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ONE WEEK EARLIER

"Hey Jerry, what happened to that kid in exam three?"

Jerry looked up from his newspaper and saw Abby walking towards him. "You mean the puker? Dr. Chen discharged him. Why?"

"Cuz he left this behind." She placed an action figure on the desk in front of her.

Jerry snatched it up in excitement. "Oh wow… I've been trying to get my hands on one of these for ages!"

Abby raised her eyebrows.

"What? It's a collectible."

She nodded. "Well, it's not yours. Make sure you put it in a safe place."

Abby pushed herself away from the desk and started to walk towards the lounge. She stopped just short of the door and turned when she heard someone making fake battle sounds behind her. "Jerry…."

Jerry looked up from the toy. "Alright, alright."

Abby shook her head and pushed open the lounge door. At last, it was time to go home. She stifled back a small yawn and approached her locker. She'd noticed John standing at the edge of the counter, pouring himself a cup of coffee, and even though his back was to her, she knew he'd noticed her. He always did. She continued to play with her lock, waiting for his greeting. When it didn't come, she frowned. Opening her locker, she turned slowly to find him staring at her, a smirk displayed across his face.

She pointed at him. "John Carter, right?"

John laughed a little as he strode up to her, leaning against the lockers. "Have you forgotten me already?"

Abby reached out and traced the pattern on his tie. "Well, you did look familiar." She took the item in her hands and yanked on it playfully, jerking him forward so that his face was near hers. "Hey, stranger." She gave him a light kiss on the lips before releasing him, turning back to her locker. "How was your day?"

"For the four hours I was conscious, it was pretty exciting. Yours?"

"Barrel of fun." She replied, the sarcasm dripping from her voice.

He laughed. "Poor thing."

Grabbing her jacket and bag out of her locker, Abby closed it and turned to him. "I didn't get to see you this morning."

John took a sip of his coffee and swallowed. "I was still in a trauma when you got here."

Abby nodded. "Ah, yes. That's right." She moved towards the table and set her bag on top of it so she could put on her jacket. "So… What's worse? Working the graveyard shift, or being away from me?" She looked at him expectantly.

"Wow. Tough question." John cringed and backed away as Abby swatted at his arm, sending coffee splashing over the sides of his mug. "You know being away from you makes the shift seem twice as long."

Abby went over to the counter, grabbed a rag and tossed it to him. "Nice save, Dr. Carter."

"I thought it was." He set his mug on the table and crouched down to clean up the spill. He stood again and threw the rag back at her. "What are you doing on Thursday?"

She tilted her head to the side and gave him a puzzled look. "Today is Thursday."

"I know… Next Thursday."

"Oh. Umm…" Abby frowned, trying to get a mental picture of her schedule. "Must-See TV? Why, do you have a better offer?"

John walked around to where she was standing. "As a matter of fact… I do."

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh, really? What?"

"A first date."

Abby opened her mouth to respond but stopped as she realized what he'd said. "John, uh… I don't know if you've realized this, but we've seen each other almost every day for the past five weeks. We've gone to the movies, we've gone to the park. We've even gone mini-golfing." She paused and smiled at him. "I think we've done the whole 'first date' thing."

"Ahh… But we haven't had a real first date, yet. You know, flowers, fine dining… Romance."

Abby took the opportunity of having him close to wrap her arms around his neck. "I don't need to be wooed."

John looked hurt. "But what if I want to… woo you?"

"Well… If you must…." She smiled coyly and looked into his eyes. "… I definitely won't protest."

He smiled back down at her. "Good. So… Thursday?"

Abby nodded. "Next Thursday."

"It's a date, then." John leaned in closer to kiss her, but his approach was interrupted by her hand.

Abby jerked her head to the right. "I think we're being watched."

John looked over his shoulder towards the window. At his movement, the onlookers – Jerry and Chuny – quickly assumed other less conspicuous tasks in an attempt to cover-up their peeping. John shook his head and looked back at Abby. He was surprised to find her trying to hide back a giggle. "Something funny?"

Abby bit her lip to stop the laughter. "Of course not." She reached up on her toes and gave him a small kiss. "Night, John." She broke her grasp from around his neck and grabbed her bag off the table. She paused at the door and turned back towards him. "Until Thursday."

And she was gone, leaving John alone in the lounge, silently coaxing the next six days to go as quickly as possible.

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