I apologise for any mistakes and/or typos.
Running
Days passed and Tara didn't think much of her nightly encounter with the handsome stranger. Though, she probably would have, had she not been busy at the hospital.
They were repainting one of the hospital wings and everything, including patients, had to be relocated to another wing which hadn't been used in ages. Transporting all the equipment and dozens of people hadn't been easy and the final result was hospital jam where everyone tried to do their best, but often failed since all that conundrum messed with schedules, hospital rooms, and staff divisions.
Coupled with a few days' worth of not sleeping at home but at the hospital simply because it was way more practical than losing time to go home, only to have a two or three hour sleep and having to come back again, Tara found herself drained of energy and oh, how she missed her mattress.
Tara hated the makeshift bed in the supply room because it was old (probably as old as she was), uncomfortable to no end, and even though the room was located far from the reception area and waiting rooms, the noise was still present and she had hard time falling asleep because every few minutes the loudspeaker would chime paging a doctor or giving announcements.
Finally, after a hectic week, Tara went home, quickly undressed and, tumbling onto her bed, crawled under the covers resolved to not get up for at least a day. There was no work to go to tomorrow, no big errands to run, nobody in particular to see and honestly, the call of her warm bed and fuzzy blanket was more appealing than the cold outside.
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Two days later, she got up with her energy restored. Taking a long bath, savouring in the scents of her special bath salts she bought god knows when, but never got to use because she much preferred just a quick shower, then dressing warmly, Tara set out making herself breakfast.
After eating junk food and vending machine products for nearly a week, her body craved for something homemade. Putting on her favourite apron (the one depicting a Santa and his little helpers carrying presents; a gift from her sister), Tara went about the kitchen collecting ingredients and putting them all on the kitchen island, all the while humming some unfamiliar tune. She took out a medium-sized bowl and poured some flour in it then adding a few more ingredients, started to mix them with her hand, and as the ingredients readily combined, Tara started to knead.
Baking always relaxed her, especially when she had a lot on her mind. Tara figured it must have had something to do with her grandma Lois, since she was the one who taught her how to bake when she was still a child, always a patient teacher whose smiled lit up every room she entered. It was the holiday season, and this time of year was always hard for her ever since she moved to Chicago, leaving her family behind.
The comfort and warmth of her family home was one of many things Tara cherished in her life, especially taking in account the many tragedies she witnessed on her job. As she put the baking tray in the oven, Tara went mentally through her to-do list for the day: finding a dress, going to groceries because she was all out of milk...
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After finishing her breakfast, she decided to go shopping, something she hadn't done in ages. Putting on her lilac coat, Tara boldly stepped onto the pavement outside her apartment building, the cold immediately hitting her face so she snuggled it into her scarf and hurried downtown.
It was already snowing, the snowflakes covering the Christmas trees that had been put outside the shops and businesses, the traffic jam and angry shouts ruining the holiday spirit as the people rushed to get to work.
After walking past a few windows, Tara finally entered one of the boutiques. She set out to find an evening gown for a charity gala organised by the hospital board she was supposed to attend on Friday.
She didn't like attending those events, but since it was for a good cause, Tara figured she could at least show up, have a few glasses, maybe socialise a little. There were a few new residents she had yet to meet, not to mention Spencer would definitely kill her if she refused to come simply because she 'didn't feel like it'.
Even though it had been two weeks since the tragic event, some nights Tara still had nightmares.
Becoming a doctor wasn't hard for her. It was her dream since she was a little girl and with all the support from her family, she made that dream a reality. Only, she wasn't aware at first that for all the beauty it offered, more often than not it showed its ugly sides, breaking a little bit of her heart each time.
It took her a lot of time to acknowledge the losses; acknowledge, but never get used to them.
When she had chosen a dress, she got to the register and was greeted by a curly-haired girl with a warm smile that immediately lifted Tara's mood. She was just pulling out her credit card and handing it to the girl when she smelt him.
Yeah, smelt him. And before she could even lift her head to make sure she was just imaging things, the person in question spoke, standing at the second register right next to her.
"Would you mind wrapping this for me, please?"
A shiver passed through her body, and swallowing hard, Tara tried to hide her face from the Mystery Man by leaning on the counter at an awkward angle, her eyes as big as saucers.
How was it possible that after all these weeks in which she hadn't had even the slightest thought of him, suddenly she remembered how he smelt? Or how his lips felt on hers?
His voice was gravely and smooth at the same time, evoking the memories of the night and his sparkling blue eyes that bore into hers. She wasn't drunk then, but oh how she wished she had been, because then she wouldn't remember him or anything from that night and she would be free to act like normal people did, like looking the salesclerk in the eye rather than hiding her face in her damn scarf that was freaking itchy.
Licking her lips involuntarily, Tara choked a gasp in her throat and did her best to focus on her set task: getting the hell out of that store without him seeing her.
"Yes, Sir. I'll be right back."
"Thank you."
Panic rising in her, she quickly turned away from him again, suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of shame. How could she almost sleep with a stranger? What the hell was she thinking then? What if he recognised her too?
She stole a quick glance over her shoulder and yep, he was still there. Only now she realised he was sporting a scruff and looking fucking hot as hell! Damn it. Closing her eyes, Tara prayed her salesclerk would just hurry up so she could go and be ashamed as far away from the Mystery Man as possible.
"Here you go, miss. Thank you for your purchase. Happy holidays!"
Tara grabbed her bags, mumbling a reply and hastily ran for the exit, bumping into the Mystery Man. -"Sorry!"- she yelled without turning, her face hidden and her voice muffled by the woollen scarf. She never heard his reply, her solely focus being getting away as soon as possible. Only when she was a few blocks away did she let herself take a breath and relax. Then she started laughing, unable to contain herself.
She just ran out a store because she was afraid the man would recognise her. How childish was that? He probably didn't even know what she looked like, seeing how they were both shrouded in semi darkness when they kissed.
Tracing her lip with her tongue, a sudden warm sensation rose deep within her. It was a good kiss, damn it. One she should not be thinking about because a) the man was a stranger b) she had other things, more important things to think about c) it meant she needed to get some asap if a single kiss could still create tingles in her nether regions.
Instead of walking, which would have given her plenty of time to dwell on her two encounters with the Mystery Man (she ought to stop calling him that!), Tara took a cab to her next destination.