Page 48 of Cinematic Destinies
She started to smile, but her forehead became creased with distress.
“What is it?” he asked.
“There’s a trauma with a pregnant woman coming in and Johnson asked me to stay, and . . .”
“It’s okay. Do what you need to do. I understand,” he said.
“Are you sure?” she asked, noticing the disappointment in his eyes.
“I get it. Go. I’ll wait in case you’re done in time for the show.”
“If I’m not back, go without me.” She paused and looked straight into his eyes. “I’m really sorry.”
“Don’t be. Do your thing.”
She smiled sorrowfully and rushed out the door.
FOUR HOURS LATER, BETTY TRUDGED INTOthe residents’ lounge. Her eyes went wide when she saw the table set with candles and takeout containers, and Khalil waiting for her. She was so surprised, she just stood with her mouth hanging open, unable to speak.
“I thought you’d be hungry, so I ordered Vietnamese food and bribed everyone else to stay out of here for a while. I’ve been checking with the nurses’ station to see when you’d be done.”
“I figured you had gone to the show.”
“Nah. What’s the point?”
“But you wanted to see . . .”
“I wanted to see it with you. We’ll catch another one. So, come on. You must be hungry,” he said, pulling out her chair.
“Famished,” she replied as she sat down. She found herself staring at Khalil as if she was truly seeing him for the first time and was overcome with a feeling of warmth. Looking into his eyes, she softly said, “Thank you for this.”
He smiled. “Help yourself,” he said, gesturing at the containers. “That’s the insanely spicy curry you like.”
Half an hour later, they were sitting side by side on the floor, leaning against the wall, their bellies full.
“Dinner was so good. Thank you again. I’m sorry about tonight.”
“Don’t be. This was perfect.”
“I had brought a dress with me and everything,” she said.
“You did?”
Betty nodded. “I wanted to look nice, since we’re always in scrubs.”
“You always look great to me. No one rocks scrubs better than you,” Khalil said, gazing into her eyes.
For a moment she didn’t look away, but then she caught herself and stammered, “Uh, the show, it’s probablythe second act by now. What do you suppose it was about anyway?”
“It’s a musical, a love story. By now, the guy is professing his love to the girl. There’s probably a big choreographed dance number. You know, like in real life.”
She giggled. “I would have liked to see that.”
“Well, let’s recreate it ourselves,” he said, taking her hand.
“Oh, I don’t know . . . I . . .”
“Come on,” he said, rising.
