Getting back to "Normal" | Rhekker

Chapter 44- Getting back to Normal

Connor woke up the next morning to find Ava not on his chest. He went to shower, feeling her side of the bed still slightly warm from sleep, knowing she mustn't have been up long. Connor wandered out to the kitchen, running a hand through his slightly dampened hair.

Ava was leaning back against the counter as usual, a to go cup of coffee next to her.
"Hey" her heart fluttered a little seeing Connor with wet hair.
"Hey, I missed you in bed" he wrapping his arms around her and she placed her hands on the backs of his shoulders. Burying her face in his chest.
"Sorry, I just couldn't sleep" she pulled her head back.

Connor moved to kiss Ava but she placed a hand on his cheek, stopping him. Her soft brown eyes met his cool ones, gazing lovely down at her.
Ava closed her eyes and inhaled, feeling his warm cheek under her palm as she fiddled with the slip of paper between her fingers.

"Is everything alright?" Connor asked, sensing something was off.
"I called Jay last night" she said, opening her eyes she saw the hurt behind his.
"You did what?"
"What, Ava- Did he make you do this? You know he can't do that right" he told her.
"Connor, I wanted to, I own it him" Ava put her hand out on his shoulder.
"To who, to Jay?" Connors face twisted in anger.
"You and your father" she sighed.
"You don't owe me anything, and you especially don't owe him! Nothing Ava, you owe him nothing" he raised his voice.
"God, I can't believe this"
"It was my decision to make Connor!" She argued, "Mine!"
"You saw how this broke Nat and Will, Ava, you can't just give up on us!"
"I'm not giving up on us, I'll be back" she rubbed her thumb against his skin bu he flinched back from her touch in disgust.

Ava took a deep breath, "But we can't just go on and ignore happened Connor"
"Ava we are good together, who cares about what happened. We are happy" he took her face in his hands, stroking her hair.
"Connor, we can't just get back to how things were and pretend like nothing happened, normal relationships don't have this huge thing looming over them" she sighed.
"That doesn't mean you just get to leave!"
"Is this because of what people were saying, what Doris was saying? Ava I don't care what anyone else thinks of us, this is just you and me, we're happy together, aren't we?" Connors voice softened into a plea near the end.
"I'm sorry" she barely whispered, tears slipping past her lashes.
Connor sighed and looked down at her before glancing away. He grabbed his coat and bag before quickly leaving the apartment without saying another word to Ava.
Ava wiped a tear from her cheek and opened the lid on the coffee cup. Pouring the vanilla late down the sink. Leaving the cup turned upside down before getting her stuff for work.

"Hey, do you have time to talk?" He said into the line.

*

"I mean how can she do this, how can she give up everything we have!" Connor exclaimed emotionally, rubbing his forehead.
"She may not see it like this, she may be looking for closer by making sure this doesn't happen again?" Violet suggested.
"But I've told her so many times that it wasn't t her fault" he sighed.
"You know what, Ava may not be doing this for you like you think. This may be more personal. You metioned she was from Capetown no?"
"Yes, born in Johannesburg, raised in Capetown"
"Capetown has a large drug problem, this may be a deep rooted issue for Ava. Regardless I think if you both want this relationship to work you need to be honest with each other"
"Well, there is something I've been keeping from her..." Connors voice trailed off.

*

When Ava arrived to the hospital, taking off her rain soaked coat she got to work, not looking for Connor in the ED when she came in. Around lunchtime time she went down the treat a patient, having been paged by Maggie.
"All good in T6, where's Connor if you don't mind me asking?" 
He would normally deal with CT cases in the ED.
"He asked to just be in call for the morning, said he had to do something, did he not tell you?" Maggie gave her a puzzled look.
Ava's mouth momentarily hung open, "Of course, he hand an appointment, I forgot"
Maggie gave her a sweet smile before returning to her paper work.