Hello, my lovely readers. Romance develops and friendship endures. On with the show…

Chapter 4: The Waiting Game

Vincent

Textbook open across his knees, Vincent Griffith tried to maintain his focus. While most of his fellow interns had forgotten that they were to study for their residency exams, Vincent felt it necessary to double down on his good study habits. No one else would carry him through this program. He knew he had to look out for his interests—in that aspect. However, his fellow interns seemed to be more interested in the hospital gossip surrounding the case of Dr. Kol Mikaelson. If they failed their exams, Vincent would not be shocked.

"A nurse said he's been flipping her the bird when her back was turned," Lucien Castle said. He leaned against the wall in the basement hallway where they liked to take breaks or study.

"Nah. He's grabbing her butt," Oliver Kenner replied with a light laugh. "Man. Everyone knows that Kol has a way with the ladies."

"A way that will get him sued," Vincent put in. He flipped a page in his textbook and continued to read up on contagious diseases. "Lucien, what are five symptoms that a patient has when he has the malaria virus?"

Lucien's head whirled and he smirked at Vincent. "Oh, Vince? Do you want me to play with you?" He chuckled, glancing at Oliver. "We all miss Davina. Perhaps she'll drop by and you can quiz her instead." Turning back to Oliver, Lucien took a tennis ball and flung it at Oliver's head.

"Hey, man! Not cool." Oliver tossed the ball back. "So, you think Kol's going to make it. I mean… If he doesn't that means we'll get a new attendee and they could be a real hard-ass."

The tennis ball went back and forth and Vincent continued trying to ignore his fellow interns in the same manner they were ignoring their careers. "I don't think it is the right time to be discussing that subject," he found himself saying, unable to prevent himself from answering.

Scoffing, Lucien began to bounce the tennis ball off the wall a foot from Vincent's head. "When would you like to discuss it?" he inquired. "After Mikaelson stops breathing or when the new attendee comes in and decides we're not making the grade. The next thing we all know we're working on trying to get into a new program."

Pausing, Lucien chuckled. "At least I had the best night of my young life not so long ago."

"With who?" Oliver inquired.

"A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell," Lucien retorted with a gleam in his eye. "Let's just say that a certain general surgeon knows her way around a human body."

"Freya Mikaelson?" Oliver hooted, bending over with laughter as Lucien sent the tennis ball flying toward the brick wall.

Hand snapping outward, Vincent took the piece of green felt and launched it at Lucien's head. The other intern let out a cry when the ball slammed into his nose. "Bloody hell, Vincent!" he cried out.

Oliver had choked on his laughter. He looked from Vincent to Lucien. "Man, you're bleeding."

"Am I?" Lucien placed his hand to his nose. "Bloody hell." He raised his blue eyes to glower at Vincent. "Looks as if someone is jealous." He sneered before shaking his head. "Too bad you're the type who girls don't fancy. Nose in your book all day and night long. Can't even dance with a girl. Why do you suppose she went with me that night?"

"Enough!" Lucien's cheeks flushed and his head spun to take in a very unhappy-looking Freya Mikaelson.

"Lucien. You should go upstairs and allow someone to look at your nose." Freya glowered at Lucien until he moved past her. He stopped for a moment but said nothing when she stared him into silence.

"Oliver?" Freya turned to Oliver. "I believe Josh has something for you to do."

"He's not my resident," Oliver said. When Freya simply stared back at him, his shoulders fell. "Yes, ma'am." He hurried away.

When they were alone, Freya moved to stand beside the gurney Vincent was sitting on. "Nice shot. With the tennis ball. I could use someone with those kinds of skills on my next surgery." She offered Vincent a smile.

Not wanting to argue with her, Vincent decided to change the subject. "How is Kol doing?"

Freya looked at the wall a couple of inches from Vincent's face. Her mouth worked up and down and her eyes clouded as she struggled with how to respond. "I honestly don't know. That's why I came down here. I was hoping to find a way of distracting myself until Kol wakes up…" If he wakes up, hung in the air.

Nodding, Vincent patted the spot beside him. "I'm studying for my residency exams. If you'd like to help…"

A smile appeared on Freya's face. "Already?" She let out a quiet laugh as she slipped onto the gurney beside him. "And just yesterday you'd appeared as a bright and shiny new intern. How time passes us by." She held out her hands and Vincent handed her his textbook. "Would you like me to quiz you?"

"Sure." Vincent tried not to pay attention to how easy and natural all of this felt. Since his wife ran off five years ago, and had not been seen or heard from since, Vincent had peace with being a bachelor for the rest of his life. He found a certain peace in having only himself to care for.

Looking at Freya Mikaelson, feeling her thigh brush his own as she flipped through the pages of his book; Vincent felt his heart warming. A brief image of a happy life with her by his side—or him by hers, depending on how you looked at things—came unbidden into his mind. She turned her sparkling eyes to his and Vincent tried to bury the feelings down deep.

The moment ended when a nurse came running toward them. "Dr. Mikaelson!" she called.

"What is it?" Freya's head whipped around as she turned to take in the out-of-breath young woman.

"It's Kol. He's… He's… He's…" the nurse tried to catch her breath.

"Yes?" Freya's body had stiffened as she slid off the gurney. Vincent slipped off, too, and took her hand, holding it tightly.

"He's awake!" The nurse burst into tears, a laugh followed the ebb of water. "Kol. Dr. Mikaelson. Your brother, he's awake."

"He's awake?" Freya began to slip to the floor when Vincent caught her by the waist. She turned her body to face his, pressing her face into his shoulder. "He's awake."

"I know. You should go." Vincent said.

"I should. I am." Freya had begun to laugh and cry, too. "Do the rest of the family members know?" she questioned the nurse as they hurried away.

"We're working on notifying them," the nurse said.

Vincent leaned down and picked up his textbook. He sat back down and found he could not understand a word on the page.

Tiffany

Sitting in the cafeteria, Tiffany contemplated the cup of Greek strawberry yogurt. She needed to keep her strength up. Not eating would not kill the disease that worked to ravage her body.

Her eyes went up and she took in the sight of her old best friend, Essy. No, Esther Mikaelson. Her long blonde locks were pulled back into a severe ponytail. Her smiling eyes had crow's feet now. She had little frown lines. The girl who Tiffany knew was gone. She'd been replaced by the wife of the head of this hospital and the mother of a young man who may or may not recover from surgery. Time would tell.

"They call this a hamburger?" Philip Walters made his way over to the table with Mikael Mikaelson. "I've seen better fare at Burger King."

"We're not a three-star Michelin restaurant." Mikael took a seat next to his wife and took her hand.

Esther stared unhappily at her fruit salad and not because they did not have pear instead of kiwi in it. "What if he doesn't make it, Mikael?" she whispered.

"Kol's a fighter. Always has been." Philip's words made Tiffany and Esther exchange a look as Philip took a bite of his burger. "Not as bad as it looks." He glanced at Tiffany when no one said anything. "Want a bite?" he asked her, shoving his burger into her face.

"Dear God, Phil. Have you learned no self-control in all these years?" Tiffany waved the burger away and pushed down a wave of nausea. Damn medications.

"Will he ever?" Mikael quipped.

Chuckling, Phil shrugged. "All of you used to be like that. What happened to you?"

"We grew up, Peter Pan." Tiffany took the spoon for her yogurt and dipped it further into the cup. Even the sight of the tiny bits of strawberry made her sick. She gave up and pushed the cup away.

Phil did not seem to notice. He dipped a French fry in ketchup and took a big bite. "Also not bad."

"He should be awake by now. Don't you think?" Esther asked. Her eyes wandered across the room.

Tiffany's gaze moved to a group of young doctors who had just come into the room. Interns. Davina was not with them. If Tiffany knew her daughter, she was in upstairs, visiting with Kol, or she was trying to busy herself. Perhaps she'd gone home. Was Hayley here? Tiffany looked at Phil who had gone back to attacking his burger. Would he know? Did she dare ask?

"Sometimes it take longer for a patient to wake up," Mikael was saying when Tiffany returned to the conversation. His eyes were not on his wife but had gone to the window behind them.

Tiffany knew that Mikael had been working through the numbers. What was the probability that his son would wake up? Would he truly be Kol? Would there be brain damage? Would he be able to live like he had in the past? How long would it take for him to regain use of his usual functions? Who would care for him?

Esther's eyes filled up. Tiffany reached across the table and took hold of her friend's hand. "He will make it." This broke all of the rules they'd learned as doctors. Do not make promises. You waited. You hoped. You did not promise anything. Ever.

Focusing on Tiffany, Esther's chin jutted outward. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Tiffany replied. She sat back in her seat. "Unlike some of us I don't give up on patients."

Phil choked on the two fries he'd just shoved in his mouth. "Excuse me!" he cried. "Are you referring to—"

Holding up a hand, Tiffany cut him off. "The time you and Mik were working that case with the fisherman who almost drowned. You pronounced him dead. I came in and found him wide awake."

"It was a mistake!" Phil cried.

A sudden burst of laughter made them both turn to see Esther wiping tears out of the corners of her eyes. "You'd declared time of death. Placed a sheet over him. I half-expected a toe-tag already. When Tiffany screamed, I came running to find Tiffany had fallen on her behind and was pointing at the man: 'But… But… But… You're dead!'"

"I did not scream. Nor did I fall down!" Tiffany retorted drily. A little smile played at the corners of her mouth. "And it was Halloween."

"You were on your bottom!" Mikael cried, slapping the table top. "Our resident told me all about finding you sitting on the floor and blubbering about a zombie."

"I'd just worked seventy hours without a break!" Tiffany yelled at them. "I was beyond exhaustion. And our resident was a drunk."

"Really?" Phil looked confused.

"He went to A. A. during our first year as residents," Mikael added.

"That's why he was always late," Phil looked like he understood now.

Shaking her head and trying not to begin laughing, Tiffany spotted a nurse headed their way. "Dr. Mikaelson," she said. Then she leaned over and whispered something into Mikael's ear.

Mikael's eyes lit up. "Esther, come with me."

"Is it Kol?" Esther asked, already on her feet.

"Let us know how he is," Tiffany said, sitting back in her seat.

"We will." Esther took Mikael's outstretched hand as they left Tiffany and Phil alone.

"Looks like it's just the two of us…" Phil glanced at Tiffany who rolled her eyes in response. "Are you going to eat that?" He pointed at her yogurt cup, already reaching for it.

"Oh, Phil." Tiffany shook her head and got to her feet. "I'm going to go track down our daughters."

"Coming," Phil said as he inserted the spoon into his mouth. Tiffany really wished she could stuff him down the laundry chute. Maybe she could bribe an orderly to do it for her. The thought made her smile.

Hayley

Walking through her own front door, the first thing Hayley noted was the lights were all off. She flipped the light in the foyer on before heading for the stairs. No sounds could be heard as she paused at the top of the stairs. Maybe Rebekah did not come here. However, Hayley would happily put money on it.

Hayley's feet led her to Rebekah's door. It was closed. Knocking on the wood, Hayley waited. No one replied. Taking hold of the doorknob, Hayley attempted to turn it but it did not budge. Sighing, Hayley removed a hair pin, straightened it and shoved it in the lock, twisting it to and fro until the lock popped open.

Pushing the door open, Hayley took a cautious step inside before she ran her hand along the wall to her right and found the switch. Her fingers flicked it upward and she saw a huddled mass with blonde hair poking out of the blanket in the middle of Rebekah's bed. "Turn it off," the mass groaned.

Switching the light off, Hayley made way over to the nightstand and flicked the lamp on. "Hi," she whispered. Taking a seat next to the blonde mass, Hayley wrapped an arm around it and pressed her head into the comforter. "Bekah?"

"Please, just leave me." Bekah's voice cracked on the last word.

"Can't. Best friends don't bail. We kick your butt until you get out of bed." Hayley tugged part of the blanket downward to reveal Rebekah's red-rimmed eyes and wobbling lower lip. "Oh, honey." Looking around, Hayley grabbed for a tissue box and began plucking out a wad of paper to offer to her friend.

"He's my big brother," Rebekah moaned. "What am I do without him? Even if he is a wanker?" She blew her nose and shot Hayley a pitiful look.

"I don't know, Bekah." Hayley rubbed Rebekah's arm through the blanket.

After a moment, Rebekah pressed her face into Hayley's shoulder and they leaned into each other.

~0~

Hayley had lost track of time when someone tapped on the door. "Hey," Caroline said. "Okay. So, these are store-bought and if they suck I will be happy to make some new ones." She walked over to the bed with a tray of chocolate chip cookies. "I'll go get some milk."

Glancing at Rebekah, Hayley opened the container and Rebekah took a cookie but she did not try to take a bite. She just stared at it.

~0~

"Cookies are ready," Caroline announced. The smell of fresh-baked cookies wafted through the room as the perky blonde came in the door. The store-bought ones weren't bad. But Hayley had eaten half of them. She thought she was probably trying to make up for what Rebekah wasn't eating.

Another tap on the door. "Heard we had a patient who needed a house call." Tyler said as he popped his head in to offer the ladies of the house a grin.

"Bloody hell," Rebekah groaned, shaking her head. "Don't you have better things to do with your life, like leaving me be?" She shot Tyler a dark look. "Besides, I thought you were leaving us for greater adventures."

Caroline had just sat the cookies down in the middle of the bed. "You're doing what? Why didn't you tell us?" she demanded.

"Like you care. You married Satan," Tyler retorted with an eye roll. Then his attention moved, "Oh, cookies."

When Tyler came further into the room and reached for a cookie; Caroline smacked his hand. "Those are not for you. They're for Bekah." Her blue eyes traveled to Rebekah who still held the one store-bought cookie that Hayley had handed her two hours ago.

Rebekah held the cookie out to Tyler. "I don't want it."

"Oh?" Caroline deflated and sat down. She took one of her cookies and munched on it as Tyler sat across from Rebekah and they lapsed into silence.

~0~

Another hour passed and this time the person who entered the room did not knock. Josh leaned against the doorframe. "Hey, Bekah."

"Josh," Rebekah unfurled from the blanket, standing up and made the bed shake. Caroline made a swift grab to save her cookies before Rebekah could step in them as Rebekah walked across the bed and Josh moved to embrace her. He set her on her feet and Rebekah began to cry again.

Hayley felt her heart squeeze as she leaned back against the headboard. She held out a hand and Caroline placed another cookie it.

"He's going to be okay," Josh said, stroking Rebekah's hair. He looked at Caroline and Hayley could see the beginning signs of desperation in his face. He was clinging to the idea that Kol Mikaelson would live. Because if something happened, everyone would blame Josh. No. That wasn't true. Some people might blame Josh. Not his friends.

Hayley shook her head. She knew Josh had been welcomed back to the hospital like a hero the day after the surgery. As hours passed and Kol did not wake up that image began to fade. But they all knew that anything could happen after a surgery. All you could do was sit, and wait, and hope for the best.

A sudden vibrating made Hayley's hand go to her pants. Her finger moved to tug out her phone. "Hello?" she said quietly. Her legs moved to push her into an upright position but Davina's words sent her back to the bed. "He is?"

"What?" Rebekah turned away from Josh and stared at Hayley. Her eyes went wide as she dropped her comforter and hurried over to Hayley. "Is it Kol? Is he alright?" Tell me!" she cried, her voice rising, on the edge of panic.

"He's awake," Hayley said, clapping her hand over her mouth. Tears had begun to run down her cheeks. "He wants to talk to you." She held out the phone to Rebekah.

"Kol?" Rebekah's knees buckled and she fell to the floor, the phone pressed tightly to her ear. "You bloody wanker!" she cried, laughing and crying. "I thought you were going to die on us. Don't you ever do this again!"

Hayley couldn't hear what Kol said in response but she saw the light in Rebekah's eyes as she clutched the phone and continued to laugh. Getting up, Hayley made her way across the room. "Caroline, can you give Bekah a ride to the hospital?" she asked.

"Sure. Where are you going?" Caroline asked.

"To find my fiancé," Hayley replied, half-in and half-out of the door. Wherever Elijah was that is where Hayley needed to be right now and she suspected she knew where that was.

Thank you for reading, faving, following and reviewing.

Peace,

-J