Melanie's last shift of the week was filled with drunk people of all shapes and sizes. Grown men, women, teenagers, it didn't matter. Apparently drinking was the activity of choice for a Friday night in this part of downtown Chicago.
An hour into her shift, and she'd been thrown up on twice, groped once, had her hair pulled, and was asked out by a surly teenage boy who didn't want to take "no" for an answer. He grabbed her by the wrists and started to pull her towards him and it took both Luka and a security guard to wrestle him away from her. It turned out he was drunk and on steroids, which explained why he was left handcuffed to his gurney to sober up.
Melanie had dark bruises on her wrists by the end of her shift and they were quite sore. She was more than a little shaken up as well. As frightening as it was, though, this was considered a normal Friday night shift, and nobody else seemed phased by it. Luka had been kicked in the groin by a drunken woman and was currently lying down in the supply closet, trying to sleep off the pain. Jing-Mei had been subjected to a feces-throwing patient, and had required a shower and complete change of clothes halfway through the shift.
"I swear it's like working in the ape house at the zoo sometimes!" she'd cried while storming off to get cleaned up.
When the shift ended, Melanie and Jing-Mei went to Doc Magoo's for breakfast and to commiserate together. Luka was still passed out, or they'd have invited him along too. "Do you have plans for today?" Jing-Mei asked casually while sipping her orange juice.
Melanie froze for a moment, trying to think of what to say. "I was going to do some studying," she finally replied. "Boring, but necessary. How about you?"
"Greg and I might go to a club tonight, do some dancing. It should be fun," Jing-Mei replied with a smile. "I need it after last night!"
When breakfast was over, they parted ways, and Melanie returned to her dormitory to sleep. Laura was nice and did most of her studying out of their room so Melanie could sleep uninterrupted. By three in the afternoon, she woke up and got ready for her evening with Robert.
This time, she chose a dark green skirt that ended a few inches above her knees, and a black halter top. It got pretty warm while dancing, so sleeveless was a good choice even in October.
When it came to decide whether or not to pack for an overnight stay, though, she faltered. What should she do? Did it mean anything if she stayed in his guest room? Was it crossing a line? What if somebody found out? It could be awkward, because when they were working opposite shifts like they currently were, they were like two ships passing in the night. He'd sleep tonight and she'd be up till morning. And when he got up, she'd go to bed for the day, and then be up in the evening in time to hang out with him for a while. In the end, she packed clean clothes, nightclothes, some toiletries and a few creature comforts in a duffle bag. Just in case.
(SCENE)
Robert answered the door when he heard the knock, and smiled when he saw Melanie's pretty face grinning at him. She set her bag on the floor, wrapped her arms around his shoulders and gave him a hug. "I've missed you!" she exclaimed before kissing his cheek.
Robert wrapped his arm around her waist and held her tightly. "I've missed you too," he growled in her ear. After a few seconds, he pulled away and looked very carefully at her. "Look at you," he murmured in approval. "Nice legs…" He smiled as she blushed. He liked her skirt, it suited her well. It was short enough to be considered very enticing, but long enough that it didn't reveal too much. What some women wore these days was scandalous, in his opinion. A man liked the challenge of the pursuit. The hunt. He didn't want his catch to just present itself to him without any effort. Melanie, he thought, was going to be fun to hunt. Hell, she already was.
As he was taking in the halter top she was wearing and contemplating the fact that it meant she wasn't wearing a bra, his eyes glanced down to her wrists. They looked like she was wearing black wrist bands, but a closer look showed that they were, in fact, bruises. He frowned and pointed at her wrist. "What happened to you?" he asked, his voice full of concern.
Melanie looked down at her wrists and frowned as well. "Friday night at the ER happened to them," she said. When he looked confused, she filled him in on what had happened. He was fuming by the time she was done. "But we all had stuff happen to us," she said quickly. "I guess it's just a Friday night thing. I suppose I should have expected it eventually, working in the ER. It's a pretty dangerous place."
"Damn right it's a dangerous place," he spat. "I'm going to move you off Fridays. You can work Sundays, I'm sure it's a much slower night." Robert's worst fears were starting to come true. Melanie was in danger at the hospital and he hadn't been around to help her when she'd needed him most. "The sooner you finish your ER rotation, the better. I cannot wait to take you up to the OR. I can assure you things like that don't happen there."
It took a few more minutes and a couple of hugs from Melanie to calm him down again. When he'd stopped pacing in the foyer, he finally noticed her overnight bag for the first time. Had she changed her mind? He'd had his cleaning service prepare the room earlier in the week just in case. It had been in severe need of a good dusting and airing out. With the exception of his mother, who occasionally spent the holidays with him, nobody had ever utilized that room. Hopefully that would be rectified tonight.
Robert walked over to her and took the bag out of her hand. "Do you want me take this up to your room?" he asked quietly. When he saw a look of panic pass over her face, he smiled reassuringly, and set the bag down on a table by the staircase. "How about I just leave it here…"
"The eggplants are in there too," Melanie said as he walked back over to her. "And so is the movie."
"I think we should stop by the store on our way back and get some more ingredients for dinner. And dessert. I am definitely going to need dessert tonight." He wrapped his hand around hers, being careful not to touch her bruises, and led her through the house into the garage.
Robert turned on a light and walked over to his green jaguar. "Melanie, I'd like you to meet the other love of my life, Sarah. I'm going to let you drive her, but you have to promise to treat her like your child," he said slowly, taking the keys out of his pants pocket and holding them out to her.
"Sarah…Who was Sarah?" Melanie asked with a jealous glint in her eye as she grabbed the keys and started walking towards the driver's side.
"Sarah MacKenzie, from that TV show JAG. Ever watch it?" Robert said as he sat down in the passenger's seat and buckled up. "I figured I should name my jag after a JAG…and she's pretty gorgeous too, so…" he shrugged his shoulders.
Melanie grinned and laughed as she hit the button on the garage opener, then started up the car. "Makes total sense to me. If I ever have a jag some day, I'll name it Harm…" she replied. Robert laughed as they drove out of the garage and off to the dance lesson.
(SCENE)
The lesson was slightly more successful than the previous one. They had less bruises on their knees, and Melanie wasn't looking over her shoulder as much as before. At one point in time when she was turned, Robert yanked her back around and looked intensely into her eyes. "Look at my eyes," he demanded, "and do not look away!" She obeyed and found that their dancing improved immensely. It wasn't difficult to look into his eyes, as they were very hypnotic and authoritative. Sometimes it felt like he was looking directly into her soul.
Robert was in his element while he commanded Melanie and she obeyed him. They moved as a well-oiled machine when they were gazing into one another's eyes. Hers were soft and trusting and while looking into them, he wanted to wrap his arms around her and hold her tightly as they danced. He managed not to though, and their dance instructor praised their improvement. "Try to practice throughout the week too, if you can," she advised as they left for the night.
After the lesson, Melanie drove them to the grocery store. "All right, where to first?" she asked after picking out a shopping cart.
"Dessert," Robert demanded. "I'm thinking chocolate cake. You want to pick out some ice cream to go with it?"
The two split up to find their items. The frozen aisle was quite obviously cold, and Melanie wished she'd brought a jacket with her into the store. There were so many different varieties of ice cream to choose from. What kind did she want? After an extensive search, she settled on a pint of chocolate peanut butter that was her idea of decadent. She hoped Robert would agree.
Ice cream in hand, she then made her way to the candy aisle and picked out two Baby Ruth bars for them to eat during the movie. Her phone rang just as she was walking to the chip aisle. "Where are you?" Robert asked.
"Chip aisle. Where are you?"
"Produce aisle. Can you get some microwave popcorn, and then come meet me here? I don't know what stuff to get."
Melanie's arms were overflowing with food by the time she met up with Robert and the cart in the produce aisle. She dumped her food into the cart, around the cake he'd picked out from the bakery.
"I was thinking curry, but I'm not sure what else goes with eggplant," Robert said, looking at the bounty of vegetables.
"Potatoes maybe? Oh, and chickpeas. And carrots and onions maybe?"
"Sounds good to me."
They set out gathering their items. Melanie had never seen so many different kinds of potatoes before. She picked out three large purple potatoes, set them in a plastic bag, and hurried back over to where Robert was standing. "Robert! They have purple potatoes! I didn't even know there was such a thing!" she cried excitedly while putting them in the cart. When he didn't move or respond, she frowned and noticed that he looked startled by something. She looked over to see what it was and after a second, she gasped.
Susan Lewis was standing just a few feet from them, and her jaw was dropped nearly to the floor. "Melanie, you look gorgeous! Oh my God! What are you two doing here? Together?" She walked over to them and looked carefully at Melanie's clothes. "What a cute top!"
"Uh…" Melanie stammered, her mouth dry and useless.
Susan looked carefully at her and Robert, her eyes narrowing. "So, what are you two doing here? Together. And don't bother making up some lie, because you two are totally busted." Her voice wasn't threatening, but sounded excited over having made a great discovery. "Are you two together together?"
Robert was hoping that a bolt of lightning would strike him dead or that the ground would open up and swallow him, but neither event occurred. He could see the terror on Melanie's face and knew that he'd have to be the one to respond. Fortunately for them, Lewis was rather harmless, in terms of what she might demand from them for her silence. He'd always gotten along rather well with her, and knew that she could be trusted with their secret. He cleared his throat and put his hand on Melanie's arm, squeezing it encouragingly.
"Susan," he said carefully, "I hope that Miss Hahn and I can count on you to keep this to yourself. Miss Hahn's career hasn't even had a chance to begin, and I would hate for it to end over something like this." His heart was pounding, but his voice didn't betray him. He felt Melanie's hand move on top of his and wrap her fingers though his.
Susan looked carefully at them and smiled. "I should have known," she said quietly. "You gave her a mint that day she had an upset stomach…Robert, you are such a romantic!" She looked at them, standing next to one another, holding onto each other as though they were about to blow away in a strong wind. They were an adorable couple. She'd never really looked at Robert that closely, but now that she had, she could see what a handsome man he was. Sometimes it was hard to see through all his anger and yelling. And Melanie was a sweet girl. They complemented each other well.
"Of course, your secret is safe with me," she finally replied with a smile. "Don't worry, I promise to keep quiet."
Melanie smiled shyly. "Thank you," she said quietly before letting go of Robert's hand and walking over to Susan. She gave the older woman a grateful hug.
"Well, you two just pretend you never saw me tonight," Susan finally said a minute later. She picked up an orange and put it in her basket. "You enjoy your evening…" With a wink, she turned and walked away, leaving them alone again.
Melanie sighed and looked at Robert. "That was so scary," she whispered.
Robert didn't speak for a minute. His heart was still pounding, but started to calm down again. He'd hoped that outside the hospital there wouldn't be a chance they'd be seen by anybody they worked with, but apparently they were going to have to continue using the utmost discretion, no matter where they were…
He looked at Melanie and could see that she was nearly in tears. "Come on, let's get out of here," he said gruffly before wrapping his hand around her forearm and pulling her gently in the direction of the checkout stands.
They managed to make it back to his house and were in the garage picking up the bags of groceries before Melanie finally burst into tears. Normally, Robert would have rolled his eyes or sneered at her weakness, but this time she was only doing what both of them were feeling. He set down his bag and walked over to her. "It's all right now," he said comfortingly while wrapping his arm around her. Melanie clung to him desperately and sobbed into his shoulder.
Robert loved how much she looked to him for comfort and protection. It was still such a new sensation to him. He held onto her for a few minutes until she calmed down again. He felt slightly disappointed when she unwrapped herself from him and returned to the groceries. "The ice cream is probably melted by now," she said quietly in between sniffles.
Once in the kitchen, they unpacked the bags and stood around looking at it all, wondering where to start. Melanie picked up the ice cream and brought it to the freezer. Robert moved all the junk food to one side of the kitchen table, and all the dinner ingredients to the other side. He stood next to his cake and peered over at the large pile of produce, then sighed. "This is going to take a lot of chopping," he said mournfully. "You want to order a pizza instead?"
Melanie laughed and walked over to him. "We can't let all the food go to waste…How about I chop and you cook?"
Robert shrugged his shoulders. "All right," he grumbled. It did take a while, but eventually the vegetables were cleaned, chopped, and ready to be cooked. "Have you ever made curry before?" he asked while setting a pan on the stove and turning on the heat.
"Nope, I'm not that skilled at cooking," Melanie confessed. "I can do the basics, and that's about it." The two debated the best way to cook the food for several minutes before settling on a game plan.
"It's going to take a while," Robert said while pouring water into a saucepan. "Why don't you go upstairs and take a shower? We got pretty sweaty tonight. The spare room has a bathroom you can use."
"I suppose a nice hot shower would be relaxing after the store fiasco," Melanie confessed.
Robert smiled to himself. "It's the third door on the right," he said, still turned away from her. "There are fresh towels and soap and all sorts of girl stuff you might want in there."
"Thanks," Melanie said before leaving the room and picking up her bag from the table by the stairs. Her heart was pounding as she walked up the stairs to the spare room. Nothing was going to happen between them tonight, but she still felt as though something was changing with their relationship now. Like they were reaching a point of no return. She tried not to think about it, though, while stepping into the dark spare room, and over to the bathroom.
Her heart pounded even more as she prepared for her shower. Robert hadn't lied about all the "girl stuff". There were razors and bath salts, a shower cap, shaving gel, and a loufah among the many items on the counter. It was as if he hadn't known what to get, and had purchased one of each just in case. She smiled at his thoughtfulness.
(SCENE)
Robert was busy cooking dinner and trying to keep his mind off the fact that Melanie was currently naked and soapy upstairs and he wasn't there to witness it. It was harder to cook with one hand than he had anticipated, and he really hoped the food tasted good.
He was just tasting it for seasoning when Melanie walked back into the kitchen. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail to keep from getting her wet. She was wearing light pink pants, made of some type of fuzzy material he couldn't identify, and a darker pink tank top with spaghetti straps. The top had blue hearts on it, and was quite form-fitting, much to his viewing pleasure. It was very difficult not to stare like an idiot as she joined him at the stove. "Hot…" he finally uttered.
"What?"
"Uh…How hot do you like your food? I like a bit of spice, personally," he said, recovering quickly from his blunder.
"Let me taste it," she demanded. He held the fork out and she tried a potato. "That's just right for me," she declared.
Robert spooned a large portion into a bowl for her and proceeded to dump lots of chili flakes into the rest. "Spice wuss," he growled playfully.
"I am not a spice wuss!" Melanie cried. "You're crazy if you're going to eat it that hot!"
"Watch me!" The playful bantering continued until Robert dished himself up and they sat down at the kitchen table.
After three bites of his dinner, his mouth was burning, his face turned bright red, and he broke out into a sweat. Melanie looked at him with concern. "Are you ok?" she asked.
"Hot!" Robert gasped, looking around for a glass of water and finding none.
"So, it's a little too hot for you, huh?" she said lightly with a grin. When he glared at her, she got up, walked over to his fridge and looked around for milk or something with dairy in it. The only thing she found was a small carton of plain yogurt. She handed it to him, along with a spoon. "Try a little," she commanded. "Maybe mix it in your food, it might help."
"Thanks," Robert gasped, putting the yogurt on the table and wrapping her hand in his. He yanked on her hand, which caused her to stumble backwards and fall onto his lap. She looked surprised and he took the opportunity to press his lips to hers, mirroring what she'd done to him just a week ago.
Melanie squealed and pushed away from him before jumping up and grabbing a spoonful of yogurt. "Spicy!" she cried.
Robert laughed and slapped the table with his hand a couple times. She held out a spoonful of yogurt to him, and he readily accepted it. The burning in his mouth soon subsided.
She sat back down to her dinner. "Do you want some of mine? Yours is way too hot, admit it," she said challengingly.
"Mine is delicious," Robert said loftily, though he didn't take another bite.
"But mine is better," she replied, pushing her bowl towards him and moving her chair next to his. "Come on, there's plenty for both of us…"
Robert sighed, pushed his bowl away, and started to eat out of hers. They ate in silence for a couple minutes before something dawned on Melanie. "You kissed me!"
"You liked it," Robert replied with a shrug.
"It was pretty hot," she said wickedly.
Robert grinned, leaned into her, and pressed his lips to hers once again. His entire body felt like it was on fire and he could hear the blood pounding in his ears. "And that one?" he asked when he pulled away a couple seconds later.
Melanie brought her hand up to her mouth and flushed crimson. She seemed unable to speak and he could tell that they'd reached the limit of her comfort level for now. He didn't make another attempt to kiss her, but quietly returned to his meal. After a minute, she rejoined him. They finished eating in silence.
(SCENE)
They moved all the junk food out to the living room when dinner was finished. Melanie gave Robert the DVD and he set up the TV for them. Gretel walked into the room as they settled onto the couch.
The dog circled the couch a few times while Robert and Melanie sat next to each other. After a few minutes, she wandered over to Robert and stuck her head on his knee. He petted her head absentmindedly as the movie began. After a while, Gretel moved down the couch and stood firmly against Melanie's legs. She put all her weight into it and leaned as hard against the woman as she could. Melanie sighed and scooted down the couch away from Robert. Gretel hopped up onto the couch and settled in where Melanie had been, placing her head on Robert's lap.
Robert looked down and frowned. "Gretel! The couch is for people, not dogs," he reprimanded. "Get down." The dog refused to budge.
"I think she hates me," Melanie said from the other end of the couch.
"She'd better learn to like you," Robert growled while reaching down to push the dog off the couch. "Sit at my feet!" he commanded. Gretel finally slid off the couch and settled down at her master's feet. He bent down and petted her head a few times as Melanie moved down next to him again. Things went smoothly after that, and the two settled in to enjoy the movie.
Melanie had described the movie as "Stand by Me meets Indiana Jones," and Robert felt that was an appropriate description for The Goonies. He'd never seen it before, and thought it was quite amusing. Melanie gave him a Baby Ruth bar when the candy appeared on screen, and paused the movie to point out her house when it was on. "So that's where you come from," he said with a smile. "I've never known anybody whose house was in a movie. I suppose this makes you a Goonie, huh?"
Melanie grinned and nodded her head. "I've always thought of myself as one," she replied before starting the movie again and sitting down next to him. Halfway through the movie, she began to get cold. She grabbed Robert's arm, and lifted it over her shoulders, then snuggled as close to him as she could get. "It's chilly in here," she explained when he looked curiously at her.
Robert smiled and held her close. He was glad now that he'd turned the heat down after dinner. It was worth it to be freezing when it paid off like this. "Your arms are freezing," he said, rubbing her arm with his hand. Feeling a little bad for her, he pointed out a blanket on a chair nearby and had her bring it over to them. Soon, they were settled in under the blanket together, and instead of rubbing her arm, he moved his hand down and entwined his fingers through hers. They watched the rest of the movie like this.
(SCENE)
It was awkward when Robert went to bed, giving Melanie a peck on the cheek and leaving her downstairs with Gretel. They were watching TV and Melanie was working on her cross stitch. Such was life for two people working opposite shifts. When she wasn't watching, he turned the heat back up for her before walking upstairs to his bedroom.
That night, he had an extremely explicit dream about Melanie. Apparently, hand holding and snuggling was enough of an aphrodisiac to cause such dreams. The next morning, he woke up to a most unpleasant surprise that he discovered while trying to get out of bed.
"Damn it!" he hissed as he pulled back the sheets. I must have been seventeen the last time this happened, he thought to himself in disgust. He was really glad that Melanie wasn't in the room with him, or throwing himself out the window would have been the only option available to him.
He stripped all the sheets off his bed and left them, along with his pajamas, on the floor. He'd wash them after Melanie left. It took a very long, very hot shower to calm down again. He hated when his body betrayed him. He liked to have control over the things in his life, and his body was the one thing that was truly his own. He felt he should have perfect control over it at all times. Now, not only was one arm non-functioning, but other parts were deciding to work overtime without his permission. He did his best not to think about Melanie while he was in the shower, but it was very hard not to.
(SCENE)
Melanie found it strange too, to be awake at Robert's house while he was upstairs asleep. Gretel behaved herself, thankfully. Apparently she only acted up when she had a bigger audience. While the dog slept at her feet, she watched TV and worked on her cross stitch. She was down to the last eight letters and was quite proud with the results so far.
Robert was just leaving his bedroom when she trudged upstairs to hers. They met in the hall and talked for a few minutes. "So, if I'm moving to Sundays, does that mean I should go in tonight?" she asked at one point in time.
"You probably should," he replied with a sigh. He'd been looking forward to spending time with her that evening, but it was more important to him that she stay safe at work. Just as he had before going to sleep, he kissed her on the cheek before she went into the spare room.
Melanie turned on the light and looked around for the first time. It was a nice room, spacious, and had feminine touches that were absent in the rest of the house. There were drawings of flowers and ferns on the pale blue walls, and a cream-colored carpet on the floor. She walked over to one of the two sets of windows and looked outside. She could see a view of the backyard before drawing the white, ruffled curtains closed. Along one wall was a mahogany writing-table and matching chair. On the table was a vase of fresh white and orange dahlias.
Centered between the two windows, was a lavish, queen-sized sleigh bed. Blue French toile sheets and a thick matching comforter covered the bed, making the entire room look rich and stylish. Melanie ran her hands over the bedding and smiled at how soft it was. After getting ready for bed, she crawled into the soft sheets and settled right into the center. It was the largest bed she'd ever been in, and she felt like a princess on a pedestal. Everything was so soft that it didn't take more than a couple minutes for her to fall asleep.
(SCENE)
Later in the afternoon, Robert realized that there was no alarm clock in the spare room, and Melanie probably wouldn't wake up on her own. He'd have to wake her himself. He walked up to her room and hoped he didn't startle her.
It felt strange being in the spare room with Melanie. It was a room he rarely entered, having no real need to. Looking around at the soft colors, he felt a little uncomfortable surrounded by such femininity. It felt like he was stepping into a world he knew nothing about. But when he saw Melanie, sleeping in the bed, he ignored that feeling and walked over to her. He looked down and watched her for a minute. She looked beautiful and perfectly at ease. He'd picked out the sheets himself a few days ago, and had given them to his cleaning service to put on the bed. He didn't know much about style or interior decorating, but he'd listened to Melanie enough over their time together to pick up on what she liked. He hoped she approved, because she looked good in them. It took a lot of willpower not to slip right into the bed and fall asleep next to her. Instead, he reached down and placed his hand on her shoulder, shaking her gently.
Melanie felt like she'd just fallen asleep, but the next thing she knew, somebody was shaking her shoulder and calling out to her. "Melanie, you have to get ready for work now," Robert said, sitting on the bed and looking down at her. It took a few attempts to wake her up fully and he watched with amusement as she sat up in the bed and looked around, clearly quite disoriented. "You're at my house, remember?" he said gently.
She blinked a few times, trying to wake up, and leaned her head against his shoulder. "I don't wanna go," she murmured.
"I don't want you to go either, but you have to," Robert said, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her against him. "Only a few more weeks of this and I'll move you back to days."
"I don't wanna go," she repeated in a pouty voice, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his chest.
"If you don't get up, I'll just have to test out how ticklish you are," Robert threatened lightly. To demonstrate, he brought his hand up to her side and tickled her ribs.
Melanie screeched and flailed away from him. "All right, I'm up!" she cried, jumping out of the bed.
Robert laughed and slid off the bed. "Good to know that you're ticklish," he said as he walked to the door. "I'll let you get ready and when you get downstairs, you can have breakfast."
Melanie got ready for her shift, feeling sorry for herself the entire time. She ate the peanut butter and jelly sandwich Robert made for her while feeling sorry for herself. And she drove away from his house, still feeling sorry for herself.
Her self-pitying didn't end when she got to the hospital, because the first person to greet her was Susan Lewis. "We have to talk," she said while grabbing Melanie's arm and dragging her into the empty suture room. "Spill it, you have to tell me what the eggplant was all about!"
Melanie blushed and explained the eggplant kiss to her. Susan grinned and shook her head. "That is so romantic!" she said. "And…the bruises on your wrists. Did he do that to you?"
"He doesn't beat me!" Melanie gasped.
"No…I thought maybe he tied you up or something. You know, in the heat of the moment…?" Susan wriggled her eyebrows devilishly.
Melanie's eyes grew wide and she shook her head. "We aren't having sex!" she declared. "I haven't known him long enough to sleep with him."
"Oh…well, maybe someday," Susan replied with a shrug.
Melanie bit her lip and thought for a moment. "How long is it proper to wait, do you think?" she asked quietly.
"There's no timeline, really. Every couple is different. As long as both of you are comfortable, that's what's important."
"He kissed me last night and we held hands," Melanie admitted quietly. It was nice having somebody to talk to about this. Susan felt like an older, wiser sister that she could go to with her problems.
Susan smiled at the thought of Robert Romano holding hands and making all the small gestures that a man makes towards the woman he loves. He'd always treated her a little more nicely than he treated everybody else at the hospital. She wasn't sure why, but she'd never questioned it. She just enjoyed it. It wasn't difficult to imagine him acting romantically towards Melanie. The look on his face the previous night when she'd run into him had spoken volumes. He probably hadn't even been aware of it, but the care and love he felt for Melanie showed clearly on his face. It was no wonder he'd been acting even harsher at work than normal when he had to be away from her.
"I'm glad you two are enjoying your time together," she finally replied with a warm smile. "I know there are rules about this sort of thing, but I don't know, I think it's stupid when it's real. If it was just sex or harassment, I can understand discouraging it. But true love can't be thwarted." Susan was a sucker for a "happily ever after" story, and thought that Romano was in need of one.
Melanie smiled and nodded her head. "Thank you," she replied. "Oh, and if you ever need to say anything or ask me anything…I'm seeing a guy named Paul. He works at a bank…"
"I will make sure to ask after Paul from time to time," Susan said pointedly, turning to leave. "In the meantime, you have fun with Robert…"
Melanie sighed and left the suture room to go find a patient to help. Only a few weeks left of nights before she and Robert could go back to working together. In the middle of feeling sorry for herself again, a trauma rolled in, and she was off, helping people. If things kept going like this, the time would pass before she knew it. She couldn't wait.