42 ABY Selen The Clinic
“And here you go Dr. Watson.”
Beige fingers accepted the data pad from the friendly Pantoran resident nurse. “Thank you.”
“Of course, you have a good day.”
Amber eyes scanned through the data of his routine checkup, a flag on his file that he had never seen before. He blinked rapidly, the smile fading from his lips, his mouth going dry. A closed fist pressed into his lips as he considered the possibilities. Avery (albeit an imperfect man) had not dared lay his eyes on another woman let alone touch them especially not since his commitment to… her. There was a tightness in his chest as he came to the realization that she stepped out on him. On them. Something they agreed to do and be together.
“No…” He breathed out loud, the datapad falling to the ground as he scrubbed both hands over his face and through his head violently.
“Sir, do you need help?” A nearby desk clerk asked the disheveled man.
Remembering that he was in public, Avery did his best to veil his emotions and adjust his navy blue tie which felt a little too tight around his neck. He cleared his throat and offered a gentle smile and nod. “No, no thank you.” He picked up the datapad and trotted out of the medical office.
–
Nausea overwhelmed his stomach in time for him to empty its contents into a refresher. Once more his trust had been betrayed. And he was a sucker for it. His features seemed to droop, as he sat down, leaning against the shower wall. He forcefully loosened his tie and began undoing his buttons before a notification from his comm went off. It was from her about dinner. Avery shook his head and without much thinking blocked her contact.
He was reminded he had no place staying where he was when she had access to almost everything he owned. Determined, the man quickly changed the key codes for the front and back door of his flat. After offering double pay to Liam’s nanny to keep the boy for a night, he chose to become a recluse in his own space, seeking to remove any and all reminder of her.
Eevie sat…alone. She had hoped it had been only a lapse in time management. But here she was…alone…at a restaurant table. They had planned this night for some time. And she had gone all out with her garment. She dressed in such a way that she knew he would’ve loved, and fought to keep himself in control.
But now she was filled with worry and fear. Where was he. He never called. Never messaged. And as she tried to contact him the messages weren’t being recieved. Did something happen to him? She had messaged members of their “family” but no one had heard of any trouble.
Did…did he stand her up? Why would he? Things between them had been going so well…or so she thought. Was she seeing things that weren’t there? A tightness in her chest welled up from within. She couldn’t cry… not yet….not till she knew what was going on. Paying for the time and her single drink, Eevie left the upscale business.
…
Standing outside Avery’s flat, Eevie stared at the panel. The codes weren’t working. Had he changed them? What was going on? She began to knock….and again….and then her pounding grew more intense. His transport was here, and now she worried he may be inside and hurt. She hoped he was alright and something else was going on.
Jolting awake, his heart pounded in his chest from the pounding on his door. A little disoriented, he sat up rubbing the side of his head from a dull ache as though he had a hangover. Mumbling unintelligibly, he was still in his day outfit. At least his pants were still on. His button up shirt and tie had long since been discarded.
Reality hit him like a ton of durasteel as he remembered his day. The grief and dread returned as he understood who it was that was likely at his door. His feet mechanically made their way to the door. Drawing up the panel that behaved as a peephole, he saw her face. Etched on her gorgeous features were worry and fear. Gorgeous. A funny word to describe someone who would betray him. He pressed his forearm into the wall, resting his head into it for a moment. Another persistent round of banging gave him a jolt and thus a cause to act. He swallowed and pressed the intercom button.
“Eevie… enough.” His voice was flat and tired, a bit of his pain seeping through. “Leave before I have you escorted away.”
The sound of his voice was like ecstasy. The calming effect it held put her mind at complete ease. She had been so worried that something terrible.had happened to him, but he was ok!
It was then that the words he spoke hit her…and hit her hard. He…was ordering her away. Threatening her with being escorted away. And he,in fact was ok, but didn’t call her, and none of her messages were going through.
“Avery? What…what do you mean? Where were you? I thought…I thought something horrible had happened to you! Why wouldn’t you have messaged me? What’s going on?”
Her barrage of questions may as well have fallen on deaf ears.
“You’re bold to show up here after what you did. You need to leave. Whatever we had…” he gulped some air which felt like broken glass. “It’s over.”
He let the words hang in the air, his jaw flexing and unflexing. How did he not see this coming? Jacqueline was a master manipulator and great victim. If anything she taught him what to look for in anyone he had an interest in. Eevie showed no such signs. As far as he could tell she checked all of the boxes for everything he desired in a mate. As fate would have it, it was too good to be true.
Confusion…Bewilderment…Sorrow…Hurt…So many emotions sprawled across her face at Avery’s declaration. There was two missing though. Acknowledgement and Regret.
“After what I did? And what exactly have I done, Avery Watson Erinos?”
Her drawl of an accent was coming out in full spades as tears began to cascade down her face. Her chest was on fire. Her voice broke as she continued.
“All I’ve done since this began was fall in love with you. Why are you doing this? You promised you wouldn’t hurt me like this, Avery. I think I deserve an explanation for why you’re throwing your promises back in my face.”
Did he have to spell it out? His chest heaved up and down rapidly as he released the intercom button, his brow was furrowed his hands balled into tight fists. Heart pounding in his ears, his chest heavy again. The tightness he felt earlier returned.
The show she put on… how could he trust her? He slammed his fist against the wall, the force of the blow leaving a small dent. At least mandalorian training was starting pay off. Previously he may have experienced some blood or broken bones. At best now, it may result in a bruise. He listened to her next question which was an accusation thrown at him. Hurt her? He had only loved her with every fiber of his being. Her demands were irrational to the point the man was finished playing radio with her. He slapped a button on the control panel, causing the door to swish open. His amber gaze tunneled to her amethyst one, a look of disgust on his face.
“Hurt you?” He closed the distance in a domineering fashion his face not far from hers. Intimacy was far from his mind. Intimidation was his goal. He really had no desire of getting Selen’s authorities to haul her off. He hoped she would leave on her own.
“You really want to humiliate me? Make me the bad guy? Fine. You’re a liar and a deceiver. I don’t trust you anymore.”
She could see the fury in his eyes. He looked a mess, and had clearly been drinking. The color was gone from him, and he looked so hurt and lost. It was devastating to see the man she loved this way. But she didn’t understand where it was coming from.
“A liar? A deciever? What are you talking about Avery? I don’t wanna humiliate you. I’ve never thought you were a "bad guy”. What exactly have I decieved you about? You’re calling me a liar, then what have I lied about?“
A small part of her was glad she wore water resistant make.up tonight, otherwise her face would’ve been a mess with the tears flowing. Her stomach was dropping out and the stress of the situation was.making her feel nausious.
"What is this all about?”
Still vexed, he shook his head not daring to tear his gaze away from hers even with the tears. They were not bothersome but a few nights of sabacc and gambling taught him that she was more than capable of putting on a convincing act. Yet, somewhere within, maybe it was the dress, he still wanted to believe and hope she was telling the truth. But the evidence was far too damning and suddenly he was in the place of scrutiny.
“Fine,” he muttered and disappeared into his apartment for a moment then re-emerged with the datapad from the medical office in hand. She would notice the red letters beneath the STI section, reading ‘POSITIVE’.
“I have never stepped out on you once.” Even though the opportunities were plentiful and the galaxy itself would have never known. He folded his arms over his chest, waiting… to see her finally take responsibility.
Eevie looked at the paper with a dumbfounded expression. She was confused. This wasn’t possible. She knew that he wouldn’t have stepped out on their relationship. But she also knew that she didn’t do that either. She also knew that she was clean in that regard, having been tested herself in recent medical checkups.
Her mind shifted to the obvious assertation. He was calling her a cheater who gave him a disease. Shencpuld feel the anger welling up inside. But she tempered it with understanding. He’d been betrayed before. And this was seemingly evidence was clearly affecting him hard.
With all that said, she gained a steely calm as she gazed into his eyes.
“Avery. I know that you wouldn’t cheat. It’s not who you are. You also know that it’s not who I am either. Get this rechecked. It has to be a mistake. You know me better than this.”
Avery was a man of reason. He spent hours examining labs and details that often contained mistakes. For the first time in the night, his gaze seemed to soften.
“I want to believe you Eevie but I need your results first.” There was still a, albeit small, chance that she was telling the truth. “Prove it.” His jaw was taut, his eyes searching hers. He wanted this to be a nightmare, he wanted this to be something that they could laugh about later. Throwing away another relationship was not in his plans but this was his final attempt. He desired so much to give her the benefit of the doubt but that was a wall in his mind too high to hurdle.
He took the results from her hand, taking a step back to guard his entry way as though it was his heart. His gaze going hard again he said, “I need to get some rest. I have work tomorrow.”
Eevie nodded at the request to have herself tested. It told her…alot. Something in her fractured.
“Then I’ll leave you too it, Dr. Watson. You’ll have your results by tomorrow.”
She turned to walk away, no longer able to meet his gaze. But she couldn’t leave without saying one more thing to the man she loved so dearly.
“One thing I want you to think about. When the results come back negative, because they will… I never would’ve willingly hurt you…why should I still be here? It seems that I still haven’t earned your trust. You don’t trust me. If you did, blocking me…changing the codes… all of this wouldn’t have been your first reaction. I know you’ve been hurt before… so have I. But I love you, and I love Liam. Do you really belive that I would be capable of this? Of betraying you I’m such a way?”
Eevie fought back the tears as it felt like a piece of her soul left her.
“Had you asked me tonight, I would’ve offered my life joined to yours. Just think about that.”
Without another word, Eevie walked away from Avery’s flat. She didn’t want to be seen as weak in front of this man. She held her head up until out of his sight.
His heart lurched up to his throat. The sterile title and last name was reserved for patients and colleagues. He never heard her use his name in this way before. He turned away, hiding his face in which the chiseled features drooped.
Although he faced the other direction, his feet didn’t move as she spoke. To say her words meant nothing would be a lie, he often mulled on how and when he would propose to her. He had seen their whole life together, he couldn’t have imagined his life without her at one point. Now it was different.
He calmly pressed the door switch, waiting to hear the click before falling to his knees, head dropping into his hands. His eyes were dry wells but he let out a pained groan.
After some time he finally mustered some strength and clamored to his feet, turning in for a proper shower and a restless night.
Late in the day, the next day, Eevie walked the halls of the hospital Avery have time to assist at. She held the files in her hands, and she was dressed in an every day outfit with a blank state on her face. The other hospital staff a recognized her so they said nothing of her traipsing through the halls.
As she approached his office door, she maintained her walking speed and took in a deep breath, keeping her resolved expression. She walked into the office to find himself doing paperwork. She dropped the three datapads on his desk.
“As requested, Dr. Watson.”
His day went on as usually as it could. The doctor spent his time thinking about work and his son. He had no reason to think about the day before lest he have a heart attack in his own office. So pressed into his work, he barely noticed the Sephi enter his office until he heard her melodic voice. Though there was something flat and almost mechanical about her speech. He blinked at the datapads laid before him; there were three. Just based on the formatting alone, he knew she visited several test centers to prove a point. The sea of green ‘NEGATIVE’s were beyond enough to indict him of how poorly he treated the situation.
Averting his gaze to his hands which were now folded on his desk, his thumbs massaging one another. “Eevie…”
Was sorry enough to undo the rampage the man went on to try to so swiftly remove her from his life? Of course not. Her words from the night prior set on him like a blast from a mobile assault canon. 'Why should I still be here?’ His knee bounced as he searched for the next words to say but his hands raised up to press into his mouth, the man remaining silent.
Eevie watched the man’s face, studying every part. She loved his eyes, his nose, even his mouth. She loved every part of this man so fiercely, and that was why this hurt so badly. She knew that he was sorry. She could see the pain he was feeling.
But…was that enough.
“I know…it’s not easy to admit when you’re wrong. Especially when you tried to go scorched ground. But I was hoping for at least an "I’m sorry Eevie”.“
She looked slightly away, not sure.if she could handle looking in his eyes.
"None of this changes the fact that I love you and Liam. And I remember what I asked you yesterday. So I’ll be clear right now for you, nothing you say is going to change my mind on what happens once I leave this office. I’m not going to tell you what that decision is. I wanna hear your truthful answer to that question. I wanna hear whatever you are going to say to me right now, knowing it will not change my mind here. I’ve never lied to you, and I won’t do so now. I need to hear what you’re going to say, before I’m able to move forward.”
Avery’s shoulders slumped forward, his ears picking up every word she said. He replayed the night before landing on the question that lingered in his mind. Her forthright question made him uneasy because he had no answer.
Standing up from his chair, he advanced toward her before he lowered himself to his knees in front of her, assuming a submissive position, his head hanging low.
“I’m sorry, Eevie,” he rasped his voice barely above a whisper. “And… you have every right to leave me. But please…don’t. I need you here.”
The doctor’s gaze remained steady on the floors since guilt clenched his heart like a vice grip.
Regardless of how she felt inside, there was nothing about seeing the man in front of her submitting like this that she enjoyed.
“You’re lucky you’re cute.” She gave a sigh before speaking again. “I’m not leaving, Avery. But don’t take that as my saying I’m not angry. I am hurt and so pissed that you did what you did!”
Taking a moment to breathe she went on.
“Please stand up. I am not superior to you, and you’re not superior to me. You save my life and came for me when no one else could. That has earned you another chance. I haven’t fully forgiven you, and there will be many chances for you to make it up to me. But I’ll tell you right now, Avery Watson. Don’t you ever do what you did to me again. Or you will never see me again.”
She turned to leave the office.
“If you can please turn my codes back on, I would like to have dinner with you tonight. I love you Avery. It might take some time for me.to.not be as mad, but I never stopped loving you.”
Avery did as she requested and rose to his feet. Though she was displeased with him, it didn’t mean she was through with him. That was all he needed for his soul to return to his body.
“I understand.” He could take her angry and unforgiving but not her leaving. Eating a plate of broken glass sounded much more desirable. Undeniably the man felt like an imbecile for causing this much damage to their relationship in such a short amount of time. Were the Sephi any less forgiving or unwilling to make things right, Avery would be a bachelor again. A bachelor forever.
Seeing her angry with him was a relief. It meant she cared and that thing her eyebrow did made her more beautiful to him than any woman in the galaxy.
Trailing her heel as she turned to leave, he caught her wrist to pull her away from the door. “Hey wait,” he said meeting her amethyst gaze, a flirtatious grin on his lips. “Codes will be turned back on and Liam will be present for dinner. And when he falls asleep you can show me how angry you really are…”
He loved her more than life itself. His trust had revealed to be fickle at best. The lesson was well learned. Next time he would need to be cautious and gain a second or third perspective before jumping to any rash conclusions. Eevie had shown to be nothing but a loyal lover and it hurt him that he let his own past pain into the driver seat of his heart.
After all that he made a sexual joke towards her…and she be damnd if she didn’t enjoy that. However she couldn’t make it easy on the man. For a moment she gave him an even harder glance before moving in real close and spoke in a quiet firm and sexually charged voice.
“Oh, baby, if it wasn’t obvious that I’m the one taking charge tonight, then there’s something very wrong. You’re about to see Eevie unleashed. Think you can handle that?”
There was almost a purr in her voice. This was gonna be exactly what she needed. Thank the maker for sound proofed walls. She didn’t want to scare Liam, afterall.
As she got close to him, he took it as an opportunity to grasp her by the waist, pulling her body into his. He mimicked her action by leaning his lips to her perfectly tapered ear. Voice low and gruff he asked, “Are you sure you can handle that?”
He sensed that her demeanor of anger was starting to fade and he knew he could break that. One hand fled up to her neck, lightly brushing the skin there.
Eevie could feel the heat and intensity growing between them. There was a reason that these two worked so well together, their fit was so natural…and she craved that perfect fit more than anything right now…
But she was still Eevie, and she was still primed.to not let him.juat get away with his actions.
“You’re awful confident in yourself so soon after the groveling. I respect it, I really do. It’s sexy, and you know how much I can handle.”
Her words were laced with an intense desire, but there was something else as well.
“That being said…I still need some time to decompress from everything. My inner turmoils need some cooling before we climb that peak together. Just make sure you’re ready tonight.”
With that she grabbed the back of his head and gave him a deep and wanting kiss before she knew she had to leave the hospital.
Avery let out a mournful sigh when she broke the kiss and made her way to the door. “Be safe, Eevie.”
He understood she needed time, but he was glad he still had her. Indeed he knew he had made a mistake that almost cost him the only hope he had left for love. The distance was necessary and he wanted to respect her.
While he stared off at nothing in deep thought, his desk comm rang. He made his way back to his chair, reminded of the mound of data he still needed to sort through.
“Doctor Watson,” he greeted after hitting the ‘answer’ button.
"This is Dr. Fraaki calling from Selen's clinic to inform you a mistake was made on your data sheet. All of your results have come back negative. I do apologize for any inconvenience."
The man’s features scrunched up as he pinched the bridge of his nose. This information would have been useful yesterday. Yet, he didn’t fault them for an honest mistake.
“No, no, it’s fine. Thank you.”
He hung up and deliberated with himself if that was information was something he should even share with Eevie. She was right. He softly pounded his fist into his head left alone to his thoughts, anticipating the night before him.