Casual Layovers

Chapter Five

"Are you sure you aren't hungry?" Avery asks again, feeling slightly guilty that she ordered food when Ryan did not.

Ryan nods as she takes another sip of her martini before putting the glass back down. "We just had that huge lunch less than a few hours ago. I'm surprised, and quite frankly, very impressed, that you can eat again so soon."

Avery chuckles as she slaps her stomach with both hands. "Well, I'm a growing girl, dontcha know." Then she begins digging into the overflowing plate of nachos sitting in front of her.

"You are very lucky that you're still at the age that you can eat whatever you want, and however much you like, without any repercussions. It will catch up with you eventually." Ryan warns, no real seriousness in her tone.

Avery eyes Ryan curiously. Then she takes a drink of her beer to wash down her bite of food. "How old do you think I am exactly? I doubt that I'm even younger than you are." Avery says teasingly, but she knows very well that Ryan has to be at least a few years older than she is.

"You most certainly are younger than I am." Ryan says without pause.

Avery chuckles. "Okay, okay. How old are you?" She asks with a grin.

Ryan just shakes her head. "Nice try."

"Aww, c'mon. Humor me." Avery says as she watches Ryan roll her eyes. "Okay, alright. How old do you think I am?"

"In your twenties." Ryan says surely.

Avery laughs. "You can't just guess a whole decade."

Ryan smiles as she picks her glass up again for another drink. "Fine. Late-twenties."

"Alright. I'll give that to you, I guess. I just turned twenty-nine last October. Your turn." She asks again hopefully, but Ryan does not budge. "Seriously? Are you really not going to tell me how old you are?"

"Really." Ryan says with a smirk.

Avery squints her eyes at the brunette sitting across from her. "I'll find out eventually." She smirks to herself as she turns her attention back to her plate.

They are only quiet for a short moment longer before Ryan speaks up again. "So, when do you think you will have all the photographs that you took today ready to bring back to the hospital? I would really like to see them some time."

Avery nods at Ryan, as she is still chewing her food. "Actually..." She reaches over to her bag and pulls out a small computer. Then she slides her hand into her pants pocket and pulls out a memory card. She boots the computer up, slides the memory card into the slot on the side and waits a moment. "Gimme just one second and they should all be loaded on here, so you can see them."

Ryan smiles excitedly. "Great. I never knew that hospitals contracted out photographers for their patients, but I'm very happy that they do. It is such a wonderful idea. All of the kids looked so happy today." Ryan says genuinely. "I think that you really made their day. Do you work for other hospitals in Seattle as well?"

Avery shakes her head. "Nah. My gramps was the head of Oncology at that one. So, a lot of the doctors and nurses there know me." Avery says, trying not to divulge too much because she really does not want to talk about her grandfather in detail.

"Oh..." Ryan says. Before she can continue, Avery turns the computer towards her and she is suddenly looking at a screenful of the happy, smiling faces of Avery and all of the children. It is one of the pictures that Ryan had taken at the very end of Avery's session. She clicks on the photo to the right of the one that is currently selected. In the photo, Avery is looking at the little girl dressed as Chewbacca who is standing to the right of where she is sitting, and she looks like she is about to let out a hearty laugh. You can just see the joy in her eyes. She smiles to herself remembering that she was able to capture a few of those moments on her cellphone as well. Then she scrolls to the very top of the files and sees all the photos that Avery had taken of each child. Some of the candid ones were so full of expression and the sight of them makes Ryan's heart tighten in her chest. "Avery..." She says barely above a whisper. "These are phenomenal."