She kissed the scars on his skin.

Chapter 11

It's been a year since I last saw Tony. After he was moved to the physio ward I made myself distance myself from him. Having the feelings I did for him was unprofessional.
It was around the same time I lost Delilah too. It had such an affect on me, I was signed off sick for a fortnight. She was hit by a car after being chased by a dog.
On my return to work, I just carried on as best as I could. It was so very hard but I coped. Just. After my meltdown when that guy asked me if I was ok, I knew I had to take control of the situation.
And now, as my shift finishes, I am handed an envelope. I look at my name, handwritten on the paper and cautiously open it. Inside I find a short note and a ticket for a concert on Saturday. I quickly read the note, my eyes filling up with tears. I'm told it was delivered yesterday. By Tony. There is one for each of the four nurses on this ward who worked together on his case.

I wanted to show you all how much your care meant to me. Without all of you, I doubt I'd be here today, doing what I do best. Please try to come along if you can and I look forward to seeing you there. Tony.

He's in a band? There had been rumours but nothing confirmed.
I place the letter in my bag and my heart starts beating quicker than it should through shock. I don't think I'll be able to go. I work nights so I don't have to interact with people. I can't handle a concert. I know the panic attacks I suffered with when I was younger will be triggered. But I want to see him again. Or do I? I've tried for a year to suppress the feelings I was getting and I thought I'd pretty much succeeded until now. My head is so mixed up right now. I grab my bag and jacket and practically run out of the building, knocking into someone and ending up on the floor. I feel myself being lifted and I look up to see a guy with wavy brown hair asking me if I'm ok. I nod slightly and go to make my way to the exit when I feel a hand grab mine.
"I remember you. A year ago you stumbled and almost fell and my brother caught you. He asked you if you were ok and you shook your head and ran away. You're not ok are you?" I shake my head and try to pull away but he leads me over to the coffee shop and sits me down. The tears have started falling and I'm too tired to stop them. He gets me a bottle of water and opens it before passing it to me. I wipe my eyes and take a sip. He passes me a paper napkin and I use it to wipe my eyes properly.
"Do you want to talk about it?" the mystery guy asks. I don't know. Do I? It would be good to talk to someone for once. I look into his eyes and see concern. Sympathy.
"My name is Vic by the way" he says.
"Lauren" I mumble, although it comes out sounding wrong.
"Honey, I know I don't know you but I can't see a beautiful girl looking so sad. Please talk to me about why you're so upset" he says.
And hearing the actual concern makes my head need to empty itself of all the confused thoughts in there.
I pour my heart out to this stranger, telling him how I had feelings for a patient and I had to stop because of professional duty. I don't mention any names but I tell him how I got a letter today off the guy and although I desperately want to see him again I'm scared. He asks what I'm scared of and I have one answer. Rejection.