A/N Thanks for all the reviews please keep them coming I do take into account what you are saying.

I know some of you are getting frustrated with Bella's lack of action re: Jacob, please bear with me it will be resolved, but not for a while.

Sorry for the wait I'm suffering the dreaded writers block. I know where I want to go with the story it's just getting there.

As there's a bit of medical jargon I will put an explanation of what the words mean at the bottom of the chapter.

Chapter 12.

EPOV

I drove to the hospital, unable to get the mind-blowing kiss from last night out of my head.

I got to work with a couple of minutes to spare. I wanted to let Bella know that I was thinking of her. I quickly typed out a message and hit send.

"Hi Edward" Rosalie said, walking into the Doctor's Lounge.

"Hi Rosalie" I said, pouring myself a cup of coffee. "Want one?" I asked, lifting the coffee cup.

"Sure" she replied.

Feeling a little awkward, I said "So, umm Rosalie, did you know about the note?" I passed her one of the cups of coffee.

"What note?" she asked back.

"The note that Bella gave Emmett, to pass on to me"

"Edward, I told him that he should give it to you. It wasn't his place to interfere"

Our conversation was interrupted by a trauma coming in.

"What have we got?" I asked, grabbing hold of one end of the gurney.

"56 year old male, experiencing chest pain, syncope . Had a drop in blood pressure after we administered nitro-glycerine. Patient has no known medical problems, medications or allergies."

"Thanks guys" I say as the paramedics leave.

"Pulse 60, BP 90/60" Rosalie reads off, having checked the patient's vitals.

"Sir I need to listen to your chest" I say, placing the ear-piece of my stethoscope in my ears. "Lungs are clear. Heart is regular without murmur" I say to my colleagues, wrapping my stethoscope back around my neck.

"Lets do an EKG and Chest X -ray"

As I put the x-ray up on the board and begin to examine it I can see a widening of the mediastinum. I look at the print out from the EKG and recognise LVH.

"I need the ultrasound machine" I shout out.

"Here you go" Rosalie says passing the portable ultrasound machine to me.

I move the transducer over his chest, examining his aorta "Looks like he has an aortic dissection. Let's call surgery and send him up to CT"

As we wheeled the patient to the elevator, Emmett caught up to us "56 year old male with aortic dissection, he's going up to CT to ascertain what type of dissection. Can you take it from here?" I ask, thrusting the chart into Emmett's hand.

"Sure" the elevator doors closed and I walked back to admit to pick up the next case.

Although it's been a busy shift I manage to find a few spare minutes to go and have a bite to eat. I'm walking up to the canteen when my cell goes off.

I answer "Hello"

"Hi Edward, it's Bella" she says in her sweet, angelic voice.

I had just been thinking about calling her. Looks like she beat me to it.

I had to end the conversation when my pager started beeping. They needed me back in the ER. So much for getting some lunch!

My shift had just ended and I was totally wiped out. We had got slammed with about fifty patients from a chemical explosion.

"Corona please" I said, taking a seat on the bar stool.

I had planned to sit here for the next hour or so, relaxing and calming down from my hectic shift. I heard a booming laugh, coming from the entrance. I knew that laugh, it was Emmett's.

"Hey Edward, what's up?"

"You're a jerk. That's what's up." I all but shouted at him.

"Okay. Hostile much" he said backing away, acting as if it were all a joke."

"This isn't a fucking joke Emmett." I shouted.

"Man, what did I do?" he said, adopting a serious tone.

"More like what you didn't do" I snarled.

"Edward, you're going to have to help me out here. I don't know what you're talking about or why you're so mad at me."

"I ran into Bella this weekend. You remember the GSW from about a month ago, the one you thought I was getting too attached to." I could see the panic in his eyes. "Interesting thing is she says that she left a note for me. Gave it to you to pass on to me. Got an explanation as to why I never got that note?" I was staring daggers at him by this point.

"I umm. Well you see I thought er…" he struggled to explain his actions.

"That's what I thought" I slammed my bottle down on the bar, emphasizing how upset I was with him. " I thought we were friends Emmett"

"We are" he said, looking concerned.

"A friend would have given me the note"

"Edward I was doing what I thought was best. She was a patient…"

"Don't start with the Doctor patient shit again. You know that didn't apply anymore. She was leaving the hospital and she hadn't been my patient since she had been on your service. You saw how miserable I became after losing her but still you didn't tell me. You didn't just hurt me in the process. Bella was left feeling rejected. She went out on a limb for me and she thought that I didn't care for her and that I was an ass who didn't have the decency to call and let her know that I didn't have feelings for her." I laid it all out there for him to hear.

"Edward, I'm sorry man. I didn't realize"

"Yeah Emmett, you never do, your actions have consequences."

"We're okay though, right?" he asked, with a cocky smile.

"Sorry Emmett. I don't know right now. I may never be able to forgive you for this." I saw the look of hurt spread across his face. We had been friends since med school. I felt betrayed by him. I could act civil at work. Outside of work we weren't friends anymore though.

I got off the stool and went to leave. When I reached the door I turned round. "By the way Emmett, you're interfering didn't work. Bella and I are a couple."

Having said my piece I left, picked up my car and drove back home.

I woke up and the first thing I thought about was Bella. I couldn't wait to see her again. In thirteen and a half hours I would be doing just that. I had booked a table for eight o'clock, I had requested a private table, in the back. I didn't want any interruptions. I wanted to be able to focus all my attention on my dream girl. I would let her choose what movie we saw, I was prepared to watch a chick flick if that's what she wanted. I didn't really care about the movie, all I cared about was spending time with Bella.

I showered, got dressed, made some breakfast and was out the door in thirty minutes. I got the El to work.

My first patient was an IV Drug user who had developed a case of infective endocarditis. Why did people do this to themselves? I tried my best to talk them into rehab. It's like talking to a brick wall though. A person suffering from any form of addiction can't be helped until they admit that they have a problem and want help. This element of the job could be very frustrating.

The rest of the day was unusually quiet and I spent my time catching up on my charting. The hours dragged by, all I wanted was for it to be the end of my shift so that I could see Bella.

Finally it was seven o'clock. After bringing the night shift up to date on who was in the ER and what consults we were waiting for I went to change. I wore a pair of jeans, and a shirt. I didn't feel the need to get too dressed up. It was only dinner and a movie after all.

It was seven fifteen. I had fifteen minutes before I was scheduled to meet Bella. I ran up to the hospital gift shop to buy some flowers for her. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. I stood there, perplexed by the choice, unsure what Bella would like. Luckily the girl at the counter came up and offered me some advice. I settled on a bunch of pink Gerberas.

By the time I arrived back in the ER, Bella was already there, talking to Tanya at admit. I walked over and gave Bella a quick kiss on the cheek. "Hey you" I softly whispered.

"Hi" she replied.

"These are for you" I handed her the flowers.

"Edward, these are beautiful. Thank you" she grinned.

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah. Bye Tanya, it was nice meeting you" she waved, before I took her hand in mine.

It didn't take long for us to reach Bella Italia. "Hi, I have a table booked in the name of Cullen" I said.

"Yes Sir. Right this way please. When we reached the table the host went to pull the chair out for Bella. I swiftly moved my hands over to the back of her chair "I've got it from here, thanks" I wanted to do this part.

"Thanks" she said.

I moved to the opposite side of the table and took my own seat. A few minutes later the waiter came up to the table to take our drinks order.

"Would you like to share a bottle of wine?" I asked Bella.

"Yes" she replied.

"Can we have a bottle of house white please" I told the waiter.

The waiter came back a few minutes later with a bottle. I tested the wine "Yes, that's fine" I acknowledged, before he poured more wine into my glass and then poured a glass for Bella. He said that he would be back for our food orders.

I glanced over the menu, contemplating all the options. I looked up to find Bella just sitting there "Aren't you going to look at the menu?" I asked.

"No. I already know what I want" she smiled.

When our waiter came back I let Bella order first.

"I'll have the mushroom risotto please" she said, handing the menu back to the waiter.

"Spaghetti Bolognese for me, please"

Whilst we waited for our food to be served, we chatted about how our day had been. I told Bella that my day had been okay but was much better now I was with her.

"Mushroom Risotto for the lady, and Spaghetti Bolognese for the gentleman" the waiter said while placing our respective dishes in front of us.

"Thanks" we said in unison.

I was ravenous and tucked right in to my meal. Between mouthfuls I asked, "What do you want to go see?"

"Sorry?" Bella queried.

"What movie do you want to see?" I reiterated.

"I don't know. There's this one film I wouldn't mind seeing. Not sure you would like to see it though because it's a rom-com."

Before I had the chance to reply I heard Bella giggling.

"What?" I chuckled, wanting to be in on the joke.

"Umm… you've got a little" she trailed off pointing to the corner of her mouth.

I went to wipe my mouth, this set Bella off again.

"Nope, missed it," her little laugh was so cute.

I went to try again but apparently failed to get it again.

"Here let me" she said, tracing the corner of my mouth with her index finger. Her finger lingered on my mouth, a few seconds longer than necessary. I couldn't stop myself placing a gentle kiss on the tip of it. She pulled away and resumed eating.

There was a charged atmosphere between us for the remainder of the meal. I reminded myself that I had agreed that we would take this slow. Part of me wanted to pay the check and take her back to my apartment, where we would make love all night long. What was I? A lust-filled teenager? I was bigger than this. We were not going to rush into anything. This was only our second date!

When the movie started I began to regret my decision. My hormones were going crazy, and it didn't help any being in a darkened room, sat next to the object of my affection. It wasn't a very popular movie. It was only me and Bella and a few other people.

About ten minutes in Bella lifted up the armrest and positioned herself so that her head was laying on my chest. I wrapped my arm around her, enjoying the close contact that we were now sharing. I tried to concentrate on the film, for a rom-com it wasn't at all bad. I would sporadically turn my attention to Bella, watching her watch the screen. She was completely engrossed in what was going on in the movie. Even when I planted kisses on her forehead or cheek, she would just smile to show her appreciation. All the while never taking her eyes off the screen.

It was one of the many new things I had learnt about Bella tonight. I found it very endearing. It was like my passion for art or hockey. Would this girl ever cease to amaze me?

Much too soon the date came to an end. Just like on Sunday I wanted to take Bella home, but once again she said it was probably best that we didn't do that. This ex-boyfriend must be pretty hung up on her. I could understand why, I wouldn't want a girl like Bella slipping through my fingers.

We kissed again, it was just as passionate as our last kiss. Our lips crashed against each other, whilst our tongues battled for dominance. As I came up for air I moved my mouth onto the side of Bella's neck. I slowly nipped and sucked whilst moving my lips down her neck to her collar bone. After a few minutes I had recaptured her mouth with mine. She pulled me closer, moving her hand through my hair. My hand started up on her face and as the kiss intensified my hands moved through her hair and then down the side of her body, coming to a rest on her waist. As we continued I slowly began inching my hands up her stomach - my hormones were getting the better of me. Bella pulled away. "I'm sorry. I'm stopping" I apologized, I had gotten caught up in the moment.

"No, it's okay. I liked it, it's just we had agreed that we would take things slow and not rush anything" she explained, blushing ever so slightly.

"Bella" I took hold of her hands, "I don't want to rush into anything either. I just got a little caught up in the moment."

"It was quite a kiss" she replied.

I made sure she got into a cab safely and kissed her one last time. Not so passionately this time. I didn't want to make either the driver or Bella feel uncomfortable. We had agreed that we would meet up again in a couple of days.

The next few weeks passed rather quickly. Things at work were going well, I had an interview set up for an attending position at the hospital. Emmett and I would behave civilly towards one another when working, though we both tended to bark orders at each other. I still hadn't forgiven him for the whole note situation and he had made no move to apologize for it. The hardest thing with the whole Emmett situation was the impact it had on mine and Rosalie's friendship. It had been hard on her being caught up in the middle of this argument. I didn't see her outside of work anymore because she would always be with Emmett.

Bella and I spent as much time with each other as possible. When we weren't working we would always meet up. We had even double dated with Alice and Jasper. I could see how close Alice and Bella had become in such a short time. Jazz and I would be walking to the bar, or restaurant with Bella and Alice trailing behind arm in arm giggling. I didn't mind though, I was happy that Bella was having such a good time.

When I wasn't working and not with Bella I would spend my time playing my guitar and singing. I was planning a surprise for Bella and I needed to practice to make sure my performance would be flawless. I just hoped that she would like it.

It was open mic night at Ike's and I had put my name down for a set. I hadn't performed in public for a couple of years and as the day went on I became more and more nervous.

I was sat next to Bella in a booth. Alice and Jasper were sat across from us.

"Some of these acts are really good" Bella said, applauding the latest act.

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.

"Edward are you okay?" Bella asked, taking a sip of her Malibu and Coke.

"Yeah, I'm fine" I lied. It was my turn next. I hadn't told anyone what we were really doing here. I had dropped my guitar off with one of the barmen earlier. "Excuse me" I said to Bella, standing up to move out of the booth. She moved to let me out.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"I'll be back soon" I whispered as I kissed her tenderly on the lips.

I made my way to the stage that had been set up, my palms had become sweaty. Just calm down, you'll be fine. I took a deep breath before picking up my guitar. I walked to the mic and looked across the bar to where I was sitting previously. I saw Bella, she was smiling and looking confused all at once.

I grabbed hold of the mic, my hand quivering a little. "I don't normally do this. I would like to dedicate this song to Bella." I looked over to her to see that her cheeks were flaming crimson red. Alice let out a squeal of excitement as I began to play the song. It was the song that had reminded me of Bella the day we first met. Singing it now though, I meant every word.

It was while I played, all the time staring into Bella's chocolate brown eyes, as if we were the only ones here. I knew that I truly loved her.

A/N I'm sure you already know but rom-com means romantic comedy.

Syncope - loss of consciousness

Nitroglycerin - used medically as a vasodilator to treat heart conditions, such as angina and chronic heart failure

Heart murmur - an abnormal heart sound

EKG - Electrocardiography (ECG or EKG) is the recording of the electrical activity of the heart over time via skin electrodes

Widened mediastinum - a mediastinum with a measured width greater than 8 cm on PA chest X-ray.

LVH - Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is the thickening of the myocardium (muscle) of the left ventricle of the heart

Transducer - Ultrasonic sensors (also known as transducers when they both send and receive) work on a principle similar to radar or sonar which evaluate attributes of a target by interpreting the echoes from radio or sound waves respectively

Aortic dissection - a tear in the wall of the aorta that causes blood to flow between the layers of the wall of the aorta and force the layers apart

IV - Intravenous (in the vein)

Infective endocarditis - a form of endocarditis caused by infectious agents. The agents are usually bacterial, but other organisms can also be responsible.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm thinking of maybe putting a lemon in the next chapter but I will leave it up to you guys. Let me know what you want :)

Thanks to Everclearbabe for the bolognese bit. Check out her story A New Life (I have been helping her with it.)