‘Nah. He’s all yours...’ Sophie ended the conversation abruptly, jogging forward to greet Sam. ‘Hey, there, Sam. You’re very tall all of a sudden!’
Sam leaned over, tapping the top of Sophie’s head, and she laughed.
‘We’d better go and sign in. Are you going to join us, Sophie?’
Recognising that Sophie had played a part in their efforts today, and wanting her to share in the credit, was a nice gesture on Matt’s part. The walk between here and the awning that covered the reception area was lined with people and they were all cheering.
‘No, that’s okay.’ Sophie grinned conspiratorially at Hannah’s mother. ‘You take Sam.’
As they started to walk, she heard Sophie’s voice behind her. Then the people lining their way started a Mexican wave, cheering and shouting. She heard Matt chuckle as Sam screamed with glee.
‘Oh! She didn’t...’
‘I think she did.’ Matt’s voice seemed very close all of a sudden. ‘One last push and we’re home...’
The embarrassment, and the thought that there were so many expectations on her shoulders, made this walk seem harder, and longer than all the rest put together. Sam waved his flag, as people ducked and straightened in a new ripple that followed them all the way to the reception area. Matt lifted Sam down, and Hannah hugged him.
‘Run straight back to Sophie and Grandma now, sweetie. Matt and I have to do some things, but I’ll see you later.’ Hannah gestured to her mother, making sure that she saw that Sam was on his way back.
‘I can take him. Sign me in...’ A worried look crossed Matt’s face, and Hannah shook her head.
‘It’s okay. He can do that by himself.’ Hannah watched as Sam scampered back, making sure that he didn’t get distracted. Sophie took his hand, bending down to say something to him, and Sam turned, giving her a wave.
‘He’s great.’ Matt was watching too. ‘I’ll bet he’s a bit of a handful...’
‘He’s more than just a bit of a handful. But all the best kids are.’
Matt nodded thoughtfully. Then he turned suddenly, as if tearing himself away from the boy, and walked towards the signing-in table.
* * *
They’d responded to the interview questions, giving all the expected answers. They’d enjoyed the challenge, and were feeling good, and hoping they’d done well. Now that they were alone, Hannah’s optimism seemed to have subsided into a worried determination. They’d reached their pretend patient first, but there was still the matter of how they’d answered the judges’ questions. Matt was confident that they’d outlined the right course of action clinically speaking, but maybe they’d missed something that the other teams had seen.
Hannah was getting more and more nervous, and he tried to think of something he might say to her. There was nothing. He was nervous, too.
Taking Sam onto his shoulders had been the most challenging part of the day. Being responsible for a child, even if it was only for a few minutes and his grandmother was close by. Sam hadn’t been taught to be afraid, and the way he’d clung to Matt, confident that he’d keep him safe, had been a new experience.
He shouldn’t read too much into it. Hannah’s mother and Sophie both looked after Sam as naturally as Hannah did. The boy was a happy, normal kid. The thought that he could be a part of what Hannah had was entirely inappropriate. And the more urgent desire to touch her was equally inappropriate.
Finally, the four teams were gathered, cameras pointing at them to record their reactions. One of the judging panel stood up and started to talk into the microphone, giving an overview of each team’s performance. Hannah was standing next to Matt, looking very nervous.
‘I’m taking bets on how long he’s going to drag this out...’ He bent, whispering into her ear behind his hand, so that the camera couldn’t record his words. Even now there was a freshness about her scent that worked its way into his consciousness.
She looked up at him, smiling suddenly. ‘Two minutes.’
‘Okay. I’ll say thirty seconds. Loser buys coffee next time round.’ Matt reckoned it would be closer to three minutes. But at the moment, buying coffee for Hannah was his idea of being a winner.
She threw him a sceptical look. Matt fixed his eyes on the clock and Hannah followed suit. The second hand ticked around, and he felt her nudge him when it had signalled that two minutes had passed. He looked down at her and found that her smile was worth the price of a thousand cups of coffee.
‘You win.’ He murmured the words to her just as the judge’s voice crashed into his consciousness.
‘And the winners are... Matt and Hannah, for Hamblewell Hospital.’
Cheers erupted from the crowd, and Matt could see Sam jumping up and down, doing the victory dance he’d done with Hannah last week. Hannah seemed paralysed by the news, and he took the lead, shaking the hands of the other competitors. Matt waited until she’d followed suit, and then propelled her towards the judge.
She shook his hand, smiling and holding aloft the medal that he’d draped around her neck. Matt received his, standing next to Hannah, as everyone cheered. It was a dizzying, almost surreal experience. Winning this with Hannah was a more potent achievement than he’d thought.
An endless round of handshakes and congratulations. And then suddenly they were alone.