Nearly a week had passed and I had gone back to my normal routine with one little difference— JC was on my mind 24/7. The only problem, I had not talked to him. I didn’t text him, but he had not texted me either. 

It was Saturday afternoon and per usual, I was at home. Alone. Staring at the tv watching some mindless reality show. My phone began ringing and my heart jumped. It was Bianca. I secretly hoped it was JC. 

“Hey, B.”

“Hey girl. What’s up?” 

“Nothing. The usual.” I sighed. I am so thankful for my best friend. She has been there for me through everything. My shoulder to cry on when I learned about the affair. After moving to LA, I wasn't exactly close to my family back home in Ohio. So to me, Bianca was my family out here. 

“Still haven’t heard from JC?” she asked.

“No. I don’t know what I was thinking. I can’t believe I brought him home with me. I feel so stupid!” I whined.

“So call him.” 

“No. What would I even say?” 

“Um, hello it’s Layla, I want you in my bed again” Bianca laughed.

“You know I’m not saying that shit!” I chuckled. Bianca is the more blunt one in our friendship. I am the more subtle one. Unless of course, I’ve have a couple of drinks in me. For example, the night I met JC. 

“Ok fine! Then just text him. That’s less scary, right?” She asked.

“I suppose. I just didn’t want to be the first one to reach out.”

“Layla, this man is obviously on your mind. So why not?”

Why not? I guess she’s right. 

____________________________________

Later that night, I climbed into bed and scrolled mindlessly on my phone trying to get the courage to text JC. Here goes nothing!

Hey JC. It’s Layla.

I pushed send and put my phone down. 10 minutes passed and I was literally pacing the room by that point. 

Hey.. thought you forgot about me… He replied back.

I could say the same for you

Ok ok. I deserve that. But I didn’t forget about you. Just have been really busy. Plus you told me you would text me. I was waiting.

Yeah, I’ve been busy too. 

Busy thinking about me?

Oooh, what a flirt.

I try, Miss Layla ;)

This was going better than I expected. JC and I texted back and forth talking about everything under the sun, our favorite colors, our favorite artists, everything. Before I realized it, two hours had passed and the clock on my nightstand read 1:15AM.

Holy shit. I didn't realize how late it was. I have to work in the morning. I texted.

Sorry for keeping you up. Call me tomorrow?

Sure. Goodnight JC.

Goodnight :)

I put my phone down and rolled over on my side in an attempt to fall asleep, but all I could think about was JC. I wondered if he was thinking about me too. I doubt it. He most likely has millions of women he texts cute flirty things to, right? Part of me hoped that was true, then I would have an excuse to keep him at a distance. Self sabotage is my middle name!

______________________

I sat down at my desk at work to finish up my documentation on my patients for that shift. It was 7:05pm and my shift was technically over, but as a nurse your shift is hardly ever over on time. I truly love my job, but the days are long and physically exhausting at times. I bet you're wondering how I ended up working at a hospital in LA when I am from Ohio -- a state so totally unlike California. 

When I graduated nursing school at Ohio State University, I began working right away at Ohio State Medical Center in the emergency room. I loved the fast paced environment there. Everyday I didn't know what to expect and I loved the thrill of that.  I worked there for several years and began to get the burnout that most nurses feel after a while. A colleague of mine introduced me to travel nursing. With travel nursing, I could have an assignment anywhere I wanted for 3 months, then move to literally any other state and have another nursing assignment. I did that several times and the change of pace and location definitely made a difference. Traveling to an assignment Houston and then LA. However, I liked the assignment in LA so much that I applied for a permanent position and decided to put down roots here in LA and at East Hollywood Medical Center. This is where I met Bianca, who is also a nurse and we still work with each other now.

I clicked 'submit' for the last documentation note on my computer and shut it down. I went to my locker to grab my bag and quickly checked my phone. 1 new message from JC.

Hope you had a good day at work. Call me later ;)

I smiled and began walking out towards the garage to my car. Once I got inside, I pressed his name on my phone and waiting nervously for him to answer.

"Hey girl"

Shit his voice was so sexy over the phone.

"Hey."

"How was work?"

"It was okay. Kind of a slow day so I didn't get out of there too late today."

"Well, that's good news. So listen, if you're not too tired, you should join me for dinner."

"Dinner? Where? I'm still in my scrubs."

"At my place. Who cares? I'm sure you look great in your scrubs."

I blushed and looked down at my black scrubs. I mean, they did fit me well. In all the right places..

"You cooked?" I asked.

JC laughed. "Negative. I ordered Chinese and it should be here in 20 minutes or so."

Just on cue, my stomach began to growl basically making the decision for me. 

"Ok. I am actually hungry. Text me your address"

"I will. When you get to the gate, I'll buzz you in. See you soon, Layla. Drive safe."

"I will. Bye JC." I ended the call and threw my phone in the passenger seat.

I looked in the mirror and attempted to fix my hair. Let's just say it did not look the same way it did at 7 AM this morning when I got to work. My curly pony tail had somehow become a frizzy mess. My very minimal makeup I had put on was now basically non-existent as I had either sweated it off or smudged throughout the day. I did my best to brush my hair back and rub off any smudges that were left and applied a little lip gloss. This will have to do.

As I drove out of the parking garage and towards the address JC had texted me, I began to get this jittery feeling. I was so excited to see JC again, but didn't know what to expect. I just hoped I didn't mess this up.