DISCLAIMER: Twilight and its inclusive material is copyright to Stephenie Meyer. Original creation, including but not limited to plot and characters, is copyright to the respective authors of each story. No copyright infringement is intended.

Previously:

"Don't think I didn't notice your avoidance of the question, but I'll let it go for now," Mom said. "I love you."

"I love you too. Tell Emmett I said 'Hi'."

"We will. Bye, Baby."

There was a bounce to my step as I was led back to an exam room. I get to see the doc today! She had plagued my thoughts and filled each moment, both awake and in sleep, with her presence. Having her in my dreams was both a blessing and a curse. I loved seeing her when I closed my eyes, but man did it make it hard to wake up. It wasn't just her beauty that captivated me. I wondered about her. Why did she become an army doc? What did she do when she wasn't working? What kind of music did she like? Why did she become distant last week? How old was she? The wait in the exam room was short, and within five minutes, she walked in.

"Hello, Captain," she greeted me with a smile, a genuine smile this time.

"Hiya, Doc," I returned with a smile of my own. "How are you today?" She smirked.

"Pretty sure that's my line. How's the arm feeling?"

"Doing well." I moved it around to emphasize my point. And it was the truth. There were moments I felt twingy, and by the end of the day, it was sore. Overall though, I could tell it was getting better.

"Let me take a look." She stepped closer waiting for me to present my arm. I was in a long sleeve shirt this morning, so I removed it hoping for a reaction, but I didn't see one. I had a moment of disappointment.

"It looks like it's healing nicely." She took a seat and rolled the stool over to me. I sat back on the bed and turned so my arm was directly in front of her. Her gentle hand lifted my arm, and she began her exam. "Any issues this week?"

"No."

"What's your pain level on a scale of 1 to 10?"

"2." She prodded the exit site, pushing her glasses on top of her head to get a closer look.

"What about the end of the day?"

"4, but mainly due to soreness."

"Did you take the pain meds?" She stopped her exam and looked up to me.

"The first two days, yes. Then I lowered the dose. I haven't used any for the last three days." She nodded with a smile causing her glasses to slip back onto her nose.

"That's great." She pulled her gloves off, tossed them in the trash, pushed her glasses higher on her nose, and rolled over to the table to write in a chart. "I want you to go to physical therapy three times a week for two weeks. The stitches aren't quite ready to be removed yet though. I want to leave them in for another week. When you come back, anyone that's available can remove them." She stood holding the chart to her chest. "Someone will be in soon to talk to you about PT. Do you have any questions, Captain?"

"Edward." She looked at me with her head tilted. "Please call me Edward." I hoped she'd listen to me this time.

"Okay, Edward. Any questions?"

"Yes, one." I stood and pulled my shirt back on. "May I take you to dinner?" She looked at me clearly stunned. Honestly, I was a bit stunned myself. I hadn't meant to say it. She'd made it seem as if she were no longer going to treat me, which meant I wouldn't be seeing her again. I didn't want that. So, I asked without thought, and even though I didn't mean to, I definitely didn't regret it. My heart raced as I awaited her answer anxiously.

"Oh. Uh, um," she stuttered, her cheeks flushing pink, her eyes not meeting mine. "I uh, I don't-"

"Don't say no," I interrupted stepping closer and slightly invading her personal space. "Go to dinner with me."

"Captain...Edward." She looked up at me. "You're my patient. That would be unethical."

"You said yourself that anyone can remove my stitches. You're no longer treating me." She trapped her lower lip between her teeth. "Please. Go to dinner with me."

"I - I - I'm working tonight." No problem.

"Tomorrow then, or this weekend." I watched her struggle with what excuse to use next.

"Um. You don't even know me." I smiled.

"Isn't that the point of a date? To get to know each other? Come on, what other excuse ya got?"

"I don't - that's not." She quieted and huffed, shifted her body weight to the other foot unconsciously bringing her closer, our bodies within inches of each other. "I uh - I'm not really...that...interesting. You don't want to go to dinner with me." Self-deprecating much?

"I'd like to be the judge of that." I placed my hand on her arm. She looked up at me shyly. "Over dinner. Please?" Her eyes held my gaze. I smiled at her encouragingly. "It's just dinner. I'm not asking for a long-term commitment." Not yet, I finished in my head. She was silent for a few moments.

"Okay." It took me a second to register what she said, that she'd finally agreed.

"Yeah?" She nodded and my smile bloomed. "Great. That's great." I took her hand and squeezed it. I wanted to pull her into a hug, but I figured that might freak her out. "Tomorrow?" She nodded. "Great. I can come get you. Where are you staying?"

"I, uh, I get off at seven. You can come here to get me. About 1930?"

"1930 is perfect." She looked down. I followed her line of sight and realized I was still holding her hand. I released it and cleared my throat. "I, uh, I guess I'll let you get back to work." She smiled and turned to open the door. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yes, tomorrow." She left then, and I bounced on my toes, happy she'd said yes.

AN: 04/04/2018 Hello readers! First, I want you all to know that this story officially has a banner made by the very talented Lizzie Paige who I can't thank enough for helping me out. I also want to thank SunflowerFran for finding Lizzie for me. This fandom is full of some very awesome people. Lizzie did a phenomenal job, and I love it. The banner is up on my Facebook if you'd like to see it: Lena Kay. If you want to friend me to watch for updates, pictures, etc., please send me a quick message that you're coming from fanfiction. I've gotten a lot of strange requests lately and don't want to miss you.

Well, Bella finally gives in and agrees to a date. We'll see just how the date goes next chapter. Leave a review if you've got the time, and feel free to ask questions or leave theories. I adore interacting with y'all and try to respond to all of them.