When We Meet Again

“Yes she is,” Dean said sounding inappropriately proud of the fact.

“Didn’t you guys used to hate each other?” Smith asked furrowing his brow in genuine curiosity.

“Nooo…that was Meaghan and Sammy. I was fine with her,” Dean said.

“So does she still have the hots for you?” Smith grinned salaciously.

“I don’t know that she ever did to be honest. I think that was something Sammy just assumed,” Dean said thoughtfully.

“You don’t have the hots for her do you?” Smith asked with trepidation.

Dean was silent looking into the distance.

“Dean?” Smith prompted.

“I’m thinking,” Dean said.

“You have to think about whether you have the hots for somebody?” Smith asked.

“I have to think about what exactly it is I feel for this girl,” Dean replied.

“What? You feel as in feelings? You have feelings?” Smith’s voice went unnaturally high on this question.

“I don’t know; and keep your voice down would you? She could come in at any time,” Dean said irritably.

“Dean you can’t be serious. Sammy’s waiting on an engagement ring!” Smith said.

“I know that. And I don’t know if I’m going to give it to her okay? But that stays between you and me you understand me Smith?” Dean glared at him for emphasis.

“Wow. This is so far beyond bad you have no idea,” Smith said shaking his head sadly.

“Oh I have an idea but…” Dean hesitated.

“But what?” Smith prompted.

Dean didn’t know how to tell him how it had felt to see Meaghan stand up to his mother with not a trace of fear in her demeanor. I mean this was a woman who could destroy her with a word; have her fired, ‘make sure she never worked in this town again’, yet she never hesitated for a single moment. Of course it could be because of her naiveté but Meaghan had spent too many years brushing against the power and influence of some Dalton families; she couldn’t not know. It had made Dean feel… ashamed of himself. He had spent so many years toeing the family line, doing what was expected; because he’d never imagined that there were any other options. But now Meaghan was showing him that there were. It only required that he find his courage and step out of this family appointed box.

“Did you know I thought about playing professional basketball?” he asked Smith.

Smith reared back in surprise. “When?” he asked.

“High school. Remember when the scout from the NCAA came by? We had a small discussion – he said I was good enough to play college basketball if I wanted. I told him I didn’t want to…but I did.”

Smith was looking at him in puzzlement. “And what has this got to do with Meaghan?” he asked.

“She makes me feel like…my dreams are valid,” Dean said with a self-deprecating laugh.

“Your dreams have always been valid Dean,” Smith said perplexed.

“Really? How do you know that? Do you even know what I dream of? Have you ever asked?”

“Has she?”

Dean thought about that for a bit. “No. but she makes me feel like she would make room for my dreams in her life,” he said.

“And we wouldn’t?” Smith looked offended.

Dean shrugged, “Maybe you would, but it wouldn’t occur to you – and by you I mean everyone else in my life – that my dreams would be any different from the expectations my family has of me.”

“Are they?” Smith asked and when Dean looked quizzically at him he clarified, “Different?”

Dean shook his head, “That’s the thing. I don’t know. I’ve never allowed myself to dream of anything.”

“And this girl makes you feel like you can?”

Dean smiled; at last they had reached understanding. “Exactly.”

The room was silent for a moment.

“All this because she defied your mom?” Smith said at last and Dean burst out laughing.

“Dude are you going to help me plan something for Meaghan or not?” he asked.

Smith shrugged. “Hey. You want this dream? What can I do to help?” he said.

Dean smiled at him, “I knew I could count on you. I need you to arrange dinner for us somewhere in the building – maybe on the roof? The five star treatment you know what I mean?”

“I know exactly what you mean. You sit back and rest. Leave it to me.”

*****

“Dr. Leonard! How nice to see you again. You visit so rarely,” Dean complained.

Meaghan laughed, “That could have something to do with the fact that this is my job and you’re not my only patient.”

“I thought I was more than your patient. You said we were friends,” he protested.

“We are,” Meaghan said.

“Well then so what’s stopping you from dropping in on me now and then?” Dean whined.

“I didn’t want to disturb your rest,” Meaghan said.

“Ha. You mean my boredom,” he said.

“I could get you something to read if you’d like,” she suggested.

“Ah yes, some literature; from which we can argue about during our dinner date,” Dean said. Meaghan stared at him, opened her mouth as if to say something and then pressed her lips tightly together like she didn’t want to say the wrong thing.

“You agreed to have dinner with me,” Dean reminded her.

“Er, did I? “ Meaghan said like it wasn’t etched in her mind like a brand. “And when exactly is this fabled dinner?” she asked.

“It’s a surprise,” Dean whispered.

“The surprise being…there’s no dinner? You’re scheduled to be medivac-ed out of here on Saturday or had you forgotten?”

“Oh no, I haven’t forgotten. Word to the wise? Dress nice for the rest of the week; otherwise you might find yourself wishing you had.”

Meaghan rolled her eyes and twirled on her toe to leave. “I’ll find you a book,” she threw over her shoulder. Dean just smiled.

*****

When she walked into work the next morning, everyone seemed to be extra friendly; bidding her good morning with smiles that showed all their teeth. Meaghan was fairly popular at work, she was polite to the nurses and respectful of her colleagues. She hadn’t made many real friends but then again she hadn’t been at Aspen long. It was just a locum as she waited for her residency application to go through at Johns Hopkins. She didn’t want to jinx it by becoming too settled at this job so maybe she’d been keeping people at arms’ length. Anyway she had all the friends she would ever need. Which was making the sudden over-friendliness of the staff super disconcerting to her.

She reached out and stopped Janice Kravitz who was a nurse on the paediatrics floor. She always seemed to know everything.

“Janice has something happened that I should know about?” she asked her.

Janice just grinned, “No Dr. Leonard nothing’s happened,” she said and pulled away from Meaghan. As Janice walked away she murmured something else that sounded like ‘not yet at least’.