Hayley walked around the hospital she worked at. She was one of the top doctors at the hospital. She knew what to do when the situation comes up.

        “Dr. Hardin, we have a car accident victim coming in,” a nurse told her. She went down to the ER entrance. The paramedics brought the gurney in carrying the victim. She looked and saw that it was Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys. She knew she had to take special care of him. She couldn’t let him die. They rushed him to the OR. Two hours later, Nick was in an ICU room in stable condition. Hayley walked out to the waiting room and saw Kevin, Howie, AJ, and Brian sitting there. They looked up and saw her.

        “Hello, I’m Dr. Hardin, I operated on Mr. Carter,” Hayley said.

        “How old are you?” Kevin asked.

        “I’m 26,” Hayley said.

        “And you operated on him, are you a real doctor,” Kevin sad.

        “Yes, I’m a real doctor, I’m one of the best doctors in this hospital, ask anybody,” Hayley said. Kevin looked at her.

        “Is there a problem here?” Dr. Garrison said coming up to them.

        “Yeah, this girl said she operated on our friend,” Kevin said.

        “Excuse me, sir, but this girl is Dr. Hayley Hardin, one of the best doctors in this hospital, if I was on the operating table, I would trust her with my life and I have been at this hospital for 20 years, she knows what she’s doing, Mr. Richardson, I wouldn’t have let her operate on Mr. Carter if I didn’t trust her with a knife, she saved your friend’s life, he is in stable condition in ICU, I hope you will give Hayley some respect, she is the one of the top doctors in this hospital, I have the papers to prove it, good day,” Dr. Garrison said. Hayley looked at them.

        “I am sorry, Dr. Hardin, we just wanted to make sure nothing bad happened to Nick,” Kevin said. Hayley smiled.

        “I understand, Mr. Richardson, I know my age shocks some people but I am a great doctor and I am taking extra special care of Mr. Carter, he is my top priority, I will not let anything happen to him,” Hayley said.

        “Can we see him?” Howie asked.

        “Sure,” Hayley said. They all went to Nick’s room. The guys went to his bedside.

Chapter 2

Hayley was lying down on one of the cots in the locker room. The door opened and her good friend and nurse, Emily, came in.

        “Hayley, there is a guy out here who is very mad,” Emily said. Hayley got up and went out and saw Kevin.

        “Mr. Richardson,” Hayley said.

        “I can’t believe you are napping at a time like this, you said Nick needs special care, looks like you are giving it to him,” Kevin said.

        “Excuse me, Mr. Richardson, but the nurses can handle things while I’m not around, I am almost at the end of a 24 hour shift, okay, I’m barely awake, I may have said he needs special care but I can not give that to him myself 24/7, I have to sleep sometime, the nurses can wake me and tell me when there’s a problem, not when you have a stick up your ass about how I handle my patients, now excuse me, but I need to finish my nap so I am refreshed and awake, now leave me be or I will have you thrown out of the hospital, doesn’t matter who you are,” Hayley said. She went back into the locker room and laid down.

        “What was that?” Emily asked.

        “He thinks I need to be by his friend’s side 24/7, I would if I could but I am so tired right now, I have been on my feet for 23 hours, running on coffee and espresso, I need some sleep, keep an eye on Mr. Carter, let me know if anything changes,” Hayley said.

        “Sure thing,” Emily said. She went to Nick’s room and heard Kevin talking to the guys.

        “I don’t like that Dr. Hardin, I don’t want her near Nick if she can’t be here 24/7,” Kevin said. She went in and cleared her throat.

        “Excuse me, Mr. Richardson, but don’t talk about Dr. Hardin like that, she’s been on her feet for 23 hours, she needs the rest, how would you feel if you were in her shoes, would you need sleep if you’ve been up 23 hours?” Emily asked. Kevin looked at her.

        “Well, I guess I would,” Kevin said.

        “This job is her life, she is always here, she hardly leaves the hospital unless Dr. Garrison forces her to, she needs to take a few days off to rest up but she is always here, she hardly takes a day off, so she sleeps when she can on the cot in the locker room, she tells a nurse so we can wake her if she is needed, she sleeps with her pager, your friend is in good hands, sir, no one is going to let anything happen to him,” Emily said. The machines went off. Other nurses came rushing in.

        “Get Hayley quick!” Emily called rushing to Nick’s side. She began CPR. Hayley came running in and they went to work on Nick. They got him back and he was stable. Hayley walked out the doors and saw Brian, Howie, AJ, and Kevin standing there.

        “He is fine now, I told you he will be taken special care of,” Hayley said. She headed back down to the locker room and laid back down.

Chapter 3

Hayley woke up and saw a pair of green eyes looking at her. She sat up and looked at Kevin.

        “What now?” Hayley asked.

        “I’m sorry for being a jerk, I just don’t want anything to happen to Nick, he’s my little brother, it would kill me if something happened to him,” Kevin said.

        “Mr. Richardson, like I said, nothing will happen to him, the nurses know what they are doing, as long as I’m here, he’ll be in good hands,” Hayley said. Dr. Garrison came in.

        “Hayley, I want you to go home and rest,” Dr. Garrison said.

        “I have patients, Dr. Garrison,” Hayley said.

        “There are other doctors here who can handle them,” Dr. Garrison said.

        “But Mr. Carter?” Hayley asked.

        “I will take care of him, don’t worry, I taught you, I’m your mentor, remember,” Dr. Garrison said. Hayley sighed.

        “Fine,” Hayley said. She got her stuff together and looked at Kevin.

        “I’m sorry, I can’t take care of Nick until I come back,” Hayley said.

        “I understand, you need the rest,” Kevin said. Hayley talked to Emily and went home.

The next day, Hayley walked into the hospital for her shift. She signed on and looked at some charts. She turned and bumped into someone. She looked and saw Kevin.

        “Mr. Richardson,” Hayley said.

        “We almost lost him again last night, after you left,” Kevin said. Hayley went to Nick’s room and saw Brian and AJ sitting by his bedside. She checked Nick’s vitals. Nick moaned and opened his eyes.

        “Nick,” Brian said. Nick looked at him.

        “Brian,” Nick said.

        “Nick,” AJ said.

        “Hey Bone,” Nick said.

        “Nick,” Kevin said.

        “Kev, my head hurts,” Nick said.

        “I know, Nick, this is Dr. Hardin,” Kevin said. Nick looked at Hayley. She smiled at him and checked his eyes.

        “You had a concussion, Mr. Carter, and you have a broken leg, we had to perform surgery to fix the bones in your leg, it should heal nicely,” Hayley said.

        “How old are you?” Nick asked.

        “The same age as you,” Hayley said.

        “Nick, she’s one of the best doctors in this hospital, she saved your life,” Kevin said.

        “Mr. Carter, I assure you, you are in good hands,” Hayley said.

        “I sure am,” Nick said smiling at her. Hayley smiled at him.

        “After what you have been through, it’s nice to see the patient smile, you have three brothers who have been worried about you, especially Mr. Richardson,” Hayley said.

        “Call me Kevin, and you can call us by our first names,” Kevin said.

        “Kevin tried scaring Hayley off but she stood her own, she even threatened to throw him out of the hospital,” Brian said.

        “Kevin!” Nick said.

        “I was just scared and worried,” Kevin said.

        “He just couldn’t handle that fact that he thought she wasn’t doing her job,” Brian said.

        “I was just getting off from a 24 hour shift and was taking a nap, he goes off on me for that,” Hayley said.

        “Kevin, she needs to sleep sometime, you know, she can’t be up for three days straight,” Nick said.

        “I know, I’m sorry,” Kevin said.

        “I better get going to do my rounds, I’ll be back later to check up on you, rest is what you need to make a full recovery,” Hayley said. She went out the door. Nick looked at Kevin, Brian, and AJ and smiled.

        “She’s hot,” Nick said.

         “Nicky’s got a crush,” AJ said. They all talked.

Chapter 4

Two weeks later, Nick was home in bed. Hayley made a house call on her way home from the hospital. She sat on the bed.

        “So how are you feeling?” Hayley asked.

        “I feel okay, Kevin’s been taking good care of me,” Nick said.

        “That’s good,” Hayley said.

        “How are you doing,” Nick said.

        “I’m fine, just tired, long day but I’ll be fine, I’m off tomorrow so that is a good thing, I will see you in a week for your checkup, okay,” Hayley said.

        “Okay,” Nick said. She went down the stairs and saw Kevin.

        “He has an appointment in a week for a checkup, just a reminder,” Hayley said.

        “I remember,” Kevin said. She went home and went to bed.

A week later, Nick and Kevin arrived at the hospital for Nick’s checkup. They went to a nurse. She smiled at them.

        “Hi, I have an appointment with Dr. Hardin,” Nick said. The nurse frowned and looked at the schedule.

        “I’ll page Dr. Travis,” the nurse said.

        “The appointment is with Dr. Hardin,” Kevin said.

        “I’m sorry, but Dr. Travis is taking all of Dr. Hardin’s patients, Dr. Hardin had a family emergency,” the nurse said. Kevin and Nick sat down. Dr. Travis came out. He introduced himself and took Nick back for his checkup. Kevin heard a couple nurses talking.

        “Did you hear about Hayley?” one nurse said.

        “I can’t believe she went out with that jerk, he needs to be in a mental hospital,” the other nurse said.

        “I wonder how bad it is,” the first nurse said.

        “Bad enough to not want to come into work, I would do the same thing, she has a lot of vacation days, this is the time to use them to get better,” the second nurse said. Kevin waited for Nick. A couple hours later, Nick came out and they headed out to the car.

        “I heard a couple nurses talking, Hayley didn’t have a family emergency, she took vacation days, something bad happened to make her not come into work,” Kevin said.

        “What,” Nick said.

        “Something about a guy she dated and he needs to be in a mental hospital,” Kevin said.

        “Oh man,” Nick said.

        “I say we find out where she lives and go visit her,” Kevin said. They went home and looked in the phone book and saw Hayley’s address. They headed to Hayley’s house.

Chapter 5

Kevin knocked on Hayley’s door. He looked back at Nick who was in the car. He rang the doorbell.

        “Who’s there?” Hayley called.

        “Hayley, it’s Kevin,” Kevin said.

        “Why are you here?” Hayley asked.

        “I kind of overheard a couple of nurses talking today at the hospital and they were talking about what happened to you, I came to see how you were doing, Nick’s in the car,” Kevin said.

        “Kevin, I’m fine, I should be back in a couple of weeks which should be in time for Nick’s next checkup, I need this vacation to recover from what happened and I really don’t want anyone to see me right now, I look terrible, plus I have the flu now, so I don’t want to get you sick and you get Nick sick, him having the flu along with his leg, I don’t want that to happen,” Hayley said.

        “Well, I just wanted to check and see how you were, Nick was worried so I will tell him that you will see him in two weeks,” Kevin said. He got into the car and looked at Nick.

        “Well?” Nick asked.

        “She’ll be back in two weeks, she has the flu, she doesn’t want to get you sick,” Kevin said.

        “Oh, okay,” Nick said. Kevin took him home.

Chapter 6

Two weeks later, Kevin helped Nick into the doctor’s office. They went and sat down and waited. A nurse came out.

        “Mr. Carter, the doctor will see you now,” the nurse said. They followed the nurse to one of the examination rooms. Nick sat down on the table while Kevin sat in a chair by the wall. The door opened and Hayley walked in and smiled at both of them.

        “Hey guys,” Hayley said.

        “I’m glad to see you back,” Nick said smiling.

        “I feel a lot better, I needed that vacation, I was getting tired, so how are you feeling,” Hayley said.

        “Better now that you are here,” Nick said.

        “Let’s check your leg to see how it’s healing,” Hayley said. She ran x-rays of his leg and got them and looked them over.

        “Your leg has healed quite nicely, you will need to start physical therapy next week with Dr. Harris, you can make an appointment at the front desk, after two weeks of physical therapy, you will have your final checkup and you will be free to go on with your life like you have done before, so I will see you back here in three weeks, bye guys,” Hayley said. She went out the door. Kevin looked at Nick.

        “Nick, why were you flirting with her?” Kevin asked.

        “I like her, okay, she is hot, and she is the one for me,” Nick said.

        “Nick, she’s your doctor, it wouldn’t look good if you two got together,” Kevin said.

        “Three weeks, man, I’m free and I can ask her out,” Nick said.

        “I hope you know what you are doing, man, she might say no,” Kevin said.

        “I can’t help it, man, I have to know if I have a chance with her,” Nick said.

        “See about it in three weeks after the final checkup,” Kevin said.

        “I’m going to,” Nick said. They went back to Nick’s house after making the appointment for physical therapy.

Chapter 7

Three weeks later, after intensive physical therapy, Hayley gave Nick one last examination. She looked at him and smiled.

        “You are officially cleared, Nick, you can go back to your life with no worries,” Hayley said.

        “Thank god,” Nick said.

        “I’ve enjoyed taking care of you, Nick, you are a great guy and a real trouper,” Hayley said.

        “Thanks,” Nick said smiling at her.

        “Thanks for everything, Hayley,” Kevin said.

        “It’s no problem,” Hayley said.

        “Since you aren’t my doctor anymore, wanna go out sometime?” Nick asked. Hayley looked at him and looked at Kevin.

        “Nick, I don’t know if it’s a good idea,” Hayley said. Nick looked at her.

        “Oh, well, thanks for taking care of me, goodbye, Hayley,” Nick said. He went out the door. Hayley looked at Kevin.

        “I just don’t want to get in trouble, my boss might think that we started before he was officially released,” Hayley said. Kevin hugged her. He went out the door and found Nick leaning against his SUV.

        “Let’s get out of here,” Nick said.

        “Nick, she’s afraid of what her boss might think, if you two got together now, her boss will think that things started before you were officially released, she loves her job and taking care of her patients, she doesn’t want to lose her job,” Kevin said.

        “Just take me home, Kev,” Nick said. They got in and Kevin dropped him off and went on home. Nick sat down on his couch and watched TV. He thought about what Kevin said. The doorbell rang. He got up and opened the door and saw Hayley standing there.

        “Did I forget to sign something?” Nick asked. Hayley came in and closed the door and locked it and pushed him against the wall and kissed him deeply. He pulled her close as he moved them to the couch and collapsed on it.

Chapter 8

Nick woke up and saw that he was on the couch. He looked around and saw Hayley gone. He got up and got dressed and found a note.

Nick, I had to go because what we did was a mistake. I’m sorry, it would be wrong to get involved. I’m so sorry for hurting you. I wish it could be different but I love my job and I don’t want to be fired from a job I love. I know it sounds stupid and it’s a stupid reason but I can’t lose my job, it would be like losing a part of me and it would kill me. Please don’t try to get me to change my mind, it’s for the best. Goodbye, Nick.

Hayley.

Nick threw the note across the room. Kevin came in and saw him sitting there.

        “Hey Kaos, what’s up,” Kevin said.

        “Nothing,” Nick said. Kevin sat down.

        “What happened,” Kevin said.

        “I had the most amazing time of my life and now I have nothing,” Nick said.

        “Nick,” Kevin said.

        “Hayley was here, we slept together, she started it, I woke up and I found a note, it’s over there,” Nick said pointing across the room. Kevin went and picked it up and read it. Kevin looked at him and sat down.

        “Nick, you have to understand why she said what she said,” Kevin said.

        “She won’t get into trouble if we got together now, you and the guys could vouch for that,” Nick said.

        “I know, but there could be another reason, her previous relationship was abusive, she could be scared to get involved with another guy because of that,” Kevin said.

        “I would never hurt her!” Nick said.

        “She doesn’t know that,” Kevin said.

        “I just want to be with her,” Nick said.

        “I know you do,” Kevin said. He left and went to the hospital and found Hayley.

        “Hey,” Kevin said.

        “Kevin, I’m busy right now,” Hayley said.

        “It will only be a minute,” Kevin said.

        “What is it,” Hayley said.

        “I just want you to know that Nick is a great guy, and he’s in love with you, and he never would hurt a woman, his mother raised him to never hit a woman, he never has hit a woman, he is a caring guy and he’s crazy about you, the guys and I would vouch for you if you two got together now, I have to get going, bye,” Kevin said. He went home and called Nick and told him what he did. He hung up and sat back as Kristin came in and he told her what was going on. She sat down and they cuddled together and watched a movie.

Chapter 9

Three months went by. Nick decided to give up trying to get Hayley and decided to move on with his life. Brian and Nick were in Nick’s driveway, playing basketball. Nick jumped and shot the ball and landed on his feet and his knees gave out and he collapsed on the ground. Brian knelt down next to him.

        “Nicky,” Brian said.

        “My knees hurt,” Nick said. Brian helped him up and got him into the car. He took him to the hospital and called the guys. He pulled into the parking lot and got out and helped Nick inside. Hayley came to the nurse’s station and talked to the nurse and she looked up and saw Nick hanging on Brian. She ran over and helped Brian get Nick to a seat.

        “What happened?” Hayley asked.

        “We were playing basketball and he shot a basket and he landed on his feet and his knees gave out, he says they hurt,” Brian said.

        “Billy, get a wheelchair over here,” Hayley called to an orderly.  He brought one over and they got Nick into the chair and wheeled him to an examination room. They got Nick up onto the table and Hayley examined each knee.

        “I need to get you to x-rays,” Hayley said. They wheeled him to get x-rays. Two hours later, Nick was back in the room, lying there looking at the ceiling. Hayley came in with the x-rays.

        “Hayley,” Nick said.

        “Just a minute, Nick, I just got these and I haven’t looked at them,” Hayley said. She put them up to look at them. She called her boss. He came in and looked at the x-rays. He looked at her.

        “Mr. Carter, your injuries to your knees have healed up but they healed up too well,” Dr. Thomas said.

        “What does that mean?” Nick asked.

        “More physical therapy, you aren’t touring right now?” Dr. Thomas asked.

        “No, we are on a break, we got back to the studio in a couple of weeks,” Nick said.

        “I recommend ice packs on the knees and two weeks of physical therapy, Hayley, thanks for calling me, it’s always good for a second opinion,” Dr. Thomas said.

        “I feel like I’m failing you, Dr. Thomas,” Hayley said.

        “No, you aren’t, you are one of the best doctors in this hospital, you didn’t know this would happen,” Dr. Thomas said. Hayley nodded.

        “Dr. Thomas, I have a question, would Hayley lose her job if I was to ask her out?” Nick asked. Hayley looked at Nick and looked back at Dr. Thomas.

        “No, she wouldn’t, Nick, I have no problem with her dating her patients, as long as she deals with her patients equally and no special treatments,” Dr. Thomas said.

        “Thanks,” Nick said. Dr. Thomas nodded and left the room. Hayley took down the x-rays. She got out some crutches. She brought them over to Nick.

        “It’s best you use these while you are doing physical therapy,” Hayley said.

        “Thanks,” Nick said.

        “I would like to see you back here in a couple of weeks before you go into the studio and after you go to physical therapy,” Hayley said.

        “I’ll make an appointment,” Nick said. He got up and got the crutches and headed out the door. Hayley stood there thinking of everything.

Chapter 10

Two weeks later, Nick sat in an examination room while Hayley examined his legs.

        “Are they giving you any more problems?” Hayley asked.

        “No, they feel normal,” Nick said. Hayley nodded and wrote something down in her chart.

        “The x-rays should be done, I’ll be right back,” Hayley said. She went out the door. She saw Dr. Thomas.

        “Since Dr. Garrison retired, Hayley, I want you as my chief medical doctor here,” Dr. Thomas said.

        “Thank you, sir, I’m heading to get x-rays for Nick’s knees,” Hayley said. She got the x-rays and headed back to the room Nick was in. There was commotion down the hall and she turned and saw a guy running down the hall with a gun. She saw two orderlies running after him with hospital security. The guy saw her and grabbed her and held the guy to her throat.

        “Nobody move or she gets it,” the guy yelled. She heard him yelp and he fell to the floor. The gun landed at Hayley’s feet. The security guards grabbed it and the guy and took him away. Hayley stood there in shock. She turned and saw Nick holding one of his crutches. He dropped it and took her into his arms.

        “Are you okay?” Nick asked. Hayley shook her head. He helped her back into the room and sat her down and she looked up at him.

        “Nick, thank you,” Hayley said.

        “I couldn’t let anything happen to you,” Nick said cupping her cheek.

        “Your x-rays looked good, back to normal,” Hayley said. Nick smiled.

        “So I’m officially released?” Nick asked.

        “Yes,” Hayley said. She stood up and kissed him deeply. Dr. Thomas came in and smiled and cleared his throat. They looked at him.

        “Nick, take her home, she needs to rest after today, I’ll see you tomorrow, Hayley,” Dr. Thomas said. They went to Nick’s and collapsed on the bed and made love.

        “I want to be yours forever,” Hayley said. Nick smiled.

        “I want that, too,” Nick said kissing her neck. Hayley smiled and knew everything was the way it should be.

THE END!