Chapter Text
Mel finally got a smile out of him.
She had found Frank in the breakroom alone after his near-missed call with the intubation on the collapsed lung. He had confessed to her that he didn’t know if he was ready to be back, and she had told him she didn’t want him to leave.
“That which does not kill me makes me stronger.” she had offered, lips settling in a line as she sat pleasantly content with her choice of quote.
“Wow, Friedrich Nietzsche.” answered Frank, eyebrows raised as he recognized the words. Mel’s eyes went wide as she remembered the correct origin of the quote, looking off to the bulletin board behind him.
“Yeah, Nietzsche…yeah…”, she awkwardly responded, cheeks warming at her realization. Her eyes continued to dart around the room. “...not Kelly Clarkson.”
Frank scoffed out his nose in response. Mel looked back at him. A big grin had settled on his face, eyes crinkling by his cheeks. The pair continued to just look at one another, a peaceful kind of quiet in the breakroom.
His eyes really were intense, she realized. She remembered overhearing some of the newer medical assistants who came in during the 10 months he was gone, whispering about him when he had returned. Sure, his eyes were bright and hard to miss, but intense?
She had chosen to ignore them. Those intense eyes had kept her grounded during her first day, insisting that she was needed despite her own feelings otherwise. She focused on his eyes now, deeply blue and centered on her. A familiar twist in her stomach formed, and she decided to tuck away her feelings until after her shift.
His eyebags weren’t as deep as they were when she had first met him. His hair was less shiny and his posture was more relaxed. He was calmer, less skittish, and more content with moments of quiet. She was glad she finally had someone to share that quiet with.
They were still looking at one another. Their blinks got slower, as she realized his eyes had darkened. He kept his focus on her.
She shifted her gaze down his face, landing on his lips involuntarily. His smile had since relaxed on his face, lips slightly parting as she heard soft exhales. In the quiet breakroom, she could hear him breathe in and out slowly, eyes still zoned in on her. She caught him looking down at her lips as well.
A few seconds had passed while the air got thick. Mel remembered they were still on shift, and there were still people to see and help. Anyone could walk in on her and Frank just staring at each other. She sucked in a breath, breath hitching at the thought of what someone could insinuate was going on between them.
Frank, on the other hand, didn’t seem at all phased by the risk of someone interrupting them.
He shook himself out of his trance suddenly, coughing to mask the near visible tension.
“So, do you… have any other words of wisdom for me?” he asked, softer and lower than before. It was still just the two of them in the room, but his volume seemed to want their conversation to stay within their ears. Her ears warmed at the thought.
Mel racked her brain, searching for the perfect quote. She wanted him to keep smiling at her.
“I think, therefore I am.” she ultimately decided, carefully watching his reaction. His eyebrows furrowed and she could practically see the wheels turning in his head, trying to recognize the quote.
“Billie Eilish?” he questioned, head slightly tilting with amusement. Her eyebrows quirked at his return, feigning confusement.
“Who?” she replied. She was trying hard to not give herself away, seemingly successful as Frank’s eyes widened with surprise.
“You don’t know Billie Eilish?” he asked in shock. Her face seemed to betray her, as a smile overtook her face in amusement. He slumped back in realization, shaking his head with a smile as he understood. “That was a joke.” he appreciated, looking back up at her.
“It was.” Mel agreed. He was back to smiling at her.
“Who else do you listen to, Dr. King?” he asked, his words playful and light. He wanted to keep talking to her, she realized.
In a split decision, she pulled out her phone and opened one of her playlists. She paused for a second, deciding on whether to make the move. He was watching her intently, curious at what she was doing.
“Would you…like to listen with me?” she asked carefully. He smiled, and then reached into one of his pockets to pull out a tied pair of wired earbuds. There’s no one else in here but us, Mel thought.
Mel offered her hand out. He handed her an earbud, fingertips lingering as they grazed her palm. He was still looking at her, not breaking eye contact. He inched his seat closer to her, knees brushing against one another. She shifted her chair so they were sitting shoulder-to-shoulder. She was suddenly reminded of that episode from The Office, smiling to herself at the reference. She made a mental note to rewatch that episode when she got home.
She pressed play, and they both began to nod to the music.
Mel closed her eyes, letting herself remember the episode’s details, unconsciously comparing herself and Frank to the sitcom couple. She always liked their dynamic, it was sweet watching them dance and flirt around each other. Pam was engaged to someone else, she remembered.
Frank is married to someone else.
She caught herself at the insinuation, freezing as she became painfully aware of their proximity. Their hands were close enough for her to feel his body’s warmth. His eyes were closed, pleasantly nodding to her music. He must’ve felt her freeze next to him, as his eyes opened, turning to look at her at the same moment she did.
Their faces were inches apart, eyes focused on one another as they both froze. Mel’s heart began to beat faster, face warming up as she was struggling to breathe slower through her nose. He began to breathe faster too, quiet exhales suddenly being the loudest sound in the room.
She was close enough to smell his cologne. He smelled nice. It was subtle, but attractive. She wanted to lean closer. Her stomach twisted in reaction, face getting impossibly warmer at the thought.
His pupils were blown out, lips parting.
Mel snuck a quick glance down to his lips, watching as his tongue slowly wet his lips. She was close enough to lean forward. She looked back up to him watching her.
He had leaned closer to her, his eyes taking their turn to look down at her lips. His lips pressed together as his head slightly tilted to the side, eyes half-lidded.
She could feel his fingertips twitching, her hands slightly cramping at the anticipation. He moved closer, until his knuckles made contact with hers. She quietly gasped at the contact, noticing his breath hitch. Neither of them moved.
The song they were listening to had since ended, leaving them in silence once again. A few strands of his hair had fallen in front of his face again. She desperately fought against the urge to reach out and brush them away.
Suddenly, a loud alarm went off, the pair separating in shock. Frank looked around for the sound, finding his phone’s timer had gone off, signaling the end of their break–their quiet. His earbud was still in her ear as he was shifting around, and she was pulled along with him.
She tried reaching for the earbud to separate them, but had grabbed her own braid instead and loosened the neat strands. Frank finally sighed when he managed to stop the alarm, turning to look at her. The right side of her braid was slightly teased out, and he smiled at her frown.
Mel took the earbud still connected to her ear and wiped it on her scrubs, as he offered a hand. She carefully placed the earbud in his palm, as they smiled at each other, both not acknowledging the moment they had shared.
Frank stood up slowly, wrapping the earbuds into an organized bunch and stuffed them into his pocket. He looked down at her, offering her his hand. She reached out and slowly placed her hand in his palm, maintaining eye contact as he helped her stand. His hand was warm. As she rose, their chests got close enough that their shoes were touching.
Mel became once again aware of his height, the top of her head just barely reaching under his chin as he stared at her. They were still holding hands.
He reached up with his free hand to behind her head, lightly touching her braid as he kept eye contact.
“Do you want me to fix it?” he whispered, voice deepening as if it were a secret for her ears only.
“It’s okay.” Mel answered slowly, unconsciously leaning into his space as his arm remained suspended by her side. “Could you… loosen the rest?”
His breath hitched, slowly nodding as he moved his hand to the air by her cheek. He lowered his arm, after she had noticed his fingers twitching just outside her peripheral, wanting to touch her. She slowly took a step back, turning to face her back to him as she looked forward.
“How do you want it?” he asked. She was breathing faster, aware of his warm breath on her neck.
“Just the sides please.” she answered. She clasped her hands together and squeezed, trying her hardest to keep her composure. The words escaped her mouth before she could register her thought, “I trust you.”
She could hear him freeze, quietly clearing his throat as she heard his scrub shuffle. She felt his fingers reach up and rest by her braid, carefully tugging the sides throughout her braid until the looseness looked intentional enough.
“Is that okay?” he asked quietly. She couldn’t tell what it looked like, but she meant what she had told him, she trusted him.
“Yes, just like that.” she responded. She turned around to face him, his hands still at her head’s height. “Thank you.” she quietly added.
“Of course.” He dropped one hand to his side, as the other reached upward to smooth out her hair. She knew the hair by her face wasn’t loose or messed up, but she quickly buried that thought as she felt the warmth of his fingertips lightly stroke the hair by her cheek. “I guess, I’ll see you out there.”
She didn’t trust herself to speak words at that moment, for fear of saying something crazy like asking him to stay. She’d already told him that, but she wanted him to know that she meant to stay with her. She nodded instead, breaking their eye contact to look at their shoes.
He smiled, as he slowly stepped backward to push his chair back to its original position. Mel moved to push her chair back in as well, grateful for the distraction.
She was watching him walk to the door, suddenly stopping to look at her.
“Mel.” She met his eyes, humming in response. “Would you…like to watch the fireworks with me?” He was carefully watching her reaction, looking over her entire face. She was reminded of Becca, and their argument. She’d be alone tonight. “Unless, you have plans.” he quickly added.
“I’d like that.” Mel answered, face warming as she suddenly remembered her sister’s words the first day she and Frank met. A boy to kiss. She quickly shut down that thought.
He smiled in response, turning to open the door. He paused in the doorframe, sneaking one last glance at her, as he met her eyes once more. He held her glance for a second, and then left to rejoin the ER’s chaos.
Mel let her body relax, letting out a sigh as she collected her thoughts. She’d be alone with her thoughts tonight, to remember every detail of their conversations today.
Just a few more hours.