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Like any holiday, the PTMC’s emergency room was as busy as ever on Valentine’s day. The hallways were filled to the brim with couples from car accidents, racing to meet each other to express their love. Funnily enough, this was also a day where there would be a lot of patients who would come in with an anaphylactic allergic reaction. Some people were too bothered to ask their significant others about allergies before mindlessly giving them a pre-packaged box of chocolates.
For Melissa King, it was just like any other day. Some other doctors had plans after work for a romantic candlelit dinner or a night in watching movies with someone, eating Chinese food right from the takeout boxes. But not for Mel. Her whole life, she was always too busy for relationships. As soon as she was old enough to even begin thinking about actually getting into a relationship, her mother passed away. At that point, the only two things in her life that mattered was med school and her sister, Becca.
But Becca was allowed to find love. To find anyone, really. She had that freedom, and it killed Mel. And she would only feel guilty for this envy. She spent her whole life with only her sister in her corner, and when Becca found her new boyfriend, Mel felt truly all alone. February 14th only reminded her of that fact, since her sister was having so much fun with her boyfriend that she couldn’t spare a second to text Mel back or answer her calls. She felt so isolated even in the bustling emergency room, rushing feet and stretchers passing her by, as if she was an obstacle in the room to avoid, a foreign object. She felt like a message in a bottle, wading all alone in the raging ocean, just waiting for someone to pop her head open and read the message. Because all she really wants is for someone to understand.
“Hey, you alright?” Langdon asked. Despite how alienated Mel felt, she actually felt guilty yet again for letting it overtake her. She has to be professional and put her social life aside. But also, she didn’t want to act all sad when other people have it worse. And by that, she of course means Langdon. This is his first Valentine’s day without his wife, he got divorced a couple of months ago. Mel couldn’t even imagine how that must feel. So another wave of guilt washed over her still, glass face.
“Hm? Oh, oh, yeah. No, I’m fine. I’m just uh–looking for the next patient to take.” Mel replied, not having a conversation prepared.
“Well how ‘bout we take this one together? Uh… Let’s see… 35 year old man with a splitting headache–that would be a good teaching opportunity.” He thinks for a second. “Not–Not that you’re still a student. Just that it’s a teaching hospital–God, I sound like Robby…”
“Oh, no, it’s fine. I’m always willing to learn from you. You still know lots of things textbooks could never teach me.” Mel smiles, eager to start.
“Really?” Langdon says, “And here I was thinking you knew everything there is to know about emergency medicine.” Before Mel could respond, he immediately redirects back to the patient. “Well, he’s in south 16, let’s go!” Mel’s smile grows, the excitement of racing to the patient temporarily taking her mind off of things. There was nothing necessarily urgent about this case that justified Mel and Langdon running to him. They both just had a gut feeling, that they absolutely *had* to run. Maybe deep down, they both just wanted to be in the same room together, as fast as they could.
“Alright Mr. Connors, your headache didn’t seem to be anything major,” Mel said clearly, talking in the voice she always used to explain to patients what was wrong and how they’d help them. “We are just going to give you some tylenol and monitor you for a bit to make sure nothing goes wrong, but then you are good to go.” She ends her explanation with a nod, her hands folded in front of her. She always tries to remain composed and polite in front of patients. She rarely got upset with her patients, even if she should be. However, some days, the emotional toil of the emergency department caught up with Mel, and she had to either step out of the room or wipe her eyes secretly, literally turning her back on patients so they wouldn't see her tears. She tries to think of it as a good thing, that it’s good to have empathy for your patients, that’s part of being a doctor. To an extent.
Langdon thinks Mel is just being used as a doormat. And he would never ask her to change, she’s already perfect, but it just means (to him) that sometimes he has the responsibility of setting boundaries with patients for her, especially hostile ones. But really, he didn’t mind. He almost liked it, he felt like he could finally do something good for another person that they couldn’t do themselves. Which is weird, because you’d think he would feel this all the time as a doctor. After all, very few people can intubate themselves.
“Alright. Thanks, Doc,” The patient, Mr. Connors says, directed towards Mel.
“You’re welcome. Um, well, we will check on you soon, and if everything is okay, you will be discharged, so…” Mel replies, nodding once more to end the conversation as she heads out of the room. Langdon opens the door for her, passing it to her until turning his head when Mr. Connors suddenly speaks out and the two of them pause.
“Actually, Doc, can you stay here a moment? Just the blonde, if you don’t mind,” he gives Langdon a snarky smile. Langdon isn’t amused, especially with the tone of this man. He didn’t think Mel should be alone with him. Or more likely, he just didn’t want her to be.
“Her name is Doctor King.” Langdon says sternly.
“Alright, alright, Doctor King. I got something private to tell you about what happened.”
Mel turns her attention back to the patient. “No worries. Everything you tell me will stay confidential unless you want to share it,” she assures him. “I promise Doctor Langdon is very capable and will be able to help you as well.”
“Wha–How come I have two doctors? That’s not possible. Can I just talk only to her, man? What’s the issue? I’m not comfortable with you in the room too!” Mr. Connors started getting slightly agitated, which worried Mel. Despite how much she would want him to stay too, Mel gestured for Langdon to leave, to which he respected this but he was still skeptical. He left the room without another noise, pretending to look for another patient to pick up while secretly stealing glances into the room.
As Langdon leaned on the desk, clearly distracted, Mckay took notice. “Hey, Langdon, are you all right?” She asks, her brows furrowing into a combination of a concerned and confused expression. It wasn’t often Langdon was thrown off of his game like this, he always knew how to put his thoughts to the side and concentrate on work. But not this time.
“Honestly, I’m kind of worried about Mel. As her mentor, I’d say she’s doing fine. But as her friend…” As Langdon trailed off, Mckay raised her eyebrows.
“What’s different about Mel? She’s always like that, just in her own world. You seriously haven’t gotten used to it yet?” Mckay says with a small chuckle. It’s true, Mel often seemed to just be drifting off into space, not being able to focus unless she needed to perform emergency surgery on her patient or someone needed her immediate attention. But Langdon could tell, on this day, something was obviously different. She didn’t just look expressionless, she looked downcast. It was clear something was on her mind today. “No,” Langdon starts, “I’ve gotten used to it alright.”
“Alright then, that’s good. What’s the issue th–”
“Doctor Mckay, the lady with the cut stomach is asking when she’s–”
“Yeah, yup, I got it Javadi, thank you, tell her I’ll be right there,” Mckay responds dismissively in her gravelly voice. “Sorry. Come find me later if you need me. Mel’ll be fine, don’t you worry,” She walks away while she says her goodbyes, leaving Langdon with a wink. Langdon suddenly remembered. He knew exactly what to do to brighten Mel’s day. He runs a little too fast to his locker, earning himself a “Watch it!” from Dana.
He inputs the code to his locker, 2244. It opens with a click. Langdon pushes the locker door to find what he was looking for, a bag of homemade cookies. There were only a few, and they weren’t made that well (Langdon is better at cooking than baking), but it was something. They were tied in a small red mesh drawstring bag, the kind you’d keep party favors or D&D dice in. Tied with the ribbon was a small piece of paper with one word: Mel.
Langdon didn’t know what he was thinking when he made these. He tried to justify himself by saying they were for his kids originally, these are just leftovers that he just *happened* to give to Mel on Valentine’s Day. It was just a coincidence that his kids were craving something sweet on February 13th. However, the neatly prepared pouch betrayed him and exposed Langdon’s true feelings. Nevertheless, he took the cookies and stuffed them in his pocket.
On his way back to Mel, he takes the cookies out of his pocket and hides them behind his back. He wanted to surprise her, but then he ended up being the one met with shock. As Mel came into his vision, he spotted something in her hands. A small, heart-shaped box of chocolates. Langdon stops in his tracks. “Oh, Mel. Um. What’ve you got there…?” He asks, sweat trailing down his neck as he anticipated his embarrassment for even thinking of giving Mel his cookies. “Chocolates!” Mel said with a genuine happiness, the kind that stung Langdon’s heart. What is this feeling? Shouldn’t he be happy that Mel’s finally having a good day?
“Uh, Mel,” Langdon clears his throat, “who gave you those?” He discreetly puts the cookies back into his pocket. “Mr. Connors! So, he was telling me, the reason he had a headache was because of how much he’s been crying, because you see his girlfriend had just broken up with him,” Langdon looks into south 16, unintentionally staring daggers into Mr. Connors’ eyes. “So, he told me that I could have the chocolates he was going to give his girlfriend! I actually even like these because if you see–” Mel flips the box over to show the different flavors of chocolate included, each displayed with a true-to-size picture and its name written in a romantic cursive below it, “there’s really no extreme flavors or textures, which I really appreciate because I’ve always liked simple flavors more, I never wanted boxes of chocolate for this reason, not that I ever got them, but–”
“You know, we really aren’t supposed to have food in the ED. How about you put that in your locker,” Langdon interrupts. Under normal circumstances, he could listen to Mel chat about her food preferences forever, memorizing each one. But when it involves another man, a romantic interest… Langdon couldn’t stand it. However, Mel’s dejected face after he’d snapped was almost just as painful. “Oh. Yeah, no, you’re right.” Mel hesitantly blurts the words out and slips right by Langdon, heading towards the lockers. Langdon pauses, then shakes his head and returns to work as normal (maybe a little more irritable), cookies still in his pocket.
About half an hour later, it was time to check back up on Mr. Connors. As Mel pressed her hand against the door, Langdon stopped her, suddenly gripping her wrist. Mel pulls away from the door and Langdon realizes what he’s done, and he lets go while a slight blush runs over his face. “Uh, sorry. Um, I’ve got this. You have more important things to do. Seriously, it’s no bother.” Langdon mutters other various excuses, anything to separate her from the patient.
“You sure?” She asks politely, looking up at Langdon with widened eyes. The twinkle in her pupils could’ve given Langdon a heart attack. “Oh, yeah for sure. Your talent is needed in the operating rooms, Mel.”
“Well, so is yours. You’re useful for more than just taking vitals.” Langdon gets caught off guard again. And this whole scene is unfolding right before Mr. Connors’ eyes, behind the transparent wall. Suddenly, a member of the PTMC’s security starts rolling in a little girl with a bleeding abdomen. This was Mel’s signal to go. “U-uh…Thank you,” Mel says, just before racing off to the side of the young patient who was being rushed to an operating room.
Not before lingering on Mel’s gait and her thoughtful expression as she examined her patient, Langdon pushed open the door to south 16, Mr. Connors’ room. “Hello Mr. Connors. How are you doing?” Langdon manages to get the words out through gritted teeth. He knows he should really be more professional, but the thought of this lowlife flirting with Mel was really getting to him. But still, he had a job to do, a responsibility he promised Mel he’d fulfill. He needed to control himself, he didn’t want to see Mel’s sad face ever again.
“I’m doing great,” Mr. Connors guffawed, realizing how he got under Langdon’s skin. “That Mel girl is a hoot, I tell you.”
“I know.” Langdon replied firmly. It’s no competition, but Langdon couldn’t help feeling like he has to prove himself, to show that he will know Mel better than this guy ever will. “Heard you got broken up with today? Must be rough,” Langdon says with a slight bite to his words, simultaneously wrapping the blood pressure cuff around the patient’s upper arm.
“Hah, what, she told you? Well, it’s true,” Mr. Connors smiled. “That a problem?” He asked, clearly understanding the role he was playing in Langdon’s mind at this point. Langdon scoffed. “Uh, no. I’d just expect that you might be a little more upset about it. You said that was the cause of your headache after all. But you seem like all smiles to me.”
“Well, why would I be?” Mr. Connors leans closer into Langdon, and under his breath he says, “After all, I still got a date this Valentine's day.” There was a long pause. Langdon’s heartbeat was almost audible. Instead of reacting, he stared at the monitor, his blood near boiling. That was when he finally got the courage to re-open his mouth.
“Alright, sir. I can ensure that you will receive the best possible medical care here, but I do have the right to say–” Langdon leans in closer as well, his bloodshot, tired eyes staring into Mr. Connors’. “You stay away from her. You got that?”
“Pshh, or what, tough guy? I’ve seen the way you look at her. It won’t stop me, you aren’t the boss of her *or* me. Plus, she looked really excited.” Despite how much Langdon would want to say he’s lying, it was true. Mel was really excited. What Langdon didn’t know was that Mel would have ten times the excitement had it been Langdon who asked her out. The reality of the situation was that Mel didn’t know it would ever be possible for her to spend Valentine’s day with someone romantically. She thought this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, one she couldn’t afford to miss. She knowingly ignored Mr. Connors’ more…displeasing traits just for the chance to spend time with someone, maybe even get a kiss. She was desperate, clinging on to any attention anyone would give her. Which is why she wished, upon every fallen eyelash and every dandelion seed in the wind, that Langdon, the one who gave her the most attention, would reach out to her. Mel would never have the confidence to ask someone else out. Her low self-esteem wouldn’t allow it. Combined with the fact she’s never dated anyone, she didn’t want to touch her and Langdon’s relationship.
But again, Langdon didn’t know this. So he had nothing he could say to refute Mr. Connors. But there were things he could do.
The end of the shift came as slow as ever, the stress wearing down everybody’s patients. Langdon meets up with Mel at the lockers, planning to walk her out. The cookies were still tucked neatly in his pocket. “Hey, Mel. You ready?” Langdon asked. At this point, both of them had changed out of their scrubs and back into their casual clothes. Langdon had his backpack slung over his shoulder and baseball cap placed firmly on his head. He crossed his arms and leaned on the locker adjacent to Mel’s, watching her precisely type in the code for her locker. He’d memorized that too, of course, but he knew better than to ever snoop inside. Not like there’s anything that wouldn’t pique his interest, no. He always wanted to look. But his respect for Mel far superseded his curiosity for her belongings. “Yep, almost,” Mel replied, pulling out that same box of chocolates from earlier. The way she clutched at it and kept it close to her chest made Langdon’s heart stop, in more ways than one. “Alright, I’m good.” Mel closes her locker and the two of them walk out of the automatic doorway, walking down the sidewalk until it bordered a half-filled parking lot. When Langdon saw that she had stopped, he knew why. But it didn’t stop him from asking.
“What’s wrong? Why’d you stop?”
Mel hesitates. “Oh, um…I’m waiting for someone.” A brief air of silence. “Um, actually…It’s a date. I think. I hope so.” Mel lets out a small, anxious laugh. “...Sorry.”
“W-what are you sorry for?”
“It’s just, I know you just split up with your wife, this must be so hard for you, to see me so excited, I really apologize, I know how it feels…” Mel trails off. She was partially correct. It was hard for Langdon to see this. But not because of his recent divorce. It was because he wasn’t brave enough to go for the girl he really loved, and she thinks that she should settle for any old pair of ogling eyes. It pained him, deep down. “But, I’ve gotta wait here. That’s what he told me, so that’s what I’ll do.” Mel said, matter-of-factly. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.” Mel says, smiling with her hands in her pockets. It was obvious she was cold, the February breeze chilling her skin. Her standing cold and alone, in the dark hospital parking lot, it was an image Langdon couldn’t bear. “No, no, don’t worry. I’ll wait with you.”
“Are you sure? It might be a while.”
“Doesn’t matter. I need to make sure you’ll get there safe.”
“You don’t have to worry about me, you know.”
“...I know. I think I just want to.”
And thus began a long wait in the cold, both Mel and Langdon staring at the ground, trying to think of something to stay. They’re supposed to just be friends, so why is this moment so intensely awkward?
…
Five minutes pass. Mel starts worrying. “You think he’s late?”
“P-probably.” Langdon replies.
Then it was ten. Then fifteen. Then twenty. Finally, it had been twenty-five minutes of the two of them going from sitting and standing on the sidewalk, Mel sending frantic texts and calls, and the frigid air biting at their noses and lips. And as time went on, Mel got noticeably more fidgety with her hands. After a long quiet, accompanied by the silence of the soft falling snow, Mel speaks up, her voice breaking. “...He–He isn’t coming, is he?” Langdon couldn’t react fast enough until wet, warm tears started breaking out from Mel’s eyes and dripping down her cheeks. “I should’ve known.” Mel looks down at her box of chocolates. “This was never intended for me, anyways.” She drops the box, it clattering on the sidewalk. She instead uses her hands to wipe her sniffling face, drenched with tears. “I’m sorry, Langdon.” The sound of his name suddenly brought Langdon back into reality. “Mel? MEL!” Without thinking, Langdon rushed over and pulled Mel into a tight embrace, her soft perfume entering his lungs. “Mel, it’s okay, what’s wrong? You can tell me, I mean– You can tell me anything.” Langdon reluctantly pulls away as he hears Mel’s sobs quiet and her shaking settle.
“I just thought that maybe things could be different. That maybe I could finally meet people. This is my first time feeling so alone. You know, I always hung out with Becca, but now she’s got her boyfriend, and she barely even needs me anymore, I thought it’d be nice to have some time to myself, a time where no one would rely on me, but it’s actually really, really lonely.”
Mel’s eyes glisten again with the promise of tears. “Mel, Mel, Mel, calm down. It’s okay.” Langdon says whatever he can manage to help ground Mel again. “You shouldn’t have to…You shouldn’t have to choose between isolation and constant caretaking, alright? You aren’t evil for wanting another option. And you really, really…Just, Mel, don’t worry.”
“I mean, how can I not worry– Becca was my life, and now she’s being taken from me, and I don’t know what to do and–” Mel was speaking at a hundred miles an hour. In that moment, Langdon knew what to do. He pulls out his bag of cookies and pushes them in her direction. “Mel. I care about you. I promise you, you can relax. You can relax and you won’t be alone.” As Mel registers his words, she looks down in her hands.
“Um…What’s–What’s this?” she says, pointing to the small pouch.
“They’re cookies. Homemade.” Langdon explains, as if the situation were completely normal. Mel reads out her name as it’s written on the small tag. Mel. Hearing her name come from her voice, with such softness, after thinking she’s worth nothing, gives it a completely new meaning. “Yeah…They’re for you.”
“For…Me? Seriously?” Mel’s rosy cheeks gradually lift as she examines the gift.
“Anyone else here named Mel?” Langdon asked sarcastically.
“No.”
“....Well there you go.”
Under the bright overhead light, Langdon couldn’t help but look at the way fluttering snowflakes found their way buried in Mel’s strands of hair. She had such a fragile kind of beauty, the kind that made Langdon just want to protect her heart that much more.
“How does pizza sound?” Langdon inquired.
“Huh?”
“Pizza. I don’t mind eating plain cheese.”
“You don’t?”
“Not a bit.”
“...Just you and me?”
“Just us.”
“...Okay.”
With Mel’s agreement, a smile found its way to both of their faces once again. They continued their trek down the sidewalk, chatting about the different patients they saw today. As the pair made their way to the local pizza place, a shiny red box was left behind, cowering in a trash bin. Because tonight was not about the chocolate, it was barely even about the cookies. Today was important for only one reason: it was the day Melissa King finally realized she was wanted.