When We Meet Again

“Er, how about I leave you to sleep and maybe I can take your journal with me? Read it slowly?” he said softly.

His dad made another gesture of ascent with his hand but his eyes did not open.

“Okay father. Rest well. I shall see you another time.” He said as he stood up to leave. His father smiled and then his head listed to the side. He was asleep. Dean watched him for another moment, thinking about the vibrant man he’d been not too long ago. He felt saddened to see him this way. He looked down at the journal that contained his father’s words. Maybe this was all the communication that his father would have left soon. Dean caressed the cover reverently. If that was true then…

He turned away and left the room, his heart heavy and filled with conflicting thoughts and emotions. Was Meaghan really just a whim or was she more than that? How could he know for sure? He studied the journal again, thinking hard. Maybe it would help him to know what true love really was. If that was so then it was just one more thing he had to be grateful to his father for. Could he afford to let him down or betray him; because he was sure that Jeffrey Morgan Wesson would be firmly in his wife’s corner on this one. Samantha was the girl they wanted for him; Meaghan could never be anything more than an interloper. Dean sighed tiredly. He had a lot to think about…and with his upstairs head as opposed to just the pull of attraction that he was feeling everywhere else.

*****

Monday dawned bright and cheerful for an autumn day in New York. Meaghan anticipated good things for today. She took down her purple suit and gray shirt that she’d dry cleaned and ironed special for today and put them on, pulling her hair back in a severe bun and keeping her make up as minimal as possible; just some nude lipstick and black eyeliner to bring out the honey gold of her eyes. She dressed in low heels because she was taking the train to Manhattan. Her goal was to be assigned to the Queens branch of the hospital whose community outreach program she’d heard so much about from her mother.

As she arrived at the tall modern glass building that housed the headquarters for Mt. Sinai she took a deep breath and sent a prayer out to Whomever was listening. She smiled at the receptionist as she informed her that she was here for a meeting with the hospital board. The receptionist, whose name tag said Mia Tran, asked for her name which she gave. Mia typed into her computer and read whatever came up.

“Second floor, third door to the right,” she informed Meaghan. Meaghan nodded her thanks and went to the elevator. Her hands were shaking and she was sweating through her silk blouse. Meaghan’s breath hitched and she closed her eyes counting slowly to ten to slow her heartbeat. By the time the elevator opened on the second floor she had herself back in control again.

There was another receptionist looking enquiringly at her and she stepped up to inform him that she was here for an interview. This receptionist has a name tag written Kevin Bradshaw and he smiled and led her to the room, going in before her to announce her presence. Meaghan closed her eyes and breathed deep reminding herself that she was fully qualified for this job and in fact they’d be lucky to have her. Kevin emerged from the room and ushered her in and she went in crossing her fingers behind her back as she did so.

*****

Her mother was waiting anxiously for her as she came into the house.

“Well?” she asked.

“I got it,” Meaghan said with a huge smile on her face. Her mother came forward and hugged her.

“I made sweet potato pie to celebrate,” her mother said.

“Yeah I guess it works well for celebration or commiseration huh?” Meaghan teased. Her mother didn’t say anything just let it stand. They ate the pie and toasted each other with beer and then her mother was off to bed since she had an early shift. Meaghan pulled out her file folder which contained her notes and did a quick overview of common communicable diseases. She was scheduled to start work the next day for orientation and she wanted to be ready. After reading through the basics she texted Bain, telling him of her success and he called back at once to gush his congratulations.

“I knew you could do it,” he said.

“Just call me the little train that could,” Meaghan joked.

“I think I can; I think I can; I think I can,” Bain chanted making Meaghan laugh even more.

“So are we going out to celebrate tonight?” he asked,

“No I don’t think so. I need to get a good night’s sleep so I’m fresh for tomorrow,” she said.

“Aww my little Hermione,” Bain said indulgently. “All grown up now.”

Meaghan laughed out loud, “Now I’m gonna hang up coz I think I’m calling Dean to tell him.”

“Okay then. Call me back after with a blow by blow,” Bain said.

“How’s your stripper? How come I don’t get blow by blows of your conversations?” she asked.

“Aww honey, we don’t talk,” Bain said as if she was a particularly retarded naïve schoolgirl.

“PG XXX all the way?” she asked smiling.

“Oh there is no PG anywhere to be seen,” Bain replied smugly.

Meaghan laughed, “Goodbye loverboy.”

“See you soon honey chile,” Bain said. Even though he grew up in the most upscale parts of New York, he’d spent enough time at Meaghan’s residence to pick up the cadences of speech around the trailer park. He enjoyed using them while speaking with her although he refrained when other people were around just in case they took it the wrong way. Meaghan really enjoyed hearing her mother’s southern drawl coming out of Bain’s mouth. She was smiling as she dialed Dean’s number from memory and her smile widened when he picked up on the second ring.

“Hello?” he said his voice cool and distant.

“Hey Dean. Its Meaghan,” she said.

“Yes I gathered from your name flashing on my screen,” he said in the same tone. Meaghan wasn’t sure if he was deadpanning it or something was the matter.

“How are you?” she ventured.

“I’m well. How are you?” he asked.

Meaghan took the opening. “I just got accepted at Mt. Sinai,” she told him.

“Oh really? That’s good news, I’m happy for you,” his voice did sound more animated. Maybe he really was happy.

“Thanks,” she replied.

“So I don’t have to worry about you haring off to Colorado?” he said.

“What? No that was just a temporary gig; I was leaving there anyway,” she told him.

“Oh. So moving to Mt. Sinai wasn’t something to do with maybe wanting to stay in town for me?” he asked. Meaghan stared at the phone in disbelief and then put it back to her ear.

“Er no. It’s been the plan all along,” she said, her voice colder than it had been.

“That’s wonderful. I mean it,” Dean said.

“Great. So anyway, I gotta go,” Meaghan said.

“Okay then. I’ll see you around I guess,” Dean replied.

“Yeah,” Meaghan said and hung up. She was frozen in shock at the way that conversation had gone. It was nothing like she’d imagined even though she knew they had some issues to iron out, she hadn’t been expecting such a cool reception from him. What did it mean? And why was he asking her about ‘moving to Mt. Sinai for him’? Who the hell did he think he was? And why did he sound so horrified at the possibility anyway?