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‘Here in the present, I marry again..With your face and the taste of the loveThat we used to make.’ Audrey Lim presses her head against her hands as she sits on her Ducati for a moment- though that moment passes quickly as the rush of sadness and emotions turns to what can only be numbness. Shock. Has she really done this?She had. She ruined herself and she’d ruined her relationship.. The only thing she could do is work. It was all she had- It was all she needed. She was a strong woman, she had to be the example to the many residents that looked up to her for guidance..She stones herself as she parks her Ducati in the hospital parking lot- made specifically for the staff workers. —-- “Dr. Lim.” Alex Park's voice is the first thing she hears when she walks into the chilling hospital, goosebumps covering her body despite the thick leather jacket she’d worn. She gives him a half-smile, and for some reason, he could read her better than Neil ever could. | He was a resident, but he had been a cop for years before the thought of becoming a doctor even crossed his mind. He was made to investigate; he was smarter than anyone else gave him credit for. She appreciated that about him- he’d been as underestimated as she’d been. “Dr. Park. How’s your shift going?” She asks, tone of voice as monotone as she can make it, though it wobbles with the emotion she’s desperately trying to hide. Any other day she would’ve just ran to the bar and drank away her problems, but for some reason, she came here. It was suspicious considering it was her day (night) off.. But for some reason, she didn’t want to hide behind the taste of liquor. She wanted to change, and maybe, if Neil saw her moving on and coping the way she was supposed to, She would set the proper example even for him. “Fine. I’d ask how your night was but considering you’re here when you should be at home asleep.. I think I know. Trouble with your relationship?” He muses- he was on a similar boat. Him and Mia were on and off, and with the confirmation of the divorce, he’s been down recently.
The lame excuses, the avoidance of the people he typically loved to work with- he avoided the people who would know something was up. Which explains why he’s been desperately avoiding Resnick and her commonly snide remarks. “Yeah.. Rather be here than drinking the thoughts away. I’m nearly a year sober, I don’t want to ruin that. Not right now, not when I finally have so much going for me.” She whispers, this time completely failing to hide the emotion in her voice. If that hadn’t given it away, then it was the way her face seemed to scrunch up as she tried not to cry.
Alex puts a reassuring hand on her shoulder and smiles softly..“It’s okay chief. You did the right thing for you, and that's really all you can do..Don’t worry about him. It’s all we ever see you do nowadays. You deserve a break too.” He whispers, a comforting and warm hand now on her shoulder as he leads her to her office. Audrey can’t help but melt into it.. Neil hasn’t touched her like that in such a long time. —-For some reason, the comfort supplied by the ex-cop makes Audrey Lim feel more alive than she has in years. The way his larger body pressed against hers so comfortingly, the way she’d willingly accepted her touch- she knew it was worth it. He was never violent.. He was always kind to her. Alex Park defended those he loved, and currently, he felt the aching in his heart slip away. He was cuddling her as close as he could, her head resting on his shoulder. He didn’t think of Mia like he typically would during times like this. He’d never felt so free or relaxed with Mia- but the way Audrey made him feel? It was different. It was like someone had lit a spark under his heart, made it jump and spin. Whenever he was around her, his heart would beat faster, his face would get all hot and his stomach would twist around itself. Relaxed enough to be himself, but excited as well.
He was falling in love with Audrey Lim, and he knew it. Hopefully, she didn’t. He didn’t want to ruin such a pure friendship with a stupid confession, and if he did, it would be one he thought out and prepared for- maybe with a nice dinner trip. He couldn’t keep thinking like this if he didn’t plan to actually commit..But he was scared, as much as he would hate to admit that to anyone that wasn’t his son. Audrey isn’t aware of his feelings, but she is aware of her own. She feels heartbroken. As she watches Neil Melendez move on, the ache in her chest grows and it only calms when he’s around. Unfortunately, she and the latino still commonly had to work together, and it was something that broke her more.. Especially as she watches him flirt the same way he had when he was a resident. Audrey knew he was an attractive man- she could recognize the fact that the compliments would boost his ego. She knew that as soon as she was out of his life and he had gotten over her that he would find someone else.Maybe he would find someone pretty, maybe she would be as confident as Audrey had once been. Maybe that woman would be able to beat some sense into him- or at least she hoped. But as she watches closer, she sees something she may have been ignoring.
He was flirting with a resident. A resident no other than Claire Browne.He had gone younger. Twenty years younger by the looks of it. —--- Nothing about Audrey Lim was predictable and that was something Alex Park had learned to enjoy about her. His mind was always cursed with routine, structure, but Audrey allowed something new to taint his brain.She taught him how to have fun again- after a life spent trying to avoid it. “Audrey Lim!” Alex Park laughs as she orders another round of shots. She was leaning on tipsy. She was thinner, smaller, and it took less for her body to get to that point. Alex however, managed to stay somewhat buzzed. Though, with the next shot he and Audrey downed together, the buzz in his head got significantly more present. A fluttery feeling rose in his stomach, and his teeth started to tingle- Audrey was just getting a lot more touchy and a lot more.. Bold? If she wasn’t enough already. “Don’ even start! You were the one who wanted to come to the bar in the first place.” She whines with a fond, tasing tone at the end of her sentence. Her eyes were fluttering, pupils wide. “I didn’t think you’d want to snatch a bottle of whisky just to keep to yourself.” Alex muses, poking at her stomach before standing up- the world seemed to spin a bit as he regained his balance, and Audrey giggled.. He walks behind her stool and pokes her back, causing her to turn around and face him. In this moment, the bar suddenly felt empty- their faces became hot, and Audrey could feel his breath against her neck. Alex stares into her beautiful dark eyes, and after a moment, he leans closer. It felt natural, as if they’d belonged together from the start. Before he could stop himself, he pressed his own lips against hers, and immediately, Audrey pressed back, her hand cupping his cheek and pulling him closer as their bodies pressed together. Was it that the alcohol had tainted their feelings.. Or had it brought out the hidden desires that neither had wanted to admit was there? Neither of them knew at the moment, both of them in a buzzed-tipsy (Practically drunken) state. They only knew that the feeling of each other's lips was something new and exciting. Something worth the possible sacrifices they may make in the future to continue this.. Whatever it was. —Neil Melendez feels jealousy boil in his stomach as he sees the pair. His charcoal eyes water as he squeezes the flowers he’d bought for her. It was supposed to be an apology for what he’d done, for everything.. But he sees them. He knows what happened.Audreys radiant smile as she looks at Alex Park, the small bruises covering Alex’s neck. The flustered look on both of their faces, and the way that both of them had pink tinted cheeks..The lipstick stain on Alex’s lips that matched the tone of Audrey’s favorite color. The one she only wore on nights out. He feels the tears spill down his face before he can do much more, and he turns away. The flowers are thrown in the nearest trash can, and he slams his office door- He and Andrews had begun sharing an office since the mans demotion, and Neil is grateful that Audrey Lim’s is nowhere near his own.. “What’s wrong, man?” Marcus asks in shock, looking up from the computer. Neil Melendez didn’t cry- it just wasn’t normal. “Nothing,” Neil growls. “Nothing at all.” —- The words they’d whispered to each other were ones that meant the world to both of them. Words that signaled a new beginning for them both. “I love you, Audrey..” Alex whispers, more emotional than he meant to be as his hand gently caresses her now slightly swollen stomach from their first night together. Audrey chuckles, and smiles at him. “I love you too.. And so does bean.” The moment is one more intimate than anything they’d experienced with their previous partners. It’s something so pure.. And true. For once, Audrey Lim knew what true love felt like.