Hi guys! Thanks for the reviews- you guys are so lovely! This one's for you! Also, apologies it's going up so late- it took longer to write than I expected!
Also, if you want to read this story in Will's POV, make sure to check it out on my profile as I've now published it as a story in its own right. I'm half way through writing chapter four at the minute, but I don't want to upload it until I've got to a certain point in CA, as I want to get on track with CA, and not give anything away!
Anyway, I hope you enjoy! Please leave a review!
24:
Suitably embarrassed, and still bright red from my conversation with Mum, I slowly made my way towards the hospital's main entrance. The corridors were crowded with people, which impeded my already slow progress. Crutches, twinned with my total lack of direction, meant that it took me another ten minutes to find the exit. I swear, the architect had used a labyrinth as a blueprint for the building- it was nigh on impossible to leave!
Walking through the main foyer towards the main doors I glanced around for Will- it was hard to miss the over six foot American, with a booming voice. Still, I couldn't spot him anywhere. Maybe I had the wrong entrance- it seemed plausible, especially considering my lack of direction. I went to reach for my phone to give him a ring, but I was interrupted before I had the chance.
"Alexis?" I turned to see my Mum's friend, and fellow doctor, Andrea. They'd met when they started working at the hospital nearly thirty years ago, and had been firm friends ever since.
"Andrea, hi!" She pulled me into a hug, but was mindful of my crutches.
"Netball again, I'm guessing?" She asked with a grin, glancing down at my ankle. Her and Mum loved to gossip, so she was fully aware of my tendency of injuring myself.
"Not, not this time actually. I sprained it when I was hiking yesterday."
"Oh Alexis, you poor dear! You weren't on your own were you?"
"Yeah, just me. I'm okay, though- it won't happen again." I replied wryly.
"Well, I'm glad to hear that! You know, Alexis, if you do want a hiking partner Teddy would be more than happy to come with you; he just loves the outdoors." I schooled my face into a polite mask of gratitude. Teddy, formally known as Edward, was Andrea's son, and she and my mother had been intent on setting us up before we could talk. Teddy was the same age as my brother, Jack, and was an engineer, something my mother never stopped harping on about.
"Oh, it's-" I opened my mouth to politely decline her attempts at setting me up. Robert and I were nothing more than friends, something neither of our mothers seemed able to accept.
"Hey babe! I was just looking for you." I turned towards the voice to see Will striding towards me, completely unperturbed by the fact that everyone in the lobby seemed to be listening in to our exchange. "Sorry, I had to go to the restroom, I was just about to ring you." He paused, as he reached us, only now realising that I was in the middle of a conversation before he interrupted. "Oh, sorry. I didn't realise you were talking." He stood next to me, sliding his arm around my waist, and pressing a kiss to the top of my head. I smiled up at him.
"It's okay, I meant to ring you anyways." I turned my attention back to Andrea, whose jaw seemed to be resting on the floor as she took him in. "Will, this is my Mum's friend Andrea. Andrea, this is Will. He's my…" I paused. I didn't quite know what Will was to me. He wasn't my boyfriend- definitely not! But 'friend' didn't seem to accurately sum up our relationship.
"Boyfriend" Will jumped in, sensing my hesitation. Oh God, why had he said that? I knew Andrea wouldn't be able to keep such untrue information to herself, and it would only be a matter of time before she blabbed to Mum. "Will Benedict, m'am. It's a pleasure to meet you." He extended the hand that wasn't wrapped around me for her to shake. She accepted it.
"Andrea Turner. It's lovely to meet you, Will. Anyway, I'd best leave you two to it. I'm due on shift in-" She glanced down at her watch. "Five minutes ago." Her pager bleeped at the admission, and she silenced it quickly. "That's my cue, guys- sorry, I've got to take this. I hope to see you again soon, Will. Get well soon, Alexis- take care." She gave me a quick hug, before dashing off.
"She seemed nice."
"She is. Her and my Mum have been friends for years. She's always trying to set me up with her son, but I think you've put an end to that idea." He grinned happily, puffing out his chest. I slapped his chest lightly. "Honestly, you are incorrigible! And not my boyfriend."
"Not yet, maybe, but I will be- you can be sure of that." I rolled my eyes. The boy had more confidence than Kanye.
"We'll see about that." I muttered, as he took my bag from me to carry, and led me out of the hospital.
"Come on, it's this way. I'm parked in the short stay car park. It's not too far, but you can wait here and I'll bring the car round if you want."
"It's fine, Will. I can walk, but thanks." He nodded.
"So not a break, then?" He asked as we exited the main doors, veering to the left towards the car park.
"No, just a bad sprain. I've got to keep icing it, and dose up on ibuprofen to bring the swelling down. I should be off the crutches in a few days." He'd slowed down his pace dramatically so I could keep up with him on my sticks. Never again would I take walking for granted.
"Well that's good then- it could have been much worse. Have you got everything you need at home? I mean, enough meds for the week?" Thinking back to this morning, I remembered that I hadn't had many ibuprofen left. I'd made a mental note to ask Mum if she could take me to the shops to get some, but I'd forgotten to ask.
"Now that you mention it, I could do with some ibuprofen. And I guess another ice pack would come in handy- I could alternate between them if I had two." I stepped carefully down the curb, and into the car park.
"Okay, well why don't we go to nearest drug store and get some? I'm not working this morning, so I thought, if you fancied, we could go out for lunch? I don't know which restaurants are good, mind, so you'd have to direct me. That is, if your dog's okay to be left for so long? I thought I could take him on a walk for you if you wanted- I'm guessing you won't be able to take him very far." He looked at me nervously, scared of my reaction.
"That sounds lovely, Will. There's a shopping centre not far from here. It's got a Boots that I could get tablets from, and there's a food court. We don't have to worry about Monty, though. He's staying with my parents while I recover, but it's very kind of you to offer." He beamed at me, ecstatic that I hadn't downright refused. How could I though? He was a sweetheart, even I couldn't like that. "Thinking about it, there's a cinema there as well. We're a bit early for lunch, so we could go and see a film, and then go for lunch if that sounds okay?" He smiled broadly as we wove through the maze of parked cars.
"Sounds good to me." I stopped for a moment for a rest. The handles of the crutches were digging into my palms, and my arms ached from holding my weight. "You okay?"
"I'm fine. Sorry, I just needed a break. I'll be fine in a minute."
"You sure? It's not much further, the car's just at the end of this row. Actually, wait here, I'll bring it round." And with that, he dashed off, jogging through the cars with my handbag still balanced on his shoulder, soon disappearing from sight. I waited for a minute to give my arms a break, before beginning to walk in Will's direction once more. I made it to the end of the aisle, but there was still no sight of him. I was just about to get my phone out to ring him and see where he'd got to when an Aston Martin pulled up beside me, and Will got out of it.
"Sorry, babe. It took me longer than I thought to find it. Come on, I'll help you get it." He walked around to my side and opened my door for me.
"This is your car?" I asked in shock. It was absolutely gorgeous- the crème de la crème of the car world. I ran my hand over the glossy paintwork, awed.
"Well, it's not mine technically, I've rented it for while I'm over here. I have a thing for fast cars; it's one of my many vices I'm afraid." He took my crutches from me, and helped me lower myself into the seat. "Okay?" He asked when I was settled in. I nodded, too enamoured by the plush interior to do anything more than nod. He lay my crutches on the back seat, and slid back into the driver's seat, turning on the engine, and expertly manoeuvring us out of the car park. "Right, Alexis, you're gonna have to direct me from here. I've no clue where I'm going."
"Sure" I replied, struggling to divert my attention away from the car and back to him. It took us about half an hour, with my directions, to make what should have been a fifteen minute journey to the shopping centre. Will parked as close to the entrance as he could , and we began to walk to Boots, him still carrying my handbag for me.
"I mean, who names a drugstore 'Boots', anyway? Surely it should be a shoe shop if anything. I mean, you don't name a car dealership 'Toys R Us'" I laughed, he had a point.
"Maybe you can ask one of the cashiers when we get in there. I think next time I'll introduce you to 'Superdrug'. At least it's appropriately named."
"At last: a sensible shop name! Hallelujah!" He clapped his hands together as if he were in prayer. Entering the aforementioned 'Boots', I managed to pick up what I was looking for- a couple of new ice packs, an ice spray, and a load of cheap ibuprofen tablets. Will followed dutifully with the basket. We headed to the checkouts a couple of minutes later- it hadn't taken long for me to gather what I needed. From the corner of my eye I saw Will pull out his wallet. I stopped.
"Will, you're not paying."
"I am. I've got the basket." He replied with a grin.
"No, it's my stuff, I insist." He shook his head at me again, dancing past me towards the tills. Okay, it was time to play dirty.
"Wait, Will." He turned to look at me.
"I haven't got everything yet. I need to get some-" I beckoned him forward, and stage whispered at him "tampons." His face seemed to lose all colour within a matter of seconds.
"Ahh.. Right.. Yep.. Okay then." I passed a crutch over to him, and took the basket with my bag in it from him. My ankle wasn't feeling too bad, so I was pretty sure I could manage with just one stick for a few minutes. "I'll be back soon, it shouldn't take long. Why don't you go and look at the magazines for a second?"
"Yeah, okay. See you in a minute." He said, before scurrying off towards the magazine rack. I laughed to myself- he'd fallen for it hook, line and sinker. My Dad was the same whenever we used to go shopping together. He'd tentatively ask if I needed any 'womanly products', before scurrying off to the next aisle whilst I browsed, bumping into me again when I'd found what I wanted. As a teen, it was a source of great entertainment. It was even better when both Alice and I needed stuff; Dad really didn't know what to do with himself then. I waited until Will was engrossed in the magazines before I crept to the self-service till. Stealthily I managed to pay for my products and bag them up, before I headed back to find Will.
"Done" I said as I approached. He turned, returning the 'OK!' magazine he'd been reading to its rightful place.
"Good. We can go and pay now." I held up my bag of purchases.
"It's okay, I've done it."
"But I said I'd pay!" I shrugged.
"You snooze, you lose." I replied with a wink. He took the bag from me, and handed me back my crutch. I accepted it gratefully, slipping my arm through the holder, allowing some of the weight off my ankle. I looked up to see Will peeking into the bag.
"Hey, you didn't even buy any! That was dirty, Alexis! You little sneak!" I shrugged again, totally unashamed. "I'm onto your tricks now, you won't get me like that again!" We started to walk towards the exit.
"It was my stuff, so I should pay. You're not a glorified sugar Daddy, Will. I wouldn't take advantage of you like that."
"It's not taking advantage, Alexis. I want to. You can take advantage of me in other ways, though. I definitely wouldn't mind that." He said slyly, wiggling his hips for emphasis. I whacked him lightly on the bum with my crutch, and he feigned injury.
"Come on, you. The cinema's this way." I said, pointing right with my crutch.
"Right you are, m'am. I'm paying this time!"
"We'll see!" I replied in singsong. He wasn't- he definitely wasn't.
We ended up compromising on the payment front. I paid for our cinema tickets, and Will paid for lunch. I'd rather have split the bill, but Will insisted- threatening that he'd run off with purse if I refused.
The film was good; it was a science fiction action type that we picked because I hated the horror films Will claimed he loved, and Will wasn't a fan of cheesy rom-coms I loved. Mind, what guy was?. 'Lucy', our film of choice, turned out to be a happy medium. There was enough action in it to entertain Will, and not enough gore to make me feel queasy. Afterwards, I took Will for his first ever Nando's and, judging by his reaction, it definitely wouldn't be the last. Nando's had suddenly gained a very loyal customer.
By the time Will drove me home it was nearly half two. He pulled up outside my flat, and helped me tackle the stairs. We stood awkwardly by the door; not sure quite what to say to one another. I broke the silence first.
"Thank you for today.. for everything. You've been wonderful." He blushed at the compliment.
"Anytime, anytime. Although, you have to let me pay next time."
"Sorry, I can't promise that." I replied with a wry grin. "Do you want to come in for a cup of tea or something?" I asked.
"I'd love to, but I can't. My PA's been messaging me all morning- there's something wrong at the office, and I need to log in and check it out."
"Will, you should have said! I could have gotten someone else to come get me!"
"You're more important than work. Work will wait, you won't." I didn't have a response to that. "You okay if I come over and see you again tomorrow? I mean, I don't want to interrupt if you've got plans or anything, but-" I reached up and pressed my fingers against his lips to stop him from talking.
"That would be lovely, but don't feel like you have to." He smiled happily.
"No, I want to- never doubt that." I smiled at him, and leant up to kiss him on the cheek.
"Thanks, Will. I'll see you tomorrow then. Text me, yeah." He seemed lost for words.
"Yeah, will do. Text me if you need, okay."
"Okay" I promised, stepping over the threshold, and peering through my open door to look at him.
"I'll see you tomorrow then?" He asked anxiously.
"I'll see you then." He grinned. "Okay. I'll see you then then."
"Yep" He stood awkwardly, not quite sure what to do with himself. "Bye then." He said at last, turning back down the hall with a wave.
"Bye" I shouted back, watching his retreating figure. Once he disappeared from view, I shut my front door and locked it, trying to ignore the fuzzy feeling in my chest. We were nothing more than friends. We never would be. Well, that's what I had to keep telling myself.
Please leave a review, guys- I hope you liked it! I'll update the next chapter if I hit 168 reviews! Otherwise, my next update will be on Sunday! Hugs x