Part Nine
Kerry parked her car in front of the house and turned off the engine. She looked up and saw that the lights were on. She'd forgotten the joy of coming home and knowing that someone would be there waiting.
That wasn't to say she was entirely comfortable with the situation. She was still getting over the shock of looking up and meeting Kim's eyes in the ER the previous day - she really had thought she'd never see Kim again. A fact that hadn't made her happy, but that she'd decided she'd simply have to live with. And then Kim had turned up and Kerry had fallen right back in again, finding herself totally unable to resist the younger woman. At that moment, Kerry had known that the bond the two shared transcended merely being ex-lovers. It was deeper than that, and went right to the core of Kerry's being, making her feel alive again.
Eventually, she snapped into action, opening the car door and climbing out. She scooped up her files and shut the door, then turned to face the house. She started up the steps, fishing in her bag for her keys, only to have Kim open the door and take the files off her. "Here, give me those and get inside. I cooked."
"Thank you." Then Kerry remembered the last time Kim had cooked. "What did you cook?"
"Don't worry, I followed the recipe exactly. There's no way anything could have gone wrong." Kim smiled down at Kerry, reassuring her a little.
The two women moved through to the kitchen and Kerry sat at the counter as Kim served up a delicious-looking vegetable lasagne. For a few minutes, they just sat and ate in silence, until Kim finally spoke. "Good day at work?"
"Not bad. I had a meeting with Romano to officially end his administrative supervision. Thank God. Having him breathing down my neck constantly was getting seriously irritating." Kerry tried to keep her tone light, but Kim was not so easily fooled.
"Kerry, what on earth happened?"
Kerry sighed, realising she would have to tell this story. "Back in October, Chen and Malucci misdiagnosed a Marfan's patient while I was across the street at Docs. Dr. Chen got put on leave by me at Robert's suggestion, and Malucci was fired a week later for a variety of stupid stuff. Anyway, Chen came back during December, wanting to launch a lawsuit against the hospital and me. We convinced her to drop it, but part of the settlement was that all my administrative decisions be vetted by Romano for three months. Three months which ended today." Kerry finished with a flourish, a huge smile on her face.
"Oh Ker, that must have been awful." Kim knew a little about the power struggle between Kerry and Romano, and knew how much those three months must have pained Kerry, especially as she had no doubt that the Chief of Staff would have used his power to his full advantage.
"Yeah, but it's done now, and you're back here. All in all, I'd say it's been a pretty good day."
"Do you mean that?" Kim's tone was cautious. "Are you really glad to have me back?" Kim looked over at Kerry, her face neutral. She had to hear those words right from Kerry's lips.
Kerry put her glass down. "Kim, I am thrilled you're back. While I may have given up hope of you coming back, it doesn't mean I stopped wanting it. This may take time, but I want it to work out - I want us to work out. I want you to stay." Kerry stopped, aware that she'd just thrown open her soul. She smiled to herself. How anti-climatic. The sky hadn't fallen, there was no dramatic music or flashing lights. Just the truth.
Kim was speechless. She just stared at Kerry, not even aware of the tears that were falling down her cheeks until Kerry reached a hand across to wipe them away. The two women just sat and looked at each other, drinking in the beauty of the woman opposite. Each was amazed at how right this felt. There had been no cataclysmic earthquake, just the subtle shift of the universe righting itself.
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