Here's another chapter today, hope you enjoy... Xxx
"Ok Dr Hanna, as soon as you sign here you'll be free to go." The nurse said, once Max had promised he'd look after her. Zoe struggled to sign due to both her arms being in casts, but eventually she managed it. Max grabbed her stuff and lead her, and Nick, out to the car park, where much to her amazement she found her car.
"Wasn't it destroyed?" Zoe asked, on the day of the blast she'd parked it right near the ED.
"Nope, not a single scratch." Max said proudly, patting Zoe's car jokingly with his hand.
"Hands off, you can drive, but no stroking." Zoe teased, "do you need a lift Nick? You can help us move our stuff in to our new house if you want."
"No, it's alright, my car's parked over there, email me, I'll come and visit." Nick replied, hugging Zoe.
"Yeah, come and visit." Zoe said, waving as he walked away. She climbed into the passenger seat of her Audi TT, and allowed Max to drive her away.
Finally they reached Holby Harbour and parked the car outside Dylan's houseboat.
"I hope Dylan's ok, I'll phone him." Zoe said, miraculously her phone had survived the blast without a single chip.
"Hello, I'm on the boat." Dylan's voice replied, "where have you been these last couple of days? I've been ill, I haven't left the house."
"Haven't you seen the news?" Zoe asked, surely a hospital blowing up would make it to the national news.
"No, why? Was there something interesting happen?" Dylan replied, obviously unaware of the situation.
"There was an explosion, in the ED. I've just been let out of hospital." Zoe said.
"Oh." Was Dylan's response. He wondered how he'd managed to miss such major news, but he wasn't on social media, he hadn't looked at the news in a while and his radio was broken.
Then Zoe and Max walked through the door.
"We're going to move our stuff today and then we're going down to Brighton. The house is fully furnished so we just need to take our personal stuff." Zoe said.
"I'll help you move it, both of you look like you shouldn't be carrying anything." Dylan replied, gesturing to Zoe's broken arms and Max's sling.
"All I've done is tear a muscle, nothing's broken." Max tried to explain.
"Well, do you want to tear your muscle anymore? We'll get Zoe's stuff first then go over to your house." Dylan replied stoutly. Then Zoe went into the bathroom, Max went into the bedroom and Dylan looked everywhere else. Once they'd gathered everything together Dylan got some cardboard boxes and carefully put everything in, then he carried them out to Zoe's car.
Max finally managed to persuade Dylan to let him drive, despite his arguments that he wasn't 'up to it'. Eventually Zoe stepped in and handed Max the keys. They drove in an awkward silence to Max, Robyn and Lofty's house, Max was driving, Zoe was in the front passenger seat and Dylan was squished amongst the boxes in the back.
Finally they reached the old student nurses house. Max jumped out the car and jogged over to the door, Robyn said Lofty was at home during the explosion and so wasn't hurt, luckily, when Max knocked on the door Lofty came and opened it.
"Max, are you okay? You're not hurt are you?" Lofty said when he realised it was Max.
"I'm fine, but I'm moving out. I just need to get some stuff. Then I'm going down to Brighton." Max said, eager to move into his new house.
"Okay." Lofty replied, then he caught sight of Zoe and Dylan, "what are Zoe and Dylan doing here?" He was confused, why was Max with a couple of consultants.
"Zoe is my fiancée, and Dylan's helping us carry everything." Max explained. Lofty stood there, in shock at what he had just heard. Zoe, and Max. But then it all made sense, the two of them missing at the same time. And then his mind jumped back to the time nearly a year ago, the shoes on the bedroom floor.
"Can I come in then?" Max interrupted, Lofty hadn't realised but he was standing in the doorway blocking the way for Max.
"Sorry." He said, quickly jumping out the way. Zoe followed Max through the doorway and up the stairs.
"So, are you going to miss your gourmet meals cooked by your sister?" Zoe said, sitting down on the bed while he gathered his stuff.
"When I'm at home I'm usually the one doing the cooking." Max replied, turning round and flashing Zoe a quick smile before resuming his task.
"Well Jamie Oliver, you'll have to show me sometime." She flirted back.
"I will indeed." He replied, leaning over and kissing her seductively.
"Max, we haven't got time." Zoe protested, trying her very best not to give in to Max's charm.
"We can make time." He said between kisses, moving his lips to her neck. Eventually Zoe gave in and they spent ten minutes making the most of Max's bed.
Suddenly they were interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Unless Max has an out of control zebra jumping up and down on that bed I presume you aren't collection together Max's things." Dylan's voice said, slightly muffled by the door.
"We're collecting memories." Max joked, earning the evil eye from Zoe.
"To be honest, I don't care what you're doing but we haven't got all day an if you're planning on going to Brighton tonight I suggest you get packing." Dylan replied before stomping down the stairs.
"Someone's a bit grumpy." Max smirked, slowly moving a strand of Zoe's hair out of her face.
"We should probably finish the packing though." She replied, reluctantly removed herself from Max's grip.
"Fine, we'll have to finish later." He said, getting up and gathering his clothes of the bedroom floor.
Eventually, after ten minutes of packing they'd gathered together all of Max's belongings.
"Lofty, you wouldn't give us a hand carrying these boxes." Max shouted down the stairs.
"It took you long enough." Lofty said, emerging at the door. Blushing slightly. Zoe looked down and realised the top buttons on her shirt were undone.
"Max, you should have told me." She said, quickly rebuttoning them.
"I was enjoying the view." He flirted.
"Once Lofty and Dylan had carried all of Zoe and Max's boxes into the small Audi TT, they set off for Aisling close.
On the way they drove past the hospital, it was the first time Zoe had been back since the blast and she was shocked by how much damage had been done. The whole front of the ED, including reception had been blasted out, causing the area above it to collapse. The pile of rubble was huge, and right on the edge Zoe could see one of the ED doors, completely unscathed, as if someone had simply unscrewed it before the bomb and moved it to safety. Zoe was surprised that so much damage had been done but only three people had died so far, two of whom were already seriously ill before the explosion. Zoe and Max shared a solemn look, the place was like a second home, it was where they met, where they shared their first kiss, where they had their first argument.