#oph bryce

Posting for @choicesmcappreciationweek for A Day in the Life! Olivia, Malia, and Makoa are all original characters

With this little cutie born this past week, Olivia’s days are very much filled with caring for her new bundle of joy. Both she and Bryce are on leave from the hospital so they can spend time with their family.

~~~

The car ride home was quieter than usual.  Typically after a night out with friends, they’d spend the drive home chatting and laughing as they rehashed the entire evening from rating their meals to dissecting the dinner conversations, and everything in between.  

But tonight, Ava was quietly gazing out the window, keeping her thoughts to herself.

Drake cleared his throat.  “So...that wasn’t nearly as awful as I thought it was gonna be. Charlie is pretty cool, and I guess McDreamy isn’t too bad once you get to know him.”

“Um hmm.”

He was surprised. The McDreamy comment should have earned him a laugh, or at the very least a well-deserved, I told you so.   

“The food was really good. Solid 8. We should go back again sometime.”

“Sure.”

Jesus. It was easier to get the last bit of toothpaste out of the tube than it was to get a full sentence out of his fiancée tonight. The fuck?

“So, game night at our place next week, huh?” He tried and almost succeeded at keeping the dread out of his tone, “That should be…fun. Can’t wait.”

“Yeah.” Ava murmured, completely missing the sarcasm that laced his words, “It should be a good time.”

Drake glanced over at her. She was so distracted tonight.   But why? 

He reached for her hand, squeezing it gently. “What’s the matter, babe? Is everything okay? You feel alright?”

She turned her head and gave a weak smile. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired I guess.”

Then she turned back to the window and stayed that way until they reached his cabin. 

Once inside, Ava headed straight upstairs to get ready for bed.  

Drake sighed and grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge before following her up.

He perched on the edge of their bed, watching as she took off her jewelry, piece by piece, and laid them carefully on the dresser. She pulled the band from her hair and combed her fingers through her locks until they fell in soft waves around her shoulders.

Then she reached behind her back looking for the zipper on her dress, but before she could grasp it, Drake was behind her, sliding it down slowly as their eyes met in the mirror.

“Ava.” He said softly. “What’s going on? Talk to me.”

She averted her eyes, shaking her head slowly, “It’s nothing. It’s silly.”

Drake placed his hands on her shoulders and guided her around until she was facing him.

“I thought we agreed not to keep any secrets.” He reached out to tuck a tendril of hair behind her ear, “We’re a team, remember?”

Ava nodded. “I remember.”

“So spill it. Why are you upset? Did I do something…”

"No!" Ava shook her head, placing a reassuring hand on his arm. “God…no…you’re perfect.” She slid her hand up his arm until she reached his neck. She threaded her fingers through the hair at his nape, drawing him in for a long, deep kiss before pulling away to rest her forehead against his. “I love you so much.”

“I love you more.” He whispered as he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close. As he went in for another kiss, Ava placed her palms on his chest and leaned away. 

Drake looked confused. 

“Do you think we’re moving too fast?” She blurted.

Surprised, Drake immediately let go of her.

“Moving too fast?” He frowned, “What do you mean?”

“Us.” Ava tilted her head up to look at him, concern etched in her expression. “You and me. Our relationship.” 

“That’s it?” Drake let out a relieved laugh, “Shit, Ava. I thought it was something important. You were starting to freak me out.”

Ava’s eyes went wide. “What do you mean…that’s it? This is important, Drake! If you think about it…we barely know each other!” She started to pace as words tumbled from her lips, “I mean… We never even dated before we got engaged. We just skipped right over all of those…milestones that normal relationships have. And…God, there’s so much we haven’t even talked about. Like…I don’t even know your middle name…or … ” Her brain raced wildly, “...or your favorite color…or if you’re a dog person or a cat person!” 

“Jackson. Blue. And…that's a choice I could never make.” He quirked a brow, “There. Do you feel like you know me better now?” 

“Don’t make light of this, Drake.” Ava’s eyes welled with tears, “It’s serious.”

Drake sighed as he reached out to place his hands on her shoulders. “Sweetheart,” he began, his voice calm and soothing. “Respectfully…it’s really not that serious. We know the important things …the things that really matter.   So to answer your question … No, I don’t think we’re moving too fast. I love you and there isn't a single doubt in my mind that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. But if you’re having doubts…”

“No.” Ava reached out for his hand, interlacing their fingers together as she gazed earnestly into his eyes. “It’s not that I have doubts. I love you so much, and I know I want to be with you forever. But …”

When she paused, he nudged her with his shoulder. “But?”

“But …we’ve only known each other for six months.  And for the first two months…we couldn’t stand each other!”

“Not true,” Drake corrected. “You couldn’t stand ME. I only pretended not to like you.”

Ava smiled. “I was only pretending too. You had me at ‘wow.’”

They both laughed, and some of the tension melted away.  

“You looked really hot in that green dress.” Drake smirked, “I couldn’t help myself.”

Ava’s smile faded slightly as the anxiety crept back in. “We’ve been through so much together in such a short time. Sometimes I worry that we’ve just skated over some really important things. Our whole relationship has been spent sneaking around behind everyone’s backs and stealing moments together wherever we could. We never even went on a real date before we got engaged.”

Drake nodded in understanding. “Look Ava… you’re right, our relationship hasn't been exactly…conventional.  But somehow, despite everything, we still managed to find time to fall in love."

Ava smiled. “The moments in between.”

“Exactly.”

He ran his fingers through his hair as he struggled for words to give her the reassurance she needed. “I feel like we wasted so much goddamn time, Ava …time that we could’ve spent together if we’d only been honest about our feelings from the very beginning. So, when I woke up in that hospital bed and found out you were safe …I felt like we’d been given a second chance, and I wasn’t about to waste a single second this time.” He shrugged, “So, yeah, maybe things are moving a little fast. But just because we’re engaged, it doesn’t mean we have to get married right away. We can take all the time we need to learn all the little stuff…because we already know the most important thing…we love each other.” “I do love you so much.” Ava flung herself into his arms and buried her face in his chest, as all of her concerns melted away in the comfort of his embrace.

Drake pressed his lips against her temple for a moment before resting his chin on the top of her head as they swayed gently.

After a few minutes, Ava pulled back and gazed up at him with a mischievous look in her eyes. “So tell me more about how hot I looked in that green dress.”

Drake chuckled. “You looked smoking hot. I could barely keep my eyes off you all night.”

“Keep going…”

The sultry tone in her voice had him instantly aroused.  

“I fantasized about sliding my hands up your leg…just like this…” His hand found her thigh and began trailing upward, “... sliding them under that dress until I was touching you…here…like this.”

Ava moaned as Drake's strong fingers slid under the elastic of her thong and immediately found their mark.

“I imagined you making that exact sound.” His voice grew husky as she arched against his fingers as he stroked her, “Because I was pretty sure you wanted me just as much as I wanted you…”

“Oh…I did.” Ava’s voice was breathy as Drake’s expert touch already had her on the edge. “I definitely did.”

Just as she was about to tumble over, Drake pulled his hand away.  

Ava cried out. “Draaaake!”

“Are you sure, though?” He arched his brow. “You didn’t have any doubts about how you were feeling that night?  Because if you did, we should probably discuss them.”

“Oh my God…you’re such an asshole!”

“You’re right. I am.” Drake nodded solemnly, “We should probably talk about that too.”

Ava mewled in frustration as she reached out to grab his shirt in both hands. “Would you just shut up and kiss me already? No more talking!”

Drake chuckled and picked her up, easily tossing her over his shoulder as he carried her to their huge four-poster bed. “Now you’re speaking my language.”

—

"Can you tell me where we're going yet? Please?" Charlie begged as they drove north out of the city. With every turn they took, she tried to speculate where they could be headed, but to no avail. All Bryce had given her was that it didn't matter what she wore, and that ruled out any sort of dressy affair or anything physically demanding. If he was taking her to another new health and fitness store, so help her… Despite what Bryce has said,  you can absolutely have too many tubs of protein powder hogging counter space in your kitchen.

"Charlie, you've made it this far. I don't think  you'll suddenly keel over from the anticipation - but if you do, I know CPR."

She shook her head. "Those doctor jokes never get old for you, do they? I can't even fathom how corny you'll be once you get to the dad joke stage."

"You might find out sooner than you think."

"What?" Charlie placed a hand on her stomach. "You know something I don’t? You aren't taking part in some secret male pregnancy study in your department, are you?"

Bryce laughed out loud. "No…nevermind. Just running my mouth again." 

"As per usual." It was Charlie’s turn to laugh. It never ceased to amaze her how Bryce could say things that would make anyone else seem like a pompous asshole, yet he appeared funny and charming. But just what did he mean with that dad joke comment? Probably just another nonsensical thing he let slip out without thinking, she decided.

“I won’t ask again where we’re going, but can you at least tell me how much longer?” she pleaded. “If you don’t, I might have to ask you ‘are we there yet?’ every fifteen seconds.”

Bryce rolled his eyes. “Think you can handle waiting ten more minutes?”

His answer appeased Charlie enough to get her to stop asking questions, but she was getting more and more confused as they entered an industrial park area - not her ideal location for any sort of date she could imagine, and there didn't seem to be any storefronts. 

They pulled into the side lot of a large unremarkable brick building. As Bryce drove around to the front and into a parking spot near the main entrance, Charlie read the sign out loud. "Furry Friends Animal Rescue? What are we doing here?"

"What do you think, silly?" Bryce grinned. "You've only been suggesting we get a dog every day since we moved in together."

"Really?!" Charlie squealed with excitement. "But you kept saying we're too busy, which isn't untrue."

"I know, but things are starting to calm down with our last year of residency, and there’s that great doggy daycare next to the hospital. Besides, what better way to ensure you're stuck with me than a joint fifteen-or-so-year commitment?"

She laughed, but it did feel like an important and somewhat binding next step in their relationship. "Wait…" something clicked for Charlie. "Is this what you meant by the dad joke thing in the car? We aren't going to be those dog parents that dress up our dog, call it our fur child, and throw it birthday parties, are we?"

"We already have his daycare picked out." Bryce smirked. "You know we will be."

Charlie sighed. "You're probably right. Now, what are we waiting for? Let's go pick out our baby. 

The facility was holding a big adoption event and was bustling with people searching for their new pets. There were multiple pens of puppies scattered about, with older dogs in kennels along the wall.

"Have you thought about what kind you want?" Charlie asked.

Bryce shook his head. "Not in particular. Just not a little ankle-biter. I want a dog we can take on hikes and can go running with me."

"Agreed." Charlie scanned the room and decided to avoid the crowds surrounding the puppy pens and peruse the kennels first. It was hard not to want to take them all home, especially when each of their eyes seemed to ask if she'd be the one to rescue them.

Bryce stopped in front of a 2-year-old golden doodle who yipped and jumped nearly to the top of the kennel door. "This one might even have a little too much energy, even for me."

They kept walking, waiting for the one to stand out, and then Charlie spotted him - a brindle-colored dog with floppy ears and a smooth, shiny coat. He definitely wasn't fully grown, but wasn't as small as any of the young puppies with their littermates in the center of the room.

Just then, a shelter volunteer walked up beside them. "This one is the last of his litter. He's 6 months old and a little shy, but a great dog. I'm not sure how he hasn't gotten adopted yet, other than people seem to either want younger puppies they can fully train from the start or adult dogs out of the puppy stage."

"Aww!" Charlie knelt down and the dog cautiously approached the front of the kennel. His ears perked up and his tail started wagging as he tried to give her kisses through the crate. "He likes me!" 

"He sure seems to. I don't think I introduced myself. I'm Robin." They held out their hand for Bryce and Charlie to shake. "And this is George. He was part of a Grey's Anatomy-themed litter."

"Well if that's not a sign, I don't know what is." Bryce ducked down to greet George, whose tail began wagging even faster.

"We're both doctors," Charlie explained.

"It was meant to be," Robin agreed. "Do you want to think about it or look around some more, or are you ready to fill out the adoption paperwork?"

Charlie looked to Bryce who nodded in agreement. "I think this is the one. Let's do it!"

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