Second Arrangement

CHAPTER 20 - OUT IN THE OPEN

"Everything was okay, the surgeries went well, no complications. And the patients that we operated on yesterday showed promising results as well," she started. "How about you?"

I told her how I tried to finish my work here since I left Korea in a hurry before. I had to stay until I really finished it or Jinyoung would have my head. She chuckled when I told her that, it sounded like she agreed with Jinyoung for being rash sometimes.

"No, it's spontaneous," I corrected her and I saw a ghost of a smile on her face. I smiled as well, feeling lighter when I saw her mood was getting better. "Sometimes you have to go with your heart," I continued.

"Yeah, yeah," she rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I saw Henry the other day."

I raised an eyebrow, "Henry? My Henry?" I wanted to make sure that this was the same Henry that we were talking about. My old friend who hated her for divorcing me. But the same friend that told me to make up with her before I lost my second chance.

"Yes, your Henry. I don't know any other Henry," she explained. "He met me for lunch at the hospital."

"And how did it go?" I was afraid that Henry would tell her how she should just leave me alone and not give me a second heartbreak. Though I knew he was just looking after me, I didn't want him to come at Ellie.

"It went pretty well," she answered. I squinted at her but it looked like she was telling the truth. "He admitted that he wasn't fond of me the first time, but I'm able to change his view of me."

"Really?" again, my eyebrow shot up to my hairline. This was big news. Henry was kind of protective over me, so for him to change his mind was amazing. I didn't have to worry about my girlfriend and my best friend at each other's throats anymore. If I still could call her my girlfriend.

ELLIE

"Would you mind telling me, how you managed to change his mind?" he asked and I stared at him.

"Well," I gulped. "He was sort of accusing me of being the reason you were running away, and I couldn't blame him. I knew you met Jasper before you left, and I had a hunch that he was saying stuff that might hurt your feelings and that was all because of me, so Henry wasn't completely wrong," I raised my hand to stop him when he was about to protest. "But I told him that Jasper wasn't a threat here. He asked me where I stand, and what I see in you that I agreed to be with you again."

"And? What did you tell him?" he asked carefully, as if he was torn in between wanting to know my answer or not hearing it if it wasn't in his favor.

"I told him that you're the first and only person to break my wall. You're the only person that can bring balance to my life," I saw him frown, so I continued my explanation. "I heard Jasper told you that you were not compatible with me because you're a celebrity. Well, let me tell you, if I want to have another doctor as my boyfriend, then I would have dated anyone during my med school days. Medical students can date, we're not banned from dating, unlike you," I pointed out, in case he didn't know. "But I chose not to because there was no one that stood out."

"Yeah sure, I enjoy a heated discussion, but only at the hospital, among my peers. I don't need another heated banter at home. I know that some of my colleagues prefer dating other doctors. They say that only doctors can understand the grim working hours of another doctor. But I don't. I don't like having a fellow doctor as my boyfriend. Why would I like to be reminded of the hospital 24 hours? It would be insane having to talk about medical stuff even at home," I started to talk faster as I got hyped up. "It will feel like you have to work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without any break. Why would I tell him my days if I ended up being criticized? Or being questioned at everything that I did during surgeries? I have my professor to do that, not my boyfriend as well."

He just nodded at my explanation, so I felt like keep on going. "Do you know why I said yes to you?'

I saw him shake his head. "Well, you bring balance to my life. You remind me to take some rest, that I can help people only if I'm healthy and well-rested. Do you know that us, doctors, never said that to each other? In fact, we kept pushing one another over our limit just to help other people. We're quick to drop our personal need when it comes to helping people. Sometimes it takes a toll on our health and our relationship, but you stopped me when I needed the rest. You bring the fun to my life as well," I chuckled.

"I don't know how you can do that when you're all work yourself, but with me, you remind me to have fun once in a while. You constantly nag me to eat healthy, try to bring me to the gym to exercise, and even though I might not have the ideal sleeping hours, but you make sure that I have a quality sleep. You see my need as me, Ellie, and not the doctor Ellie. Does that make sense to you?" I asked as I sounded stupid when I said it out loud.

He nodded, "Yeah, in fact I felt the same way about you as well."

I tilted my head, "How so?"

"You also see me as Jackson. Wang Jia Er. My mother's second son. And not the Jackson Wang. One of GOT7 members or Panthepack. Not the Jackson that people idolized. You see me as a person, not a celebrity nor an idol."

I kept quiet, hoping that he would elaborate more. "We're good for each other. You bring balance to mine too. You always complain when I tell you to rest, so I have to stop to accompany you as well. I think I had more rest when I was with you than not. You always ask me to eat with you whenever I remind you to eat, and you aren't afraid to point out when I was too skinny. I was always conscious of my body, but you remind me numerous times that you don't care. One pack or six pack, as long as it's still me, you'll be okay with it." I smiled as he was right. In fact, I didn't like it when he was too ripped. Call me weird, but I really didn't care.

"I always worry about pleasing others that it started eating me alive, but you remind me that I don't need to please anyone. If they're my fans, then they'll love whatever I do. Anyone that says anything else and criticizes me for trying to show all sides of me, then they're not really my fans. Thanks to you, I dare to try new things, and not just stick to the idealism that people have about me," he continued.

"So, we're good for each other?" I asked, waiting for his answer anxiously.

"Yeah, we are," he nodded. "That's why I need to apologize to you. For letting Jasper's words get through my mind and make a mess there," he tapped his temple with his finger, looking remorse. "I thought he was right. I knew that physical appearance is not your thing. I can wear a rag and you'll still find me hot," I scoffed at his confidence. Though he was right, I wouldn't admit it out loud. Not in front of him, anyway. "So, I thought he was right, that intelligence is your thing. I knew that I could barely understand all the medical jargon you threw at me, so I thought you needed someone that knew the same world you're in. Someone that can understand your stories and make appropriate comments, and not just ask for an explanation like me. Someone like him."