Make Time For Me

“I know, Bud. Liza has to be more careful. We’re considering bed rest, frankly, and it might be the best option for her.”

“I’ll keep her in bed myself if I have to,” vowed the worried and obviously besotted man. The way he looked at his wife made Olivia want to both sigh and turn away, as if she had no right to witness moments so intimate.

“Stress can cause problems, too. I know it’s not easy, but you’ve got to do everything you can to keep Liza from worrying, Bud. It’s going to be harder now, after this, but… The medication we can prescribe for her for that is limited.”

Bud nodded.

“Going off her anti-depressants hasn’t been easy.”

“I know that. If it persists, we’ll put her on a lower dose of it.”

“But the baby…”

“Will be in far more danger if Liza’s mental state gets any worse. Trust us, Bud.”

Bud nodded, and turned to Olivia.

“Thank you, Dr. Leggett.”

Olivia smiled.

“She looks good now, Bud. We’ll deal with this. It will be fine.”

Bud nodded, and he zoned them out completely. He sat down beside his wife, took her hand, and just waited, as if he would wait for her forever.

Olivia thought of that all day, the way Bud had just looked at his wife as if nothing else mattered. His entire world was his wife and the baby she carried. How would it feel to have somebody look at you like that? As if nothing else mattered, as if they simply could not live without you?

It must be something special. It must be…

“Hey, Olivia, got a minute? Need a consult on your patient – Liza? Dr. Heart said to talk to you.”

“Oh! Oh, yes, of course, Angela.”

Olivia briefed Angela, who nodded seriously. It was a little strange not to have to look up at somebody while talking. Angela was only an inch or so taller than Olivia.

“Yes, I agree. We’ll monitor her for now. But there is a variant of her anti-depressant that will work at a lower dose. Dr. Starr didn’t want to switch her when she was doing well on her own, but maybe we can try that if she needs it.”

“I think Bud might need it,” joked Olivia.

“What?”

“Bud, her husband. He adores her. You should’ve seen how he was looking at her – it was as if his heart was in his eyes. He was terrified and so determined to protect her and their baby at all costs.”

“That’s sweet.”

“I know. But he might need a few Xanax prescriptions if he keeps that up. He is really on edge.”

“I can take care of that if you think it’s necessary.”

“Oh. Well, I’d prefer for you to do a consult and make up your mind. It might be a good idea.”

Angela smiled.

“You know, not everybody would’ve thought of that. You’re good at this. Sure you don’t want to switch to psych? We have fun delving into the mysteries of the human mind, you know. Plus, in a few years I’ll have my own practice and I’ll have rich clients who can afford the kind of billing I plan on doing to cover the community service I also plan on doing.”

Olivia grinned.

“Sounds like a plan, but I’m afraid I’m not that great at delving into the great mysteries of the human mind. I can hardly figure out my own, most of the time.”

“I wouldn’t mind trying to figure out a few of those. I… Oh, hi Jason. I didn’t realize you needed a consult at OB/GYN.”

Jason did not look offended at all.

“You never know, do you? I was told to prepare for a possible preemie. Really preemie.”

Olivia nodded.

“Yes, I know, did I forget to say that it’s okay now? We manage to stop the labor and we’re waiting to see if it’s going to be anything worse. She didn’t break her water so she might not even need complete bed rest. Hoping for the best.”

Jason grinned.

“I love good news. We’ll stay prepared, but let’s hope the news stays good and gets better. Give me a heads up, no matter which way it goes, will you? Female, 34?”

Olivia nodded.

“Liza. It’s her first baby. She and her husband would do anything for this child, I think. And for each other.”

“Love can be like that. Or maybe I should say that if it’s not like that, it’s not love.”

“Sounds like I should book you a psych eval, too, Jason. You’re beginning to sound a bit moony-eyed.”

“Nothing wrong with being a romantic, Angela. It’s good for the soul. Now, you can’t tell me that you’ve never wished for somebody to love you like that. It’s only human.”

Angela shrugged and turned to Olivia.

“Well then, I guess you can book an eval for Bud and we’ll see about Liza. Sounds good?”

“Excellent, Angela, thank you.”

“Just doing my job, Liv!”

Olivia didn’t say anything. She just smiled. She didn’t really like nicknames to be given by people who didn’t know her well, but it had been a losing battle since school and she really should just learn to let it go now.

Olivia turned to Jason when Angela left.

“So, how about that dinner?”

Olivia laughed.

“You never let go, do you?”

“Absolutely not.”

And just like that, everything was light again.