Chapter Text
"Wrists get tired of rewriting futures.
Our bodies beg us to be creatures of habit.
We are creatures of habit."
-Careful Hands, Sleeping At Last
He spotted her as soon as he rounded the corner. There she was, like always, hair perfectly in place, standing at the nurses’ station already going over patient charts.
And it hit him like a million bricks. He’d never see this sight ever again.
The inevitable had finally come. It was his last day at Med. His last day with Ava by his side.
It hurt to think about, and he’d thought Ava felt the same way. He’d thought they had become good friends in the time she had been there. Regardless of the cold shoulder she’d given him the first week after he’d announced his decision, he thought she was truly saddened by his leaving. That’s why she had behaved that way, right?
But maybe he was wrong. Maybe she really could care less. Because she hadn’t even come to his party.
She was constantly making him go round and round in circles.
“Ava,” He stated in greeting as he took his place beside her, grabbing his own binder.
She shifted, and her head snapped up to look at him.
Her eyes startled him. They were always so expressive, he’d learned (reading them was different story however).
They were icy. He was accustomed to seeing them this way as it wasn’t unusual, but he thought he detected a glint of apprehension and maybe even a hint of fear.
Two emotions he rarely saw from her. Maybe never.
Connor furrowed his eyebrows in concern, “Are you okay?”
She glanced away for brief second before biting out, “I’m fine.”
It was obvious she wasn’t going to offer up anything else which infuriated him. He sighed trying to tamp down his annoyance. He’d promised himself he wasn’t going to fight with Ava today. At least not over this.
“Where were you last night?”
He couldn’t help the salty way in which he asked the question.
At his tone, Ava looked back up and this time he thought she held a guilty look in her eyes.
She turned back to the folder in her hands, “Something came up.”
There was still a bite in her words, but it wasn’t as harsh as before. Connor excepted the vague response and decided to let it go before they really started to argue.
Connor’s last day so far hadn’t gone like he’d hoped.
He’d imagined Ava being her usual witty self as they tied up the last of his surgeries together; looked forward to their conversations whether it be about their coffee preferences or about aortic dissections.
However, it had been anything but. The whole morning, Ava had been shorter than usual and only really talked when necessary. And when she did talk, it was always about their work. She hadn’t even teased him once.
Oh, who was he kidding, Ava didn’t really have a ‘usual’ behavior.
But the thing that bothered him most was the fact that she seemed almost skittish. Something he’d never associated with her. And it stumped him beyond all belief. In fact, it almost scared him.
Connor watched her out of the corner of his eye as she scanned through x-ray’s before turning back to his own set.
“Dr. Rhodes, Dr. Bekker,” They both looked up at the sound of their names.
A nurse was standing there, “The board is in session and they’ve asked for both your presences.”
Connor’s eyebrows shot up. He hadn’t been expecting that. He looked at Ava who oddly seemed relieved, the tension in her shoulders disappearing.
He shook his head. It didn’t matter.
They made their way to the administrative floor silently. He opened the door for her, and they came to stand in front of the large oval table that held the hospital’s top dogs.
Ms. Goodwin looked at them, glancing briefly at Ava before addressing them both, “Dr. Bekker, Dr. Rhodes,” She paused, “Thank you both for joining us.”*
“I have good news. The hospital has received donations earmarked for your ED hybrid OR and the board has decided to provide matching funds.”*
The hospital’s president smiled, “We’re going ahead with your proposal.”*
Connor briefly wondered who had donated and how they even heard about the proposal but dismissed the thought. Who cared as long as it was being built?
He nodded, “I’m happy to hear that.”*
Ms. Goodwin looked at him, “But there is one stipulation,”* She hesitated, her eyes fliting to Ava for a brief second, “You have to stay and run the program.”*
He felt Ava look at him and he tried to read her expression out of the corner of his eye.
Connor wasn’t sure what to say. He could stay if he wanted and not look like he was turning his back on Mayo for no good reason.
Instead of blurting out a response, he took a breath, “Let me think about it.”
He felt Ava’s eyes glance toward him.
“You have until tomorrow,” Gwen Garret spoke up from her spot.
He gave another nod and turned to walk out the door, Ava on his heels.
They both came to a standstill in the large atrium outside of the conference rooms. Connor shoved his hands back into his pockets, head bent as he turned slightly to where Ava was standing beside him.
Her eyes were trailed on the door they had just exited.
They were both silent for a moment before Ava broke the silence, “Are you going to stay?”
It was the first non-medical thing she’d said all day.
Connor observed her thoughtfully. Her eyes were boring into his, blazing with something he couldn’t quite name.
He stared back, “I don’t know.”
He did know. He was staying no matter what his mind tried to convince him to do. His heart was going to win this one.
But he’d always been stubborn and too arrogant for his own good and he hadn’t quite learned how to admit to Ava that he’d wanted to stay all along. Or to himself.
Something shifted in her expression, he had no idea what was running through her mind or why her mood had changed so suddenly.
But there she was, confusing him once again.
She was smiling at him warmly. Her eyes holding a wealth of knowledge.
“I’m sure you’ll make the right decision,” She was smiling like she knew his heart.
But he couldn’t for the life of him understand why they both couldn’t get over their own stubborn pride and misgivings. Why they couldn’t seem to move past all their misunderstandings...
And just talk.
“I’ve got rounds to do,” Ava briefly laid a hand on his shoulder before heading down the stairs leaving him to stare behind her.
Maybe one day they could finally find the words. Whether they be good or bad.
Not even two hours later Connor was headed to Ms. Goodwin’s office to tell her his decision. Ava had gotten pulled into a consultation and they’d parted ways for the time being.
He’d known his choice as soon as the question had been asked but the egotistical part of him had held back. Again, he hadn’t wanted to seem desperate to stay. Especially in front of the board.
He knocked on the door of his employer and heard her beckon him in. He slid in the door, leaving it cracked behind him.
Goodwin looked up from her desk, “Ah Dr. Rhodes. I’ve been expecting you.”
Connor rose an eyebrow, “You have?”
She regarded him for a moment before nodding, “Of course. You’re here to tell me that you’re staying to run the hybrid OR.”
Both his brows shot up at this, “How did you know?”
Goodwin smirked before giving him a pointed look, “I know you better than you think.”
Connor wondered what that meant.
She steepled her fingers, “Well, I for one, am glad that you’re staying. I think this hospital will benefit from the hybrid room and the hybrid room will benefit from you running it,” Goodwin paused, “But more than that, I think you’ll find what you’re looking for.”
Connor furrowed his eyebrows. Now what did that mean? He wasn’t looking for anything.
Realizing she wasn’t going to elaborate, Connor bid her goodbye and left, still perplexed by his boss’s words.
Sharon Goodwin was a wise lady and he’d learned to covet her advice and her comforting words but every once and awhile, she would say things that he didn’t quite understand. At least not at the present moment.
He slowed down as he entered the ED, taking in all the excitement. Watching as his friends bustled around to tend to their patients and spied Ava looking over charts with Natalie.
Connor took a deep breath, smiling quietly to himself. Yeah, this was where he belonged right now. He wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Ava watched as Connor sped off into the night.
I told the board I was staying.*
He was staying. Her plan had worked.
She’d been walking on eggshells all day, waiting and wondering if Cornelius had actually come through.
He had, and just as she had predicted, or at least what she had willed, Connor changed his mind.
The stipulation she hadn’t been expecting but she had a sneaking suspicion that Sharon Goodwin had something to do with that.
And Ava half wondered if Connor wouldn’t have changed his mind without it.
She’d silently thanked Goodwin over and over, grateful that she didn’t have to find out otherwise.
As soon as Connor told her he was staying, relief and giddiness had swallowed her. But now, the anxiety was setting in.
She still wanted to feel giddy but all she could do was bite her lip and hope that she wouldn’t regret going to Connor’s father.
Oh God, please don’t let her regret it.