Chapter 2

Valery kept herself busy at work, moving from one patient to another and closely monitoring the hospital chart. Minimal time for lunch breaks, rest and certainly zero tolerance for distractions. And that's what some of the doctors at Klimov Hospital wanted to be, an unwanted distraction. 

Her shift ended at four in the afternoon. From there, she headed home to shower and fall on the couch. On most days, Valery did not have the strength to cook, so she ordered takeout from her favourite restaurant. There were days Jennifer came to her rescue, but she chose to burden her sister once in a blue moon. 

After the serenity came another beeping text from Derrick. Benson threw her neck at the armrest of the long couch, biting on her bottom lip as she read it. Nearly a week had passed, and she was still adamant about replying to Derrick's text. Years ago, she promised not to get too close to him or be trapped by his nature. It was an emotional affair, and sincerely, she was not ready to drown the second time.

Her finger swipes over the screen and taps a few words...but then she deletes them and places the device on the floor. Her eyes fall on the television, mind circling in a wormhole of memories. Valery was so out of it that her eyes yearned for sleep.

*Phone rings*

Valery's eyes reel up. She lets out a strained sigh as her hand lazily searches the ground for her phone. She plasters it to her ears, expecting it to be the delivery guy. 

"Hello."

"I didn't think you would pick up when you refused to reply to my texts."

Valery's eyes go wide. She checks the name of the caller and nearly cusses. "Um, I'm sorry about that. I got carried away with work and didn't get the chance to..."

"I understand. I wouldn't want to talk to me, too, after how we parted ways. But it would do us a lot of good to let go of it. Have dinner with me, Violet," Derrick said. Valery paces herself, weighing the pros and cons of that happening. Eventually, she realized that she was overthinking.

"Alright, let's have dinner," she said.

"Can I pick you up tonight at eight?"

"Let's make it tomorrow at eight. I will drive so you can pick a place and let me know."

"Sounds more like an appointment than having a meal with an old friend," Derrick chuckled at the end of the line. He could tell she was smiling by the weight of her breath. "I will do as you say," he added. 

"Alright, bye." Valery ended the call in a hurry. It did not feel right to giggle at Derrick's jokes- not yet.

Tomorrow came, and Valery found herself wanting to back out. That was the primary reason for her showing up nearly two hours late. Too many what-ifs and whys rumbling in her head, which wore her out. At least Derrick received her with a smile. 

The first thirty minutes felt like floating on air. The most difficult questions ought to have come at that time. What do you do, where do you live... are you seeing anyone? At least, that's what she expected. Derrick didn't bring them up at all. It was as if he knew to stay clear of them. 

Instead of those direct questions, they laughed about how bad Derrick was at using g****e maps and the many times he got lost in the city since his return to Ghana. "I had to ask the locals for help, which was another trouble. You can imagine the look on my face when I ended up at a warehouse instead of a church." Derrick ridiculed himself, making her laugh.

"Derrick, what do you do?" Valery did the asking in the end. 

"What I was born to do, to run the family business."

"The Duncan Group Of Companies?"

"Yup, that's the one." Derrick nodded.

"What happened to the dream of becoming a racer? You hated the idea of working for your father when we were younger," said Valery.

Derrick had his left hand on the table, playing with the salt shaker. "Sometimes life happens, and you see that you're right where you must be. My father passed, and my mother needed me to stand by her and my sisters, so I did."

"Wow, you really have grown." Valery reached across the table to still his hand. Her way of sympathizing with him. The Derrick she knew from way back did not care about others or himself. 

Time flew by, and before they knew it, dinner was over. But Valery wanted to be in Derrick's company a while longer. She never imagined missing his conversations this much. It was refreshing in a way and nothing near gloomy as she envisioned.

"How about we go somewhere else to stretch, to get the food to settle," She suggested.

"Okay, thank God it's Friday." Derrick raised his fist, celebrating.

"Hahaha, yeah, thank God it is," Valery pulled back her seat, refusing to let him act like a gentleman. 

Valery suggested going to a club, and Derrick bought into the idea. But dancing was only one of the things they did, and Valery was not an expert at holding her liquor. 

"Do you do this often?" When they made it out of the sweaty crowd, Derrick was attentive to her staggering steps. 

"Only with Marge," Valery clarified, struggling to get her key in when they reached her car.

"At this point, I don't think we should drive. Give me your address, and I'll order you an Uber." Derrick helped her out of the vehicle. "Oops, easy there," he heaved her up when she slipped.

Valery fought for some control of her body as he stood straight. "Benson, your house address."  She looks up at the familiar voice, and something breaks inside her. "After all these years, you had to come back." she saw someone from the ghost of her past looking at her with a wry smile. 

 

Derrick happened to be caught off-guard by that statement. "Honestly, I didn't think our paths would cross again." His palm lingered on her face. The noise outside could not suppress the heavy moment between them, neither could the stares from strangers passing by from their drunken exploits. 

Derrick kissed her. It was sudden and a bold risk, but that was all he wanted to do. Valery did not fight it. She looks at him, muttering words under her breath. Words he did not hear due to a car honking from a distance. 

As Derrick retook her lips, Valery creased the sides of his shirt, accepting another man's tongue as her mind sang the name she had muttered earlier... Kay