A secret to be told
By Anne-Katrin C.
© August 2006

"Are you in love with Sully?"

"Pardon me?"

"Well, I mean, you've never really said...straight out...how you feel about him."

"Well, this isn't something a lady talks about...Alright, I do love him. But as a friend."

"And that's all?"

"Yes, I suppose we're just friends and that's what I imagine we'll remain."

"You're sure?"

"Yes of course I'm sure. Why? What's this all about?"

"Nothing...just wondering is all."

"Dr. Mike, can I ask you something?"

"May I, Colleen." Michaela corrected.

"May I ask you something, Dr. Mike?" the young girl repeated.

"Of course you may."

Colleen looked at her adoptive mother, who was sitting on the edge of her bed. Just after their meal at Grace's Colleen had been ordered back to bed for a few more days of bed rest before she could go out again and enjoy the nice weather with her newly found friend Lewis.

"Why were you so scared to admit that you love Sully?"

"I don't..." she stopped herself from saying something wrong, "I was not scared."

"Yes you were. You even dropped your scissors into the bowel." Colleen chuckled.

"My, it seems you are indeed feeling better. I suppose I was just surprised."

"Yes, but there's nothing wrong with admitting that you love someone as a friend, right?" Colleen squinted her eyes, sensing there was more than Dr. Mike was letting on.

Though she was still hurting from Sully's rejection, she'd learned enough to know it wouldn't work out anyway. But she had noticed something between Dr. Mike and Sully right from the frist time she'd seen those two together. That alone had made her ask that stupid question, if her adoptive mother loved Sully.

"No there isn't." Michaela agreed with her daughter.

"So then you do love Sully? As a friend, I mean?"

"Yes, I thought we were over that?" She replied, slightly blushing and feeling uncomfortable at having such an intimate discussion with Colleen.

"Then how come you're blushing every time someone's mentioning him?"

"Colleen! That's not true." She exclaimed.

"Yes it is!" the girl defended. "So how come?"

"Colleen, I already told you this isn't something a lady is talking about..." she said her voice trailing off.

"But why, ain't nothing inappropriate in talking about friends, is there?"

"Well,no..." she admitted, suddenly realizing she was revealing herself with her own words.

"So then Sully's not just a friend, if you thing it's not appropriate to talk about him, right?" Colleen was trying really hard to get Dr. Mike to talk and she thought she had succeeded when downstairs a door could be heard, the sound interrupting their conversation.

"We'll talk about this later." She promised the blond haired girl before she stood and left the room.

Appearing downstairs no one could be found and she wondered if the person had left thinking she wasn't there. She stepped in front of her clinic and looked to her left in the direction of the mercantile. Several people were walking on the street towards the clinic and away from it, but no one seemed to have been there a moment ago. But when she looked to her right in the direction of the church she saw Sully walking away. Being sure it must have been him in the clinic, she started down on the street and towards the bridge.

Sully had just crossed the bridge when she finally caught up with him.

"Sully." She called causing him to turn around.

"Hey." She wanted to ask him what he wanted, but suddenly it occured to her that he might not have been the person in the clinic. Maybe she was just hoping that it had been him.

"What is it?" He asked when she didn't say anything.

"Well, this may sound stupid, but..."

"Ain't nothing stupid you say." He fell in her word, making her blush slightly.

"Oh, well...I was...that is..." she was clearly flustered by his compliment and he realized he wasn't making it any easier on her to say what she wanted to say. He had to admit it was an akward situation. They both knew there was something between them, something more than a friendship and Colleen's falling in love with him had only made things more complicated. He wondered how she felt about things, but he was afraid to ask.

"I just heard the clinic door and thought it might have been you." She finally admitted.

"Was me," He said, "Heard you talking to Colleen and thought it better to leave you both alone."

She wondered how much of their conversation he had heard. There was nothing wrong with admitting that someone was a friend, she knew that. Yet she knew it was, if this someone was more than just a friend. Strangely she hoped that he hadn't heard that part, knowing he would take it seriously.

"We were just having a little chat." She said hoping he would reveal how much he had heard.

"I wasn't eavesdropping if that's what you wanna know."

"I didn't think you were!" She gave back looking him directly in the eyes.

"So what are we gonna do about Colleen?" He asked changing the topic slightly, but not fully.

"Well, I suppose we let things go and see how everything turns out..."

"Nothing to turn out between Colleen and me!" He exclaimed, interrupting her train of thought.

"That's not what I meant, Sully." She replied wondering what got him so upset about this. "I know how you feel about her...at least that." She explained her last words not more than a whisper more to herself than for his ears to hear.

"Besides..." He said abent-minded not continuing.

"Besides what?" She asked looking expectantly at him.

"Nothin'" His answer was curt.

"You were going to say something else. So besides what?" She pressured, not liking the fact that he was about to say something and then obviously thought better of it then to tell her.

"Besides..." He said theatrically, making a big deal out of her wanting to know everything. "Besides, I have some other girl in mind."

"Oh..."

"Was that a good oh or a bad one?" Sully tried her, having heard the slightly biting and disappointed tone in her voice.

"That depends." She gave back without looking at him.

"On what?" He gazed intently at her.

"If she feels the same. If she doesn't it would be a bad one I guess."

"Still trying to figure that out." She felt his stare on her but she couldn't return it, not now, not when she was about to make him figure it out. "Maybe, you could meet her?"

"I don't know..." She was unsure. Did she want to meet the woman Sully had fallen in love with?

"Please, you could help me figure out if she had feelings for me." He pressured her, sensing that she was uncomfortable meeting that woman.

"Well, I suppose I could. But I'm not promising anything." She said finally, exhaling loudly.

"Fortunately, she ain't far, so you could meet her right now." He observed her reaction.

"Now?" She asked a little louder than she had intended. Her heart beat was speading up and her hands started sweating. She couldn't possibly meet that woman right now. She wasn't prepared.

"Yea, now..." Michaela quickly scanned the area around them for any sign of who it could be, but she saw no one near them. Confusion written on her face she turned back to Sully.

"Who is it?" Curiousity got the better of her. She had to know before she met her, prepare at least a little bit.

"Well, you know she's beautiful and smart...ain't never met a woman like her." He pretended to be far away with his thoughts, but in reality he was closely watching her reaction to his words. "And I heard that she's..."

"She's what?" She wondered why he had stopped.

"Don't tell anyone!" He demanded and then leaning into her ear whispered, "She's...a doctor." Pulling back slightly to observe her face he saw the confusion in her features.

A doctor? She had never heard that there was another lady doctor around.Suddenly it dawned on her and her face turned a bright shade of red and her eyes grew large. "Sully."

He leaned back in and gave her a quick peck on the lips before she could say another word.

"So now that you met her, you think she's sweet on me?" He asked, hoped, wished, wondered with a light smile on his lips. Still relishing her sweet taste.

"Sully, I..." She stammered, "I don't kow what to say...I..." She stopped unsure of the right words, but one look in his face and she knew the answer. "I think she's very sweet on you." She said finally gaining her courage and smiling back at him.

He laughed light-hearted at their little game and leaned back in to give her another kiss. She hesitated at first, but having his lips against hers like on her birthday, like she had dreamed about in her sleep, like she had wished to feel them, she quickly reciprocated the kiss her hands coming up to grip the soft material of his shirt.

After several moments he leaned back and gazed at her not able to believe that she was really here in his arms and giving herself to him. But the look on her face, her lkiss-swollen lips and the gleam in her eyes let him know that this was real. So he took her in his arms and gave her a tight hug, pressing her body against his to make sure she was were she belonged.

The End