Chapter 10

A/N: Sorry if I sound like a broken record, but thanks again to all who read and reviewed. I appreciate it all and will not delete anything, unless maybe it has offensive language. Otherwise, everything is taken as constructive. I also want to apologize for not indicating that there would be OC (thanks Bessie for pointing it out). I just got carried away. And my excuse…it's my first ever work of fiction (not counting anything I might have written in school ages ago)

Emily entered and kissed Hank shyly on the cheek.

Hank smiled slightly and guided Emily to the chairs. They sat beside each other. Emily put her hand on Hank's arm and he looked at her. She DID look good, and so…what was the word….sweet.

Emily hesitated before saying, "I'm sorry about yesterday. I should have been more sympathetic. I know how much you care about your brother."

Hank just nodded. He wanted to apologize too, but for what? He thought hard and said at last, "Listen Emily, I should apologize too. I should have at least called to let you know why I was too preoccupied to answer or return calls."

The female doctor let out a sigh. "So….we're okay then?" It took awhile for Hank to respond. He took several deep breaths but still did not say anything.

"What's taking him so long to answer?" Emily thought. She was getting impatient but tried not to show it. "Hank? Are we okay then?" She repeated.

Hank thought long and hard. Finally, he took a deep breath and looked into Emily's eyes. "God, she's beautiful."

"Listen Em. I…don't…think…this will work." Emily's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "A spider could crawl in there." Hank found himself thinking.

"I don't….understand. I said I was sorry."

Hank noticed that her brows started to furrow. He deliberated on what to say.

"I know, and I'm sorry too. It's just that…I don't think I could see someone who my brother feels so strongly against. I thought I could, but I guess…after all this…I know I can't."

"You CAN'T?" Emily's voice was a little louder, bordering on shrill, in fact. "You CAN'T? Or you WON'T?"

Again Hank sighed. "I can't…and I won't."

Emily calmed herself down. She knew she would get nowhere if she got all high strung. She tried to look and sound concerned.

"Hank, you know, I care about you a lot. I want you to be happy. If you let your brother get in the way of all the women you date, how will you ever find happiness? Don't you deserve that? Doesn't Evan love you enough to allow you that?"

Hank was deep in thought. He considered what Emily had just said. He used to think that Evan's aversion to Emily was just because she posed a threat to HankMed, that he thought of the female doctor as a rival to HankMed, not to Hank. He looked back at his past relationships. He could not remember a time that Evan opposed any of the girls Hank went out with, except for those who were obvious wack jobs. He even tolerated his ex-fiance Nikki, until she showed her true colours during that whole treating-a-neighbourhood-kid-instead-of-a-hospital-hotshot fiasco. Before Emily, his last relationship was with Jill and he didn't really remember Evan having a problem with it. Now he realized that maybe his kid brother saw a side to Emily that went beyond professional rivalry. He didn't like her implication that Evan did not love him enough. Evan was everything to Hank, and vice versa and Hank was sure of that.

Because Hank was taking too long, Emily said emphatically, "Hank…you can't POSSIBLY let Evan come between you and me?" She pouted and batted her eyelashes just slightly.

Suddenly, he remembered walking down the halls of the hospital with Jill, that time Evan was moved to the private room. Her voice rang in his head, "he's like a brother to me…"

"Emily, Evan is not coming between you and me. YOU are coming between him and me." With that, he stood up. He didn't need to explain any further. He held out his hand. Puzzled, Emily took it. She was shocked at what he had just said, but was puzzled by his gesture. He held out his hand…maybe there was hope…

Hank pulled her up gently, kissed her on both cheeks and stared into her eyes. "I've loved every moment." Hank looked wistful. "I've loved it all…but no one…NO ONE…can ever come between my baby brother and me."

For the second time that day, Emily's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "You'll regret this, Dr. Henry Lawson! You WILL! Maybe you won't let anyone come between Evan and you, but do you think he will give you that same courtesy? You wait, you wait 'til that Paige Collins comes between you and him. YOU JUST WAIT!"

"It's YOU he needs right now." Hank remembered Paige's words.

Hank shook his head and smiled. "No, Emily…the difference is, even Paige won't let herself come between my brother and me."

And, for the umpteenth time in the last two days, Dr. Emily Peck was livid. She grabbed her purse and stormed out. She passed Divya and Paige who were standing nearby, chatting, and glared at them as she headed for the elevator.

The two ladies looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. "I thought they were going to set things straight." Paige said. Divya smiled, and knowing Hank, she replied, "You know what, I think Hank did set things straight….Emily just can't handle straight."

They went back to the lounge to find Hank sitting, his head against the wall, his eyes closed. Divya whispered to Paige, "He looks…at peace…"

Dr. Lee and his team were desperately trying to stop the bleeding in Evan's insides. The OR was a flurry of activity as the doctors worked hard on saving the young man.

"Suction!"

"Sponge."

"BP's dropping, doctor."

"Clamp…clamp...more suction!"

The sounds in the Operating Room were a mixture of machines beeping and whirring, doctors' commanding voices, nurses' urgent replies, a variety of gasps, sighs and curses.

"We're losing him! We're losing him!"

Everyone suddenly looked up as the screen showed a flatline.

Evan was floating. Clouds everywhere. He was serene. He looked around, a huge smile on his face. He reached to touch the clouds. Ahhh, soft. Cool! He looked below and saw grass…and flowers…and teeny-weeny people waving at him. He waved back then looked up. Mom? MOM! She looks so happy. She doesn't look sick at all. Evan reached up with both hands, like a toddler.

Hank woke up with a start. He blinked several times. He let exhaled noisily. "It was just a dream…"

"Hello Sleeping Beauty. What was just a dream?" Divya looked up from the magazine she was reading.

"What?" he squinted. "I had the strangest dream. What time is it?"

"It's about 3 o'clock…why do you think it's taking so long?" Paige piped in.

They looked at each other, worry evident on your faces.

"What was your dream about, Hank?" Divya tried to break the tension.

Hank shook his head. "It was about….Evan…" he looked up at the ladies and continued, uneasily, "…and our…mom…."

Divya went to sit beside him and put her hand on his back. "It was a dream Hank. It was JUST a dream." She tried hard to sound comforting, but she too, was anxious.

The next hour was filled with tension and restlessness. They tried to call Jill earlier but she said she had just spoken with someone who said she didn't know anything except that the OR had ordered more blood.

Another hour passed.

"I can't stand this." Hank finally said, standing up. "I'm taking a walk." As he started for the door, Paige and Divya looked at each other. They knew that there was no way Hank would leave and guessed that he would walk towards the OR. They got up to follow him.

They hung out outside the doors that led to the Operating Rooms, fidgeting, pacing.

The doors suddenly opened and Dr. Lee came out, blood all over his scrubs, looking exhausted. He saw the three waiting for him, apprehension and anticipation on their faces. He took off his surgical cap and inhaled deeply before beginning.