Love Me Sweet - SEQUEL (A Kaimelia - Kai Bartley/Amelia Shepherd - fanfiction)

Part 4

KAI

We're in bed now, the leftover sushi put away and our little alcohol mishap long forgotten. Scout is sleeping soundly, his flushed cheeks the only sign of a slight cold that he's probably caught somewhere. At least right now he's fine, but Amelia has scheduled some time off from work tomorrow to stay home with him. I wish I could do the same, but I have to go in for at least a few hours.

Speaking of work.. I think Amelia has sensed that there's a shift in my mood tonight and a part of me feels guilty for not saying anything yet. But I didn't really have the chance before. I turn to face her now, seeing her look back at me with a smile. "Can't sleep?" Amelia asks, turning onto her side as well and reaching out a hand to touch my face gently.

I take it in mine for a second, giving her fingers a soft kiss, before placing it back on my cheek. I love these simple touches, the feeling of closeness it gives me. Waking up next to her is the biggest perk to living together and I couldn't be happier. But, as always, there has to be a storm cloud in a bright blue sky.

"I ran into someone at work today," I start, not really knowing how to phrase this without coming off.. wrong. Amelia probably sees the hesitation in my eyes or senses something at least because her hand gets slightly tense as she waits for me to continue.

"Remember the conversation we had about exes," I keep going, my tone careful. She doesn't seem to be too bothered about this though. Which I guess makes a little bit of sense, considering that she's co-parenting a child with one of hers. And working together with her ex-husband. "Well, Ashley apparently now works here," I finally get to the point.

Amelia looks away for a moment and I bite my lip, wanting to know what she's thinking. She pulls her hand away eventually and turns to lay on her back again, looking up at the ceiling. "Ashley as in your ex-fiancée?" she asks, already knowing the answer.

"That's the one," I nod in agreement, earning a raised brow in response. It takes me a painful three seconds to understand what that face is for and when I do, I blush immediately from embarrassment over my poor choice of words.

"Not 'the one', I didn't.. If anything, you're 'the one' although I don't think I believe in that concept, but I'm just saying that if I did-" I ramble somewhat anxiously, not wanting to make this into something that would upset her. Luckily, Amelia is laughing lightly instead before she cuts me off with a soft kiss.

"Relax, I'm just kidding," she assures me, dropping back onto the pillows. I watch as her wavy hair falls around her face and try to refrain from kissing her some more. That would probably lead to more kissing and less clothing and we should really discuss this.

"So, she moved here? Coincidentally?" Amelia asks then and I shrug. I get where she's coming from, the probability of it felt odd to me as well, but Ashley kept insisting that she was just as surprised.

"Yeah, apparently she got an offer here and she was already thinking of relocating, so.. Plus, she's always liked the colder climate," I explain, remembering what she'd told me. It's not like we had a long chat or anything, maybe a few minutes. I guess I'll be seeing more of her now so I'll probably here more about this.

"Like you," Amelia nods and even though I want to argue, I know that she's right. I could never see the beauty in snow and the cold before Ashley came along and somehow made it lovable and now I prefer snow to sun.

"This really doesn't mean anything though. It's just a bit awkward maybe considering that I haven't spoken to her in two years and I have no clue if she wants to attempt to be friends or.. what," I explain my side. The past is the past and things didn't work out between us for a reason.

"Friends or.. more," Amelia finishes up my thought in a way that makes me furrow my brows. "And she's also a doctor, right?" she asks then, forcing a smile onto her lips. Would it be hypocritical of me to remind her of her exes at this point? Probably not the best idea, right..

"I love you, Amelia. So it doesn't really matter what she wants, I'm with you," I say instead before nodding to her question. "Yeah, pediatric surgeon." Funnily enough, we didn't meet through medicine but through mutual friends instead. I was already going down the PhD path at that time.

"Okay, well.. Thank you for telling me," Amelia finally says, after being quiet for a bit too long for my comfort. I'd like to ask what she's thinking but she'd dismiss the question so I don't bother. Hopefully she at least trusts my intentions and where I stand about it all.

"I'll always be honest with you," I nod, finally relaxing into my pillow as well and pulling her into my arms. She makes the best little spoon because well.. she's tiny. And I love feeling like I'm protecting her.

"For the record, I love you too," Amelia adds and I can hear the smirk in her voice, which further relaxes my racing mind. I guess we're good then.

--

I'm a bit late getting to the hospital today. I wanted to stay for breakfast and make sure that Scout is really feeling better, which he thankfully is. But now I feel guilty as I'm rushing through the familiar corridors, making my way to the lab.

I only stop when my name is called, turning around to come face to face with no other than Ashley. Is this how it's gonna be from now on? Honestly, still feels very weird. She's in scrubs now, which further solidifies the realization that yeap, this is life now. Working alongside my ex and my current partner. How did Amelia do it?

"Uh, hey again," I say, mostly because anything else would be rude. Honestly, the break up was so sudden that everything still feels awkward now. Which makes me wonder all the more why she keeps reaching out to me.

"Hey, I'm glad I ran into you. Again," Ashley says, walking up to me. She has a coffee cup in one hand and I put two and two together, realizing that I've just passed the hospital cafe. She looks for something in her coat pocket for a second, before finally handing me a diamond ring. "I wanted to return this. Feels like I shouldn't keep it after everything."

It takes me a while to actually recognize it and even then I'm hesitant to take it, but she keeps her hand stretched out so I really have no other choice. "Um.. You kept it on you this whole time?" I ask, biting my lip as I look up from the ring.

She blushes slightly and then laughs, shaking her head. Thank god. "Jesus, no.. I'm not a weirdo. I grabbed it this morning in the hopes of running into you so I could finally give it back," Ashley explains and I sigh from relief involuntarily. I need to get over the fear that she's still hung up on things.

"Oh, that makes more sense yeah," I laugh too, trying to break the awkward tension. Not knowing what else to do, I put the ring in my pocket. It's not like I have any use for it, but well.. I guess she doesn't either.

"Try to relax, okay? I'm not pining over you or stalking you or anything," Ashley smirks, turning to head in the other direction then. "Although I do like this longer hair on you," she adds with a wink over the shoulder.

I don't react in any way, just sliding my hand through the aforementioned hair. The ring feels like it's burning a hole into my pocket but I ignore it, turning on my heel to continue the walk to the lab. Work will do a good job of distracting me hopefully.