The Doctor's Choice

Chapter One

It had been eight weeks and one day since Alison left with her lover, leaving Evan Ellison alone with their four-year-old daughter on New Years Eve. He should have seen it coming. Six months prior she had started going out 'with the girls' a lot, became very protective of her cell phone, and became less and less interested in sex. He supposed he hadn't wanted to see it, that he had unconsciously turned a blind eye to the situation in front of him. Now, all he could do was hold his head high and move forward. He had been served with the divorce papers last Friday but He had left them on the desk in his home office, unwilling to deal with the situation at the time. He knew He had have to read through it and sign sooner or later. Part of him hoped that she would realize her mistake and come back to him; he was willing to forgive her, give her a second chance. There was always marriage counseling they could attend after all, He had seen it work wonders for his sister and her husband when they'd hit a rough patch. Signing those papers meant he was really giving up on their family.

The house was quiet. Abigail had been tucked in an hour ago. Evan walked into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of wine before settling onto the living room couch and flipping on the television. It was his new routine, and one he found he was falling into with ease. He took a long sip and flipped through the channels, finally landing on an acceptable program. In a little while, he would head upstairs to the cold, empty bed he'd once shared with his childhood sweetheart.Around three, or four, in the morning, the door would creak open and Abby would peer in with solemn eyes. He would pat the bed and she would climb in, snuggling up and falling back asleep, secure in the fact that her father, at least, was still there.

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"Do you have to go to work?"

"'Fraid so kiddo."

Abby sighed and flopped back in her car seat. "You'll pick me up?"

"You know I will."

Abby nodded but said nothing. Despite her trepidation, she happily ran into her pre-school classroom to greet the teacher and her many friends. On the way out, Evan nodded to the girl manning the front desk. He slid into the little red sedan that he just couldn't bring himself to part with and turned the key in the ignition; it was time for another day at work pretending he was okay. He could hardly stand the stares of pity from their neighbors and friends; even work was a nightmare as his co-workers awkwardly tried to skirt around the subject. He appreciated the effort but honestly it was making things worse.

Evan walked into his office and smiled at Lucy, the receptionist. She waved at him and smiled warmly in return as he walked through the waiting room and into the back.Grabbing his white coat he rounded the corner to the office.

"So,who's first today Luce?"

"Mrs.Smith," Lucy said as she handed him the folder at the top of the pile on her desk. Evan thanked her and flipped through the notes. It would be a routine check up, nothing too major.

"Shall I have Dana send her on back?"

"Sure, sure. Have her bring Mrs. Smith to room two. I'll meet her in thereafter Dana gets her vitals."

The morning passed uneventfully,the office growing silent as they closed for the lunch hour. Evan pulled his lasagna from the break room microwave and sat at the small card table waiting for the other nurses and doctors to join him.They'd seemed to stop avoiding him as much over the past week and had started eating with him again. Dana, his usual nurse, was the first to sit beside him.

"Lasagna the only thing you know how to make?"

"I make a mean bowl of cereal too, I'll have you know."