"You're the only person who could ever understand how I feel. Does it ever get easier?" Nic asked Mina, looking at her with tear-filled eyes. It was clear that she'd been crying, possibly for the entire almost-month she'd been gone from work. Nic had lost her sister, Jessie, about a month ago, right after her kidney transplant, and this was the first time Mina had even seen her since then.
Mina put her hand on Nic's cheek. "I wish I could say that it does. It gets easier to deal with, but I find myself thinking about my sisters nearly every day. I wonder what they would be like if they were alive." She sighed softly and brushed a tear away from Nic's cheek. "Nic, the only way I was able to get through it was to throw myself into work. I was in medical school at the time. You are here, and you are needed."
"I know, I know, my patients need me," Nic replied softly, taking a deep breath.
Mina shook her head. "No, I'm saying that you need your patients. You have this deep rooted need to feel needed, and this will help with that. You just have to let us help you through getting back to work."
"How do you know that?" Nic asked, surprised but nodding along, knowing it was true. "I didn't even know that about myself."
"I know more than you think. I've been watching you, Nic. This hospital doesn't run all that well without you. It needs you. Nic, I need you." Mina was surprised that last part had left her mouth, and she closed it before any other unwanted words escaped without her permission. She quickly withdrew her hand from Nic's face.
"Mina..." Nic took a step back in surprise.
She shook her head, trying to make it un-happen, make the words go back into her mouth. She opened her mouth to try and fix it, maybe make it worse, but before she could say anything Nic's mouth was on hers. Mina gasped in surprise but wrapped her arms around the other woman. She knew that Nic was hurting right now, and she shouldn't take advantage, so she reluctantly pulled away after a few minutes. "Nic, you're unstable emotionally right now. I don't want you to do something you're going to regret."
Nic sighed and took a step back. "I know." She half-smiled at Mina. "Would it help if I told you, truthfully, that I've been thinking about doing that since the first time I saw you, three years ago?"
Mina looked at Nic's face, trying to determine whether that was the truth. There was still pain in her eyes, but she seemed sincere. "That does help, actually," she admitted, chuckling, and hugged Nic tightly, taking a step forward. Nic took Mina into her arms and kissed her again.
For the rest of the day, Mina couldn't stop smiling. It earned her some strange glances from people who knew her, but she could honestly say that she didn't mind at the moment.