Archive of Our Own

"You know…and this is just my very humble advice…but this whole thing might go easier if you just smiled, Shaun," Claire commented fairly. The two were standing in the corridor of the dressing rooms together, having just topped off their second hour of shopping. Going by the critical eye Claire was putting everything under, it was as if this purchase was a live-or-die situation. But also going by the fact Shaun hadn't eaten a single thing since breakfast, and that he was running on six hours of sleep after a twelve-hour shift, some part of him was starting to think that might be true.

As in, he would die on the floor of this store, and Claire would have one more issue added to her plate.

"You gotta look like you're having fun, otherwise this is just a drag," Claire continued, looking him over from head to toe. He felt like he was a specimen on a microscope slide. Or a patient displaying some weird, outlandish symptoms. Frankly, by this point, he would rather be the latter. At least that would be more interesting than…this.

"I'm not having fun," he grumbled.

"I know, Shaun, that's why I said 'look' like it, not 'be' it," she huffed, emphasizing each word. She sank her weight down into one hip and lifted an eyebrow. Shaun didn't like it when she did that, and it was a fact she plainly knew. But she always pulled out the stop whenever she wanted him to listen to her. Begrudgingly, wondering if she'd gotten her bossiness from Melendez, or if she had been born with the innate ability already inside of her, Shaun always did. "I can't believe you with this whole thing!" Her words were sharp, but there was a gentleness in her eyes. "Day in and day out, all we've done is work, and finally, we get a chance to have fun, and you're moping about it!"

Shaun paused, making a face as he tugged at his sleeves. "I'm not moping," he mumbled, eventually.

"He says mopily," Claire quipped. "You're totally pouting right now, Shaun Murphy; you've been pouting since we came out of Dillard's, can you just…smile?" She threw her arms out at her sides, as if it would help her prove her point more. Whatever her point was, exactly. "Smile more, Shaun," she instructed, when he didn't reply at first. "Just swallow it all down, smile more, and pretend like you're having the time of your life here with me in this store, shopping for formal wear. Like it's the highlight of your life, and if you died right now, you would die happy."

"You hit Jared two days ago because he told you to smile more, and now you're saying it to me," Shaun pointed out. Claire lifted her eyes up towards the ceiling, but more in the general direction of the heavens. Probably thinking to herself something along the lines of: 'Why have You decided to give me so many obstacles in my life?' "It's not fair," Shaun completed. He blinked, and under his breath, still tugging at the sleeves of the suit he was trying on, he grumbled: "If I died now, I would die uncomfortable and smelling like plastic…"

"Jared was just being a jerk when he said that; I'm not," Claire objected.

Shaun looked at her. Skeptical.

She huffed and rolled her eyes. Before she closed them and let out a slower breath, imagining all her nerves leaving her body along with the exhale. By this point, in the line of work she was, in with the coworkers she was forced to put up with, she was getting better and better at harnessing the skill. So when her eyes opened again, she smiled, and just moved on. "I like that suit on you, Shaun," she said, gesturing to the sixth one he'd tried today.

Shaun looked down at himself, but he wasn't moved by the compliment. "It looks exactly like the last one," he sighed. Claire's smile died, and she nodded a bit, her arms flopping back down to her side. Her shoulders drooped, and her posture deflated. She looked like she wanted to abandon Shaun for the nearest wall and smash her head there for a while. Like she wanted to get rid of a few brain cells so she might forget how long this exact cycle had been going on. "They all look the same," Shaun continued, just as morose.

Jesus, going by the look on his face, she was killing a puppy in front of him, not having him try on clothes.

"Okay," Claire sighed. Her forehead creased more, and a frown pulled down the sides of her mouth. "What's going on, Shaun?" she demanded, not mistaking her friend's uncomfortable fidget. She had been glad this entire time that the store was mostly empty save for them – blame it on their work hours; she was fairly certain it was closing in around ten minutes – because that just gave them run of the place, and all it had to offer. But now she was glad because Shaun was more likely to open up, when it was just the two of them. And it certainly seemed like there was something he wanted to talk about. "You've been upset ever since Melendez first invited us all; I thought you would have been excited…"

She and Jared had been over the moon when it had been announced. Hospitals often threw fundraising galas for people to come and donate money to their cause. Saint Bonaventure was usually more than famous for the parties they threw. But usually only higher-ups were invited to attend. Most residents and lower-class doctors just starting out were assigned to work. After all, they couldn't leave the hospital empty. But Melendez had spoken to the right people, and pulled the right strings; he'd informed his team just a couple days ago that they were allowed to come.

Which was fantastic! A free night of dancing and fun, at a convention center Claire hadn't been to yet. But she'd searched photos of it, and knew it was fancy. It wasn't going to be a night of whining patients, or mundane scutwork, or anything like that; they were going to just go out and have fun together, and they were all allowed a plus one, too. Really, a resident couldn't ask for a better way to spend their Friday night away from the surgical table. So when they'd gotten the news, Claire and Jared had basically jumped ten feet in the air, to celebrate.

Shaun, on the other hand, had just stared. He'd almost objected to it, actually.

And his lack of enthusiasm had never shifted, or changed. Over the next few days, he had stayed just a melancholy. He purposefully never brought it up in conversation, and whenever Claire or Jared did, he'd either blocked out the conversation, or he'd found a way to escape it. Which was really weird. Even tonight, though it was only two nights before the gala, he'd almost refused to go out shopping with her, when she knew for a fact he needed an outfit. She'd refused to take not for an answer, though. He'd tried to give her tons of excuses, all of which she'd brushed away. They were going out to buy their new clothes together, and that was final.

All night, he'd been this way, and she had been wondering how to ask him what was wrong without offending him. But by this point, with the store closing soon and only a handful left open once it did, Claire was drawing the line in the sand. She'd been trying to breathe a better attitude into him all night; so, if he got a little insulted by her prodding now, then that was just a sacrifice she was willing to make. "Don't you think it'll be cool?" she prompted. "That you'll get to meet a ton of new and interesting people, and that it'll be a change of pace, for once?"

"I like my pace," Shaun objected. "I don't want to change it." She frowned. But before she could try and object, he was continuing. "I don't want to go to a dance; there are more important things I could be doing…like staying at the hospital. But Melendez won't let me stay back on my own. I already asked." Claire held back a sigh. Of course he had. Her hands were back on her hips, and her head was tilting to the side. Under that stare once again, Shaun shifted uncomfortably. "I've never been to a dance," he caved, after a second's hesitation. Claire's eyes flashed. It seemed to be the wrong reaction, because he shied away from her. "I don't want to go to one. I'd rather stay at the hospital."

"You've never been to a dance? Not any? Not even prom?" she asked. He shook his head, and after a pause, she grinned. "Well…Shaun, then don't you think this is perfect? You can go to your first gala as a surgical resident, how cool is that? How many people are able to say the same thing?" Shaun didn't reply, and she softened. "Shaun, dances aren't bad at all; they're really fun, I promise! And you'll have me there, and Jared, too! And you have your plus one! You could—" She gasped and hopped up and down, too excited to contain herself. Shaun's eyes widened, and he took a step back. "You can invite Lea!" she declared, almost surprised she hadn't thought of it a long time ago. "Right? She would love to go with you!"

It would be stupid if Shaun didn't bring her, really— they were dating. They were officially an item, as of one month and twelve days ago. Claire knew the number, because ever since they had gotten together, Shaun had asked Claire about a million and one different questions about dating, and what he should do in this given situation, or what he should do if she did this, and so on and so forth and what have you. For a month and twelve days, he'd flitted in and out with relationship advice, and she had doled it out like the kind and generous friend she was. To her knowledge, she was the only one in the hospital that knew about Lea explicitly. Shaun didn't really partake in gossip, especially if it was about himself. And it sure never came up in conversation for her to spill her friend's beans. Not that she ever would. They knew there was a girlfriend, of course. It was hard not to, after that road trip incident. But that was it; they didn't know the details and the stories that she got to hear.

She asked about Lea on her own accord, from time to time, and he always got that same smile on his face. He always got so happy. There was no trouble in paradise, as far she knew. So why wasn't he excited to be able to take Lea to this party? It was perfect— a fancy date, all lined up for them. It didn't explain his wilted look at all. Unless something had happened she didn't know about. Her face started to fall, both with uncertainty, and prepared sadness. "Something…something didn't happen with her, did it?" she asked, figuring it would be the best explanation. "Is she mad at you? Or did you guys break up?" She would have thought he'd tell her about it, if anything like that happened.

"No," Shaun replied, and she immediately bent over with relief. His strained expression didn't lighten, though. "She's not angry with me. We had dinner together last night. But…I don't want to ask her to come with me."

Claire made a face. "Why not? This is the exact kind of thing you ask your girlfriend to come with you to."

He looked down and shuffled his feet. His hands wrung together. He took his time in answering, but Claire was waiting with enough patience. "We haven't gone anywhere together, yet," he mumbled, and a sense of realization began to dawn over Claire. Shaun's own eyes flashed with a mix of nervousness and discomfort. "We always do things together in our apartments; we eat dinner at her house, or we watch TV in mine. We haven't gone anywhere. I don't…" His shoulders tightened. Tensing with a stress he'd likely been carrying around with him much longer than Claire even knew. "I don't know if she wants to," he finished, a little lamely.

Her heart twisted with pain, at the confession. "Shaun, no!" she pressed, after a moment's registration. "That's ridiculous; of course she would want to go places with you. She probably just hasn't thought about it until now." Although more than a month of staying in was pushing it. Maybe she was just a homebody, and didn't like going out? For a second, Claire was tempted to adopt Shaun's train of thought, but she shook herself free from it quickly. "No, Shaun, she's not embarrassed or anything; I promise you." Shaun wilted, once the words were out in the air. Maybe Claire should have been more tactful. She couldn't take it back, though; she just kept pushing. "She's too fantastic, going by all you've told me about her. Shaun, if you invite her to the gala, she'll be so excited to go. She'd love it." She paused, and added a little more teasingly: "I mean, she'll be angry, because you'll only have given her a day to prepare…but she'll have fun!" she reassured, at Shaun's panicked jolt.

Her friend mulled it over. He studied the floor with a frown. Claire let him think, without any interruption on her part. And she smiled when he eventually looked back up and gave a tiny nod. "Okay," he said. "I'll ask her to come with me."

She giggled. "Good. That'll be really good. She'll love it." Shaun nodded again, and from there Claire could take in a deeper breath. She clapped her hands together and rubbed them, stepping backwards so she could look him over once more. "Now, getting back to business…that suit looks very good on you." He blinked and tried to look down at himself, or see what she was getting at. It came off a little comical. "I like the kind of…blue tint it's got going on— it brings out the blue in your eyes."

Shaun sighed.

She leaned over and swatted him in the shoulder, which he didn't appreciate. "C'mon, stop being so snooty. You look good is all I'm saying! You act like I'm being awful when I'm just being nice! I could just as easily say it looks completely horrible." He looked back at her, and she smiled. She did a little twirl for him. "What do you think about this dress, then?" She asked next, and his eyes flickered down to look at it a little closer. It wasn't like she'd been standing right in front of him with it on for the past five minutes. "Do you like it? It's more comfortable than the last two I tried. And I think it looks a little better."

His nose wrinkled. "Orange is a terrible color for you," he announced flatly.

She skidded to a stop. She looked at the dress, and she blew out her cheeks. She leaned over and swatted her friend again in the same place, harder this time. He scurried backwards, rubbing his shoulder with a tiny glower. She ignored it; he deserved it. "You're the worst friend I've ever had in my entire life," she snapped, not meaning it whatsoever. Worst friend? No. Most ridiculous? Maybe that was a more appropriate word.

But his reply didn't help smooth things over. "Can I leave, then?"

"Get back in the dressing room, Shaun."

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

Lea came into the apartment in a flurry of stomps and sighs. She'd knocked on the door like she always did, and Shaun knew it was her just because nobody else ever came to visit him. When he opened the door, he'd started to say hello. But she just turned and stomped past him before he could take the opportunity, inviting herself into the apartment instead. She was already complaining, before he could get out a syllable. "I had the worst day today!"

Shaun wilted, his nerves, which had already been going haywire, sparked even more with concern. He shut the door and followed her slowly. She'd already gotten into the living room by the time he started. "I want to die." Her dramatic declaration was accompanied with a just-as-dramatic collapse onto Shaun's bed. She hit it like it a rock, and Shaun was almost worried she'd hurt herself in the process. There was no telling if she did, though; once she made contact with the mattress, she didn't move again. She might have died, and he would be none the wiser.

He edged closer, and took a seat on the end of the bed. "Why was your day bad?" he prompted. By now, he was more than used to Lea's flair for the dramatic. Just like he was used to her borrowing his things, which had steadily increased over time the longer they dated. At the same time her rate of 'asking' diminished, he might add. And she wasn't just borrowing practical stuff like batteries anymore; her thieving had spread to clothing, too. At the moment, she was wearing the jacket he'd agreed to let her take five days ago. He knew when he got it back, it would smell like her perfume.

Her reply was muffled in the comforter, and lost to him. He leaned down closer to hear, when she snapped her head back up to let out a frustrated yell. "My coworkers are just awful! Everything is awful!" she spluttered, and he flinched away from the sudden volume. She realized this and grew contrite, her eyes rounding out a little. "Oh— I'm sorry." She twisted so that she was laying on her side, facing him. She curled a little closer with a sigh.

When she started to elaborate, her voice was softer, though she was still just as pent-up. "They're all just so annoying and disrespectful and boring; I hate every single person there. Today one of them spilled their water bottle all over me and they didn't even say sorry. And I was late this morning because I was stuck in traffic, so I got chewed out by someone even though I don't even know their name, or have ever had a single conversation with them. Today's meeting was even more boring than usual, and I wanted to leave so bad…of course, when I did finally get the chance to go outside, it was pouring rain. And I had so much to do, but someone couldn't get the copier to work even though it was the simplest thing. And I was trying to teach them what they were doing wrong, but it just turned into a ten-minute argument because they were too stubborn to admit it wasn't just the machine's fault. And then someone else needed a ride home and I was the only one who would offer one, and they actually had the nerve to insult my driving skills when I did! Ugh. I'm just really upset." She covered her face with her hands, and Shaun wilted in sympathy. "My job is the worst…"

He tried to conjure up something that would help. "I think you're a very good driver, Lea," he tried.

She peered up through her fingers at him. "You do?"

He smiled. "Yes. I like it when you drive."

She melted, and her hands fell away from her face. Her voice was warm with affection when she declared: "Well, I like it when you cheer me up." She patted the spot next to her on the bed, and let out a sigh. "Come on, I'm lonely, all the way down here." He was quick to conform to her wishes, and laid down beside her. It was comfortable there, and a small burst of silence went by before Lea broke it with a sigh. "I have such a migraine," she complained. Her voice was sad all over again. Shaun frowned; he thought he'd made her feel better. He had to make her feel better, before he asked if she would go to the gala with him. He couldn't ask her when she was like this— but the gala was tomorrow night. It was already short notice; any later, and he would be texting her from the party, asking if she could come.

Lea's voice broke his thought process. "Can I hug you?"

Shaun nodded, though he knew that when she asked for a 'hug', especially when she was in a mood like this, it was never just a hug. And his prediction was proved right when Lea proceeded to roll over and literally flop down on top of him with a grumble of irritation. She laid her head down on his right shoulder, her body draping comfortably over his. Her arms wrapped around him with just the right amount of pressure. At least she wasn't squeezing him— her weight wasn't that much, and he could overlook it. He could feel her heartbeat next to his, and it was enough comfort against the tiny burden. Under her breath, he heard her mumble: "Thank you."

They stayed like that for quite some time, talking softly about other things to get her mind off her horrible day. Shaun did what he loved to do and asked her as many questions as he could think of— things he desperately wanted to know about her, and trying to keep it narrowed down to only a handful or more. If he asked all he wanted to, they would be there all night. But things like what her favorite color was, or her favorite dessert. What she liked to do most as a kid, and what she liked to do most now. Who her favorite person was (to which she had said 'You' and giggled for a full minute over how bright red he immediately turned), and what her favorite book was. She asked him about his day, and regretted it immediately when he tried to go into detail about a surgery they'd performed; he had to stop when she started to mimic gagging sounds.

Shaun felt her gradually unwind. He felt her loosen and relax, and he listened to her voice get softer. He was trying his best to track the responses, hoping he would know when the right moment was to ask her to the gala. Wondering if he would be able to say the right words. But after some time, he knew that whatever he would decide the right time was probably wouldn't be, anyway. He didn't have Claire here to ask what to do, and his phone was left over on the kitchen table. He wasn't about to ask Lea to get off so he could get it, either; he liked laying with her, and she was happy where she was. So eventually, staring up at the ceiling, he just came out and asked: "Is today completely horrible?"

She hummed, shifting a little so her head could fit more into the crook of his neck. She reached out to pull one of his arms off the mattress, intertwining their fingers. "Completely," she sighed. He wilted. But she hedged on, after a heartbeat. After approximately two of her heartbeats, actually. "But it's better, now that I'm here."

Shaun blinked. He wondered if she could hear his own heart getting faster— if she could see right through him. "So…I shouldn't ruin it," he said, clearly more than out of his element.

Lea frowned. She twisted around so she was on her other side, and able to look at him. He didn't really like the expression that was on her face. "Well, I'd hope not, Shaun," she mumbled. He nodded and looked away, not able to make eye contact for very long. This only made her frown more. "Why? What's wrong?" He didn't say anything; he was trying to figure out the best way he could word the question. He'd never directly asked anyone on a date before; usually Lea just offered that they hang out that night, and she took charge of the whole thing. Having the shoe be on the other foot was strange. He wasn't good at it, he could tell already.

But his silence brushed Lea the wrong way. She was getting worried now, and her voice was all but spiked with it when she asked again: "Shaun, what's wrong? What—?" She broke off and looked down at herself, quickly stiffening. She sat up abruptly, and rushed to let go of his hand. "Oh, I'm— did you not—? I'm sorry, I didn't realize…" Shaun sat up too, confused. She looked uncomfortable and guilty. "If you don't like the— if you don't like doing— that, Shaun, it's fine, you don't have to do it just because I want to. That's not— really, please, don't, uh— don't do anything you don't—"

"I like laying with you," Shaun interrupted, the reassurance bumbling out a little awkwardly. He was a little surprised by her quick reaction. She looked immensely upset, like she'd been when she first walked in, just from the small misunderstanding. Why? "That's not what I wanted to talk to you about," he continued. "I wanted to ask you a question."

Her eyes searched his, making sure that he wasn't just saying that. When she concluded that he wasn't, her shoulders sagged with relief, and she let out a heavy sigh. "Okay…" she mumbled. "You can ask me whatever question you want, Shaun— you can always ask me anything." She turned and folded up her legs to sit crisscrossed. She ducked her head and ran her hands through it. "I thought I'd done something wrong…" she sighed, and Shaun's confusion built. "Ask away," she invited, propping her head on her hands. "I'm all ears."

He weakened. Lea was quick to notice, and her smile disappeared; though, for his sake, she said nothing more. She went silent and just gave him space. He trained his eyes down on his hands, finding it was easier to focus on something other than her. "I…wanted to ask you something," he began. He was apprehensive and nervous, and Lea tilted her head. Still, she kept mute. She was patient. "You don't have to say yes," Shaun continued. "And you're going to be angry with me because of long how I waited." Her eyebrows pulled together. "But…I wanted to ask if you would come somewhere with me."

The request was so simple, and yet the way Shaun was asking it, she would have thought he was asking her for some big, inconvenient favor. There was a ghost of a wince that was building in strength on his face, and his hands were wringing more and more. Confusion and sadness were mingling in Lea's eyes now, and she wasn't sure which emotion was stronger as she let him go on. Interrupting him would just make him even more on-edge. "You don't have to, if you don't want to. And I know you don't want to." She did a double-take. "But…Saint Bonaventure is having a gala for people to come and donate money to the hospital. We were invited, and I get to bring someone."

Lea almost did a second double-take. A double double-take. A quadruple-take?

Shaun still was refusing to look at her. He was getting tenser and tenser, and his head nodded to the side. "You don't have to give any money. I just have to go. And I could bring you. And I want to." Lea's lips started to lift into a smile, but Shaun was rushing on, and she faltered. "But I know you don't want to. And you've had a bad day, and I'm ruining it more by asking. I'm sorry. I just wanted to ask, because Claire said I should, even though I said you wouldn't want to go. It's tomorrow night. I waited too long to ask."

She frowned. "Why did you wait so long?" she asked. "Why do you think I don't want to go, Shaun?"

He grimaced, and she was worried her questions caused him more stress. She hadn't meant them to. His answer stumbled out before he could even try and conjure up a filter. "We haven't gone anywhere together, yet." She stilled. "We just stay inside the apartment building, and do things here." White-hot guilt began to sting at her throat. "We've never gone out anywhere…you probably don't want to. And it's okay." She startled at the easy acceptance, so readily given. "I don't want you to say yes either, if you don't want to…" He didn't know how to finish. Or, he did know, but he just didn't want to say it out loud.

If she didn't want to be seen with him, that was okay. They could just stay here.

"No!" she said, unable to keep the shock out of her voice. He grimaced, and immediately she tried to reel herself back in. But all the same, she couldn't keep the strain from her voice when she did go on. "Shaun, that's not it at all; I have no problem with being with you, I can't believe you'd even think for a second that I would." Before he could apologize for that, too, Lea scooted closer to him, leaning out so that she could catch his gaze. She raised her eyebrows imploringly. "I like you so much, Shaun," she pressed, because she knew he didn't want to throw around the other 'l' word. "If I had it my way, everyone would get to see how I have an awesome, sweet, surgical resident for a boyfriend. Trust me, not a lot of people get to play that card."

It was meant as more of a joke, but Shaun didn't laugh, or get any less dubious. "Shaun, the only reason we stay in more than we go out is because I thought that's what you would want anyway." He blinked, and straightened. "I mean…you complain a lot that Claire and Jared drag you out to bars you don't want to go to, so I just figured you wouldn't like going out anywhere with a lot of people. And that kind of ruled out a bunch of places…" She shook her head. "Shaun, I didn't keep offering nights in because I was…ashamed of you, or anything like that— never in a million years would I ever be ashamed for having someone as great as you to call my boyfriend. I just thought it was what you wanted— and heck, I don't even care where we are in the first place, I'm just happy to be with you!"

He seemed floored, at the reassurances that streamed so quickly from her. But her chest warmed with affection when her last couple sentences began to make him brighten. It was like he was a lightbulb, and a switch had been turned. His eyes did that thing she loved – okay, she was using the 'l' word, but it was only for her, so gosh darn it, she wasn't about to apologize – where they got soft and gentle. And a self-conscious grin was tugging at the corners of his lips, in the bashful way she always thought was cute and adorable. She swelled, and shook her head. "Shaun, I would absolutely love to go to this gala thing with you. I've never been to such a fancy-sounding thing before," she snickered. "And…you said it was for work?"

Shaun nodded once. "Yes. Saint Bonaventure hosts it to try and persuade people to donate money."

She beamed. He wanted to take her to a work party. He wanted to take her someplace where everyone he saw every day would be there, and he wanted to introduce her. She was touched. "What time is it?" she asked.

Shaun had the response more than ready. "It starts at seven pm," he replied. "Melendez said it could last past midnight." The word he'd used was 'hopefully.' The word Shaun would use in place of that was 'unfortunately.' But now that Lea had agreed to go, and now that she actually looked happy and excited, Shaun's opinion on it was changing. Suddenly he wasn't as averse to going. Sure, what came instead in place of that reluctance was anxiety over making sure the night would be perfect, and that Lea would have fun…but all the same. She was smiling, and he found that when she smiled, it was impossible for him not to do the same. "You're…not angry it's so soon?" he asked, hesitantly.

"I could have used a fairer warning," she mused, but quickly righted herself when Shaun started to weaken. "No, Shaun, I'm not angry at all. I can go shopping whenever; it's not important. This is going to be fantastic! I'm so excited to go with you, and I'm very glad you invited me." She smiled, and leaned towards him, not as quickly as she wanted to, because she wanted to give him a second to realize what she was doing. But he didn't pull away, so she planted a quick peck on his lips. She leaned back in time to see the elated expression he always got on his face in response to her kisses, and she stifled a tiny giggle.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

She was beautiful.

It was the only thing that Shaun could think. From the second he met her in the hallway, all the way down the stairs into her car, throughout the entire drive to the convention center, up the walkway, it was all that was running through his mind. Lea was absolutely, positively beautiful, and he had no idea how in the world it had come upon chance that she was his girlfriend. Surely there had to be a mistake. Because she was stunning. She was wearing a long evening gown that was colored a gentle light blue. Lace laid out intricate designs on the dress' top half, simple silver beading marking the waistline, and tapering off down the skirt. Her hair was curled in neat ringlets that framed her face perfectly, and her bangs were pinned back. She was walking in heels, which Shaun had never seen her do, and maybe it was her difficulty in managing those that led her to hold his hand on their way in.

It was okay he was distracted though. Lea was doing enough talking for the both of them, which wasn't too uncommon. She was almost doing a little too much talking, too fast, but Shaun could tell it was only because she was excited. So he only listened with a smile. However, right before they could enter the building, she suddenly stopped short. The halt was abrupt, and, considering he was linked to her hand, too, Shaun was forced to pull over right along with her. "Wait." He looked at her, perplexed, but before he could ask what was wrong, she got on her toes. Her tongue sticking out in a fraction in concentration, Lea proceeded to fly her hands through his hair, starting to mess it up entirely.

He squeaked in alarm and stumbled away from her. He was almost bordering on the edge of outright indignation, which would be a pretty warranted reaction. It had taken him ages to get his hair right— Lea had just undone all that work in under five seconds. But before he could fluff up and start to point that out, she rushed closer to him again, and he realized she was laughing. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Shaun— but you looked five years old. And miserable." He probably still wasn't doing very hot in the 'miserable' department, even with the hair change.

In fact, she might have dug that hole a little deeper on her own doing.

"Let me fix your hair, Shaun," Lea pleaded, and Shaun deflated at the look she was giving him. He couldn't say no when she looked at him like that. What was with every female he knew, knowing exactly what look to give him to get him to do something they wanted? It wasn't fair. "This is what girlfriends are for: they're there to tell you when you look stupid and fix you before you can look like that in front of other people. It's true— I read it online somewhere." The joke was lost to Shaun, but he didn't brush her off or hop back again when she reached up to fiddle with his hair more. She hummed with approval, and started tossing it this way and that, to try and get it as back to normal as she could. "Your hair is just fine the way it always is, you don't need to do all that…I don't know what you did to it, it looks like you filled your tub with jelly, shoved your head in, and walked right out to meet me."

"I tried to make it look nicer," Shaun mumbled, a little crestfallen. Lea was so wrapped up in her work, she might not have heard him. But she certainly heard him when he added in a softer mumble: "I wanted to look nice for you."

She roused, and blinked a few too many times when she met his gaze. Her cheeks flushed, and she smiled. She took a step back to survey her work. Her hands felt way too sticky after combing as much of that gunk out as she could, and she knew that she would have to visit the nearest bathroom. Despite her most valiant efforts, his hair still looked a little stiffer than normal. But she'd moved it out and arranged it so it was at least more passable. It had the grade of an F before, now they were looking at…a solid B minus.

Her expression softened, and she shook her head. "You don't need to try to look nice for me; you always look handsome, Shaun." He blushed, and she chuckled, loving it whenever he did, which was surprisingly often. She gave him a wink and added more jokingly: "I simply wouldn't date anyone that looked less than perfect, Shaun, geez. We're talking about me, here. I have a reputation to uphold."

Together, they made their way into the convention center, and they were immediately met with an extravagance neither of them had really anticipated. Lea had been picturing her high school prom, when Shaun had first brought up this idea— but this was definitely not high school prom. It wasn't even close. Well…there seemed to be a 'theme' going on that kind of brought her back to those types of school dances. But even so, the art department she'd had would take one look at this place to duck for cover. That, or cry because they could never dream of amounting to anything close to it.

There were strings of lights everywhere, bright whites and yellows and colors in between that made you think of stars, at first glance. Arching throughout the entire area were white trees, their bare branches holding more of the starry lights, in place of leaves. There was a stage along one of the far walls, and it looked like there were about a million tables set up for people. Blue and purple lights were setting the mood everywhere you looked, and music was playing overhead, maybe a tad too loud. She looked at Shaun a little worriedly at the volume, and wondered if she could track someone down to ask to turn it down a notch. But he seemed more preoccupied with everything else going on.

There were already tons of people here. And predictably, Lea did not know a single face. She wasn't sure Shaun was any better, though, going by the look on his own. She started to open her mouth to say something, when a shout made the both of them turn. "Shaun!" Jared and Claire were rushing towards them, and Shaun was relieved when he could at least react at the familiar sight of them. That was one thing, at least. But there was no recognition to flash over Lea's face. She might have heard many a tale of the dynamic duo, but she'd never met them in person before.

Claire was wearing a smile and the dress that Shaun had finally given clearance over the night they'd gone shopping. She matched Jared's black suit and bow tie. "I was just about to text and ask where you were!" she called, coming up to them. Shaun wondered dismally whether this entire night was going to be filled with shouting. Claire was oblivious to his discomfort and looked instead at Lea. Her face lit up immediately, and her smile grew about ten times bigger. "You must be Lea!" she all but gasped. Lea grinned at once, realizing this meant Shaun must talk about her. She practically glowed at the thought. "I've heard so much about you, it's good to finally meet you! I'm Claire Browne, I work with Shaun!" She reached out, and Lea shook her hand.

The man next to Claire extended his hand too, and Lea shook that one, starting to understand this was how the rest of her night was going to be. "I'm Jared Kalu; I work with Shaun too," he introduced himself, and Lea offered him a sweet smile. She'd heard plenty of stories with the two of them as main characters— some of them funnier than others. Now she had actual faces to put to names. "You're Shaun's neighbor, right?" Jared asked, looking between them. Lea glanced at Shaun, and she realized he was looking away a little uncomfortably. She frowned. "What did you do to land an invitation here?" Jared teased.

She remembered Shaun's words from before, and how accepting he was that she hadn't wanted to be seen with him in public. Did he just automatically assume that he shouldn't tell people they were dating, either? Her heart squeezed just for a moment at the idea, but she quickly pushed it away— it wasn't important at all. Not anymore, because she drew herself up and took hold of his hand again, like she had in the parking lot on the way in. "Actually, I'm his girlfriend," she said herself, and Shaun immediately looked at her in surprise. She just smiled bigger. "We've been dating for just over a month; he invited me here to meet all his work friends."

Jared's eyes widened in surprise. "Girlfriend?" he repeated. Lea, always prone to reacting with a temper quicker than her own head, started to flare just the tiniest bit. Before the surprise was more defined, and he turned to Shaun and accused: "You didn't tell me you had a girlfriend, Shaun!" She relaxed, blinking quickly as a wry smile teased over her face instead. "This is crazy! You never thought of telling me about her?" Jared looked at Claire, flabbergasted. "Did you know he had a girlfriend?"

Clearly, he was anticipating an agreement with him. He was waiting for her to whirl on Shaun too, and yell about how they were his best friends and therefore should have been first in line to hear of the development. So his alarm was only increased tenfold when Claire giggled and flashed Shaun a knowing look. "Someone had to help him with it!" She threw her arms up in surrender when Jared spluttered in shock. "He asked me about some things that I could clear up, and he asked for advice, so yeah, but— stop giving me that look, I wasn't going to blab about it!" Jared just looked at her harder, obviously disapproving. She shook her head. "If he wanted to tell you, he would have!"

"I'm hurt, right now," he declared, looking back at Shaun. "You've hurt me, Shaun. Deeply. In my soul."

Helpfully, Shaun offered: "I'm sorry."

Jared cracked a grin and rolled his eyes. "Girlfriend, huh?" He looked back at Lea, and she lifted her chin, wearing the title like a badge of honor. It only made Jared smile more. "Well, we'll have to get to the bottom of that tonight, at some point," he reasoned. "Here, how about we get a table, so—"

Before he could finish the offer, the background music began dwindling in volume. Luckily, for Shaun, but it was soon replaced with a speaker on the stage. They all turned to see that it was Aoki, dressed to the nines. She was starting to welcome everyone to the fundraiser, going through all the required spiels they always had before the party could just start and go on its own accord. To speak about how it would work, and what the money could be used for, and yada yada yada. The small group rushed to find a place they could sit and put their things. In the meantime, trying not to be too loud and interrupt the official start of the gala.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

"Shaun, do you dare me to try and stuff as many of these into my mouth as possible?" Lea asked, as she held up a bowl of olives. Shaun did a double-take when he turned to see what she was meaning. He looked around in confusion. None of the food had come with olives at all; there weren't even any other olives in the entire room, he didn't think. So where in the world had Lea gotten an entire bowl full of them?

His mind scattered for a moment, in the mystery, but he came back to himself with a blink and a jolt. She knew the reply that she would get before it came, but it didn't keep her from snickering when Shaun replied evenly: "No." He turned back front, taking a sip of his water. The rest of them were drinking champagne, but, like always, he chose the nonalcoholic option. "You're going to choke, and this isn't a good place to perform a tracheotomy. It's too dark."

Lea was already popping a second one into her mouth. "Jared's got a phone," she mumbled around them. A lot of patience was suddenly swarming over Shaun's face. Patience that made it apparent this was not the first kind of conversation they had had together, as strange a topic as it may have been. Lea got in a third olive, during his silence. "You can use his flashlight," she managed. "Bam. No more tracheotomy problem."

"There would still be tracheotomy problem," Shaun pressed. "I would be giving one."

"Yeah, and you'd be showing off your skills in front of all these rich dudes, and they'd give you more money, so I just did you guys a service," Lea pressed. She got in a fourth, becoming increasingly difficult to understand. "Ta-da," she sang; Claire was snickering, from where she sat. "You're welcome, I just saved your hospital." A fifth. "With olives."

"Please stop," Shaun requested.

"Make me," she dared. But by now it mostly just sounded like garbled mumbling.

Shaun hesitated, before he confessed, with genuine sincerity: "I don't know how to."

"So how did you guys meet?" Jared interjected. He was a little reluctant to sidetrack such a riveting discussion, but he found he had to. They couple looked back across the table at him, and Lea quickly started to choke down the olives, so she could actually speak again. To which Shaun stirred and mumbled a tiny objection over. "I mean, I know you're neighbors, but…you know, how did you guys realize you liked each other?" Lea blushed, and Shaun didn't seem like he was any more comfortable than she was. They hadn't been asked such an explicit question before— oddly enough, they hadn't even really asked each other that. Shaun always loved to ask her questions, but never these kinds. She didn't blame him. She was already feeling awkward.

To her shock, Shaun answered first. Maybe it was because she was taking too long swallowing, or maybe it was because he fully expected her to die choking on a piece of olive, so he figured waiting was pointless. Whichever it was, he spoke up first, and she stilled, looking at him a little anxiously when he did. She didn't know why, but the question immediately sent her on-edge. "She was over at my house because her Wi-Fi got shut off again and she needed to do something on the computer. She stayed for dinner and we talked for a long time afterwards. I liked talking to her, and when she got up to leave, I didn't want her to. That's when I knew." Lea weakened, her eyes rounding out a little and her chest warming with affection.

If she was remembering right, that had to have only been the third or fourth week after they first met.

Claire melted too. "That's adorable!" she gushed.

As a reflex, her eyes went to Lea next, and she knew she had to deliver something just as good. She smiled and threw her mind back as far as it would go, trying to pinpoint the exact moment Shaun Murphy had changed to her, from 'Wow-This-Guy-Is-Rude-As-Hell' to 'Wow-I-Need-This-Guy-In-My-Life.' It was difficult…it had been a pretty fast flip, if she was being honest. But finally she landed on it, and she softened. "Oh, it was definitely when he tried to send me a selfie from work," she giggled. "I sent him one because I was bored; I'd drawn a little highlighter mustache on my face, and I wanted him to see it. I told him it was customary to send one back. So a minute later I get a picture of the floor and almost immediately after that I got another text that said: 'Wait I didn't mean to send that one' and I guess you could say I was pretty smitten after that."

This earned laughter from everyone except Shaun, who found it to be an actual mistake, and not something to laugh about. His finger had slipped— he was human.

When the laughter subsided, Claire, still gushing over how cute the two of them were together, asked innocently enough: "So who said it first?" It caused the two to immediately sober, in a mixture of confusion and anxiety. Claire misinterpreted it as they just hadn't understood what she meant. After she took another sip of her drink, she amended: "Who said 'I love you' first? Don't couples make a big deal out of that, still?" She looked at Lea and offered a teasing grin. "Don't tell me you're not brave enough to say it before him?"

Lea glanced at Shaun to see he was staring down at the tablecloth. She cleared her throat and offered a smile she hoped looked more natural than it felt on her face. "Oh, well…neither of us has said it, yet, actually…" she laughed off, feeling the tips of her ears start to burn. They had the tendency to go pink and give away the fact that she was mad, or just really really embarrassed. In this case, it was the latter. In sync, Claire and Jared's faces fell. She cleared her throat and ended a little lamely: "We're, uh…we're waiting."

Claire was apologetic at once. "Oh— oh, I'm sorry!" It was her turn to feel awkward now, when she cracked a nervous smile. "I should have thought of that…yeah, that's completely fine! Smart, I mean, that's probably smart. No, I get it. Absolutely." Lea grinned and nodded once, before she looked down at her plate, picking up her fork and busying herself with stabbing at her food. Shaun wasn't looking up; suddenly he found the table very interesting. Claire shot Jared a look that silently pleaded for help. He started to try and change the subject in a way that was hopefully tactful, when suddenly, another voice entered the scene and did the job for him.

"Hey!" They all turned at once, the three residents immediately recognizing the sound of their instructor's voice. Melendez was weaving through the crowd towards them, his eyes a little narrowed. "What are you all doing?" It was a rhetorical question, because when Jared started to reply, he was already going on. "This wasn't just an invitation to goof off," he said. "You're also supposed to be talking up the hospital. There are tons of people here with full wallets— go talk about your residencies, and what all you're learning, and how fantastic it all is." There was a certain blandness in his voice that kind of took away the power of the suggestion.

"Can I tell them the microwave in the doctor's lounge keeps breaking?" Jared asked.

Melendez flashed him a glare. "No."

"Because it does. All the time."

Ignoring that one, he turned to his youngest resident. Lea didn't miss the fact that Shaun was quick to look away. "They especially want to talk to you," he said, and for all Shaun reacted, he may as well have said: 'The government has decided to hereby ban puppies and kittens from existence entirely.' "You have no idea how many times you've been brought up in conversation to me already. All three of you need to go out and schmooze."

"Nobody told me I had to talk to people," Shaun grumbled. He looked away with distaste. "I don't want to talk to them."

Melendez sighed. "Trust me, give them about five seconds of interaction with you, and they will most definitely decide the same thing." Lea frowned, a little put-off by the mean comment, when she realized none of the three, including Shaun, were phased. In fact, Jared suppressed a tiny grin when he looked at his friend, and Shaun flashed him a 'Watch-It' look. Inwardly debating whether she should give this guy a just-as-stinging retort or not in defense of Shaun, he caught her eye and seemed to jerk. As if he was just now realizing the table wasn't entirely populated by his residents. That someone else was actually there. "Who's this?" he asked.

Shaun was still looking at Jared funny, but he answered all the same. "Doctor Melendez, this is my girlfriend, Lea." He gestured between the two of them, being a perfect gentleman. "Lea, this is my attending, Doctor Melendez." Melendez's eyes flashed in that surprise Jared's did. Still trying to see whether he was actually mean or not, she wasn't exactly sure what kind of expression to wear. She resigned herself to something that was halfway between a smile, halfway between a 'You Heard That Right, Now Can I Help You?' kind of look. Just in case he decided to say something else smart.

But that seemed to be over the line of whatever kind of relationship he had with Shaun, because to her surprise, the next thing he did was crack a smile. "Right," he mused, only stumping Lea further. "He's mentioned you once, in passing. Which is weird, because usually he can never stop talking about something once he gets going." He leaned over, and Lea's face cracked a bit more into a grin when she reached out to shake his hand. "It's very nice to meet you, Lea," he said. But she hardly had time to reply, before he was turning back to his students. "Alright, come on. Up, up. Get out there and try to get more than twenty dollars."

The three reluctantly dragged themselves up to their feet. Jared adding helpfully along the way: "Twenty dollars would probably be enough to buy a new microwave" even though it most definitely would not be. Claire and Jared were bother quicker to flounce off than Shaun was; he hung back, and when he looked at Lea she softened when she saw how reluctant he seemed. She shook her head and leaned over to pat his shoulder gently. "You go out there and tell them how fantastic you are, and how much more fantastic you could be with their money. I'll just sit here and spectate."

"Okay," he murmured. "I'll be back, though."

She nodded and watched him follow the other two. Her smile lingered on her lips; it always took a second for her grins to leave with Shaun. Along with the warm feeling in her stomach. She was always too happy for it to immediately follow him out, she guessed; a little of it always stayed. But too late did she realize Melendez was still standing by her, and she turned, quickly clearing her throat and wiping her face clean of the goofy expression. But he'd seen it already and the damage had been done. Her cheeks flushed, and Melendez's grin widened. "Girlfriend, huh?" he asked.

She was still more than embarrassed, but she still got out a reply all the same. "That's right," she managed. "A little more than a month."

He nodded. "You're the one who likes to take random road trips without calling in first," he remarked, his voice only a little off-handed. It took her a moment to track down what he meant, but when she did, she flushed. He nodded, the embarrassment confirming it for him. "Yeah, he came back and I'd thought he was gone because of a personal emergency, until he just came out and told me he'd been on a road trip with his girlfriend." He grinned. "You must be the girl who just really thinks vacations are important."

She fumed on the inside. He'd told her he called— Shaun Murphy had lied to her, somehow. Was that more a reflection on him, because he'd done it? Or was it more of a reflection on her, that she didn't see through him immediately? Either way, was gonna kill him.

"Yup," she sighed, laughing under her breath. "That'd be me." Melendez snickered, and she put her chin down on the palm of her hand, flashing him a coy smirk. "And you must be the doctor that told Shaun he wouldn't get anywhere else other than suction, the entire time he was working for you." She felt a tug of satisfaction when the man pursed his lips and glanced at the floor. She could practically see him being knocked down a few pegs, and it was more satisfying than she'd thought it would be. "Tell me: how was that fasciotomy you did yesterday? The one Shaun told me you let him take lead on?"

He cleared his throat and nodded once. "It went perfectly," he replied.

She swelled with pride, as if she had been the one with the scalpel. "You bet it did."

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

Lea was standing by herself minding her own business, when Shaun literally sprinted up to her. She jumped and nearly spilled her drink, he skidded to a stop so fast. His hair was a little everywhere, and he looked panicked; she could only assume her own expression was similar. He nearly crashed into her. She tried to ask what in the world was going on, when he blustered: "Don't say anything!" She didn't; she just watched as he dove down, ducking underneath the table and hiding away under the cloth. She blinked rapidly, and looked back up, utterly lost and confused by the sudden appearance, and just-as-sudden disappearance of her boyfriend.

But somewhat of an explanation was given when Jared rushed up to her next. Her eyes flew wide when she saw that along the left side of his face, was a thick blanket of frosting. Going by visual clues alone, someone had taken what looked like a cupcake or something, and smeared it all the way from his eye to his chin. It wasn't too hard a guess of who that 'someone' was. She snorted, but quickly clapped a hand over her mouth. The look on the other's face was one of barely-held-in-rage. "Where did he go!?" he demanded.

"I don't—" She snorted again, before contorting her face into a serious expression. She tried to force her voice not to waver. "Uh— to whom are you referring?"

Jared growled, already whirling away. "He's dead!" he was grumbling, mostly to himself. But he did catch the attention of some passerbys who looked at him strange. Or maybe they were just looking at the frosting. "Once I find him, I'm wiping him off the face of this planet. He's going to need his own surgery…"

Lea raised her voice to call after him: "Well, tell everyone here! They can fund it!" He didn't react to her, and she snickered, shaking her head. She leaned back and covered her mouth when she found people around her were staring. Once she was sure Jared wasn't going to come back, Lea leaned over so her head was near the spot Shaun had hunkered away. "What in the world did you do?" she demanded, and her giggles only spiked when Shaun abruptly stuck his head up from under the cloth. He looked more than alarmed; her sides were hurting from laughing so much. "Did you really take a cupcake and smack it down his face?" she pressed. She didn't believe it, so when Shaun only stared at her guiltily, she cackled. "Shaun, no!" she squealed. "Why!?"

He looked miserable. His eyes flickered after the spot where Jared had melted into the crowd. "Claire dared me to," he mumbled. Lea laughed harder, and Shaun didn't appreciate it. "She said I wouldn't do it…"

"That's because you shouldn't have, Shaun!" Lea hissed between her laughs.

Shaun started to reply, when a call of his name caused him to duck back into hiding at once. It was the instant reflex of a frightened turtle. "Shaun?" Lea snapped up as well, looking with alarm at the newcomer. It wasn't Jared, though; it was someone else. It was an older man, and Lea watched him come nearer, his eyes trained on the table in confusion. She recognized him; the familiarity wasn't exactly a good one, though. "Shaun, why are you hiding under the table?" He came to a stop and looked oddly at Lea, who offered her best 'I'm Completely Innocent' shrug. Before Shaun poked his head out again and looked up. The old man stared at him awkwardly, and gestured just as much so. "What are you doing?" he enunciated.

Shaun glanced at the cloth around him thoughtfully. "I'm hiding from Jared." The answer was offered in quiet discretion. The man said nothing, and Lea looked between them, a little tense. Still staying crouched in his hiding spot, he mumbled: "Doctor Glassman, this is Lea. Lea, this is Doctor Glassman. He's the president of the hospital." The introduction was merely a formality, because the two were already very well-acquainted.

Lea just pursed her lips, nodding slowly. "The break-in," she defined. The last time she'd seen him, he was tearing through her apartment on the hunt for Shaun. She hadn't heard from him since. Only about him. What she'd heard weren't the best things, either, and the fact was plain on her face.

Glassman looked from Shaun, only his head poking out of his hiding spot, to Lea, who was looking at him with raised eyebrows. It looked like he didn't know what to make of the pair of them; then again, he wouldn't be the first. Eventually, he managed: "Hello, Lea." He sounded hesitant, and she could tell that he had their first meeting on his mind as well. The smile she gave him was dry as a desert. But Glassman was clearly more focused on Shaun, as he looked down at him quizzically. "Shaun, get out from under the table; why are you hiding from Jared?"

Shaun hesitated, but he scurried out anyway. He wormed his way free until he could stand and dust himself off. "Claire said I wouldn't be brave enough to smear a cupcake on his face." Glassman closed his eyes and sighed, but Shaun was oblivious to the fact. That, or he just disregarded it. "So I did, and he was angry. Now he's trying to find me. I don't want him to punch me, because he will." He seemed awfully convinced of the fact. Lea's icy smile thawed, and she had to stifle a laugh. He was absolutely ridiculous.

"Shaun, this is a very upscale…event, you can't just go around dragging cupcakes down people's faces," Glassman sighed.

Shaun nodded. "Yes," he agreed. "That's why I'm not going to do it anymore. I only did it to Jared. I won't do it to one of the people we're asking to give us money." Glassman urgently started to shush him before anyone around them could hear, but Shaun was far from paying attention. Lea watched him stiffen and his eyes widen, and sure enough, when she looked in the direction he was, she realized Jared had spotted him and was now beaming straight for the trio.

Shaun made a noise that resembled the sound a frightened rabbit might make when they were cornered by a predator. Lea was cracking up again, and she reached over to try and grab hold of his wrist. But he was off and running before she could. He jerked his arm away from her and spun around. He ran back into the crowd and disappeared in a flash; she was actually almost impressed by the speed at which he was able to vanish. Jared chased after him, and Lea watched the entire thing unfold, laughing even more when she realized Jared still had a bit of frosting on his cheek. He hadn't wiped it all away, even though some effort had apparently been made.

Glassman looked horrified when he watched the two, though. His anxiety wasn't lessened at all when the pair couldn't be seen anymore. Lea figured that was when they were most dangerous anyway; maybe there was some warrant to it. She blew out her cheeks, turning to Glassman and giving a self-assured nod. "You've got a bang-up team, there," she praised, and he turned his incredulous look to her. "A real well-oiled machine, is what that whole thing is."

Glassman looked like he wasn't exactly sure what to say. She didn't blame him. At this moment, she was mostly just hoping he'd skedaddle out of here. Some part of her wished Shaun would come back— even if that meant giving up and taking whatever punishment Jared wanted to dish him. It wasn't like he didn't deserve it. She'd come to this thing to be with him…though in all fairness, he'd said himself he hadn't expected to have to talk to people. She knew him well enough to know that the evening had been turned into his special kind of Hell.

Now, it was an advanced form of Hell, with the added bonus of a cupcake massacre.

To her surprise, Glassman broke the silence. She was just taking another sip of her drink when he offered: "I didn't expect to see you here, tonight."

She put her glass down and raised her eyebrows. "Yup," she replied. "I know it's not as cool as hanging out when you're barging through my house, but…" A little mean of a joke, she knew, but it slipped out of her mouth anyway. She didn't take it back, either. He deserved it to be there; if you can't do the time, don't do the crime. Glassman fidgeted; she moved on. "Shaun asked me to come," she elaborated. "I figured it'd be a fun night. Different, too. Usually, we just stay in."

Glassman roused. He blinked a few times, and she waited for the shock that had been on everyone's face, so far. To be honest, she was kind of tired of seeing it, by now. "Different?" he echoed, and she gave a bland nod. He looked from her, to where Shaun had gone, and she could literally see the wheels spinning in his head. "So you and Shaun…are officially dating, then? I mean, I knew…I knew that he came back from that…I just didn't know." If Lea was an Olympic judge, judging that landing, she'd give it a negative twelve. It'd be so low of a score, that they would have to create a new medal to celebrate just how bad it was. Like…a medal made out of trash. Or something.

"Yeah; we've been dating a little over a month, actually," she said, her voice just a tad tart. Glassman just stared at her. Somehow she felt compelled to go on, even though she knew it wasn't required. Shaun had told her all about what had happened upon his return to work. How Glassman had told him explicitly that he couldn't be his friend. Lea could sense there was something more between them, and therefore it wasn't entirely as easy as Shaun probably thought it could be. But it was certainly easier than Glassman was making it out to be. From what Shaun had told her, he was acting like he was a middle school girl, and Shaun had refused to sit with him at lunch. He had come home from work more than once upset over the ordeal. So she could really help herself from adding a littler sharper: "You might know that if you decided to talk to him every once and a while."

Glassman opened his mouth to reply, but seemed to bite it back. He glanced at the ground, and Lea let him have a second to figure out what the heck to say. Admittedly, there wasn't a lot he could use to defend himself. "Yeah, I…" He winced, and tapped the tabletop. "I know." Lea wanted to ask what that was all about, but it occurred to her it might not exactly be her place to. Even if she wanted nothing more than to demand things to get better for Shaun, she didn't have the right to just flip the table over and scream. Even if she might want to. She perked when Glassman took a deeper breath and sighed out: "Things are…tough, right now."

"Yeah, he said so," she mumbled. The tension between them had gotten about ten times as stifling. She cleared her throat. "He's really upset, sometimes. Sometimes, he's not, and he just can look past it. But…that day you told him you couldn't be his friend…" She shot him a disapproving look. He said nothing. "Look, I don't claim to know what goes on in the hospital, or how your guys' relationship is, or what it is, even, but all I know was that it was important to Shaun." She shrugged one shoulder. "He was upset when we drove away that weekend, and he still is, some nights. And I listen to him all I can, but…listening is pretty much all I can do." She looked at him expectantly. "You're kind of the only person that can actually fix it."

He nodded once, but that was all he offered.

Lea turned and looked around, wondering how good it would turn out if she went to look for Shaun. She wasn't exactly Sherlock Holmes; the other day she had lost her mom's bracelet and looked for it for an hour before she realized it was on her wrist. At the very least, she wondered if she could go and find some more dessert to eat. When suddenly Glassman was speaking again, and she looked back. "You…listen to him, then?" he asked, and Lea tilted her head to the side in confusion. "You're…serious, about this?"

If there was awkwardness before…oh man…

"Of course I listen to him," she replied evenly, her voice a little curbed. "I—" She caught herself at the last second. She shook her head and backtracked. "Of course I do," she amended. "He's my best friend. I care about him a lot."

Glassman searched her eyes; in her mind, she pictured him going through her with a lie detector, or a fine-toothed comb to brush aside any falsehoods. But there really weren't any to uncover. She was being completely serious. This fact was plain as day, but Glassman didn't seem very reassured, even when he did come up with nothing. He just ducked his head and searched the floor, apparently racking his brain for something. He cleared his throat, not unlike what Lea had done just a moment ago. "Um…I just wanted to say…or, I just wanted to ask…" Lea's forehead creased, but she didn't interject. Whenever his request did come out, it came in a rush, almost like he didn't want to say it himself. "I just…wanted to ask if you would be careful," he blurted out.

Lea's eyes narrowed, but still, somehow she stayed silent.

Glassman continued, with very apparent difficulty. "Shaun— has never wanted any kind of…relationship…with anyone; he makes friends very slowly, and even when he does make friends, he keeps them at an arms-length. He doesn't let himself show all the things that people usually show, and he doesn't like to acknowledge that…certain things are what they are, just because he doesn't want close-knit relationships." She guessed he was talking from experience, with that. She could see the pain in his eyes when the words slipped out. "One night, we were working a busy ER shift, and one of the nurses asked him if he wanted love…and he said no."

Her face fell. Her guard dropped more. "And later I asked him why he didn't…and he said it was because he loved his brother." She recalled when Shaun had told her in the car, and her stomach twisted just a fraction. She looked down at her hands. Most of her hostility was now gone. "So…that's why I was so…confused to see him here with you tonight, and to hear him mention you when he got back to work. Because he's just never…allowed himself to realize that he does want love. He's always kept it from himself, no matter what, so I just…" He sighed, crestfallen. He looked at Lea almost sadly, now. "I don't want him to get a hurt again, and I don't want him to cut himself off completely. And that's what will happen, if you break his heart." The last few words dropped out like rocks.

Lea stared at him, realizing her throat felt a little tighter than normal. She digested the words as best she could, finding them all bitter pills to swallow. She was silent, as she did, before her eyes narrowed more, and she picked her head back up to look at him square in the face. "Aren't you a bit hypocritical, telling me that?" she demanded. Glassman didn't look taken aback at all; he just looked even more miserable at the question. She took in a deeper breath and shook her head. "I don't plan on breaking his heart, or disappointing him at all. You, on the other hand, have already done both." The reminder was sharp and bared, and she didn't let Glassman have the opportunity to reply to it. She didn't think he deserved the chance.

As soon as she snapped her rebuttal, she was turning on her heel and leaving.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

When she found Shaun again, Jared had caught him. Jared was gone, but smeared right across Shaun's face was the same exact kind of icing, so one could only suppose. She wasn't even sure where in the world they were getting all these desserts; she hadn't even seen anything here that even had frosting on it. But whatever it was, there seemed to be a stockpile for ammo. He was standing with another girl Lea didn't know, who was laughing as she wiped a napkin on his face, trying to get the mess off as best he could.

She got closer, and she could make out their voices over the music. "…acting completely stupid," the blonde was remarking, smiling just a bit. "You guys will get fired, and then what will you put on your resume?"

"That I was fired from my surgical residency because a coworker dared me to smear a cupcake on another coworker's face and I did." Of course, his reply was an honest one. He paused and added with a glance to the side. "Jared can put on his resume that he was fired twice for assault. Once for actual assault, and once for assault with a cupcake. He will never get hired anywhere else." He shuffled his feet, before he added: "I only did it because Claire told me to. Jared was just being mean." As if it helped his case.

"It's like you guys are always up to something, together," the girl mumbled. As she said this, the tiniest sense of regret flickered over her face. She frowned and looked down at the ground for a brief second, before she looked back up and wiped the rest of the frosting off his cheek. "There. Now you look halfway decent again," she offered, and turned to deposit the napkin on the table they were standing nearest to. She looked like she was going to say something else, but that was when Shaun noticed that Lea was coming up towards them.

He turned and looked at her, and she smiled again when he did. "Hi, Lea," he called, and her grin became softer. She couldn't help it. Shaun wiped at his face, as if he was still trying to get the feeling of the muck off. "Jared hit me with a cupcake," he declared, his voice sorrowful and deflated. Lea snorted. "But I got it off. This is Morgan," he added, gesturing back to the girl who'd helped him. "She's the new resident on our team. Morgan, this is my girlfriend, Lea." Lea softened when she heard the word 'girlfriend' pass his lips. She hadn't anticipated how much she would love hearing it.

Morgan smiled. "Oh!" She offered her hand, and again, Lea shook it. "Nice to meet you."

Lea nodded once, not really knowing what else to say. Morgan looked between them, a little awkwardly. Before she laughed and said: "Well, I've got more mingling to do. A lot of people want to talk to me about my publication, so…I'd better…" That was it; he just gave a tiny nod, before she turned on her heel and fled back into the crowd. It left Lea and Shaun standing together in that lingering quiet.

Lea looked at him. "Is she your friend?" she asked. "How come she didn't sit with us earlier?"

Shaun didn't exactly answer her, which wasn't something she was terribly unused to. "She's nice. Most of the time."

"So she is a friend, then?" Lea prompted.

Shaun hesitated. After a pause, he murmured: "Anyone can be nice, if they want to. It doesn't make them my friend."

Lea pursed her lips. She remembered what Glassman had said, and she looked down at her clasped hands. She was quiet for a long time, before she looked up and narrowed her eyes. "Who's in charge of these songs?" she demanded, and Shaun perked in confusion. "They suck. These aren't the kinds of songs you play at parties." She didn't even know what song was playing, to be perfectly honest. But at its core, it sounded horribly boring. She grabbed Shaun's hand to pull him along with her as she made for the stage. "C'mon," she urged. "We're going to make this party ten times better."

"I can't get into any more trouble, Lea," he protested warily. "I already threw a cupcake at Jared."

"So you've told me. But that was your mistake, and one you made of your own volition," she declared. "So this will be my mistake, and if nobody likes it, which won't happen, because the song I'm going to request is amazing, then I can be blamed, which means I would be fired, not you."

"You don't work here," Shaun objected.

"Exactly." They came to a stop at the stage, and Lea lit up as she looked at the person who was running the sound system. "Hey!" Shaun watched miserably as she strained to catch the man's attention. "I have a request!" she chirped. "Are you taking requests? Is that a thing? Can I make a request?" The man hesitated, and after a period in which Lea grappled with stark disbelief over the fact that so far nobody had requested anything, he gave a nod. "Okay, cool," she said. "Play Cupid Shuffle!"

Immediately Shaun asked: "What is that?" As if she'd said: 'Play Steaming Pile of Trash and Garbage.'

She rolled her eyes. "You're such a baby!" she snapped. Still holding onto his hand, she turned and dragged him to the dance floor next. Nobody else was there yet. Straightening up and lifting her chin, she nodded once. "We have to start the dancing," she declared seriously, as if it was their sole purpose in life.

Shaun didn't agree. "No, we don't," he immediately blurted.

"Of course we do, don't be ridiculous," Lea snapped, the song already beginning to play. Everyone around them perked at the change. They were turning and looking towards them. She grinned, but Shaun did the exact opposite. If he was a balloon, he would be slowly deflating— most likely in the way that made a high-pitched screaming noise. In fact, if Lea was forced to choose a spirit animal for Shaun, she would pick that slowly-deflating balloon that was constantly screeching. She felt like they were pretty similar. "It'll be fun, Shaun, trust me. I can't believe you've never done the Cupid Shuffle before! It's my favorite song to dance to! And it's super easy, because they tell you exactly what to do. You just do it."

"I'm not a good dancer," Shaun whined.

"You literally step around, it is the easiest thing in this world." She softened and ducked closer, her voice turning gentler. "You should dance with me, Shaun." He looked at her skeptically, and her grin turned slyer again. "I mean, I can dance by myself, because I'm an awesome dancer, and I'll tear up this floor with or without you. But I would most definitely prefer dancing with you, because I'd bet you'd be kickass at the Cupid Shuffle." She gave him a wink, knowing she couldn't force him into it, but also knowing she'd get as close as she could to doing it before she gave up. Shaun never liked to try new things, and usually when she encouraged him to step out of his comfort zone, he was pretty happy about it afterwards.

He stared at her dismally for ages. Before he eventually sighed, and she started to hop up and down. "Okay," he huffed, not sounding thrilled at all over the give. In fact, he looked like he'd rather stick hot pins in his eyes than be here in the center of the room, with the Cupid Shuffle getting closer and closer to the refrain. But Lea was over the moon immediately, and it seemed to reassure him that at least someone was having fun in the equation. Even if it wasn't him, it was her, and that was just as important, if not a little bit more.

"Yes!" she all but shrieked. Practically everyone was watching them now, and Shaun looked like he would rather be bleeding to death on the floor, or getting attacked by fifty million cupcakes at once, but Lea ignored it. "Okay, okay, he's gonna tell us what to do and you just do it to the beat, and it's so easy and it's so much fun, and we're going to get this party started just the two of us." She clapped her hands together. Shaun looked more than doubtful, but at least he knew by now not to voice it. She reached out and grabbed Shaun's hand again, and started to lead him along, with the directions came.

'To the right, to the right, to the right, to the right!' They hopped along, and Lea giggled when Shaun stumbled a tiny bit. 'To the left, to left, to the left, to the left!' They went with this too, and Lea laughed even more when he started to get the hang of it. It really wasn't that hard; it was fun, and he was slowly beginning to lighten up as he danced. 'Now kick, now kick, now kick, now kick!' Lea used her free hand to swish the skirt of her dress back and forth as she made a show of kicking up her feet, and Shaun, still holding onto Lea's other one, smiled more as he followed her lead and did a make-shift can-can. 'Now walk it by yourself, now walk it by yourself!'

Lea disregarded that last direction, and she whirled around to grab Shaun's other hand, to break into a goofy dance. To their credit, they kept with the faster tempo, which was a success in itself, when it came to them. Grinning at each other like a pair of idiots, they hopped and side-stepped to the music, breaking apart after a couple measures when it continued. "And then you just do it all over again!" she instructed, letting go of one of his hands but keeping his other close. 'Down, down, do your dance, do your dance, do your dance.' Shaun kept one eye on her, just to make sure he was doing it right, and they repeated the process, with the four steps right and then four steps left. Shaun was getting his bearings on it; he was smiling more, and getting looser.

At first everyone around them just watched, finding the breakout of the song oddly unfitting for the situation, and more surprising than anything. But once they got through the first chunk of it, people started to decide to have more fun at this stupid party. Claire rushed out of the crowd to stand at Lea's other side, and she joined in right at the second line. Jared went out with her, apparently having forgiven everything about the cupcakes. Morgan hesitated, but she came to stand by Shaun and join the dancing line, too, and that was the final straw it seemed. Tons of other people, who had actually come out to have a good time, took to the dance floor, and pretty soon it was near full.

Before, conversation had been a dull roar in the background, and mundane music had drifted overhead. Now, everyone was grinning and laughing, trying to see who could kick the highest, or spin the fastest, or dance the best. It was fun; Lea was giggling her head off, and she only giggled more when Shaun managed a laugh or two himself. They got better and better with each refrain, and every time they were told to 'Do your dance' they would always whirl around to grab the other and spin close.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

"I'm going to tell you what I think," Lea sighed.

"I'm listening," Shaun returned.

They were still dancing together, but it was the kind of dancing they were better at, and should probably stick to. After doing the Cupid Shuffle, a flurry of other songs had been requested by the guests that were there. Including but not limited to: The Cha-Cha Slide, Cotton-Eyed Joe, Walk Like an Egyptian, and so on and so forth. The two of them were more than winded by the time there were no more songs to do, but the grins had stayed fixed on their faces. Now, the old music was back— a slower tempo they could sway gently to and from, together.

It wasn't as fast as the other songs, and dancing like this didn't take as much energy. But if Lea had to choose between that type of dancing, and this type of dancing, she would not hesitate before choosing this type. The type where it took little to no concentration, and she could just focus on how close they were together. Her arms were looped gently around his neck, and his hands were on either side of her waist. They just stepped around each other, talking in low murmurs, because they were so close that there was no need to speak any louder. They offered each other bashful grins every so often, and Lea found she couldn't stop smiling, even when Shaun was only looking down at her and not speaking.

"I think you should drop out of the surgery business," she mused. "And you and I go into party planning together."

"I don't think that would be very smart," Shaun decided.

"Really?" Lea tilted her head to the side. She smiled a soft little grin. "Hm. Maybe you're right."

After a period of silence, Shaun murmured: "I would do it."

She giggled. "No you wouldn't."

"I would," he objected.

"Why? You hate parties."

"But I like you," Shaun argued, and she warmed with affection.

She ducked her head; she was smiling so much, her cheeks hurt. "Well, you're in luck, Shaun Murphy, because I like you too," she gushed. Shaun beamed, and they danced together for a few more heartbeats in comfortable silence. The party was dwindling, now; pretty soon, they really would have to go. Which Lea realized she was actually sad about. "This night was really fun, Shaun," she murmured. "Thank you for inviting me. It's certainly the fanciest place I've ever been to. I had like two pieces of cheesecake." She grabbed Shaun's hand and did a tiny twirl before she came back close to him and wrapped her arms around him again. "I wish you could have stayed around more tonight, though," she said. "Instead of being a mascot for your hospital." She smirked. "And a cupcake assassin."

"I wasn't a very good cupcake assassin," he sighed in regret.

"Yeah, maybe stick to your day job," she snickered.

"I'm sorry I had to leave," Shaun apologized, after a while. "I would rather have stayed with you."

"Well that's because I'm just the whole package," she quipped, and Shaun didn't object. "It's okay," she went on. "I had fun anyway. I got to meet all your work friends. Jared and Claire look like they make a good couple." The two were dancing together some little ways away from them. They were engrossed in their own conversation. But they looked happy. Shaun glanced over his shoulder to them and nodded. He looked back and Lea gave him a teasing grin. "It was nice. I finally met the famous Melendez…and I talked to Glassman for a while, after you left."

Shaun didn't seem very enthused with this, and she didn't blame him. When she continued, she was more careful. "He…actually seemed really concerned about you. I guess that's not unusual, but…I thought I should let you know. Even if he said he doesn't want to be your friend…he still really cares about you. And I bet if you just give him a little bit longer, he'll come back around. He'll give you the apology you deserve, after all this time. And it'd better be a pretty darn good one, since you've had to wait so long." She frowned, and looked at him closer. "Do you think you could forgive him? If he did apologize?"

"I don't know," Shaun replied.

Lea figured that was as much an answer as she was going to get. They twirled and danced together again in silence, just enjoying being close. Lea smiled and put her head against his shoulder. She felt him move to rest his chin on top of her head. Her heart hurt, she was so happy, and she started to open her mouth, to finally say it, but she bit it back before the sneaky admission could get out. She remembered Glassman's words. Shaun had difficulty, with these things. She didn't need to pressure him, by saying anything rash. She knew he liked her, and, for now, that was more than enough. She knew he wanted to be with her just like she wanted to be with him. There wasn't anything else she needed, but that knowledge. She could be satisfied with just that.

"You have a very nice thing here, Shaun," she murmured, grinning. "You have a dream job…an awesome hospital…plenty of friends…it's near perfect."

"And you," he added, and she melted. "I have you, too. I think it's perfect."

Lea smiled. Her eyes drifted to the side, and they snagged themselves on someone standing alone at the edge of the dance floor. It was that girl from before— the one in the red dress that had been helping Shaun look less like he'd just been mugged from the kids of Candyland. Morgan, was her name. Lea picked her head up and blinked, realizing that she'd been looking towards them. Or maybe not exclusively at them, but in the direction— their direction, and Claire and Jared's direction. Once Lea started to look her way, though, the other girl seemed to rouse and snap out of whatever reverie she was in. She looked away, too sharp to be a natural turn.

Lea frowned. "How come you didn't ask Morgan to sit with us earlier?" she repeated. "Looks like she's lonely."

Shaun seemed confused. He thought for a while, before: "Claire doesn't like her very much. If she sat with us, Claire would probably leave." This was grumbled, and she looked back to see that he looked a little peeved. "It's annoying, when people can't get along," he sighed. "She's very arrogant, and she likes to brag. But Melendez is arrogant too, and Claire wouldn't say no if he wanted to sit with us. She would probably laugh and brush her hair back, if he sat by her." Lea made a face, but Shaun wasn't taking any questions in his monologue. "I didn't find her anyway, until Jared hit me with the cupcake. We haven't talked very much. We don't know each other."

Lea hummed. "Well, she seemed to like you, from what I saw," she offered.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, I just—" Lea blinked suddenly, realizing what her words could be taken for. An embarrassed smile crept over her face— unlike all the other smiles she'd been wearing that night, it didn't reach her eyes. "Oh, no, I didn't mean…" She pictured herself digging her own grave, and only getting faster and faster with it. "I didn't mean anything by it, Shaun, don't think I did." He stared at her closely. She looked away, shaking her head. "Forget I said anything," she offered. "Scratch that whole thing. It's not important." Wow, she was stupid. She'd just been trying to figure out what was up in the realm of Doctor Drama. Now she was putting her foot in her mouth, making it seem like she was some suspicious, overbearing person. Where had that come from?

He weakened. "Are you…worried that—?"

"No!" she rushed. "No, Shaun, not at all. I was just trying to be nosy. About— about other stuff, not about that. I know you would never…" She shook her head again, and tried to focus on keeping their dance steps coordinated. The effort didn't go very far, though. "You'd never do anything like that, I don't even have to ask that to know. So no, I'm not worried. About anything— ever. It's fine." She wanted to give him a smile that conveyed that, but at this point she kicking herself so much, that it came out pinched. "Just forget it," she repeated. And added for good measure: "Please."

Shaun still wore a frown on his face, though. They kept dancing, but the silence that followed Lea's plea wasn't as comfortable as the silence that had existed before. Her smile faded into something akin to a grimace, and she found herself looking off to the side more. She felt bad; she'd kind of completely ruined the moment. She wasn't sure an apology would do much for her, either, in this specific situation. Even if she didn't really think anything like it was true, she'd basically just made it seem like she didn't trust him. Which was definitely not true, and definitely not good. She figured at least attempting one wouldn't do her that much harm.

But as soon as she did start to try and craft something worthwhile, Shaun spoke instead. She closed her mouth and prepared herself for the snap she probably deserved. But he sounded lost, not indignant. His words were layered with confusion, but it didn't alter the meaning of what he said, in the slightest. The meaning that caused Lea's heart to suddenly stop in its tracks, and leap up into her throat. "I don't love Morgan. I love you."

The last three words knocked the wind completely out of her. She stiffened, and stopped moving. Shaun looked confused; he had no choice but to jerk to a halt, too. He frowned and looked at the floor, as if he was wondering if there was suddenly glue there. Lea wasn't even breathing, she was so shocked and confused. An entire ten seconds passed in complete silence, with Shaun trying to figure out what the heck had happened. When she still was unmoving, he reluctantly let go of her and stepped away, wearing a worried frown. A frown that only increased in severity when her arms just swung uselessly down to her sides. He mumbled nervously: "Did I do something wrong?"

"You…you said it," she said, dumbly.

He murmured in the back of his throat, his eyebrows knitting. "Was I not supposed to?"

"No, that's not…I mean, I just didn't…" Lea's voice was soft— barely a whisper. She was surprised Shaun could hear it, with the music playing. She realized her eyes were starting to burn. "You love me, Shaun?" she murmured. "Are you sure?" she croaked. "You're not just saying that?"

He hesitated. But there wasn't an ounce of uncertainty in his tone when he replied. "Of course I do." Her face broke out into a brilliant smile; Shaun lit up, too, or maybe it was just all the lights that were shining around them. "You make me happy. Even on days when I think I can't be. I always look forward to seeing you again, and I miss you when you're gone." She giggled. She wished this didn't mean so much to her, so she wouldn't ruin all her makeup like a complete idiot. "You're my best friend, and my girlfriend, and I love you. I love…everything about you. I tried to make a list, but I had too many things to add."

"Aw, Shaun…" Lea giggled, and leaned over, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. She wanted to fly at him and squeeze him as tightly as she possibly could, but she restrained herself to the gentle, barely-there pressure she knew Shaun preferred. She beamed when she felt Shaun hug her back. She refused to let go of him, but she did lean back enough to look him in the face. Her grin was watery. "I love you too," she gushed. Shaun barely had time to smile before she got up on her toes again and kissed him.

Maybe she went a little faster than normal; she didn't give him the chance to duck away like she usually did. But it was only because she was so happy— because he made her so happy. And he didn't seem to recoil at the quick gesture. In fact, after only the tiniest millisecond of shock, Lea's heart skipped when he leaned just as eagerly into the kiss, his hands straying back to her waist where they were before. She smiled and giggled against his lips, far too happy to even worry about anyone looking at them sideways. Or if this was uncouth for such a sophisticated event.

She just couldn't believe it; she wasn't even able to think about anything else.

'He loves me. He loves me, he loves me, he loves me…'

And she loved him.