Lo and behold, six a.m. had rolled around and Caliana had spent a grand total of three hours holding the call line to several hospitals within a fifty-mile radius of Little Oaks Hospital. But despite her most sumptuous efforts, every call was met with a loud and resounding no to finding a CT scanner to house their bariatric patient.

She'd drawn blood from clamping down hard on her inner cheek every single time Dawn had dashed in and out of the Doctor's mess euphoric over every successful procedure she'd performed under Preeti's supervision. And she'd nearly shed tears from the number of times she'd rolled her eyes as Isaac had entered and re-entered the Mess under the ruse of requiring more caffeine to get through the night.

He was on cup six; not that Caliana was counting.

Now, she nuzzled the plastic headset of the phone between her right ear and shoulder, her fingers tangled within the phone wire as her head lolled from side to side; lethargy infiltrating each pore.

Her refuge was disturbed by the repeating pre-recorded message buzzing through her eardrums every two to three minutes: "Your call is important to us. We are currently experiencing a large volume of calls and yours will be answered as soon as the next representative is available. All calls are recorded and monitored for quality improvement purposes. You are currently number twelve in the queue."

Caliana jolted upright, a small quantity of sleep-induced drool tumbling from the corner of her lip. "What the—? I was literally number eight less than ten minutes ago!" She traversed her forearm over her face until her mouth sat at the hollow of her elbow, permitting her to release a muffled bellow of pure infuriation. Running the increasingly likely risk of her losing her mind (and her place in the queue), she exhaled several sharp breaths attempting to stabilise her thoughts as she'd once learnt in a yoga class. "Stay calm, stay calm. Breathe in, one, two, three, breathe out, four, fix, six."

"Caliana?" Isaac's voice rang from behind her, evidently on his way in for coffee number seven of the night. "I may well regret asking this, but why are you counting down the phone? Is everything okay?"

"Oh," Caliana muttered, her mind sprinting for a plausible answer. "I was on hold, so I... I was doing my pelvic floor exercises while I was waiting for an answer."

Isaac tilted his head quizzically, along with a small raising of his right brow. "I wasn't aware there were any problems."

"There aren't any!" Caliana superseded, slightly disconcerted by the insinuation. "But you know how the saying goes...strong core equates to a strong mind and all that."

"Right. It seems I've not yet read the scientific study that correlates those two." Isaac answered, a touch of a smirk lingering beneath his words. "I take it there's been no success on the CT front, then?" He nodded his head toward the phone still situated in Caliana's hand. Perhaps, it was merely due to the sleep-deprived reversal of her circadian rhythm, but she found her gaze dropping to where his scrub top abruptly ended below his biceps; the cloth appearing suffocated by the muscle, providing more than a whisper of evidence of what laid beneath.

"I've tried at least eight different hospitals. This is impossible." She concluded in response. She noticed how he edged closer to the doorframe once again, his bleep the sole recipient of his attention as the ringing sound blared through the air. "Wait...if you're not too busy, could you...maybe hang around for a bit?" Caliana enquired. It wasn't that she was yearning for more interactions with Isaac, but rather that the nearly eight waking hours of minimal human contact was beginning to take its toll.

At least that's what she told herself. "It's just that I've been on hold for hours now, and if I have to listen to the Opus number one holding tune for another minute, I might sign a Do Not Attempt Resuscitation order in my own name."

Isaac paused at the doorway, hesitating as his eyes surveyed the pager in his hand once again. Nonetheless, he soon astonished both himself and Caliana by seating himself a few inches from her on the couch, the space dividing the two of them now inhabited by a salty popcorn bowl that Isaac had microwaved only moments prior.

Caliana registered for the first time since their last too-close-for-comfort interaction only two nights ago how a fresh harsh amaranth hue coloured his under-eyes. The colour a direct juxtaposition to the hot blue flames of his irises adorned by thick, long lashes. And even though the flaw was a signal of his fatigue, it only seemed to accentuate his handsomeness.

Caliana worried Isaac had caught her glancing at him for a breath too long, but she gazed away just as he averted his eyes back up to grasp a handful of popcorn, the air being subsequently lulled by the sounds of him crunching quietly.

"Reagan's nice. I mean, Nurse Nightingale." Caliana blurted out suddenly.

"What?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I just meant that I was half-expecting a Cruella situation. You know, considering she dated you." Caliana elucidated slowly, watching as his lips curved up at her inference. "No offence intended, of course. It's just she's actually kind and courteous, and you're...well you."

"Ouch. You make it sound like she's an angel, and I'm akin to Pablo Escobar." Isaac responded, a laugh evading his lips at the end of his sentence. "But you're right. She is kind. And an excellent nurse."

Caliana nodded in agreement; she cupped a runaway strand of hair from her ponytail and nestled it behind her ear as she gathered her courage. "So, you were going to tell me why you two broke up...before we got disturbed by the cardiac arrest calls the other night."

He stiffened against the couch, clearly reminiscing (as Caliana also was) how close they'd gotten before the disruption. "Actually, no I wasn't. It was a long time ago, nearly a year and a half ago now. And no, it wasn't a bad break-up." He noted the dubious look on her face. "If you must know, it was a mutual decision."

"Please. It so wasn't." Caliana asserted in return. "Come on, Nurse Nightingale doesn't have the attitude of a woman who mutually wanted to break up; the comment she made about you not being able to see the bigger picture in anything was extremely telling." Isaac appeared dumbfounded as he held Caliana's gaze. She held out her hands in response. "Call it women's intuition. It's a powerful tool, I'll have you know."

Isaac chuckled in response; the sound less posed than it had been earlier. He acclimated his position on the couch, his hand panning out to rest on the head of the cushion, moments away from the back of Caliana's head. His breath was warm, smelling of clean spice, close enough to almost stroke her cheek and ear. "Well, go ahead. Enlighten me with this intuition of yours. What happened between us then, oh wise one?"

Caliana wasn't entirely sure when the aura in the air had changed, but somehow they'd gone from evading each other's gaze to holding it so intently; almost as though they were now challenging one another to see who would break first. "Hmm, let me think." She rubbed her chin, feigning being in profound thought. "I think...I think that you were at different stages of your life. That she wanted more than you could offer her. Then you wanted to offer her."

Isaac recoiled against the couch as if struck by her words. "You're right in a sense. I suppose you could say I had commitment issues."

"Commitment issues?" Caliana's eyebrows knitted together before she discharged a horrified gasp. "You're saying you cheated on Nurse Nightingale?!"

"Every day."

Her eyes widened with sheer incredulity. She clamped her hand over her mouth before whispering. "Every...day? I don't know if I should be repulsed by you openly admitting to being a cheat or impressed by your apparent stamina."

"I'm not talking about cheating with another woman."

"Oh." Caliana pursed her lips before her eyes widened. "Oh, oh."

"Please stop. That's not what I meant." Isaac held out an index finger in protest. "I mean, I only had time for the job. As cliché as it is, I am married to my work. This—" He gestured around them "—will always come first for me. Before any other person, or...or before any possible future."

"I think that just means you weren't right for each other," Caliana clarified, jutting a hand outward when Isaac emitted a sigh. "I mean, 'married to the job' means that you've made a conscious decision to make yourself emotionally unavailable, right? But when you meet someone who you truly do see a future with that might not be the case." Isaac appeared unsure. "Oh, come on. Psychology 101 basically says being a workaholic is classic avoidant behaviour."

"Me? Avoidant? I'm around people all the time."

"Maybe, but you're around people because you have to be in this job. It's without the emotional investment, or vulnerability that comes with being close to someone in an intimate way."

Isaac blinked down at her, a cacophony of thoughts swirling through his mind. "Calia—"

She waved his attempt at refuting her claims away, feeling increasingly bold as the night progressed. "As for your actual relationship, I reckon she stroked your ego a lot when you were together."

He scoffed, but his eyes gleamed with intrigue at her words. "You've clearly given this a lot of thought. If the whole doctor thing doesn't work out, we should get you enrolled on a creative writing course."

Caliana bit back a smirk. "I imagine she was constantly complimenting you." She lifted her legs onto the couch, setting herself on her knees in an almost kneeling stance as she leaned closer toward him. "Oh, Isaac, what a latissimus dorsi you have! Do you like it when I run my hands over your large pectoralis major or perhaps you prefer it when I stroke your rotator cuff muscles?" She reached out, jokingly squeezing his bicep muscle, and noticing how rock-hard they were.

"Are you still masquerading as Reagan, or is a toned pectoralis major really what gets you going, Caliana?" Isaac teased in return. Now, it was Caliana's turn to argue back but Isaac intersected. "Honestly, I'm a little offended that my gluteus maximus didn't get an honorary mention there, I've seen you looking enough times."

"You wish." Caliana breathed.

"Every night upon a star, and yet here we are." He jested. It was a joke, and yet there seemed to be an emblem of something more. The professional man had exited the chat, and in his wake was a more temperate countenance seemingly reserved only for Caliana.

Sensing the thickened tension cascading through the room, Isaac cleared his throat. "Do you think there's any sutures in here? I think it's about time I teach you how to secure a chest drain properly this time."

She peeked around, disregarding the crackle of electric charge that infused the air. Unable to spot any stitches, she tugged up her scrub shirt, exposing the drawstring of her trousers and dragging it out. She relished in the fact that Isaac's eyes drew to the exposed skin of her torso for a moment too long, as she pulled out the string. "Will this do?"

He nodded. "It's easy enough. Like sewing. Practice once or twice, and you'll be a pro." He wrapped the drawstring around his index finger twice, looping it under his middle and over his ring finger before bringing the knot together in what was known as a surgical mattress knot. "May I have your hand?"

Caliana swallowed. "You may." She held her hand out; her fingers cool and tanned against his warm and paler ones. He manipulated her fingers, demonstrating the knot for a second time. Except Caliana's eyes were not watching their hands anymore. Instead, she observed him, witnessing the soft yet strong slope of his surprisingly straight nose – surprising because, with a smart mouth like his, she was astounded he hadn't had it broken at least several times. Her gaze trailed along to his square angulated chin, and almost wickedly full lips.

"You know, it might be a surprise to you but if you want to learn, you actually have to look."

Her gaze dropped down to their hands. "I was looking! I just...got distracted for a second."

After a juncture of silence, she spoke up. "How'd you learn to be so good with your hands?" She halted. "I mean...I just mean, you really know how to use your fingers well." The words stumbled from her mouth, like a disjointed dance that betrayed her true thoughts. "I mean...I just mean your h—hands...I should probably stop digging myself into a hole now, right?"

He chuckled softly. "No, keep going. I'll just have to get you a shovel at some point."

Her heart raced, the booming beats echoing through her ears, each throbbing pulse a reminder of the blend of anxiety and excitement that coursed through her vessels. "I never noticed you're left-handed. Like me. That's probably the only thing we have in common."

"We have a lot more in common than just our dominant hand," Isaac replied, his voice delicate enough to lace around Caliana, conjuring a quake through her core that she hoped he hadn't noticed.

Caliana realised that her hand still resided on his, his thumb grazing against the side of her hand for a moment too long. Her hands drew towards the several lines transversing across her palm, evoking several childhood memories. "You know when I was younger, I went on a family outing to an amusement park. There was this fortune teller there who offered palm reading services."

A phantom of a smile flitted upon Isaac's face. It was crystal clear that he wouldn't believe a word of what the palmist had said, yet a part of him was yearning to hear what Caliana would say next. "Go on. Let's hear what Mystic Meg had to say."

Caliana cleared her throat. She outlined the line on her palm which transversed from the thumb in an arc towards her wrist. "This is the lifeline and supposedly, it reflects physical health and wellbeing. Mine runs close to the thumb, which means I'll often be tired." She compared it to his hand still below hers and noted his was almost identical.

Isaac pursed his lips. "Well, we are doctors so goes without saying. Lucky guess, but I'll give her that." He lingered for her to resume, but when she didn't, he questioned. "What's this deep one mean?" He traced a finger over the topmost, deepest line lining Caliana's hand.

"That's the heart – or love line," Caliana avoided meeting Isaac's gaze. "Because mine is deep and long, it means I'll have a single long-lasting and strong relationship. It ends exactly midway through my ring finger, which according to the palmist is extremely rare, and means I'm one of the lucky ones who is likely to meet my soulmate."

Caliana felt Isaac glide his hand back from beneath hers before she had any opportunity to analyse his heart-line.

Instead, he leaned forward. "And this one—" He traced an index finger along the middle of the three lines that graced Caliana's hand "—is the career line. Do you notice its depth and how it's almost completely straight and trails in one direction, with no lines crossing through it? That means you're going to be an amazing doctor, and you're going to continue to develop and thrive despite any obstacles thrown in your way. Including senior doctors who've forgotten how difficult it was when they were foundation doctors."

Isaac gazed down at her. "So, how'd I do? Do I qualify as a palmist now? I probably need to order a crystal ball off Amazon, and I'll be good to go?"

Caliana struggled to conceal a grin. "Actually, I'm not sure that palmists have crys—"

But before Caliana could complete her sentence, she was stunned to a stark hush by the warm and welcoming feel of Isaac's velvet-soft lips pressing against her own. Her eyes fluttered close in response to the unexpected act, her fingers reaching out to delineate along his jaw, relishing the sensation of its sharpness coupled with stubble. Her hands bunched up within his mane, hauling him closer to her still. Caliana perceived Isaac's hand inching towards the hem of her shirt, preparing to lift the cloth.

"Hello? Hello? Is anyone there?"

They clambered apart in response to the representative's voice echoing from the forgotten phone. Isaac appeared frozen, muscles sealed in a momentary paralysis, eyes broad with astonishment, rendering him immobile as his gaze skirted around the room.

Caliana twirled away from him, grappling clumsily for the phone. "Hello, hi. Yes, I'm still here. I'm calling from Little Oaks Hospital to find out if you might have a CT scanner that can take adult weights up to three hundred kilograms?" She stabilised her voice as much as she could, the buzzing in her ears doing little to mask the sound of Isaac's nervous pacing behind her.

"No, sorry. We only accommodate human patients on our scanners."

"Erm, what?! It is obviously for a human. I'm literally calling from Little Oaks Hospitals, it's not like we have gorillas here." But the representative had already hung up. Instead, the short conversation had awakened a lightbulb moment in Caliana. She twisted around on her heel. "Oh my god, I think I've got it! I know how to get him through a CT scanner!"

—-
Authors Note - I have very little knowledge of palm reading, so I apologise to anyone who might believe deeply in it (feel free to correct any errors!!)

So, they finally shared a (little) kiss. But let's see where things go next 👀

As always, drop me a vote if you enjoyed, and comment to let me know how you're finding the story so far ❤️