A New Day
Chapter 2
The walk from her apartment to the hospital is a short one, and it does little to prepare Cristina for what has become a familiar, confusing jumble of feelings. There's a swell of anticipation and excitement at the idea of seeing Owen. And despair at not being able to talk and covertly flirt with him.
It's not as if Owen had not tried. She remembers feeling the heat of his eyes on her when he was about to say something to her almost every time that they've had a little privacy, only for him to close his mouth and for her to walk away. Whenever he was near, she could feel his sadness playing a silent duet with hers.
Cristina bypasses the coffee cart, changes into her scrubs and heads for the cafeteria. For some reason, green tea just feels right this morning. She doesn't know why, but it just does. She pays for her tea, takes a long sip, feeling the heat of the cup in her hands, and the liquid down her throat.
It's funny how something like this can thaw the chill of a cold spring morning.
Thaw. Icicle. Owen. It's funny how all things lead back to Owen. No one has melted her heart like he has.
As she heads for the door, Owen walks in. He looks at her with a pained expression, and it is all she can do to run into his arms and embrace him tightly.
Instead, she walks toward him and stops, mere inches dividing them. He looks at her, searching her face for clues.
"Don't say anything yet," she murmurs. "Not here. Follow me."
Without a word, Cristina leads him out of the cafeteria and up the stairwell to a balcony in one of the more quiet wings of the hospital.
"You're not the only one with secret places, you know," she says. Side by side, both of them look out to the Seattle vista as she continues, "There was a place I went to after my father died where I felt I could feel safe. It was a library.
"I read. A lot. Surrounded by all those books, I was in another world. Maybe I thought I could find the answer to my grief in all those books.
"I don't have any answer for where we're at right now, Owen. I don't know everything that happened to you in Iraq. But if you let me help, I know there is something I can do.
"I'm going to see Dr. Wyatt. I don't want to be scared of falling asleep in your arms anymore."
Owen takes a deep breath and exhales. He closes his eyes and faces her. Gently, he places his arms around her and embraces her. She turns to face him, wraps her arms around him. Tenderly, he kisses her forehead, one hand holding the back of her head. She gazes into his eyes, brings her parted lips to his. She rests one hand on his cheek. He turns his lips to her open hand and presses his lips to her palm.
"I want nothing more than both of us to be unafraid to dream again, Cristina."