Two updates in the same week? You betcha! This is one of the chapters I've head written out in my head for a long while so when it came time to actually write it down, it just flowered out. There's going to be a lot of chapters that I've been looking forward to writing coming up soon. :)
I can't believe I have more than 400 reviews on this story. It just blows my mind. Thank you all so very, very much. I adore you. :)
The song for this chapter is "Ghost" by Jake Owen. It's quite the well-written tune and appropriate for the subject matter of this chapter. Also, I borrowed one of my favorite Grey's Anatomy scenes for a part of this chapter - I don't own that either, just love that particular speech from Derek and could see Wade making something similar. Even though he didn't live up to it.
THINGS I OWN: Ruffly new bedding that I am obsessed with. THINGS I DON'T OWN: Hart of Dixie
The clocked had stopped. That was the only logical explanation Zoe could come up with as to why it was only 4:00. Except it seemed the clock on her iPhone was also stuck at 4:00. 4:01 now, to be exact. She had blown past boredom about an hour ago and had now reached stir crazy. She had no idea where Brick was but was sure he had to be as bored as she was.
It was bad karma to wish ill on anyone, but right then, she was struggling to stop herself from willing one of Bluebell's fine residents to come walking through the doors of the practice. In a perfect world, they'd be bleeding, but at this rate, she'd be willing to take a runny nose even. Anything would be better than an empty waiting room and an hour left of the work day. She'd just have to beat Brick to them when they showed up.
The office door opened and shut but before she could get her hopes up good, Lemon Breeland's voice rang out.
"Daddy?"
"Man," Zoe muttered, trying to return her attention to some bookkeeping that needed to be done. She tried to drown out the tap of Lemon's high heels and the excessive number of times she called for her father, but couldn't. She stood and went out into the waiting area. "What do you need, Lemon?" she asked, trying to be polite. Lemon gave her a somewhat reproachful look, probably, Zoe reasoned, because she was wearing a dress with no tights – in February.
"I am looking for my daddy," Lemon said in the short manner she seemed to use just for Zoe. She looked like she was fighting off tears. "Have you seen him?"
"No," Zoe said, her eyes falling on Lemon's hand which she was cradling against her. It was wrapped in thick white gauze, a few specks of red bleeding through. "What did you do to your hand?"
"That's none of your business. If you haven't seen my daddy…"
"Brick left," came Addie's voice. She returned from the basement where they kept most of their supplies, her arms laden with bandages, medicines and supplies. "Said Dr. Hart could handle any patients that might come in." Zoe scoffed.
"He always bails early!" she complained. It was true. At the first sign of a slow afternoon, Brick bolted for the door the first chance he got, leaving her to hold down the practice until closing time. It didn't make sense for someone who was still determined to get the practice to themselves, despite Zoe's ever increasing patient list.
"Did he happen to say where he was going?" Lemon asked. She pulled her bandaged hand closer to her.
"No. And I didn't ask," Addie said pointedly. Lemon had a habit of making her out to be Brick's personal assistant and she wasn't having it.
"But it's an emergency!" Lemon whined. Zoe noticed more red on Lemon's bandage.
"Lemon, I think you should let me take a look at your hand," she said. Lemon looked at her like she'd sprouted a second head.
"I think not."
"You're obviously hurt. You're bleeding. And your dad? Nowhere around. So you can either waste time trying to hunt him down, all the while continuing to bleed and risking infection, or you can let me take a look and bandage you up right now."
Lemon shook her head. "I'll go find my daddy," she said.
"Did I mention it's your left hand? The same left hand you wear and engagement ring on and will soon be putting a wedding band on in front of all of Bluebell? If infection happened to set in, it could be a real mess, take weeks and weeks to heal." Zoe smiled sweetly. "If it got bad enough, you could even risk having it amputated."
That did the trick, just as Zoe expected it would. Even if they both knew amputation was highly unlikely, Lemon still wasn't willing to risk having the featured hand of her wedding look anything less than perfect. She watched Lemon slowly resign herself to letting Zoe treat her. Finally, the blond sighed dramatically.
"Fine," she said. "But just because I don't know where Daddy is and I don't have time to run all around Bluebell trying to find him. I've got to finish my preliminary seating chart before dinner. But Dr. Hart, if you mess me up, I'll have your license to practice medicine faster than you can book a flight back to New York!" Lemon turned on her heel and headed into the closest exam room. Zoe looked at Addie.
"Would it be wrong of me to slip her a sedative instead of a pain killer?" she asked.
"I won't tell," Addie replied. They exchanged an amused smile before Zoe joined Lemon in the exam room. Lemon had already unwrapped her hand but was holding a wad of gauze to it to control the bleeding.
"So how did you hurt yourself?"
"I was trying to choose a place setting for my bridal shower and accidentally knocked a wine glass to the floor. I cut my hand while I was cleaning it up," Lemon asked. Zoe reached for her hand, starting the process of cleaning it up so she could see if she needed stitches.
"Why were you choosing settings for your bridal shower?" she asked. "Isn't the maid of honor or whoever supposed to take care of all of that?" She felt Lemon tense.
"It has to be perfect," she informed Zoe. "I can't let just anybody organize one of the most important events of my life. " Zoe refrained from rolling her eyes with difficulty. Of course Lemon would think of a bridal shower as one of the most important days in her life.
"You're going to need stiches," Zoe told her. "Just a few, but the cut is pretty deep." Lemon swallowed. She wasn't entirely comfortable with needles, let alone with Dr. Hart being the one in charge of it.
"Do what you have to do," she said.
For several minutes, Lemon allowed Zoe to work in silence as she finished cleaning the area and numbed it. Just as she started with the first stitch, Lemon started talking in an effort to keep her nerves at bay.
"So it seems like things are going well with you and Wade," she said.
"They are," Zoe replied, focused on her work.
"He's a good guy," Lemon continued. "He might be a little rough around the edges, but he's got a good heart. He was one of George's best friends growing up. I guess he still is in a roundabout sort of way. He was one of my best friends, come to think of it." Zoe raised an eyebrow. She couldn't see Wade and Lemon as friends at all, let alone good friends.
"He's one of the best guys I've met, that's for sure," she commented, thinking back to some of the men she'd encountered in New York. For some reason, that made Lemon snort in an amused sort of way.
"Well I have heard the men up north aren't nearly as charming as the men down here." Zoe had to grin as she worked.
"They aren't," she confirmed. "They aren't all bad, of course, but Southerners still think chivalry is alive and well. I haven't opened a door for myself in the presence of a man since the moment I set foot here."
"And the only time you will is if his momma raised him in a barn," Lemon said indignantly.
"All done," Zoe announced, stepping away from her work. "You'll have some soreness for a few days, but a couple of Tylenol should help. Just keep it clean and come back in a week to have the stitches removed. Or I'm sure Brick can take care of it in the comfort of your kitchen. You should have little if any scarring." Lemon inspected Zoe's work.
"Your stiches are so tiny and neat," she commented. She hopped off the exam table and gathered her purse and the light jacket she'd shed. "Daddy is a great doctor, but his stich work… Well, he is a man."
"I'm a trained surgeon," Zoe reminded her. "People don't want bad stitching when you're working on their vital organs."
"I guess you're right," Lemon agreed, surveying her hand once more. She looked up and Zoe. "I like your earrings, by the way." Zoe reached up and felt the Tiffany earrings she'd received from her mother as a graduation gift, a pair she wore frequently as they were simple and classic.
"Thanks," she replied, confused by Lemon's sudden – niceness. "They were a gift from my mom."
"Well they sure are darling." Lemon headed for the door but stopped just before she pulled it open while she still had Zoe to herself in the exam room. "Don't hurt Wade," she said. "He's had enough heartache in his life. And um, thank you, Dr. Hart." With that, she left the practice, leaving Zoe to join Addie in the reception area, feeling stunned.
"I'm not sure, but I think – I think – Lemon Breeland just paid me a compliment. Twice."
"Two times?" Addie asked in disbelief. Zoe nodded.
"Weird, right?"
"Weird? I'd say hell has frozen over."
"She told me I did a good job with her stiches. And complimented my earrings. I'm not sure which is stranger- her complimenting my medical skills or my fashion sense. Those are her favorite things to complain about where I'm concerned."
"That's a tough call," Addie agreed.
"And she warned me not break Wade's heart. Addie, I think I need a drink."
"Well it is quitting time," Addie replied. "And I think you might just have an in with town's favorite bartender." Zoe grinned.
"I think I might," she agreed.
"Think Lavon will notice we left early?" Zoe asked Wade as they walked through the town square, her arm linked with his.
"Nah. He's too busy tryin' to play Mayor and boyfriend at the same time," Wade answered. "Besides, he can't fault a guy for wantin' some alone time with his girl on Valentine's Day." Zoe grinned.
"Alone time, huh?" she asked. "What did you have in mind?" Wade stopped and pulled her to him.
"Why Dr. Hart, I think you already know." He leaned in to kiss her and with most of Bluebell still at the Sweetie Pie Dance and not around to catch them, things quickly heated up. Zoe was contemplating what was closer, the practice or the Rammer Jammer, so they could continue things in private when the sound of someone loudly clearing their throat interrupted. They pulled away from one another to see Earl standing several feet away.
Zoe frowned. He looked worse since the last time she'd seen him, his skin more yellow, his stomach just as round with fluid as ever though his face showing that he'd lost weight. He had been a no show for his follow up appointment with her a few days earlier, just as she'd expected he would. She'd have to figure out a way to check in on him without the risk of someone spotting her and giving the town more reason to gossip.
"Dad, what are you doin' here?" Wade asked.
"Needed to talk to you, figured you'd probably be at this dance thing with Dr. Hart," Earl answered. He nodded politely at Zoe. "Evenin' Dr. Hart."
"Hi, Earl," she said. She put her hand around Wade's elbow. She wasn't sure why, but she felt instinctively that he needed her to.
"Well it's Valentine's Day," Wade said. "I know I ain't been big on the holiday before now, but I've got a girl to celebrate with this year so if you'll excuse us…"
"I just need a minute," Earl said. "Not even that. I was just wonderin' if… Well, I have somethin' I need to talk to you and your sister about. I done already called her and she's comin' down on Saturday, bringin' the kids too. You and Dr. Hart come on out to the house too, 'round dinner time. We'll eat somethin' and talk."
Zoe drew in a breath as Earl gave her a meaningful look. He was going to tell his kids what was going on with him. Beside her, Wade shook his head.
"Whatever it is, just spit it out now," he said. "Saturdays are too busy at the Rammer Jammer for me to come out there. And you ain't got no business cookin' in that mess of a kitchen anyway."
"Meredith said she'd bring somethin.' This is important, Wade. You ain't gotta stay long but you do gotta come." Wade made to shake his head no and protest again, but Zoe jumped to Earl's aide.
"We'll be there," she said, squeezing Wade's arm. "Wade, you can go to the Rammer Jammer afterward. It doesn't get busy until later anyway and Shelley and the rest of the staff are more than capable of running things." Wade looked at her and she could see the disbelief in his eyes. Zoe pleaded with him silently to agree. Not one to tell her no, he sighed and relented.
"Fine," he said. "We'll see you Saturday."
"See you Saturday," Earl echoed. "Y'all have yourself a good night." He turned and the pair of them watched him walk away. When he was out of hearing distance, Wade looked at Zoe.
"Why'd you do that?" he asked. "I know you think I need to have a relationship with my dad, but I done told you, it's complicated."
"Wade, do you really think Earl would have gone through the trouble of calling your sister and tracking you down if it wasn't important?" she asked. Wade sighed.
"I reckon you're right," he admitted. "He looked bad, didn't he?" He'd noticed Earl's worsening appearance right off but had been too thrown by his dinner invitation to comment on it.
"He did," Zoe agreed. He slipped an arm around Zoe's waist and they resumed walking towards where he'd parked his car. "Although I do wish he had better timing. I was ready to drag you off to the Rammer Jammer or the practice, whichever was closer and – continue with things in private." Wade gave her a devilish grin.
"Well Dr. Hart, I believe the answer to your question is the Rammer Jammer," he said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys. "It is closed for the night since everyone is at the Sweetie Pie Dance but it turns out, I have the keys." Zoe returned his grin with a coy one of his own.
"I've heard you know your way around the office," she said.
"Might know a thing or two about it," Wade agreed. He took her hand and winked. "Come on, girl."
She loved Wade's bed. Hers was perhaps softer, but his felt safer, like it welcomed her every time she slipped between the covers. It was incredibly late, having not returned to the Plantation from the Sweetie Pie Dance and their subsequent detour to the Rammer Jammer until well after midnight, but they were both still awake, still unable to keep their hands to themselves when they'd stopped the car outside of Wade's. Now, their clothes spread throughout Wade's house, they were lying in bed, Zoe's head resting on his chest while his arms were wrapped protectively around her.
"What do you think he wants?" Wade asked, breaking the peaceful silence they'd fallen into.
"Who? Earl?"
"It's weird, him askin' us to come for dinner, that sort of thing. He don't do that. Ever. I've got a feelin' it's somethin' bad." Zoe reached up and brushed his hair away from his forehead. She knew what Earl wanted, but she couldn't tell him.
"Whatever it is, I'm here," she told him. Wade caught her hand and kissed it.
"I know," he said. "And that amazes me more than you will ever know." He held Zoe tightly and planted a kiss on the top of her head.
"Let's get some sleep," she said. "We both have to be up in a few hours." The lights were already off so Zoe turned in his arms and pressed her back to his chest. He moved so he could hold her better, tighter. He kissed her shoulder and both of them drifted off to sleep.
"Well this is somethin' I never thought I'd do," Wade commented as he navigated the road to Earl's.
"What's that?" Zoe had been looking out the window, contemplating what would happen once Wade found out about Earl. It would come out that she'd known the truth and she hoped Wade wouldn't be too upset with her. Surely he'd understand that she was under oath, that she legally couldn't say a word about Earl's illness.
"Take a girl to dinner at my dad's," he answered. "Let alone a dinner he put together."
"Meredith is still coming, right?" Wade nodded.
"She was gonna pick up dinner from somewhere between Mobile and here. Called me today to make sure you didn't have no sort of 'dietary restrictions' as she called it. Told her you'd eat anything so not to worry about it."
"Charming," Zoe said with a smile.
"Also true," Wade confirmed. "I like that 'bout you though, that you ain't afraid to eat a burger every once in a while." Zoe grinned but didn't say anything, remembering how Gigi had been floored when she'd ordered pancakes and bacon for breakfast, something she would have never done in her New York life.
The car slowed and Wade turned on his blinker though they were the only ones on the road. The area looked vaguely familiar to Zoe as she recalled it from their first date. She even vaguely recalled seeing the old mailbox at the end of the driveway they turned into. She was pretty sure Wade had driven just a little further down the road before he'd turned off the main road and onto the little narrow road that took them to the field where he'd given her her first driving lesson. She smiled fondly at the memory. She'd gotten fairly comfortable behind the wheel since then and had even driven Lavon's hybrid into town a couple of times although she still preferred to walk.
"Well, here we are," Wade said, stopping the car next to a brand new SUV Zoe assumed belonged to Meredith. She looked up at Wade's childhood home.
"This is beautiful," she stated. Wade raised an eyebrow.
"We lookin' at the same house?" he asked.
"I mean, sure the paint is peeling and it looks like the porch could use some work, but it's beautiful," Zoe said again. "It's got this old charm. Like the plantation but – different." Wade shook his head and opened his car door. He didn't see it, but he wasn't about to argue the point with Zoe. He went around to open her door, not altogether surprised when he seen her climbing out of the car. She only let him get her car door about half the time, too independent to rely on him all the time.
"Just remember Earl ain't looked after things in a long while," he told Zoe. "He let the house go a long time ago."
"Will you show me your bedroom before we leave?" Zoe countered.
"It's just a twin bed and an empty dresser."
"Still want to see it." Wade opened his mouth to retort when the screen door flew opened.
"Uncle Wade!" shrieked two kids, both tearing down the front porch steps and running towards him. Zoe watched as he knelt down to their level just in time to catch them both in a bear hug. It made her smile, watching him with them.
"Hey guys!" he said, pulling back so he could see them. "Mac, is your bow big enough?" The little girl was wearing a big pink bow that matched her monogrammed dress.
"My bow is pretty," she said indignantly, turning her chin up just a tad in a gesture that made Wade chuckle. Her eyes fell on Zoe and she smiled shyly. "Hi, Dr. Hart." Zoe beamed at the little girl, thrilled she'd remembered her.
"Hi, McKenzie," she said. "It's good to see you again."
"It's good to see you too," the little girl said politely. She took in Zoe's necklace, a sparkly piece that was borderline costume jewelry. "I like your necklace. It's pretty." Zoe smiled at her.
"Well I like your bow," she countered. "It's very pretty, no matter what Uncle Wade says. And you can call me Zoe, okay?" McKenzie nodded, smiling.
"Hey Jake, do you remember Zoe?" Wade asked his nephew. "She's the doctor who helped Mac when she hurt her knee on Halloween." The little boy nodded but cast a look at Zoe that told her he wasn't entirely sure he did remember her.
"Hi, Jake," Zoe said kindly.
"Hi," he whispered back before going to Wade and trying to hide his face in his uncle's shirt.
"Hey, don't be like that," Wade told the little boy.
"He's what? Three?" Zoe asked. "He just need some time to warm up to me."
"Jacob's almost three," McKenzie, who was the bolder of the two, informed her. "His birthday is March 1st. My birthday is April 8th. I'll be five whole years old!"
"Five?" Zoe exclaimed. "That's a lot."
"I know!" McKenzie said so seriously Zoe and Wade had to laugh. Wade stood and picked up Jacob.
"Come on, ladies," he said, offering his hand. "Let's go inside and say hello." He'd meant for Zoe to take his hand, but McKenzie grabbed it instead, taking Zoe's hand in her other one.
"Mommy is taking dinner out of boxes," McKenzie told them as they made their way towards the porch. "And Daddy is 'spose to be helping but Mommy keeps telling him he's a drence. Pappy is just sittin' at the table. I think he feels bad but he don't have a fever. I checked."
"What's a drence?" Wade asked Zoe.
"A hindrance?" Zoe guessed. "As in more of a hindrance than a help?"
"Sounds like Eric," Wade commented. He held the door open for the rest of them. "Hello?" he called as they walked in.
"Wade!" came Meredith's voice. She appeared in the hallway. "And Zoe! Oh it's so good to see you both!" She came to hug them.
"Uncle Wade said my bow was too big," McKenzie informed her mother.
"Uncle Wade is a boy," Meredith told her daughter, straightening the offending bow. "He doesn't know any better." Wade opened his mouth to shoot back a reply, but before he could, Eric joined them and they went through the greeting process all over again. Earl stumped in several moments later. The mood shifted, tension filtering in with his arrival. Even Jacob must have felt it as he wiggled out of Wade's arms and went to join his sister who had taken a seat on the bottom of the staircase, observing. Zoe toyed with joining them.
"Hey," Earl said. He wasn't sober but he wasn't drunk either. If Zoe had to guess, she'd say he'd had just enough to drink to keep any withdrawal symptoms a day off from drinking might bring about at bay.
"Dad," Wade nodded curtly.
"Hi, Earl," Zoe replied, giving him a smile.
"Hi, Dr. Hart," he said.
"Well, shall we go ahead and eat?" Meredith said, not sure what else to do. They agreed and moved towards the kitchen. Wade took Zoe's hand. He'd expected to bring Zoe into his father's usual mess of a house but it looked like Earl had tried to tidy up. He hadn't done a very good job, with cobwebs still clinging to corners and dust still covering most of the furniture, but the kitchen was as close to spotless as it had been since Mary Ellen died.
The kitchen table was made to seat six and Meredith had already set out paper plates and plastic utensils that she'd brought with her, concerned about the state of her father's own kitchenware. McKenzie called sitting next to Zoe, leaving Wade to take the seat at the other end of the table from Earl. Eric and Meredith sat across from Zoe and McKenzie, Jacob on Meredith's lap. They traded dishes back and forth mostly in silence, the tension growing.
"So," Meredith said about halfway through dinner. "Dad, what did you want us all here for?" They all watched as Earl took a long drink from his glass – sweet tea instead of liquor – and made a business of wiping his mouth before he spoke.
"I got somethin' I need to tell the two of you," he said. Zoe reached under the table and found Wade's hand. "Might ought to send the little ones outside to play."
"Zoe can take us!" McKenzie said, already perking up at the thought of playing with her new friend outside. Zoe looked quickly at Wade who nodded.
"Dr. Hart needs to be here," Earl said. "They'll be fine- ain't nothin' gonna get 'em."
"No," Meredith said. "They can't go outside by themselves. There's too much out there they can get hurt on – fallen shutters, the old truck, God knows what in all that overgrown grass... McKenzie, take Jake into the living room and watch your movie quietly for a little while, okay? I brought your portable DVD player. It already has Mary Poppins in it."
"But I wanna play with Zoe!" McKenzie whined.
"We'll play later," Zoe told her. "If you do what your mom is asking right now, okay?" With some production, McKenzie disappeared from the kitchen, dragging Jacob behind her. The rest of them waited for Earl to continue.
"Y'all might notice I ain't lookin' so good," he said. "Not that I even looked good to begin with."
"I noticed," Meredith said. "You're all yellow and your belly looks swollen. But you look like you've lost weight at the same time, especially around your face. And I think you're in pain – I've heard you grunt a few times and you're moving pretty slow." Earl nodded in agreement.
"What's goin' on, Dad?" Wade asked. He was growing impatient.
"Well, I um, got a little concerned 'bout what was goin' on so I took myself into town to see your girlfriend a few weeks ago." Zoe squirmed a little in her seat as all eyes turned to her. Wade's gaze shifted, a shadow of suspicion creeping in. He turned back to Earl.
"And?" he prompted.
"Dr. Hart did some tests on me. Turns out I've got cirrhosis of the liver."
"Are you surprised?" Meredith asked almost right away. "As much as you've drank over the years, are you really shocked that your liver is failing you?"
"Not really," Earl admitted. "But that ain't all that's wrong with me. I got diabetes too. Been tryin' to keep up with all that sugar testin' and all but it's right hard to do."
"You can't just let that go, Daddy," Meredith said. "Diabetes is nothing to play around with."
"Well I got somethin' else wrong with me too," Earl said. "Some kinda hepto somethin' or other. What'd you call it, Dr. Hart?" Again, everyone's eyes were on her. She still had Wade's hand in hers. She found it reassuring that he hadn't pulled away from her. She swallowed, trying to buy herself time.
"Well?" Wade prompted. "What's he talkin' 'bout, Zoe?"
"Earl, I think you should be the one to tell them…," Zoe tried.
"He doesn't even know the name of what's wrong with him," Meredith stated. "Just tell us, Zoe." Zoe sighed, not looking forward to the next several minutes.
"He has Hepatocellular Carcinoma," she told the table. "It's a form of liver cancer. In Earl's case, it was caused by the cirrhosis." Wade withdrew his hand. Zoe looked at him, her eyes full of questions. He looked anywhere but at her.
"Well it's treatable, right?" Meredith asked urgently. "We can treat this, right?" Zoe looked at Earl who nodded at her to continue. She sighed. He needed to be telling them all of this, not her.
"I was only able to do a full battery of blood tests and an ultrasound at the clinic. I recommended several times that Earl let me refer him to a doctor in Mobile for further tests so we'd know exactly what we're dealing with, but he opted against medical advice. He's also opted not to seek treatment."
Meredith was off, giving her father all the reasons he was being ridiculous, telling her all the reasons he needed to see a doctor like Zoe recommended, why he needed to be treated. She only paused to tell McKenzie and Jacob, who had come from the kitchen to investigate the noise, to go back into the living room. Eric made soothing noises, trying to calm her down while Earl vehemently refused to listen to her. Zoe kept trying to catch Wade's eye, but Wade remained silent and avoided looking at her.
"Wade!" Meredith said in exasperation. "Help me!"
Wade looked at Meredith and then Earl. "He's gonna do what he wants. Ain't gonna matter what we want. Never has with him," he said. He finally turned to Zoe. "You knew," he said. "You knew all this time and didn't say a word."
"I couldn't, Wade," Zoe answered. She pleaded with her eyes for him to understand. "He's my patient. I have to keep his medical history confidential."
"You knew I was worried about him," he countered. "He ain't just a patient. He's my dad. And you're my girlfriend. You can't keep stuff like this from me."
"Wade…"
"I asked her not to say nothin' to you," Earl said, coming to Zoe's defense. "Don't go fussin' at her. She's just doin' her job." Meredith just looked at Zoe, trying to decide if she was upset with her or not.
"The patient you were worried about," Wade said, putting something together in his mind. "That night before it started to snow when we were sittin' on the couch at Lavon's. You said you were worried about a patient. That was Earl, won't it?" Slowly, Zoe nodded.
"Wade, you have to understand…" Wade stood abruptly and left the kitchen. Zoe hurried to follow him. "Wade, wait," she called, catching up to him as he banged through the back door. "Stop!" Wade stopped at the bottom of the back porch steps.
"What, Zoe?"
"I wanted to tell you," she said. "I swear I did. But as a doctor, I legally couldn't. I begged him to tell you…"
"I don't want to hear it, Zoe," Wade said. "This ain't somethin' you keep from your boyfriend." He turned to leave.
"Wade, stop," she said, calling after him as he walked towards the woods in the distance. He didn't turn around. And she knew better than to follow him.
Zoe sat on the top step of Earl's rickety back porch, her arms wrapped around her knees as she watched the woods, waiting for Wade to come back. It had been nearly two hours since he disappeared and she was growing more anxious by the minute. She had busied herself at first with answering as many of Meredith's questions as she could and then helping clean up. She'd come outside under the pretense of watching McKenzie and Jacob play while Meredith and Eric talked to Earl about things, but really, she just wanted to wait for Wade.
"Hey," came Meredith's voice. She came through the screen door and sat down beside Zoe. McKenzie and Jacob ran past them, playing a game of tag in which Jacob, too small to keep up with or catch up to McKenzie, was always 'it.' "Eric and I are leaving soon. He's just helping Daddy with a leak in the sink first. Want us to give you a ride home? It's on the way and I'm sure McKenzie would be thrilled to have you sit beside her in the car for a few minutes. You'll probably have to watch the beginnings of a Disney movie though. She's big on princesses these days."
"I should wait for Wade," Zoe said, glancing again at the woods. There was no sign of him.
"You might be waiting a while," Meredith told her. "He's always done this. Every time he'd get mad or upset, even before Momma died, he'd go out in the woods and stay a while. It used to drive Momma crazy. She'd try and keep herself busy but she'd usually end up right where you are now, waiting on him. Except she had a rocking chair she used to sit in. I have no idea what happened to that, hard to tell with Daddy. Wade'll come back eventually. No point in you staying here with no one but Earl for company in the meantime."
"I should probably wait," Zoe said, although she was tempted by Meredith's offer. She didn't particularly want to be there with Earl waiting on Wade either, especially when Wade was upset with her.
"Zoe, I know you couldn't say anything about Daddy. You're a doctor and he's your patient. You can't break confidentiality. I thought about being upset with you, but then I realized you were only doing your job. Daddy said you're the only doctor he'll see. And he also said you tried everything to talk him into treatment and then to get him to tell us."
"I hated not being able to say anything to Wade," Zoe confessed. "Especially in the last several day when Wade realized something was wrong with Earl."
"I can't imagine it was easy," Meredith said. She reached over and squeezed Zoe's hand. "Come on, let us take you home. You can talk to Wade tomorrow."
"Okay," Zoe agreed. She stood and helped Meredith corral Mackenzie and Jacob. As she waited for Meredith and Eric to finish gathering their things, she hoped against hope Wade would show up. He didn't. She waited as they hugged one another goodbye and caught Meredith with unshed tears in her eyes as she watched her father, the only parent she had left, hug her children goodbye. He slipped each of them a five dollar bill. Zoe had to look away, her own eyes threatening to tear up.
"Dr. Hart, thank you for everything," Earl said, turning his attention to her. "I sure am sorry about any trouble I caused between you and Wade. But he'll come 'round. I'll talk to him."
"It's fine," Zoe said with a shake of her head. "We'll figure it out." Earl held out his hand to her. Zoe made to shake his hand in a goodbye gesture but at the last moment, changed course and gave him a quick hug. "Wednesday morning, 7:00. Come see me at the clinic for a checkup," she said. "I know where you live now. If you don't come to me, I'm coming to you." Earl only nodded. Meredith mouthed a silent 'thank you' to Zoe.
After a last round of goodbyes, she followed Meredith to their car, McKenzie holding her hand and chatting happily about how they could watch Snow White until they got to Zoe's house. Zoe held out hope that Wade would turn up until the Tahoe pulled out of the driveway and turned onto the main road.
It was late, but she couldn't sleep. Wade still hadn't come home – she knew because she'd made it a habit of checking every so often to see if there were any lights on at his place. She would have heard his car regardless. Even with Meredith's continued reassurance that Wade would show up, she was growing more worried as each hour ticked by. She was also getting angrier.
She'd only been doing her job. She understood why he was upset. If the roles were reversed, she'd be upset too. But it wasn't like she chose to lie to him. Really, she hadn't lied to him. She just hadn't told him about his father – because she couldn't. She truly, legally, couldn't. He had to understand that. He also had to understand that, without Earl's permission, she couldn't tell him anything about his father's condition if she were to continue to treat him.
The sound of his car rumbling up the driveway made its way to her ears. She closed the book she was reading, but didn't get off her bed, listening. The car was too loud for Wade to be on his side of the pond. The engine shut off and moments later, she heard him on her porch. Her front door opened and closed and he appeared in her doorway.
"You left without me," he said. Zoe looked at him but didn't say anything. He looked tired. "And now you're not talking to me." Zoe still didn't say anything, unsure of what to say – whether she wanted to apologize or be angry at him. Wade sighed and took several stepped into the room. "I was a jerk. Sometimes boyfriends can be jerks. It don't mean you stop talkin' to 'em." Zoe still said nothing. He rubbed his neck and took a deep breath. "You get that I'm sayin' I'm sorry right?"
"You get mad at me for doing my job, take off into the woods, don't turn up for hours and hours while I sit here becoming more convinced by the hour that something awful has happened to you, and then you show up here?"
"Of course I showed up," Wade said, taking still more steps towards her. "Why wouldn't I?"
"Because you're mad at me," Zoe answered. Wade sat down on the edge of the bed.
"You've never done this before, have you?"
"Done what?" Zoe asked.
"Fight with a boyfriend? And then have the boyfriend apologize?"
"Not really," Zoe admitted. She'd never really fought with her last boyfriend – they'd never really done much of anything except meet up in on call rooms and maybe grab dinner outside the hospital once in a while. The more she thought about it, the more she wondered how they made it six whole years.
"Well this is out it works," Wade said. "You fight sometimes. And then somebody apologizes. From now on, you can expect that I'm gonna show up. Even if I yell. Even if you yell. I'm always gonna show up, okay?" Slowly, Zoe nodded.
"Okay," she agreed. Wade moved so he was sitting beside her. They rested against the headboard. "I wanted to tell you," she told him. "I just couldn't, Wade. Not because I didn't want to but because I literally couldn't."
"I know," he admitted. "I was mad at first, but then I started to think about it. You was just doin' your job. I talked to Dad for a long time when I came back. He made good and sure I knew he asked you not to say anything." He put an arm around Zoe. She rested her head on his shoulder. "He really likes you."
"I don't think people give Earl enough credit," she said. "They take him at face value, as the town drunk. But really, he sees just takes it all in, sees things for how they are."
"Maybe. I just know he's hell bent on not gettin' any treatment."
"I don't think you're going to get him to change his mind on that," Zoe told him. "I tried. I may have yelled."
"He told me. Apparently you two had quite the conversation." Zoe looked up at Wade.
"How are you?" she asked. "I know you're not okay."
"I'm – not sure what I am yet," Wade admitted. "I'm just tryin' to take it all in, make sense of it."
"You can talk to me," Zoe said. "I can't tell you much about Earl's condition without his permission, but I'll tell you what I can."
"How about right now, we just go to bed?" Wade asked. "It's been a long day." Zoe nodded and turned out the lamp at her bedside while Wade stripped down to his boxers and climbed back into bed. In the dark, their arms wrapped around each other, they remained awake, taking comfort in the other as they thought about the day behind them and everything that was ahead of them.
And there you have it. :)
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