Page 9 of Hearts Clash

***

The next couple of days were a blur of intense focus, countless medical emergencies and procedures, and very little downtime. Most of the trauma patients from the traffic accident required ongoing care, in addition to new patients arriving every day, and she barely even had time for lunch most days. It had been a while since she had seen so many different cases all at once, and the whole team was pushed to their limits, struggling to stay on top of it all. Still, despite the chaos and the fatigue, it was exciting, in a way, knowing that she was working hard and making a difference.

On Thursday evening, after a rough week of intense work, she was once again lounging on her couch and ready to reach for her laptop to see if DrHeart was on. Before she could, though, her phone buzzed and lit up on the coffee table beside her. Her eyes narrowed at the name displayed on the screen.

Jade. Her ex-girlfriend. They hadn’t talked at all since their breakup well over a year ago. It had been a messy and ugly breakup, and it made Gianna all the happier when she was offered the position at Rose Bay a few weeks later. Maybe it was a bit childish to quite literally run away from a bad breakup in your mid-thirties, but she just couldn’t deal with staying in that town where everything reminded her of the girl who broke her heart. They’d been together for eight years, most of their adult lives, so it was a difficult, devastating blow. Moving far away for a fresh start had been the best decision she ever made.

Except now, for whatever reason, Jade was calling her. Gianna took a deep breath and ignored it, shaking her head vigorously. No way was she opening up that old, scabbed-over wound again. Just a moment after the missed call appeared onscreen, though, it started up again, buzzing insistently at her.

As little as she wanted to talk to her ex, that made her curious. What if something had happened? Hesitating, she picked up the phone and stared at the screen, indecision swirling in her head. It wasn’t in her nature to ignore someone who might need help. Finally, she gave in and pressed to accept.

“Hello?” she asked tentatively.

“Gigi!” came Jade’s voice through the receiver, all chirpy and friendly like they hadn’t been screaming and hurling insults at one another the last time they spoke. “Hey, babe. How’s it going?”

All the warmth faded from Gianna’s face, her expression going blank. She gritted her teeth and clenched the phone tightly in her fist, trying to contain the rage and hurt that rose up in her chest. Did Jade think she could just waltz back into her life after all the drama she caused, like they were friends? After what she did? Her nostrils flared, but she did her best to remain calm. She didn’t want to let on that she was affected. For now, at least. Breathe in, breathe out. It was fine. Everything was fine.

“Uh, I’m good,” she answered, then added in a confused tone, “What’s up? Did you need something?”

The woman on the other end of the line had the audacity to laugh like she had no idea why she wouldn’t be calling and catching up like there was nothing wrong. Gianna shifted in her seat uncomfortably, resisting the urge to hang up and throw the whole phone out the window. The sound of Jade’s laughter was a sharp knife plunging into her chest. After all that time, there was still a whole lot of bitterness and resentment there.

“Nothing special,” came Jade’s breezy answer. “Just wondering how things are going. Are you still working at that hospital in Rose Bay?”

“Yeah, I am,” Gianna replied coolly, “and I have an early shift tomorrow, so unless this is important, I’m going to have to cut it short.”

“Always so busy, Doctor Rodriguez,” Jade purred in a tone that was entirely too intimate for their current circumstances, then giggled softly. “Nah, I’ll let you get to it, Gigi. But I’m gonna be in town for a couple of weeks for a new project, so we should get together and catch up. Dinner and drinks on me, okay?”

Gianna rolled her eyes so far back she could see her own skull. The tabby cat resting in her lap chose that moment to let out a loud, whining meow as he squirmed around to demand more petting. His owner gladly obliged, burying her fingers in the soft fur to distract herself.

“Aww, is that Cocoa?” Jade cooed with delight. “How is my baby doing? Tell him I love him, m’kay?”

“He’s just fine,” she replied curtly. “Now, as I said, I’m very busy and tired. Have a lovely time in Rose Bay.”

She didn’t wait for an answer before ending the call. Setting the phone down on the table, she took a moment to calm the tremor in her hands. Deep breaths. Relax. She wasn’t angry. It was fine. It had been nearly a year and a half, and she was fully over the situation and their relationship. Sure, finding out that your live-in partner of almost a decade had been taking every available opportunity to cheat on you while away on her various videography trips for weeks at a time was rough, but Gianna was over it. Truly. Things were good. She was on her own with her gorgeous cat, enjoying a casual sex life, and thriving in her professional career.

For about twenty seconds, at least, she felt better about the whole thing. Then the stress and anxiety flooded back in once the adrenaline subsided, and she sat in silence, staring blankly at the TV screen for several minutes. Only when Cocoa meowed indignantly and stuck his fluffy orange face inches from her nose, blinking his blue eyes slowly and purposefully, did she shake herself back to reality and snap out of the stupor.

“I need some sleep,” she said out loud to the cat, who responded by poking her cheek with his paw. “Ow, that hurt. Rude.”

Cocoa yowled loudly, looking extremely unimpressed as his human scooped him up in her arms and stood up from the couch. With a resigned sigh, he rested his head on his shoulder, curling against her neck in his customary fashion. As she turned off the television and headed down the hallway toward her bedroom, the cat emitted a series of soft, grumbly purrs. Despite the residual anger and grief simmering in the back of her mind, she cracked a weak smile.

***

What better way to blow off some steam at the end of a hellish week than to go out and get wine-drunk with a group of friends? After one last long day at work, Gianna changed into a stylish outfit fit for dancing and spent over an hour fussing over her appearance, applying thick layers of eyeliner, mascara, and dark matte lipstick. She curled her hair, sprayed it, and gave herself a satisfied nod in the mirror. She might not be able to pass for twenty-five anymore, but she reckoned she still looked damn good.

The bar they chose was an upscale, modern one with twinkling lights strung around the walls. On a typical Friday evening, the place was filled with professionals networking, chatting, drinking, and occasionally having ill-advised hookups in the bathroom. The rooftop terrace boasted panoramic views of the city at night, with dimly lit lamps casting a warm glow that created a cozy atmosphere.

When Gianna arrived at around seven, Bianca and their other friends were already there waiting. As she approached, her younger sister stood up from the outdoor sofa, clad in tight black pants and a low-cut red blouse, and gleefully embraced her with a grin and a giggle.

“How much have you had to drink already?” Gianna teased, releasing her sibling.

Eileen and Avery sat across from each other at the table and grinned as the two sisters walked over. Eileen, tall, thin, and dressed impeccably in a navy-blue dress and heels, raised her glass to toast Gianna, while the much shorter and curvier Avery greeted her with an enthusiastic wave and gestured for her to sit between them.

“We’ve only had, like, two drinks,” Bianca protested playfully, slumping down into the armchair on Eileen’s left.

“Two shots of tequila,” Avery clarified matter-of-factly.

Avery herself wasn’t drinking. The woman was five months pregnant with her first child and worked as a perinatologist, so there would be no shenanigans tonight. While she sipped her mineral water and caught up on work email on her phone, Gianna and the other two clinked glasses of rosé and happily chatted away.

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