Ava was going to be the death of me. The girl just grabbed my face and kissed me, catching me off guard and then leaving me feeling all flustered and ready for a real kiss.

I got out of the car to follow her, hearing her squeal as she ran away. She was far too small to outrun me, so I ran after her, grabbing her by her waist and spinning her around.

"Excuse me, Doc. But I think you've caused me a problem and I'm waiting for you to give me the proper treatment for the issue." I said to her.

"Aw, do you need some medication, Teach?" She asked me.

"I do." He laughed.

"I think I know the perfect thing." She said to me, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me down to her level.

"Are you sure? You made the no kissing rule." I said to her.

"As crazy as it sounds, this doctor happens to be a rulebreaker when she's not working." She told me.

"Then break the rules some more, please." I smiled, pulling her closer and letting her plant another kiss on my lips.

This time the kiss lasted a little longer than before. My heart was racing, I was turning red for sure. Tingles spread through me, making me shiver and embarrass myself a little. I squeezed her tighter, feeling like she might fly away if I didn't hang onto her. When she pulled away, she just hugged me to prolong our moment.

"Ok, Teach. I have work in the morning and it's way past my bedtime." She chuckled.

"Thank you for this date, Ava." I said, letting her go.

"No. Thank you. And be prepared for another one tomorrow. But this time, I'm planning it." She insisted.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked her.

"I don't know. This date was hard to beat." She laughed. "But I don't lose to anyone."

"I think one day you'll have to rethink that statement." I said to her.

"Not today." She said, winking at me and planting a kiss on my cheek.

"I'll see you tomorrow. Wanna pick me up before work?" She asked me.

"What time?" I asked her.

"I need to be there at eight. You do the math." She told me.

"Sounds good." I chuckled, waving goodbye.

"Good night!" She called out to me as she opened the door to the apartment building.

"Good night." I called back, smiling at the woman I was finally able to date after so much persistence.

As soon as she disappeared, I went back to my car. I couldn't help the smile I was sporting all the way back to my apartment. I took a quick shower and then got in some pyjamas.

I grabbed my phone and texted her a short little message.

G - Thanks for an amazing night, Ava. I don't think I've ever had that much fun. You looked absolutely breathtaking. I'll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early. Good night, Doc.

She didn't see it. So I assumed she was asleep. Then I woke up in the morning to a few texts from her. I had a pretty good sleep, not quite as long as I would've liked, but it wasn't a big deal. It was Saturday so I had time to nap. But Ava on the other hand didn't have time to sleep and I felt guilty for keeping her up last night.

As soon as I was ready to go pick Ava up and take her to the hospital, I noticed her messages.

A - Look at you, Teach. So sweet.

A - I look forward to seeing you today, I think our date today is going to be even more fun than yesterday. I told you, Teach, I don't lose.

I decided to text her back.

G - I have a proposition.

A - What is it?

I chuckled and responded.

G - Lifelong challenge for the best date. We constantly try to one up each other.

A - Challenge accepted. And you better believe I'm going to win.

G - It's on, Doc. Let's see who the date master is.

A - Me. Of course!

I couldn't help but laugh at how stubborn she was.

G - Alright, Doc. I'm heading out, I'll be at your place in a few.

A - Sounds good. See ya!

I left my apartment soon after that and dropped by to get her some morning coffee before picking her up. When I got there, I texted her that I was waiting and she was out in a matter of seconds.

"Hey!" She smiled when she opened the door.

"Hi! How'd you sleep?" I asked her.

"I slept well." She laughed. "How about you?"

"Same. But I feel bad. Maybe we shouldn't have stayed out for so long yesterday?" I asked her.

"Nah, don't worry about it. It's all good. I'm used to sleep deprivation. The twenty four hour shifts are pure torture." She chuckled.

"Twenty four hour shift?!" I asked her.

"Yeah." She chuckled.

"How many hours do you work a week?" I asked her.

"Around eighty. I like having a day off, so I'll take a really long shift or two, if I can. But if not, I usually just take the twelve or eighteen hour shifts." She explained.

"That's insane, Ava." I said, my eyes widening.

"Why? Doesn't Dr. Ferrari do the same?" She asked.

"Call him Rico, I promise he won't mind.... but he takes twelve hour shifts every day, not twenty four hours." I said in disbelief.

"Well, that's the life of a doctor." She shrugged.

"Alright. Let's get going then, Doc. What time do you get off work today?" I asked her as I started the car.

"Uhm.... I think this is a twelve hour shift, let me just double check." She said to me.

"Ah, no... it's fourteen." She sighed.

"Ok... so... I'll pick you up at ten?" I asked her.

"Yeah... but that ruins everything..." She sighed.

"Why?" I asked her.

"Because I wanted to grab dinner at Angel's again." She sighed.

"Ah... I see... well, why don't you order some take out and I'll pick it up before coming to get you?" I asked her.

"Ok. Can I order now for pick up tonight?" She asked me.

"You sure can." I smiled.

"Alright... perfect." She smiled, pulling out her phone and finding the website where she could order her take out.

"When should I set the pick up time for?" She asked me.

"Uhm... nine thirty." I said to her.

"Ok." She smiled, tapping away on her phone.

"What do you want for dinner today, Teach?" She asked me.

"Hm... let's change it up a little... I'll get the spicy kebab with rice option." I said to her.

"With a side of salad and some orange crush?" She asked me, getting my usual take out order perfect.

"How did you know?" I chuckled, glancing over at her.

"Because I heard you and Rico talking about food a few months back." She told me.

"Makes sense. Goodness. I'm a lucky man, my sister is a genius when it comes to food." I sighed.

Ava laughed and continued ordering our food.

"Oooh, what's this firecracker chicken option?" She asked me.

"How do you do with spice, Doctor?" He asked me.

"I've got Indian roots... light it up, baby!" She cheered, giggling at the end.

"Alright. Then you should try it. It's delicious, a side of rice will help with the heat, but if you just get yourself that chicken soup to go with it, and garlic bread! My God! Everything is delicious!" I said.

"Alright. Firecracker chicken, soup and garlic bread." She chuckled.

"Get me some garlic bread too, please." I smiled.

"Sure thing." She smiled, tapping away on her phone.

"Hm... what about dessert? We didn't have any yesterday." She said. "You make this challenge so easy!"

"You're not going to win because of dessert." I assured her.

"We'll see about that." She smiled.

"Ok. Dessert options are all the best. I honestly don't have a preference. I'd say the brownies are something no human can live without trying though." I told her.

"Double chocolate brownies!" She cheered.

"What else?" She asked me.

"Uhm... apple cinnamon crumble... or you could get the tiramisu... or the carrot cake... Ava, literally get anything that sounds good to you, it's just absolutely delicious, all of it!" I chuckled.

"Cheesecake!" She smiled.

"Ah, get the blueberry one. The light and creamy option." I said to her.

"Ok. Sounds good." She giggled.

She ordered everything and then she put her phone in her pocket, looking over at me with a smile.

"So, what're you going to do on your day off?" She asked me.

"Well... a certain six year old princess needs some books, so of course, I'm off to get them printed and I have a meeting at the school with her teacher and her parents if they show." I sighed.

"If they show?" Ava asked me.

"They never respond or show up to anything." I explained.

"Oh. I see... and what's the meeting about?" Ava asked.

"Lily's social interactions are completely nonexistent and the more they push her to interact with other kids the less she'll do it. She's down to only ever talking to the new principal and me. So, her teacher is really struggling because all she'll do is sit by the door with a book." I sighed.

"Well, how is she learning anything?" Ava asked.

"The only thing that she's learning is the stuff I'm inserting in those books. And she refuses to give anyone the worksheets she fills out about each book. I'm the only one she'll give them to. She insists that she's writing them for me so that I know they're good enough to put on my bookshelf." I explained. "I came up with that two years ago so that I could make sure she was actually getting the information I wanted her to from those books."

"Do you get paid for this?" Ava asked me.

"I do not. But who cares. There's something going on with her and I'm going to help out in any way that I can." I sighed. "That kid really does deserve the best."

"Have they tried therapy? Or like... catching the mother when she picks her up or drops her off? I mean, how can the kid's parents not respond to the school?" Ava asked in concern.

"I don't know, but we've tried to get to her parents. They don't drop her off or pick her up anymore, she takes the school bus." I explained. "It's like they don't even exist."

"What about Lily? Does she talk about them?" Ava questioned.

"She'll answer some of my questions. But they're very brief and to the point. It's strange but it isn't unlike her. She's always super brief about everything." I said.

"And she's alright? Other than all that, are there any signs of anything wrong?" Ava asked me.

"She doesn't seem to be getting much food or sleep, but she's dressed well and she's clean and stuff... I don't know... I worry, but I can't do much." I sighed. "There's not enough evidence that anything wrong is happening. It's always tricky too, because if I contact child services, I could mess the kid's life up and I don't want that if it isn't necessary."

"Did you try checking if Lily can give you or get you more up to date contact information?" Ava asked.

"I asked her for her mother's email, and she gave me the one that's in the system. I gave her the form to give to her mother and have her fill it out and it never came back. Lily told me she lost it. I don't know what to believe." I sighed.

"It's ok. Just continue being her favourite teacher and she'll know she can tell you when something is wrong." Ava smiled, rubbing my arm.

"I hope you're right." I smiled as we pulled up to the hospital.

"Thanks for the drive, and this coffee." Ava smiled, leaning over and kissing my cheek. "I'll see you at ten, don't be late."

"I won't be. Have a good day at work." I smiled, winking at her.

She chuckled and closed the door, waving and walking off to work.