I Want You

Think About You

On the morning of their date, Ben sent a message to Miranda that read: "Good morning, Miranda."

The message seemed so generic that he began sending another one when she answered. "It's barely morning, Benjamin Warren." It shocked the hell out of him because he'd been sending "good morning" messages all week and she'd never responded so quickly. So, he just got used to sending the message and then seeing her at work. When they texted throughout the day, she was far more active.

"This is new. You messaging me, of course." Ben put down his phone and hopped into the shower. He wasn't scheduled to work, but he did want to run over to Knox's place to see Ava. Getting out of the shower, he picked up his phone with wet hands, getting water on the device.

The reply from Miranda made his face break out into the biggest smile. "Be grateful."

He tapped one back quickly. "No doubt."

He got dressed, stopped at McDonald's for a late lunch and drove to Knox's. Paige opened the door with Ava in her arms. "Hey, Paigey." Ben hugged her, kissing her cheek.

The five-year-old who was the perfect blend of Knox and Paige crawled into his arms. "Uncle Ben!" Ava squeaked.

"Hi, my favorite niece in the whole, wide world." He kissed the girl's cheeks, tickling her a little as he stepped into the house.

He put her down and she grabbed his hand pulling him toward the kitchen. "Look at what I made! I was painting and I got some in my hair..." Ben tried to keep up with the conversation, but all he managed to do was nod and add an "oh" and "wow" every few seconds. Ava reached for his wrist and dragged him toward her bedroom to show him her new toy. Ben found himself on the floor playing with glowing and bobbling toy. It gave him a flashback to sitting on his apartment floor with Tuck and that made him think of Miranda and their date tonight. He smiled. "Uncle Ben, you have to throw the ball," Ava said.

"It's my turn already?" She nodded, her eyes wide. He was snapped from his thoughts and tossed the ball into the contraption.

"You missed!" She screamed.

"Aww, man," he said feigning disappointment. That cracked Ava up and she fell on the floor giggling. Paige called for Ava to come and eat. She started to clean up her toys. "I'll do it, baby. Go eat." The girl kissed his cheek and ran from the room. Ben finished and leaned against her bed and pulled out his phone. He tapped out a message to Miranda: "I don't know where we are in our relationship, but I just wanted to let you know that I'm thinking about you."

He put his phone in his pocket and walked to the kitchen. "I can make you something, Ben, if you want," Paige said.

"Oh, that's okay. I had a late breakfast."

"So," Paige smiled. "Word on the street is that you have a date tonight."

"Hopefully. She's working today, so if she can manage to finish her shift without..." He made a face. "Then, yeah, I'll have a date."

The two adults laughed and Ava looked at them. "Are you laughing at me?" She asked.

"No, of course not," Ben said sitting next to her. "What's that?" He asked pointing behind her.

"What?" Ava turned to look, her braids bouncing, and he took a French toast stick from her plate. "Hey!" She laughed.

Ben hung out with Ava and Paige for a while before heading to the gym. Working out helped clear his mind. He focused on his breathing as he ran on the treadmill. He concentrated on his muscles contracting as he lifted. After taking a shower, he saw that he had a missed call from Knox. He called him back. "Hey, can you come in? Rockford's out sick and I need an extra pair of hands." Ben said he'd be there soon and got dressed, moving out of the door quickly. Ben was slipping into his lab coat when he found Knox. "Good. You're here." He shoved some papers into his Ben's hands. "Jenn Hornsby, 22, motorcycle accident..." Ben flipped while Knox informed him. He made a few notes on the back of his hand.

"Got it."

"And I have to go. Her mother was on the back of the motorcycle."

"Jesus," Ben said.

Knox started to walk away. "There is some good news though."

"What could be good about all of this?" Ben inquired.

"Bailey's one of the surgeons on your patient." Ben shook his head and hurried to the OR. He washed his hands before stepping into the room, noticing Miranda immediately.

"Dr. Bailey," he said.

She looked at him and he could see that she was smiling. "Dr. Warren."

He lowered his voice as he checked the equipment. "Are you trying to get out of our date?"

"No!" She whispered. "Of course not." He nodded and continued what he was doing. "Alright," Miranda said stepping up on her box so that she could properly into the patient. Because he wasn't that familiar with the case and had been thrown onto it, he paid attention intensely, making sure that everything was good. Five hours later, the surgeons were stitching the woman up. "Good job, everyone." Her eyes landed on Ben and he smiled.

He stepped into the hallway, cracking his neck and knuckles. Miranda came out and he saw her head swiveling. "Hey!" She said walking up to him. Ben waved. "That was way better than our first surgery together."

"Yeah. There was no need to yell in there. You were great." She jerked her head a little silently asking him to follow her. They rounded a corner that was quiet and empty.

"Uh, I was thinking about you, too," she said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"Your text from earlier. I was thinking about you, too." Her cheeks were so red.

He smiled and looked around before hugging her. He felt her deflate in his arms. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I did that."

"No, it's... fine. Thank you. I like hugs after surgery."

He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Uh, do you still want to go out or...?"

"No, no, no. I am ready. I'm not tired at all." She yawned and they laughed together.

Ben shook his head. "Tomorrow?"

She exhaled and a piece of hair fell across her forehead. He wanted to push it back. Hold her face, kiss her lips. "That works for me."

"You're sure?" He asked.

The smallest smile appeared on her lips. "I am sure." With a mind of its own, his hand reached out and touched her chin, stroking it for a second. A nurse walked by and he moved it, his heart racing. She made a face. "Call me later?"

"You want me to?"

"Yes," she shrugged. "It's our thing now."

"Then, I will call you." Ben's heart was on fire. Miranda Bailey tilted everything that he thought he knew about relationships. He was falling for her.

She licked her lips. "I'll be looking forward to it." Ben nodded and started to walk away. She grabbed his hand.

"Yes?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to hold your hand." She squeezed his hand before letting go, sashaying away. He watched her go, loving the view and smiling hard. If he didn't know any better, he'd think that Miranda Bailey was falling for him, too.