11 CHAPTER 11

Eris stood on a chair, dusting the top of the cabinet. Her phone rested on the table, Creep by Radiohead playing gracefully, cleansing her ears. It was her favorite song.

"Are you a creep?", teasing, Killian asked as he walked inside,

"I'm a creep and a weirdo", Eris laughed,

"I didn't know you loved this song",

"It's one of my favorite songs. I listen to it whenever I feel dry for some reason",

"You listen to a sad song when you're feeling sad? How is that helpful?",

"I deserve to feel what I feel. Why act strong when you can be a little dramatic?",

Killian laughed, "You've got a point",

He didn't speak for the next few seconds and let the song dominate the room. While Eris had her hands full with the task, he took that time _ not that he planned it or anything, to gaze at her. What was it about her? He asked himself. She surprised him every day. He admired her positive attitude. He knew she was hurting, and had been through a lot, but it's the way she contained herself and never used it as a reason to be rude to everybody else that amazed him. She was amazing.

"You're amazing", he thought out loud, 

Eris turned  around, thinking she misheard him, "You said something, boss?",

"What?", he inducted himself back to reality, "I didn't", he shook his head,

"Oh, alright",

"Are you almost done? Need some help?",

"I'm almost done here. You can go. Once I'm done, I'll lock the doors",

"No, I can wait. Take your time",

"Boss, are you babysitting me?", asked Eris under her laugh, 

"Well, it depends", he scratched his chin, "Are you a baby?",

"The most babishly baby you've ever met", 

"Then yeah, I'm babysitting you",

"Okay, you asked for it",

"Bring it on",

Eris went back to dusting, but now with a smile on her face. She felt better, so much better. And there was no way she would have felt that if she decided to stay and wallow in her room.

…

The next week arrived, and Lanelle's break was over. She was back at her job. She had shoved imaginary plugs into her ears so as not to hear when people whispered about her. Her priority was her patients, and her first stop, as soon as she arrived, was Teddy's room. 

When Teddy heard the door opening, he peeked from under the blanket. He was expecting another nurse and he wasn't excited. But as soon as he realized it's Lanelle, he was suddenly overwhelmed with joy. He even tried to sit up by himself. He missed her.

"Seri, is that you?", 

"It's me Teddy", she laughed, "Let me help you up",

"Where were you? Where did you go?",

"Did you miss me?", 

"Yes, very much!",

"I miss you too, that's why I'm back",

"Are you okay?",

She nodded, "I'm okay", 

"I'm okay too", 

Lanelle smiled. 

...

Later that day, Lanelle took a breather at the nursing station. She could still hear people talking behind her back, but she was really good at ignoring them. What she couldn't ignore was the sudden sight of Tevyn coming towards her from the hallway. His eyes rested on her; his hands clenched and relaxed in turns as he walked. It was clear that he was coming up with the right words to say in his head. 

Lanelle looked at her watch. It was only 11 am. He was supposed to be at work. What was he doing there? And for the people around who knew what went down, that whole scene played like a movie for them with drums of suspense banging loud in the background. But for Lanelle, that was too much sauce. She quickly grabbed a file and began exiting the area in a hurry.

Tevyn's speed increased. He went after her. And Lanelle's speed increased, trying to lose him. But he was on her tail, stepping on where she stepped. 

"Lanelle, wait", he called,

But she didn't, she kept walking, straight to the back door outside. She knew he was going to catch her and talk anyways, so they might as well do it outside where there were no people listening.

"What, Tevyn?", she asked, one hand on her waist, clearly annoyed,

"I get it, you're mad. I would too. I just want to apologize", he really looked guilty and regretful, but also sad, "I've been coming here everyday last week, but you weren't here. I know it's because of what happened",

"Well, it's already happened. Nothing you do or say can reverse it",

"You didn't deserve it, Lanelle",

"Of course, I didn't! You and I, nothing happened between us!",

"I know, but _",

"I don't know why your wife asked for divorce. Hell, I don't even know what's going on inside your house. But she held me accountable for it, as if I'm the reason. I don't even know you that well!",

"But you can",

"What?", she looked up at him, "Do you think that's what I want? Do you think that's important right now?",

"Can't you see it, Lanelle?", he took a step towards her, "I'm standing in front of you right now because you matter. You mean something to me and that's why as soon as my dad gave me a call saying you finally came back, I rushed here",

Lanelle's heart began pounding. She anticipated where he was heading. The exact words that she wanted him to say. The exact words she wanted to hear coming from him, but not that she expected him to speak them. She could feel her nerves cooling, easing, relaxing.

"I don't know when, or how it started, but you slowly creeped into my mind and now I can't get you out. You're all I think about", Tevyn confessed,

"You're a married man _",

"Marriages hold so many secrets, Lanelle",

"Let me guess, you're going to blame it on your wife",

"Over the years, she and I have drifted apart. You and I didn't even know each other then",

Lanelle huffed, "Only a fool will believe that a married man loves her and not his wife",

"Lanelle _",

"And I'm no fool, Tevyn",

Lanelle walked past him on her way back inside. Oh, how she wished she held him in her arms. How she loved that man. But he was a forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden. If she was going to be with him, then she wanted him to be hers alone. She wished he could leave his wife, but she didn't want to bear the blame. She wanted to be his sanctuary, but not feel indebted. She wanted him to make that decision on his own.

***