One hour.
That's all the time Juliet had left before she had to scrub in for James' surgery. One hour. Sixty minutes. Thirty-six hundred seconds. They were ticking away all too quickly.
It wasn't that she wasn't confident about her skills in the OR; she'd performed this surgery dozens of times, and she knew exactly what she was doing. It was that she was operating on this man. This smooth-talking Casanova; this incredibly sweet felon of a man who had already begun to work his way into her heart. She'd let herself get attached too soon, and she knew that could jeopardize everything if she let it. she had to remain calm, no matter what happened in the OR that day.
Juliet made her way to his room to talk to him once more before they prepped him, and found him sitting up, watching the door expectantly. "Hey, there," she greeted him with a smile.
"Hey yourself, Blondie. 'Bout time ya got here, I been waitin'."
Juliet chuckled, taking a seat in the chair at his bedside. "I just came to discuss a few things before surgery," she told him.
"Like how much you're diggin' on me and the hot dates we're gonna have once I'm a free man?" he asked with a hopeful grin, showcasing his dimples. He wasn't feeling the greatest, but seeing her face went a long way towards making it all better.
"No," she replied, laughing sweetly, "We'll discuss that later." she continued with a grin. "What I have to talk to you about now is a little less pleasant, I'm afraid." she said, wrinkling her nose.
"Well, go on, then, so we can get to the good stuff." he said, reaching for her hand, which she surrendered to him easily.
"Alright. Well, as you know, I've got to remove a portion of your lung in order to get the whole tumor and prevent it from spreading."
"Yippee." he said unenthusiastically, though he kept a small smile on his face for her.
"James," she said, as though scolding, but her voice was soft, "Every surgery contains a certain amount of risk, and I need to know that you're aware-"
"I could die on the table, and blah, blah, blah, I know, Blondie." he said, still smiling. He'd never been good with all that emotional stuff. She gave him a look, eyebrow arched, and he sighed, "Listen. You're gonna do great in there. I know you will." he said, his thumb gently stroking the back of her hand, "I'm gonna be just fine, and then we're goin' on that date you promised me."
"I never promised you-"
"Sure ya did. Anyway," he said with a light laugh, "Everything's gonna be okay. You'll see."
"You say that so confidently, I almost believe it," she said with a chuckle.
"Well gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, doc." he said, his laugh turning into a cough.
"Shh," she said, placing her free hand on his chest until his cough quieted, "That's not what I meant. I meant…I'm sure of myself in the OR. That's my territory, that's what I know how to do best. I'm not worried about the surgery, I…I'm worried about what happens when you get out of there. What happens after." she admitted.
A grin spread across his face at her confession, "What happens after, Blondie, is the part I'm excited about the most." he said, leaning in to her.
"James!" she said, retreating slightly, "I'm about to cut you open, you can't be clouding my head with-" But she didn't get the chance to finish her thought. He pulled her back to him and kissed her, clouded head be damned. He had no idea how he'd managed to get a woman like this to even consider dating him, but maybe, just maybe, she was his second chance at life. He'd never quite gotten things right, but in the short time he'd known her, she made him want to change all that. She saw beyond the prison record.
When the kiss ended, Juliet paused for a few moments, taking a deep breath. "You can't just do that, you know. I wasn't ready." she said, a soft smile appearing on her lips. "And anyway, as I was saying, you can't be clouding my head with kissing, not now. My head needs to be completely clear, and when you do that…I can't focus when you do that."
"Mm, good to know I have that effect on you. Might come in handy." he said, his dimples appearing as he grinned at her.
She laughed, "What makes you think you'll have the opportunity to use it against me?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Gut feelin'." he responded. "C'mon now, Blondie, gimme one more kiss and then go get yourself focused."
"James."
"Don't make me play the 'sick man' card."
Juliet laughed again, "Has anyone ever told you that you're incorrigible?"
"Yes, but comin' from you, it sounds a hell of a lot cuter." he replied with a smirk, "Now come on. I need a kiss for good luck."
She sighed dramatically, as though defeated (and perhaps she was, in some ways), leaned back in, and gently pressed her lips to his, her hand moving from his chest to his cheek. It was short, but sweet. "There. But you don't need good luck, James. I'm your surgeon." she told him, grinning.
"Well, well, somebody's got a god complex."
"If I didn't, you'd be in very big trouble." she replied, laughing and standing up. "Alright." she said, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, "I'll see you in there." She smiled, taking a few steps towards the door before changing her mind, turning around and walking back to his bedside. Her lips descended onto his once more, and when she pulled back, her expression was solemn. "If you die on me in there, I'll kill you." she said seriously, a small smile creeping onto her lips.
"Don't worry, Blondie, I ain't goin' nowhere."
And he said it so confidently, she almost believed him.
