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thebrochtuarachs · 3 years

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Something in the Rain - “Finding Solid Ground”

A/N: Hi all! This chapter has been in the drafts for quite sometime now but I only had the time to pick up the writing. Thank you so much for your patience with my slow updates but rest assured, I absolutely love this story and daydream about the chapters ahead. As always, your comment and suggestions help a lot moving this story forward. Hope you all are keeping safe and healthy! Till the next one!

AO3 / C1: A Day In June : C2: Definitely, Maybe : C3: So We Meet Again : C4: Friday Lunch

XXXXX

She was 45 minutes late.

Claire was running as fast as she could, catching some curious eyes on her as she raced towards Mrs. Kim’s Korean Street Food Hub to hopefully, still catch Jamie for their lunch.

She got off from her morning surgery quite late due to some complications but she still went as courtesy and because, in all honesty, she still wanted to see him. Their last encounter kind of left them in an awkward place and she was hoping that this meeting could help clarify some things. She has been waiting for this all week but alas, life (and medicine) had other plans.

Claire entered the store and knew instantly that he wasn’t there. The place was empty after the lunch rush and she sighed in disappointment.

“Claire!” Mrs. Kim suddenly called out. “This is for you, left by your friend”, she said while handing her a piece of paper.

“Thank you” Claire replied, opening it on spot.

Hi Claire,

Sorry, I left before you arrived but I have to get back to the office. Don’t worry about the wait, I really don’t mind but I just have a packed schedule today.

Forgive me if this is too forward but here’s my number. No pressure! Just figured we can text or call whenever is a better time to catch up. Just hit me up when you feel like it and I’ll be on the other line.

I do hope to hear from you soon. If not, I’ll be here next Friday, same time :)

Jamie

Claire did not waste any more time and punched in Jamie’s mobile number to call. After three rings, he answered.

“Hello?”

“Jamie? It’s me, Claire.”

“Claire, hi! I see you got my note.”

“I did. I am so sorry. My surgery ran a little bit long and…”

“Don’t worry, I figured that must be it.” he said cheerfully, cutting her off before she went into a long explanation. “I mean, you save lives and all, couldn’t be angry about that.”

Claire sighed relief on the other line and couldn’t believe just how understanding he is. So understanding that she’s starting to wonder if he’s even real. She hasn't really met anyone that chivalrous and it captures her.

“Oh, wow. Thank you - and thank you for the note and your number. My guilt would’ve eaten me alive if I couldn’t apologize to you.”

“You don’t think it was too forward?”

“No, not at all. To be honest, I was going to ask it last week before we got, erm, interrupted.”

“Well, that’s good to know. And in any case, I would’ve given it.” Jamie said.

She could hear his smile from the other line and she couldn’t help but smile too.

“Anyhow,” Claire followed. “I am so sorry I missed you today. To make up for it, would you happen to be doing anything tomorrow?”

“Hmm, let me check." Jamie checked his board calendar. "Nope, my weekend is free. Anything you had in mind?”

“Well, if you’re up for it, I’d like to invite you to the center tomorrow, see what we’re doing with the kids. Fair warning though, they get a little rowdy sometimes.”

“I’m game! Text me the details and what time to meet you.”

“Really? Great! Sure, I’ll text you the details in a bit”

“Will wait for it. Claire, sorry to cut this short but I have to run to a meeting. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Oh no, please. Go ahead. I’ll see you tomorrow, Alright, bye!”

It was a Saturday, two weeks since their encounter by the crossing, and now she’s waiting for him to arrive and bring him to one of the most special places for her.

Claire hadn’t absolutely thought through what inviting Jamie to the center would mean. Reflecting on yesterday, a part of Claire thought she may have panicked and this invite might’ve been a mistake. On another end was a part of her that was excited to see him and if she was really being honest, spend time with him, and show her the work they have been doing.

She had told her their meeting story and the extended invite to her friends and staff but left out the part about their lunches. She messaged the team on WhatsApp about their upcoming guest and her inbox has blown with messages asking her for more details about the man himself. She messaged that they’ll be able to find out for themselves tomorrow when they meet him and turned off her phone.

“Claire?” Deep in thought she hadn’t seen or hear Jamie arrive. “You okay?”

“Yeah, sorry. Spaced out there for a bit” she embarrassingly admitted.

“A penny for your thoughts?” Jamie asked as Claire pointed the way in.

“Erm, nothing much. Just thinking about giving you fair warning about everyone upstairs. They’re quite curious about you, Jamie Fraser.” she said jokingly the half truth.

Jamie got a bit nervous suddenly and Claire felt it. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll save you if they get too rowdy. Be ready to answer questions though." She said, smiling, hoping to ease his thoughts.

“Is any topic off limits? Should I not mention anything to them?”

“I leave it to you. But if you ask me, just be yourself and charm everyone away”

Jamie chuckled and Claire turned to him. “What?”

“You think I’m charming?”

Claire laughed and smacked him in the arm. “Oh, bug off!”

“I’ll take that as a yes”

“Anyway!” Claire interrupted. “Today’s event is just art and crafts and a story session. The rest, the kids can do and play how ever they like. I usually just play with any kid who asks me to and time just flies and suddenly, the afternoon is done.”

“Got it. I honestly hope I can help more than distract or whatever”

“Pssh, you’ll be fine, Jamie. You’ll be fine”

The moment the elevator doors opened, a line of people greeted Jamie and Claire at the entrance.

“Hello, everyone” Claire greeted but to her surprise, no one spoke or moved. Everyone was just looking at Jamie. “This is Jamie. Jamie Fraser, our guest for today”

She ushered them closer to the stunned group and began to introduce them one by one.

Mary, the receptionist and admin assistant.

Mrs. Graham, the secretariat and head of operations.

Joe, also a surgeon from Claire’s hospital.

Frank, the history professor he’d met a week earlier.

Geilis, a botanist and herbalist.

“It’s nice to meet you all. Thank you for having me this afternoon.” Jamie said and it was only then that the ice was broken.

“Hi, Jamie was it? Can I call you Jamie?” Mrs. Graham prodded.

“Yes, Mam”

“Alright, this way. Let me show you around”

As Mrs. Graham swept Jamie away for a short tour, the rest of the group crowded Claire with questions.

“Okay, he is even more handsome than in the pictures!” Geilis excitedly said.

“Pictures?” Claire asked.

“Ugh, I sometimes forget you’re a doctor who needs to catch up to the times” Geilis pinched her nose jokingly. “Jamie was named one of Scotland’s most eligible bachelors in a tatler magazine last year. There’s pretty striking photos of him in a tux and in casual clothes.”

“I remember that issue. Gail had one lying in the house and I happen to peruse it one time. You’re right, the pictures don’t do him justice.” Joe chimed in.

“I had no idea. I mean, I just literally bumped into the guy on the street!” Claire said, a curiosity pooling in her mind. She had to look for that magazine later.

“Such a meet-cute story. Ugh, Claire! It’s like something out of the books or movies” Geilis added.

“Psh, he seems too manly for me. I mean, who is that fit and that put together.” Frank mused.

“I think he’s quite charming” Joe added.

“If you ask me, Claire, I don’t know what’s going on between you two but keep it going” Geilis added.

“Aish, nothing is going on. I just extended a polite invite to make up for - “ Claire stopped as Jamie and Mrs. Graham arrived back, thankful for the Interruption.

“Make up for what?” Geilis asked, not missing that info.

“Oh, nothing.”

“Mhm” Geilis hummed raising an eyebrow to Claire. She’ll pull it out of her later.

---

It was a long but fun afternoon for everyone.

Afterwards, one by one, the space cleared out, the kids were picked up, saying goodbye to the staff with some even approaching and waving at Jamie as they left, leaving him with a heartwarming feeling.

“Well, another successful weekend, folks!” Frank called out and the team gave themselves applause.

“Great job to Joe and Mary for taking on the storytelling and painting sessions this afternoon and I would also like to thank our guest, Jamie, for being patient and helpful with the kids” Mrs. Graham added, earning another group applause.

“Thank ye, I hope I helped at all today but otherwise, I enjoyed today and thank ye for inviting me.” Jamie shared.

“Come join us anytime” Joe patted him on the back. “Alright, everyone, have a goodnight. See you all next week, I’ll bring Gail and Lenny along.” With that he made a way for the elevator and it was everyone’s cue to leave.

Claire approached Jamie just as he was going to her. “Well, how are you and how was it?” she asked. If she expected to spend time with Jamie, well, it didn’t happen. First, he was whisked away by Mrs. Graham. Afterwards, it was Joe asking help to build his set. Next up was Mary who got him assisting on getting and serving the food, and the rest of the time, it was kids calling out on Jamie here and there and he was more than happy to oblige.

“Fun and a little bit tiring” he replied and Claire gave a small laugh. “But in all honesty, thank ye for inviting me to come here. Made me miss my niece and nephew”

“I’m glad you had fun and I’m glad you got to see what we’re doing here.”

Jamie might be overthinking things but he knew that Claire sharing this part of her to him seems like a big thing and he intends to cherish that.

“Anyway, I’d like to offer to drive ye home...or to the nearest bus stop” he added, panicking he put her in a tight spot.

Claire paused, eyed him jokingly, intentionally making him more flush and nervous.

“I’d take that offer but” she began and Jamie swallowed the lump on his throat, “I actually live nearby so we don’t need to drive”

“Okay,” Jamie sighed in relief which Claire found very cute. “Lead the way, then”

#outlander #outlander fanfic #outlander fanfiction #SITR #something in the rain #fanfic #fanfiction #jamie fraser #claire fraser #jamie x claire #AU #light AU #fun AU #mia writes #TB writes #feel free to drop your comments and suggestions #would love to hear from you guys

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biletdoux · 3 years

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waiting: physical therapy | d.sc

Rating: G (in this part)

Genre + Tropes: non-idol!au, romance (angst, slice of life)

Warnings: mentions of a car accident

Length: 1.2k+

Summary: Sicheng is a creature of habit.

Note: it’s a little late, but i’m back!! i swear i’m working on my other works as well, i’ve just been a little caught up with school and work ;; this one is for @odentist and @adamfoolcry bc ilysm!! i know i’ve been absent, but you guys are in my thoughts always. thank you for putting up with me!!! it means a lot and i’ll work on being better at keeping in contact<3 also, i know not many people read my works, but i’m always super grateful toward the people who do <333

Masterlist // [Previous | Next]

part iv: physical therapy

Sicheng has physical therapy every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning from 09:00 to 11:00. He arrives at each session exactly 15 minutes early every time and although the receptionist who registers him varies depending on the day, Minho is always there to greet him with a bright smile. Sicheng would then set his stuff aside in a designated locker for the day and he’d start off the morning with some light stretches before the actual session started. This has been his routine for the past few months now.

Today is no different.

“Sicheng,” Minho grins with a tap of his electronic watch. “Eight forty-five on the dot as usual.”

Sicheng shoots a small smile with an acknowledging nod of the head in reply as he rolls his wrists and starts loosening his ankles. His joints ache and creak in ways that bother him more than it should and his stiff muscles hiss in protest. Sicheng understands he should be grateful that he could at least walk and stretch on his own, but he can’t help but become bitter when he remembers his old lithe self. Minho is oblivious to Sicheng’s inner machinations as he mirrors him and does his own set of stretches.

Sicheng is a dancer. Was. Is. Sicheng will be a dancer again. One day. Yes, one day. Definitely. Hopefully.

While at heart, Sicheng will always be a dancer, his body is broken and won’t move in ways that it once did. Minho helps build him back up two hours at a time, three days a week, but Sicheng knows his body will never go back to the way it used to be prior to the accident.

Sicheng remembers waking up with a hazy mind and heavy limbs. The bleak whiteness of his room and bed sheets blinded him as he struggled to register his surroundings. The plastic nasal cannula delivered heated high flow oxygen through his body and the wires attached to his body alerted the nearby nurses of his rousing. They came in and took a set of vitals before talking to him sweetly, as to not alarm him too much, but his head ached and Sicheng still can’t recall much of what happened the first few days he came to.

The doctors said a lot of things, but Sicheng extracted that he was lucky.

Among other things, the impact left him with two broken ribs and a punctured lung. They told him he was transported to a nearby hospital just in time before his left lung completely collapsed, but his spleen had ruptured, requiring emergency surgery to prevent further internal bleeding. There was moderate trauma to his head, resulting in cerebral contusions and swelling, but they determined his central nervous system came out unscathed. Sicheng’s mind and recollection was still foggy and tattered, but they assured him that it would return. Perhaps in pieces, but one by one it should come back.

Sicheng was bedridden for over a month and required an additional month of intensive in-patient hospital rehabilitation from his injuries and deconditioning before he was even cleared for discharge and out-patient rehabilitation. The doctors were surprised by his progress and had a positive outlook on his prospect, but Sicheng knows.

Things will never be the same.

Sicheng enrolled in the best out-patient rehabilitation his insurance provided for him and that was how he met Minho, a ray of sunshine and the epitome of positivity. Minho’s relentless encouragement lapped at Sicheng’s bitterness and eventually wore him down. Now Sicheng finds himself looking forward to their sessions together, despite having to face he’s no longer who he was.

“Are you ready?” Minho asks. “We’re going to work on strengthening today.”

During his first session with Minho, Sicheng still wobbled on his feet. The hospital sent him home with a walker and pair of crutches, but Sicheng found it insulting when pirouettes and grand jetés used to come as second nature. Minho introduced himself with a fervor that had Sicheng wincing. He didn’t want to be here, especially when it meant entrusting his recovery with some happy-go-lucky sap.

Sicheng gave Minho the cold shoulder the entire session and completely ignored any suggestions or advice. This went on for a few more times until Sicheng almost collapsed one day from pushing himself too hard despite Minho’s warnings. His legs were cramping and his lungs felt like they were going to burst. Sicheng nearly toppled over had it not been for Minho there ready to steady him at a moment's notice. Minho said nothing as Sicheng heaved in long and heavy breaths as his skin glistened with a light sheen of sweat.

Minho was quiet and didn’t say much. Sicheng appreciated him for not rubbing too much salt in his wounds.

During the last twenty minutes of that session where Minho was helping Sicheng with stretches, he broke their strained silence.

“Sicheng, you have to be kind to yourself and allow yourself time and patience. I know it’s tough, but things will come back. The mind may forget, but the body always remembers.”

Sicheng didn’t say anything back, but he couldn’t find it in himself to scoff back like he would at any other tacky saying and ever since then, he grew to have a quiet respect and even tentative friendship with his physical therapist.

Sicheng looks forward to Friday sessions the most. Usually they do strengthening most of the time and today is no different. It’s harder on his body than other sessions, but he enjoys the steady ache of his muscles afterward. He views it as a sign of progress and Sicheng takes in greedy gulps.

Sicheng finishes today’s sessions on autopilot, barely noticing the minutes that flew by until it was time to stretch. Minho helps push and hold positions when Sicheng can’t and he’s grateful.

“Hey what’s up with you today?”

“Hm?” Sicheng is flat on his back and Minho is supporting his right knee to Sicheng’s chest. “What are you talking about?”

“Dunno,” Minho hums thoughtfully as he switches to stretch Sicheng’s left leg. “You just seem tired.”

“Oh. I’ve been having trouble sleeping I guess.”

“Will talking about it help?”

Sicheng ponders his offer for a minute before a soft grunt escapes his lips. His left leg is always stiffer than his right and Minho is pushing it today. “No, I don’t think so, but I’ll be fine. Thanks.”

“Okay, I’ll take your word for it. Try to get good rest though, it’s crucial for recovery.”

Minho understands Sicheng enough to know exactly when and where to push, physically and personally. A comfortable quiet settles between them until the session is over.

Sicheng cools down in the locker room before heading out and waving goodbye to Minho and the receptionist of the day.

By 11:20, the sun is out and the streets are busy. Sicheng has to block out rays of light from his eyes as he looks up to see the buildings to decide what the next move for the day will be. Maybe some lunch?

He ponders quietly to himself before noticing a tap on his shoulder and turns to see a girl.

“Sicheng, is that you?”

Note: oooof, this one isn’t as whimsical and fluffy as the other cause it has lots of exposition, but finally mores stuff is revealed about sicheng!!

#nctcreations #cznnet #neowritingsnet #NCTmentary.net #winwin scenario #winwin fanfic #winwin angst #nct scenario #nct fanfic #nct angst #wayv scenario #wayv fanfic #wayv angst

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prettywordsyouleft · 4 years

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MonX Hospital | Minhyuk

Pairing: Lee Minhyuk x reader

Genre: orderly – hospital au / strangers to lovers / angst-fluff

Warnings: medical terms and illness

Word count: 3778

“Who ordered a ride?”

The pale child lying within his bed turned, perking up and smiled at Minhyuk’s arrival. “It’s you!”

“Why, who else would be able to make the best hospital bed turns than me?” Leaning down to pat the child’s head affectionately, Minhyuk then smiled at the nurse waiting for his arrival. “I hear we’re off for a scan!”

“Will it be scary?” the child asked whilst Minhyuk took the brakes off the bed. Stopping for a moment, he shook his head. “Ever wanted to fly up into space?”

“Like in a rocket?”

“Yeah, just like that. Close your eyes and imagine you’re flying right up and past Jupiter! That’s a long way to go, isn’t it?!”

“Will I get to see Pluto?”

“Well, I don’t know,” Minhyuk answered, pretending to ponder his thoughts. “Will you tell me if you do?”

“I will!”

“Then let’s get going!” Minhyuk exclaimed, shooting a wink at the grateful nurse who fare-welled him and the patient off.

Minhyuk enjoyed his job as an orderly at MonX Hospital. A lot of people aimed to become a doctor or nurse to help the sick but there were a whole lot of roles that a hospital needed people for. Cooking and cleaning employed just as many staff as doctors and nurses, and lab technicians supported findings that doctors weren’t trained to process themselves. There were countless maintenance teams, receptionists and administrators who filled in all the paperwork and kept the place running efficiently.

No one seemed to think of the orderlies though. The role had challenges with being time-dependent and efficient with knowing where to transport a patient to. They were a fundamental part of a well-planned surgery timetable, getting patients there in time for the doctors to heal the sick, and taking them to appointments so the nurses could continue to look after the other patients in the ward. It was important to Minhyuk to not only do all the above but make the experience of being in a hospital a little brighter.

It was far easier with children and older women, admittedly.

“You remind me of my first love,�� a frail elderly lady exclaimed as Minhyuk wheeled her towards her scheduled hip replacement surgery.

Shooting the woman a surprised look, Minhyuk then chuckled. “Really? Someone as handsome as me existed before now?”

“Oooh, you’re trouble!” she giggled, swatting him away gently. “You’re definitely just like him.”

“Did you marry him?”

“Oh no, he chose the prettiest girl on the block over me.”

“He was blind then because you, Nancy, are too fetching to have not married!”

“Are you married, young man?”

“No ma’am. I’m looking for my Nancy.”

“Honestly!” she breathed out accompanying another giggle and Minhyuk grinned. She then grew serious. “I think you’ll meet her soon.”

“You think so? Oh good, I don’t want to be single for much longer,” he mused and the older woman nodded. His humour eased. “What makes you think I will?”

“I don’t know, it’s just a feeling I’ll get.”

“Well, I thank you for feeling something about me, Mrs Rhodes. Afraid we’ve arrived at our destination, however.”

“That was quick, I didn’t even have time to worry on the way here.”

“It’s my job to make sure you don’t get a chance to! Now you go in there and knock their socks off! You’ll be back to walking again in no time after they’re done with you.”

“This hospital needs more people like you,” she called as he waved her off, clapping the shoulder of one of the surgeons he passed in the process.

Sewoon stopped him. “Oh Minhyuk, we’re missing a patient that’s surgery was scheduled for this morning. I’ve dispatched for another orderly to get her but-”

“I can go get her. Ward and name?”

“Y/N?” he called when he entered the room a few minutes later, catching his breath from rushing here from the surgery department. You looked up at him anxiously and Minhyuk’s growing smile halted.

Wow, you were beautiful.

Gathering himself together enough to walk over to your bed, Minhyuk managed a smile. “I’m your chauffeur for the morning. Shall we get going?”

“Chauffeur?” you repeated and let out a small laugh. “That’s cute.”

“Well someone as special as you should be transported in style.”

“I bet you use that line with all the girls.”

“Would you hate me if I did?” he confessed and you grinned at him as he unlatched the brakes on your bed. “Ready, my Lady?”

“Oh yes, going to have surgery sounds thrilling.”

“It’s a necessary part of your journey here, I’m sure.”

“Have you ever been in my place before?”

Minhyuk nodded. “When I was ten, I broke my leg and needed surgery. I remember being petrified that I wouldn’t wake up and get to play on my bike again.”

“You broke your leg on your bike?”

Minhyuk nodded. “My orderly told me not to be scared, that he would be there for me when I woke up.”

“Was he?” you asked quietly, your eyes widening at the prospect.

Minhyuk watched your expression morph into hope and he nodded again. “He was. I mean, I had thought he just stood there the whole time whilst the doctors fixed my leg, granted. But he was definitely there when I woke up again. And he even had a toy bike for me.”

“I’m not broken like that though,” you murmured and Minhyuk glanced down at your chart briefly before nodding.

“You’re here to be healed. So you’re not not broken either.”

“I guess when you put it like that,” you started, sending Minhyuk a genuine smile soon after. “Is it silly of me as an adult to want you-”

“I’ll be there when you wake up,” he assured and your smile grew, tears welling in your eyes. “Do you want a toy bike as well?”

You laughed. “What’s your name? Minhyuk?”

“That’s me!” he replied, letting you read his name tag more closely. “I’ll make sure I’m here as soon as your eyes open, alright?”

Nodding softly, you didn’t take your gaze off of his as he wheeled you into the surgery ward, watching him as he got your bed situated into your cubicle and handed your notes to the waiting nurse. Before leaving, Minhyuk felt compelled to go up to your side and you suddenly clutched at his hand, taking a deep breath.

“You promise?”

“Just you wait, when you open your eyes next, you’ll be disappointed that the first thing you see is me.”

When you did eventually come around in the recovery room, Minhyuk perked from the seat he was in. He had swapped his lunch break with another employee so he could make it when your surgery was over, grateful that he could keep his promise as expected.

You, however, were more than surprised to find he had followed through.

“Min…Min…”

“Don’t stress yourself to talk,” he urged with a gentle smile, alerting the nearest nurse that you had woken up.

As he checked your vital stats, he then smiled at you. “Miss L/N, you’re a lucky one huh? It’s not every day I see Minhyuk sitting here waiting for a patient to wake up.”

“I made a promise, I wasn’t going to break it,” he told the nurse and you smiled, reaching out for his hand.

Minhyuk held it towards you and then moved his other, shaking a little teddy bear in his grip. Your smile grew.

“I know it’s no bike, they didn’t have any in the gift shop,” he humoured and you tried to laugh, accepting the water the nurse offered you before swallowing with some effort. Blinking against the exhaustion wave that he could tell was washing over you, Minhyuk handed you the teddy and then squeezed your hand that was still holding his. “Rest well, my Lady. When it’s time, I’ll take you back to your room.”

Twenty minutes later, he wheeled you in to your room quietly, smiling as you continued to sleep peacefully. He didn’t know what it was about you, but he watched you a moment more before going back out into the ward’s hallway and slid the door closed.

Another nurse he was familiar with from crossing paths regularly stopped him in his departure. “Oh Miss L/N is back from surgery?”

“Yeah, she’s resting right now. The team up in recovery said she’s going to be really tired for the next forty-eight hours.”

“It was a big operation for her,” Lucy mentioned and Minhyuk nodded. “It’s a shame she’s here all alone.”

“Alone? No family?”

“Not that I’m aware of. She has no one down as her next of kin either.”

Glancing back at the door, now it made sense to him why you wanted his company when you woke up. No one should have to go through this alone.

“I’ll be back later to check on her, Luce.”

“You and that sweet heart of yours.”

“What can I say? I’m in the right place to have my heartstrings pulled, right?” he called over his shoulder with a smile before turning for the exit, letting his smile drop with the slump of his shoulders.

You were definitely pulling something within him.

Minhyuk was anxious to arrive for his next shift. He had twenty minutes before he was rostered to start, and knowing Wednesdays always seemed to be the busiest of days, he headed straight for your ward, greeting people along the way before knocking on your door.

You were sitting up in your bed this morning, attempting to eat the breakfast you had just been served. Upon seeing Minhyuk, you put down your spoon and smiled. “It wasn’t a dream.”

“I don’t think I’m that talented to step into the dream realm but you never know,” he answered with a chuckle and grinned when he saw the plush toy he had given you was sitting up in bed next to you as well. “How are we doing?”

“I feel as if a truck ran over me, reversed, and did it one more time.”

“Specific,” he commented and then stepped closer. “Did you get the licence plate? I’ll go report them for troubling you this much.”

“Are all the orderlies like you?”

“I would like to paint our service as one of the best in the hospital, but I can’t speak for all of us. Old Gary doesn’t talk and Pamela doesn’t know when to shut up.”

You laughed a little and then winced with the pain from doing so. Stepping forward and offering you a drink of water, you thanked Minhyuk silently and then sighed when you recovered.

“Part of me like this, you know?”

“The hands-free drink service?” You rolled your eyes playfully. “I didn’t need to come to hospital to get this type of attention though, admittedly.”

“Well, we can’t change that now. But I can continue to stop by if you like it.”

“Why? Is it part of the service?”

“I don’t do it for everyone,” he admitted and your growing smile got stuck. “But if you’d like it-”

“Why are you so considerate towards me?”

“I’m not exactly sure. I just feel this need to be around you.”

“Do you pity me? My prognosis isn’t great, even with surgery.”

“It’s not hopeless either. And no, I don’t pity you at all.”

“Then?”

“Maybe I met my Nancy after all,” he murmured and you frowned at the statement. Minhyuk smiled brightly and pointed to your breakfast. “Nothing worse than super soggy cornflakes. You best get on with your breakfast and I need to go bring smiles to the patients I cross paths with.”

“You’re magical, you know that, Minhyuk.”

“I don’t know about that, but I’m glad you think highly of me. Rest well, okay?”

“Will you visit me again?”

Minhyuk hesitated at the door he was departing through and turned back to you with a smile. “Of course, I can’t let you go without a bit of my magic, as you said.”

Minhyuk kept his word, ending his long shift by spending an extra hour with you.

And the following day, he greeted you before his shift and even joined you for lunch. By the end of the week, you were expectant of his arrival and seemed to brighten whenever he stepped through the door.

So was he. Even though he knew you were unwell, he found comfort in your company. Despite spending all his time around people day in and out, Minhyuk hadn’t realised how lonely he felt under it all.

You seemed to bring a lot of emotions to the surface within him.

“If you could be anything but an orderly, what would you do?”

“No,” he responded, handing you another hot chip from the food he had snuck in so he could share dinner with you. “This is it for me.”

“Really?”

“Do you look down on my profession choice, Y/N?”

You shook your head and hands at the same time. “No, I find it admirable that you’re so certain. Before being in here I was at a crossroads. I didn’t know what I wanted anymore. My degree had led to a career I didn’t enjoy and I didn’t want to go back to school for another four years to find I wasn’t happy with the next choice either.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Be around people,” you answered immediately, cheeks flushed. You then laughed. “But that could be anything!”

“What kind of people do you want to be around?”

“Grateful people. Those who smile and are happy for my assistance.”

“Well, retail is out,” he teased and you laughed in agreement. “Jokes aside, I think no matter where we go, there will always be people who take our service but don’t want to interact. I mean, even today, I tried to brighten up a middle-aged man and he told me to shut up and just wheel him to Orthopaedics in silence.”

“Well, that’s rude.”

“I guess I wasn’t his type,” Minhyuk said, pretending to curl his hair behind his ear.

“Oh my goodness, stop trying to flirt with all the patients!”

“If a bit of friendly banter brings a smile to their faces and eases their concerns, is it so bad? This place can easily turn dreary, even for the workers. I just want to help people feel a snippet of happiness within these walls.”

You didn’t respond, gaze intensely connected to his. You began to sink deeper into his eyes now entranced by you, struggling to remain coherent against the waves of what you were experiencing. Minhyuk was equally fighting against the current, his mouth falling ajar a little when he felt his heart begin to beat differently.

“Lee Minhyuk, I ought to have known!”

Jumping out of the trance with the new voice within the room, he glanced back at your nurse, Lucy’s hands on her hips as she looked over the takeout he had brought into the room with him.

“It’s my dinner, not Y/N’s.”

“You’re going to eat both those burgers and drink both those sodas?” Lucy questioned and Minhyuk grinned shamelessly.

“When a guy’s hungry he’s gotta eat.”

“I begged him to, Lucy. Please, just this once.” The nurse sighed at your hopeful stare and nodded. You grinned. “I’m blessed to have you both, you know.”

“You’re lucky we’re fools,” Lucy replied, shaking her head in Minhyuk’s direction. “This one is the biggest fool I know.”

“I take that title with pride.”

“Don’t let Nurse Joy find you both in here like this. She won’t be as lenient.”

“Nurse Joy is a contradiction. She’s not joyful at all,” you pointed out and both the professionals attempted to hold their tongues in response.

When Lucy shut the door after stealing a couple of fries for herself, you opened up the wrapper to your burger before looking back at Minhyuk.

“What?”

“Do you think I could become an orderly?”

“When you’re stronger, I don’t see why not.”

“You didn’t dismiss the idea,” you mumbled with surprised and Minhyuk narrowed his gaze on your face. You smiled weakly. “Just, in the past, that’s all they did.”

“Who?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Taking a bite of your burger, you then grinned. “This is so good!”

Minhyuk realised you had faced a whole lot more adversity than the condition that had brought you in front of him in the first place.

Over the next couple of weeks, you went up and down in health. There were moments where you had no energy to even smile at him, and others where all you did was hold his hand and laugh. You had exchanged numbers and in between patients he would continue conversation with you, making you laugh and then discussing the deepest concepts of the world in the next text. You enlightened him and made the exhaustion of each shift wash away when he visited you until visiting hours were up. He hadn’t even realised how involved he had become with you in his everyday life until he arrived at your room before work to find it completely void of all sign of you.

“Where is Y/N?” he asked and the nurse on the counter gave him a sad smile.

“She got moved to ICU overnight. She’s-”

He didn’t wait to hear the rest of it, rushing through the hospital maze until he reached the department he needed, sucking in a deep breath before entering it. The nurse here shook her head. “I’m sorry, she can’t have visitors.”

“I know, I know,” he repeated, all too aware of the rules and regulations of this department. However, he held up his index finger desperately. “Just a minute. Please, just let me see her before I go start my shift.”

Glancing at the fellow nurse beside her, she sighed and nodded quickly. Minhyuk thanked her before rushing around the counter to the cubicle she pointed at. There you laid, looking as pallid as the sheets beneath you. It didn’t suit you to be this deathly white and yet even then you were beautiful to him. Stepping closer to your sleeping form, he felt tears rise behind his eyes when he saw the teddy he got you held tightly within your hand. Shakily reaching out for you, he gave your wrist a gentle squeeze.

“You can fight through this, Y/N. I know you can.”

Minhyuk’s mood throughout his shift was subdued. He couldn’t quite bring himself to ease the concerns of a little girl going for an MRI as well as he usually did and he was late to pick up his next two patients, his feet dragging unintentionally.

He just felt completely drained.

“There’s my handsome first love,” the elderly woman within the wheelchair waiting for him exclaimed and Minhyuk looked at Nancy and smiled gently.

“Nancy, you’re looking better than ever.”

“Of course, it’s my discharge day.”

“Does this mean I get the honour of wheeling you out the front doors?” he asked and the woman nodded. “Wow, lucky me.”

“Dear, you look anything but lucky right now, what’s wrong?”

Minhyuk didn’t know why he told her about you. As he wheeled the woman slowly to the exit, he spoke as quickly as he could about his time with you thus far. And now with you in ICU, he couldn’t hold back the tears of realisation.

Nancy smiled and cupped his hands within hers when he stopped her outside the doors. “You’re in love.”

“I don’t want to lose it so soon.”

“You won’t, she’s going to come through,” she reassured him and Minhyuk blinked through his tears to look questioningly at the woman. Nancy nodded gently. “She has to. You’re waiting for her. Just as you promised to be there when she woke up, you will be there again. She won’t leave you, Minhyuk.”

He held onto Nancy’s hope for another week, finding it harder each day that went by without much improvement. After thirteen days of what seemed like a perpetual slumber, Minhyuk felt your hand twitch within his grasp. Glancing up, he was met with your eyes staring at him.

“You came back to me,” he murmured, tears running down his cheeks.

“You promised me you would teach me how to ride a bike,” you whispered hoarsely and he laughed, nodding repeatedly.

He would do anything to keep you at his side now.

“Minhyuk!”

Turning to follow the voice that called him out, he grinned when he found you standing there, wearing the same uniform as he did. Circling you to inspect your appearance, Minhyuk then folded his arms over his chest. “Not bad, Miss Orderly.”

“Miss Orderly in training,” you corrected, though you were brimming with anticipation.

“Well, I’m sure some lucky guy will get to teach you all he knows.”

You shrugged. “I don’t know if I want to learn from him.”

“What? Why not?”

“He flirts with the patients and not with his girlfriend nearly as much.”

Minhyuk looked around you both before leaning in and stealing a chaste kiss. “The good news is he doesn’t go around kissing anyone but his girlfriend though.”

“Maybe I’ll learn to flirt with the male patients. It might make them smile.”

“Don’t even dream of it!” he refuted and you laughed heartily. Slinging an arm over your shoulders, Minhyuk walked you towards the staff room. “How did you get here?”

“I rode my bike.”

“I told you I would take you by car.”

“I wanted to start my first day off on the right foot. I mean, I didn’t heal and get to this point in my life just to be chauffeured around by you like I once was.”

“Touché.”

“Though, maybe we could go home together?”

“We should since we live together,” he agreed, pressing his lips to the side of your head again.

“Don’t! Word travels too easily and I don’t want my first day to be plagued with rumours.”

“Everyone in this hospital will know by the end of the day that you’re my miracle.”

“Lucy was right, you are the biggest fool.”

Minhyuk laughed and nodded again. “That I might be, but it was this fool who got you out of this hospital, remember.”

“Only to bring me back into it,” you feigned disappointment and then grinned all too easily after. “You don’t think working and living together will be too much for us?”

“Even if it is, are you up for the challenge?” he proposed, stopping in front of the Orderly Services department.

You glanced up at it and then walked through the door, dragging him in behind you. “You better teach me to be the best.”

_________________

Next: Kihyun

[MONSTA X Masterlist] | [Main Masterlist] | [Request Guidelines]

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stanathanxoox · 5 years

Text

Rushing To Your Side

gif is mine

@thebeckyjolene said:

Could you write an imagine with Pride and Female Reader (her name is Becky, by the way) where the two are married and Pride has to go and rush to the reader's (Becky) side when she gets hurt and injures both her wrist and hand in some sort of accident? It would mean the world to me if you could do that! ❤

When Dwayne received the phone call that his wife was being rushed to the hospital, his mind went into overdrive, nobody had told him why or what had happened, all he knew was the hospital she'd been taken to and that was it. He'd left the office in such a hurry that he'd forgotten his cellphone, but that was a minor necessity when his wife needed him right now. He got to the hospital and ran straight up to the receptionist desk, asking to see his wife, when the receptionist had asked him for a name the first thing he said was

“Becky, her names Becky Pride”. The receptionist checks her computer and then has him escorted to the waiting area of the emergency room. His eyes frantically search for yours as he enters the waiting room, and when he sees you, he breathes a sigh of relief, barely managing a thank you to the nurse who had escorted him to see you before he breaks into a sprint and runs to your side. He kneels down in front of you and reaches out for both of your hands and when you move you injured hand away from him, he frowns, and then realises that this must be your injury.

“What happened sweetheart?” he asks and you look up into his blue eyes, seeing the concern hidden in the depths of blue you say

“I was heading back to work, after having lunch at that little bistro you know I like when out of nowhere this skateboarder, sped past me, he was trying to manoeuvre through this huge crowd and leaned too far in my direction, I was trying to avoid him so stepped to avoid him but I slipped on a puddle that was full of mildew and landed funny on my arm”. Dwayne leans forward and places a gentle kiss on your lips before he stands and takes the seat on your uninjured side, reaching out for your hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.

“How long have you been here?” he asks and you look across at the clock

“About forty-five minutes, because I was brought in by ambulance I've already been checked in and I've seen a nurse as well. They think that given the fact that I cannot feel my fingers I've done some serious damage to my hand, but they won't know for certain until I've seen a doctor and have had x-rays taken” you explain and he nods.

“Well I'll be with you the whole time” he says and you lean over and place a kiss on his cheek.

“I know you will Dwayne”.

It's about four hours later when you finally arrive home, the x-rays showing that you had broken your scaphoid (one of the small bones in your wrist) and one of the metacarpal bones (the long bones that connect to your wrist and the knuckles) which mean that you're in a cast for the foreseeable future, with check-ups every couple of weeks you sigh. Dwayne however, was amazing during the whole thing and has offered to take a couple of days off as you learn how to do things with only one hand and very limited movement in your other hand. You place a kiss on his cheek when he plops down next to you on the couch after bringing your dinner over.

“I don't know what I would do without you Dwayne” you say and he smiles

“Nor Ah, you my sweetheart” he says, placing a kiss on the top of your head.

Tag List: @tiva-jenry-caskett-rizzles-densi, @jimmybpride, @dressed-up-just-like-z1ggy, @nikkiwierden, @samchelforever007, @kirkspockbones, @xoncisxncislaxncisnolaox, @lasalle-pride-sebastian-love, @haliannej, @brooklyn-99-amyxjake, @mizzezm, @genius2050

Tag List for NCIS/NCIS NOLA: @powerpuffbubbles, @diaryofafan17, @thebeckyjolene

Tag for NCIS NOLA: @flight-of-a-robin

Tag List for Pride: @aryaarathornson, @mack-jay, @thebeckyjolene

#NCIS New Orleans #ncis nola #ncis nola imagine #ncis nola x reader #ncis nola reader insert #ncis nola fic #dwayne pride #dwayne pride x reader #dwayne pride imagine

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matrixaffiliate · 5 years

Text

Ojalá - Disjunction

Chapter Update!

FFN and AO3

From this prompt that @ironinkpen posted: "A toddler broke your nose and I may or may not have snapped my thumb during a very intense game of Mario Kart and now we’re both sitting next to each other in the hospital waiting room” AU

Disjunction

Marlene loved her job...really she did! Daycare meant something to her! She remembered the day her mum had needed to go back to work and walking into the daycare, feeling terrified. It was that feeling and a deep love of early childhood psychology that lead her to be a child psychologist running a daycare, paving the way for what daycare centers should be doing in order to truly care for their charges and not simply supervise them.

But on days like today, Marlene wished she had eyes in the back of her head. Poor Liam didn't mean for the ball to hit her. He was big for a four-year-old and didn't know his own strength. Hence when the ball hit her face, Marlene heard the crushing sound of cartilage and bone colliding and felt hot blood running down her face along with a searing pain that had momentarily blinded her.

After calming Liam and ensuring that he knew she was fine. She turned him over to Emmeline, called Mary to come to take her place, and hitched an Uber to the ER.

"I'm sorry dear, but it's going to be a bit of a wait," the receptionist said in an overly sweet voice.

Marlene fought the urge to nod and kept the cold damp towel pressed against her nose "I expected it would be. Thank you."

Slowly she moved to sit down in a slightly less crowded part of the waiting room, but a bout of nausea hit and she quickly sat in the closest available seat instead.

"Sorry," she apologized to the man she plopped down next to. "Just give me a moment and I'll move."

"Broken nose?" He asked as she closed her eyes and brought her head down to her legs.

"Yep," she took a deep breath and tried to relax. The darkness seemed to be helping, along with forcing most of the blood to the towel rather than her stomach. "I'm sorry, but I've lied to you. I'm not going to be moving until they call me back."

The man chuckled, "That's alright, I don't mind company."

Marlene sighed as her nausea slowly began to subside. She felt mildly awkward sitting next to this man she didn't know while folded in half in her chair. So she did the first thing that came to mind, she started talking.

"Why are you here if you don't mind my asking?"

"I'm pretty sure I've broken my thumb."

"That's unfortunate," Marlene took another deep breath trying to focus on the conversation to distract her from the pain and nausea. The poor bloke probably wished she'd shut up, but she needed anything to keep from losing her lunch all over the waiting room.

"Not nearly as unfortunate as your broken nose," He sounded like he was smiling.

"Yes, well, I'm in much better shape than the poor thing who broke it."

"Got in a bit of a tussle did you?" He laughed, and Marlene smiled at the sound of it.

"No, it was a little boy and a ball. He's got quite the arm."

"Wait, are you saying a little boy broke your nose?"

"A four-year-old, yes, by throwing a ball. He was so distraught the poor thing." Marlene hoped Emmeline had been able to help Liam through the scare. Emmeline had done her doctoral program with her, she was brilliant, but Marlene still worried.

The man laughed, "Well now I've heard it all."

"Oh please," Marlene huffed, "how did you break your thumb? Fighting lions, I suppose?"

The man laughed harder, "Would you believe me if I said yes?"

"Probably not," Marlene wanted to glare at him, but that would have required sitting up and she wasn't prepared to do that yet.

His laughter slowed as he spoke again. "What if I told you I'm a witch and I fell off my broom?"

"Nope," Marlene rolled her eyes before realizing that not only could he not see it, but her eyes were still closed.

"That's good; I wouldn't be inclined to believe me either."

Marlene laughed but quickly regretted the decision as it made her head pound.

"Alright, I suppose since you had your nose broken by a little boy I can tell you that my thumb snapped while playing Mario Kart."

Marlene almost sat up to stare at him. "You, you broke your thumb playing a video game?"

"No," he sighed, "I broke it because I jumped my mate when he pulled a cheap move and didn't think to set the controller down."

Marlene chuckled, finding that didn't hurt her head as much as laughing did.

"Boss was furious," the man chuckled with her.

"Wait, there are video games at your office?"

"Yep."

"What exactly do you do that they provide video games at your office?" Marlene was suddenly curious what the man looked like. She hadn't taken the time to look at him when she fell into the chair next to him, fearing she might vomit everywhere.

"I'm a satellite network technician," his voice was starting to sound soothing - like it could lull her to sleep. "We have really long periods of downtime and so there's a ton of stuff for us to fill time with. We also have long runs of insanity. I've gone four weeks straight without having the time to even play a round of ping pong."

Marlene smiled, she could listen to him talk all day.

"Now that you know my embarrassing story," the man continued, "what’s your line of work that puts you at risk of being hit in the face by a four-year-old?"

"It was his ball," Marlene corrected, "and I'm the co-owner of a daycare."

"That's pretty amazing," Marlene was sure he was smiling now, "my surrogate mum ran a little daycare for years before my best mate was born. She loves little kids."

Marlene realized her nausea had finally subsided, and while her head and face hurt, she really wanted to see this man. Slowly and carefully, she brought herself upright and turned to look at the man.

She was both pleased and mortified.

Pleased because he was attractive, immensely attractive.

Mortified because she was instantly aware of what she looked like.

"Whoa there," the man put his good hand on her arm. "Take it easy, I've broken my nose before, don't move too quickly or you'll end up passing out."

"Thanks," Marlene cursed her curiosity. Why couldn't she have met this man a week ago, or in six weeks when her face would probably look normal again?

"I'm always one to help a beautiful woman," he winked at her and Marlene wondered if he'd still call beautiful if she pulled the blood-soaked towel from her face.

"I'm Marlene. I'd shake your hand but mine are stained red and..."

"I've had worse end up on my hands, believe me." He chuckled. "I'm..."

The door to the waiting room opened and a board looking MA stepped out. "Sirius," he called out.

The man looked like he might murder the MA, but he stood.

"That's me," Sirius looked torn as he looked down at her. "Are you going to be alright?"

Marlene ignored the feeling of disappointment in her chest. "Yeah," she smiled before realizing her mouth was covered by the towel and her arm. "Go on, and make sure they check you for lion rabies."

Sirius laughed and his smile lit up the whole room. Marlene fought the urge to touch him.

"Take care of yourself, Marlene."

"You too, Sirius."

And then he was gone.

Marlene sighed and allowed the disappointment to run through her. It was normal to feel this way. She was attracted to Sirius in a situation where she felt unattractive. And the time constraint on their interactions had not allowed for things to move anywhere - if he had even intended for that. She was also in physical pain. It was natural to be upset right now.

Marlene breathed deeply finding that the taste of blood was significantly less now than it had been when she first arrived at the ER. Everything would be fine. Once she felt better physically she would be able to laugh at this whole situation. She'd diffuse the disappointment and embarrassment with humor and she and Emmeline would tell the story frequently when they went out with their friends.

And for the moment, Marlene chose to distract herself by listening to the next podcast in her queue.

Finally, she was called back by the same bored looking MA. She didn't see any signs of Sirius. He must have been discharged already.

Dr. Dodge was a kindly old gentleman and set her nose back into place. Marlene never wanted to experience that procedure again, thank you very much. But with her nose splinted and prescriptions in hand, Marlene headed toward the exit to request an Uber to take her home. She'd have to get her car from the daycare another day, Dr. Dodge told her not to drive today because of the anesthetic he’d used to set her nose.

Marlene stepped out into the early evening air looking down at her phone when a voice startled her.

"You look much better without the towel covering half your face."

She couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face. "Have you only now been discharged?"

Sirius shrugged, "Could I offer you a ride home? I'm not on any pain meds so I've got the go-ahead to drive, and I drove myself here."

"Not even to set your thumb?"

"Turned out it wasn't snapped, just overextended. Still need a splint," he held up his hand, "but I'm fine."

Marlene bit her lip, "I have some prescriptions I need to pick up."

"And I'd like to buy you dinner," Sirius smirked. "We'll make an evening of it."

Marlene felt all of the earlier disappointment and embarrassment evaporate from her chest only to be replaced by butterflies in her stomach and a stupid smile on her face.

"That sounds lovely."

Sirius stepped up and took her arm, smiling down at her and making Marlene's knees feel weak.

"I think so too."

#blackinnon #blackinnon fanfiction #sirius x marlene #sirius black x marlene mckinnon #sirius black #marlene mckinnon #harry potter fanfiction #au #emergency room au #getting hit in the face with objects thrown by toddlers #it happens

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rejectedusername-trashfics · 6 years

Text

New Life With the Mad King- Part 2

Summary: Mad King goes to the bar with his younger brother, Rimmy Tim, in their civilian identities. A drunken MK gets intimate with a man who looks like his guilty crush. Turns out the man actually was his crush, and their actions lead to unforeseen consequences. Perhaps the consequences will be what permanently defeats the Mad King.

Part: 2 of ?

Word Count: 2,433

Previous / Next

Life went on for Vav as though nothing happened. As the weeks went by though, Gavin felt like he was starting to come down with something. Ten or so weeks after that night, X-Ray and Vav were doing their nightly patrols when they discovered a robbery going down on the main street of town. X-Ray ran up to the robber, a man twice as large as a normal man, while Vav slowly caught up.

“Freeze!” X-Ray yelled as he reached the thief. “You’re no match for X-Ray and…” he turned to see that Vav had not caught up to him yet.

The giant man laughed manically. “X-Ray and who?” the thief asked, sounding like two people were talking.

X-Ray turned around. “Vav, hurry up!” he shouted. Vav rolled his eyes and sighed. He sprinted to X-Ray and was out of breath when he finally caught up with him. “Dude, what the hell!?! You’re supposed to shoot slow motion, not live in slow motion!”

Vav sighed and rolled his eyes. “Well, I’m so bloody sor-RY that I don’t have as much energy to fight right now!” Vav replied with a scowl.

The thief laughed. “We can use that to our advantage. We knew that you were no match for Alfreyco!” he said as he began running at Vav.

“Vav! NOW!” X-Ray shouted. Vav nodded and shot his slow-motion at Alfreyco. The thief began running in slow motion at Vav. “Great. Now let me just melt their shoes with…” Suddenly, Vav began to gag. He lifted his hands to cover his mouth, stopping the slow motion. Alfreyco got back to regular motion and ran up to Vav. They grabbed Vav and lifted him in the air. “Shit, Vav!” X-Ray called out in alarm.

Alfreyco laughed manically again. “Any last words?” they taunted. Vav gagged a few more times before he finally threw up on the thief. The thief turned into a glowing light and Alfreyco separated into two men. “Ew, this is gross!” one of the men said.

“Don’t be a bitch about it, Alfredo!” the other man responded.

“Trevor, we just got vomited on! That can’t be sanitary!” Alfredo yelled.

“You’re a criminal! Who cares about sanitation!” Trevor yelled back.

X-Ray couldn’t take much more of their arguing, and lasered their feet to the ground. The cops arrived soon after to collect the two thieves. X-Ray looked around to try and find Vav and found that he was laying next to a pool of his own vomit. He stomped over to Vav. “What the fuck was that?!” he demanded.

“A bloody embarrassment is what it was,” Vav replied with a groan.

“What the hell been up with you, lately?! You’ve been sleepy, moody, peeing 24/7, complaining about chest and back pain…”

“I already freakin’ told you I’m sick with something and I need to see a bloody doctor!”

X-Ray scoffed. “You don’t need to see a doctor. I can x-ray you to figure out what the problem is,” he said as he began to X-ray Vav.

“X-raying me is not going to diagnose…”

X-Ray finished x-raying Vav and sighed. “Welp, the x-ray in here is busted. We gotta go to Hilda to fix it,” he said with a sigh.

“Alright, you go ahead. Just leave me here to die,” Vav said as he closed his eyes.

“No, asshole, you’re coming, too.”

Vav groaned and got up. They made it back to Hilda’s makeshift lab in X-Ray’s basement. “All I’m saying is that putting siracha in miso soup would make it spicy and really good!” Vav said as he walked in.

“Vav, that’s disgusting.” X-Ray replied with a sigh.

Hilda and ORF turned away from their work to acknowledge that they came in. “Greetings! How are you functioning today?” ORF greeted.

Vav sighed. “Not very well.”

“Why? Did you not get the bad guy or whatever?” Hilda asked.

“Oh, we got the guy. Turns out he was two guys combined into one,” X-Ray answered.

“So, what’s the problem?”

“Vav didn’t rush into save the day, couldn’t keep the guy slow-moed, and when the guy caught up to him, he threw up on him.” Vav looked away and rubbed his arm, sheepishly.

“Sounds like you need to go to the doctor, Vav.”

“I know…” Vav replied with a sigh.

“Well, I tried to x-ray him to figure out what the problem is, but the x-ray feature is broken,” X-Ray explained.

“X-raying him isn’t going to figure out his sickness,” Hilda said as she rolled her eyes.

“Alright fine. But anyway, the x-ray is broken because for some reason it made strobe lights appear in his stomach.”

“Strobe lights…?” Vav asked hesitantly.

Hilda sighed and held her hand out for the glasses. X-Ray handed her the glasses. She put them on and looked at X-Ray. “Glasses appear to be functioning properly,” ORF announced.

“No, but look at Vav!” X-Ray exclaimed.

Hilda x-rayed Vav. “Yeah, that is way too small to be considered a strobe light…”

Vav’s thought about any possible sickness he may have that would lead to a strobe light. Maybe he had gotten something from his unprotected night that he had been trying to forget about. he had gotten himself tested for STIs afterwards and they confirmed that he was still clean. Then it dawned on him what his sickness might be. He knew he missed HRT about three months ago, and he had had unprotected sex with him arch-nemesis.

“Oh, bollocks,” Vav murmured quietly.

“Vav?” X-Ray asked.

“Let’s just forget about this, yah? I’ll go to the doctor tomorrow and figure out what all this sickness nonsense is, yah?” he replied quickly.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, a blinking light in your abdomen is pretty concerning,” Hilda said.

“Nope, no, neither of you worry about it. I’ll take care of it in the morning!” Vav nervously exclaimed.

“Okay…” X-Ray said slowly. Vav sighed. He really hoped it wasn’t what he feared.

The next morning, Vav covered up his superhero identity for the morning and went to a walk-in clinic as Gavin. Once his appointment started, the doctor asked him about the symptoms of his illness were. Gavin described daily vomiting, sudden sleepiness, sorer than usual under his binder, random crankiness, and having to pee all of the time. The doctor asked for a urine sample and Gavin was more than happy to relieve his bladder at the moment. After the doctor read his results from the urine sample, he requested a blood sample then said Gavin could wait in the waiting room. Gavin found this very disconcerting.

After about a half an hour, the doctor called Gavin again. Gavin gulped as he went back into the examination room. He sat down on the examination table and twiddled his thumbs.

“I got surprising result back from the urine test and the results from the blood test only confirmed them. So, I’ve got to ask, are you sexually active?” the doctor started.

Gavin gulped again. He could hope that the results from his STI testing had originally been wrong, but he expected the worst. “I’m not at the moment,” he finally answered.

“When was the last time you were sexually active?”

Gavin wracked his brain for information he had been trying to forget. “Maybe two, two and a half months ago?”

“Well, we’d need an ultrasound for better confirmation, but it seems as though you are in the early stages of pregnancy,” The doctor finish. Gavin dropped his head in his hands. He was pregnant. And to make matters worse, the child was the Mad Kings. “We could give you an ultrasound to determine how far along you are.” Gavin gave a deep sigh. “Or, we could discuss options if you don’t want to keep this child.”

“I… I don’t know…”

“You could always consult the father of the child to discuss your options.”

Gavin looked up. He knew he didn’t necessarily was to give rid of the kid, but he didn’t want to be a single parent either. He had to tell the Mad King that he was pregnant. He had no idea how he’d react to that. “I… think I will talk to the dad about it…”

“Alright. Would you like an ultrasound?”

“Yeah…”

The doctor gave Gavin an ultrasound. While the gel for the ultrasound was cold, Gavin was too afraid of what he’d have to do next to notice. It was determined that Gavin was ten, going on eleven, weeks pregnant. The doctor printed a copy of the ultrasound and gave it to him to keep. After the appointment was over Gavin took a taxi over to Monarch Labs.

When he got to the labs, he went into the public restroom and changed out of his civilian clothes. As Vav walked over to the receptionist in the lobby. “Excuse me miss?’ he asked to get the receptionist’s attention. She turned towards him. “I’d like to speak with the Mad King. I’m not here to fight, I just need to talk to him. You could tell him that Vav is here to offer his unconditional surrender if that will get him to know that I’m not here to fight.” The receptionist nodded and began paging the Mad King.

Gavin walked over to the waiting area and sat down. After about ten minutes, someone walked into Monarch Labs with a meatball sub for lunch. When the smell of the sandwich hit Gavin’s nose, he immediately got nauseous. He jumped up and ran over to the nearest garbage can.

As he was throwing up, Mad King entered the lobby. “So, I hear that X-Ray and Vav are unconditionally surrendering. I don’t know what the occasion was but…” Mad King paused to look around the room, but he couldn’t spot the hero. “Where is he?” he asked. the receptionist pointed to the garbage can Gavin was throwing up in. He marched right over and waited for Gavin to finish.

When he was finished, he leaned up and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “So, that was the vom of the day…” he said to himself.

“So, I hear that X-Ray and Vav are unconditionally surrendering,” Mad King began, again. Gavin turned around to face Mad King. “I don’t know what the occasion was but…”

“No, no! You bloody dolt!” Gavin interrupted. “X-Ray’s not surrendering, It’s just me. And I’m not really surrendering. It’s just…” he paused and sighed. “I got some news this morning and I really think you should know it…”

“What new could you have gotten that makes you think you should fake your surrender just to get me to listen?!”

“It’s… rather personal. Can we go in private to discuss it?”

Mad King scoffed. “It can’t be that personal.”

Gavin sighed and shoved his hand in his over-undies to grab the ultrasound. “Here!” he shouted as he shoved it into Mad King’s hands.

Mad King looked at the piece of paper, puzzled. He knew it was an ultrasound, but he wasn’t sure what it was of. “What am I looking at.”

Gavin “It’s an ultrasound, you dunce!”

“No, I know that. But what is it an ultrasound of?”

“It’s an ultrasound of my uterus because…” Gavin paused and took a deep breath. This was the moment of truth. “I’m pregnant.”

Mad King began to chuckle. “You’re in a delicate state, and you could have gone to the father of your child for care. But instead, you surrender yourself to me. How foolish.”

Gavin rolled his eyes. “Well, considering you’re the first and only man I’ve shagged. You ARE the flipping father!” he exclaimed.

This caused Mad King’s brain to short circuit. “… What…?”

“Take a damn paternity test for all I bleeding care! You knocked me up and you need to be held accountable!”

“I… you know what? Fine, we will do a paternity test to prove I’m not the father!”

“FINE!” Gavin shouted.

“COME WITH ME TO THE LAB RIGHT NOW! I’LL PROVE I’M NOT THE FATHER AND PUT YOU IN CAPTIVITY!” Mad King yelled.

“PERFECT!”

Mad King grunted and led Gavin up to the lab so they could do the test. Mad King said he’d need a blood sample from Gavin and Gavin willingly gave it. He then swabbed the inside of his cheek to get his DNA. They put both DNA samples in the computer to see who the father of Gavin’s child is. The computer began computing the results.

“When this says I’m not the father of your child, you’re going straight into a holding cell.” Mad King said with a growl.

Gavin scoffed. “Bloody counting on it. To bad it’s gonna say you ARE the father.”

Mad King growled again in response. After a few minutes, the computer dinged with the results. “SEE?!” he shouted.

Gavin looked at the results and smirked. “If you’re so sure you’re not the father, why don’t you look at the results.”

Ryan grit his teeth and turned to look at the results. His jaw dropped in shock to learn that he was, in fact, the father of Gavin’s child. When he got to get intimate with his guilty crush, he never imagined doing this to him. He never wanted to be cruel to him in this way, even if he was his arch-nemesis. And he never imagined he’d ever be a parent, but no he was going to be thrust into parenthood. He had no idea how he should go about this. “…I…”

“So, whatcha gonna do then, hun?” Gavin taunted.

“I…”

“Gonna make me get rid of it?”

“…I,”

“Put me in a hibernation chamber while I grow your heir?”

“…I…I,”

“I’m all ears, luv.”

“I…” Mad King paused and sighed. The fate of this child shouldn’t be his decision to make, it should be Gavin’s. “It’s your body. You choose what happens to it.”

“Perfect. Then we keep it and you’re helping me raise it. And the kid will be a good one, got it?”

“Only if you’re making me do this, we do this as Ryan and Gavin, not Mad King and Vav.”

“Fine.”

Ryan rubbed his face and sighed. “Let’s go back to my penthouse. You can stay in the guest room for the time being if you desire. I wish to discuss things further, later. I need a diet coke.”

“Top,”

Ryan nodded and began to walk out of the lab. Gavin followed closely behind. The two of them had no idea what this baby would mean for them. but if they were going to do this, they had to take it one step at a time.

#freewood #xray and vav #ragehappy #mpreg #tw; vomit

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hookedonapirate · 7 years

Text

Tangled Up In Blue

Chapter 19

Summary: Fear for her unborn child, a bruised and broken Emma Swan is determined to escape an abusive marriage. After she drives a long way from home to a small town in Maine, she doesn't think her life could get more complicated... that is until she ends up falling for her OBGYN, a blue-eyed British man who's shielded his heart from love long ago. But he may be just what she needs to begin her healing process and start a new life for her child. If only nothing gets in the way.

Rated M for violence, language and smut.

Also on: AO3 FF.N

Chapter: 18

33 Weeks into Emma's Pregnancy…

“Hi Mum, how are you and Papa?”

“We’re fine. Just wondering if you and Liam are coming home for Thanksgiving.”

“Ah, well I don't think I'll be able to, but I know Liam and Cordelia are planning to visit for Thanksgiving,” Killian replied over the phone as he walked into his clinic after lunch, waving at the receptionist as he passed. He had met Liam for breakfast that morning and his brother mentioned that he and Cordelia planned on sharing the news of her pregnancy with their parents on Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, it was not the best time for Killian to leave.

“And what about you, Killian?”

He ran his hand through his hair, trying to summon an excuse as he continued to his office, shutting the door behind him and grabbing his lab coat from the door hook. “I'm sorry, mother, but I won't be able to. I have conferences and surgeries coming up,” Killian explained as he put on his lab coat, transferring his phone to his shoulder to put his other arm through the sleeve. Once it was on, he sat down and propped his feet up on the desk, leaning back in his office chair. “And I don't know if I'll be able to visit for Christmas either. One of my patients is expecting on December fourteenth, but if the baby's late I'll have to stick around,” he lied. It was true that Emma was scheduled to have her baby that day, but even though she wouldn't be his patient, he still wanted to be in the room with her. He and Emma have not discussed this yet but he planned on bringing it up to her soon. There were many discussions about the baby and the baby's future that needed to take place, and Killian wanted to tell Emma that he wanted to be included, but how would he possibly go about doing that with everything going on? Besides the fact that he hasn't even told Emma that he loved her yet.

“You won't be here for Christmas? Can’t you just find her another doctor?” He could hear the disappointment in his mother's voice.

“No, I can't. She's expecting me to deliver her baby and you know I don't like to let my patients down.”

His mother sighed understandingly. There were many times she was forced to be in that situation, of having to chose between being at her clinic or spending time with her family. “Fine, but we will be expecting you to come and visit after New Years at least.”

“Of course.”

“How are Liam and Cordelia? Are they there with you?”

“They're not. I'm at the clinic right now. I'll have them call you, though.”

“Okay, I'll leave you to it. Would you like to say ‘hi’ to your father first?”

“Aye, if he's there.”

Killian could hear his mother speaking to her husband in the background before Brennan took the phone. “Killian, my boy. How are you?”

“I'm good, and I'm not a boy anymore,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“Of course, you're a man now but you'll always be my boy. Now, I overheard that you won't be visiting us for Christmas?”

“No, I'm sorry I won't be able to,” Killian replied reluctantly, expecting a lecture from his father.

“It's alright, son. I understand you have other obligations.”

“You do?” he asked, surprised.

“Of course I understand, Killian. I just have one question.”

Killian smiled in relief. “Sure, what's that?”

“What's her name?”

Killian's throat became dry and his smile started to fade. “How did you- Liam told you didn't he? Bloody hell, I'm going to kick that wanker’s arse-”

“No, actually he didn't… I just know you better than that. You've always studied and worked hard but you've never chosen your career over family. You always did have a knack for learning from your mother's and my mistakes. So tell me, who is this woman keeping our son from us for the holidays? She must be something special, aye?”

Killian couldn't help the smile that pulled at his lips at the thought of her, and he sighed in defeat. “Her name is Emma. And she's very special to me, father. She makes me happy.”

“Ha! I knew it!” Brennan exclaimed rather loudly into the phone and Killian had to pull the phone away from his ear as he chuckled. “When do we get to meet her?”

“Soon, I promise. We just started dating a little more than a month ago so it's still too early to introduce her to you and mother. So, could you not mention it to-”

“Sweetheart, did you hear that? Killian has a girlfriend,” Killian heard Brennan call to his wife and they were both cheering in the background. Killian closed his eyes briefly. He hadn't planned on telling them yet. It was too soon.

“Killian, is that true?” his mother joined in on the conversation. “When do we get to meet her?”

“Not yet, mum. She's coming from a delicate situation, but I promise after the holidays I will bring her to visit.”

“What kind of delicate situation?”

“Something similar to what happened with Milah,” he confessed.

“Oh,” his mother said softly.

“Not again, Killian,” his father added. “Please tell me she's not married too.”

Just then, there was a knock on the door. “I will explain later. Right now I have to go. Goodbye, Mum and Dad. I love you both.” He hung up before they could ask anymore questions. He lowered his feet to the floor and set his phone on the desk, sinking his face in his hands with a sigh. “Come in.”

The nurse opened the door letting him know that his next appointment had arrived. “Thank you.”

He lifted his head and straightened up, adjusting his lab coat as he stood. Mary Margaret and David entered the room as the nurse handed him their file and left, shutting the door behind them.

“Please have a seat,” Killian flashed them a smile as he gestured at the seats in front of the desk.

The Nolans greeted him and sat down as Killian took his seat at the desk. They engaged in casual chit chat as Killian studied the paperwork in his hands before lifting his gaze to meet the two pair of eyes that waited in anticipation.

“Well? What did you find out?” David inquired with a hint of desperation in his voice. Killian gave them a small smile as he ran his hand along his stubbled jaw, tapping his thumb on his chin in contemplation. He was surprised when the Nolans had decided to keep their initial appointment with him to not only get Mary Margaret checked out but David as well, and now the follow up. Although, Killian figured since David knew him a bit more now, he eventually found Killian to be trustworthy, despite the circumstances. And he didn't blame David one bit. He was just being a protective husband. Killian felt the same way about finding the right doctor for Emma when he could no longer be that person for her, that's why he recommended Rosabell in the first place.

Killian cleared his throat, setting their file down before resting his elbows on the desk and clasping his hands together. “Honestly, I found nothing,” Killian finally replied. He received puzzled looks from the pair before him.

“What do you mean, you found nothing?” David demanded sternly. Mary Margaret placed her hand on one of his to calm him.

“There has to be a reason why we've been trying for a year to have a baby but haven't been able to get pregnant,” she said, confusion laced in her features.

“Aye, there is, but it hasn't shown up in any tests,” Killian explained.

“Care to enlighten us then, doctor?” David asked, a bit irritated. “Or are we just wasting our time here and should go somewhere else?”

“And here I thought I was starting to grow on you,” Killian teased with a smirk. “There is no known cause of infertility here, but being able to rule out several possibilities helps us out quite adequately. The test results were normal for both of you,” he affirmed, averting his eyes from David to Mary Margaret. “And after going over your medical history with both of you and receiving your results, I've only found that you're both pictures of health. So that's very good news.”

They both sighed in relief. “That's good to know,” Mary Margaret uttered, smiling at David. He looked over at his wife, returning a small smile as he squeezed her hand gently.

“So if there's nothing wrong, then what do we have to do?” David implored, facing Killian again.

“Normally, I would suggest an IUI combined with hormones. An IUI is a fertility treatment that involves placing the sperm inside the uterus to facilitate fertilization. There's also some other fertility methods, but before we try anything, there's one thing I would like to ask first.”

“What’s that?” Mary Margaret asked him, her eyes full of curiosity.

Killian stood up and walked around the desk, sitting on the edge of it and crossing his arms. “When's the last time you spent a day together, just the two of you...?” They both started to answer, but Killian put up his hand, making them pause for a beat so he could continue, “...without the interruptions of twin brothers or pregnant roommates or friends or work or other obligations? When's the last time you've just been able to breathe and enjoy each other’s company?” He put his hand back down, crossing his arms again.

“We spend plenty of days alone together,” David shot back defensively.

“Okay,” Killian accepted, pursing his chin and lips in curiosity. “That's great. Name one,” he challenged.

Mary Margaret and David both paused and looked at one another. “Well, there was that one day…” she started and then had to think about it for a moment, “...no, I had to go into the diner that day.”

“What about the time when we went to…?” David shook his head. “No, James was there.”

They both continued to fumble for an answer as Killian waited patiently. “That's exactly as I suspected,” Killian finally spoke, standing up and pacing slowly towards the window.

“What does that have to with getting pregnant, anyways? What's your point, doctor?” David asked him.

Killian turned to face them again. “My point is you both have too much stress in your lives. With running the Bed and Breakfast and taking care of everyone, you're missing out on spending quality time with each other. And having too much stress and too much weighing on your minds can inhibit your ability to conceive.”

“So, what do you suggest then? We can't just put our business and lives on hold while we try to have a baby,” David pointed out as he looked to his wife.

Killian shrugged casually, tucking his hands in his pockets as he walked towards the desk again. “Maybe you don't have to. You have employees that can handle the business for a week. Use that time to take a vacation just the two of you,” he suggested, turning to look at them.

“A week? I don't think that's possible,” Mary Margaret chuckled a bit at the idea.

“Why not?” Killian asked, not accepting her answer as he sat against the desk again and crossed his arms. “You both work hard, you spend so much time being there for the business and other people, why not take some time out for yourselves? You both deserve it.”

“That's a great idea and all, but when would we possibly be able to? There's the baby shower for Emma and not to mention the fact that her husband is lurking around. And she's having her baby soon and we want to be here when that happens. We can't just leave.”

“See, just listen to what you just said. All of your excuses revolve around Emma, someone you both care about nevertheless, but what about the two of you? What about Mary Margaret and David?”

They both looked at him, unsure of how to respond.

Killian let out a soft sigh, resting his hands on the edge of the desk. “Look, I understand you both want to help Emma and be there for her, but she still has seven weeks until her due date. And Neal is still nowhere to be found. I'd say after the baby shower is the perfect opportunity. You'll have enough time to find employees to cover for you and book a trip. It doesn't even have to be far away, just outside of your lives here in Storybrooke.”

“But we’d be too worried about Emma. Won't that defeat the purpose?” Mary Margaret asked him.

“Maybe, but you have no reason to be. Emma will be fine, the police are looking for Neal, she’ll still be pregnant and the town of Storybrooke will be here when you get back, I assure you. If you wait for the opportune moment, it's never going to happen.”

They both looked at Killian skeptically, but he could see that David’s expression was slowly yielding to the idea. He looked at his wife and gave her a soft smile. “Maybe he's right. Maybe we should consider taking some time out for us.”

“I don't know, David. You really think we should just leave now to go on vacation?”

David shrugged. “Honestly, I don't know, but I do know what I want. I want to have a family with you, Mary Margaret, and I'm willing to do what it takes. We’ll give it some more time and then if we still can't conceive then we’ll try some other options. What do you say?”

“Okay, I'll think about it. I don't really want to decide right now, with everything going on.”

“Of course, both of you go home and discuss it privately, weigh your options. And if you decide on the IUI then we will start right away. How does that sound?”

They both nodded. “That sounds reasonable,” David agreed. “If we can conceive naturally, I’d rather do that.”

“I completely agree. There's nothing physically inhibiting your ability to conceive, so I'd like you to keep trying for a little while longer before we try anything drastic. You both know what you need to to do, take more time out for just the two of you. With Emma out of the loft, it should be easier right?”

They both looked at one another and nodded. “Right.”

“Okay then. Let me know if you have any questions about anything.”

“I think we’re pretty familiar with the natural techniques of getting pregnant,” David teased as he and Mary Margaret stood up.

“Aye, I just meant about trying to conceive in general. And Mary Margaret, I suggest taking a prenatal vitamin everyday for when you do get pregnant.” Mary Margaret nodded as the three of them headed for the door and Killian opened it for them.

“Thank you and I'm sorry for the way I acted before, I'm just…” David started, apologetically. “It's just been a little deterring, not being able to conceive like a normal couple. I want to be able to give my wife what she wants… what we both want and have wanted for a while.”

“Of course. I understand, Mr. Nolan.” He knew exactly how it felt to not be able to impregnate his wife. For Killian, it wasn't possible with Milah, but for the Nolans, the solution was rather simple, or at least he hoped it would be.

“Please call me David,” he corrected.

“Apologies, David.”

“Oh and you’re coming to the baby shower next week, right?” Mary Margaret asked him. “Everyone who wants to come was invited, so no one will suspect anything if you do.”

Killian flashed her a smile. He got the invitation in the mail shortly after he and Emma started dating and was very much planning on going ever since.

“Aye, of course I'll be there.”

“Great. We’ll see you later, Killian.”

~~~

Killian locked his office up that evening, saying goodbye to the staff before he pulled out his phone. Emma had the day off of work but he was wondering if she would be home. He didn't want to panic every time he didn't know where she was, Emma had a right to do as she pleased but he was still worried every time she wasn't with him. If Neal weren't a threat to her or the baby, it would be a different story. Still, he didn't want to keep tabs on her or make her feel as though he didn't trust her. So, he called her cell phone to see if she would be home for dinner.

As he walked out the clinic door, his phone rang a few times before she answered, and he couldn't help but sigh in relief.

“Hi love, I just wanted to see if you were having dinner with me.”

“Ah, so you weren't calling to check up on me?” She asked playfully, and he could tell by her tone that she was definitely on to him.

He smiled in surrender as he made the small trek to his car. “I was just wondering if you were home, that's all. I don't want you to feel like I'm smothering you. Just wanted to make sure you and the wee lad were alright since I haven't heard from you since this morning,” he admitted.

“It's okay, Killian,” she laughed lightly. His heart actually fluttered, hearing that wonderful sound. “I don't feel smothered at all, believe me. And to answer your question, we’re not home but we’re both fine. I just had to run some errands and now we’re starving.”

A broad smile took over his lips as he approached his car and pulled his keys out of his pocket, using the small remote to unlock his car. “Good, I'll have dinner waiting for you, love.”

“No need. We brought dinner to you.”

A look of confusion washed over his features as he opened his car door.

“Killian, look behind you.”

He lifted his eyes and turned around, seeing a gorgeous, pregnant blonde in a pink blouse and blue jeans staring at him from across the parking lot with a big smile on her face as she held the cell phone to her ear.

He whistled into the phone. “I see a sexy blonde across the parking lot who is quite a sight for sore eyes.”

Emma laughed, her pearly whites showing through from where she stood. “Would you care for a picnic at sunset with this blonde you see?”

Killian couldn't stop the wide smile that took over his lips. “I would absolutely love that.” He ended the call and lowered his phone, sliding it into the pocket of his dress pants. He walked over to her as she lowered her phone as well. When he approached her, he had to resist the urge to grab and kiss her. Instead he flashed her a flirty smile. “So, where are we going for this picnic?” he asked before reverting his eyes to the vehicle she was standing next to, which was not her SUV, but David's pickup truck instead. “And what's with the truck?”

A mischievous grin took over her lips. “Get in, you’ll see.”

Emma opened the door and he helped her into the driver's seat before he went around to the passenger's side and got in.

She drove out of the parking lot and through town, passing the autumn trees, colorful leaves covering the ground. The sun started to descend as Emma pulled up near the beach that was secluded this time of year. She did a U-turn, facing the truck away from the ocean before she put it in park and turned the engine off. “Is this okay?” she asked him. “I mean, it will be dark soon and there's no one here.”

He grinned and leaned in to kiss her cheek. “Are you kidding? It's perfect.”

They both got out of the truck and Emma pulled out a large picnic basket from the cab. Killian lowered the gate and helped her spread a wool blanket over the bed of the truck before scooping her up in his arms and propping her up on the opened gate.

“This is a great idea, love. Much better than eating at home,” Killian said as he looked over across the ocean, the waves rolling and crashing into the shore.

“Well, we both feel cooped up in the house when we have the day off,” she said placing her hands on her belly and looking down at her baby bump. “Isn't that right, baby? We needed to get out, didn't we?” she spoke in her mommy voice and it was the most adorable thing he's ever witnessed.

“Of course, love. I never want you to feel cooped up. Believe me, I want to take you places, go on dates with you. Wherever your heart desires.”

She flashed him a grin and leaned in to kiss his lips. “I know you do, Killian. I'm fine with what we have now. As long as I get to be with you, that's all that matters to me.”

Killian offered her a soft smile as she started emptying the picnic basket.

“I brought some water and grape juice and made some chicken sandwiches and sliced up some fruit and carrots,” she said as she handed him a wrapped sandwich and set down a couple of small containers on the blanket. “And…” Emma reached into the basket again, pulling two more items out, “your favorite of course.”

Killian chuckled at the two slices of apple pie that she wrapped up. “Thank you, but I actually have a new favorite.” Emma arched a brow at him before retrieving some plates and silverware.

He leaned in, whispering in her ear. “It's you, darling. Sorry, but you taste better than that scrumptious apple pie of yours.” He could hear Emma's breath hitch before he pulled away, her cheeks filling with blush, and the shy smile on her lips was well worth the playful smack to his shoulder.

“So how did it go with Mary Margaret and David?” she asked as they started eating their sandwiches.

“They're perfectly healthy, I told them that they need to spend more alone time together before we tried anything drastic.”

“Well, that's good to know at least. And I actually was thinking of planning a trip for them, as a gift for everything they've done for me.”

“That's very thoughtful of you, love. What were you thinking?”

“I'm not sure yet.”

“Well, if you need any help let me know.”

She nodded and looked away, a thoughtful expression in her features. “So, how was the rest of your day?”

They ate their food, watching the sunset as he told her about his appointments and a couple of surgeries he performed. He was afraid that he would bore her to death with his medical speak, but her eyes always lit up with interest when he spoke of work and she always asked him questions if she didn't understand what he was talking about. It was one of the many things he loved about her. He also spoke of his conversation with his parents, but he didn't mention that he told them about her. He didn't want to pressure her into meeting them, especially now.

“So you're not visiting them for the holidays?” Emma asked, surprised.

“Emma, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I left and something happened to you, but I promised them I would visit after New Years.”

“I just don't want you to stay because of me.”

“Love, it's only one Christmas. And I would like to be with you when you have the baby… that is if you want me to, of course.” He swallowed thickly, bracing himself for how she might react.

To his surprise, a slow smile graced her lips. “I would love for you to be there. But you don't think Rosabell would mind?”

Killian shook his head. “I don't think so. She knows that I care about you and I told her that you and I are still friends.” He just hoped he could hide his feelings for Emma around her.

“Okay. As long as you think it's safe to do so, then I would love for you to be with me when I deliver my baby.”

A wide smile crossed his lips. “Then it's settled,” he smiled excitedly, taking a bite of carrot. “So tell me, what did you do today, love?”

A guilty look fell upon her features as she started to respond. “I went to the bookstore to talk to Belle,” she replied cautiously.

“Ah, she's a nice lass. How is she and the baby doing?”

“They're both fine. Belle’s definitely ready to have her.”

“I'm surprised she's still working.”

“Yeah, she said she's working until a few days before her due date. I'm going to do the same. I would hate being cooped up in the house just waiting to have this baby,” Emma said lightly.

“Can't say that I blame you, love. I figured you would. You are the stubborn type,” he said with a playful smile. Although, the doctor and caring lover in him wished she would take some time to rest before she had the baby, but he wouldn't fight her about it. He wanted her to feel free to make decisions about her own body, and he would never take that away from her.

“I also went to see Gold at his pawn shop,” Emma admitted, guilt flashing in her eyes again. “I had to know if Neal's related to him.”

Killian's features fell, a lump growing in his throat as he swallowed. “And what did you find out, love?” he asked, attempting to hide the worry in his tone.

“After I showed him a picture, he said he had never seen Neal before.” Killian nodded, looking down at the slice of strawberry in his hand as he took a bite, and then she continued. “But he was lying. I could tell that he was.”

He looked up at her and could tell that she adamantly believed that. “Emma… what if you're right and he does know Neal? What if Neal had been in that shop?”

“Look, I know that I was taking a risk by going there, but…” her voice trailed off before she continued, “...I can't just sit back and wait for Neal to show up,” her voice became cracked and he could see her eyes glazing over with tears. “I can't just do nothing. He either came here to hurt me and my baby or take us back to Tallahassee. And he's out there somewhere, laughing and waiting for me to give up and crawl back to him.” A tear escaped down her cheek and he could feel his heart clenching. Killian jumped off of the truck and stood between her legs, taking her hands in his own, his thumbs gently caressing her skin.

“It's okay, love,” he breathed softly. She released his hands and instantly burrowed herself in his arms, burying her face in the crook of his neck. He felt the tears stinging his eyes as she sobbed softly into his shirt. He stroked Emma's hair as he held her as close as he could, tilting his head to whisper in her ear. “I won't let him hurt you or your baby.”

“But you can't always be around to protect us.”

“Maybe I can be.” He pulled back slightly, taking her cheeks in his hands, urging her to look him in the eye as he spoke with all of the sincerity he could summon. “If you want to run away from here, all you have to do is say the word,” he paused briefly before continuing, his words cracked and lowered to a whisper, “and I will take you away in a heartbeat.”

Emma closed her eyes and leaned her forehead on his, grasping onto his shoulders for balance. “I can't… this place is my home. I can't just leave everyone. I finally have a family.”

He nodded. “I understand, love. I just wanted you to know that it's an option. I would give up everything here to go with you.”

She shook her head. “I can't let you give up your life here for me. You can't just leave it all behind.”

He flashed her a weak smile. “But I would. I… I would for you.”

She pulled away, eyeing him in confusion. “But why? Why would you do that?”

“Because, Emma…” A smile pulled at the corner of his mouth and he grabbed her hand, bringing it his lips and pressing a delicate kiss there as he struggled to breathe the three words that he had been reluctant to say for fear of pushing her away. But he knew she felt the same. He could tell by the way she looked at him, the way she smiled at him, the way she spoke to him. “I love you...” His eyes darted to hers and he could see the fear there, but he could also see love.

She gave him a weak smile. “You shouldn't… I’m not good for you.” His features fell in confusion.

“I very much beg to disagree. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

Emma shook her head and pushed him away as she lowered herself from the truck. “How can you say that to me? What about your wife?” She disentangled herself from his embrace and started to walk away. He followed after her.

“Emma, please…” he gently grabbed her hand and she turned around to face him. “Of course I loved my wife, but losing her was the worst thing I've ever faced. And believe me, I've seen many horrible things in my field, love. I never thought I would be able to let go of my love for Milah… I never thought I would fall in love with one of my patients… and then you came along. And I know you're scared. I know that as much as Neal hurt you, a part of you may be afraid to let go of him completely. And when you're ready, I'll still be here waiting. I'm not going anywhere. My heart is in this for the long haul. I'll wait as long as it takes.”

He could see her breaking down, her eyes about to burst with tears, and she stepped closer to him, falling into his embrace. He immediately wrapped his arms around her, his hands sifting through her golden locks and cupping the back of her head as he kissed her temple. She rested her head on his shoulder as she curled her arms around him and he could feel the wetness from her tears soak through his shirt. “I'm just scared,” she whispered.

“I know you are, sweetness. But I won't let him hurt you or your son. I promise.”

She tightened her hold, seeming to accept his words and he just held her like that, offering her the love and comfort she deserved, asking for nothing in return.

It felt like an eternity, Emma in his arms, but it was nowhere close to being enough.

Eventually, they pulled apart and finished eating before they put everything away. Killian offered her his jacket and they sat back in the bed of the truck. Emma was in between his legs as she rested her head back on his chest and they gazed at the stars, just taking in the view.

“Can I ask you something?” Emma murmured, breaking the silence.

“You can ask me anything,” Killian kissed her head as his fingers crept under her shirt, caressing her belly.

“You never told me why Milah couldn't bear children. Did it have to do with... what she went through?”

“Aye.” Killian drew in a deep breath before he continued. “Milah got married at a young age, when she was eighteen. They eloped after she graduated high school. Her husband at the time started beating her not even a year after they were married. I was staying with a friend in Boston during summer break and she lived in the apartment across the hall. That's how we met, and I could hear them fighting in their apartment from time to time. Then one night, I heard her screaming from my mate’s unit. I went out into the hall and saw her husband running down the stairs like a coward,” Killian said, gritting his teeth. “I had to bust down her door to get in and I found her on the kitchen floor in a pool of her own blood.”

Emma let out a gasp. “What happened?”

“He um… he stabbed her in the stomach and she had to have abdominal surgery. It caused permanent damage and the doctor told her she would never be able to have children. After that, we ran away together, and she had these big dreams, wanting to become an OBGYN and start her own fertility clinic one day to help women struggling to get pregnant.”

Emma tilted her head back to look at him. “Have you ever thought about doing that? I mean opening a fertility clinic?”

“Aye, actually I have. I’ve thought about expanding and opening a research and fertility center.

“I think you should. I mean if that's what you want to do. You're an amazing doctor. You care about your patients and respect them. You treat a complete stranger a hundred times better than my husband ever treated me, that's for sure.”

“True, but he's a fucking asshole, love. I will never understand why anyone in this world would want to hurt such an amazing woman. You are a treasure to be cherished. Any decent man would kill to have a lass like you.”

“I don't know about that,” she said. “But as long as you want me, that's good enough for me.” He smiled weakly at her, stroking her cheek. If only she knew exactly what she was worth. Killian decided that he wanted to take her out on an actual date to show her how special she really was, and he couldn't wait any longer to do so. As much as he enjoyed their private moments in his home, she deserved to be courted properly. Killian held Emma in his arms and kissed her forehead, mentally making plans for such an occasion as she laid her head on his chest.

After they got home, they went upstairs to his bedroom. She laid on the bed in her mint green nightgown and he stripped down to his boxers before fetching some massage oil that he bought for her nightly massages. He poured it into his hand, rubbing the oil into her left foot. She purred at his touches. He switched to the other one and worked his way up her beautiful long legs, both of them thoroughly enjoying his ministrations.

He climbed on the bed, continuing to massage her thighs and she moaned softly as his fingers made their way up her nightgown. He lifted the satin material over her belly and leaned in, leaving delicate kisses to her thigh and over her covered nub. He could smell the sweet nectar through her panties as his lips came in contact with the thin material, and it took every ounce of control within him not to pull down her underwear and lick her senseless. He often dreamt of doing so, of swiping her soft blonde curls and delving into her delicious folds; it was by far one of his favorite activities. His swan was so beautiful and perfect and she tasted simply devine. Arousal stirred in his groin as the images invaded his thoughts, but instead he grabbed the bottle of oil and poured it into his hand before rubbing it all over her belly.

Emma seemed to be completely relaxed under his hands. He looked up and saw that her eyes were closed as she breathed contentedly. “You still with me, love?”

“Yeah,” she breathed, a gentle smile spreading across her lips. “Keep going.”

“With pleasure.” He continued rubbing her belly, covering her round form with gentle kisses. He stayed there for a while just admiring and appreciating her, whispering sweet nothings to her growing baby inside.

After he covered her belly back up with her nightgown, he turned off the lamp and laid next to her as she looked up at him with her big, green eyes.

“Killian, I have to tell you something.”

He arched a brow as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and peered down at her. “You can tell me anything,” he said sincerely with an encouraging smile. He could tell there had been something weighing on her mind the whole night.

“I sold my engagement ring at the pawnshop.”

“You did?” Killian swallowed thickly, not really knowing what to think about that.

“I had been holding on to it, because you were right. I was still hanging on to Neal. As much as I hate him, he’s still my husband.” Killian wasn't sure if he liked where this was heading. She wasn't considering going back to him, was she? Killian's heart tore in his chest at the mere thought. “But, I don't love him anymore.” Killian let out a deep sigh of relief. “I was afraid to say this before, because I was afraid that I'm not good enough for you.”

“You are absolutely perfect for me,” Killian assured her. He looked into her eyes as she struggled for the right words, as though she were unsure if she believed him. “Now what is it you want to say, love? You don't have to be afraid with me. My feelings aren't going to change.”

“I know,” she breathed. “Killian… I love you, too. And I want you to be apart of mine and my baby's life. If that's what you want too.”

Killian's heart fluttered, hearing those amazing words. “I want absolutely nothing more.” He cupped her cheeks in his hands. “I love you, Emma. Both of you,” He murmered before leaning in and smashing his lips into hers, kissing her deeply. She responded with the same fervor and passion as they both pulled each other closer, getting caught up in a heated kiss that made his head spin. The feelings he had for her were so overwhelming, he could no longer control his desire to make love to her.

She removed her nightgown as he took off his boxers and he kissed her body from top to bottom before pulling off her panties, turning Emma on her side. He got behind her, pulling her leg over his, and he entered her, whispering exactly how much he loved her in her ear as he thrusted into her warm depths. He would never want to claim her, but he felt a great deal of pleasure knowing that her heart was his and his alone.

~~~

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ecotone99 · 5 years

Text

[MF] Is There a Balm in Gilead?

He was waiting urgently in the hall when they found him, he had worked himself out of his bed and fumbled on two unsteady feet through the door. He stood pressed against the wall arms outstretched below his waist as if he stood on the brink of some precipice. That's when they arrived with the wheelchair to take him home. His eyes jittered in his head and spittle dribbled down his white stubbled chin. He was ready, for two months he had been ready, wasting away in that bed like a sack of shit, now he would be free. He would feel the warmth of the sunlight on his shoulders as they wheeled him out those sliding glass doors, his son would pick him up from the ramp, and that would be that. He'd be hedding home. The nurses wore baby blue scrubs and plastic masks; their heads were wrapped like cafeteria employees. They stank of exhaustion and sanitation alcohol. Between the two of them the wheelchair bobbled up and down on old, uneasy wheels. The one on the right engaged the break.

"Mr. Hendly, you know you should not be out of your room."

"I'm ready he said." "It's unsafe Mr. Hendly, you should know better, you could have fallen an broken your head.." "I'm ready take me home, I called my son he's commin, take me home." "Well alright Mr. Hendly, just come on over to the wheelchair and we'll be on our way." "No." He said. "I wanna walk." More of a croak really. " I'm sorry, sir," he held out his hands to help him into the parked chair, " we can't allow that." " No. I wanna walk. I wanna-" he stumbled and caught himself on the wall " I'm goin' to, my son is commin' for me." "Mr. Hendly," he said "we cannot let you walk, it's hospital policy." "Damn policy." "Can you come over to the chair? Mr. Hendly please?" He made a few feeble efforts before they intervened, one held the chair, the other held his elbows. He clenched his fists and curled his wrists and like an infant brought his arms closer to his body. He slid into the chair. The wheel chair began to move and they were on the way. He hunched in the chair like a constipated toad. The white hallways wheeled by as he wobbled past the dying and the newborn. They all stank of disinfectant and death, but he was free. No more sponge baths, no more hospital meals, no more of that, his son would come and take him away. His room he fixed again and again running it through his mind, he'd put this here and that there, he would get himself out of bed, his sons new wife would make him breakfast, lunch, and dinner, homemade meals hot and soft so he could chew it. The ceiling lights bleared through the linoleum floor, blurred ghosts milled around like coy in s pond, going from here to there and around again, the old the young, the new born dead and dying, all the same. He wasn't one of them he was going haome, that's all that mattered. When his son was a young boy he took him to the golf course, his son didn't care and doesn't remember it. Well, that's how I seemed when he brought it up when he visited several moths ago. He'd seen him once since he'd been diagnosed, but he was picking him up now. It would be fine.

They wheeled past the receptionist with dark bags under her eyes and several months worth of Cinnabon beneath her chin. She had another on her desk that she was about to add to her collection. She had on faded pink scrubs that may have been cute where they several years and many wash cycles younger. They were speckled with pathetic puke-green flowers with five faded petals an a poor choice of blue at their centers. The junxstapotion of her outfit with her the Cinnabon collection was divine.

He grumbled a jocular grumble as he passed and spittle dribbled from his lips in a pendulum fashion. The wheel squeaked round and round, round and round. The nurses didn't say anything, they really didn't have anything to say, all attempts at sociability had been exhausted on a sixty year old lady with a metal hip who kept complaining about her neighbor behind the screen, and her neighbor who kept complaining about the loud woman with a metal hip. And the wheels squeaked round and round and round and round. If you have ever been to a hospital you know that the hallways are long and labrythian. Signs on the walls point to indefinite locations and hidden floors and the convex mirrors in the corners are portals into eternal plodding passageways bustling with the new born and the dying. A whole managerie, a complete portrait of life. The stone circles of modern day where druids in scrubs deliver the young and escort the old to their final waking destinations. If you have ever been lost in a hospital you would know the feeling of hopelessness as you wander down impossibly long corridors, up and down elevators that don’t access every floor, and end up in the place you started or in some place far from where you intended to be. You would understand the feeling of being hopelessly lost in the belly of a sprawling beast that runs on the very life of humanity. Mr Hendly did not quite feel hopeless, but he did feel hopelessly small, he would never admit it of course but he had no idea where he was. He couldn’t remember how he got here exactly, not just what passageways led to his room, or what unit he was on, but how the fuck had he got HERE? He remembered his wife, or at least having a wife. He couldn’t tell you what the color of her hair was or the smell of her perfume, but he could tell you that she was kind. He didn’t know why, or how they were related, but he had a faint feeling of disgust for hospitals and the staff. Something about a tired looking old doctor with a few strands of white hair looking down at him as he held his wife’s hand, he remembered that much.

“Susan” he muttered, spittle dribbling from his lips.

“I’m sorry sir?” The nurse walking beside him asked.

“Where’s Susan?” He asked “I want to see her, tell my son to bring Susan, I want to see her, I...” his voice drifted of as he thought about the tired looking doctor with strands of white hair and thin circular silver rimmed spectacles.

“There’s no one named Susan listed in your direct contacts Mr Hendly.” The other nurse said, perhaps it was just exhaustion, but the nurse’s voice sounded slightly exasperated, as if he had been asked this question before. A lot.

“Fuck you. Get Susan.” Mr Hendly grumbled. “You know my son is on the way, he told me he was going to pick me up. He... he told me when... I believe it was two moths ago when he came to visit. He promised.”

“Whatever you say sir.” The first nurse responded.

His wheelchair creaked as the wheels turned round and round down long distended corridors that twisted and and coiled like the intestines of behemoth. Mr Hendly chuckled to himself as they passed a room with an open door, from inside he could hear some old lady complaining about her metal hip, and her neighbor telling her to shut the fuck up because she was dying of cancer.

Cancer.

“Fucking cancer.” Mr Hendly chuckled to himself “ ‘s always cancer.”

He had a vivid image of the tired looking doctor in silver rimmed spectacles. His lips kept moving, it’s cancer, it’s cancer, it’s cancer.

“It’s cancer!” He screamed.

“Mr Hendly please calm down.” The first nurse said in the most reassuring tone he could muster putting a hand in Mr Hendlys shoulder.

“You don’t have cancer Sir.” The second nurse added.

“ The fuck I don’t, where’s Susan?” Mr Hendly grumbled.

“Now Mr. Hendly there is no need for that kind of language.” The first nurse chided, and I don’t know who Susan is.

“Where’s is Susan I have to see her, where’s my son? I need to see him I need to tell him his mother is dead I need...”

“It’s going to be ok Sir we are almost there” the second nurse pushing the wheelchair said behind him.

The wheelchair squeaked outside into the the warm golden sunlight. His shoulders felt warm and welcomed the warm sunlight.

“I’m going home, I’m free.” He grumbled

Cars passed by patients came and went. Mr Hendly looked up and down the parking lot, up and down the adjacent street looking for the black Chevy that would take him home. A white bus pulled up driven by a young man in a blue uniform.

“Where’s my son?”

“Here’s your ride Mr Hendly.”

“The fuck you mean? Where’s my son, fuck you bastards! Where’s my son he fuckin promised! Where’s Susan she wouldn’t let this happen. Susan!”

“Calm down Mr Hendly you will be back home soon.”

The bright fluorescent light blinded him as he slowly drooled down his chest. The old lady’s at the table next to his cackled and argued over their game of bridge. He sat in his chair as the white fluorescent lights ached his shoulders and made him cold.

“He promised he’d take me home.” He whispered as he watched a young man and his wife visit what he could only assume was the mans old mother.

“He promised he’d come, he told me he’d come.”

A young nurse walked up and bent down looking him in the eyes, she put her hands on her knees and altered her voice as if speaking to a child.

“It’s time for your nap Mr Hendly”

“ I don’t want a fucking nap I want to go home.” He grumbled.

She pulled the break on his wheelchair and started to push him down the hallway towards his room. The fluorescent lights pressed down from above as the wheels creaked round and round below.

“I want to go home.” He whispered, “I want Susan.”

The nurse made no reply as she pushed him down the hallway.

“My son is coming to pick me up, haven’t I told you? He promised. He’s coming today I believe, he’ll be here you’ll see.”

“Your just tired Mr Hendly.” The nurse said in her best reassuring voice.

“He’s coming. You’ll see.” He said as she turned him into his room. His voice seemed to echo down the hallways in a soft breathy whisper:

“He’s coming. You’ll see.”

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delilahssblog · 7 years

Text

T.I.A. IN HINDSIGHT

in retrospect, suffering a TIA was the last thing on my mind that day, a few weeks ago. I’ve always been interested in the workings of the human body and I knew that mine was in excellent clinical shape and physically, I was of average height, not overweight at 58kgs, my muscle power was strong and I took good care of myself via diet and activity of both body and mind. I did crosswords and puzzles every day to stave off the ever increasing threat of dementia. Although well past retiring age, I was still at work albeit just two days a week but that had nothing to do with lack of energy or slowing of brainpower. I was as sharp brained, able to do mental arithmetic and beat the calculator and the time was needed for happier more rewarding things than sitting behind a desk in a silent, airless, daylight devoid office.

It was a Thursday, May 18th and one of my days off. The weather was gorgeous and I’d driven down the Alvechurch Bypass, got my shopping and was back home feeling on top of the world. My two cats were out enjoying the day and having put the shopping away, I laid out my lunch, put the kettle on and sat down for a glance at my tablet. It was around 1pm and was responding to something on Facebook but couldn’t make myself type the correct words. I didn’t pay any attention to it because I have a benign tremor in my right hand which started with a severe neck injury decades ago. It progressed, taking in its path, my handwriting and many other skills such as sewing, knitting, everyday things you’d never dream of until you can no longer do them. I put the tablet aside and headed for the kitchen, pleasant thoughts of lunch going through my head but for some reason, sifting straight out again like sand in an egg timer. The hair on the back of my neck was starting to stand up as I stood at the worktop. I needed the butter from the fridge and said it out loud as I do sometimes, talking to myself. It came out of my mouth in a voice I didn’t even recognise and it was complete rubbish…Bill and Ben, the flowerpot men came to mind. I started to laugh and tried to say other things but it was all rubbish. Somewhere in my sand sifting mind, I knew what was happening and that I had to get help. I did the FAST test I’d seen on telly, smiling, raising my arms in the air, squeezing my hands into tight fists, sticking my tongue out, all working properly and done while opening the door to get the cats in. I drove the two minutes to the surgery before remembering they close at lunchtime on a Thursday but there was one car on the car park and I could see the receptionist getting ready to close up. I went up to the desk and got out that I was having a problem with my speech. Just at that moment, the last doctor on the premises coming out of her office to head home, was called over . She ushered me into her office and after a couple of minutes, told me to get to A&E immediately. We should have dialled 999 but by then, I was right back to normal so I drove home despite the doctor telling me I shouldn’t drive but I needed to get the car home. I called a taxi and was in A&E waiting room by 2.15. Time is of the essence with a mini stroke. They say if you’re treated within three hours, it can be stopped in its tracks, damage halted and in some cases, reversed.

I was seen almost immediately, bloods taken, blood pressure measured (normally textbook but now sky high) and in a short while, I was being monitored, fed aspirin and sitting in front of the doctor. He said it was being treated as a TIA and if the head scan I’d had taken was normal, I could go home on medication and await an appointment for the stroke clinic. The scan was normal so I went home with aspirin, statins, blood pressure tablets etc.

My appointment came through for the following week because the danger period for having a follow up stroke and probably a much more severe one, stretches to a week if you survive the first 24 hours. It was an extremely anxious week, taking my pills religiously and watching the daily bp readings return to a much more acceptable level. I was at the appointment in plenty of time and was called into the ‘machine’ quite quickly. There was blood pressure, height, weight, heart trace, bloods and the final thing was a neck scan of my carotid arteries. I came out of the scan room and within two/three minutes, I was whisked into the vascular consultant’s room. He had a picture of my left and right carotids perched on top of his computer monitor and in the left one, there was a 90% blockage. It said that in the drawing although I could see well enough, the tiny little space left for my blood to pump through 70 something times every minute. Obviously, a tiny piece of this fatty glob had broken off and got stuck in the speech area of my brain before quickly dissolving. I said to the consultant ‘ Is that me?’. He said ‘ I’m afraid so. ‘ I asked what my options were completely calmly and he said it was either home with lifelong medication or surgery. He said he was offering surgery because I was so clinically fit and there was nothing else wrong with me. I opted for the surgery which he then explained in detail. The neck was opened, a stent was attached either side of the blockage to redirect the blood supply. The artery was then opened, the blockage scraped out and a patch oversewn. The obvious risks were explained as in 2 to 3% risks my vocal chord nerves would be damaged, ditto the swallowing mechanism, another stroke on the table or…as indeed in ANY surgery…mortality. It was a no brainier and so, as instructed, I went home and waited for the letter.

It was a harrowing time. I’d walked out of his office quite calmly but suddenly went cold and started to shake. Someone guided me to a chair and gave me some water. Janet I think her name was…she was wonderful… took me to the seats at the main entrance and waited until Paul came. I’d asked the consultant if it would be ok to ring my son as I felt in need of some support. He said that sounded very reasonable to him. Paul arrived to collect me and in his calm, inimitable way, he put everything into perspective, his years of training and nursing work coming to the fore and sweeping away so much of my anxiety. I was resigned to waiting a while for my surgery and it was like walking a tightrope; part of me glad the postman didn’t deliver the large white envelope and part of me questioning every nuance, every single incongruity that happened in my body, thinking ‘Is this it?’. Totally prepared with the phone beside me at night, I’d bed down prepared to toss and turn but I slept every night as though my mind was at peace. In the end, I waited a very short time for my date with the surgeon and when I looked at the date for my surgery, it was the 7th of July, less than two weeks away. I was glad and at the same time petrified but like the proverbial swan, the part of me on show told nothing of the manic paddling going on below the water line.

Cometh the day, cometh the hour and the day was upon me. By this time, I felt philosophical and with my long packed bag containing only robe and slippers as instructed, we headed for the Queen Elizabeth and got there about 6.45am. All the deeds were done, another neck scan was done because, as the surgeon (who oversaw it) said ‘ If its blocked totally, there’ll be no need to operate….’. It wasn’t completely blocked so a few markers were put on my neck and off I went to the anti room where I climbed on to the trolley to have the anaesthetic administered. Even then, my nerves had disappeared even though just a few minutes before, the surgeon had explained all the risks to be sure I was well aware of what I was signing for. Yes, I knew about the voicebox, the potential swallowing problems, the possible stroke, and yes, that I may not wake up again. It was a weird feeling that I couldn’t explain but I’d signed with a smile and a ‘thank you’.

I don’t know how the anaesthetist knew about my cats but that’s what we discussed while she pumped me full of whatever it is they use these days. I was talking about my two boy cats and suddenly, it was all over and I was in the recovery ward to be given four precious hours of one on one nursing. My nurse, Cassandra, was an angel in disguise. I know it’s used a lot but for her, it’s true. She was terrific. We chatted for the hours I was in there about all and sundry and I asked if I was taking up her time. She told me I WAS her time and how great it was to have someone who was awake and able to chat lucidly. I loved her. The four hours flew and she saw me upstairs to the ward where I’d spend what was left of my surgery day. The surgery, instead of being two and a half hours, was five hours starting at 9am on the dot plus four hours on the second floor recovery ward which meant I was in the post op ward around 6.30 pm. She saw me settled and grabbed my hand, telling me I’d been a ‘star patient’. That face and those words will stay with me forever. It’s only now, sitting here, writing this that I realised I’d completely discounted the possibility that I may not make it. When I woke in that one on one ward, I’d fully expected to wake up. The human spirit is indomitable. At least mine is.

I spent the evening quietly and during the night, was closely monitored with a bp and pulse machine automatically taking my blood pressure every hour. The staff were superb. Everything was superb. The following morning around 7, a lovely young member of Mr Kay’s surgical team came to see me. He told me it had been a long surgery and Mr Kay had asked him to tell me that it had been a very necessary surgery, that the blockage was a huge glob of fatty, sticky mess and a huge chunk of it would certainly have broken away very shortly and travelled up to my brain and either killed me or left me in a sorry state.

I was ready for breakfast although I can’t remember what it was but when lunch came, I hoovered up the lush chicken casserole and licked my lips. I was discharged that evening about 7pm making my life saving stay a mere 36 hours. Paul collected me and home Iwent to make an almost full recovery in two/three weeks.

I think back over the events as they happened and serendipity played a huge part in the outcome which could have been so different. It helped that I was aware of what the symptoms could be and acted immediately but luck was on my side on going to the surgery on early closing day and finding it open by a cat’s whisker. Also seeing the doctor who advised me strongly to get to A&E. The staff who did all the right things, the early Stroke Clinic appointment a week later which contained the all super important neck scan, the vascular surgeon being on hand the moment the blockage was found and the miracle of the offered surgery. I wonder ‘who’ makes the choices in this world of random happenings. Why did I get such a subtle warning that did me no harm at all and lasted for what? Five minutes? but opened the door to the discovery of a dangerous condition I had no idea was there. I’d been walking around like a ticking time bomb, totally unaware of the danger I was in.

I look at life with a different eye now. I look at people with a different eye too and wonder what, if anything, they are blissfully unaware of. I have a new lease of life. I feel every bit as good as I did before the op but I’m so much safer now thanks to the skill of the vascular surgery team at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. Some thanks has to go to the Stroke awareness campaign on the television. Do yourselves a favour, folks. Learn to recognise the symptoms as I did. The confusion, the strange speech, the muscle weakness, the lopsidedness Face..Arms..Speech…Time. FAST. Don’t waste a minute in getting medical help because it could mean your life.

I haven’t smoked for thirty five years; I live a good life with lots of exercise and healthy food with a few diversions of course. I rarely touch alcohol. The early day smoking has been well and truly blamed for the condition so the best advice I can give anyone is…Stop smoking now. I’ve tweaked my lifestyle as and where I can but as much as we do to preserve our lives, it’s all in the hands of fate. Whatever we’re doing, it should make us happy, very happy but tempered with a little common sense. I still have every single one of the common day to day problems I had before; I don’t mind a bit.

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