Neil's second attempt at a first date with Louise went well. He made sure to arrive at the restaurant early and was waiting there with a smile when she arrived.
"Hi" he said suddenly feeling a little shy and quite self conscious. The bravado he'd felt when he'd actually asked her out had run for the hills now that he was sat here looking at her smiling face.
"Hi" she replied with a smile which made her eyes twinkle. "You made it?"
"Yeah" he said feeling the self consciousness shifting quickly to embarrassment. "I can explain..." he started.
"I know all about it, hospital grapevine" she smiled. "It's fine, it happens."
"That's good, thanks" he smiled back with a wave of relief waving over him. He stood and gestured towards the tables. "Shall we?"
They sat across from each other and talked right through from appetizer to dessert without directly bringing up the topic of St Bonaventure. They found out each other's likes and dislikes, favourite foods with a bit of family talk thrown in for good measure. They shared stories about their time at college and where they hoped they would end up in their chosen fields.
"Chief of Surgery?!" she said with a hint of surprise. "That's bold for a fourth year resident" she smiled.
"Aim high" he shrugged. "I'll be there in ten years, I'll put money on it" he smiled.
There was a pause in the conversation and Louise gathered herself to ask the question that had been at the back of her mind since he'd initially asked her out.
She took a deep breath.
"Can I ask you something?" she eventually asked. "Personal?"
"Sure" he replied sitting back in his seat and dabbing the corners of his mouth. "Shoot."
She paused again and sat a little more upright in her seat before clearing her throat.
"You and Dr Lim..." she began, looking awkward as he started to shake his head with a thin lipped smile.
"Are friends" he finished.
"Really? It's just been popular opinion for a while around the hospital that you guys are more than that."
"Maybe we could have been once" he said shaking his head. "But certainly not any more. Just friends" he smiled.
"Okay" she smiled back. "Thank you. Sorry but I just had to ask."
"It's fine" he confirmed. "It's hard to find someone who understands the hospital lifestyle. I guess it can all get a bit incestuous sometimes" he said shaking his head.
"I get it" she smiled. "I guess it's hard to find someone to get a movie with on a weekday morning or the middle of the night when your working eighty hours a week.
"I'll drink too that" he smiled, holding up his glass to toast.
X
After insisting on picking up the check, they walked slowly back towards his car. "Can I give you a ride home?" he asked, looking to spend a few extra moments with her.
"I actually live just a couple of blocks from here" she replied with a smile. "I'll be fine."
"Least I can do is walk you then?" he suggested and smiled when she linked her arm in his.
They stopped on the front steps of the apartment she shared with a couple of roommates. She took a couple of steps up and turned to face him.
"Do you want to come in?" she asked, her voice a little shaky. "Just for a coffee" she added quickly.
He glanced over and saw the blinds in the nearby window move which made him chuckle.
"I can't tonight, sorry" he said. "But maybe next time" he added, seeing her face fall a little.
"Sure" she smiled. "Next time."
"I think your roommates are expecting a show this evening though" he teased as her head snapped around to see the blinds twitching again.
"Sorry" she sighed, shaking her head. "They don't get out much."
"Sadly, neither do I" he lamented. "But if it's okay with you, we can give them a preview" he smirked and she nodded mutely.
He took one step up towards her, putting their noses almost level. Tucking some loose hair back behind her ear, her took the chance to cup her face in his hand. Smiling softly, he closed the gap and kissed her, smiling as he felt her kiss him back.
"See you tomorrow" Neil said quietly as they smiled shyly at each other.
"See you tomorrow" she repeated before she turned and headed up the last couple of steps and in through her front door.
He walked slowly back to his car, kicking his heels with his hands stuffed into his pockets. Smiling to himself, he thought about how he had enjoyed himself this evening and how he really did hope they could do this again. Maybe it would work well dating Louise. She seemed to understand the time constraints and challenges he faced and was already well established in her own department.
It was probably sensible to date someone he wasn't competing with. They only had eighteen months left before their final set of exams and had to apply for fellowships even before that. Despite the fact that St Bonaventure was a prominent surgical centre, funds were still limited and subsequently so were employment opportunities. It was rare that an entire intake of residents would find employment at their training hospital but it was not something that the friends had talked about yet. None of them wanted to bring it up.
By the time he got back to his car, his mood was more sullen until he dropped into his seat and checked his cell. He'd had a text.
'Thanks for tonight. Looking forward to next time.'
'Me too. Soon' he replied.
X
The next few months passed in a blur and it was soon October, widely considered the start of the most challenging period for anyone working in a hospital. The build up to Halloween always brought in the interesting and downright weird and Christmas and New Year was always the busiest with regular offices keeping holiday hours.
Before all that chaos began, the four friends were heading off to a concert on a rare night out together. Their schedules were as crazy as always and Jo was spending a lot of her free time with Matt which Audrey was finding quite challenging so this time was precious.
Despite their spotty success rate, Neil and Louise were still dating. They'd had to take rain checks on many more dates than either of them would have liked but after a few more successful ones, he'd eventually accepted her invitation to come in for coffee.
Earlier on in the year, the friends had purchased some Carrie Underwood tickets for Neil's birthday and tonight was the night. He had been looking forward for weeks and had been at the end of some good natured, but serious teasing about his notoriously dubious musical tastes. Despite that, a nice dinner had been booked at a local steakhouse and they were all currently sat around a table waiting for the server to place their order.
Conversations flowed as though they went for dinner weekly. They teased Jo about Matt when she announced she'd be meeting his family over Christmas this year. They found out all about Kevin's new partner, a police officer who he'd met in the ER. He'd been there to pick up a patient who had been arrested for a DUI but had needed some stitches first. They hadn't met him yet, but Kevin seemed happy so they were too.
They found out from Audrey that Kashal had been in town recently visiting the San Jose office and had stopped by the apartment to keep up appearances, just as they'd agreed.
"How was it?" Jo asked curiously.
"It was fine actually. It seems we get on better with no expectations" she said feeling peculiar talking about it.
"Did he stay?" Kevin asked, earning himself a smack in the arm. "Legitimate question considering they are 'married'" he said using air quotes.
"It's fine" Audrey chuckled. "He stayed at a hotel near the office to entertain clients."
"He hasn't changed his mind though right? You're still heading for that divorce right?" Jo asked.
"Absolutely" Audrey replied. "No going back there" she said with a shudder.
Neil stayed quiet for the duration of the Kashal conversation, not feeling that he could be objective in his opinions. He had told Audrey recently that she had no business poking into his love life, so he certainly couldn't voice his opinion on hers.
Once Audrey excused herself to use the bathroom, Kevin and Jo turned and started quizzing him on Louise.
"How is it going with you guys? It's been a few months right?" Kevin asked, hoping he sounded genuinely interested.
"It's good. We've seen each other quite a few times, luckily she seems to get how much I need to work right now" Neil replied.
"Yeah lucky" Jo replied snarkily. "Are you exclusive or can you see other people?"
"And here we are, back in High School again!" he exclaimed. "I hardly get time to see one woman, let alone anyone else. I've probably cancelled on her more times than we've actually been out" he said, suddenly feeling a bit uncertain about their relationship status.
Seeing his face change to disappointment as it dawned in him what was to likely to come, the friends glanced at each other. It seemed that until he'd actually said those words out loud, he hadn't believed that this couldn't be serious. With a nod from Kevin, Jo took the conversation up a gear.
"Do you think it'll last" she asked him bluntly.
"Kick me while I'm down why don't you" he replied, a little disappointed his friends hadn't seemed to notice his conflict. "Can we call time on this conversation please? This is meant to be fun!"
"Sorry" Kevin replied sheepishly. "Let's change the subject. How about we take another review of your amazingly bad musical tastes. The reason we are all here tonight!" he teased making them all laugh out loud.
"What did I miss?" Audrey asked as she arrived back at the table to find them in a very jolly mood.
"The usual 'pick on Neil because he likes good music' rubbish" he laughed as she sat down next to him.
"You like country. That's different" she said stoically making them roar with laughter again.
X
The concert was a sell out and they had splashed out for good seats considering that it was a gift. By the time they had finished dinner, they had missed the first few numbers of the opening act but what Neil did hear, he liked. He would have to remember to look Hunter Hayes on his Spotify later.
The main event started and the whole crowd got to their feet. She opened the show with a fantastic rendition of Good Girl and even Audrey would admit it gave her goosebumps to hear thousands of people singing along at once.
The biggest crowd pleaser of the night was Before he Cheats which seemed to be the pre-encore closer. "Shall we go now, beat the crowds?" Jo shouted loudly to Audrey.
"No way!" she replied shaking her head. "Look at him."
Jo turned to follow Audreys gaze and saw Neil with one of the biggest smiles she had ever seen plastered across his face. He was having the best time.
Underwood finished the show on just as much of a high note as she started and as the stage lights went out, the foursome sat back in their seats and waited for the crowd to clear.
"That was great" Neil said, smiling like an idiot. "Thank you so much. And thank you for sitting through it" he added, knowing they wouldn't have enjoyed it as much as he had.
"It wasn't that bad" Kevin admitted. "It was a great show, that floating platform was something else!"
Eventually they decided the crowds had thinned enough for them to join the lines for the exit. As they approached the concourse Neil held his hand out behind him and Audrey took it without question. Kevin and Jo exchanged a look between them and shrugged.
Maybe this thing wasn't over after all.