Chapter 4 – The next day.
(Medical stuff may be inaccurate)
As Sophia starts to stir, her eyes flutter open and Max makes his way in with a takeaway cup of coffee. The bustling noise of the ED fully awakens Sophia who looks at the empty space beside her, smiles and then looks up to Max.
"Where is she?" Sophia asks stretching her arms out to the side.
"She's on shift," Max replies, "but she asked me to give you this." He hands Sophia the coffee and softly sits on the edge of Zoe's desk.
"Thanks." She smiles taking the cup and sitting up properly. As she takes the plastic lid off the cup and blows away some of the steam, a confused look paints her face as she looks back to Max and says "I've just realised, I don't even know your name."
"Max," he laughs with his hand outstretched.
"Sophia." Her hand meets his and, after a quick shake, she takes a sip of her coffee, "Ugh," she splutters, "this is meant to be coffee?"
Max laughs and nods his head towards the window where Zoe takes a sip from her own cup at the desk opposite, "Dr Hanna likes it."
"Well, Dr Hanna won't mind if I leave this here for her then," replies Sophia as she places the cup onto her desk and giggles.
They see Zoe make her way through to Resus and, after folding up the blanket Charlie wrapped over them, Sophia looks at the clock and grabs her bag. Max follows her through to reception where she asks "Could you give her a message for me?"
"Course."
"Just tell her I've gone to do something for Dad but that I'll be back before she finishes?"
"Not a problem," Max smiles as he leans onto the front desk next to Charlie; they both watch Sophia leave the ED with smiles on their faces.
"Charlie?" asks Max, "What's the deal with Zoe and uhm," he nods in the direction of the front door as her name escapes him.
"Sophia?" Charlie reminds him, "You'll have to ask Zoe about that one but put it this way, they'd be lost without each other."
He slides his paper work from the desk and smiles at Max before heading to his office and leaving Max deep in thought. The familiar click of Zoe's heels break Max's stare and, as she passes him, he calls "Dr Hanna!"
"What is it Max? I'm already late for a two hour meeting," replies Zoe desperately trying to make her way up the stairs to the boardroom.
"That girl. Su…S…So…"
"Sophia." She bluntly reminds him.
"Yeah, she said she had to go and do something for her Dad?"
"Okay?" Zoe asks in a confused tone.
"She said she'll be back before you finish."
"Okay. Thanks for telling me but I really have to go". She pulls her hand out from underneath Max's; neither of them had noticed the fact that he had held it tightly against the banister of the stairs while trying to keep Zoe from rushing off.
As she turns and walks away, Max can't help but stare at the woman that was once his wife and his eyes follow her all the way up as if he still felt protective over her.
"Max!" Ethan suddenly yells as Iain and Dixie break through the door with another patient.
"Okay," Iain starts, "This is Sophia Jordan, eighteen years old, victim of hit and run. She has a nasty bump to the back of her head, blunt abdo trauma and restricted air entry. GCS was 7 on arrival but improved to 13 in the ambo. She's had 1 litre of saline and 10 of morphine."
As they reach Resus and place Sophia in one of the empty bays, Ethan begins by saying "Isn't this the girl Dr Hanna was speaking to yesterday? Someone go and get her please."
Max who had followed them through, races out of Resus, through reception and up the stairs before smashing through the door of the boardroom.
"Max!" Zoe shouts standing up sharply out of her chair, "What the HELL do you think you're doing?"
"Zoe. It's Sophia. Ethan's treating her in Resus."
She stares at Max for a few seconds before dropping everything from her hands and racing out of the room with him.