Penname: kyla713
Creative Original or Derivative Fiction: Derivative

Rating/Warning(s): T

Disclaimer: All copyrighted, trademarked items, or recognizable characters, plots, etc. mentioned herein belong to their respective owners. No copying or reproduction of this work is permitted without their express written authorization.

Prompt: Use the Following Words: Movement, idle, compassion

As I watched the movement of his lips as he spoke, I felt my heart accelerating. His arms came around an intern who was in tears outside the emergency room doors, no doubt having just witnessed her first Code Blue.

I sat idle in my car, remembering my first experience. Twenty-three year old female, shot by a jealous ex-boyfriend in the chest. Nothing puts your world into perspective than watching the life leave the eyes of one even younger than you.

And he was always the first to drop everything to offer comfort, as he had that day for me. The years he'd spent in this place had certainly not hardened his heart; if anything, his compassion grew with each passing day. I remembered clearly being in the place of the petite blonde currently in his embrace. The way his hand gently stroked my hair, his soft voice in my ear telling me that everything would be okay. That life as a doctor wasn't an easy one, but the lives we save outnumbered the ones we lost. To this day, I still carried those words with me.

And that was the day I realized that I had fallen in love with him.

I'd now spent three years in this ER, working the overnight shift along side him. I loved my job and had considered changing shifts several times to more desirable hours when they'd been offered to me. But in the end, I always declined. I couldn't imagine working with anyone more competent than him, and that was always a reassuring aspect.

Yet I also knew deep down what else that would entail. I would miss seeing him every day, his warm smile and his enchanting eyes. I couldn't leave.

Finally shutting off the engine, I grabbed my bag from the passenger seat, stepping out of the car as he put the young woman in a cab. I walked toward the door and gave him a friendly smile.

"Good evening, Dr. Cullen," I said, nodding in greeting.

His smile grew and he nodded in reply. "Good evening, Esme."

And my heart stopped.