The weekend of the wedding passed in a blur for Neil and as expected, he was a model best man, everything went like clockwork. He gave a gracious toast at the rehearsal dinner, recalling some of the more silly things they'd got up to as a group of friends but balancing it perfectly with tales of how he'd seen the love grow between Adam and Lily over the years.
They ate, drank and danced the weekend away and as Neil headed back to San Jose on the Sunday afternoon, he felt tired but happy and refreshed.
In between wedding duties, he had spent some time with his folks and was currently driving down the 101 with freshly made Empanadas and Miguelitos in the passenger foot well which he had to share with his friends... Mom's instructions.
He smiled to himself as he recalled his Mom's constant questioning about why he hadn't found himself a good woman yet. Apparently, training to be a surgeon was not enough of an excuse to let his love life suffer!
He hadn't mentioned Jessica, Nicola or Audrey once, that was ammunition his Mom did not need!
His father was a little more level headed and was just happy that he was happy, whatever he was doing. He could relate more to that way of thinking. He and his dad were very similar.
He had a shift at the hospital tomorrow to get through, and Tuesday morning he and Audrey were off to the movies. She'd sent a simple text message after finding the tickets saying 'thanks, see you next week' which made him smile more than he should have. They would see each other at the hospital tomorrow for a short while so they could confirm plans.
Stopping at the market on the way home for groceries, he found himself wandering the aisles with a cart thinking about Audrey. He'd see something on the shelf that she'd like and had to stop himself throwing it into the basket.
'Bit stalker like' he smiled to himself as he stocked up and headed home for the evening.
X
He could have sworn that it was Monday almost as soon as he'd closed his eyes Sunday night. His alarm pierced a rather pleasant dream and he woke, stretching, yawning and desperate for coffee.
Eventually ready to leave, he grabbed the container of his Mom's culinary delights and headed to the car with his coffee to go. He had been a little slow off the mark this morning and was he was playing catch up. He'd need to haul ass if he wasn't going to be late today.
Of all the days to struggle to find a parking space, it had to be today. He jogged into the building, dropped the box off in the break room and carried on to the locker room as fast as possible without actually running.
"Cutting it fine aren't we?!" he heard as he passed the nurses station on the surgery ward. Kevin just laughed as he kept going.
Changing into his surgical scrubs and coat he sidled into place in the group with seconds to go before rounds started, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by Dr Glassman.
"Good weekend Dr Melendez?" he asked in an obviously rhetorical manner.
"Yes Sir" he replied, not going into detail.
"Are you ready to start?" Glassman asked, with a mock glare.
"Yes Sir" Neil replied again.
"Let's review our first patient" Glassman said, gesturing for the residents to move ahead. "Dr Melendez, a moment please?"
Neil hung back, feeling a little nervous. He had never been late before, and he wasn't today if you looked at it technically.
"Dr Melendez" Glassman began formally. "I understand you visited with family this weekend?"
"Yes Sir, I saw my parents this weekend" he replied.
"Now I understand that you don't get much vacation time as a resident, but this is the second whole weekend you've had off so far this year." He held up his hand as Neil opened his mouth to interject. "One thing I would like to know is..." he paused for dramatic effect. "Is if your Mom put almonds into the miguelitos. I'm allergic" he smiled watching the look of relief pass over Neil's face.
"No Sir" he replied shaking his head and letting out a long breath. "No almonds" he smiled.
"Great" he replied as he turned to walk away. "Oh, and Dr Melendez. Don't be late again."
"Yes Sir" Neil replied, rushing after them to catch up.
X
He caught up with Audrey a few hours later as she was heading home. She had her jacket on ready to go and he was heading into the OR but they needed to make plans for the morning.
"I hear the Golden Boy had a dressing down this morning" she teased getting a shake of the head in response.
"Yeah, yeah" he joked. "We all know who the favourite is! I've got to run, Aud. Meet you there tomorrow?"
"Don't you want a ride? Save you driving after a long shift?"
"You won't catch me on that donor machine, thank you very much! I'll give that a hard pass" he smiled at the look of mock offense she gave him.
"Sure thing, see you there" she replied with a smile.
"It's a date" he blurted, looking horrified the moment the words left his lips. "Not a date. I mean, you know what I mean" he blundered.
"I know" she smiled softly, patting his shoulder as she walked away. "See you in the morning."
X
Neil's shift continued into the night and he eventually arrived home around midnight to crash into his bed for some well earned sleep.
Walking with a start a couple of hours later, he sat up thinking he'd slept through but when his eyes focused on the clock next to the bed, he sighed with relief when he saw it was just 2am. Setting his alarm he rolled over, pulled up the covers and went back to sleep.
What felt like just minutes later, he groaned as his alarm disturbed his sleep. He had been dreaming about taking Audrey up on her offer of a ride. He'd had his arms wrapped tight around her as she guided the bike flawlessly around the corners of some imaginary scenic route.
He lay there for a few more minutes smiling to himself, eventually dragging his weary body out of bed, to the kitchen to set the coffee to go, and back into the shower.
Feeling refreshed, and a bit more awake he pulled on his pants, a round neck t-shirt and poured himself a large coffee. He closed his eyes as the hot liquid warmed him from the inside and he felt the caffeine starting to take hold.
'Right, let's go' he said to himself, grabbing his car keys and heading out.
X
He waited.
The parking lot was deserted when he arrived so he sat in his car and finished his coffee and closed his eyes for just a moment.
He was startled awake by a gently tap on his window and he looked up into Audreys amused face. She still sat astride her bike and gestured for him to roll down his window.
"Can I leave this in your car please?" she asked holding up her helmet.
"Good morning to you, too" he smiled, raising his eyebrows. "Lovely day isn't it!"
"Sure, morning" she replied. "Come on, we're going to miss the start" she said trying to hurry him up.
They walked to the theatre in step and were a little surprised to not see a single soul in line for the concessions. Audrey grabbed a popcorn, after a discussion on how that wasn't actually breakfast and they went to find their seats. With just a smattering of other seats taken, they pretty much had their pick on where to sit. Right in the centre of course, best sound and best view.
The trailers started and Audrey turned as she heard a rustle from Neil's seat.
"Now that's breakfast" he whispered presenting her with a fresh bear claw from a bag he'd smuggled in. The smile she gave him was wonderful, and he briefly considered bringing her a fresh pastry every day just to see it over again.
He glanced over at her a few times during the movie and just like the last time, she was enthralled. She broke briefly from her trance to take as handful of popcorn and caught him watching her instead of the movie. She leaned towards him and beckoned him closer.
"It's good you're still awake this time" she whispered in his ear, making him shiver. "But the movie is that way" she pointed, smiling.
He gave a bashful smile in response and felt like a kid with his hand caught in the cookie jar. He didn't stop sneaking glances, but was sure not to get caught again!
The movie finished, they picked up their trash and headed back out into the parking lot, squinting into the sunshine. They strolled back to their vehicles, hands brushing every few steps but not feeling like they had to jump apart. This was new.
She collected her helmet from the trunk and sat astride the Ducati, getting ready to go.
"Thank you for this" she smiled at him. "It was good to have company."
"No problem, any time" Neil smiled. "So, Captain America next?" he blurted out, just as she was about to put her helmet on.
"It's a date" she smiled, echoing his words from the previous day. "I'll look forward to it" she said, sliding her helmet on and starting the engine. She raised her hand to bid him farewell and he smiled to himself as he watched her drive away.
He caught his reflection in his window as he turned to open his door and was a little surprised at the grin on his face. He had enjoyed himself, despite the fact that they had barely spoken the whole time and was already looking forward to doing it again in July.