Monday rolled into Friday , March rolled into April - everything was a uniform blur to both Sam and Dylan. One of them was almost always on shift and the other usually at home recovering and preparing to face yet another day of floods of patients . To say it took a mental and physical toll would be an understatement. The point of exhaustion was edging closer and the pair were unsure how much longer they could continue. Their faces were tired and marked from the friction of the N95 masks . The lack of socialisation outside of work was starting to get to Sam , who has always suffered terrible cabin fever - not that she ever had time to be bored at home . When she was home , she spent her time sleeping - rarely actually communicating with Dylan.
The spring sun rolled through the kitchen window as Dylan flicked the kettle on . As he emjoyed a rare day off , thoughts buzzed around his mind. For some time he had been concerned about the toll the current predicament was taking on his beloved partner for he knew she didn't do well with unknowns. She liked to know the facts , how to deal with the situation and when exactly the situation would resolve , whereas he preferred a mystery - in Sam's words he ' liked to figure' . The consultant's fingers traced over his notepad , scribbled on the paper was a list of Covid-19 symptoms he'd come across in the Ed and over on the next page his master plan to get her registra status back. " must mention that to her ," he mused to himself , having gotten too caught up in scheming to actually confront Sam about her own career.
Dervla sat obediently at his feet , although she loved her life of luxury on Dylan's house boat - the hound adored Sam and loved the extra treats she got courtesy of Sam even more. "Sam will be home soon," Dylan mumbled as if expecting a response from his furry companion. " mmm , maybe we should do something special for her…" he smiled , turning away from the kitchen counter and heading in the direction of the double bedroom him and Sam shared.
Delicately , he pottered around tidying and straightening up the flat - the sheets were fresh (the floral pattern Sam loved but Dylan despised) , the floors were vacuumed and mopped and most importantly Sam's army medals which took pride of place above her degree were dusted.
A small smile etched across his face as he rooted through the bathroom cupboards in an effort to find some bath products . " What kind of woman has zero fancy products eh Dervs? Seriously look ! Shower gel . Shampoo . Conditioner - other contraptions … ," he spoke to the dog pulling out a rogue eyelash curler from the cupboard. Reaching to the back of the cupboard he located a soothing eczema bath treatment, likely from one of Sam's many attempts to rid herself of the dreadful rashes. " BINGO!" He exclaimed . " not what I quite had in mind but it'll do."
The lock of the front door twisted as Sam unlocked it. She followed her usual routine of sanitation before further entering the flat. Dylan's head poked out from around the interior wall.
"Morning," he greeted , noting her tired expression , which made him all the more confident in his decision to pamper her a little.
"Hiya," she replied sighing quietly as she disinfected the door handle . Dylan's hand grasped onto hers pulling them both further into the flat " follow me ," he grinned.
" oh god , what have you attempted to build this time. I told you to leave the flat pack to me grumpy. Some people just aren't cut out for manual labour …" she responded remembering the last time Dylan attempted to assemble flat pack furniture.
" no , no . I've not put the shelf together. I promised I'd leave that to you . Though it wasn't my fault those draws didn't open , those instructions were useless," he defended leading her to the bathroom where a freshly run bath would greet her .
" They were only useless to you because you completely ignored them, anyways if it's not breaching into areas you aren't skilled in … what have you been doing ? " she retorted.
He shook his head playfully and guided her into the bathroom.
" one freshly run bath for Ms Nicholls," he smiled proudly. The room was gently lit by the three candles he could find in the whole flat , the mirror cloudy from the steam from the bath but to Sam it was perfect. Not because it offered her an opportunity to relax she didn't think she would have ( if she was honest she was more of a shower person) but because Dylan had thought about her , he had shown he cared and to her that meant the world. She had often perceived Dylan didn't recognise the significance of simple gestures like this but maybe she was wrong after all .
" your towels are on the heater and there's a cup of tea on the side of you there ," he smiled , gently squeezing her hand before leaving the room to allow her to relax.
The young paramedic spent a while submerged in the hot water . Her mind wandering to far away , pandemic-free lands. She found herself transported back in time over a decade.
Somerset 2009
"Grumpy , I'm home ," she called as she threw her keys into the bowl. Upon receiving no Reply she ventured around the 3 bedroom , countryside cottage before eventually finding Dylan upstairs. The door frame supported her as she leaned into it watching Dylan on the floor with what looked to be a dog! A dog she has no clue was going to be in her bedroom when she arrived home from work.
She cleared her throat to alert him to her presence. Dylan's head turned and his eyes met hers - his face lit with a mischievous smile." and what's this then ? Holding puppy groups in our bedroom now or something?" She teased." well … not exactly. The thing is , she needed a family and we've got loads of room , a garden and it's only temporary! " he defended." no . No - it's okay . I was just under the impression we talked about things like this , that's all," she sighed, shooting him a disapproving look." well , we are technically talking about it now . I just couldn't say no , look how cute . C'mon she's great," he encouraged holding the young bitch up to Sam. " you can name her ," he smiled hoping that would bring Sam round . Something about seeing Dylan being so gentle and calm warmed her but she wouldn't let Dylan know she quite liked the idea , not yet anyways." Mmm right , well I'm off for a shower , I'll leave you two to … well whatever this is," she chuckled exited the room.
Later that evening , they laid adjacent to one another in the king sized bed with a puppy snoring at their feet." Dervla," Sam exclaimed ." She's called Dervla," she smiled recalling she had permission to name the dog." that's a lovely name , for a lovely dog … but if I may ask . Why Dervla ?" He enquired." Well , it's an Irish name , our first trip together was to Dublin and it's origin meaning is 'poets daughter' and you write poetry sometimes and if she's staying then some people consider their dogs their kids," She explained thoughtfully.Unknowingly to Sam , the man who lay beside her had just fallen even more in love with her than he had ever thought possible .
After a relaxing soak , Sam dressed into a pair of light grey joggers and an old T-shirt of Dylan's from a team building weekend he was forced to endure years ago and padded through to the living room. " thank you," she smiled , sitting next to him on the sofa."Don't thank me , it was Dervla's idea," he grinned as he started to unbox the chess set.
" I knew you must have been up to something. You want me to play chess ," she chuckled.
"Well … that wasn't the goal but since you offered. Yes, yes I do ," he smiled.
" but I didn't offer ?" She responded.
"Not what I heard ," he smiled knowing full well he was gonna get his way .
"One game keogh ," she warned.
" plenty chance enough for me to beat you ," she teased.
" fat chance! I always win and you know it," she argued triumphantly only to receive a competitive glance from Dylan.
Serval cups of tea , 2 penguin biscuits and hours later , the pair were engrossed in an intense chess game. The atmosphere was tense as Dylan carefully plotted his next move . A grin exploded on Sam's face as the stars aligned for her . Leaving him to stew for a few minutes, she stared tentatively at the board before completing the game , leaving her triumphant.
" Checkmate!" She exclaimed proudly. Dylan's face dropped as he allowed a gasp to pass his lips.
" impossible ! " he retorted, going over the board.
" It's very possible , I just won . Fair and square," she smiled , he was never going to live this down.Dylan stuttered in amazement , although he was mighty annoyed he had lost a game of chess , he was strangely attracted by a woman who knew how to play chess.
" face it grumpy , I wo- ," she smiled, not managing to finish her sentence as Dylan leaned in and kissed her! The moment was unexplainable , almost like their cosmic connection had been reignited. Their lips touched so passionately , she leaned over the chess board into him . So naturally ,yet so strangely she pressed her forehead up against his " what was -" but once against he stopped her . This time placing his index finger against her lips. In that moment , right then , everything made sense .
The dusk settled across Holby beautifully , laid in eachothers arms with Dervla at their feet Sam drifted into a slumber . Her aching body resting comfortably with the man she loved in her own strange way. More than ever the love she had craved for so long was present and magical.Dylan lay stroking her beautiful ,golden hair - gazing down at the woman who made him feel strangely human . The only woman that could truly allow himto feel something very special . Love . He moved a strand of hair behind her ear gently and whispered " I let you win ."