Her Time

𝒞𝒽. 𝒯𝓌𝑜

𝒜𝓃𝓃𝒶𝒷𝑒𝓁𝓁𝑒 𝒮𝒶𝓁𝓋𝒶𝓉𝑜𝓇𝑒 found herself sitting in the office of a doctor that seemed to be known and loved by everyone. Carlisle Cullen. She was awaiting his arrival for an interview. She'd come from Chicago, Illinois and she was eager to get to work. She was only twenty-five years old, making her the youngest black female doctor in the country. She proved a lot of people wrong who thought she couldn't and wouldn't be able to do it.

Annabelle took a big breath and let it out. "You can do this, Anna. You earned this opportunity. You deserve it," she told herself just before the sound of the door behind her being opened then closed and sounded.

"I do apologize for being late. I had a patient that needed to be checked on –" the voice started, but the moment Anna rose to her feet and turned around, his eyes widened and his lips parted but nothing more came out.

'Holy cow! This is Dr. Carlisle Cullen. How is that – he's so handsome.' Anna thought.

"Oh, no, you're fine. The patient was more important, and you had a job to do," she said with a smile. She ignored the urge to let her eyes roam his stature from head to literal toe. She wondered how she was going to be able to focus when there was a man as handsome as he, walking around the hospital, walking around...living.

"Dr. Cullen?" She called out to him when he didn't respond.

She watched him shake his head as if he was shaking himself from a daze. "I'm sorry. I'm Dr. Carlisle Cullen, however, you can call me Carlisle or Dr. Cullen – whichever is more comfortable for you." He stated and stepped forward and held out his hand.

Anna ignored how cold his hand was when she took it and smiled. "It's quite all right, Dr, Cullen. And it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Annabelle Salvatore, the new surgeon, however, I will be shadowing you for the next seven months to get a better understanding and more knowledge of Cardiology."

Carlisle offered a smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Salvatore," he said and moved to take his seat behind his desk and away from Anna. He needed to put some kind of distance between the two. Her blood was so strong that he could smell her before the moment he walked into the hospital. He never imagined that the person responsible would be waiting for him in his office and that he would be working closely with her.

"So, tell me, Ms. Salvatore, what brings you to Forks, Washington? Where are you from originally?"

"Well, if I'm being honest with you, Dr. Cullen, as cliché as this may sound – I came here for a change in scenery. I was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois most of my life, in a big city, and I guess you could say that I just grew tired of it," she ran her fingers through her hair and smiled. "I needed a change away from all the noise. I wanted...peace and quiet."

Carlisle nodded.

"I understand that. You've come to the right place for that," he stated.

"I'm happy to hear that,"

"If you don't mind my asking, Ms. Salvatore, how old are you exactly?"

"How old do I look, Dr. Cullen?" she asked.

"Honestly, I'd guess you were around nineteen or twenty-one,"

"Close. I just turned twenty-five not too long ago,"

She watched his eyes widen. "Twenty-five?"

Anna chuckled but nodded. "Yes, twenty-five. I skipped several grades."

"That's amazing and quite the achievement, Ms. Salvatore. You should be proud of yourself,"

Anna nodded.

"Thank you, Dr. Cullen," she said with a smile. "I am,"

"You're welcome. Now, Dr. Salvatore, was there a specific day you wanted to start or would you like to start today or tomorrow?" he asked her.

Anna perked up. "Today, if possible,"

Anna mimicked Carlisle and stood up when he did and watched him walk around his desk and towards a black door. "Great. This will be your office - it's not the best however it's what I could do on short notice. My daughter Alice helped to decorate it to the best of her ability," he said and stepped aside to allow her into her new office. "My daughter Rosalie pitched in a little, also. Hopefully it's to your liking."

Anna smiled big as she stepped into her office which seemed to be about the half the size of Carlisle's, however it was still pretty spacious.

"It's amazing. Your girls did an amazing job," Anna turned to him with a smile still plastered on her lips. "I love it. Thank you and thank your girls for me, please."

"I will be sure to do that," He gave a short nod as he watched her turn back around and admire the room once again. "Now that you've see your new office, and we've talked for a little while, do you have any questions for me?" Carlisle asked her.

Anna shook her head. "No."

"We'll, is there anything that I should know about you?"

'Other than the fact that I have a brain tumor that is said to take me from this world in exactly one year? No, nothing at all,'

"No sir, not at all,"

"We'll, then I will leave you to get settled,"

"Oh, wait, Dr. Cullen?"

Carlisle turned around and met her gaze. "Yes, Dr. Salvatore?"

"I don't have any questioned, however I do have a request,"

"Yes, what is it?"

"I need every other weekend off. No phone, no emails no anything, just...me time," she said.

Carlisle nodded a smile. "I think I can do that."

Anna returned the smile. "Thank you, Dr. Cullen,"

"You're welcome, Dr. Salvatore. Welcome to Forks Hospital. I hope you find your employment here as refreshing and educational as I have,"

"I have a feeling that I will." She stated before Carlisle offered her one last smile and walked out of her office.