Chapter Text
Jack Abbot is leaning against a high table with other doctors. He’s half-listening to the conversation about the lecture they'll attend in the next fifteen minutes while darting his eyes around the large meeting space, littered with people.
She should be here by now…
All of the other medical professionals, interns, and students arrived last night. He’s seen a lot of their faces more than once. Except the one he was most eager to see. She’s supposed to give a lecture tomorrow afternoon, so maybe she’s been busy with that.
“I’ve only met Doctor Costello a few times, even though we both work out of San Diego. Have you met her, Abbot?” the woman next to Jack speaks up. “I know you’re now in the San Diego area.”
Jack looks down at his half-eaten sandwich and tries to recall. “I actually have, almost a decade ago at a conference in Boston. Her husband was also a combat medic, so Alice had invited me to dinner over theirs a few times when she lived on the East Coast.”
“Oh wow…did you serve with him?” The man across the little table asks.
“No, no. He served in Kosovo in the late nineties, and I was in the Middle East in the early aughts.” Jack responds as the people around the table nod.
“And how long have you been retired for?” The man asks, “I know you were an attending out in Pennsylvania…were you in Philly?”
Jack smiles and looks away from the people at his table for a moment to take a small break from all of the eyes and attention on him.
“Pittsburgh, actually.” He responds. “I’ve been out of there for the past three—”
There she is.
Samira Mohan.
Hair pulled into a slick bun that sits at the nape of her neck. A fitted white short-sleeved sweater, tucked into her black flared slacks, with her white heels peeking out from the bottom.
Looking back up at her face, she looks like she hasn’t aged a day. The same R4 that thanked him for the recommendation letter that got her a fellowship into UCSF. The same Samira who hugged him on her last day, and he hasn’t seen her since. Six years ago.
Her brown eyes dart around the room, but not like the wary resident he once knew her as. Just from standing there, he can tell that she is more composed. Shoulders relaxed, she starts elegantly walking through the crowd in her heels with her cup of water in one hand and a small plate with the provided sandwiches and chips.
“Abbot, it’s been three years?” He looks over at the woman next to him, realizing he didn’t finish talking. “Where did you just go?”
He looks at the small smile on her face, back to Samira, and then back to the people at his table.
“Yeah, I’ve been retired for three years now,” he tracks Samira, “If you’d all excuse me.”
Before they could respond, he grabs his plate and starts walking towards her. Taking in her side profile, perfectly lit by the California sun, and the meticulously placed strands of hair framing her face. Ready to call out to her after a few more steps, his path is blocked.
“Doctor Jack Abbot.” The older man greeted Jack.
“Doctor Freddy Atlas.” Jack gives him a tight smile and watches as Samira passes them and walks into the crowd. “Long time no see.”
“That is true,” Freddy laughs a little, “I was in your workshop with Aimee this morning.”
That catches Jack’s attention. “Oh wow, I didn’t even see you guys…there were way more people in attendance than I anticipated.”
“We were going to go up to you afterwards, but it seemed like the young residents and interns deserved it more.”
Jack smiles at that. “So I know you left Cleveland for Scottsdale?” The man nods. “Was the biggest change the weather?” Jack jokes.
“That was the whole reason I went there,” Freddy smiles, “And for a position at the head of the ICU, I actually…”
Jack recalls that Freddy loves talking about himself as he starts to go on about his new Arizonan lifestyle. Putting his hand in his pocket, Jack lets his eyes drift to find her again.
It doesn’t take long. Of course she’s talking with Doctor Costello and her husband. Costello is giving the next lecture in ten minutes. Jack thinks she should be getting ready, but he can tell that she’s enthralled with whatever Samira is talking about. And he doesn’t blame her.
He’s pretty sure he could remember all of the conversations he’s ever had with Samira, since he first met her as an R2. How they started from her asking in-depth questions after cases at the hub, to talks in the breakroom about the journals they’ve both read and analyzed, to the small talks about their lives at the bars during PTMC gatherings.
Jack realizes his stare when Fred turns over his shoulder to see what Jack is looking at, before turning back to him with a smile.
“Doctor Mohan,” Freddy states, “She’s a beauty and a legend…you know her?”
“I worked with her during her residency back in Pittsburgh.” Jack glances back at Samira, who is laughing, and he can’t help but smile at the smile he hasn’t seen for years.
“Ahh…that’s right, you were over there,” Freddy exclaims and claps Jack’s shoulder.
Jack almost rolls his eyes and says that he would’ve known if he had listened to other people, instead of talking about himself for the majority of conversations.
Instead, he says, “Yeah, I had the pleasure of mentoring and watching her turn into an amazing doctor, so I can only imagine how she runs her department. I heard she’s an attending now.”
“Yeah, she is.” Freddy smirks a little, “Think you could set me up with her?”
Jack shoots him a look, making Freddy throw his hands up. Jack rolls his eyes a bit and looks up to Samira again, only to find the table is empty and she’s nowhere in the vicinity.
“Didn’t know you two had history, my bad—”
“We don’t…not like that,” Jack relaxes his face and starts walking away. “What number divorce is this?” Jack asks, glancing down at Freddy’s bare finger.
He had seen Freddy and Aimee actually during his workshop and how handsy they were during the discussions. And considering the last time he saw Freddy, he was going through his second divorce and was getting to marry a different woman he introduced to Jack almost a decade ago, there was no way he’d entertain the idea of introducing him to Samira.
“Catch you later, Fred.” Jack nods as Freddy has nothing else to say.
Making his way to the massive presenting hall, he walks in to see a sea of chairs and the large stage. This was his first time in the room, as only one doctor a day over the weekend gets to present in there.
There is a good number of people in there at the moment, but Jack starts to make his way to the front, where he finds a section of empty seats. Setting his folder, notebook, and water down on the seat next to him, he gets comfortable in the aisle seat, finally able to relieve pressure on his prosthesis. Ever since he retired and turned to the more relaxed life, standing on the prosthetic for hours at a time was something he didn’t find himself doing much since his running about the ED.
Opening the folder on the chair next to him, he sifts through the papers to find the weekend itinerary. Looking at the Hall B presenters for the weekend, he sees that yesterday there was one that he missed. Dr. Costello is the presenter for today, and then his eyes widen as Dr. Mohan’s name is down for tomorrow.
He can’t believe he went from knowing her as the shy R2 to seeing her command a stage and a crowd of well over 1,000 people.
“Is this seat taken?”
Jack snaps his head up to see Samira Mohan.
She’s looking down at him with a sly smile, and he quickly stands to properly greet her.
“Doctor Mohan.” Jack greets her with a wide smile.
“Doctor Abbot.” Samira smiles with her teeth, flashing him her dimples.
She looks him up and down, and he’s pretty sure her smile widens when they make eye contact again. Samira holds both of her arms out for a hug, which he gladly gives. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, he wraps an arm around her waist and lets out a sigh before breathing in her luxurious perfume. He closes his eyes when he feels her step closer to his body.
“Samira, it’s so good to see you.” He says, rubbing his hand on the side of her waist.
“You too, Doctor Abbot.”
That makes Jack pull away from the hug and look at her. “You can call me Jack.”
She gives him the shy grin he hasn’t seen for years. “Okay, Jack…is this seat taken?”
“For you…of course not.” He turns to grab his things and steps out into the aisle to let her in.
Sitting down next to her, she crosses her legs and turns towards him a bit, making him do the same. Able to look at her face closer now, he is now positive she actually hasn’t aged. Her skin is smooth, without a blemish, and her eyes have that spark that most people in the medical field lose after their first year in residency.
“Heard you became a working legend in the field,” he smiles, making her push her thigh against his and playfully roll her eyes. “Where did Doctor Mohan go after her fellowship?”
He knows he could easily Google it, but hearing it from her is far more of a privilege.
“Well, after your glowing letter of recommendation got me into UCSF, I stayed here in California and took an attending role in critical care at UCLA’s Ronald Reagan Medical Center.”
“Oh wow, Samira.” Jack raises his eyebrows. “How is attending life treating you?”
“I don’t know how to do it.” She sighs and then smiles. “No, I’m joking. I loved it.”
“Loved?” Jack questions, “As in you don’t do it anymore?”
“No, no, I still do.” Samira clarifies, “Just not at UCLA anymore—I’m doing the same thing at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills now—so still LA just on the other side of Santa Monica Boulevard.” She gestures a leaping motion with her hands, making him smile.
“An attending in Beverly Hills…you really are a celebrity now.”
“Oh hush,” she smiles and lightly taps his arm, “I’m only over there because I don’t have to deal with the infamous Los Angeles traffic along with the student and professor traffic on the daily…now it’s just the LA commuters.”
Someone asks to sneak past them to get into the row, and Samira leans into Jack a little as he also shifts in his seat, brushing his arm against hers. His arm makes contact with her cold watch, making him look down to see a pretty, delicate gold Cartier watch adorning her wrist and a glimmering tennis bracelet on her other one. Looking up at her face, he sees a tennis necklace matching the bracelet and little gold hoop earrings.
Moving his eyes back down to her glossy manicured hands, he sees a silver ring on her middle left finger and a gold one on her right index finger. No wedding ring. But that doesn’t mean she’s single.
“And what is Doctor Jack Abbot doing all the way out in California?” She asks, turning back towards him, “I thought you hated these things, so I couldn’t imagine you using your PTO on one.”
“No PTO to use when I’m retired.”
She blinked at him, surprised. “What—so you took a flight out to this conference?”
“Nope, I live in La Jolla—well, I have a place in La Jolla and one back in Pittsburgh, but I spend more time out here.”
Samira puts a hand on his arm, “Jack, we could’ve reconnected sooner—”
The lights go down, and the room goes quiet.
He can still feel her eyes on him in the dark. Placing his hand on top of hers, still on his arm, he lightly squeezes her soft hand and turns to smile at her in the dim light.
Applause erupts through the crowd, and the lights come back up. From his periphery, Jack sees Samira turn to face him while still clapping. She opens her mouth to say something, prompting him to lean down a little to hear her.
“That was a really well-done presentation.”
Jack nods and leans in to her ear. “It was…but I’m more excited to see what you have in store for tomorrow.”
The applause dies down, and they both gather their things to start walking out of the hall.
“Thank you for that reminder,” Samira says, looking down as they keep brushing arms, trying to give each other space but also not lose each other in the crowd.
“Oh Samira, don’t tell me you're nervous…” She just cuts her eye over at him, “Knowing you, you’ve probably had the presentation ready to go for a while now, and I can also bet you can recite the whole lecture right now if I asked.”
She purses her lips a bit to hide a smile. “Of course I can recite it.” She says, making him laugh.
Jack’s smile falters a bit when he sees a man approaching from behind Samira. He’s a handsome man about Jack’s height and Samira’s age, with dark curly hair and a beard. Walking up next to Samira, he wraps a hand around her waist, making her turn to him and let out a gasp.
“Danny,” She smiles and hugs him as they kiss each other’s cheeks. “You told me you weren’t gonna make it.”
Pulling away from her face, Danny keeps his hand on her waist, making Jack look down at his shoes and swallow hard.
He has no clue where this wave of jealousy came from. He’s had feelings for Samira for a while now, but nothing has ever happened between them. So he has no clue why his stomach flipped a little.
“I know, but what kind of friend would I be to miss your big lecture?”
Friend…Jack’s can feel his chest ease a bit.
“Thank you so much, Danny,” Samira says, giving him another quick hug before stepping next to him, looking across at Jack. “Danny, this is Doctor Jack Abbot. Jack, Doctor Daniel Roméro-Marquez.” Samira introduces the two men.
“Oh—oh!” Danny quickly turns to Samira before looking Jack up and down and going to hold out his hand. “Call me Danny. Samira has talked a lot about you—”
“Danny don’t start…” Samira tries to scold, and Jack smiles.
“Nice to finally meet the man in person.” Danny finishes as Samira swats his arm.
Jack looks between the two with a small smile. He recognizes their sibling-like dynamic, as it mirrors his and his sisters’.
“Nice to meet you too.” Jack shakes his hand. “Hope it’s been all good things.”
Danny throws an arm around her shoulders and looks at her teasingly, “Oh, only the good things. Thinking about it, I don’t think she’s ever—”
“Don’t we have that luncheon you’re so eager to go to?” Samira interrupts Danny, looking at him knowingly with a small grin, and he rolls his eyes and drops his arm from around her.
“Oh, so this is where we part ways?” Jack asks.
“No,” Samira steps forward, shaking her head. “I really want to see you again and catch up more with you if that’s okay.”
“That is more than okay, Samira.” Jack smiles at her. “Are you free later tonight, around seven?”
Samira nods quickly.
“Dinner on me?” He asks, and she nods again before going into her purse and pulling out two phones and putting one back in her purse.
“I would love to,” she says, stepping even closer to him while unlocking her phone, “I don’t know if you kept my number from when I gave it to you back in Pittsburgh.” Of course he has. “But I got a new one since living out here, because you know lifestyle change and area code purposes.”
She hands out her phone to him, and he starts typing in his number.
“Where are you staying?” He asks her, handing back her phone.
“The Rancho Valencia.” She responds, taking her phone back from him, brushing their fingers.
“Very fancy,” he teases, “The Beverly Hills attending life is treating you well, I see.”
She steps forward, shaking her head with a small smile. “You are unbelievable.”
Wrapping an arm around his shoulder, he pulls her in with his one arm and rubs his hand on her back, accidentally slipping under her soft sweater and meeting her soft skin. He quickly pulls his hand away and rests it on the small of her back as he pulls away from the hug, but keeps her in his arm.
“Can I come pick you up at six thirty?” He asks, looking over her face.
“Sounds perfect.”
“See you then.” Jack drops his arm from around her and steps back. “Hope you two enjoy the luncheon. Nice to meet you, Danny—see you later, Samira.”
On his drive back to La Jolla, Jack made a call to his favorite seaside restaurant that he had become close to the owner of and made a last-minute reservation in a more secluded area.
He still cannot believe the woman Samira has turned into.
Rinsing his hair from the conditioner, he smiles to himself as he remembers that she still has the same humor that she barely showed in the ER and more when they’d share a beer at Mullaney’s.
He also cannot believe how beautiful she is.
Getting out of the shower, he recalls looking at the face that had haunted his dreams for the first time in six years. And it was not what he remembered. He remembers the beautifully exhausted resident, with light under-eye bags, a small frown, and dull eyes. But that is what PTMC does to people.
So he was sure that her current work environment was heaven on Earth in comparison. And she was the angel with her sparkling eyes, glowing complexion, and bright smile that never seemed to leave her face. Her charm made everyone she interacted with fall in love with her.
He couldn’t believe what PTMC did to her.
This was Samira at her purest.
Swiping his hand across the steamy mirror, he looked over his face. He looked over the wrinkles fanning around his eyes and the light smile lines he knew were much more visible when he was talking with Samira, as he couldn’t stop smiling at her, and his cheeks hurt once she left and his smile fell.
He truly does believe that PTMC sucks the life out of people because he’s positive that his aging has slowed since leaving.
After running the pommade through his damp curls, he reaches for his wide-tooth comb, which his niece gifted him, and starts combing back his hair a bit. Looking at his hair under his bathroom light, he notices that through the deep gray and light silver streaks, the light brown still manages to peek through.
Reaching for his shaving cream, he stops himself.
Is he trying too hard for a woman way out of his league, and not to mention half his age?
While he enjoyed their flirty banter, he didn’t want to disappoint himself and find out the feelings had been one-sided. So, deciding that the hairstyling was enough, he closed the small cabinet and looked at his facial hair. There was still shape to the short silver hair stubble on his face, so he knew that he was overthinking his appearance and needed to step away from his reflection.
Good thing he did walk out of the bathroom, because tapping his phone, he saw that he had fifteen minutes before he needed to leave, as well as a text response from Samira.
JACK
[3:23 pm] Hey Samira, it’s Jack. I know you’re still probably at your lunch, so sorry for the interruption. But before I make the reservation, I wanted to know if you have any dietary restrictions or allergies
SAMIRA
[4:47 pm] I’m so sorry for the late response! But no, I have no allergies, just on a pescatarian diet
[4:50 pm] I feel so bad about the late response. Sorry if that changed any plans :(
[5:51 pm] How fancy do I need to dress?
Jack smiles at his phone. He had made the reservation about an hour after he sent the text. The place is a fancier casual lounge with a pretty diverse menu. And he had remembered that, back when working with her, she had been a vegetarian.
JACK
[6:03 pm] You’re perfectly fine, Samira. It’s a beach lounge restaurant, so nothing too fancy…I think you’ll enjoy the place :)
[6:05 pm] I’ll be heading your way in a few. I’ll call when I’m there.
He sees her read receipt and a text bubble pop up before going away. Jack stares at his phone for a moment when she reacts to his last message with a heart.
Setting his phone back down on the charger, he goes into his closet and grabs the hanger with the already chosen outfit he picked out when he first got back to his place. He chose a nice gray polo sweater for the cool West Coast nights, with a pair of black slacks and black suede loafers.
Changing into it, he can’t remember the last time he dressed up so nicely to impress someone. He especially couldn’t remember the last date he’s been on—
No, this is not a date…just getting dinner with the woman I’ve been enamored with for the past decade, who is way too young for me, and I should stop imagining her as anything more because she deserves someone younger than me and with fewer problems than me.
Tucking his shirt into his pants and wiggling his leg a bit in the prosthesis to make sure the loafer fits well over it, he makes his way back into the bathroom to look through his selection of cologne.
After spritzing himself a few times, he grabs his phone to text her that he is leaving while grabbing keys and wallet.
Driving through the fancy underpass of the hotel drop-off area, he spots her waiting outside, talking with the doorman. Driving past, he goes down a bit from the busy valet to park and pops on his hazards before getting out and pulling out his phone.
After a few rings, she picks up.
“Jack?” Her soft voice comes through the other end.
“Samira.” He smiles as he makes it to the end of the sidewalk to the outer main waiting area. “I believe your ride to your wonderful dinner has arrived.”
His eyes land on her as she darts her eyes around the small gathering of people, looking for him.
“My date is here,” she hears her say to the doorman through the phone, “It was lovely talking to you, Tony. I’ll see you later.”
He leans against a pillar as he sees her walk away from Tony and start scanning the busy area for him.
“Oh, so it’s a date?” He asks with a smile.
“Well, I got all pretty and did my hair nice…well, I’m fine to call it something else if you’d rather—Jack, where’s your car?”
“You always look pretty, Doctor Mohan, and it would be an honor to take you out on a date,” he smiles wider, “Not in my car…look to your right.”
She whips her head and looks around for a quick moment before spotting him, with a relieved smile forming on her face as she starts walking to him.
Hanging up his phone, she also puts her phone away.
“Doctor Abbot,” she smiles, looking him up and down, “Don’t you clean up well?”
Going in for a small hug, he drops his hand from her waist to grasp her hand and hold her arm out as they pull away. Now being able to shamelessly check her out, the ankle-length light olive dress with scattered red and green flowers perfectly hugs her body, and the black heels barely make her eyeline meet his nose.
“And aren’t you a sight, Doctor Mohan.” He smiles, looking back up at her face.
Her long eyelashes frame her wide brown eyes, and she has a slight red tint on her lips. The curls that he remembered barely touching the tops of her shoulders are now cascading halfway down her upper arms.
“My car is parked down some.” He lightly tugs her hand before leading in the direction of his Defender.
Opening the passenger door, he holds out a hand for her to take, which she does, and ghosts his hand on the side of her waist to make sure she safely gets in.
After hitting the I-5, the small talk between them about the presentations and her luncheon died down. Glancing over, Jack sees that Samira has her head turned towards the window.
Jack clears his throat, “You haven’t fallen asleep on me, have you?”
She turns her head, meeting his eyes, and he feels like his breath is taken away as a small smile forms on her face and the low sun behind her makes her even more real for him. Her being less than arm’s length away after not seeing her for years is something he was not ready for.
“No…no. My mind is just in a million places right now.” She responds, shifting in the seat and looking at his side profile. “Mainly on my presentation.”
“Ahhh,” he smiles over at her, “Let’s get our minds off of that for a few hours…huh?”
She nods and relaxes into the seat, turning to him.
“So, where are you living in LA?” He asks.
“Right now I’m living in a way too big condo, in the Century City neighborhood of Beverly Hills. A nice ten-ish minute drive from the hospital.”
“What’s too big of a place in Samira-terms?”
“Three bedrooms, two bathrooms—it’s basically a house.” She sighs, “But it’s beautiful, has charm, and the landlord is the landlord of my dreams…I’ll have to invite you over and show you the place, because I think I did a good job furnishing it and I like to show it off to whoever I can.”
“Haven’t been up to LA in a while…I was last up there last year because my niece wanted to see the Hollywood sign from the Griffith Observatory and window shop on Rodeo, and that stress-filled day fulfilled my dose of Los Angeles for about a decade.” That makes her laugh. “But I’ll endure it for a Mohan condo tour.”
“I cannot imagine you stressed out. But yeah, I can tell the lower Southern California lifestyle fits you more,” She giggles. “And I know you said you’re in La Jolla, so I can only imagine your place is looking over the ocean.”
“Of course it is,” he smiles over at her, “But yeah, I’m in a two-bedroom a block away from the beach, which I can also see from my window…I’d also love to give you a tour someday and show off my furnishings, but it’s all courtesy of my sisters.”
“I think I could open up a weekend on my schedule to come down, so you can give me a tour and take me to the beach.”
He glances over at her to see her strong gaze on him, and a sly smirk on her lips. Swallowing hard, he turns back to the road.
If he’s not mistaken, she has mastered the art of flirting. Jack remembers finding the right moments in the ER to throw flirty banter at her, but it always seemed to go right over her head. So her flirting back is something he has to get used to.
Jack is so excited to have her with him that he feels himself starting to get a headache. And her pretty smiles and luxe perfume are not helping.
“Other than the wine and your poke bowl, did you wanna get any apps?” Jack asks Samira as she sets down her water, looking at the menu.
“Umm, I was looking at the crispy calamari,” Samira looks up at him, “But I don’t want to overdo it, as you're paying—”
“The crispy calamari is good.”
“Oh, you’ve been here before?” Samira perks up.
“Friends with the owner,” Jack winks at her before looking up to see the waiter.
After they both give their orders and hand over their menus, Samira crosses her legs and turns to him.
“Hope this area isn’t too secluded.” Jack also turns to face her. “I asked for a quieter area, but I wasn’t expecting this. I didn’t even know about this area.”
“It’s all good…pretty views, and I can actually hear you. I’m a sucker for a booth.”
They are almost sitting shoulder to shoulder in a corner booth. And when Jack first slid in to one side, he wasn’t expecting her to sit next to him on the same side, as he asked he to get up so she could sit on the inside, prompting her to teasingly call him a gentleman.
Samira clears her throat, “So, how’s retirement treating you?”
“It’s quite boring for someone who used to run a nighttime emergency department and get shot at in his free time,” Jack lets out a small huff. “But after the first few months, I can’t imagine stepping into either of those roles ever again.”
“Not to sound self-centered,” Samira smiles, “How was the hospital after I left…I never got any updates after Victoria left the department—she was the main person I kept in touch with after leaving.”
Jack gives a tight-lipped smile, “Let’s say it’s good you left when you did.” He watches as she leans against the table, listening intently. “You took the satisfaction scores with you, dropping us from a three-star to a two…funding went down, causing Gloria to become a bigger pain and sending Robby into spirals in the middle of the ED at least twice a month.”
“I did not have that much of an impact on the satisfaction scores, but Jesus.” Samira blinks at him with soft eyes. “Even though I grew to have a toxic relationship with that place, I hate to hear that it isn’t doing too well.”
“Well, at least it’s still standing. But just know that you left a big impact with every person you treated at PTMC, and I am happy you are somewhere that your care is something that is appreciated and treated as an asset.”
“That really means a lot, Jack.” Samira gives a small smile, “Especially coming from you…I hope you know that my time on the night shifts and working under Shen and, really, you and your mentorship, made me not end up hating what I was doing.”
Their wine and calamari arrive. Jack watches Samira as her eyes light up, and she thanks the waiter. Jack gives the waiter a nod as a thank you before looking back to Samira.
“Careful, kid. You’re making my head bigger…sounds like I was your favorite.” He teases.
Samira smiles widely and pushes her arm onto his. “Of course you were my favorite, Abbot.”
“Good, because you were my favorite resident.”
“You can’t say that…”
“Why?” Jack smiles slyly. “It’s not like I’m still working or anything.”
“Jack, you’ve had hundreds of residents, who were far more—”
“I don’t like when you do that, Samira.” He cuts her off, shaking his head. “I don’t like when you minimise yourself and how you are actually the smartest person in any room you walk into.”
She sucks the inside of her cheek and shifts towards him a little.
“And even though I didn’t have the pleasure of seeing you work to your full potential, I can tell that you’ve grown so much more as a doctor and a person, because you’re now surrounded by people who care not only about your brain and talent, but also your heart…” She puts a hand on his thigh as he sees her eyes get glossy. “So do me a favor and protect it and never step foot in a place like PTMC again.”
Samira swallows and looks over his face for a moment. “Jack, I don’t think you’ll ever know how much that means to me.”
He places his hand over hers that is on his thigh and squeezes it before clasping both of his hands around her soft, delicate one and brings it up to press his lips on the back of it.
“I know you probably should’ve heard all of that while you were still in Pittsburgh.” Smiling at her, he keeps her hand in his before setting it back down on his thigh. “Let’s eat the calamari before it gets cold.”
She blinks at him for a moment before grabbing a ring and popping it into her mouth. Her eyes widen as her hand grasps his bicep and she covers her mouth, chewing.
“Oh my god,” She looks at the food, then back at Jack, “That is really good.”
“Told you.” He smirks and grabs one for himself.
After they comfortably eat their calamari and sip on their wine in silence, Samira finds her eyes drifting to the empty finger that she was used to seeing a ring on. Looking back up at his sharp side profile, he glances over.
“So you’re out here all alone for the most part?” She asks.
“Yeah, other than my family—mainly nieces and nephews—who come out to visit every once in a while,” Jack starts, “But now that school has started back for them, I’ll be out here alone until I go back East for the holidays.”
Samira hums and takes a sip of her wine. “So you’re not seeing anyone or dating around?”
“I am not,” he sits up a bit, “Tried it after the first few months when I moved out here, as I was finding my footing in a new place…but yeah, no.”
“Can I ask why you stopped?”
He gives her a small smile and sits back into the seat. “No one has piqued my interest. Not that I’m intensely looking for someone at all times.”
Samira hums again and looks down at his lips before looking back into his eyes. “And what piques Jack Abbot’s interest?”
You…
Jack looks over her face, letting his eyes linger on the small grin on her lips.
“Ahi tuna and salmon poke bowl.” The waiter comes up and places the dish in front of Samira.
She looks down at Jack’s lips again. “Saved by the bell…” She says softly before turning to the waiter, “Thank you so much.”
Jack also gives the waiter a thank you when he sets down his chicken piccata.
“Wow, everything looks really good.” Samira smiles, and Jack nods in agreement. “I don’t think I’ll be able to eat all of this…do you want some?”
“I’ll finish what you don’t eat.” He says, looking at her meticulously arranged bowl and then back to her, “I know you don’t eat chicken, but do you want to try the pasta over on this side that hasn’t touched it?”
She gives him a nod, and he scoots his plate towards her, as she starts twirling her fork.
“Danny seems like a really nice guy.” Jack starts, “How do you two know each other?”
“Thank you,” she says, putting the bit of pasta on the small plate used for the calamari. “Danny is night shift attending in my department at Cedars.”
“Ahhh, a dark sider,” he nods, putting some pasta on his fork.
Samira smiles and starts twirling the pasta on the little plate. “We were both at UCSF together, and then he came down to Cedars a few months after I switched over from UCLA, and it was such a relief.”
“Are you two close?” Jack asks before taking a bite.
“Yeah, he was at a hospital in Miami, and it was also a toxic environment for him as well, so we really bonded over that…and we dated for a bit.” Samira gets out before taking a bite of the pasta.
Jack is silent for a moment as the waiter comes by to refill Samira’s wine, thinking before he speaks and makes his feelings towards her obvious.
“And you two aren’t anymore?” He asks, and she shakes her head. “Can I ask why?”
She nods and takes a sip of her wine. “We had been friends for such a long time before we tried out dating. And then I hit like my millionth rough patch with my mom at the same time him and I were going through a rough patch, so I ended things because we both knew the relationship wasn’t gonna work out in the long run, but I still needed my friend.”
Jack gives her a small smile. “I’m sorry it didn’t work out between you two, but I’m also happy that you both still have each other for when things get rough.”
“Me too.”
“How’s your food so far?”
“Delicious, of course.” She rolls her eyes a bit.
Jack huffs a laugh as they continue eating in comfortable silence again. The corner booth allows them to people-watch, as well as look down at the beachgoers and the ocean. It’s the perfect area for them to just sit and enjoy each other’s company in silence. But Jack needed clarification.
“So you’re currently not seeing anyone?”
Samira looks up from her almost-gone bowl and shakes her head. “I dated around for a bit after Danny, but no one really stuck.”
“So it’s just you alone in your large, beautifully furnished condo?” He teases.
“Me and my two cats.” She laughs and scoots her bowl to him, signaling that she’s finished. “But yeah, no one's piqued my interest.” She teases with the same saying he used moments before.
“And what piques Samira Mohan’s interests?”
Now there’s no one to interrupt the question.
She puts her elbows on the table and leans forward, looking over at him. He glances at how her hair falls down her back and the small arch in her back, which curves out more in the pretty dress.
“I’m interested in someone who’s kind, charming…” she lets out a huff, “doesn’t mind my work schedule.”
“Oh, that’s a big one,” Jack laughs and picks up some of the rice and salmon left in the bowl she gave him.
“I know…” Samira downs the rest of her wine and flops back into the seat, rolling her head to look at him. “I know you said that you're not dating, but do you still like to have fun and flirt around?”
“Not really. Not since I first came out here.”
“Well, if you’re looking for fun, these conference-gala things are the best place for it to happen.” Samira starts, and Jack raises his eyebrows at her. “It’s true…no awkwardness about seeing them in your city if they flew in from somewhere else. Plus, everyone is more than happy to disclose whether or not they are clean.”
He smiles at her drunk rambling. “And are you speaking from experience…”
“Of course I am—” She quickly stops herself and looks at the table with wide eyes, sitting up straight. “I think I’m a little tipsy—I’m so sorry.”
“You’re okay, kid.” Jack smiles widely at her and slides his cold water over to her. “Drink up.”
She starts to slowly chug the water, prompting Jack to place a hand on her back to make sure she doesn’t choke.
“Samira, slow down.”
Almost slamming the empty glass down, she then puts her elbows on the table and puts her head in her hands.
“Jack, I wasn’t supposed to get drunk tonight,” she whines, “I was supposed to practice for my presentation after dinner.”
Jack starts rubbing a hand up and down her back, making her turn to look at him.
“Hey…hey, you’re okay,” he smiles, making her eyes soften, and he gives a nod to the waiter, causing him to go over. “Could I get the check and two more waters?”
“Thank you so much for dinner, Jack.” She gives him a small smile. “I’m sorry I got a little tipsy and too open.”
“Again, you’re all good, Samira,” he keeps his hand on her back, “You look beautiful, so if it wasn’t you it’d be me who’d be tipsy, because I’d need the liquid courage to talk to you and you would’ve been driving us back.”
Samira smiles and shakes her head.
“There’s that pretty smile,” Jack says, smiling widely at her, when the waiter comes back with two waters and the bill. Samira tries to lean in to see the price, but he leans away and slips his card in before handing it back to the waiter, and pushes the water to her. “We’ll leave once you finish those.”
Nodding at him, she takes a big sip and then puts the glass down. “So why did you come to this conference, and don’t say because you live close.”
Jack smiles and squeezes her thigh before moving his hand. “Because I saw your name on the lineup.”
“Jack…” She goes to take another sip.
“Truly, it was that, and I also taught a workshop this morning.”
“Jack!” She sits up, taken aback, and scoots closer to him. “How did I miss that on the schedule…I just got in this morning, but I knew I should’ve taken the jet last night—Now I’m sad that I missed it.”
He looks at the small pout on her lips. “Sweetheart, you’re okay.”
Grabbing her glass of water, she leans into his side, still pouting.
“Honestly, it was more crowded than I expected.” He says, watching her finish the glass. “I can give you the workshop one-on-one when I come to your place.”
She takes a big breath in and out of her nose. “You smell really good…and you look really nice, Jack.”
“Thank you, pretty girl.”
Samira turns to him and bites her bottom lip, looking down at his lips for a moment. “Keep it up with these sweet names, Doctor Abbot, and I might run away with you.”
Jack smiles at her and pushes the glass of water up to her mouth. “I’ll whisk you away after your presentation.” He says, making her groan into the glass, “Still nervous about it?”
“Jack, there were like a million people in that hall today…And I’m gonna be on that same stage in.” She looks at her gold watch for a second. “Sixteen hours.”
“Samira, come on, talk to me. What is it?” He asks, making her look into his eyes. “Is it the nerves of presenting in front of the people…something about the presentation?”
She sucks in her cheek and nods. “I promise you I’ve gone over it thousands of times, but I’ve only presented it to Danny like twenty times, and I feel like he was over it after the third time, and he was only saying it’s nice because he was sick of hearing—”
“Samira…I want to help you, can I?” Jack cuts her off and takes her hand in his as she nods at him. “Okay then…how about I come over tomorrow morning, we run it over, polish it, and run it over again until you believe it’s perfect, hmm?”
She nods at him with glassy eyes as the waiter sets down the check holder.
“Okay, let’s get you back so you can sleep and be ready for tomorrow.” He slides out of the booth and stands to hold out a hand for her to take.
Jack puts his car in park and looks over at Samira to see she’s already looking at him.
“Walk me to my room?” Samira asks. She sees he’s about to say something. “I’m not tipsy anymore…I promise.”
He smiles at her and pops on his hazards and starts grabbing his keys and wallet.
“But I am gonna need your help getting out of your car,” she starts looking out of the window as Jack hops out.
Making it over to her side, he opens the door and holds out his hand, but she wraps an arm around his shoulder and starts leaning against him as she gets out. Realizing what she’s doing, Jack wraps his arm around her waist to lift and settles her on the ground.
Samira leads him through the main welcome building and out to the extensive outdoor area.
“Mind if we take the long way to my room?” Samira looks back at him.
Jack can’t help but think how beautiful she looks under the dim landscaping lights. Standing a few feet behind her, he can take in her silhouette. And he hopes the darkness can help hide his eyes as he looks her up and down.
“I don’t mind at all.” He smiles and walks up next to her as she continues the walk.
“Tell me more about your workshop…but not too much, as I’m getting a one-on-one version of it,” she says, making him chuckle. “Give me a sneak peek, though.”
Jack smiles and steps closer, making their fingers graze. “You remember how I would always get called the chill attending?” He hears her hum. “It was basically exercises where I took cases varying from codes to intricate triages and presented them to the groups, and they kinda raced each other by who could come up with the correct diagnosis quicker…time and accuracy.”
“Bummed I missed it,” Samira frowned to herself, “I know it was my staple back in Pittsburgh, but something shifted during my fellowship, where I got quicker with my cases, while also not hesitating with my diagnoses—that would’ve been the perfect workshop for residency-Samira.”
They continued walking in silence through the hotel compound. At some point, Samira stopped them to take off her heels, and Jack took them from her hand and started carrying them for her. Keeping some distance, they kept stealing glances at each other in the cool Californian air.
“Can I ask if you were nervous at all?” Samira breaks the silence, looking up at him.
“Honestly,” Jack sighs, “I was…mainly because I hate attention being on me.”
“Me too.” Samira groans a little. “I don’t know how I’m gonna do it tomorrow.”
Jack grabs her wrist, stopping them by the pool, illuminating them under the blue light.
“Samira, it’s all going to go so much better than you think.”
She shakes her head and looks over at the pool, but Jack brings a hand up to cup her cheek, making her look at him. He gazes into her wide brown eyes, shimmering from the pool light.
“Do you know how I know?” He asks, and she just blinks up at him as he strokes her cheek with his thumb. “Because you love what you do.”’
Her shoulders drop, and she squeezes her eyes. “What is that supposed to mean—”
“When you’re doing something you love, Samira, you tend to get lost in it.” He smiles. “I’ve seen it…when you get lost in your work, you couldn't care less about who’s watching.”
“I tend to do that…” She almost whispers.
“So when you’re up there, sure you might see the crowd and freeze up for a moment, but once you realize they’re all there to listen and learn from you, something shifts, and that weird fear or nervousness just vanishes, and you get lost in it just as you do when you're working because you’re teaching what you love.”
She leans into his hand and softly looks at him. “Is that what happened with you today?” She asks, and he hums with a nod as she gives him a small smile. “Thank you, Jack…you’ve always been so good at pep talks.”
He drops his hand from her cheek to her shoulder with a chuckle. “Well, thank you, Samira…now we just have to perfect the presentation itself. You have some notes for me tomorrow morning?”
Samira looks from his eyes to his lips, then steps closer, almost pressing their bodies together, and goes on her toes to press a kiss next to his lips. Jack blinks, surprised, and drops his hand to the small of her back as he holds her close.
“What was that for?” He smiles down at her.
Tilting her head to give him a look, she lets out a sigh. “Doctor Abbot…my apologies, but I’ve had quite the crush on you since I was a little R2, and if I’m looking at this situation in the right way—again, I apologize if I’m wrong—but you’ve also felt the same.”
He smiles and presses her flush to his body, making her crane her neck up to look at him.
“Doctor Mohan…no need for apologies, as I’ve been quite enamored with you for some time.” He leans down a bit, ghosting his lips over hers for a moment before backing up. “I even contemplated shaving for ten minutes before I came to pick you up.”
“Why?” Samira asks, smiling at him.
“Samira, you are way out of my league by miles…and years.” He gives her a small smile. “I thought getting rid of the gray would at least give me a few more years back.”
“Thank god you didn’t shave.” She grins, bringing her hand up to graze his stubble with the back of her hand. “The gray really does it for me…you look very handsome.”
He looks between her eyes for a moment, and then presses his lips against hers. Samira wraps her arms around his shoulders, and she is barely able to kiss back when he suddenly pulls away.
“I’m so sorry, Samira,” Jack says, dropping his hands from around her and looking down at his shoes.
Samira looks at him, confused, trying to read him. “What’re you apologizing for?”
“I didn’t ask to kiss you.” He responds slowly, looking back up at her face. About to say something else, she beats him to it.
“Well, ask me.” She smiles, taking a step forward.
Jack looks down at her lips and back up to her eyes. “Can I kiss you, Samira?”
“Yes.”
Wrapping an arm around her waist, he brings her back to his body, as he cups her cheek again and presses a soft kiss on her lips. Samira wraps her arms around his waist and smiles into the kiss.
Getting a little hungrier, he tosses her heels on the empty lounge chair next to them and brings his hand back to rest on her ass, making her slightly moan into his mouth. Being in sync, they both open their mouths, letting their tongues slide against each other. After a little bit of letting their tongues dance, Jack breaks from her lips and starts trailing kisses down her cheek to kiss around her neck.
“Careful,” Samira says breathily, “I don’t want any questionable marks blaring under the spotlight tomorrow.”
Jack hums against her skin and gives a small suck right behind her ear, and pulls away to press small kisses on her lips before pulling away.
“Wait, don’t stop,” Samira whines a little, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.
Giving her one more kiss, he pulls away with a smile and leans down to grab her heels. “Baby, as much as I’d like to continue this…you need to sleep so you don’t pass out on that stage tomorrow.”
Samira pouts and drops her arms from around his shoulders and grabs his hand to continue walking them to her room. After shyly looking at each other, Jack squeezes her hand.
“Are you excited about the Gala tomorrow night?” Jack asks.
Quickly looking over at him, she lets go of his hand to go through her purse to pull out her key card. “Other than bringing my dress, I haven’t even thought about it—I’ve been too caught up with the presentation.”
“Makes sense,” Jack nods. “Wouldn’t be too much to ask you to save me a dance?”
“Only if you promise to whisk me away afterwards,” she says, pulling out her card. Then she grins up at him. “I think I owe you more than one dance for everything you’ve done for me, Jack.”
Making it to her door, she stops them and looks into his soft eyes.
“Um, I can be here by eight with breakfast…” Jack offers, “Or is that too early—”
“Sounds perfect.” Samira smiles. “But I can get the breakfast for us, as it’s complimentary through the hotel.” She watches as his face falls a little. “But you can bring the coffees?”
“Sounds like a plan,” Jack nods.
Samira taps her card on the door, unlocking it, and then looks back at him. “It was really good to see you, Doctor Abbot.”
He gives her a nod. “You too, Doctor Mohan.”
Samira gives him a small smile and starts to go into her room. Jack starts walking away as he sees the door close.
Barely making a few steps away from the door, Jack quickly turns back and catches it before it closes, and Samira turns back at the motion.
“Um…” Jack breathes and looks down. “I forgot to give you your heels.”
Samira rushes forward, throwing her arms around his shoulders and presses her lips on his. He catches her with one arm and lifts her off the ground a bit, kissing her back, deepening the passionate kiss. He sets her back on the ground and huffs a laugh.
“Thank you for bringing me back my shoes.” Samira speaks first, “They completely slipped my mind.”
Jack holds out the shoes for her to take.
She grabs them and holds out a finger to him, telling him to wait. He watches her as she tosses her shoes to the ground and grabs the small while paper slip on a table and starts checking it and grabs a pen.
Jack takes the moment to look around her villa-like hotel room. The vaulted ceilings and king-sized bed really make the “room” look like a home. There is also a little living space with a couch and television, next to a set of French doors that lead to a little seating area, where he can make out some more seating and a fire pit in the landscaping lights.
“This room is beautiful, Samira,” he says softly as she turns to him with a smile.
Walking up to him, holding the little envelope, she blinks at him. “More beautiful than me?”
He catches her by the waist with a grin on his lips. “Nothing is more beautiful than you.”
Samira bites her bottom lip and holds up the envelope to him. “This is my room key…I wrote the room number on it, so you don’t get lost.”
Jack slips the card from her fingers and presses short kisses on her lips.
“Jack…” Samira mumbles against his lips, between kisses. “I need to sleep.”
“I know, baby.” He leans down and kisses against her neck. “I’m just so obsessed with you, Samira.”
Samira turns her head and shifts to catch his lips again, and slips her tongue into his mouth. Immediately sliding his tongue against hers and moving his hand to her lower back, pressing her against his body. She slides her hands up and around his shoulders, and plays with the hair and the nape of his neck, making him groan into her mouth.
Breaking the kiss and breathing against his lips, Samira licks into his mouth once more and smiles. “Don’t lose the keycard.”
Before Jack can respond, Samira pushes him back towards the door with a sly smile, catching him off guard.
“Good night, Doctor Abbot,” she breathes heavily.
Jack smiles, walking back to the door, and holds up the keycard. “See you at eight, Doctor Mohan.”