#open heart pb | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

justcallmefox89 · 1 month

Text

Irresistible Force Paradox: Chapter Five - An Open Heart fic

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

After a tragedy, Rory and Ethan call a temporary ceasefire.

I sprint into the waiting room at Edenbrook, frantically looking around for anyone who may have answers about Delores. I spot Ramsey sitting alone, staring down at his hands, and I rush over to him.

“Dr. Ramsey? What happened? Where’s Delores?” I pant, bending in half and sucking in air, my hands on my knees.

He doesn’t answer me for several long moments, making me fidget impatiently. I’m opening my mouth to repeat myself when he finally meets my eyes.

“Delores had a seizure,” he says hollowly, his eyes distant and unfocused. “Full eclampsia. We had no choice but to deliver the baby. It’s 50/50 he’ll survive the night.”

“No…” I breathe out. My knees buckles but I mange to catch myself on the arm of the chair Ramsey is sitting in. “Where’s Delores?”

“She died.”

My blood roars in my ears, drowning out all of the other mundane hospital sounds surrounding us. My eyes burn as small tendrils of grief take root in my chest, quickly stamped out by the heavier, more intense feeling of anger. Anger at the randomness, the unfairness of it all. Anger at myself for not having done more, not fighting Ramsey harder, not making Delores understand just how serious her condition was.

NO.

“Dr. Ramsey, - ”

“I’m fine.” He stands and quickly strides away without looking back.

A while later I tiptoe into the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, clutching that stupid stuffed frog, and silently begin searching the incubators for Delores’s son. I allow myself a tiny smile when I finally find him and read his name tag.

Ethan Hudson. How about that…

“Can I help you?”

I whirl around in surprise to face the attending on duty. “His mother was my patient. She got to name him?” I ask, vaguely gesturing towards the incubator.

“She told me just as she was rushed to the O.R. The poor thing. We’ll know more in the morning,” she answers, casting a sad look towards the baby.

“Do you mind if I sit with him tonight?”

“Feel free.”

“Do you mind if he has this?” I hold up the frog. “His mother wanted him to have it. It’s been sterilized.”

“Go ahead,” she says, shrugging as she walks away.

I pull on a pair of sterile gloves and place the stuffed animal into the incubator, tucking it close to the baby. He snuggles weakly against it, and tears prick my eyes. “That’s it, tadpole. That’s the way.”

I sit down on the couch next to the incubator and put my hand back inside, allowing the baby to grasp one of my gloves fingers. I relax into the couch, preparing for a long, sleepless night.

********************************************** Ethan rounds the corner to enter the N.I.C.U. and draws up short as the sound of a now irritatingly familiar voice floats out to meet him.

“Can you believe some people actually think Black Jack Randall is attractive? Like the book version, not the actor in the series?”

Ethan peers around on the doorjamb to see O’Shea seated next to the incubator housing Delores’s son, having a very enthusiastic one-side conversation with the infant.

“I know! After everything he did to Jamie… I can’t believe it either. How do you feel about Lord John as a character?” Rory pauses as if listening to the baby’s reply. “Well obviously… clearly you’re a gentleman of taste. Can I talk about my gripe with Roger for a second? Because honestly - ”

“Ahem.” Ethan clears his throat and Rory glances over at him, eyes wide and cheeks pink with embarrassment. “What are you still doing here?”

“I’m staying here tonight.” O’Shea turns his attention back to the incubator. “I hate the idea of him fighting for his life alone.”

“There are plenty of doctors working overnight. If something happens, they’ll be here.”

“I know.”

The whisper is so soft Ethan can barely hear it. “Would you mind if I joined you?”

O’Shea’s wide green eyes betray his surprise and it takes him a moment to answer. “Not at all,” he finally says, shaking his head and scooting over to make room on the couch.

***************************************************

Ethan settles down on the couch next to me and for a while the soft, rhythmic whoosh of the ventilator is the only sound in the room. He catches sight of the stuffed frog and breaks out into a rare smile.

“You gave him the frog. Delores would have been…” His face falls and his falls silent at the reminder of the loss of his friend. “She would have been pleased.”

I bite the inside of my cheek and blink quickly in an effort to hold off the tears that have been threatening to fall all night.

“The first patient I lost… I was in my fourth week,” Ethan says, his voice more gentle than I thought him capable of. “I didn’t make any mistakes. He had stage four metastatic melanoma. He just… fought like hell and lost. I liked him. He wasn’t much older than I am now. I knew he didn’t have long to live, but it still hit me hard.”

I take a shallow, shuddering breath. “I can’t let this get to me,” I mumble.

“Grieving a lost patient isn’t a weakness. Good doctors should value life. For itself. I’d be more concerned if you weren’t upset. Just know this wasn’t your fault. Or mine. Or Delores’s. We all made the best decisions we could with the information we had.”

The argument that we could have done things differently is at the tip of my tongue, but I bite it back. “I could have done more,” I say bitterly. “I failed her.”

Ethan sighs. “It’s important to push yourself, Rookie, but you will take a lot of losses. We all do. What matters is that you come back stronger.”

I glance at him suspiciously from the corner of my eye. “Why are you being so nice to me? Usually you’re…”

“Demanding?” he helpfully supplies.

“An asshole,” I mumble.

Other than a slight raise of his eyebrows Ethan doesn’t comment on my assessment of his character. He stares off into space, sorting his thoughts. “There are doctors with unlimited patience,” he says eventually. “I am not one of them. Energy I could use socializing, or making someone’s day better, I put towards my patience. They’re who I’m here for.”

“Well that explains why you and Dr. Emery broke up,” I mutter under my breath.

“Rookie…” Ethan’s tone is warning.

“You’re a teacher too,” I point out, attempting to backtrack.

“One of many, and you shouldn’t model yourself after any of us. Idolatry among physicians is absurd. We’re here to teach you practical medicine. You need to find your own way of being a doctor.”

“And… how do I do that?” I ask, twisting on the couch to fully face him, ready to absorb whatever Yoda-like knowledge he’s preparing to hand down.

The corner’s of Ethan’s lips tip up into a gentle smile. “You already are.”

What the fuck does that mean?

The baby stretches and wiggles, and Ethan scoots closer to the incubator, offering him a gloved finger. A soft, absent looks washes over Ethan’s face as the baby tightly clutches his finger.

“She named him after you,” I murmur.

His eyes widen in surprise as he looks down at the nametag. His jaw tightens and his throat works as he swallows. “I… see she did.”

“Did you know Delores a long time?” I venture.

“Over ten years. When I first emailed her I only meant to check in. But she was recently divorced, feeling alone, so she insisted on coffee. And then it turned into more emails and meeting once every couple months for Sunday roast.

“She sounds like a good friend.”

“I didn’t make friends easily when I started here, so I was always grateful to her for that.” Ethan swallows hard and falls silent, gazing intently at Delores’s baby. His eyes are red.

Unconsciously I reach out and place my hand over his. “I’m so sorry this happened,” I whisper, my voice cracking slightly.

Ethan glances up at me, surprise at first, and then something I can’t decipher in his shining blue eyes. He holds my gaze, his hand broad and warm beneath my own.

“Me too.” He roughly clears his throat. “I think we need coffee.”

“I can get some,” I offer, not having the heart to tell him I don’t like coffee.

“No. I’ll go.”

Several minutes tick by as I watch baby Ethan sleep, counting each shallow rise and fall of his chest. I start to drift off, the ambient hospital sounds soothing me.

“Here you go, Rookie.”

I shake my head, trying to clear away the cobwebs, and gingerly take the steaming mug Ethan’s hand me. I wrinkle my nose as the bitter smell of coffee assaults my senses and steel myself to take a sip. I fight the urge to gag, rather valiantly I think, and force down the drink.

Ethan attempts to hide a smirk behind his mug. “You could have said you weren’t a fan of coffee, Rookie.”

Apparently I’m not as subtle as I thought.

I sheepishly set the mug on the small table next to the couch. “Sorry. I do appreciate the thought though.”

************************************************

Ethan gazes down at the sleeping O’Shea, who’s currently curled up against Ethan’s side. The two had talked long into the night, seamlessly bouncing from subject to subject. Ethan had found himself truly enjoying the conversation; Rory had proven to be well-versed in many subjects, and his quick, caustic sense of humor had Ethan laughing more than he had in months. Several strands of inky dark hair have fallen over Rory’s face, and his glasses are slightly askew. Ethan’s lips quirk up at the endearing sight, his breath catching as Rory’s nuzzles against his arm.

“Rookie,” he murmurs, gently brushing the loose hair back away from Rory’s face. “Come on Rookie, time to wake up.”

Rory sits up slowly, yawning and stretching his arms over his head. He adjusts his glasses and turns to the incubator. Baby Ethan rests soundly, still snuggled against the stuffed frog.

“He made it!” Rory flashes Ethan a beaming smile, unable to contain his joy.

“And he’s getting stronger.”

Rory takes out his hair tie, shaking the unruly strands loose, unable to stop smiling. He runs a hand through his now unbound hair and checks his phone, his smile falling a little as he notes the time.

“Damn,” he sighs. I have rounds in twenty minutes. I need to go shower.”

Ethan sucks in a shallow breath, fighting to think about anything other than a naked, soapy Rory, hands trailing over lithe muscles… “I’ll stay a little longer,” he quickly offers.

Rory stands, smiling at the baby one last time. “Catch you later, tadpole.”

“Rory,” Ethan calls out as the other man is halfway out the door.

Rory skids to a halt and looks back over his shoulder. “Hm?”

“Thank you.”

5 notes · View notes

justcallmefox89 · 1 year

Text

Irresistible Force Paradox: Chapter Four - An Open Heart Fic

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Rory and Ethan team up for a rescue mission, and Sienna offers some advice when Rory’s uncertainties threaten to overwhelm him.

September 18. 11:00 a.m.

“Have you heard anything else about Banerji retiring?” Jackie asks as we both collect some charts from the nurses’ station.

I shake my head. “Nothing.”

“What you do thin-” Her pager beeps, interrupting her, and she impatiently checks it. “Duty calls. See you later, Rory.”

“Later, skater!” I call after her. I gather up my charts, preparing to follow Jackie’s example and get to work, when I hear Dr. Ramsey’s familiar shouting. I wander over to a nearby room and park myself near the door, attempting to look engrossed in my charts. The door is cracked open, allowing me to hear every word.

“This is preposterous, Harper! They’re not ready.”

I risk peeking through the blinds and see Ramsey and Chief Emery standing close together, talking in hushed tones.

Standing very close together. Interesting.

“Ethan…” Chief Emery murmurs, delicately placing her hand against Ramsey’s cheek.

My eyebrows creep up towards my hairline.

My, oh my.

Cursing my nosy nature, I creep a little closer to the door.

“I’m not asking you, Ethan. I’m telling you,” she continues.

“What else is new?” Ramsey snaps. “I know this is your hospital now. Your call. But I’m warning you… I’ll fight you every step of the way on this.”

“What else is new?” Chief Emery laughs lightly as she asks the question, lingering just long enough to flash Ramsey a triumphant smile and brush a soft kiss against his cheek before she walks away.

I assume a casual pose against the wall and pretend to studiously examine one of my charts as their footsteps grow closer. Chief Emery breezes by, not giving me a second glance, and I slowly breathe a sigh of relief –

“Were you eavesdropping?”

Goddamnit.

Dr. Ramsey towers over me, arms crossed, looking furious.

Sometimes the best defense is a good offense.

I lift my shoulders in a casual shrug. “Can it really be considered eavesdropping if I could hear you shouting out here in the hall?”

He closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose, letting out an irritated huff. “I don’t have time for this. Let’s just get on with our lives shall we?”

I stick my tongue out at his back as he impatiently stalks past me.

“Hey there, Doc!”

I turn around and see Bryce wheeling Kyra down the hall on a bed. “Hey gorgeous! I haven’t seen you since the surgical interns stole you away.”

Bryce smirks at me. “You say ‘stole’; I say, ‘rightfully took a surgical case’.”

“Hang on, two hot doctors fighting over me? Did the cancer get me, because this feels like a ‘died and gone to heaven’…” Kyra pretends to swoon back onto her pillow.

“You have a very morbid sense of humor, Kyra.” I grin. “I like it. So… is your surgery soon?”

“It’s right now,” Bryce answers. “A lobectomy, assisted by yours truly.”

“Your having a lobe of your lung removed today?” A wave of unexplainable dread washes over me.

Kyra shrugs. “It happened kinda fast after the C.T. results came back. But if the last thing I see before I die is your face, well… there are worse ways to go.”

I force myself to smile. “Well, if on the off chance you do see a bright light, I’m going to need you to picture this face and turn the hell around.”

She playfully rolls her eyes. “I guess it’ll be harder to die knowing I have a friend cheering me on.”

“Hey, what did we say about all the death talk?” Bryce nudges her shoulder.

“Sorry, boss. I’ll start planning for retirement.”

“Good. Sorry, Dr. O’Shea, but I have to get Ms. Santana to the O.R.”

I grab Bryce, pulling him just out of Kyra’s earshot. “Take care of her, Bryce. Please.”

He smirks. “She couldn’t be in better hands. I know you haven’t had the full experience yet, but seriously, my hands are incredible.”

I try to look stern, despite the blush I can feel creeping over my cheeks. “I mean it, Bryce.”

“Hey.” He steps a little closer, laying his hand against the side of my neck. He gently strokes his thumb against my pulse point, and smiles at me reassuringly. “I’m only assisting, but Dr. Zimmerman is an amazing surgeon. Kyra will be golden. We’ll bring her back safe.”

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I had been holding. “Thanks, Lahela.”

He gives me one last smile and returns to Kyra, wheeling her off to surgery. From the bed, Kyra waves goodbye. I return to the wave, trying to ignore the fear that burrows itself into my heart like a shard of ice.

“O’Shea!” Zaid voice shocks me out of my stupor. “What are you standing around for? Get down to the E.R. and see if they need any new patients admitted!”

“Sir, yes, sir!” I give him a little salute and scurry down to the emergency room. Aurora’s already there when I arrive, surrounded by a group of senior doctors and looking annoyed, as usual.

“I have a patient with chromodoridids if you’d like to assist. Blue sweat, it’s pretty cool -” one attending begins.

“Thanks, but no thanks,” Aurora curtly interrupts her.

Another attending sidles up to her. “Dr. Emery, hi! I brought you a cappuccino -”

“I drink tea.”

I like cappuccino.

Aurora strides away from them, heading my way with a cold look on her face.

“Hey, Aurora! What’s up your butt?” I greet her.

“Funny. That’s what I had to ask my last patient.” She gazes off into the distance, a horrified look on her face. “It was a model train.”

I can’t hold back my snicker.

She glares at me. “I’m glad one of us finds it amusing.”

The snickering is threatening to evolved into full blown laughter. “Ok… but like… why? And how?”

It quickly becomes clear Aurora has no intention of sating my curiosity.

“You’re no fun,” I mutter. I glance around the E.R. “It’s pretty quiet down here today, that’s great!”

“What are you even talking about? There are no good cases.”

I shrug, smiling. “And that means fewer people are seriously sick. That’s a win in my book.”

Aurora stares at me as if I’ve grown a second head.

I sigh in defeat. “If you’re so desperate for a cool case, why didn’t you go with that attending?”

For just a moment she look as if she might answer me, but in the end she just scowls. “Super not interested in explaining myself to you.”

The wail of a siren interrupts my response. Aurora and I exchange a look and sprint to the ambulance dock, reaching it just as the ambulance backs in. The doors fly open, and a muscular, brunette paramedic climbs out, helping the nurses unload and unconscious woman in an oxygen mask.

“Delores Hudson, office fire,” the paramedic reports. “Her coworkers evacuated in time, but she’s pregnant and couldn’t move fast enough.”

“Did she suffer any burns?” I ask, already doing a visual examination.

“She didn’t encounter the flames, just the smoke. She panicked and got stuck in an upstairs bathroom.”

“How are the vitals?” Aurora asks.

“Elevated B.P., but she and the baby both have strong heartbeats. Pretty serious smoke inhalation, though. Hopefully I got them out in time to avoid any permanent damage.”

For the second time that day my eyebrows race towards my hairline. “You got them out? Where were the firefighters?”

The paramedic smiles sheepishly. “We beat the fire department to the scene. I heard her screaming, so I broke in and carried her out.”

“We’ll get her admitted and into a bed,” a nurse interjects. “Dr. O’Shea, Dr. Emery, which of you is taking this?”

“Smoke inhalation? It’s all yours.” Aurora waves a hand dismissively. “I’ll wait for something interesting.”

“I’ll take it. I’ll be right up,” I tell the nurse.

I linger behind with the paramedic while Aurora departs and the nurse wheel Delores to the elevator.

I covertly study him while trying to think of something interesting to say. “So… you ran into a raging inferno to save a pregnant woman?”

Fantastic, Rory. Pure brilliance.

He tilts his head to the side in confusion. “Well, yeah. Wouldn’t you?”

I laugh softly. “Hate to break it to you Superman, but I’m more of a Lois Lane.”

He chuckles along with me. “You’re a doctor. I’m sure you wouldn’t hesitate. I haven’t seen you around Edenbrook. Are you new?”

“I’m Dr. O’Shea. It’s my first week.”

He offers his hand and I shake it, allowing my hand to remain in his longer than is strictly professional.

“Rafael Aveiro. I guess I’ll be seeing you around then, Dr. O’Shea?”

“Oh, I certainly hope so,” I murmur.

“I hope so too.” Rafael flashes me a gentle smile. Suddenly the walkie-talkie clipped to his chest squawks. “That’s my cue…”

“See you later, Superman.”

Rafael laughs, clear and bright, as he races back out to the ambulance. I wait until he’s out of sight before I turn and head towards the elevators. When I step off the elevator onto the fourth floor the first thing I see is Mrs. Martinez, the patient who flashed me and Elijah on our first day, doing her daily laps of the floor. I’m surprised to see her walking with the Ice King, holding onto his arm for support. I linger for a moment, watching the pair as Ethan gestures with his free hand, clearly telling a story. Mrs. Martinez laughs in appreciation, and he laughs along with her, his carefree smile taking years away from his usually stern countenance.

He looks good when he smiles.

I quickly shake off the thought as Mrs. Martinez lets go of Ramsey’s arm and he begins heading my way. His smile fades the moment he sees me.

“Eavesdropping again, are we, O’Shea?” he snipes.

I roll my eyes. “Once again, it can hardly be considered eavesdropping when you were being loud enough for the whole hospital to hear you.”

He lowers his voices to the irritated tone he seems to reserve especially for me. “Why must you be so difficult?”

“I don’t have time for this. Delores Hudson isn’t going to examine herself.”

Ramey’s stoic mask cracks momentarily. “Did you just say Delores Hudson?”

“Yes?”

“I’m coming with you.”

Fuuuuuck.

Ramsey hurries me to Delores’s room and I’m relieved to find her conscious, her oxygen mask replaced with a nose tube.

“Hi, Ms. Hudson, I’m -”

“Ethan!” she cries out, a huge grin on her face.

“Delores! What have you gotten yourself into this time?” Ramsey gently scolds her.

“There was a fire at my office. I was upstairs filing away some papers. The elevator shut down, and I couldn’t get down the stairs.”

He frowns in concern; an emotion I didn’t realize he was capable of. “I’ll call your sisters so they can fly in from Minneapolis in the morning. I’m so glad you’re safe.”

“I’m glad you have Superman in the payroll. The E.M.T. who carried me out was a total hunk,” she replies playfully.

“Rafael? Yeah, his biceps could qualify as the eighth world wonder.” I sigh dreamily.

Dolores snickers and looks at Ethan. “He gets it.”

“I don’t want to interrupt but I would like to listen to Delores’s chest,” I say.

“Delores, this is Dr. O’Shea,” Ramsey says. “Delores was my very first patient when I was an intern.”

I feel my lips curling up into an impish smirk and I slowly turn my head to stare at him.

Sensational.

Ramsey narrows his eyes, clearly not liking the look I’m giving him.

“Tell me, Delores, was he always so handsome?”

Ramey’s jaw drops. “Excuse me?” he sputters.

“He was cute, but to be honest, I think he’s aged like a fine wine,” she answers, playing along.

“Dr. O’Shea, the examination if you don’t mind?” Ramsey barks, scowling at me.

I widen my eyes and pout. “But I have so many more questions!”

A vein in his temple starts throbbing, so I decide not to push my luck. I take out my stethoscope and warm the cold metal on my palm before I press it to Delores’s chest.

“Deep breath for me please. So what brought you in back then, if I can ask?”

“Burst appendix,” she answers. “I was totally freaked out, but Ethan calmed me down. Even kept in touch a bit over the years.”

I arch one eyebrow. “Dr. Ramsey has friends?”

“Rookie,” he growls warningly.

“Her breathing is short, as you’d expect. I’d like to get a chest x-ray,” I say quickly.

Ramsey glances over her chart, frowning.

I move to his side, keeping my voice low. “What is it?”

“Her elevated B.P. It should be low after smoke inhalation. Let’s get a urine sample too.”

“Excuse me, Dr. O’Shea?” Delores calls. “I remember having my purse on me when that hunk carried me out. Did they bring it in?”

I find the bag on the floor beside her bed and watch in concern as she searches through it, frowning.

“It’s not here! I must have dropped it outside the office,” she says mournfully. “It sounds stupid, but I saw this adorable stuffed frog on my lunch break and had to buy it for my little tadpole. Both of my parents are gone and the father’s not in the picture. I just want everything to be perfect for him.”

“That doesn’t sound stupid,” I assure her. “It sounds like you’re going to be a great mom.”

“Thank you.” She smiles weakly. “I just… I really wish I hadn’t lost that little frog.”

“We’ll go find it!” I offer impulsively.

Delores instantly brightens. “Really, Ethan? You’d do that for me?”

“Er... um. Well…” he flounders for a second. “Of course. But let’s get that urine sample to the lab first. I’ll give you ten minutes, then meet you in the lot.”

Soon enough I’m in the staff parking lot, easing myself into the passenger side of Ramsey’s luxury car. He turns on the radio as we pull out of the lot and classical music drifts from the speakers. I turn to look out the window so he doesn’t see me wrinkle my nose in distaste.

“Sooo…” I draw out the word. “Are you and Dr. Emery doing the do, or what?”

He gives me a sharp look.

“I saw you two this morning,” I forge on. “It looked… intimate.”

“I don’t like advertising my private life at work,” he says slowly.

I stare at him, patiently waiting him out.

He sighs. “We were an item. And then only on again, off again.”

A feeling I don’t care to identify, something dark and poisonous, curls in my gut. “And now?” I ask, fighting to keep my tone even.

I don’t care. I don’t. I don’t even like him. Why would I care?

“Off. As of last year she’s my boss. Not that my personal life is any of your business.”

“My lips are sealed.”

Ramsey smiles at me briefly. “Good.”

“Did Dr. Banerji really quit?”

“I was wondering when you’d get around to asking that.”

I shrug. “It’s all anybody at the hospital is talking about. So did he?”

“Yes.”

I straighten up in my seat. “What? Why?”

“That’s between him and Chief Emery.” A muscle in Ramey’s jaw twitches.

He’s hiding something.

*************************************************************************************

O’Shea gazes at him from the passenger seat, those pale green eyes studying him with intense concentration. Ethan focuses his gaze on the road, careful not to give anything away. Rory eventually turns towards the window and he relaxes back into his seat.

“You’re in charge of the diagnostics team now. That’s a lot of pressure,” Rory murmurs.

“More than you can imagine,” Ethan admits. “Naveen built that team from his own blood, sweat, and tears. I can’t let him down now that he’s moved on.”

It feels good to confess that, like a weight has been lifted from his shoulders now that the words have been spoken.

“But is that what you want?” Rory presses.

“What I want is to confront the impossible mysteries of the human body, and understand.”

Rory blinks, eyes wide behind his glasses. “Um, not exactly what I meant but okay. Did you always want to lead the diagnostics team?”

“The team gives me the opportunity to face the questions no one has answered, so in that respect, I supposed the answer is yes.”

Rory sighs, reaching up to undo the elastic that’s holding his hair back. He runs his hands through his loose hair, and Ethan risks glancing over, his breath catching in his throat as he admires Rory’s profile in the warm glow of the streetlights. His hair curls gently around his face, brushing against high cheekbones, the rich black of it a stark contrast to his pale skin. He worries his lower lip between his teeth, and Ethan struggles to resist the urge to reach over graze his thumb over that sumptuous mouth. Rory glances over at him and he snaps his gaze back to the road.

“I feel like you’re being deliberately obtuse, Dr. Ramsey,” he murmurs.

They drive a few more miles in silence before Rory speaks again.

“I’m actually surprised you were up for this little rescue mission.”

Ethan chuckles. “You think I don’t want to spend my time searching for stuffed animals?”

“I suppose I thought you’d think it was beneath you. You’re a busy man.”

“There’s no element of patient care ‘beneath’ any doctor, from interns up to, and including, attendings.”

“And Delores is a friend,” Rory says.

“She’s a patient first, while she’s in our care. But yes, she’s also a friend. If a stuffed frog will help her get though this, then I’ll find her the damn frog.”

Rory gifts Ethan with a gentle smile, the expression so different from the usual glares and disappointed looks he gives him. Ethan tries, and fails, to ignore the feeling that smile gives him. It’s something he wants to see, wants to be reason for, again. Many times over.

“I think you might be a softie at heart, Dr. Ramsey,” Rory teases him.

“Far from it,” Ethan scoffs. “I’m practical. And that’s enough prying for now. We’re here.”

Ethan hurriedly exits the car, eager to get some space from the intern, and the feelings Rory stirs within him.

**************************************************************************************

The rancid smells of burning plastic and plaster make me sneeze as I get out of the car. Across the street, firefighters are still battling the blaze that’s fully consumed the office building.

“We can search the perimeter, but if it fell from her purse in there…” Ramsey looks disheartened.

“Well let’s hope it didn’t,” I say, marching forwards.

We search methodically, investigating the street where Rafael may have parked the ambulance. I’m getting increasingly frustrated and starting to think we’re on a wild goose chase when Ethan cries out.

“Look, it’s there in the storm drain!” He points down at the small, green stuffed animal.

I eye the storm drain warily. “Oh, fuck off with that bullshit. I am not going down there. Haven’t you seen ‘IT’?”

“Seen what?” Ramsey asks, confused.

I groan loudly and clasp my hands behind my head. “Fine. We’ll lower me in.

“Worth a shot.”

I lay down on the ground and slide my top half into the storm drain, leaning into the darkness, Ramsey gripping my left hand to hold me steady.

“I swear to Christ if I see a red balloon I’m going to shit my scrubs,” I mutter.

“What?”

I don’t answer, stretching out my free hand towards the frog.

“Can you reach it?” Ramsey asks.

“Almost…” I stretch a little further and – “Got it!”

Ramsey hauls me back out, and I stumble a little as the blood rushes back to my head. He quickly catches me, his hands on my hips holding me steady. The warmth of his hands feels scorching, and I look up to see him staring down at me, his gorgeous blue eyes dark and intense. I shuffle a little closer to him, and Ramsey tightens his grip; I can feel each of his fingertips pressing into my skin through the thin fabric of my scrubs. The air around us seems almost electrified and I’m suddenly finding it hard to breathe.

I quickly step back, shattering the moment, and hold up the frog. “Mission accomplished. You’re an excellent sidekick, Dr. Ramsey.”

He shakes his head, as if he’s trying to brush off the intensity of whatever it was we just shared, before flashing a brief smile. “I’m Batman, you’re Robin, and don’t you forget it, Rookie. Now get in the car, we need to get back.”

8:47 p.m.

“Dr. O’Shea!” Marlene stops me as I walk by the nurses’ station. “Miss Hudson’s urinalysis results.”

My shoulders slump as I read the results.

Shit.

I hurry to find Ramsey. I find him in Delores’s room, the two of them laughing as they watch T.V. I knock lightly on the doorjamb and nod towards the hallway, wordlessly urging him to join me. I hand him the lab results as soon as he exits the room, and watch as he comes to the same realization I did.

“The baby’s in trouble, isn’t he?”

Ramsey meets my eyes, clearly worried for his friend. “Let’s go tell her.”

I take a few deep breaths to steady myself for the news I’m about to deliver. I’ve personally never been good at dealing with bad news, preferring to bury my problems so far down that the Earth’s core is the only thing deeper than my issues.

Ramsey turns back to look at me. “This is the job, Rookie. Come on.”

“I know!” I snap, surprising both of us with my vehemence, before softening my voice. “I know it’s the job.”

Delores’s smile fades the instant we re-enter the room. “What’s wrong?” she demands.

Ramsey nods at me to take the lead.

“I don’t want you to worry,” I begin.

Delores pales. “That exactly what people say when you should be worried!”

“We found an abnormality in your labs,” I continue, giving her what I hope is a reassuring smile. “You have pre-eclampsia. This is a fairly common occurrence in pregnancy, and it’s usually manageable if monitored, but yours is quite serious.”

“How serious?” she asks quietly.

“The flow of blood to the placenta is greatly reduced. Soon it will start to deprive your baby of oxygen and vital nutrients.”

“Your baby is at risk,” Ramsey says bluntly.

Tears well in Delores’s eyes. “But everything feels fine! I can still feel the baby kicking!”

Ramsey takes a small step towards her and softens his voice. “This just means we’re going to have to deliver the baby early.”

“No! It’s too soon!”

“Babies delivered at twenty-six weeks have a good chance of survival,” I say soothingly, raising my hands in a placating gesture.

“A chance?” Delores’s shoulders slump.

“He’ll have to spend time in the N.I.C.U., and there’s risk of post birth complication -”

“And some babies don’t make it at all! Is my baby in danger right now?”

Ramsey and I exchange an uneasy glance.

“Not immediately, no,” he answers. “But -”

“Then my little tadpole is staying put,” Delores declares with a firm nod.

“Delores -”

“No, Ethan! Just… give me a week. Give me as long as you can. Please.”

“I’ll give you tonight,” he concedes. “To come to your senses.”

“I’ll keep checking on her,” I say quietly as we walk out into the hall. “Maybe we can talk her around.”

Ramsey shakes his head. “No. Just go home. Your shift’s been over for hours already.”

I stare at him in confusion. “She’s my patient. As long as she needs me, I’m staying here.”

He sighs, rubbing his hand over his mouth. “I’m taking over this case.”

“You can’t do that!” I cross my arms over my chest and glare at him.

“Go home, Rookie!” Ramsey shouts.

“Don’t raise your fucking voice at me,” I retort, more out of shock than actual protest.

“You’re not ready for this. Now go home.” He spares me one final, cold stare before he storms away.

“Fuck!” I grind out through gritted teeth. I turn to look into Delores’s hospital room. She lies in the bed, tightly holding the stuffed frog as tears streak down her cheeks. “Fuck…”

10:23 p.m.

I flop down onto the sofa next to Sienna with a despondent sigh.

“Are you still brooding about Ramsey?” she asks, setting aside the book she had been reading.

“I don’t brood!” I insist.

Sienna doesn’t bother to reply, merely arching an eyebrow at my protest.

“Much. I don’t brood much,” I mutter.

“I’m sure Dr. Ramsey had his reasons for taking over,” she says soothingly. “The patient is his friend after all.”

I snort and roll my eyes. “His reason is he doesn’t think I can handle it. He flat out told me I wasn’t ready for it. If he’s worried why doesn’t he keep overseeing the case? What was the point of kicking me off completely other than to be a massive douche canoe? I just… I don’t like leaving her there all by herself. I could have helped, I could’ve walked her through the procedure, answered more of her questions, anything instead of just… leaving.”

“Do you not trust Dr. Ramsey to take care of her?”

“No! No, it’s not about that. In spite of being a total jackass, the man is a brilliant doctor. She was my patient though. I talked to her, got to know her a bit. I guess I feel responsible for her now, in a way. And I’m worried.”

Sienna gives me a kind smile. “You might be the one person who worries more than I do.”

“You take that back,” I gasp, placing my hand on my chest in mock hurt.

She giggles and wraps her arm around my shoulders in a quick hug. “You’re a good doctor, Rory. But there is such a thing as caring too much. Sometimes you need to take a step back and breathe.”

“Yeah, I guess.” I lean my head against hers, close my eyes, and try to relax, thankful for the new friendship blossoming between the two of us.

“Hey Rory?” Sienna asks after a few minutes.

“Hm?”

“What’s going on with you and Dr. Ramsey?”

I open my eyes. “What?”

“This… whatever it is between the two of you.”

“The only thing between us is mutual loathing.” I turn my head to look at her.

“Are you sure about that?” she counters, smirking.

I throw my hands up in the air. “Ok, I’ll admit he’s attractive. I’d have to be dead to not notice how fine that man is. But he’s just so… Ramsey.”

“Can you expand on that please?” Sienna prompts me.

“You’ve seen what he’s like. He’s unnecessarily mean to the interns, to nearly everyone actually. He’s so damn highhanded about everything, and god forbid you have a different opinion than him, because then in his eyes you’re just an idiot who’s wasting his time. He’s jaded and he always looks for the absolute worst in people and treats everyone like they have an ulterior motive. And he’s rude and he’s tall and -”

“What does him being tall have to do with anything?”

“I don’t like having to look up when I talk to him,” I mutter. “It hurts my neck.”

Sienna sits quietly, waiting for me to continue.

“I don’t know,” I sigh. “He discombobulates me. Every now and then it seems like maybe there’s something else beneath all that snark and cynicism and I think we’ve had some moments, but then he’s right back to being an asshole. I don’t understand him.”

“And that bothers you because…?”

“Because I want to,” I quietly admit. “But he’s never going to let me. He dated Harper Emery; he’s never going to look twice at some intern he can barely stand.”

“Dr. Ramsey dated Chief Emery?” Sienna squeals.

“Oh shit.” I clap my hands over my mouth. “You cannot tell anyone. Ramsey made me promise to keep my mouth shut about that.”

She nods vigorously. “I swear I won’t tell a soul.”

“Thank you,” I sigh, relieved.

“You know,” Sienna says, looking at me out of the corner of her eye. “There’s this thing called the irresistible force paradox. Wayne told me about it once.”

I bite my tongue to hold back a snarky remark about her invisible boyfriend. I haven’t met him yet, but I already hate him, purely for the way he treats Sienna.

“What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? Nothing can stand up against an irresistible force. And no force can budge the immoveable object. I think in this situation you’re the immovable force and Dr. Ramsey is the immovable object.”

“So what does happen when the irresistible force meets the immoveable object?”

“Nothing.” Sienna shrugs. “They cancel each other out.”

I stare at her. “That is… supremely unhelpful.”

“No, wait!” She laughs and grabs my hand, pulling me back down onto the sofa as I move to stand up. “You and Dr. Ramsey have all these issues because you keep pushing against each other. But fighting isn’t getting you anywhere, you just stay in this grey area where you’re angry with each other. So maybe it’s time to stop pushing against the immovable object.”

I grimace. “I don’t know…”

“I’m not saying roll over and agree with everything the man says. But maybe try to be a little more patient and understanding if you want to have anything more than a ‘moment’ with him. He might be a more open if you are too. ”

“I hate it when you’re mature and make sense,” I groan.

She laughs and gives me a playful shove. “I call dibs on maid of honor.”

“I think you’re getting ahead of yourself there, Trinh,” I snicker. “We still need to manage to have a full conversation that doesn’t end in an argument.”

My pager suddenly goes off, interrupting the lighthearted moment. My heart twists as I read the message.

“What happened?” Sienna asks, concerned.

“My preeclampsia patient just got rushed into surgery,” I whisper. “I have get back to the hospital.”

“Go. Call if you need me.” Sienna offers me one last reassuring smile before I rush out of the apartment.

5 notes · View notes