Murdock had finally moved from his spot on the bed to sit on the floor. Beside him was Billy, whimpering slightly as he let Murdock pet his stomach. Murdock sighed, looking his dog in the eyes. "Don't worry Billy, BA and Hannibal are on the case." Billy just kept whimpering, and Murdock knew he was just as worried.
Suddenly there was a commotion outside the door, causing Billy to stand up and growl. Murdock watched the door cautiously, knowing there was no reason for the orderlies to come get him. Suddenly the door opened quickly revealing a fast talking Face, accompanied by the nurse who was trying to dissuade him.
"I'm sorry Doctor, but we have no records of your appointment." The nurse was saying, although anyone could tell she was ready to give up.
"Then recheck your records and fire whoever keeps track of such things. This is a very important appointment, and you don't want Mister Murdock to miss it, do you?"
The nurse glanced at Murdock, than back to Face. "Alright Doctor, you can take him. But try to be back on time." With that she left, shaking her head in confusion. Face turned to Murdock, a sheepish grin on his face.
Murdock was on his feet and had Face in a huge embrace before he could speak. "Face!" He cried, the relief and excitement evident in his voice. Face awkwardly hugged him back before gently pushing him away.
"It's good to see you too, Murdock," He said, straightening the Doctor's coat he wore. "Listen, I'm really sorry about not being here quicker. I was about to come but I got distracted and just kind of lost track of time…."
Murdock's smile faltered and pain filled his eyes, but only for a second. The mask of eager happiness was back as he gave Face a knowing look. "Aw, it's alright Faceman. I've been busy today anyways," it was a lie, but one meant to make Face feel less guilty; Murdock would rather let Face think he was fine and feel better than know it had hurt him and feel guilty.
Face didn't see Murdock's slip of emotions and gave him a genuine smile. It sounded like BA and Hannibal had just over exaggerated. Murdock had probably had more fun here with his imagination than Face had had with Jess and their cookie dough.
"So, who is she?" Murdock's question startled the conman out of his thoughts. Murdock, seeing that Face's mind had been elsewhere, elaborated. "You know, the girl you were with this morning. Who was she?"
Face tried to shrug nonchalantly, but failed. "Her name's Jess," he told Murdock, not willing to lie to him. "She came over last night after I called you," He added on as an afterthought. "I didn't even know she was coming."
Murdock nodded, hearing the tone in his friend's voice. "Jess, the same Jess you had a date with the night we got back from that farm in Idaho?" He asked, smiling. "That's gotta be what, two months? A new record!"
Face looked at him, slightly startled. For someone with intermittent memory loss, Murdock sure remembered the details. He nodded slightly, giving his friend a slight frown. "Thanks, Murdock. For your information, I like this girl." He didn't plan on saying any more, but Murdock caught on like usual.
The pilot's eyes widened. "You mean…. 'Like' like?" He asked in a hushed tone.
Face rolled his eyes at the childish expression, but smiled a genuine smile. "Yes, 'like' like. Now grab your jacket and come on; if we don't hurry the nurse is going to think we've planned to stay here."" He watched Murdock immediately scramble for his jacket, then call Billy to follow them.