Disclaimer : I own nothing, guys at WB and NBC do. I just borrow to have fun…

"Hey pretty lady! So how are you doing today?" Clemente smiled at Abby as she walked towards him.

"Fine, and you?" She managed to smile, but seemed highly uncomfortable.

"Good, very good. I feel all the energy from last night. It was really nice." He paused, and Abby shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. "But we didn't see each other much today before the GSW. Were you avoiding me?" Clemente's teasing tone made Abby's smile widen.

"I wasn't avoiding you. Quite the contrary in fact. I wanted to talk to you about last night."

"You'd like a repeat and you're too shy to ask." Abby chuckled at his little joke and shook her head. "You know, I can do better. Maybe we could go somewhere more intimate..."

"More intimate than 'La Bohême'? Does a place like that even exist?"

"Yeah my flat... or yours. I'm a good cook, I could surprise you." She felt herself blush. She looked around making sure nobody was close enough to hear them.

"I'm sure you could. But it wouldn't be a good idea." She shook her head. Letting him brutally was maybe the safer option. He looked a little to self-certain. "Do you have time for a coffee? Let's take that somewhere, we can talk without being disturbed."

"Sure, let's go out for a minute." As they passed near Admit, Frank questioningly looked at Clemente. The doctor shrugged theatrically and followed Abby outside.

"Ah! Clemente is getting the brush off. Wonder how she will word that." Frank followed them with his eyes. He pursed his lips, regretting that this conversation wasn't taking place close enough for him to hear.

"Maybe 'Sorry, you're nice and all, but given the choice I'd take a tall, hot Croat over you any time'." Inez had blurted out her sally without blinking.

"Wow! You're harsh when you want, Inez." Frank was stunned by her snippy comment. He didn't know she had that in her. She always seemed so shy and well-mannered. Maybe his behavior was rubbing off her. He smiled at the idea.

"Well, that's what I would tell him. I mean who would honestly take Clemente over Kovac?" She shrugged certain to have stated the obvious.

"I might take Clemente. He is a good doctor and very knowledgeable. " Neela went to the closest computer at Admit and shook her head at Morris' answer. Unlike her, he hadn't heard the beginning of the conversation. And unlike her, he wasn't aware of the latest subject of conversation around ER.

"Morris! They're not talking about medicine." Neela pointed out. She observed him, wondering if he would finally get it.

"No? About what then?" Morris asked, his frustration patent.

"See, you're slow. Inez, I'd take Kovac too." It was pointless. She concentrated on her files and pretended the other resident wasn't there anymore.

Clemente was drinking his coffee while observing Abby. With a cup in her hand she seemed more comfortable. He tried to refrain the smile that was forming on his lips. She was certainly trying to find the nicest way to tell him off. He waited, quite eager to hear her out.

"I don't know how to say this." Abby was feeling a little unsure. She looked at Victor trying to assess his state of mind.

"Just say it. I'm a big boy, come on shoot!" He flashed her an encouraging smile. She took a deep breath and readied herself for what she had to say.

"When I accepted to go out with you last night, that was just two friends having a good time together." Her eyes were intent on him.

"And that's what we had. Or didn't you enjoy the evening?"

"Yeah, I did." She nodded. Sure, the evening had been fun. That hadn't been the problem. "But I was expecting pizza or pasta for dinner and maybe a drink afterwards. Certainly not 'La Bohême', red roses and dancing. That was a little beyond what I had in mind..."

"So you're basically telling me that your first dates usually suck and you were disappointed that this one was better?" Clemente disbelievingly asked.

"I never said that." His answer brought a smile on her face. If she was completely honest, he wasn't that wrong. Her first dates had usually been pretty bad.

"Well I'm not like that. I want the ladies I invite to have a memorable moment."

"Victor, we never agreed on a date." She reminded him. "That's the problem. If you had gone out with Ray or Greg, you certainly wouldn't have taken them to places like that."

"Of course not. I don't do things like that with men." Victor bit his lips. This conversation was cracking him up.

"You should have treated me like a man. As much as I liked it, it made me very uncomfortable. I was wondering what you had in mind. It was very disturbing."

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize you felt that way. It's just you didn't seem interested by just a drink and playing pool. So I thought..."

"Yeah I guess, I'm at fault too."

"So that means no further dates." He chuckled at the word. "I mean you don't plan to go out with me again, just as friends of course."

"I'd rather not, I'm sorry. People will talk if we go out. The rumor mill at County is pretty nasty and I don't want that to happen. Let's say my past history here has made me a likely subject for their conversations. My life is complicated enough as it is and that's not something I want to deal with."

"Have some of your friends advised you against going out with me?"

"No, of course not. Why would any of them do that?" She seemed genuinely surprised by his question.

"Not everyone likes me around here. I thought you might have let someone's opinion of me influence you." Abby's face froze as he said that. Nibbling her lower lip, she pondered what she could answer. She didn't want one rumor to replace another one.

"You're awfully quiet suddenly. So I'm right. Kovac told you I was bad news and you listened to him."

"He did no such thing."

"So he had nothing to do with your decision?" She closed her eyes and slowly shook her head. She took a steadying breath and steeled herself for the lie to come.

"He has absolutely nothing to do with my decision." She tapped her coffee cup in attempts to settle the uneasiness in her stomach.

"Yeah sure. Thanks for the coffee. If you should change your mind, you know where I am. I better be getting back, it's cold here." Abby observed Clemente as he walked away. The discussion hadn't gone too bad. She could only hope that her date hadn't allowed any new rumor to unfold. She definitely didn't need that.