HEAR ME TOO!

PART SIXTEEN

Isabel was excited to head home after a particularly tiring shift at the hospital. She couldn't wait to get home, curl up on her bed and sleep until she got tired of sleeping. Sometimes, she regretted choosing this difficult path but at other times, she was extremely happy about being a doctor and getting to put smiles on the faces of her patients. Medicine was such an exhausting profession, but it was definitely worth all the stress.
Yawning widely, she picked up her phone to call an Uber and saw she had missed calls from Ben. Smiling, she hit the call back button.
"Hey, sorry I missed your calls," she said when he picked up.
"Oh it's alright. I forgot you said you would be on call until this afternoon."
"Yes, I just walked out of the hospital a minute ago."
"You okay? Have you even had anything to eat since yesterday?"
"Umm, I ate a few snacks, does that count?"
"I knew it. You're a doctor, you should take better care of your body."
"Alright alright, I'll try to eat something when I get home," Isabel said with a tired laugh.
"I would have come to pick you up. I was so caught up in work that I didn't realize time had passed. Sorry," Ben said, sounding apologetic.
"It's fine Ben, you really don't have to apologize."
"Well, I feel like I do. Umm, how about I bring lunch over to your place? I should be there by the time you get home."
"I can just order something when I get home."
"I insist," Ben said firmly.
"I thought you said you were busy?"
"I was. It's now past tense. I've already done the most important things so I'll finish up the rest at home. What should I get you?"
"Umm, I think I want something local today. So, surprise me."
"Ha! Alright then, prepare to be surprised ma'am," Ben said excitedly.
"Okay! I'll be looking forward to it. See you soon," Isabel said and hung up.
For the past few weeks, she and Ben had been hanging out a lot. They talked about so many things, laughed and played. Their friendship so far was therapeutic and she loved every minute of it.  She knew he was still in pain over his ex and didn't really blame him. The man hadn't gotten any closure and until he did, it would be hard for him to move on. If she was being honest, she was in the same situation. She needed closure or she could never move on completely. Putting her thoughts away for a moment, she proceeded to call an Uber.
"Hi Isa!" A voice called loudly and she looked up from her phone only to see it was the person she really didn't want to talk to.
"Fancy running into you here!" Ken said, approaching her with a smile.
"What are you doing here Ken?" She asked, not returning the smile.
"It's a hospital Isa," Ken said, still smiling. For some reason, his smile made her really uncomfortable.
"Alright then, bye Ken," she said and started to walk away but he grabbed her hand to stop her.
"Okay Isa, let me be honest. I found out you work here and I wanted to come see you. We need to talk."
"About what Ken? We have nothing to talk about."
"Oh yes we do. And since when did you start calling me Ken? I thought I was your Jonathan."
"Good thing you used 'was'. It's past tense. Please stop coming to look for me, I have nothing to say to you."
"Oh I think you do. I've missed you Isa, and I think you've missed me too."
"You-" she started but he cut her off.
"After you left, I realized you were the only one for me. Honestly, all those other girls meant nothing. You're the only one I love Isa. Please give me one more chance and I promise, I'll never hurt you again."
"You're crazy! You really think that after everything you put me through, I'd let you back in my life?"
"I'll keep trying until you do. I'm really sorry for all I did but I haven't been able to forget you. Okay, just have dinner with me and hear me out."
Isabel's ride arrived at that moment and she opened the car door to get in.
"Isa please-"
"Don't come back here again Ken, I don't want to have anything to do with you," she said and without looking back, she got into the car and slammed the door.
When she got home, she saw Ben's car parked in the compound. He was standing beside the car and playing on his phone when she approached him.
"Hey! I got the food and-" Ben stopped in the middle of his sentence when he saw her face.
"Isabel, what's wrong?"
Without a word, she went straight into his arms and broke down in tears.