Quote of the day: Love knows, love grows bigger than before, giving room to someone new doesn't necessarily mean there is less for you, it only means that your circle has grown, and know that there is always more love in your heart that can go round.

   There are a lot of ways to deal with issues, a lot of things to do to ease off your pain, but the best thing that every one actually needs is company.  No one is indeed an island on its own.  Greg was just realizing what that saying meant now. As he sat where he was watching Ashley and Nora chat like they have known each other for ages.

     This was the first time he had seen Nora so relaxed in another person's presence, that wasn't him or Davis and then Mr Cordova at Spain.

    It was really refreshing to watch the both of them. Nora had a smile on her face, its been so long since he saw her smile that way, since their mother died.

  He looked at Ashley, she was like a ray of sunshine that had come to light up his world. Ashley was beginning to mean so much to him, moreover he was so curious about her.

   The little she had said today about her and Chloe and her father not being there makes him want to know her more. She never said anything about her personal life, but she had done so today for his sister Nora. It still amazed him so much.

   "I can't believe you are a sucker for hot guys also," Ashley said giving Nora a cute glare. Who was in turn busy staring at her iPad.

     "Yes, I am, do I have a twinnie that has a similar habit?" Nora asked with the cutest smile he had ever seen on her face, she stared at Ashley raising an eye brow.

     "Ohh please you have one, and I'm so damn sure you both will get along."

    "Who?"

  "Chloe," Ashley said with an eye roll.

  "When can I meet her?" Nora asked her face lighting up.  At this point he was beginning to feel abandoned, the two of them conversed as though he wasn't in the same room with them, and he was sitting right there, on the same bed with Nora.

    "Whenever you want. Oh when next I'm coming I will drag her along. Don't worry she will surely come, she loves an excuse to sit and do nothing but talk about hot guys with a bowl of popcorn," Ashley said. What surprised him was her coming to visit Nora again, he was deeply surprised.

    "You are going to come again?" Nora asked with fear and curiosity.
  
       "Of course," Ashley said with a smile. Nora's face seemed to relax. "That is if you want me to."

    "Of course I do, I like you," Nora said. This shocked both him and Ashley, this wasn't what she had been saying an hour ago, maybe Ashley did have magic... Who knows.

     "And I like you a lot more Nora," Ashley said. It sounded very genuine and he knew it was genuine, but at this point he was less than thrilled. He was getting jealous, his girlfriend was right in front of him professing love to another person, okay the another person was his sister but still.

     "I think you guys should know by now that I'm also in here, right," he said trying to get their attention, and he did. They both looked at him with surprise as though hearing his voice there was strange. "And it wasn't particularly pleasing hearing you guys talk about several guys."

      "No one asked you to listen," Nora deadpanned. This had Ashley laughing, although her laughter was cute but right now he wasn't the least bit pleased.

     "Really?" Greg asked with a raised brow. Nora only gave him a glare.

     "You can stuff your ear, but I'm not gonna stop talking about my favorites." Nora said, folding her arms.

    "Ohh, I see," he said standing and leaving the room. Once he was outside he rested his back on the door with a huge smile on his face. He was indeed very happy and for the first time in forever it felt like things would actually turn out good for him, for Nora, and for Ashley, because he sure as hell couldn't live without her now.

     Greg decided to take a walk wanting to leave the girls to their own business, and for the first time in a long time, he walked aimlessly not really having any particular place to go, but as you can already guess there was noting much to look at in the hospital.

     After his walk he went back to the room to check up on Ashley and Nora and you would be glad to know that they were still talking, who knew Ashley could maintain a conversation this long, and Nora.

     "Ashley, I think its about time we go, I need to drop you home." He said hating to interrupt them, he saw the look of disappointment that washed over their faces and damn he felt sad for being the cause of it.

    "Ohh yeah, I guess its bye then," Nora said with a sad smile.

     "Yeah, I will make sure to come around again with Chloe," Ashley said standing up from the chair. She walked up to him and his hand went around her waist immediately giving her a light kiss on her forehead.

      "Uh, Ashley," Nora called quite quietly.

    "Yes Nora," she answered beside him.

      "I haven't... Uhn, apologized to you for the way I behaved the first day we met... You see I was." Nora mumbled and he must say she looked really nervous.

     "Its okay Nora, I should also apologize to you, I'm sorry too." Ashley said with her sweetest smile. "So friends?"

      "No!" Nora said bluntly, he was quite shocked, he could see the shock on Ashley's face too, he thought Nora liked Ashley already, "no Ashley,  sisters?"

     Ashley smiled beside him and he also couldn't hide his. "Yes, sisters."

   "Okay bye... I will be back, Nora," he said going over to kiss her on the cheek.

     "Ohh definitely you will, And sorry for ruining your first date, Ashley told me," she said giving him a coy smile.

    "Ohh you are lucky my girlfriend is so forgiving," he said chuckling.

    "Bye, Nora," Ashley said for the last time and they both left the ward. He stepped out of the hospital with a smile on his face, which was actually the first time, he looked at Ashley whose hand was enrapt in his.

   Once he got to the parking lot, he opened the passenger seat for her and watched her go in not forgetting to buckle in her seat belt for her, he felt really fulfilled when he did little things like this for her. As he did this he could feel her sniffing in his cologne again, he chuckled under his breath, closing her door and walking over to the drivers side.

   He settled into the car and started driving. He held onto Ashley's hand; it made him feel sort of complete doing this. As small as the act was he felt like if he didn't hold her hand, he might loose his mind.

     He looked at her as he drove and the look he saw on her face wasn't a surprising one, it was that look she had whenever she was curious about something, he wanted to laugh at her but didn't.

     "What is the great Ashley Wells curious about again?" He asked.

     "I was just wondering..."

   "About?" He asked his ever curious girlfriend. She really was one hell of a girlfriend.

     "Maybe you should take Nora back home, I don't like her being there," Ashley said and it was a a shock to him. He hadn't been expecting her to be so concerned about his sister.
  
       "Being home is dangerous for her Ashley," he said remembering the several times he had come back to meet Nora almost dead, he couldn't risk it, he can't loose her also.    
 
      "Greg what Nora needs is people, love and attention, being there is only going to plunge her deeper into depression, its not going to help."

     "I had no idea my girlfriend was a certified psychiatrist," Greg said quietly. He didn't know how he felt about the whole issue, he had already figured out today that what Nora needed was people's company.

     "I don't need to be a psychiatrist to know that, Greg. I saw her today, she had this look on her face like there were a lot of things she wants to do...but can't because she's scared of being rejected, and that is why she is so scared of loosing you."

    "And you were able to find this out today," he said his voice. He couldn't really tell why but this conversation was making him feel really out of place.

     "Greg, just think about it, what she really needed was assurance that she isn't alone in this world, and I'm sure she knows that by now, she even got a sister, and she is a really sweet person she won't find it hard meeting other people."

     "I will think about it, Ashley," he said trying to put an end to the conversation. He wasn't really sure Nora could do well with people, she had always had problem with fitting in, and for that he had always being scared and overprotective of her, but today he saw that Nora was capable of being with people.

     "Okay do so..." She said squeezing his hand, he smiled at her. "Greg you passed my turn, you were supposed to make a U-turn right there," she said looking out the window.

     "What can I say, I wanted to continue our date," he said casually, he knew he had to cultivate the habit of asking for her opinion before making a decision, but what can he do he wanted to spend more time with her.

      "Really, where?" She asked her face suddenly lighting up.

      "Well, at my house, where else," he said with a smug smile. "That is if you want to."

       She was silent for a bit and he thought she would decline, he was beginning to feel bad and sad. "Ok, I will like to."

     "Really?"

    "Yes Mr Marshall, now drive fast if we want to have this date I'm starving," she said giving him a wide grin.

      "Uhm Ashley, there is something about my house," he said dreading the look she was gonna give him if he says what he was about to now. "I have a very barren house.... When I say barren, I mean there is nothing like food there."

   "What!" Ashley said sounding bewildered. Her face looked even more bewildered than her voice. "How about your cook, I know you have one because you can't cook."

      "Actually, I have no household employee, except the cleaning lady who comes in twice a week," he said in a stupefied tone.
 
       "So, how do you eat?"

    "I order. And if you are hungry, I will suggest you order something now."

    "Ohh Greg, you were right when you said you haven't ate a decent meal in ages," She said wide eyed with mouth agape.

     "Yeah."

   "That is so sad, no wonder you are always so grumpy," she said now sporting a grin.

       "I'm not grumpy," he said defensively.  He was sure as hell that he wasn't grumpy.

      "You are..."
  
      "I'm not..." He retorted. Childish, he knew, but a man was allowed to some sort of fun once in a while.

    "You are."

    "I'm not!"

    "Grumpy Greggy." Hearing her say this shut him up instantly. 

     "What was that?" Greg asked sure that he heard wrong, what sort of nickname was that?

    "Grumpy Greggy."

    And it was official, he would do anything to have her not call him by that silly nickname again, he would even endure her calling him 'Mr Marshall.'

Chapter twenty eight.
Mary Aden.