It was a rainy day late 1991, a little girl about 6 years old was sitting in front of the ICU, here eyes were fixed on the floor watching her feet as they swung, she was humming some tune that only she and her brothers knew, she was waiting for some one to come.
She heard the elevator door open and the warm yet worried voice of her big brother.
"Amy..!"
She stood up and hurried to his embrace
"Hey baby girl, what's wrong sweetie?" He asked her
Tears were gathering in her golden green eyes
"Daddy fell down, and he is sick, they didn't let me go and see him" almost crying said the little girl.
He held his sister up then headed to one of the nurses he spotted going out of the ICU.
"Excuse me ma'am.. My name is Kevin Richardson… My father was brought in less than an hour ago, can you tell me how is he?" he asked her.
The lady looked at him smiled "I am sorry young man, I have no idea." She replied
He felt his sister's little hand pulling his sleeve
"Kevy… Mommy's in there with Daddy, they'd let us see her? ain't they?" asked Amy looking so pure and innocent into her brothers eye's
How much he wanted to tell her about the whole truth, that their father is facing death, and that he might not be able to hold on this night.
"Yes baby girl, I'll go and find a doctor to let us in so you'll stay here and wait ok?" he asked her
"No…" her words came out as she shock her head in disagreeing.
"I ain't gonna stay here by myself, I ain't."
"Ok baby girl… You'll come with me; but you have to walk ok, cuz your big bro is tired." he informed her
"And smelly too" she acted as if she was disgusted of his smell.
It made him smile through the tough moment he was expecting.
He couldn't help not to smell after having the worst ever training he had before the school championship, he is after all a football player and a senior year student.
******************
It was a sunny yet cool September after noon, a cute young lady was setting in the waiting room, her earphone was on full blast, even the passing nurses heard it playing music, they smiled passing her by.
Less than five minutes she felt someone snatching her earphones
"Hey baby girl, haven't any one told you that you'd get yourself ear damaged listening this way?"
She looked at him, "Hey back to you, I was sick of waiting you, plus I am not listening to deaf metal, I only listen to my new assignment, Carter wont allow me to fail him this time." She informed him
"Carter you dance buddy?" he asked her
"Don't make fun of him, he is one of the best, and he is not my dance buddy, he is my music organizer, ok kev?"
"Ok baby girl let's go mom would be made if we were late."
At that moment, a young woman passed by them
"Hello doctor Richardson, it is nice to meet you, by the way happy birthday" she told him.
"Oh thanks Ms. Willits.," replied
As they were getting out of the hospital Amy looked at her brother
"Nice chick, who is she?"
"Amy! Stop it!" he ordered her
"For God's sake Kevin I am asking about her name and you are attacking me already sorry!"
"Her name is Kristen Willits, she works in the legal department, is that ok?" he answered her.
*****************
That was a habitual thing, every Tuesday. Amy Richardson the young sister of Doctor Kevin Richardson would show up in his clinic and they leave together after a long tiring day for both of them.
Who could have thought that the crazy hours they spent in the hospital 12 years ago would change the lives of both of them, that day ended so sadly by them losing their father but for Kevin it was a start for a new era in his life. Instead of continuing his dream of composing and music, he decided to go and study medicine, he wanted to help people, to stop their pain, and he wanted to try and make up for the times he felt helpless and couldn't help his father through out his sickness.
His mother took a good care of his baby sister, it was a miracle her presence in the world, she came in a time no one expected, and she was an angel they needed to brighten up their life.
He has so often recalled his father's last word to him
"Take care of your mom, and Amy Kevin, don’t ever let her down, don't you make her sad Kevin,"
He promised his father, and he was for sure going to keep his word.
He turned out be one of the most successful cardio-surgeons in the states, and he was getting famous in Europe too.
On the other hand, Amy had a very promising talent in entertainment, she did couple of acts in school that granted her a scholarship, yet she chose to finish her studying in music and folklore, she had such a warm voice and she was a talented person.
***********************
A week later it was again another Tuesday, she was waiting him in his clinic when his secretary came and told her that he couldn't go out with her because he had an operation going on.
Amy got used on such a thing her brother had many lives to save and she never made a big deal out of him not showing up to a lunch or a dinner.
So she placed back her earphones back on her ears and went out of the clinic, she pressed the elevator button and waited until it came to the forth floor.
She stepped in, she was so occupied with her new project she was given, it was about her favorite kind of music, Celtic music, it has always made her feel dreamy.
As she the elevator reached the parking aria; she was still consumed with her dance and music, she was about to step out of the elevator when some one stepped in front of her, then she fell on the floor, she felt the metal edge of the elevator almost crushing her wrest, and heard something cracking.
The pain was it, she didn't know what was worst the embarrassment from hitting some one or the fact she hurt her self in this time, just before the final auditions.
She knew it was her fault, she should have been careful.
"Are you ok miss?" she heard a male voice.
She looked at the person whom she hit.
He bent down to help her back to her feet when he saw some blood staining her sleeve, "I think we need to get this bandaged miss." He said
He was about five feet 7, brown eyes, with a mixture of Hispanic and Irish complexion.
"I think it is ok, it is nothing really" she tried to hide her embarrassment
"And I still think it need to be treated right, don't worry I am a doctor here, McLean" he told her.
Some how she didn't know how it all happened fast, she was back in the elevator and back to the clinical floor.
As they headed to his clinic she had the time to pass next to Kevin's clinic, still he wasn't there, not yet.
On the door there was "A.J. McLean" Neurosurgeon.
As they entered his office he went straight to the window to open it.
"Sorry but still they didn't hire me an assistants to keep the office in peace, now let me see your hand please."
Her eyes were wondering around the office, though the shaggy appearance of it she had a glance into so decorative elements of the Celt.
"Hello…" he stood in front of her, "I think we should look after this injury first." He smiled to her.
She looked at him and silently obeyed him, it was something she never did before obeying some one this way.
As he was looking into her hand, she had time to do her own examination, his face was not firm but it had this hidden charisma, his voice wasn't husky yet it has this tune that was almost hypnotizing her, just like the music she was listening to.
He was wrapping her hand with the bandage he started talking to her.
"Well I can assure you that it is going to be ok in about two weeks"
"Really, how can you be sure?" she looked at him wondering, how he could find out something like that.
"Young lady this is my job, I haven't spent 6 years of my life studying, and another four practicing so I would fail telling patients about how much it would take them to be well." He said to her.
Amy felt clumsy she knew this kind of attitude , the same that Kevin had, "Oh I am sorry I didn't mean to offend you, I know it is your job, it was just that you were so sure about it that was it Dr. A.J.!" she looked at him. She knew his initials from the sign on the door.
"They are for Alexander James... What about you?" he asked her smiling now
"Amy… Amy Richardson" she answered him.
He was placing back some books that were on his desk to the library, when she noticed another Celtic clue; this doctor had a Celtic tattoo on his arm, a cross-designed in a Celtic strokes.
"How cool Celtic cross?" she told him.
He looked back at her he realized that she had saw his tattoo.
He sat in front of her and pulled his sleeve to its full height, "yeah it is" he answered her "I didn't think that some one would recognize it's origin" he told her
"Well I did, gosh it is so delicate, I bet it was made by a professional tattoo artist" she told him.
"I got it back in Ireland," he informed her.
She looked dazed at him "Really! You have been there?"
"Yeah, I lived there for half of my life."
Amy didn't realize the time flying, for she spent over and hour talking to this doctor about their shared interest in Celtic history.
The only thing that made her realize the time was his pager,
"Oh gosh Kevin would kill me." She said as she looked at her watch to find the time
He looked at her
"Do you mean Dr. Richardson Kevin Richardson from The Cardio Unit?" he asked her
Author's Chapter Notes:
I wrote this to my best friend AJ, this one goes out for her because she deserves such a dedication.
