ALLY:

I sat up and read the recovery instructions again. It said to rest a lot, drink plenty of water, and drink apple juice, grape juice, to eat soft and solid foods, or foods that I didn't have to chew. It said to avoid foods that were too hot or too cold, too salty or spicy, hard and crunchy food and raw fruits and vegetables, because it could scratch the throat and provoke bleeding. It said to call the doctor if my throat was bleeding and if the blood was bright red, if I had swelling or redness in my nose, neck or eyes, if I had sharp pains that were persistent and/or didn't respond to over-the-counter medicine, or if I had a fever over one hundred and one point six. It also said that occasional nausea, throwing up, low grade fever, pain in my ears, muscle spasms, mouth and throat and pain when I swallowed.

I went up to the kitchen and filled my pink Klean Kanteen water bottle with water. One of the things Dr. Moon said was the best for me besides bedrest were fluids, especially water. Hydration was the key. Dr. Moon was interested in me, just like I was interested in him. This was the first time I'd been in love since I was nineteen, when I had broken up with my last boyfriend, Kevin Harvard, who I dated for nine months.

And for damn good reason. He was a dickhead, a son of a bitch, a douchebag, an asshole and a monster all rolled into one. He did crack, cocaine, heroin and he drank (and drove while he drank and did drugs), he had serious anger issues, he degraded me in public, he called me awful names ("whore," "bitch," "slut," "hoe," "dyke", admittedly that made no sense because I wasn't a lesbian, but still I was deeply offended, not to mention he called me names that I preferred not to repeat), he would tell me how to dress and act, he would dictate who I could or couldn't talk to, he had an affair with a girl who was a stripper, he would punch and hit me and I even remember a time when he held me against a brick wall and then strangled me so hard that I thought I might lose consciousness or even die, while calling me a pussy. I also remembered he once tried to throw a wine glass at me. It was just about the worst experience I'd ever gone through.

All because I said no to sex with him when it was only eight weeks into our relationship. Or was it the time he put pressure on me to snort coke with him? I remembered at that time, I had broken up with him, it was cold and raining cats and dogs that night, and what was worse was I couldn't afford my own housing yet so that night, Trish, being my best friend, let me stay with her and Jace, and the three of us had been living together for three years now. And of course, Jace urged me to get Kevin a restraining order, which I did, and Kevin violated because he kidnapped me and raped me one night, and Kevin was in prison now.

Nothing was better than comeuppance for assholes who deserved it. Besides, I was in love with my Doctor now. He was obviously nicer and more caring than Kevin would ever be, he didn't use drugs or drink, he was smart and he was young for a doctor, which proved my point even more when I said he was smart. Plus, he said that he was a fan, which Kevin never encouraged me about my music or my modeling career. As a matter of fact, he always called my music "irritating" and said I sounded like Dora if she was a heroin addict.

My middle finger definitely went to him. Not that I flipped people off. That was just rude. Jace handed me a bowl of chicken broth and a glass of water on a tray.

"Here, soup and water for the patient."

I croaked,

"Thanks, Jace."

He said,

"No problem."

Trish piped in.

"Expect us to spoil you rotten, Ally. You need it after undergoing tonsillectomy, which is nerve-wracking just thinking about it, and also you had tonsillitis and a really bad cough."

I let out a cough. I was still coughing, but it was a little less often and had less of that barking sound.

AUSTIN:

I was hanging out with Dez. I felt like the two of us hadn't seen much of each other ever since I had gotten my job. Like I said, I only drank occasionally, so him and I decided to get a bite and some drinks at The Mighty, one of the most popular bars/restaurants in Miami.

Dez took a sip of his sangria with a pineapple and cherry and smiled at me.

"So, buddy, is your career everything you dreamed of?"

I said,

"Yup. I think Ally's tonsillectomy went really well, which reminds me, I should probably schedule a followup with her, see how she's doing."

He said,

"Oh yeah, didn't she have tonsillectomy?"

"Yeah. I think she'll still be able to sing like she used to. But of course, she needs to rest her voice, and rest in general, and she needs a lot of fluids, especially water."

"You know best. So, when are you going to ask her out?"

I said,

"Dez! I'm not asking out until I get to know her a little better. And besides, it would be unprofessional to ask a patient out on a date."

My childhood best friend protested,

"But you've been crushing on her ass since high school."

I laughed.

"Well, I always loved Ally Dawson. She's beautiful, and talented, and I love her music. But I'm not like those people who make fake pornographic pictures of the women they have crushes on."

Dez asked me,

"Are we talking the Kardashian girls, Sofia Vergara, Mila Kunis?"

I said,

"Yeah. Ally Dawson has always been my celebrity crush, but I just love her music, think she's stunningly beautiful and think she's generally a good-natured person. I don't think about feeling her up, having sex with her or anything else to a perverted or stalker-like extent."

Dez took another sip of his Sangria.

If you like her, you gotta make a move!"

I laughed.

"Maybe when I get to know her a little better. And perhaps when she recovers. Because she was sick, and she's recovering. But even when she's ill, she's gorgeous."

"You're a good man, Charlie Brown."

I laughed.

"Aw, thanks, bud! But I'm just doing my job. All she needs to recover successfully is rest."

Dez grinned.

"I wish I was as smart as you, buddy. In high school, my grades were shit. If it wasn't for you, I would have spent the rest of my life in high school."

I had helped Dez get into college because I graduated from high school when I was a sophomore. I remembered the day I was offered a scholarship at the University of Miami and to graduate early like it was yesterday.

*FLASHBACK*

I was sixteen years old, and I had two more months left of my sophomore year in high school. I was in third period physics class, finishing up a lab. Physics was my favorite class because I loved science and math. Being a doctor had always been my dream and I had a 5.0 grade point average. My parents were always proud of me on report card day, because I always brought home As.

In fact, the lowest grade I'd ever gotten was an A minus. Not to mention, I balanced homework with doing volunteer work at the Mount Sinai Hospital from four to six PM. I often spent my free time reading books about diseases, illnesses and injuries and I had done some very well-paid medical internships for middle school and high school students, and I heard the principal, Mr. Conley announce,

"Austin Moon, report to principal's office, please. I repeat, Austin Moon, report to the principal's office, please."

Dez had whispered to me,

"What did you do?"

I whispered,

"Nothing that I know of."

I asked my physics teacher, Ms. Silver, to write me a pass and I went down to the office. On the way down, what was passing through my mind was Shit! If you didn't do anything wrong, why the hell are you going to the principal's office? I went down to the principal Mr. Conley's office, and went into his office, and he was with the freshman and sophomore counselor, Ms. Espinoza, but neither of them seemed irate in any way.

"Good morning, Mr. Moon."

I said,

"Good morning, Mr. Conley and Ms. Espinoza. What did I do wrong?"

Ms. Espinoza smiled and giggled. She said in her mexican-american accent,

"You did nothing wrong, Austin. If you did, we would have told you."

"She's right. Why I called you in here was because we are very impressed with your transcripts, your scores on your PSAT and FAHSEE (FAHSEE stood for Florida High School Exit Exam and it was an exam that every tenth grade student in Florida was required to take, and if they didn't pass it, they had to take it again and again until they got at least a decent score on it. Not to brag, but that obviously wasn't the case with me) and your community service hours. The dean at University of Miami, my childhood best friend, he has seen them as well and he'd like to offer you a scholarship to University of Miami."

I was taken aback by their news. My dreams of being a doctor were about to come true.

I said,

"Oh my god, am I dreaming?"

Ms. Espinoza said,

"No, you're not dreaming."

At that moment, my medical career was about to start. Or at least the training. The girls at school described me as "sexy for a science geek" and "hottest aspiring doctor ever." the girls who I had college and career class with, obviously I did a career presentation on a doctor, and they all would constantly ask,

"Hey, Austin, if I get sick, will you cure me?"

*FLASHBACK ENDS*

It was amazing to think that that happened six years ago. Now I was a doctor. It was even better than I had imagined.

Dez told me,

"If you do have a crush on Ally Dawson, she'll totally go for you. You've got brains and beauty."

"Thanks, Dez."

Dez was openly bisexual, so he said a lot of boys were cute or handsome. But I remembered him being attracted to a few girls, too. But if he was gay, straight, bisexual or transgender, it didn't matter to me. He had been my best friend since my childhood and I loved him.