Kendall and I are out for lunch when I bring up Sam and my relationship. "I know we've known each other for over a year, but my relationship with Sam still feels like a whirlwind romance."

Kendall pauses, the fork going to her mouth. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I guess it's because the second we had that first kiss, we couldn't get enough of each other," I try my best to explain.

Kendall smirks at me. "I don't see a problem here."

"Oh, there's no problem, no problem at all. I guess my head is trying to keep up with my heart." I shrug.

Kendall takes my hand into hers. "Follow your heart, Mal. Always follow your heart."

We continue to enjoy our lunch and conversation till Kendall looks at her phone. "Shoot, Mal. I have to go. Scott has to leave for work in half an hour, and I have to get home to relieve him."

"Of course, please give Benny Boy a big hug and kiss from his Auntie Mal."

"I will," she promises.

We both stood and grabbed our to-go containers. We had already paid the bill, and we hugged before going to our cars.

"Love you, Mal." She squeezes me.

"Love you, too, Ken."

"We must get our schedules together for a cookout," Kendall suggests.

"That sounds perfect. I'll check Sam's and my schedule and let you know," I reply.

"I'll do the same with Scott's and mine. Hopefully, something will line up." She crosses her fingers.

"Hopefully. Bye, Ken."

"Bye, Mal."

As I get behind the wheel of my car, I get a buzz indicating that I have a text message. I look at my phone and smile when I see it's from Sam.

Hey, Babe. I miss you! Dinner at the cafe? 8:00?

I type out my response.

Yes, please. Are you at the hospital now?

I watch the bubbles, waiting for his response.

No, I'm still at the office but will be there for dinner.

I reply.

Okay, see you then. XOXO.

XOXO.

I start my car, head home to shower, and get ready for work.

Sitting at the cafe waiting for Sam to arrive, I check for a text or message from Sam. He's always punctual, or at least he texts or calls when he's late. I sit for a few moments longer before looking down at my phone again, 8:15 p.m. I'm surprised he hasn't tried to contact me and wonder if he got caught up in an emergency with one of his patients. I waited fifteen more minutes before grabbing a sandwich before my break ended. My phone rang, it was Sam, so I quickly answered it.

"Hey, Babe. I was going to text you."

"Mallory?" I hear a woman cry out my name. I looked at my phone again to ensure I saw Sam's name; I did.

"Who is this, and why do you have Sam's phone?" All I hear is someone sobbing. "Hello?"

"This... it's, it's Sammy."

"Sammy? What is going on? Where is Sam? Sammy, where the fuck is Sam?" I cry out.

"He's here," she's sobbing. "The emergency room. He was in a car accident, Mallory. A damn car accident."

I leave my sandwich, lay at the checkout counter, and run like hell to the emergency room. "I'm on my way, Sammy."

"Hurry... Please, hurry!" She wails.

I go flying through the emergency doors from the hallway and see Sammy holding Sam's phone to her ear with tears streaming down her face.

"Sammy!" I call out.

"Mallory!"

We run into each other's arms and hold each other tightly.

"What... what happened?" I ask.

"I... I don't know. I'm his emergency contact. All they said was that he was in a car accident and transported here. Mallory, I'm so scared. He's the only family that I have."

I hug her. "Shhh... I'll find out what's going on, okay?"

"Okay."

"Can you sit here while I check to see what is happening with Sam?" I walk her over to the waiting area.

She sits and places her tear-stained face into her hands, and I give her shoulder a quick squeeze.

"I'll be right back," I promise.

She nods her head, and I run to the nurse's station. "Excuse me?"

A nurse that I know, Cindy, looks up as I approach. "Yes? Oh, hey, Mallory. What brings you to our neck of the woods?"

"Hey, Cindy, Doctor Samuel Daniels came through Emergency."

"Yes, so sad. I heard that a teenage boy t-boned Doctor Daniel. I'm sorry to say that the boy was DOA," Cindy reveals, sadness clouding her face.

I'm trying not to take Cindy by the collar and shake her senselessly.

Instead, I take a deep breath. "What about Dr. Daniels?"

"He's in surgery," she simply answers.

I grit my teeth. "Do you know what for?"

She looks at her computer and hits some keys. "Here... let me check... Hmm, here we go. Dr. Daniels suffered a collapsed lung, a ruptured spleen, broken ribs, and blunt trauma to left arm and leg from the impact of the collision."

"Who's doing the surgery?" I ask, trying to control my emotions.

"Dr. Randall Preston," she replies.

"Thank God! Thank you. I'm going to be over there with Dr. Daniels' sister." I point over at Sammy.

"Oh, are you close with the family?" she asks.

"Dr. Daniels is my boyfriend," I inform her.

"Ahh... I'll let you know the second he gets out of surgery, and I'll let Dr. Preston know to come to see you and Dr. Daniels' sister," she responds, smiling.

"Thank you, Cindy."I quickly walk back to Sammy, and she looks up at me.

I sit beside her and take her hands into mine. "Sam's in surgery. By the sounds of it, his injuries are not life-threatening. Now, all we can do is wait."

She nods her head, and I pull her into a hug.

After several minutes, I pull away from Sammy. "Sammy, I have to make some calls. Is there anyone that you want me to call for you?"

She shakes her head. "No, I already called Tim. He should be here any minute."

Tim is Sammy's fiancé. They've been together for two years and were engaged around the same time I met Sam. They're three months away from their wedding. Holding her hand, I texted Kathy to tell her about Sam and that I wouldn't return for my shift.

I quickly called Kendall. "Hey, Mal. I thought you were working tonight."

"I am... I mean, I was. Ken, Sam was in a serious car accident," I explain.

"I'm sorry, what?" she responds, the shocked tone of her voice evident.

"A teenage boy t-boned Sam. Ken, the boy, didn't make it, and Sam's in surgery."

"Oh, my God, Mal. I just put Benny down for bed. I'm going to call my mom. I'll be there as soon as I can." The care in her voice brings tears to my eyes.

"Thank you, Ken." It wasn't until I hung up with Kendall that I let myself fall apart. Sammy wrapped her arms around me and held me as we cried together.

"Sammy!"

"Tim!"

Sammy jumped from her seat, and she and Tim ran into each other's arms. Pain squeezes my heart; I want to run into Sam's arms. Tim holds Sammy as she starts crying again. I feel tears fall from my own eyes when I see Scott come through the ER doors. He sees me and runs over to me. He grabs me and holds me tight as I begin to sob uncontrollably. All the memories of Ben's death come crashing through my mind.

"I can't lose him too, Scott. I can't," I sob.

"I know Mal. I know," he says soothingly while rubbing my back.

The four of us make our way back over to the chairs.

Scott's phone buzzed. He looked at it and typed in a response: "Kendall just arrived."

A few moments later, she ran through the doors, and I stood and ran to her.

We wrap our arms around each other. "I'm so sorry this happened, Mal."

I can't speak; I nod and feel another set of arms encircle Kendall and me. I look up and see Scott with tears spilling down his cheeks. We have all been here before.

Three and a half hours later, I saw Cindy wave me to her station.

"Do you have news?" I ask, nervous about what I may hear and praying for good news.

"Yes. Dr. Preston should be out to talk with you in a moment. I just wanted to let you know that Dr. Daniels is out of surgery and has moved into recovery," she informs me.

"Thank you," I reply. Then, while walking back toward my friends, I see Dr. Preston enter the waiting room.

Sammy and Kendall take my hands. "Here comes Sam's surgeon," I whisper as we all anxiously wait for the doctor to come over and tell us how Sam is doing.