Ryan was walking down the hall of the hospital, thinking through a treatment plan for one of his patients. He'd been overloading himself at work the past week. It guaranteed that he didn't have enough time to think about anything else.

He rounded a corner, heading to the nurses station when he heard a familiar voice. He stopped dead in his tracks and looked up to see Jon talking to his ex's best friend. Jon had his arms crossed and an unamused look on his face. Spencer looked as if he were ready to get down on his knees and beg.

Ryan felt himself growing anxious. Why would Spencer be here? He looked around the counter, trying to spot another familiar face. He ignored the twing of pain in his chest and turned his attention back to the two.

"I already told you yesterday, I want nothing to do with him. Even if I did, I would need him here to do anything." Spencer frowned at Jon.

"I already told you that he wouldn't come willingly."

"Then sorry, there's nothing I can do."

"Jon, please." Ryan couldn't take it anymore and approached the pair.

"Who are you two talking about?" The two snapped their heads to see Ryan standing beside them. They exchanged a quick look, Jon's eyes glaring as a silent warning.

"It's none of your concern," Jon said in a stern tone. Spencer gave a forced smile.

"I should get going." With that, he quickly made his way to the exit. Ryan looked over at Jon.

"So what's really going on?" Jon sighed and shook his head.

"Like I said, nothing you need to worry about." Jon left right after, heading down the hall Ryan just came from. Ryan turned to the nurse.

"Debby, what were those two talking about?" The brown haired nurse looked up at Ryan with a smile.

"Well that man was asking Jon for some medication for his sick friend," Debby said with a smile, liking being included in the gossip. Ryan felt as if his heart skipped a beat.

"Did you hear who the friend was?" She shook her head, giving an apologetic look.

"Sorry." Ryan nodded with a defeated sigh.

"Dr. Ross!" Ryan turned to see a shaggy, black haired doctor coming up to him.

"Dr. Way."

"I haven't seen you around lately." Ryan shrugged.

"Guess I've just been a little busy lately."

"And you run out the door as soon as you clock out." Ryan gave an apologetic smile. "Must have some important business outside work," Gerard said and wagged his eyebrows. Ryan's smile quickly faded.

"I did, but not so much anymore." He looked away, not wanting the conversation to go on anymore.

"What do you mean? Don't you usually hang out with Brendon when you're off?"

"Not anymore." He really didn't want to say it. Gee frowned and crossed his arms.

"Really? Well, is Brendon feeling better then?" Ryan's head snapped back.

"What do you mean?" Gerard tilted his head to the side in confusion.

"Isn't he sick? Spencer came by yesterday asking Jon for something to calm his friend's fever or something like that. I just assumed it was Bren." Ryan looked to the side and shook his head subtly.

"I-I didn't know," he whispered. Gerard watched the man suddenly start to lose his normal calm composure.

"Ry, you alright, bud?" Ryan shook his head faster and brought a hand to grip at the root of his brown hair.

"This is my fault," he said more to himself. Gerard reached his hands, no sure what to do.

"Uh Ryan. You okay?"

"He's sick because of me. Because I left him in the rain."

"Woah! Wait. You left your boyfriend in the rain? No wonder he's sick. What kind of boyfriend are you to leave that cinnamon roll in the rain?" Ryan looked over at Gerard, revealing a thickening line of tears forming in his eyes.

"We're not together anymore." Gerard's eyes widened in shock.

"What do you mean? You two are perfect for each other. What did you do to make him break up with you?"

"I broke up with him."

"You're kidding. You're ready to cry after hearing he's a little sick. Why would you break up with him?" Ryan dropped his head into his hands.

"Because he lied. I couldn't handle it."

"It couldn't have been that bad though. People lie all the time." Gerard let out a small chuckle paired with a smile.

"He has cancer and refuses to do anything about it." Ryan smacked his hand over his mouth to keep anymore from coming out. He'd was ignoring the breakup all week and now he felt a tidal wave of emotions slowly drowning him. Gerard's smile was gone as quickly as it came.

"W-what?" Ryan let out a shaky sob into his palm. His knees buckled, forcing him to use the counter to support his weight.

"The night I left, he chased me out into the rain and I just left him there. I was so upset that I didn't care what leaving him there in the cold would do to him. I'm the reason he's sick and he's probably being too stubborn to do something to get better."

"You still love him?"

"Of course I do!" Gerard chuckled at Ryan's snappy tone.

"Then what are you still doing here? Go! Make sure he's alright." A sliver of doubt wormed into Ryan's mind, stopping him from sprinting over to Brendon's place.

"Talk to him. You know you'll kick yourself later if you don't at least get a reason." Ryan nodded and turned to hurry down the hall. He stopped and looked at Gerard.

"Wait. My patients." Now he regretted taking up so many cases.

"I'll take care of them. Don't worry."

"But you're ortho."

"Please. I saw your schedule for today. It's all general. I can handle it." Gerard finished with a confident smile that Ryan returned.

"Thanks Gee."

"You owe me a drink." Ryan nodded in agreement. "Go, see your man." Ryan turned and headed to the exit. Gerard let out a small chuckle as he watched Ryan disappear from sight. "Debby, can I see Ryan's case files." Debby nodded, pulled out a stack of files and set them on the counter. Gerard let out a miserable groan. "Any chance I can change my mind about doing these?" Debby shook her head with a smile getting Gerard to sigh in defeat. "Fine, but if Frankie calls, make sure to put the blame for me working overtime on Ross. Got it?" Debby smirked and nodded again.

Ryan couldn't help but smile when the sun shined over him when he made it to his car. He swore he'd never driven so fast in his life. He also appreciated how little traffic there was in the middle of the day. It wasn't long before he was parked out in the front of Brendon's place. He found himself frozen in his seat looking at the front door to the building. His heart was beating insanely fast. Time slowly ticked by as he tried building up the courage to get out of the car.

He took a deep breath and cut the engine. With another breath, he pushed the door open and climbed out. Each step made him more nervous. This was it. After a week of him working himself to death so he didn't have time to deal with the pain of losing his love, he was forced to face his emotions head on.

Memories of Brendon flashed through his mind as he made his way up the few flights of stairs to the floor Brendon lived on. Ryan slowly moved passed the numbered doors, his heart pounding in his chest. He stopped in front of the door he'd gone into countless times already. He slowly rose up his hand, ready to knock not he wood. He couldn't calm his nerves enough to physically move.

He was worried about what would happened once his knock was answered. How would Brendon react? Would he be pissed? Happy? What if they still ended up apart after they talked? What if no one answered at all?

With a trembling hand, he knocked on the door three times and took a small step back. He looked down at the floor, concentrating on keeping himself calm. He flinched when he heard the sound of the door unlocking. The watched the door glide across the floor as it was pulled open. Ryan could see the man's feet pause at the entrance.

"Ryan?" Ryan let out at small gasp at the voice. "What are you doing here?" He brought his gaze up, eyes moving up the familiar body hidden under baggy clothes. He couldn't stop the few tears from streaming down his face when he locked eyes with the other. His bottom lip trembled, causing his voice to shake as he let out a hoarse voice,

"Brendon."

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A/N:

I've been trying to update more often since I don't have school right now and since I'm gonna be away for Christmas, I wanted to do a quick update before I left so here you go 😁 I hope you enjoy. Happy holidays! Stay safe! Love you y'all 🖤❤️