Hello, Doctor

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

It hurt to walk. It hurt to stand. It hurt to just drive to the hospital. The whole thing with Gavin was weighing heavy on Abby's mind lately. She felt bad for giving him the love potion, bad for lying to him about what it was, bad in general from having taken the potion, and absolutely mortified about the way she had acted. Lafayette didn't help that at all. He teased her relentlessly about the way she had fawned over Gavin, insisting she loved him and talking about marriage and kids. Ugh, it made her want to vomit. In fact, she had been taking a lot of her Tummy Tamer potion to help with that. Lafayette tried joking with her about her being pregnant and that's why she was vomiting, but she had shot him a look so scathing, he didn't try it again. She knew for a fact she wasn't pregnant; sometimes shark week was a godsend. After the first day, though, it just made her feel worse.

The only thing that made it better these days was spending plenty of time outside. She took her students out to do perspective drawings and landscapes and when she got home she would spend at least an hour in her garden everyday. When she could before dusk, she would go to the beach and walk along the shore. The bay always had a calming effect, and the last rays of sunlight felt good on her skin. That was how she got into trouble. As she walked along the beach, barefoot and watching the sky turn a pretty shade of purple, she didn't see the hole some kid had dug in the sand. The next thing she knew, her foot fell right in it, but she fell at an odd angle, twisted her ankle almost all the way around. She let out a little scream of pain, pulled her foot out of the whole, and though she hadn't heard anything crack, pure agony was shooting up her leg. It didn't look broken, but it was hard to walk on.

She hobbled back to her car, thankfully not far away, and was nearly in tears by the time she got there. It hurt so bad, maybe it really was broken. Unfortunately it was her right ankle, which made it hurt more to drive over to the hospital. She would call her parents later for help with the bills. This needed to get looked at now. She got to the hospital as fast as she could and when a nurse saw her almost in tears as she limped gently towards the ER, the woman put an arm around her and let her to a chair. Abby smiled gratefully, glad she was helping her get checked in too. Some people in Scriptor Bay were just so nice.

It didn't take more than thirty minutes for Abby to end up in a room in the ER, waiting patiently for a doctor with her flip flops kicked off her feet. Her ankle was already swelling up really well and she grimaced at the look of it. She was sure it wasn't broken, but it looked like a really bad sprain. Maybe she had fractured it. She wouldn't know until the doctor got there. So she sighed and watched the news on TV.

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

Working the ER was an adventure of sorts. You never knew what sort of case would land in your lap, or when for that matter. So far that day Marius had seen everything from a woman with third degree burns from carelessness in the kitchen to a little boy with a broken arm who fell on the jungle gym. He was in the middle of scribbling his notes on the little boy's chart when he saw the gurney being rolled down the hall by two paramedics, telling one of the nurses that the victim had been in a serious car accident. He watched the gurney roll right on by, his expression unphased, as he clicked his pen retracting the tip and clipping it back into the pocket of his white lab coat. He stuck the chart back in its tray on the door, ready to move on to the next patient that he had to see that day.

The thing that Marius never liked about the ER was that they didn't get to spend enough time with the patients. They diagnosed them, scribbled down what needed to be administered, signed his name and then passed them off to the nurses. He enjoyed being on the third floor much better with general admittance.

He was going door to door to the different rooms seeing the patients that were already admitted. Unfortunately he wouldn't be the doctor assigned to the car accident victim. Marius gritted his teeth and his jaw tensed up in the way it usually did, a bad habit that he'd picked up when he was younger and could never break.

Moving to the next door Marius picked up the chart and read the name that had been written on a sticker across the tab, Abigail James, his next patient. He opened up the door with his nose stuck in the file reading up on his patient's symptoms and headed straight over to the roller stool and sat down, pen back in hand and clicking it so the tip was retracted once more. "Good afternoon Miss James my name is Doctor Dakanis, we're doing well today aside from a sprain, I hope?" He started out saying in his deep but calm tone and finally looked up from the file and to his surprise found a lovely woman sitting there. While skimming the file he'd ignored the address, date of birth and all the other unnecessary information that wouldn't affect a diagnosis of a sprained ankle. He'd expected someone older and even a little on the heavy side. The surprise was evident in his expression but he righted himself and stood back up off the stool, reaching for the box of gloves on the counter and putting two of them on.

"How did you hurt yourself?" He asked and his eyes moved down to her foot, seeing the skin all soft and swelled, even a shade darker than the rest of her leg.

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

Abby was sitting there, her eyes on the screen in her room, puffing out her cheeks in a bored way. There must have been a lot of people in the ER today to have to sit here this long. Then again, no trip to the hospital was going to be a short one. The more she looked at her ankle, the worse it got. She grimaced at it and then turned her big eyes back to the TV. At least she was in shorts, so the doctor would clearly see how bad it was. She was such a tard sometimes. Lafayette would have something else to tease her for now. "Hooker, you lookin' around like Stevie Wonder and then step in a hole." She could hear him laughing and she curled her lip in dissatisfaction. He was such a bitch sometimes.

Finally she heard the door open and when she looked over, she saw a very handsome doctor walk in. He was tall with brown hair and a pair of the bluest eyes she'd ever seen. Even as he was looking at her chart, she could tell they were a bright blue and she straightened a little more. Wow, maybe her luck was turning! At least she had something nice to look at after this long wait! "Good afternoon Miss James, my name is Doctor Dakanis, we're doing well today aside from a sprain, I hope?" He had a deep, calm voice with a slight accent, and she felt her heart jump a little. Really, the accent was overkill. She cleared her throat and nodded with a smile, saying, "Yeah, everything's fine but that." Finally he looked up, and she smiled wider for him. How many other women had melted for those eyes? He looked surprised, which she didn't quite understand, but it made her cheeks gain a little bit of a pink tint.

When he got up to get some gloves, she ran a hand quickly through her hair, a nervous habit. She couldn't deal with this gorgeous doctor and a severely sprained ankle all at once! How could she look cute when she was in pain? Abby had to pull herself together. No crushing on the doctor! He turned back around, his eyes moving down to her ankle. "How did you hurt yourself?" That accent again. Okay, maybe she could crush a little on the doctor. "I was at the beach and not paying attention. I was just walking and I got my foot in a hole and fell in such a way that I twisted it almost all the way around. I didn't hear it pop or anything, but it really hurts," she told him, looking back down at her ankle. She grimaced at the color it was turning. "Every time I look at it, it just gets worse," she said with a slightly amused tone, a little smile on her face. At least she could joke at her own clumsiness.

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

"I was at the beach and not paying attention. I was just walking and I got my foot in a hole and fell in such a way that I twisted it almost all the way around. I didn't hear it pop or anything, but it really hurts. Every time I look at it, it just gets worse,"

So it had been clumsiness that made this doe eyed woman sprain her ankle and in such a way that he was certain it must have hurt. He tried his best to keep a straight face when she said that it got worse each time she looked at it, but a hint of a smile did creep onto his face. "I doubt that," he said casually and looked over her ankle, not wanting to touch it just yet. He knew it was going to hurt like hell when he touched it.

"The swelling will go down in a days' time," he explained and as gently as he could put a hand on her ankle, "on a scale of one to ten, ten being most excruciating what would you say your level of pain is?" It helped to know that way he knew just how strong a medication he'd have to administer would have to be. He preferred to write a prescription for something like 500mg ibuprofen over lortabs or vicodin.

"What were you doing at the beach?" Marius asked casually, wanting to get a bit of conversation going while he examined her. It always made patients feel a little better when they had a friendly conversation started up.

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

"I doubt that." Abby smiled a little more when the good doctor did, but she was serious. Looking at her ankle helped nothing, so she just kept her eyes fixed on him. He was a good distraction. "The swelling will go down in a day's time." That was reassuring, but his hand coming to her ankle wasn't. An electric shock went through her and she instinctively pulled back a little as she gasped. She wished she could enjoy those hands on her ankle more, but the pain was awful. At least he was trying to be gentle. "On a scale of one to ten, ten being excruciating, what would you say your level of pain is?" Ten...ten, ten, TEN. No, she knew she was being dramatic, but her discomfort was evident on her face. "Uh, I'd say a six or a seven," she replied, not even looking at him anymore. All her attention was on her ankle.

"What were you doing at the beach?" His casual tone made it clear he was trying to make friendly conversation, but she was biting her bottom lip with the pain. Sunbathing so I could meet a hot doctor, she almost replied sarcastically. If she had just been sunbathing, she wouldn't be in this mess. "Just walking, trying to clear my head," she replied with a shrug and a small, pained smile. "I think that's the last time I go to the beach distracted." If Abby went back to the beach, she was sitting her ass down on the sand and staying there. No more walking into holes for her. As he examined her ankle, she examined him a little more. It was a decent distraction. He looked so serious. It made her want to make him smile, but she wasn't very funny when she was in pain.

Her eyes went back to his hands on her ankle, biting her lip again as she sucked it up. That's what her coach in crew had always told her. "Pain is French bread!" The thought made her smile a little to herself, but she still kept her eyes on Dr. Dakanis' hands. Dakanis...what kind of a name was that, anyway? "Do you think it's broken?" she asked, her big eyes coming back up to him. That was going to put a damper on things. At least she could get a couple days off work, though.

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

"Uh, I'd say a six or a seven," He knew that each person's pain tolerance was different and from the look on her face he was sure it was hurting pretty bad. He tried to be gentle moving his fingers over her lower calf and ankle, pressing and prodding as lightly as he possibly could while still trying to make sure he was getting a good enough assessment. She would need an x-ray.

"Just walking, trying to clear my head," Marius nodded his head just enough to make it known that he was listening to her while his eyes remained on her ankle. Wasn't that usually what happened? Someone needed to clear their head and didn't pay much attention to where they were going, that's usually how they ended up falling in a ditch or getting hit by a bus. "I think that's the last time I go to the beach distracted." He tsked and this time it was a shake of his head no as he turned his head so he could look her in the eye this time. She was quite beautiful and her skin looked so soft and her expression almost gentle it seemed. "Who knew talking a leisurely stroll on the beach could be such a hazard?"

"Do you think it's broken?" Once again he shook his head and headed back to the counter so he could scribble in her file. "Not even close," he said quietly and began writing down notes for the nurse assigned to her. "I want you to have an x-ray done. I'm thinking it's nothing more than just a sprain but with an x-ray we'll be able to tell if there's any kind of fracture." He shut the file and clicked his pen, placing it back into the breast pocket once more.

He gave her one more look, ready to depart and leave the file with the nurse, but then he took another look at her foot and began to grind his teeth behind his closed lips and furrowed his brows. He knew that the nurse was going to have a difficult time getting her into a chair and carting her around, especially since the nurse who was assigned to her was Nurse Gomez, possibly the smallest nurse they had. "Your nurse is going to have her hands full without trying to get you into a chair and up to radiology," he headed over to the corner of the room where there was a folded up chair and opened it up. "Come, I'll get you up there so we can get you right and well," he said and offered her a bit of a smile now, bringing the chair around to where she was seated and held his arms out. If she needed, he'd pick her up and set her in the chair. Otherwise he'd be there just to give her someone to lean on.

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

"Not even close." Abby smiled and sighed in relief. It wouldn't take so long for her to heal, then! She could cast some spells to bring down the swelling and take some potions for the pain, but she couldn't make herself like new again. That was beyond her skill set. She was a talented witch, but not that talented. "I want you to have an x-ray done. I'm thinking it's nothing more than just a sprain but with an x-ray we'll be able to tell if there's any kind of fracture." She nodded her consent, wanting to be as sure as him. Her business was healing too, and she didn't want to slow her own in any way. He looked like he was ready to leave, and she was a little disappointed, but figured she might see him again once the x-rays were done.

He stopped when he looked at her ankle again and her eyes went a little wide with curiosity. What was he looking at? She looked down, too, wondering if something had changed, but it was all the same. Her eyes came back up to his handsome face inquisitively. "Your nurse is going to have her hands full without trying to get you into a chair and up to radiology." If she remembered the right nurse, she was barely shoulder height to Abby who was 5'6". She probably would have a hard time carting her around. "Come, I'll get you up there so we can get you right and well." Abby was even more surprised, but she smiled for him. More time with the hot doctor! "Thank you!" she said cheerfully, noting his small smile. So serious.

He pulled a wheelchair over and she almost laughed. She'd never ridden in one before! Was it sad she was excited to do so? Better yet, he reached his arms out to her, offering her support. This would be a good opportunity to fulfill some of her curiosity about the man. She scooted forward more on the bed she was sitting on and reached her arms out to him with a small smile. Her hands gripped his biceps as she gently hopped off the bed on her bare feet. He was more muscular than she expected, but she didn't comment on it. For all he would know, she was just grabbing onto him for support. Her eyes were cast down as she tried to hobble to the chair, but the second she put weight on her ankle, she gasped and fell into him, completely unintentionally. "Okay, bad idea," she sighed as she tried to right herself again, one hand now on his shoulder. She smiled at her clumsiness, looking up at him and blushing suddenly at how close they were. He was just as handsome up close. To brush off the sudden pause in her movements, she smiled wider and looked back down to the floor, watching where she was hopping to get to the wheelchair. Finally she let go of his arms and grabbed the arms of the chair instead, easing herself down. Despite the pain, she couldn't deny she liked being so up close and personal with Dr. Dakanis.

Before they started moving, she grabbed her flip flops off the bed. She had slipped them off when she first got into the room, but she didn't want to leave them behind. Once she was settled she smiled up at the doctor gratefully. "Thanks for helping me," she said in her low, almost soothing voice. She didn't really try to make her voice so smooth, it just came out that way. It took a couple tries, but she found a way to rest her foot so it wouldn't hurt. She was tempted to suggest a wheelchair race, but she bit her lip against it. She hung around teenagers too much.

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

He hadn't expected the woman to lean into him as much as she did, grabbing hold of his arm and steadying herself so that she could try and walk. He was about to tell her that putting any weight on her foot was a bad idea but just as he opened his mouth she fell into him and his arms were ready to catch her, steadying her so that she wouldn't topple over. Their close proximity was a little.. overwhelming for him and the way his lips were parted if someone were to walk in it would have been quite a sight to see. He cleared his throat as his brows knitted with that serious, almost brooding look while his eyes gazed down at the girl who found her bearing and got herself into the wheelchair. She looked so out of place in it.

Once he was sure she was secured in the chair he began to wheel her backwards out of the room so that he was able to get the door and not bang her into it. Once in the hall it was as if they had gone into a different building entirely. Leaving the quiet confines of the room the halls were a nightmare. Patients were hollering for attention, nurses running around administering medicine and following orders of doctors who were shouting. Marius could be loud when he needed to be but he hardly ever barked orders the way other doctors did unless it was because it was too loud to hear him otherwise. He found it easier to come off as calm and collected than it did to get flustered and seem rushed, in most cases.

The elevators weren't far down the hall however, and he remained quiet the entire stroll down the hall trying to be cautious not to bump into anyone, hunched over with his hands firmly on the handles of the chair. He mashed in the button with the arrow pointing up which lit up momentarily before the elevator dinged to let them know it was on their floor. The doors slid open and he rolled her right in and hit the button for the proper floor, waiting for the doors to close and leave them in silence once more. He always found it comforting that in all the chaos there were places to go and find a little peace in the hospital. The elevators could be one of those places if you didn't get stuck with the wrong people.

"It's no problem," he said breaking the silence, but then he realized that what he said probably didn't make much sense now. "You said thanks back in the room, I didn't say anything back, but it's not a problem." He let out a sharp breath and a nervous grin as the elevator climbed up the floors. He chanced a glance down at the girl, noticing just how pretty she was once again. He felt mixed emotions, finding her attractive but at the same time feeling unprofessional for such a thought since he was seeing her as a patient. Had he seen her before? He didn't think so. What with his schedule he hardly had time for the friends he did manage to keep.

"Are you visiting or do you live in the city?" There was nothing wrong with a little small talk to break up that tension that he felt in the air. He was sure it was just him and he averted his eyes looking straight ahead as the cart dinged again and the doors slid open when they reached their floor. He started to push her out once more but this time they were in a quieter hall and he went at a much slower pace, giving her time to talk if that's what she wanted to do. A part of him didn't want to go back down to the ER just yet. Maybe he'd end up staying and waiting around for the x-rays to be done. He hadn't taken a break yet, so why not now?

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

Dr. Dakanis didn't say anything as he wheeled Abby out the door backwards. She let her smile secretly get a little excited, like she was on a ride. It was childish, but she had to get her kicks somewhere. They went out into a crowded hallway, doctors yelling and nurses hustling through the halls of the ER. It was kind of exciting, though she saw some things she didn't really want to. A bloody man being transferred from a gurney to a bed, a little boy whose arm was in the shape of a Z. That made her cringe and she decided it was best to stop being nosy and just watch the people straight ahead of her. The good doctor didn't say anything, just pushed her along, which was fine by her. They came to an elevator and it didn't take long before they were rolling onto it. The silence was sudden, but she didn't feel uncomfortable in it.

"It's no problem." Abby was confused by the statement and she looked up at him from the chair. "You said thanks back in the room, I didn't say anything back, but it's not a problem." "Oh!" she said and laughed lightly. He was adorable! That grin just made him all the more so and she smiled wide before looking back at the elevator doors. Maybe he thought she was pretty too and that's why he was being a little awkward. Then again, were there many smooth doctors out there? Most of the male doctors she met were a little awkward. It didn't matter with Dr. Dakanis, though; it just made him even cuter. It was quiet in the elevator, but if it was uncomfortable, she didn't feel it.

"Are you visiting or do you live in the city?" She glanced up at him again and smiled kindly. "I live here. I just moved back actually. I grew up here, but spent some time away after college," she replied. They were moving off the elevator into a much quieter hallway and her eyes wandered, taking everything in. "I missed it, though. It's good to be back, even if I sprained my ankle." She gave an amused little smile, mostly to herself and then glanced up at him behind her. "What about you? Where do you hail from? You have a bit of an accent. It made me curious." Her smile was sweet and unassuming. Some people got offended if you mentioned they didn't speak with perfect American accents. She meant no offense, though, and that was evident by her smile.

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

"I live here. I just moved back actually. I grew up here, but spent some time away after college," The woman still looked young and he found himself curious to how old she was, realizing that he'd just have to take a look at her file. But he wouldn't do that right then and there. "That so?" He asked and kept wheeling her down the hall and taking a left.

"I missed it, though. It's good to be back, even if I sprained my ankle." He laughed at this, knowing that spraining her ankle must have put a damper on things but all things considered it would have been much worse. "Yes, the city is nice," he commented, not realizing that he was doing more thinking than he was speaking. This woman was so bright and cheerful, smiling and laughing even though her ankle must have been throbbing in pain. He'd be sure to give her something for the pain once he found out if it was fractured or not.

"What about you? Where do you hail from? You have a bit of an accent. It made me curious." He gave a big toothy smile. He tried to hide his accent but it wasn't always so easy. When he was concentrated on work or angry it came out more and he couldn't prevent it. "I'm from Romania. But I've been here for a while now actually. If ever my accent gets too heavy by all means just tell me," he chuckled at the thought of it, as if he was expecting to see her more than just today.

Soon after he stopped the wheelchair in front of a door marked RADIOLOGY and stepped in front of the female so he could push the door open. There was another man inside who got up from his chair when he heard the door open and came to help out, holding the door open so Marius could wheel the girl inside. "Hey Marius," the other man said in greeting and held his hand out for the chart which Marius handed over. "Afternoon Dave, we need an x-ray here. Our lovely Miss James here twisted her ankle," "Ooh bummer!" The other man was definitely younger, looking like he was fresh out of college in fact. Dave went to work of turning on the machinery.

Marius stepped in front of Abby once again and held a hand out for her. "Let's get you up on the table, get some x-rays and then bandage you up so we can get out of your hair," he smiled at her, showing his pearly whites once more. He looked less serious when he showed teeth than when he gave a closed mouth smile. He always hated his smile and thought it was crooked and weird, but when he showed a bit of teeth it seemed to get a better reaction than when he didn't. And he definitely wanted to make the right impression.

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

Dr. Dakanis' smile lit up at her question and Abby felt her own smile widen. He was so cute when he smiled like that! "I'm from Romania. But I've been here for a while now actually. If ever my accent gets too heavy, by all means, just tell me." "Don't you worry, I will," she promised playfully. That sounded promising! This handsome Romanian devil was making it sound like he would see her more than just this once, and she couldn't be happier at the thought. Did she really have a chance with a doctor? Who knew? But she was willing to find out.

They came to a door marked RADIOLOGY, and Abby watched as Dr. Dakanis took a step in front of her so he could open the door. Another man came to hold the door open, so the doctor wheeled her inside as the other man greeted them. "Hey Marius!" Marius? Was that the doctor's first name? She liked it. She was a fan of musicals and the young man in love with Cosette from Les Miserables came to mind. "Afternoon Dave, we need an x-ray here. Our lovely Miss James here twisted her ankle." Being called their "lovely" Miss James made Abby beam at Marius as her cheeks turned a little pink. That sounded even more promising. Her luck was definitely turning around. "Ooh, bummer!" Abby giggled, looking at the other guy. "Tell me about it," she commiserated, still managing to keep her sense of humor during all of this. Pain was French bread, after all.

Dave walked away and Marius stepped in front of her, holding his hand out, and she gladly took it. "Let's get you up on the table, get some x-rays and then bandage you up so we can get out of your hair." He smiled wide again, showing his teeth, and she grinned back. He was so cute! "You're not in my hair, Dr. Dakanis," she assured, her tone bordering flirty. She had to let him know she was interested. With some awkward maneuvering and a little help from the good doctor, she was able to get on the table and get the x-rays done with little problem and some grimacing. She hoped she looked cute making the faces she was making, but she was less focused on that than the throbbing in her ankle. It might be a while before she made it back to the beach.

Good news was, there was no fracture, just a bad sprain. When she got home, there was going to be some raiding of the refrigerator for potions and calling Lafayette over to play nurse. He would do it with a little side of bitching. She called her parents to come pick her up, certain her mom would insist on bringing her dinner too, which she wouldn't turn down, and knowing one of them could drive her car back to her house. After all of that, it was her and Marius left in a room to bandage her up. "So what brought you here of all places from Romania? It's a long way from home," she inquired, wanting to know more about this Marius Dakanis. He seemed like an interesting person and she never minded getting to know handsome men.

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

During the x-ray scans Marius waited outside of the room so that he'd be out of the way. The technicians were given small rooms that were filled mostly with the chunky machinery that he'd be in the way more than anything else so he leaned against the wall in the hallway and waited until he was given the okay to come back inside. Fifteen minutes later, they were back in a regular room and he was wrapping up her foot.

Fortunately her foot was only sprained so all he had to do was wrap it up tight enough to prevent it from being moved around too much and give her some crutches to be on her way. He was careful as he wrapped up her ankle, very aware of the swelling which he knew would go down after a few hours of keeping it propped up. "So what brought you here of all places from Romania? It's a long way from home," the question was one he'd been asked often when people found out where he was from, and it was always the same response. "Better opportunities. I lived in a small town and they didn't need another doctor," he chuckled softly trying to keep the mood light. He never told anyone his real reason, that he'd come here to help those who were different.

Once her foot was wrapped up in the cotton bandaging he grabbed a tan wrap and unraveled it so he could cover up the bandaging so it wouldn't fray or get dirty. His eyes would move off her foot up to her eyes every so often but his expression remained the same serious slate the entire time. He was a very serious man most of the time and even when he was awkward or uncomfortable he looked serious. "I want you to get home and rest today. No walks on the beach for a while and keep your foot elevated as much as possible so the swelling will go down," he explained and then went quiet so he could concentrate on making sure he didn't make the wrap too loose or too tight. It was a simple enough thing but his mind seemed to be wandering a bit.

When he attached the little metal clips to hold her binding intact he ran his hand along her ankle once more, feeling it and making sure it was secured before he looked up at her again. "You're all set," he moved to a closet in the corner of the room and pulled out a set of crutches. He leaned them against the table she was seated on and then licked his lips. This was going to be the part that made him nervous, "I'd like to see you again, check how your sprain is doing."

He cleared his throat, "This is very unprofessional and forward of me, but I'm also wondering if you'd like to have dinner with me one night this week." This was the first time he'd actually asked a patient out. He'd been asked out a few times by patients but he never accepted or extended the invitation.

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

"Better opportunities. I lived in a small town and they didn't need another doctor." Abby smiled more at Marius' chuckle and settled to watch him work. He had very gentle hands. Though the bandaging hurt, it didn't hurt as much as she had expected it to. He continued in silence, which didn't bother her; the man needed to concentrate. But every now and then his eyes would wander up to hers, which made her smile more, a little bashfully. Was she really pretty enough to attract such a cute doctor? "I want you to get home and rest today. No walks on the beach for a while and keep your foot elevated as much as possible so the swelling will go down." Abby nodded, laughing a little. "I think a walk on the beach would be pretty difficult with crutches," she replied playfully. He brought the telltale crutches out of a closet and rested them against her table. It had been a while since she had used them, but she figured it wouldn't be too hard to get used to them again.

"I'd like to see you again..." The words made her heart throb and she looked surprised up at him. "...check how your sprain is doing." Her smile was back and she felt both disappointed and silly. Maybe he should finish what he was saying first before she got all excited. "Sure!" she replied, expecting him to prattle off the best time for her to come back. At least this wouldn't be the last time she saw the handsome doctor. He cleared his throat, obviously needed to say something more, and she kept her big eyes on him as he spoke. "This is very unprofessional and forward of me, but I'm also wondering if you'd like to have dinner with me one night this week." Her heart was going crazy again and she blushed beneath her wide brown eyes. Really?! She was that lucky?! Her smile grew, wide and bashful and she pushed some hair behind her ears as she nodded. Finally her unlucky streak was over!

"Yeah, I'd really like that," she replied, holding his gaze. On the outside she was smiling and cute, but on the inside she was squealing and do a dance on her crutches. A date! With the hot Romanian doctor! She would have so much to tell Lafayette when he came over to play nurse tonight. If they were going on a date, though, she wasn't going to call him Dr. Dakanis...well, unless she was teasing him. "Your first name is Marius, right?" she inquired, making sure she had it right. Her smile grew as she looked up at him from the table, glad she was sitting; she was feeling weak in the knees with all this excitement! "Well, Marius, you can call me Abby." Though her tone was casual and flirtatious, her heart was racing. This whole meeting was so unexpected!

[MARIUS DAKANIS]

"Yeah, I'd really like that," Marius couldn't prevent the smile that spread over his lips at her response to his question. Never in a million years did he ever think he would ask a patient out but here he was, asking this lovely lady if she would like to have dinner with him one evening that week and she had delightedly accepted. How could he not be smiling? "Your first name is Marius, right?" How rude of him! He hadn't even given her his name! "Y-yes," he nodded and grew rather flustered by his blunder, "my apologies, Marius Dakanis. Marius is fine."

"Well, Marius, you can call me Abby." He already knew her name was Abigail because of her chart but when she told him to call her Abby he felt like he had some sort of validation, that it was alright to think of her as something other than a patient now that the formalities were done and over. "Abby it is then," he confirmed and clamped his hands together in front of him before unclasping them and setting them down at his sides.

"Right then," he cleared his throat, he was still at work after all and he had many more patients he would have to see before the day was through, "if you're free on Thursday?" He asked wondering if that would be a good day for her, it was enough time for the swelling in her foot to go down and be able to get used to the crutches.

The crutches! He stepped forward and grabbed the crutches again, placing one on either side of her and then holding his arms out in case she needed assistance. "Do try to stay off your foot from now until then. But if you have any questions, concerns, just want to have a chat," he chuckled nervously, "call me. I'm not above house calls." He reached into the breast pocket of his shirt and pulled out a business card that read his name and held his phone number. No address or anything fancy, just a simple little card.

[ABIGAIL JAMES]

“Abby it is, then.” Her smile crinkled up the corners of her eyes in delight. Being on a first name basis with Marius was more than she could have hoped for from a visit to the hospital. He clasped his hands in front of him at first, but then let them swing loosely to his sides. It was cute how nervous he was. Abby got flustered, but she never really showed she was nervous. She could tell he didn’t pick up his patients often, which made her feel particularly proud of herself. She didn’t know how she did it, but she somehow was attractive enough to make Marius go against his strict professional guidelines. “Right then.” He cleared his throat and she realized she had better let the man get back to work before he got into trouble. She’d hogged him to herself long enough. “If you’re free on Thursday?” “Yeah, that’ll work,” she said cheerfully with a nod. She could squeal. She had a date on Thursday with a handsome doctor!

Nervous Marius grabbed the crutches and leaned them against the bed on either side of her then reached out his arms to help her again. She could easily manipulate this situation again, but she wouldn’t. He needed to work and her parents were bound to be pulling up to the front of the hospital at any moment. Her hands reached out and grabbed his arms again as she slid off the bed, putting her weight on her left foot instead of her right. “Do try to stay off your foot until then. But if you have any questions, concerns, just want to have a chat…” She giggled at his nervous chuckle, her hands supporting her against the bed at her back. “…call me. I’m not above house calls.” She took his card, leaning her back against the bed as she did so. It was simple, but it had all the information she needed. A house call, huh? That was tempting. She brought her eyes back up to his as she slipped his card in her pocket. “I’ll do that, thank you,” she said softly, unable to control the big smile on her face. “And I know you have my number,” she added almost playfully. “Just give me a call and let me know what time I’ll see you on Thursday.” If her goofy, smiling face didn’t tell him how delighted she was to be going on a date with him, she didn’t know what would. Strangely, she was starting to notice just how close they were at the moment.

Just then he phone rang, and Abby jumped a little at the sound of “Come Fly With Me” jingling from her pocket. That was the ringtone she used for her parents, since they had danced to it at their wedding. She pulled it out of her pocket, answering it with a sweet, “Hello?” Her mother told her she was at the front and had brought her spaghetti and meatballs for dinner and Ben and Jerry’s for dessert. Abby knew that spaghetti and meatballs was probably closer to a tub than a regular Tupperware container and that Ben and Jerry’s was a pint. She had the best mom ever; she kept her well fed. “Aww, gratzi Mama! I’ll be there in minute…Ti amo troppo. Ciao.” She hung up and put her phone back in her pocket, the whole conversation having lasted about two minutes. It hit her that she had just spoken Italian in front of her future date, which might be a little bewildering. “My mom,” she started, indicating her phone. “She and I speak Italian fluently, so we go back and forth in it all the time. I don’t even realize I’m doing it half the time.” She gave something of a shy laugh, though she was sure it would only impress him; guys always found that attractive about her. “Would you mind showing me how to get out of here? I know I’m going to get lost,” she said with a little laugh. That statement was true, but she also wanted some more time with the good doctor. She could steal him for a couple more minutes, right?