for the door.
"Um, actually you do." Eva grabbed Allison's upper arm, "You are aware that that family almost slapped you with a lawsuit, aren't you?"
"I told that family what needed to be said—"
"You told them that their daughter and girlfriend was going to die."
"She was."
"You also indicated it was going to be their fault."
She shrugged, "It was. And it got them to shut up so I could do my job."
Eva stared at her a moment, "Allison if you need more time off, Proctor would understand—"
"I'm fine." Allison pushed passed the brunette and this time, the brunette let her.
"Obviously." Eva shook her head and took off her scrubs.
"I am!" Allison turned around to find the brunette, barebacked aside from underwear. A familiar shiver ran up her spine. She was not fine. She was turned on.
Eva slid on her little, comfy, 100% cotton beige dress that just barely covered her ass and turned around. She didn't catch the way the blonde was looking at her, "I have no doubt that you think you can handle it." She slid on her sandals and walked out of the locker room.
~0~0~0~0~0~
"Come on! Someone dance with me! Dance with me!" Chris started bouncing and repeating the three words until finally Eva caved. "Yes!"
"It's only to shut you up." Eva laughed.
They took their beers with them to the dance floor and danced one handed.
"Allison?"
Allison, who had been watching the way Eva's hips moved and how her hair flipped with each turn had to be literally shaken from her stupor, "Hmm?" She asked after feeling Serena's hand on her shoulder.
"You okay?" The other woman asked.
"Mhmm. Fine." She took a long swig of beer.
"Everything go okay in New Jersey?" Proctor asked.
Allison gave him a look, "As well as anything like that can go."
"Like what?" Serena asked.
"Like watching someone you love die." She looked into the green bottle.
Serena looked to Tuck who shrugged, not knowing what was going on either.
"If you need more time…"
"I'm fine, Proctor. Thanks."
Proctor stood up, "If you keep telling yourself that, it might just become truth." He finished off his beer, "Well, I'm going to head out."
The three of them tipped their bottles to him, and after his departure, silence fell upon them.
Serena couldn't handle it; she had to know what was going on, "Who died?"
Allison closed her eyes a moment and smiled a sad, longing smile, "Dr. Remy Beauregard Hadley, also known as 'Thirteen'. Brilliant doctor. Brilliant lover." She kept the smile on her face as she picked at her beer, "She was House's favorite. And that is saying a lot… Hearing him openly admit that he actually cared for her and that she was his favorite. You two don't know him, but it's a compliment in the highest degree."
"She was your girlfriend?" Serena asked, and when she received a nod, she asked another question, "So, how did she die? If you don't mind me asking…"
"Huntington's Chorea." She had an internal debate in her head after she said it and decided to correct herself, "No, physician's assisted suicide because of her Huntington's."
Tuck and Serena looked to one another, "So last week…?"
"She sent me an e-mail telling me she was going to kill herself with the help and support of three doctors; three of the best doctors in the nation let alone New Jersey." She looked out to Eva and watched her dance more, though she felt their concerned eyes and decided to add, "I'm fine. It was her time."
She stood up and walked over to the dance floor. Eva and Chris had separated and gone with different partners. Allison looked to the guy Eva was dancing with and asked if she could take his place. He gave her a double take before grinning wide and stepping aside.
The blonde smiled her thanks and took his place behind the sexy Latina. She gripped her hips, which caused said sexy Latina to turn, "What are you doing?" Eva asked over the music.
"Getting my dance on." Allison smiled and pulled the brunette's ass closer to her and pressed her chest flush against the brunette's back, "That alright?"
Eva turned around, still in time with the beat and stared at the blonde, "Are you drunk?"
"No. I've had as much as you." They stared at each other a moment longer, Allison needing to prove her level of sobriety before she spoke again, "You wanna get out of here?"
~0~0~0~0~0~
Eva was pushed against Allison's door as it shut. Her neck was captured by lips… good lips, addicting lips, but she couldn't do this.
"Stop." Eva pushed on the blonde, "I… I can't do this to you." She started pacing and speaking in Spanish.
Allison watched her in both fascination and frustration. Finally, she stopped her and grabbed her by the shoulders, "Hey! Stop speaking Spanish because I don't speak Spanish well and I'd like to understand what you're saying. I only caught: 'sexy,' 'lesbian,' 'girlfriend,' 'died,' 'kiss… someone'" she gave her a look that told her she was guessing, "and 'sex'… So. Please start over in English?"
"You are beautiful." Eva spoke plainly as if talking about the weather.
Allison smiled in return, "You're one to talk."
Eva put her hands on Allison's forearms, "You're an amazing kisser. That first kiss in the locker room and then all of tonight…" Her eyes lolled to the back of her head as she felt the blonde move closer, "But I can't do this." She stopped Allison's trek along her neck, "You need time to grieve…"
"I'm fine." Allison pushed from the brunette and stalked to the wall adjacent the other woman.
"So you've said." Eva looked down, closed her eyes, and jumped as she heard a loud bang. She turned to find the blonde's skateboard split and hanging together by the grip. She watched the blonde drop the board and lean against the other wall.
"I'm fine." She tried to muster out once more.
It took Eva all of five seconds to take the seven steps over to Allison and sink with her to the ground. "You don't have to be fine. And you shouldn't be fine."
Allison nodded and through her sobs, she gathered the breath to say, "I'm not fine."
Eva eventually got them to Allison's bedroom and she held her until she fell asleep.
~0~0~0~0~0~
When Eva woke up the next morning, Allison was in the shower and there was a note on the bed, 'You didn't and don't have to stay.' Was all it read. She shook her head and found the pen Allison used to write a note of her own.
Eva had gathered from her few encounters that Allison was spunky, but reserved and private, yet at the same time an open book, which was hard to do but the enigma of a woman did it. She knew that the blonde was trying in her own, messed up way to be polite and ask her to leave. She walked to the foyer where her purse and shoes were. She took her phone from her purse and snapped a picture of the busted skateboard with her phone and moved to leave.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Allison walked into work the day after their day off a little hesitant. Eva's note left her with the woman's number that she did not use during the day's break. She cautiously stepped into the vacant locker room—she'd hoped she would get there early enough to not have to worry about speaking with the other woman.
She opened her locker to find a brand new skateboard with a bow and another note, 'I don't care that you didn't call me, so there's no need to avoid me today, alright? I got you this because I saw the likes of the other one… It's alright to accept help every so often, Allison. And I will still answer if you decide to use my number. Sincerely, Eva.'
Allison looked the board over. It was the same brand and size as her other one. She smiled not knowing what else to do and stuffed her things inside her locker, quickly getting dressed.
Eva and Allison were put together for a patient. It wasn't as awkward as Allison thought it was going to be. They actually worked seamlessly together, catching bleeders for the other, throwing stitches so the other could continue what they were doing… It was as if they were dancing, keeping time with the other.
Proctor was on his way from getting test results back to his patient when he had to stop and watch. He smirked a bit before turning and continuing on his way.
~0~0~0~0~0~
It had been a week and a half of the two of them working and not talking outside of their patients. It had also been a week and a half of Allison texting Eva asking her to come over in the nights they weren't at Trauma One, and Eva coming to her beck and call. They never spoke once she got there, well Allison wouldn't. Eva would try to ask her questions, but all the blonde would do is go to bed and wait for the Latina to follow her. She would fall asleep in the brunette's arms and in those times, she would feel some sense of comfort.
The others didn't know this though. And, Chris was the first to say something to Eva about them not talking to each other unless it was about a case, but the Latina waved him off. So, after telling Serena he got nothing, they both tried to talk to Allison, who didn't do much talking either.
It was during a short break of an intense case—it was on a seven year old, Allison noticed that Eva was not hydrating or eating, she boarded to the cafeteria and got them both a huge doggy bag. She was on her way back when she saw Chris sitting across from her trying to share his meal.
"No, Chris," She waved him off, "I'm fine." She heard. She watched Chris' frustration only take form in a glare as he pulled his lunch back over to him and ate.
She made her way over and made sure that they could hear her approach. She gladly scraped the back of her board to a break, put the board upside down on the edge of the table, and plopped next to Eva. Out of her large lunch sack she pulled a Smuckers pre-made, crust less PB&J, a pre-sliced apple with caramel dipping sauce, and a bottle of water before she dealt the same thing for herself. "Eat it." were the two words she let herself say that did not revolve around their case.
"I'm not hungry." Eva tried, but the gaze of green got her attention.
Allison stared at her a moment, "Eat it. Please." She knew that she looked almost desperate, but it was the only thing she could get out that somehow showed her thanks for everything the brunette was secretly doing.
Chris looked between the two as if he were watching a tennis match and when Eva finally reached for the cellophane of her sandwich; he had to keep his suspecting grin at bay. He looked at the board, "That's different than the one you were first riding here…"
"The other one broke." She explained, "I got angry and broke it against the wall."
Chris raised his brows unsure if she were kidding or not, "So you decided to get Marilyn Monroe?" He looked back to the deck and the half face of the beloved actress.
"It was a gift. A very, very generous gift." She smiled a winning smile.
"Do you like it?" Eva asked before she realized she was talking.
"It's the best present I've ever gotten." It took everything to get it out, but she did. She didn't know why she was so scared to speak to the one person that could make her feel sane, but she was.
"Wow, your exes must have been pretty horrible if a skateboard from a person that you won't name is the best present you've ever gotten…" Chris laughed.
"Yes, well… I could talk about the beauty of my first husband and how everything he did was amazing and wonderful right up until he died and I couldn't and can't look at any of the jewelry or cards or love letters yet can't bring myself to give them away. And I could talk about the ring that my second husband gave me and how romantic it was, but how that turned toxic just like everything he did after we said, 'I do'. And I could talk about everything that my girlfriend did to save me from the first two; I could mention that the greatest birthday I ever celebrated was with her and all we did was paint ceramics at a 'Color Me Mine', and how like with my first husband, I can't look at any of the stuff anymore but refuse to give it away… But instead, I think I'll just nod and say, 'yeah'." She grabbed her food and board and left the table.
Chris looked down at his plate; he could feel the evil glare from his coworker, "Why would you say that?" she hit his head.
"Because I'm an ass? I'm sorry! I wasn't thinking!" He watched the Latina only shake her head and eat her food.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Eva seemed to pick up on Allison wanting her to stay until everyone cleared out, so that is what she did. She sat on the bench and waved Proctor, Chris and Serena goodbye.
"Bye Allison." And "Bye Cameron." Were the goodbyes the blonde received.
"Bye guys." Allison said giving them all a wave. She waited until the door closed before she turned to the brunette. She found the brown eyes immediately and took a deep breath, "I've hardly ever been single."
Eva opened her mouth to respond, but the only thing that came was a smile, "Okay?"
"My first husband, Daniel was my prince Charming." She smiled, "He was perfect and I knew I was going to marry him. I knew he was sick, but I didn't realize how sick until he told me everything. He had thyroid cancer that metastasized to his brain. After Daniel, I was technically single for a long while but I was hardly ever dateless or loverless… Then Chase came. And he saved me. He was perfect and he did Tuesdays and got bit by an 8 year old." She shook her head, "Then he murdered a patient. I couldn't look at him anymore. That wasn't the only thing that made me not look at him, but it was big. Then after Chase, I knew I was going to be alone for a long time." she took a breath, "I was wrong." She shrugged, "Remy saved me. She saved me like Jack saved Rose; she saved me totally and completely. And then her symptoms started and she decided without my input that she didn't want me to stick it out with her…"
"What are you getting at, Dr. Cameron?"
Allison bit her lip, "You're saving me like Remy saved me, like Chase saved me, like Daniel saved me… I can't let you do that because you're a good person. And while I said that Chase was the toxic one at lunch, he's not as toxic as me. So…" She felt her lip and chin quiver as she inhaled, "I need you to stop. Something bad will happen to you if you stay around me, and there's a two-thirds chance it will be an incurable disease…"
"You think that if I stay around you, and if I date you and love you then I'm going to die?"
"Or murder someone." The blonde bit her lip and shrugged nonchalantly.
Eva stared at her a long time, "That's not going to happen."
"You don't know that. No one knows."
"I do."
"I've heard that one before. And guess what? If you touch the red coil, you're going to get burned."
Eva bit her lip and took in the blonde, "I am here for you. Okay? I am going to be here for you as long as you need." She stood up, "Do you need me next to you tonight and tomorrow night?" The blonde looked down and regretfully nodded, "Okay, then can I ask you to do something?" Allison nodded once more, "Don't kick me out in the morning. I'm not gonna make you talk to me, but just… Don't kick me out in the morning."
Allison nodded a third time, "Okay." She turned away and grabbed her skateboard as she shut her locker.
Eva had walked to the doorway. They walked out together, and Allison took Eva's hand as she slowly glided along on her board toward the parking lot.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Eva woke up the next morning to the smell of coffee and the sounds of bustling in the living room. She walked out to find Allison running on her treadmill.
"You know if you're trying to fend me off, then you've made a terrible choice in outfit."
Allison looked up with a concentrated look. She only took a drink of water from her bottle and cranked the speed up a little faster, "There's coffee in the kitchen." She pointed then looked back to the monitor on the treadmill.
Eva smirked and nodded before walking into the kitchen for the coffee. After her run, she went for a shower—a very, very long shower. Eva knew that she was doing this to avoid her, but the only word she could tag it with was endearing. She couldn't help but find everything the woman did endearing… even if it was try to scare her from a relationship. It actually made her and her stereotypic fiery Latina, passionate, stubborn side come boiling to the surface, and it made her want to rise to the challenge.
She was sprawled out on the couch, reading a worn out novel she found on the shelf when she felt the blonde's eyes on her.
"What are you doing?" Her tone was icy.
Eva looked up with knit brows, "What am I…?... Reading…"
"Put it back." She pointed to the book. "Put it back. Put it back!"
Eva stood quickly and walked her direction, but the blonde sidestepped her and raced to the coffee table. She picked up the book and hugged it as she gingerly walked back to the bookshelf and placed it gently back onto the shelf in its rightful place. Her hand rested tenderly over the spine and she refused to turn around.
"Why this one? You can read any book but this one. Why… Why this one?" The blonde barely got the words out.
Eva walked behind her. She was so close that the blonde could feel her heat and she could fee the blonde's but she didn't touch her. "It looked loved and I wanted to know what was so special about it."
"It's not yours." Allison whispered, "It's not mine either."
Eva looked to the high heavens for some kind of help, "I'm sorry, I didn't know…"
"Well, you should have asked before rooting around my things."
"Well, if you would talk to me, I wouldn't have to."
"That's very Beauty and the Beast of you." Allison gave Eva a snotty glare. Eva stared at her a moment. She watched as the glare quickly faded and she crossed her arms beginning to clench, "I'm sorry, Eva, it's just… That is Remy's." She stayed clenched and tried to turned even more from the brunette.
"Okay."
Allison finally turned around, "When are you going to leave?"
"I thought you agreed not to kick me out…?"
"But I yelled and freaked out like a little bitch baby. I've done that a lot. Usually a person would leave at this point." Allison said.
"I told you last night I am here for you. I'm going to stay through your freak-outs, okay? Even the freak-outs are of bitch baby proportions."
"Why?"
Eva shook her head and shrugged, "I don't know." She stared at the blonde, "I'm just drawn to you."
"You can't… You can't be here for me. I need you to not be here for me. I need—What?" Allison clenched even more when she felt Eva wrap her arms around her. She felt the tears come as well, and then she clung. She held onto the brunette for dear life.
"I am here for you. I'm not going to go away because you yell at me or you freak out or you cry or you try to push me away. I am here for you." Eva held her tight. "I'm not going to go away. You need to accept that eventually. But take your time, okay? I'll still be here."
~0~0~0~0~0~
Over the next few months, Eva stayed by Allison's side outside of work. She would stop at her place for clothes but then go to the blonde's.
It was as they were settling in for the night that everything changed. Allison was in the brunette's hold as per usual when she looked up from her sternum, "How come we never stay at your place?"
Eva looked down at the blonde, "Because I am not the one with the many, many issues…"
"I do not have issues." Allison sat up.
"You cracked a chest in the field on your first day of work. The next day you got an e-mail from your sort-of-ex-girlfriend telling you that she was going to be assisted in suicide by the people that you spent your life with for a good chunk of time. You haven't spoken of what happened to anyone and you try to pass off to the world that you are fine even though you need me to sleep next to you. And now, you're asking me why we don't spend the night at my place like we're a couple… Do you want to rephrase your last statement?"
Allison's leg was hanging off her bed as she looked around. Eva could feel the bouncing of said leg through the mattress, but didn't comment. Instead she watched the blonde with rapt attention. "So, are you backing out now?"
"Backing out?"
"You've been telling me for months that you aren't going to leave me and that you're drawn to me and that you're here for me, but now you're saying that we're not together…"
Eva sat up hiding the smile on her face, "Well, we aren't together, Al…"
"But we sleep in the same bed every night."
"Because you needed someone with you…"
"But you… You said you were here for me…"
"Al, I am here for you, but you can't just assume that we're together…" Allison tried to move off the bed, "We have to talk about this." She said as she grabbed the blonde's hand.
"I don't want to."
"If we don't talk about it then we can't come to a conclusion…"
"A conclusion?"
"Yeah… Are we or aren't we together? That conclusion."
Allison looked up at her, "But you said—"
"I did say it." She pulled the blonde over to her so she sat in front of her, "I meant it too. But you can't just all of the sudden tell me we're together and ask why we don't sleep at my place…" She smiled and took the blonde's face in her hands, "We're not together. You know we're not together. You've been in three good relationships with unfortunate endings. You know that there's more to a relationship than this."
Allison finally looked to the Latina, "I know."
"I am here for you. I'm not going to leave you. I am completely and utterly drawn to you. You and our job make my life worth living, okay? But there is more that needs to happen if we're going to be together. We need to go on dates. We need to hold hands or… something."
Allison reached forward, took Eva's hand and intertwined their fingers. She popped onto her knees and crawled into Eva's space, "Will you go on a date with me after our shift ends?"
Eva smiled, "I will."
"Good." A certain twinkle came to Allison's eyes that Eva had never seen before. Allison pushed the brunette against the headboard, "I'm going to kiss you now. Make it official."
Eva smiled, "I'd like that very much." She said just before the blonde's lips landed on hers.
"Can we spend the night at your place after the date?" Allison asked.
Eva smiled once more and said again, "I'd like that very much." She pulled the blonde back in for another kiss.
~0~0~0~0~0~
The next day Allison sent Eva to the hospital early. She told her that she wanted to board there. She actually went to a flower shop and got the woman three variegated purple and white roses. She also asked for a card and ribbon to tie them together, and after spending about 15 minutes writing a novel, she looked up to find a grin on the flower shop owner's face.
"She's a lucky girl." She said.
Allison smiled, "No…" She shook her head, "I am." She capped the pen and gave her exact change from her backpack before she boarded out of the store.
She didn't get off her board again until she got into the locker room. She was in the process of opening Eva's locker when a cough filled the room. She turned around, flowers in her teeth, wide-eyed and caught to find brown orbs staring her down.
"What are you doing?"
Allison let the flowers drop from her mouth and caught them in a hand before sticking them behind her back, "Nothing."
Eva laughed and walked into the locker room completely, "Nothing? Really?"
"No. Go away." The blonde tried, "I need to do something."
"Do what?"
"Something super secret…?"
"Put the flowers in my locker?" Eva smiled as she wrapped her arms around the blonde's neck.
"Yes." Allison grinned.
"Fine." She dramatically rolled her eyes. She decided to open her locker for the blonde to make it easier.
"I was gonna get it…"
"I have no doubt." She winked before walking back out.
It took all of five seconds to stick the flowers in her locker and shut it, "Okay, you can come in now!"
Eva turned back around at the doorway and walked back to her locker to open it again. She smiled and faked a gasp of surprise after opening her locker, "Look how pretty!" She turned to find that the others had joined them.
"Oh! Secret admirer?" Serena asked.
Eva looked to Allison who was avoiding her stare and turned from her completely. "I guess so." She smiled and smelt her flowers before taking the card from them to show off.
"Allison look at these!" Serena stuck them in the blonde's face.
"They're beautiful." She smiled over to the brunette.
"They are." Eva smiled.
Chris decided to dramatically enter Allison's line of sight. He had a skateboard in hand, "We need to board in our breaks today." He grinned his winning smile.
"For sure!" Allison smiled back.
"Oh that's perfect. And when one or both of you breaks something, there's a hospital right here waiting for you!" Eva said sarcastically.
"Exactly!" Chris laughed at Eva's reaction and over exaggerated a wink to the older blonde woman in the room.
As everyone left to get ready for their incomings, Allison walked over to the brunette, "There's a bit of a novel inside that envelope…"
Eva grinned, "I will read it later." She said before locking pinkies with the blonde and walking to the elevators to make their way to the helipad.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Chris and Allison had been boarding for a while before Eva came out to their usual outdoor lunch area, note in hand. Allison slowed as she approached the sitting brunette and checked to make sure that Chris wasn't looking before she idly passed Eva and pecked her head.
She saw the brunette's flushed face as she boarded around the table and back to where Chris was. And she saw the way the brunette checked her out before moving to open her note.
Serena came and sat next to the brunette, "They really are going to hurt themselves…"
They watched as Chris got right in Allison's way for her landing off of grinding a hand railing. "Or each other." Eva's tone was concerned.
"Something's different." Serena looked from the two skateboarding to her lunch buddy.
"What?"
"The flowers are from Allison, aren't they?" Serena said excitedly.
"What? No." She turned to the youngest blonde surgeon then visibly deflated, "Yes. But I don't think she's ready for everyone to know, okay?"
Serena only grinned a wide grin, "What's the note say?"
"I don't know. I haven't gotten a chance to read it and it's long."
"Now I wanna read it…" She stared at the manila envelope.
"Mine." Eva pointed to her friend and tucked the card in the breast pocket of her scrubs.
~0~0~0~0~0~
Allison stalked in the locker room at the end of their shift. All of their patients had stabilized, then her patient died out of nowhere. There was no reason for her to be dead. She had done everything she could. She roughly took her scrub top off and threw it into her locker; the door got in the way and in her frustration, she kicked it wide open before slamming it shut ultimately and hitting it a couple times then opened it back up. She slipped on a tank top and sat there breathing heavy.
Eva walked in and came over to her immediately. She bent over and wrapped her arms over and around the blonde from behind. She started kissing her neck, "We don't have to go on a date tonight."
"No, I want to." The blonde leaned into the embrace and looked into those brown orbs she'd come to adore, "What?"
"I read your note finally." Eva moved to sit next to the blonde.
"Oh yeah?" She saw Eva nod, "Is uh… Is it okay that I wrote that note? Even though we haven't gone on a first date yet?"
The Cuban smiled and nodded, "It's… a little unorthodox." Her smile grew wider, "But I'm just fine with it."
"Are you going to leave me hanging?" Allison's heart was thudding in her chest.
"No." Eva moved to straddle Allison's lap, "Te necesito."
"Spanish?" Allison's ears perked as she wrapped her arms around the brunette's waist.
"Sí." She nodded before repeating herself, "Te necesito."
"You need me." Allison looked up to brown, smiling eyes.
Eva nodded and moved to peck her lips, "Te deseo."
Allison had to think about it a moment, "You desire me."
Again, Eva nodded before moving to kiss the blonde, "Me encantas."
Allison stared at the full lips before her, "I enchant you."
"Te amo."
"I love you too." She brought the brunette in for a real kiss.
~0~0~0~0~0~
It took all of two hours for the entire hospital to know about them during their next shift. It took all of two weeks for Allison to come out of her shell around everyone and gladly, proudly hold her girlfriend's hand in public. It took all of two more weeks for the two to move in together. It took all of two months for them to wear engagement rings around their necks and all of two years to actually get married.
"You know… It took all of two minutes for me to know that I was going to fall in love with you?" Allison asked her wife on one of their few days off together.
"Mmm, it took me all of two seconds to know I'd be spending the rest of my life with you…"
"Because I was so sexy with my hand in a man's heart…"
Eva grinned and nodded, "So sexy…"
Allison laid on top of her wife on the couch, "You saved me just like the rest of them… but nothing bad has happened yet." She leaned over and knocked on their oak coffee table.
"You don't need to knock on wood to know that I'll still be around. I'm never going to leave you."
"I know." She leaned in and kissed her wife, "Te amo."
Eva grinned, "I love it when you talk Spanish to me."
"Te necesito." She kissed her wife, "Te deseo." Another kiss, "Me encantas."
"Te amo." Eva leaned up for a third kiss.
"Te amo." Allison melted into her wife as they continued to make out on their couch.