#the dude's BREATHING what do you mean you have to intubate

[hergrandplan]

oooooo i have made it to the 911 episode where they say they have to intubate a guy who is very much still breathing!

[she-karev]

A Day at the Station (Alex Karev's Sister Imagine)

Previous Part Here

Age Rating: 12+

Chapters: Two of Two

Fandom: Station 19

Canon Episode: Season 3 Episode 12

Summary: Amber and Jackson help Ben operate on someone inside the PRT. Afterwards she and Jackson have a drink on the rooftop where he reminisces about Mark Sloan.

Words: 2449

Jackson and Amber open the doors as soon as Hughes called in a patient with smoke inhalation and severe burns from the storage unit fire they are at. Vic helps lift the gurney up to the truck as Amber and Jackson glove up.

“I got a crispy one for you.”

“Was this guy living in there?” Ben asks.

“Apparently. I got to get back in there and help the team.” Vic closes one door.

“You just carried a dude out of a burning building.” Jackson states the obvious, “Are you not getting a break or something?”

Vic grins smug, “Breaks are for the weak.”

“All right, look, another ground rule, you cannot be this heroic.”

“Oh, it's like your face. Can't control it.” Vic teases before running back to the fire with Jackson looking on with a grin that makes Amber nauseous. She rolls her eyes at Jackson before slamming the second door inside the sterile truck. Amber gets supplies out while Jackson expresses his worries.

“I do not know how Bailey does this. Watching someone she cares about run into burning buildings.”

Ben hooks up the patient to the rigs air supply, “Yeah, well, she, uh she worried. And didn't sleep. And, uh, then she had a heart attack. I thought you two broke up.”

Amber puts a blanket on the patient, “So did I but I guess their genitals didn’t.”

“We did, but that doesn't mean I want to see her die in a fire.”

“Well right now I kind of want to see my ex die in a fire.” Amber bitterly admits before their patient wheezes heavily waking up. They try to calm him down.

“Where am I? Everything hurts!”

“Sir, you were badly burned in a fire, but we're taking care of you. Karev give him 5 ml of morphine now.”

Amber does so while the man talks, “My wife…”

“What, is she inside?” Ben asks.

“No. No…She died five years ago. She would be so mad at me now. I lost my house. I've been living out of a storage unit.” They look at him in sympathy as they work, “She would say, ‘Luke, God can only do so much for you. You have to help Him help you.’ She would tell me to stop being so proud. She would…”

Luke coughs and Jackson adjusts his mask, “Deep breaths.”

Suddenly the monitor shows his heart rate dropping, “Yeah, his BP's dropping. Start dopamine.”

Amber administers the drug while Jackson listens to his chest, “Got muffled heart sounds here. And JVD. Damn it.”

“Yeah, he's definitely got fluid around his heart. He'll die if we don't drain it. Tube him. I'll get the ultrasound.”

Jackson grabs the laryngoscope but finds it difficult as Ben and Amber can see, “Problem?”

Jackson keeps trying, “Uh, no, it's just been a while. Usually, all my patients are intubated by the time I get them into the OR.”

Amber steps around to Jackson’s spot, “Okay give it to me I did three last week.” Jackson moves so she can hold the laryngoscope and successfully intubates, “Got it!”

Jackson attaches the tubes to the rigs air supply looking bashful, “Sorry it’s just…it's kind of like having a Lamborghini mechanic tune up a pickup truck, you know?”

Amber narrows her eyes at the comparison as does Ben who calls him out, “So…you're a Lamborghini?”

“Don't.” Jackson tells them regretfully, “I-I heard it as soon as I said it. Please do not tell Vic I just said that.”

Ben grins, “No promises.”

Amber grins as well, “I can promise but it’s gonna cost you buddy.”

Jackson sighs while he preps Luke for the drain output, “How much?”

Amber grabs the aspiration needle for Warren, “Next weekend with Harriet all the diapers are yours.”

“Fine.”

“And the spit ups.”

“All right deal.” While Jackson waves the ultrasound wand around Luke’s chest Ben inserts the needle in to drain the fluid. Amber debrides the burns on Luke’s face before applying topical antimicrobial applications so he doesn’t get infected before they take him to the burn unit, “Careful not to pierce the heart.”

“I'm in the pericardial sac.” Ben and Jackson look at the ultrasound in shock with Amber noticing as she applies the dressing.

“What is it?”

“There's no fluid coming out at all.”

Amber sees the ultrasound confirms that, “So what you were wrong about the fluid around his heart?”

Ben shakes his head, “There is definitely fluid around the heart. I can see it.”

“Too thick for the needle, maybe? There is something, something's off here.”

“Pre-existing conditions?”

“Like lung cancer or HIV? Uh, lupus, I guess?”

Amber applies the last dressing, “It would make sense he was living on the streets for years who knows what he was exposed to before that storage unit. Can we check the hospitals or free clinics?”

Jackson groans, “I mean, we don't have time to get his real records, so what are we supposed to do in this situation?”

Ben takes out the needle and turns to them, “We got to open him up.”

Amber and Jackson look at him surprised with Jackson speaking for both of them, “What do you mean? Here?”

“We're in an OR, Avery and Karev.” Ben hands them both surgical gowns in packaged bags, “Get used to it.” Jackson and Amber look at each other in shock before tearing off the bags.

Later

Amber suctions while Jackson and Ben view the heart that is shown from the ribcage spreader. She looks around the small space still shocked by them operating open heart surgery inside a truck.

“I don’t think were in Kansas anymore Toto.”

“Of course you would be Dorothy. Does that make Warren the lion or Glinda the good witch?” Jackson quips back.

“Okay, so we're through the linea alba and into the retrosternal space.”

“I'm telling you; this patient needs a cardiothoracic surgeon.”

“I already told you, I'm on it.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Jackson asks Ben, “Are we going to Grey-Sloan now?”

“No, he could die during transport.” Ben turns to the tablet pressing buttons, “And the whole point of the PRT is to render treatment immediately. So, if you can't bring the patient to the surgeon…you bring the surgeon to the patient.”

Maggie’s face pops up on one of the screens above and she smiles, “Hi! Oh, you guys look so cool.”

The idea of Jackson running into both of his exes in one day causes Amber to laugh out loud. The comical coincidence makes her forget about Andrew refusing to take her calls while he is God knows where. She sees that her friend doesn’t find this funny though even with Warren chuckling. Jackson glares at her, finding his predicament funny but she keeps laughing and smiling.

“What? You wanted me to laugh so…” Amber keeps snickering behind her mask with Maggie looking at Jackson confused.

Ben answers for him, “Don’t ask.”

Later

They are at the end stages of their open-heart surgery with Maggie on the screen guiding Ben and Jackson while Amber suctions, “Okay, there's the diaphragm, so retract downwards.” Jackson does so, “See the pericardium?”

All three of them answer at the same time, “Yep.”

“Make a small incision.” They do so, “Okay, now suction everything out.” Amber suctions the fluid out, “And leave a tunneled catheter in the sac, and you're done.”

Jackson looks at the screen pleased with the results, “Ah, look at that. Pressure's going up. Heart's increased contractility. Very nice.”

Maggie smiles holding a mug on the screen, “And I didn't even have to get my hands dirty.”

“Thank you, Maggie.”

“Next time, I'm doing it in real life. That truck looks so cool!”

Amber chuckles, “It is, and I’m speaking as someone with claustrophobia.” Maggie signs off and they get back to work.

“Okay, let's, uh let's finish up.” Ben notices a look on Jackson’s face, “You okay?”

“Yeah.” Jackson chuckles, “Yeah. It uh I guess it just feels, um…”

“Like maybe you were asleep and now you're awake?”

Amber nods in agreement with Ben and Jackson speaks out giddy, “It's intoxicating.”

“Jackson, I have to say with everything going on in my life this rush of adrenaline was just what the doctor ordered.” Amber admits while she sterilizes the tools handing suction to Jackson who grins, “I mean for five hours I didn’t feel like yelling at the sky or punching the walls or lying in bed and eating cereal out of a box while I play online poker. Nope today I was a surgeon and not a pissed off ex-girlfriend…and that makes me feel like I beat DeLuca even without a confrontation.”

“I’m glad I could help.” Jackson grins, “And you know if you ever want to talk about DeLuca, I am more than willing to lend an ear. I have my own messy history with April and Maggie and Vic so I can relate.”

“Thank you…And I guess I was a little hard on your ex back there at the station.”

“You have a lot of rage and rightfully so.” Amber nods at Jackson’s analysis, “Maybe don’t take them out on a girl I care about who you know doesn’t deserve a verbal beatdown. You of all people know how hurtful those can be.”

“Yeah there’s only one person I want to rage at and he’s not here…he doesn’t want to be here and he doesn’t want me there.” Amber admits sad.

Jackson looks up at Amber in sympathy, “Then he is the biggest idiot in the world. You deserve a good guy Karev and you’ll find one. Screw DeLuca and if it will make you feel better and let you purge, I can give you your phone back and you can leave him a message that tells him what he has made you feel for a while now.”

Amber inhales as she suctions, “I think about it after we get this guy to a hospital.”

Ben nods, “Yeah let me radio the captain and let her know were transporting.” He presses the screen, “Bishop, my patient is stable. We are headed to Grey-Sloan for further treatment.” There’s no response for a few seconds causing Ben to worry, “Bishop?”

The radio fizzes and Maya’s voice is heard, “Copy, Warren.”

The tone of her voice puzzles Warren, “Is something wrong?”

Maya answers back, “Cap…Captain Herrera is on the roof.”

Ben looks shocked before turning to Amber and Jackson who look at him confused, “Finish closing and get him to the hospital.” Jackson nods and they work on Luke while Warren steps out of the truck. Amber and Jackson look at each other in worry over Captain Herrera but put their emotions aside so they can work Luke and transport him.

That Night

Amber sits back in an Adirondack chair on the roof of the station overlooking the city view in the nightlife. She is still in her PRT jumpsuit not having the strength to take it off, instead going to the roof as soon as she and Jackson got back. She looks on in sadness over Captain Herrera’s death and how much in grief the firefighters are over a man she met this morning. It makes her feel guilty that she was angry enough to wish a man she loved dead while a daughter is grieving her father.

She hears a sound to her left and looks to see Jackson standing by the chairs also in his black jumpsuit. He puts a bottle of whiskey and two glasses on the small wooden table next to her. He looks sad as well while he pours them both a glass silently before sitting in the chair next to her. He exhales tiredly holding the glass and Amber takes hers. Jackson holds his up to toast and she does as well.

“To the great hero Captain Pruitt Herrera.” Jackson toasts.

“To Captain Herrera.” They clink their glasses and take a sip to honor him. Amber exhales at the burning whiskey going down her throat, “How is everyone?”

“Their quiet, most of them went off on their own when the shift ended. I think they’re just waiting for the dam to burst so they can swim through it together.” Jackson sips his whiskey, “Is it weird that I feel guilty for being sad about his death?”

“Not really, I feel the same too.” Amber admits and elaborates, “We only knew the man for a day and they’ve known him for years hell even Warren has more right to grieve than us and he came last. He was their captain, their mentor, their role model…I don’t think we can comprehend what their feeling right now.”

“…I can actually.” Jackson admits, “When I was a resident, I had this mentor who took me under his wing and helped me find my passion in plastics. Mark Sloan was the chief of plastics and before Richard Webber the closest thing to a father figure I had.”

Amber nods knowing who he is talking about, “Mark Sloan was a legend taken from us too soon.”

“Damn straight.” Jackson sips his drink before chuckling, “You know he had this nickname for us that I thought was dorky but now I think is cool. We were the Plastics Posse.” Amber chuckles at that with Jackson grinning nostalgically, “Kicking surgical ass and taking names, that was us. He really did treat me like a son, everything he knew he passed on to me. I think he would have been proud to see me operating on a call inside a truck. And he would have been jealous and pouty that he didn’t get to do it first.”

Amber laughs, “He sounds like a great guy.”

Jackson grins to himself, “Yeah, he was…and when he died, I felt exactly how Warren, Vic, Montgomery, Bishop and Andy feel right now. Like I lost someone who made me who I am today…I wonder if I make a big enough impact for someone to feel that way about me.”

Amber looks at him solemnly, “I would feel that way with you. If you died…I don’t know if I would go on this life without you.”

“You would have.” Jackson tells her, “I did with Sloan and you are the strongest of us both. I know you would keep going, because if you didn’t, I would haunt your ass.”

Amber grins at him, “I appreciate that and I appreciate you.”

“I appreciate you too.” They clink their glasses again and look at the beautiful night sky mourning for Captain Herrera and Mark Sloan knowing that no matter what they would have each other to get through the storm of their lives.

[lovelyrocker]

Spirit pt.5

~RPF

~Character: Timothee Chalamet, Armie Hammer, Reader, Logan (OMC)

~Warnings: Character Death, Angst

~1,594

Timothee turned back around and suddenly it was daylight in his hospital room. You stood from the chair next to the bed and your belly had grown. He’d had a time jump. You seem skinnier aside from the small bump you had beneath one of Timothee’s tee shirts. 

“Oh my God.” He said looking at you as you stretched. “Look at you.” He whispered. “You’re carrying our child.” He reached a hand to touch the bump and a chill ran through you. A small frown appeared on Timothee’s face. 

Armie walked in and looked at you. “Hey, doctor will be in soon.” You nod. “How’s your nausea?”

“Better. I think I forgot my meds at you house.”

“Probably on the nightstand in my room.”

“Why are you in his room?” Timothee asked, confused as Armie placed his hands on your belly and pressed a kiss to your forehead. “Dude, what are you doing?!” He looks at the two of you disgusted. The doctor walks in and you and Armie look at him standing side by side holding hands. Timothee wasn’t liking how close the two of you appeared.

A nurse walked in behind the doctor with gloves and a clipboard. “Are you two sure about this?” The doctor asked.

“Sure about what? What are you doing?” Timothee asked with fear.

“If- if he shows distress you’ll re-intubate, right?” You ask with nerves. 

“Yes, we’re prepared to re-intubate if needed.” The doctor assures. “You both have to sign this stating you give permission to take the tube out.”

Timothee watches as you sign with shaking hands. You reach, taking his hand sitting in the chair next to the bed. You bring his hand to your lips and hold his between both of yours. You watch as they pull the tube from his mouth and wipe his face. The doctor keeps his eyes on the monitor as the vitals dip low. 

Timothee’s eyes go to you sitting there, his hand in both of yours, eyes shut. “Come on, baby. You can do this.” You kept saying in a whisper. Timothee suddenly touched the back of his hand feeling a tickle. He could feel your breath as you spoke. “Come on, Timmy breathe.” He stood behind you and placed his hand over yours and your breath skipped. He leaned in, wrapping his arms around your shoulders. Suddenly you could smell him all around you. You could feel him. “Timmy?” You whisper and the monitor beeped. 

“I’m still here.” He said as the monitors beeped again, faster, in rhythm. “I’m with you still.”

The nurses watched as the heart rhythm stayed low but steady.  

"Is he holding that steady on his own?" Armie asked, hopeful. 

"He can hold on for a while before going down. It's a waiting game." The doctor explained. 

"But does he seem good?" Armie asked again 

"At the moment." The doctor nodded. 

You reach touching Timothee's cheek. "You're doing do good baby, just keep breathing." You tell him. 

Timothee turns around and he is in a different room. Still in a hospital but a different room entirely. 

“Come on, Y/N, you can do this.” Armie’s voice made Timothee turn around. “Come on, push!” Timothe watched as Armie stood by your side, holding your hand and helping you birth his child. “I know this is hard but you can do this.”

“No, no, where am I?!” Timothee looks back for Logan. “Why am I not with her?!”

You were in tears as your contraction ended. “I need him here.” You told Armie just as another contraction rolled through.

“Come on, you can do it, push, push, push.” Armie said again.

“Stop pushing!” The doctor said quickly. 

Monitors began beeping erratically and Amie felt your head drop on his arm. “Y/N!”

“Y/N!” Timothee screamed. “No!”

“Tim?” Your voice sent chills through Timothee as he turned to see you. “Timmy!” You  throw your arms around his neck.. 

“I thought I'd never see you again.” Timothee cried pressing his lips to yours. 

“I don’t mean to interrupt.” Logan’s voice made Timothee freeze as you both spun around, dread and realization sinking into Timothee..

“No.” Timothee whispered. “No, no, no,” He shook his head turning to Logan.

“Hey, Y/N. My name is Logan.”

“No, leave!” Timothee shouted at Logan, stepping between you and Logan. “She is going back-”

“You know once you come here, there is no going back.” Logan told Timothee. 

“Timmy,” You reach, taking his hand. “What’s going on?” Timothee could hear the fear in your voice.

The sound of an infant crying made You and Timothee turn in the opposite direction. You see Armie picking up a baby swaddled in a pink blanket. You go to run to them but Timothee grabs your arm, stopping you.

“What are you doing?!”

“You can’t.” Timothee tells you. 

“Why?!” You see tears in Timothee’s eyes. “That’s our baby! Tim, we had a baby!” You cried. “What is this?! What is going on?!”

“This is your fault, Tim.” Logan turns to Timothee. 

“How is this my fault?!” Timothee snaps back.

“I told you to let her go.” Logan walked up to Timothee. “You didn’t listen!”

“No, I didn’t do this!”

“You wouldn’t go! What did you think was gonna happen?! That you would watch over here for eternity and that’s it?!” Logan grabbed Timothee and shoved him against the wall. “Her blood is on your hands!”

“No!” Timothee shoved Logan off of him. 

“Timothee, stop!” You shout at him, pulling him off of logan. “What the hell is going on?!”

Logan walks up to you and smiles sweetly. “Do you want the long or short answer?”

“Short and sweet.” You tell him.

“You are between life and death.” Logan said bluntly. “Your boyfriend here has been here for months. Ever feel cold wrapping around you? Swear you can smell him? Feel him? Hear him?” You look to Timothee and then back to Logan. “He is refusing to move on. Even after you tried to let him go, he wouldn’t let you go.” You looked back at Timothee.

“I couldn’t leave you, Y/N. Especially after I found out we were gonna have a baby.” The tears were rising in his eyes. 

“Once you’re here, you can't go back.” Logan told you. “Because he wouldn’t let you go, higher powers brought you to him.”

“What about our baby?” You ask.

“She’s in good hands.” Logan points behind you and you see Armie in the hospital nursery, rocking the infant. “He will take her, raise her. He loved the two of you.”

“She’ll never know us?” You look back at Logan. “I’ve never even held her!”

“Blame him, not me.” Logan points to Timothee. 

“No!” Timothee grabs your arm and pulls you away. “You are going back.” He looks at Logan. “I’ll agree to move on and I’ll go into the fucking white light or whatever.”

“Tim,” Logan reaches and places his hand on Timothee’s wrist. “It’s done. She stays.”

“Fuck you!” Timothee tells him.

“Timmy,” She places her hands on his face. “Calm down please!” You pull Timothee away. “Look!” She points to Armie rocking the baby. “Look what we did.” Timothee stares at the little girl in his best friend's arms. His eyes filled with tears as the baby grunted. “I told Armie I wanted to name her Halie, like Hal.” You smiled at him. “Halie Nicole.”

“I like that name.” Timothee sniffled. “I’m so sorry.” He began to cry.

“Shh.” You wrapped your arms around Timothee. “We will figure it out. Heaven can’t want both of us.” You giggle and place your hand on his cheek. “I love you, Timothee.”

“Time to go.” Logan stood behind the two of you. 

You both turn and see him standing. “What?” Timothee asks. “Go where?”

Logan shoves Timothee in the chest hard. Timothee falls back and next thing he knows his eyes are flying open. His heart is hammering in his chest, beeping is going off erratically around him. He feels burning and pulling at his arms.

“Sir! Sir! You need to calm down!” A nurse tells him. “SIr you need to lay back!”

“Where is Y/N?!” A voice, raspy and coarse comes from him, he doesn’t even recognize it himself.

Nurses and doctors rush in to aid him as you stand at the foot of the bed with Logan. “Why did you let him go back? I thought-”

“You forgave him.” Logan explained. “You have a guilt free conscience and will move on with no struggle. Your love for him gave him a second chance. Now your daughter will not be an orphan.” You look at Timothee, a tear sliding down your face. “I know it’s not fair.” Logan tells you. “For him to be with her and not you. But it isn't without reason. He isn’t off the hook. He never will be. He has to live without you and knowing he is the reason why.”

“Will he be okay?”

“Armie will help him.” You nod. “Tell you what, you can drop in from time to time. To check on him and Halie. I promise.”

“Can I watch for a little longer?”

Logan holds out his hand. “Let’s skip to the good part.”

You take Logan’s hand and you are in a nursery in your beachouse you shared with Timothee. He was rocking Halie while feeding her a bottle. 

“She’s so big.”

“She is four months now.” Logan tells her. 

You walk close and press a kiss to Timothee’s temple. A chill runs through him. He looks around and smiles looking down at Halie. “Your mommy says hi.”

Tags:  @gatoenlaciudad​ 

[rangergirl3]

Good news: I’m able to get this unpleasant gallstones issue addressed next Friday :D Hooray for prompt action!

Slightly not-so-great aspect: It does involve going under for surgery, and that…well, I do not like very much. The whole needing-to-be-intubated aspect is deeply unpleasant for me, even though I know its a necessity. It’s not even a very long surgery, and it should be fairly straightforward and I should be able to go home very soon after its all done. Which is good, I like being home!

I just…eh, I really hate the breathing-through-a-tube aspect. When I wake up in recovery, my throat always hurts a lot, and with being out of it due to the anesthesia, it can stir up some deeply traumatizing memories, and even though I know I’m safe now, it’s just not what I’d call a pleasant prospect. I have the tools to manage it, I just…ugh. It’s not super fun.

Hopefully this time, I do not wake up mid-surgery, start flailing about, realize that I’m getting put into a four or five point restraint system, and then finally chamber-kick some poor, well-meaning male medical staff member right in the nuts before they were able to knock me out again. That happened when I was…eight or ten, I think. At the time, I had no real understanding of why I was so freaked out with having a tube down my throat, but now, it makes a lot more sense. Still feel a little bit bad about kicking that poor dude in the nuts, but I’m also weirdly proud of my younger self. :-) Good job standing up for myself, younger-totally-out-of-it-Ranger! You did good! :-) And damn, I should really write that man a letter that just says: “My bad, random person, totally not your fault. Sorry.” 

And at least this time I can let the medical staff know about this stuff prior to the procedure. That’s bound to be helpful :D

And here, have a Hunter gif from The Owl House. I love this kid :-)

[just-dreaming-marvel]

Love and Medicine ~ 9

MASTERLIST

< previous chapter

Word Count: 2,720ish

Summary: You start to question Steve.

I do not own Marvel or Grey’s Anatomy.

Something at been bother you about Steve, as of late. When you two would spend the night together, it was always at your place. And you were starting to realize that he knew more about you than you did him. (Though he still didn’t know about your parents.) You sat on your bed and watched as Steve got ready for the day. He was brushing his teeth when you finally spoke up.

“Let’s sleep at your place tonight,” you said.

“What?” Steve questioned. His brow furrowed as he faced you, tooth brush still in his mouth.

“I mean, why are we always sleeping at my house? Do you even have one?”

He spit into the sink. “One what?”

“A house. Or an apartment. With a closet and your stuff in it. Your personal stuff. Do you even have on of those.”

“Mmm,” he hummed with a nod, wiping his face. “You hungry?” He gathered his things as he headed towards the door. 

“Steve, do you even—“ 

But he was gone, leaving you on the bed, sighing. After freshening up for the day, you went down to the kitchen. Steve was sitting at the table, a bowl of cereal in front of him, with your roommates scattered around the kitchen.

“You know, I like it here,” Steve told you when he noticed you. “You sad so yourself, you like having your things around, sleeping in your own bed.”

“You’re like a health nut, aren’t you?” Clint questioned Steve as he examined his cereal. “You eat muesli every morning.”

“No,” Steve argued, mouth full, “I don’t.”

“Yes, you do,” Val said. “Well, at least for the last seven days.”

“Oh, come on. I haven’t been here for a whole week… have I?”

“Sadly, you have,” Scott said.

“See?” You pointed to your roommates. “Even they think it’s weird.”

~~~

Eventually, your work day started and you were going through the motions of everything. Steve met up with you as you walked through the halls. And you couldn’t help but continue what you were talking about this morning.

“It’s just that I hardly know anything about you,” you said.

“You know that I just moved here. You know that I like ferry boats.”

“Yes, but where exactly did you move here from? And what about your friends? Or family? Do you have any?”

“I’m a surgeon. I don’t have friends. And I don’t have family anymore either.”

“See, I didn’t know that. And everybody has friends. What do you do on your days off? These are all important questions.”

“Ah, important for who?”

“Me. We’re having sex every night. I think I deserve details.”

“You have more details than most,” he smirked.

“See, this is going somewhere weird. I want facts, and until I get them, my pants are staying on.”

“Or you could just roll with it. Be flexible. See what happens.”

“I’m not flexible.”

Steve laughed. “There is where I disagree.” He winked, before getting paged. He looked down at it. “I've got to go. We'll find these things out.” He slowly started walking away. “That's the fun part. You know? That's the gravy.”

“That is what I'm talking about. I don't want to be your gravy.”

“Gravy?” Tony questioned, walking up from behind. “What about gravy? And why are you two flirting in public?”

“We weren’t flirting. We were—“

“Flirting. Stop lying to me and yourself.”

“I’m not lying.”

“Mhmm. I know lying, and flirting, when I see it. And you, my dear, are doing both.”

“Shut up.”

~~~

An equally fortunate and unfortunate thing, you were assigned to Steve’s service today. You were currently looking at a patient’s scans. The patient was slowly becoming paralyzed, and you were trying to figure out why.

“See, this,” you pointed to the scans. “The guy's films are clear. There's no reason I can see for his creeping paralysis.”

“It's just so surprising,” Steve responded, still studying the scans. “I expected an intrusion into the spinal space or bony spur in the nucleus pulposus.”

“Well, you were wrong. You don't always get what you expect, do you?”

With furrowed brows, he turned to face you. “What is your problem?”

“Give me something to go on. Anything. What are your grandparents' names?”

“I don't have grandparents.”

“Where'd you grow up? What's your favorite flavor of ice cream? Where'd you spend your summer vacations?”

“Lighten up. It'll be good for your blood pressure.” 

Steve walked out of the room. You followed him, but stopped at the doorway.

“Oh, don’t you tell me to lighten up!” You called after him. “I’ll lighten up when I… feel light.” You huffed and shook your head. “That man.”

~~~

Steve was speaking to your patient, Mr. Wells, and his wife when you went to check on Mr. Wells.

“Any changes, Mr. Wells?” Steve wondered.

“I can’t move my legs at all now,” Mr. Wells replied.

“He said he was moving his legs when he came in,” Mrs. Wells said. “What’s wrong with him?”

“Have you been under any stress lately, Mr. Wells?” You questioned.

“You know what’s making me stressed? Is being in here and not being able to move,” he responded.

“Dr. L/N,” Steve called, waiting you to clarify.

“Emotional trauma can be converted into something physical, right?” You asked.

“Yes, it’s possible.”

“Like hysterical numbness or paralysis. Maybe there is no physiological reason, and he's just having a conversion reaction.”

“You think it's psychosomatic?”

The curtain behind you and Steve flew open, revealing another patient and Val.

“It’s not in your head, man,” the patient said. “I believe you.”

“Mr. Duff, please,” Val said, closing the curtain.

“Who was that?” Steve asked.

“Psych sent him down,” you explained, having heard Val complain earlier. “He has visions.”

“Is that it?” Mr. Wells wondered. “Am I cray?”

“No. No,” Steve quickly said. “I'm gonna order a higher-level MRI. We're gonna figure this out.”

~~~

At lunch time, Peter, Natasha, Scott, Clint, Val, and yourself found a small room to eat in, away from everyone else. Natasha was sitting down at a desk. She lifted up her sandwich, smelling it, before quickly dropping it.

“If that’s turkey, can I have some?” Clint asked.

“It’s soggy,” Natasha responded.

“If it’ll kill you,” Peter commented. “Solve everything.”

“I coulda gotten that intubation,” Clint murmured. “I am good at intubations.”

You took a bite of your food, cringing at the smell. “Why does everything in a hospital smell like a hospital?” You questioned.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Clint,” Scott said. “Everybody makes mistakes.”

“You know, I’m good at a lot of things,” Clint continued.

“You know what, I'm gonna tell you something,” Natasha began, “Hey, Clint. You need to get laid. See that nurse over there.” Natasha pointed to the nurse at the station out the window. “She’s single. She's got brown hair. Go ask her out.”

“In case you forgot, I intubated an esophagus.”

“Dude, you're tweaking,” Peter said. “Maybe you should go see that psychic.”

“Mr. Duff is not a psychic!” Val exclaimed as Peter left the room.

“I am trying to help you,” Natasha told Clint, standing up. “Go buy her a latte and freshen up your gonads, please.” Then she left.

“What’s with her?” Val asked, looking at you for an answer.

You shrugged. “Don’t ask me.”

~~~

After lunch, you headed back to check on Mr. Wells. Steve was already in there again, looking extremely concerned. 

“First my legs, then my stomach,” Mr. Wells complained before looking scared. “Doc! Doc, my hands can’t move.”

“Squeeze my fingers,” Steve ordered, placing his fingers in Mr. Wells’ hand. 

“I can’t.”

“Right here.” Steve tried the other hand. “No? Let me know if you feel this.” He poked the patient with a needle. “How about that?” 

“No,” Mr. Wells responded.

Steve tried several different places before giving up. “Alright. I’ll be right back.” He headed to the nurses station, motioning for you to follow him. “Nurse, cancel the second MRI. Call down and prep an OR stat.”

“You’re operating?” You questioned. “On what? If there was something to fix, wouldn't we have seen it?”

“I think the MRI missed a clot somewhere in his upper spine. I'm gonna cut him open. I'm going in.”

“What if you're wrong? Couldn't unnecessary spinal surgery do more damage?”

“If we wait any longer and this expands into his brain stem, we have a paralyzed man who can't breathe. I'm trusting my instincts. Sometimes you've got to take a chance to save a life.”

~~~

The OR was stressful, even before Steve cut Mr. Wells open.

“We've got to save this cord,” Steve stated, grabbing a scalpel. “This guy's built like the Rock of Gibraltar.”

“You want me to start?” You wondered.

“No, I'm gonna to cut here from the base of the neck to the rib cage.” Steve pointed, showing you exactly what he meant. “I want you to hit the bleeders.”

“I still don't think we should be doing this,” you expressed your concerns as Steve cut open. You immediately started going for the bleeders.

“This guy has a spinal hematoma.”

“We don't know that.”

“Which left untreated are almost always fatal.”

“You're cutting blind. Whatever happened to being practical?”

“I need to see more here. Retractor.” A nurse handed Steve a retractor.

“Wow,” you gasped, staring at Mr. Wells’ spine. 

“There’s no ‘wow’ in practical’.” You could practically hear Steve’s smirk.

After everything was clear, you and Steve began looking at the spine closely.

“Third thoracic laminae. Nothing,” you said. “I think I see the dura pulsating here.”

“No, it's not,” Steve responded. “Keep looking.”

“We have been at this for four hours. Maybe he just injured his spinal cord and there's nothing to fix.”

“L/N, when you read your books, make sure you reference them correctly. Progressive paralysis implies a pressure lesion.”

“My books got me here—“ You were interrupted by the monitors beeping.

“Pressure’s up to 180/111,” a nurse informed. “The pulse is in the 40s.”

“What is it?”

“I’m pushing 70 milligrams diazoxide.”

“Okay. Autonomic dysreflexia,” Steve said.

“Damage to the sympathetic nervous system?” You asked.

“BP and the heart rate are unstable.”

“We’re in trouble, aren’t we?”

“We’ve got to find the clot.”

“I can see the cord below the dura. Is he gonna stroke out?”

“Focus, L/N. We're gonna find the clot. It's there. Clean up, please.”

“BP's still up,” the nurse reminded. “Heart rate's at 44.”

“Get on those bleeders,” Steve ordered. “Keep looking, Dr. L/N.”

After a few long minutes later, Steve let out a happy sigh.

“What is it?” You asked.

“See for yourself,” he replied, moving his hand. “The second thoracic vertebrae.”

You leaned in, seeing the clot clearly. “Oh, my gosh. I see it. It’s really there.”

“Of course it is. Let's suction and pack this baby, shall we?”

The rest of the surgery was finished quickly and without any more problems. Soon, you and Steve were in the scrub room outside the OR.

“You were right,” you admitted. “Is he gonna be okay?”

“I think so,” Steve responded.

“But you don’t know that.”

“I know we stopped the paralysis from advancing.”

“But, you don't know if the paralysis he already has will be permanent.”

“No.”

“You know, you keep taking everything on faith. How do you know what's real and what's not?”

“You just do. You know some people would call this a relationship. The kind where you exchange keys, leave your toothbrush over.”

“Who? Who would call it that?”

“Me. I would.”

“And I’m supposed to believe you?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Then show me something. Give me a reason to believe.”

With a small, teasing smile, Steve left the room.

~~~

Your group of interns had once again found yourselves in the deserted hallway.

“I tried to talk Rogers out of that clot surgery,” you said quietly. “What is wrong with me?”

“So, basically, you tried to kill the guy,” Peter stated.

“Basically, you’re an ass,” Natasha retorted.

“Come on. You know you want it.”

Clint came walking in. “This, uh, is Clint,” he said, pointing to his name tag. “And Clint has a hot date.”

“Oh, that’s great, Clint,” you responded with a smile.

“Yeah.”

“Left pocket of my lab coat, Clint,” Peter said, going to leave. “No glove, no love.” 

Clint grabbed Peter’s arm before he could fully leave. He took a condom from his pocket.

“My psychic had his surgery,” Val stated.

“Yeah?” Clint wondered.

“I wonder what happened with his… gift.”

“Come on,” Natasha scoffed. “We all know he’s crazy.”

“Thought you said you didn’t believe in that stuff,” you added.

"I grew up in a trailer park,” Val explained. “I waited tables, which was supposed to put me through college, but my mother was always calling these psychics all the time. And the bills started piling up, so I had to use my money to pay them. When I turned 18, I left and never went back. But this guy has been saying things to me, things he couldn't possibly know anything about. So I just wonder.”

~~~

“Do you have sensation anywhere else?” You asked Mr. Wells as you examined him.

“Some feeling in my stomach and feet, I guess,” he responded.

“Bladder and bowels?”

“Not so good still.”

“He said the pressure stockings help relieve clots and bed sores?” Mrs. Wells wondered.

“They do,” you agreed.

“I wanted to thank you for everything,” Mr. Wells said. “Believing in me, that I wasn't making it up.”

“Well, I'll come back tomorrow, then.”

“Hey, I wanted to show you something. I wasn't sure it would last but now look.” He barely moved one of his fingers. “I know it's hardly anything, but…”

“No, it’s something,” you smiled. “It's something really big. I’ll make sure Dr. Rogers knows and I’ll see you both in the morning.”

~~~

Steve met you in the lobby and led you to his car. He opened the door for you before hurrying over to the other side, getting in, and starting the car. Driving, you quickly noticed that Steve wasn’t taking you to your house.

“Where are we going?” You asked.

“Trust me,” he replied, glancing at you.

You bit your lip and nodded, turning to look out the window as the city flew by. Before you knew it, you guys had crossed into New Jersey and heading into the more suburban area of it. Steve stopped in front of a piece of land with no house on it. The whole piece of empty land had to be at least 20 acres, with groups of trees scattered around it. Helping you out of the car, Steve began leading you towards the trees.

“Are you going to murder me and bury my body here?” You asked.

“No,” Steve chuckled. “Of course not.”

“Where are we?”

“Shh, shh. I’m going to tell you.”

Steve led you around the corner, revealing an airstream trailer with a small porch. It was almost magical, sitting in the midst of all those trees.

“Alright,” Steve breathed out, nervously. 

He let go of your hand and moved to sit on the edge of the porch. You stayed where you were at, taking everything in.

“My mother’s name was Sarah, my dad’s was Joseph,” Steve stated. “They both died before I graduated high school. I don’t have any siblings. I like Neapolitan ice cream and just a plain beer. I like to work out and I’ve recently started fly fishing. I also cheat when I do the crossword puzzle on Sundays. I never dance in public, even at dances. But only cause I don’t know how. My favorite type of music from the early decades of the 1900’s. My favorite color is blue, like from the American flag. And I live in this trailer. All this land is mine. I have no idea what I’m gonna do with it. So… well, that’s it. That’s all you’ve earned for now. The rest you’re just… just gonna have to take on faith.”

Not revealing an emotions, you walked to the trailer, studying it. Steve stood up, carefully watching you. Walking towards the door, you turned back around with a small smile and reached your hand out to him.

“Show me how this faith thing works,” you whispered. “Please.”

next chapter >

Sorry if it’s all over the place. I owed it to you guys to get this out there.

NOTES: from now on the taglist when be added by a reblog. I will reblog it using my second account, @just-dreaming-marvel-2​​​. Just so that my main page doesn’t get too cluttered.

If you want to be added to the tag list, please dm me or send in an ask.

[drariellevalentine]

Medically Inevitable

Chapter 5- Heartfelt Housewarming

Warnings:- Alcohol

Characters:- Arielle Valentine, Ethan Ramsey, Sienna Trinh, Landry Olsen, Elijah Greene, Jackie Varma, Aurora Emery, Ines Delarosa

Pairing:- Ethan Ramsey x Arielle Valentine

After a night of restless tossing and turning, you get up skipping your usual morning routine and head into the shower. Stripping yourself of your clothes, you step into the shower, hoping the hot water washes away yesterday’s events. You close your eyes and everything comes flooding into mind.

“Dr. Valentine, your post-op patient is in distress!”

“What happened? She was fine two minutes ago!”, you say.

“Fluid buildup in her lungs, she can’t breathe!”

“Heart rate’s above 160. It’s in atrial fibrillation!”

“BP’s crashing, she’s hypotensive!” Everything swirls around in confusion. You’re frozen in place, unsure of what to do.

“What do you want us to do?” Your mind is jumbled. You can’t focus.

“Dr. Valentine! What do you want us to do?!”

You’re wrenched out of your reverie as your bottle of body wash drops to the floor.

“Arielle? You okay?” Sienna asks.

“Yeah, just dropped something. Be out in a sec.”, you pull back the fogged glass door and grab your blush coloured towel, which matches your room’s aesthetic. You remember the day you went out shopping with your brother’s girlfriend who also happens to be one of the huge fashion icons and designers, to buy everything you needed for your apartment. After drying yourself off, you slip on a silk robe and leave your bathroom to see Sienna and Landry waiting for you.

“Hey.”, you say plopping down on the furry bench at the front of your queen sized bed.

Si comes and gives you a hug. “What happened yesterday isn’t your fault, okay.”

“I know. I just can’t stop thinking about what would have happened if the nurses hadn’t bailed me out yesterday.”

“You can always go over your cases. It helps to be prepared.”, advises Landry.

“Thanks Landry.” They exit your room as you head into your closet to get dressed. Deciding on a teal wrapped top, a navy blue pair of leggings, matching boots and accessories, you grab your mini backpack which you packed last night and head to the kitchen.

“Okay. I have 15 minutes.” You throw some strawberries, a banana, and vanilla almond milk into a blender and grab a straw. Pouring the smoothie into you regular glass, you pop a straw and grab a protein bar. You have breakfast as you scroll through your messages with 10 minutes to go. Washing out the cup and placing it in the dishwasher, you head out to your car, protein bar in hand. You play a few tunes as you drive all the way to Edenbrook, singing along.

You park your car and head towards the locker room to drop your belongings. Heading into the atrium, you notice a huge crowd of interns. Entering the atrium I find it full, some interns scattering around, while the others are pushing each other to get in front of the crowd where Dr. Ramsey is standing with a piece of paper on his hands.

"Gather around interns," Ines's cheerful voice rings through the atrium.

"Back! Back! Christ! You all are like a bunch of rabid dogs!" His angry voice announces.

Sienna, Landry and I go and join the crowd where Elijah and Jackie are already present. Tiptoeing I try to get a better look at the paper. But it's really hard to see it from here.

"Wow! It looks like everyone signed up for the competition," I state shocked seeing the huge list in front of me.

"Of course they did. It's an opportunity for a lifetime!" Landry says excited.

"Yeah exactly, only a complete jackass would think about passing it," Jackie smirks .

"Gee, thanks!" I roll my eyes playfully.

"How about this? Whoever ranks the lowest picks up the keg for tonight's party?" Elijah suggests.

"I like the way you think," Jackie says and then turns around to check the list.

"Great! Sienna already whipped up a few treats and she’ll be going shopping to pick up the rest of supplies while we decorate the house. I told everyone to come by 8," Elijah grins and Jackie turns around to look at him.

"What do you mean by everyone?" Landry questions.

"My question exactly," Jackie adds.

"You know the other interns," Elijah smiles.

"I have told a few residents about it too," Sienna says, "And also a few nurses." Sienna kinda blushes? You make a mental note to ask her later.

"Guys, our place is nice but not that big! We have to keep it small," Landry states.

"You have a point," I start to say and look over at Elijah whose expression turned into a sad one. "But it's about tonight only! And it's not like everyone we invite is gonna show up," I smile a Landry, "Chill out dude."

"Famous last words..." Landry says, his voice low.

"I can't believe I am about to throw an party at last!" Elijah chimes.

"Ooh! Are you talking about you homecoming party tonight?" Ines asks from behind him.

"You've heard about that?" I ask surprised.

"Everyone's heard about that," She smiles.

"Cool. So are you coming?" I return the smile.

"Yeah. And do you guys mind if I bring Zaid along?" She asks sweetly.

Dr. Mirani. In a party! That's beyond my imagination.

She must have seen the hesitation on our face so she starts to explain, " I know his sense of humor isn't everyone's cup of tea but he's loads of fun at a party. Trust me."

"Of course," I smile trying to remove any trace of the hesitation from my face ," The more the merrier."

"He has a sense of humor?" Jackie acts shocked after I Ines leaves and I nudge her playfully. And the rest of my roommates shoots looks at me.

"What? What'd you expect me to say?" I ask shrugging.

They all give me a fake angry look before looking forward where Dr. Ramsey just pinned our score sheet.The crowd of interns moves forward threatening to cush him.

“Now you can stop badgering me with quest about where you stand.”, Dr. Ramsey’s cold voice announces. “If you would like to challenge your rankings, fell free to swing by my office and I’ll immediately disqualify you. Good day.”, his nonchalant voice adds before walking away after pining the ranking sheet.

“Is it just me or is he more grumpier than usual?”, Sienna asks quietly so that only the five of us can hear.”

Jackie shrugs, “He’s probably annoyed cause he has to pick an intern.” The crowd of interns slowly disappear leaving the gang and a few other interns in the atrium. We look towards the board to check our rankings.

“Let’s see who’s number one.”, Landry says looking at the list.

“It’s Aurora, that little-", Jackie stops when she sees her but it’s too late.

“Please continue!”, she sneers.

“That little colleague whose aunt signs my checks.”, Jackie painfully finishes.

“Jackie...keep reading.”, Sienna nudges her.

“I’m fourth. Fine, I guess. Landry’s seventh, Elijah’s tenth.

“And Arielle you are- nineteenth," she says kinda surprised.

"Nineteenth? Looks like you are on the keg duty Valentine," Elijah says.

"It's okay. I just need to work harder," I say.

"Are you sure? I mean you are not me but you aren't that bad," she says playfully trying to lighten up the mood and at the same time establishing a point- I deserve more than the 19th ranking. "Are you sure Dr. Ramsey doesn't have it up for you?"

“No, I think it's what I deserve. I just need to work harder and it'd pay off," I force a smile.

You rush after Dr. Ramsey to update him about Shonda.

“Dr. Ramsey!”

“Yes?” He turns to look at you but he seems rather distant.

“I wanted to update you on my post-op patient from last night.”, you tentatively say.

“You mean the ones that the nurses had to intubate? I’ve already been informed.” You wince waiting for his berating...but it never comes. You’re surprised.

“Aren’t you going to berate me?”

“No. I have work to attend to and by the look on your face, I gather that you already feel bad.” He turns to leave.

“Wait!” He turns to look at you. “I wanted to invite you to a housewarming party my friends and I are hosting later tonight. It’ll be a nice breather from work.”

Ethan’s PoV:-

You’d never thought an intern would invite you to one of their parties. You’re about to agree when you remember that you have work to do. “I’ll have to decline.” Her face falls. “But I appreciate the invitation.” She turns to leave.

“Rookie. Wait.”, you find yourself saying. “What the hell are you doing, Ethan!”, you think. She turns to look at you.

“All my patients are stable. What do you need?”

“Radiology just received a new f.M.R.I machine a week ago but they haven’t tested it yet and I’m getting impatient.”, you reply.

“You want me to stick my brain so you see all my deepest secrets? Alright!” You laugh.

“Follow me.” You lead her to the equipment room. You’re about to tell her what she needs to do until you realise that she’ll need to take off her shirt. “Shit!”, you think. We’re doctors, surely this is normal! you try to convince yourself.

Arielle’s PoV:-

“You can keep your shirt here any make sure you take off all jewellery.” He gestures to your earrings, necklace and many rings. Then it hits you. “I’m going to be half-naked in front of my boss. Why did I agree to this?!” You turn around, facing the wall and take of your shirt, revealing your matching teal lace-up bra. Great day to wear a lace-up bra, thank god it doesn’t have any metal! You turn sideways and take off all your jewellery, shoes and ID. “Done. Now what?”, you turn to face him.

Ethan’s PoV:-

You gulp at the sight of her. You’ve never seen someone so pretty in just a simple pair of leggings. The sight of her long violet ombré tresses cascading down her shoulders- “Shut up Ramsey! She’s your intern!”, you think. “Have you taken off all metal?”, you gesture to her very lacey bra.

“My bra isn’t wired so I won’t have to take it off.” You’re thankful for that. You bring the syringe of gadolinium near her. “Sit here and lean back.”, you instruct her. Palpitating her veins, you inject the gadolinium, trying not to focus on the scent of vanilla and cinnamon from her. You dispose the syringe. “You help her onto the machine, instructing her not to move.”

“Why do they make these damn machines so high?”, you hear her mutter. You stifle a laugh.

You head into the adjacent room, turning on the machine. “Is my voice audible?”

“Yes. It’s loud and clear.”

“Okay. Can I start?” She agrees. “If these questions are too personal, tell me and I’ll ask something else.”

“You do realise that I’ve already told you a lot about my personal life, right?” You ignore that.

“What is your middle name?”

“Cerise.” (Cherry in French)

“Cherry?”, you ask. Your lips quirk up.

“My mother named me Cerise for two reasons. One, her main pregnancy cravings were cherries. Two, apparently my lips were the colour of cherries when I was born.”, she answers. You see her temporal lobe glow.

“Do you have any favourite childhood memories?”

Her hippocampus, neo-cortex and amygdala glow. “I do. When I was little, I would visit my godfather every Friday evening and stay there until he would drop me off at school Monday morning. I would enter the house and he would have all the ingredients lined up for some kind of dessert or pastry as long as it had chocolate. We would bake together, laugh and talk and I would tell him about all the stupid things that would happen in class.” You smile at the thought of a little Arielle baking.

“Okay. Tell me about one of the happiest days of your life.”

“Probably when my niece was born.”

“You have a niece?” You’re surprised. Her prefrontal cortex glows very brightly.

“Her name is Arabelle, Belle for short. It was an unplanned pregnancy and there were some ups and downs, but the moment she came it was absolutely beautiful. To become an aunt and hold your niece in your arms for the first time, it’s one of the most beautiful things in life. She turned 4 years old a few months ago... Is the machine working properly?”

“Yes, it works alright. That’s enough questions.” You power down the machine and go back to the equipment room, when you hear a thud. You rush into the room to find Arielle getting up from the floor.

“Ooh! Very hard floor!”, she rubs her arm.

“How did you manage to fall down from the machine?”, you ask while helping her up.

She shrugs, her lips widening into a grin. “There’s a reason why my brother calls me Calamity Cerise!” She pulls her shirt back on, along with her jewellery, ID, and shoes. She saunters over phone in hand and shows me a picture. “This is my niece Belle.” She pulls up a picture of an adorable 3 year old dressed in a powder blue fluffy gown. Beside her is Arielle, wearing a beautiful matching dress with a huge smile on her face.

They look absolutely adorable.

“She’s cute.”, you respond.

“She is, isn’t she! She wanted a photoshoot for her birthday. This was one of the pics.”

“Thank you… for the assistance, Dr. Valentine.” You turn to leave. You’re about to ask her when the party starts, but you stumble on your words and leave.

Arielle’s PoV:-

You’re just finishing your shift as you notice the time. Your shift ended early, so you decided to go with Sienna to help shop for the party. You text her and meet her at the parking lot.

“Hey Si, ready to go?”

“Yeah! I made a list of all the things we need to buy!” You take your car and drive towards Walmart.”

“Okay, so I’ll pick up the plates, cups, and other stuff. You pick up all these snacks.” We’ll meet at the dairy section in 20.” You head towards the snack aisle and pick up tortilla chips, crackers and a few other snacks that Si told you to buy. Hmm... we need drinks! You head towards the drink aisle where you find Bryce.

“Hey Bryce! What are you doing here?” He whirls around, his face breaking into a smile when he sees you.

“Elle! I thought I would buy a little something for the party.” You notice the bottles of tequila in his hand.

“Aww Thanks! Now, help me in getting those Sprite and Fanta bottles up there. I can’t reach.” He laughs and picks them up from the shelf with ease, placing them in the cart. You lead him to the dairy section, where you find Sienna waiting for you.

“What took you so lo-Hi Bryce!”

“I found Scalpel Jockey in the drinks aisle.”

“Okay, so I already made a bunch of desserts, we just need different cheeses and meat. I’ll head towards the deli and you two find some blocks of cheddar and gruyere.” She heads off.

“Okay, let’s go for cheddar, mozzarella, gruyere and pepper jack. I’ll get some vegan versions.” You slide over to the non-dairy section and pick up a few items and drop them into the cart. “All done, Bryce?”

“Yeah, found everything! I’ll stand in the billing aisle, you go bring Sienna.” You go to the deli section and bring Si over.

“Did we get everything Si?” She goes over the list. “Yeah, Jackie and Elijah said they’ll bring the beer and a few other drinks so we should have everything.” You finish billing and head to the parking lot. Bidding goodbye to Bryce, you head to the apartment to find the place fully decorated.

“We were wondering when you guys would show up. We decorated everything already!”, says Landry.

“Great! Elijah, you can help me whip up some dips while Landry and Jackie set up the rest of the food.”

“I’ll go pick up the keg stand and a little something special.” They give you a questioning look. “It’s a secret!”, you sing as you head out to your car. Picking up the keg stand and karaoke machine takes longer then you expected. By the time you come home again, the apartment is packed. Bryce comes and helps you with the very heavy stand.

“What’s in there?”, he asks pointing to the other box I had in my hand.

“I called in a favour and got us a karaoke machine. Give it to Elijah, he’ll hook it up.” You head to your room to get dressed. You pull out a fitted black crop top with a sparkly violet miniskirt. Brushing on a little lipgloss, you decide to focus on your eyes and add a little eyeshadow to your usual makeup. Lastly, you take your your hair from the Dutch braid you purposely did this morning, your hair falls in thick curls. Spraying on a little hairspray, you quickly take a pic and post it with the caption ‘Housewarming party ready!🥳’

By the time you come out of your room, the keg stand is completely set up.

“Arielle! You’re going first!”, Elijah yells.

“Hell No! Scalpel Jockey can go first.”

Bryce saunters over and starts while Elijah sets the timer. “1..2..3...........25...28”- Bryce flips over, as the people cheer.

“I’m feeling a little woozy.”, he sits down. You step up, putting you hair up in a loose bun.

“Ready Arielle, 1..2..3..Go!” You flip over, planting your hands on the ground and kick you feet up in the air as you guzzle down beer. “1..2..3..4.................30..”, You’re getting really lightheaded. “43..44..45”, You flip back to the ground and sway like a pendulum until one of the surgical interns steady you.

“Damn Arielle! 45 seconds! Anyone want to top that?”, Elijah shouts.People line up after you’re lead by Ines to sit down. She gives you a glass of ice cold water as you turn to see Zaid at the keg stand. You nearly spit out the water in your mouth at the sight. He surprisingly managed for 20 seconds. He takes a seat beside you as the surgical intern who steadied you goes next.

“I don’t know why you youngsters do this to yourselves!”, Zaid grumbles.

“Me either!”, you answer as your stomach rumbles. You forgot to eat lunch.

You head over to the snacks area where you have a few of Si’s mini treats.

“Yo Arielle!” You turn around to see Elijah yelling from standing on a ‘stage’. You head over and see the karaoke machine fixed up.

“How in the world did you manage to get a karaoke machine at this caliber?” You smile.

“I have friends in high places. Now who’s going first?” Bryce and a few surgical interns hold a riff-raff as you and a few others cheer them on. Bryce wins, that guy has got pipes. Now comes duet rounds. Jackie saunters over, partly drunk.

“So this was the surprise you were talking about.” You nod. She suddenly drags you to her the stage. You see Elijah manning the controls.

“Now for the one and only, Jackie and Arielle! What song will it be?”

“None Of My Business” You laugh, she still manages to choose a sassy song when drunk. “You ready Arielle?” They’ve never heard you sing, so they’re in for quite a surprise. You turn to the screen, blue for Jackie, pink for me and purple for both of us... sounds good.

She starts, her voice bold and sassy, a little bit of her accent shows through.

“Damn, I heard you and her been having problems”

“She likes to fight, I guess you both have that in common”

“Go Jackie!”, Si yells.

“Started at the top but now you at the bottom”

“But baby, this is none of my business”

“You think you can top that Arielle?”, Jackie asks with a smirk. You don’t know if it’s the alcohol coursing through your veins from the keg stand or the sugar rush from Si’s treats, but you know one thing for sure, you’re going to give them a show. You keep your voice sultry and sassy.

“You moved on, that a wrong, been a while, baby”

Jackie’s shocked. “Damn Arielle, where you been hiding those pipes!”, Bryce yells. You smirk and flip your hair.

“So did I (so did I, so did I)”

“Took her home to your home”

“But trust me that ain’t on my mind (on my mind, on my mind)”

You start slowly moving your upper body to the beat, flipping your hair for extra flair.

“I-I-I-I-I, I-I-I-I-I”

You and Jackie both belt out, her taking a lower range while you hit that high. Elijah and Bryce whistle.

“I saw on my feed”

“She looks a little like me”

“I-I-I-I-I, I-I-I-I-I”

“I can’t help but see”

“It’s not jealousy, no”

You both finish off the song receiving a huge applause once finished. You saunter over to Jackie, “Is that up to your standards, Miss Varma.” She smirks and heads off.

You decide to get a drink and enjoy the rest of the duets. A while later, someone taps your shoulder. You turn around to see Bryce. “Elle, you have to sing with me. I may have bet a 100 dollar bottle of whiskey to Mark and Rosa that i would sing much better than them but I can’t find a partner.

“Fine. What song?

“Trampoline.” You give him a look. “Please?” You let him drag you towards the stage for the second time.

“Looks like you found a partner Lahela.”

Elijah announces the rules in the mic to the huge crowd, “Listen up! Bryce and Arielle will sing the same verses as will Mark and Rosa. It’s up to you guys to decide which pair is better!”

You know you’ve had one too many drinks, and Bryce had to choose one of the sultry songs. You turn towards the screen. Pink for the girls, blue for the boys and purple for all. You and Bryce are up first.

You start singing in a breathy but sultry tone.

“I’ve been having dreams”

“Jumpin’ on a trampoline”

He matches your tone, going just a bit deeper.

“Flippin’ in the air”

“I never land, just float there”

“As I’m lookin’ up”

“As I’m lookin’ up”

“Suddenly the sky erupts”

You both sing together, his voice hitting those deep notes while you hit those whistles.

“Flames alight the trees”

“Spread to fallin’ leaves”

“Now they’re right upon me”

The alcohol in you takes over, you start swaying your hips to the sultry beat gaining the attention of the crowd. The surgical interns whistle.

“Wait, if I’m on fire”

“Then how am I so deep in love”

“When I dream of dying”

“I never feel so loved”

You and Bryce reach the peak of the song, him singing that low bass as you match his tone at a higher pitch, leaving the crowd in awe. Bryce sings the next few lines, leaving you to sing the beautiful breathy chorus.

You both finish after alternating lines and earn whistles and applause from the crowd. Bryce saunters up to Rosa and Mark, “Think you can top that?” Mark forks over a hundred dollar bill and walks away.

“I believe that you owe me a thank you.” He sweeps you up into a hug.

“Thank you so much Elle. Come over some time, I’m sharing this with you.” He heads off. You sing a few songs with Sienna, Ines, Jackie and Elijah until you find yourself winded.

You’re heading out to catch a breather when you notice the crowds of people laughing and drinking. You see Si standing alone and head over. “Hey Si, where’s Wayne?”

“Oh! He had to go home. He has work tomorrow morning.” You frown.

“Si.” You give her a pointed look.

“I know, he was really rude. But I promise he isn’t always like that!”, she says.

“Okay Si, I believe you. But if you need someone to talk to, I’m here okay?” She nods and heads inside as Elijah wheels past.

“Hey Elijah, don’t you think the party’s getting a bit out of hand?”

“Sienna cleared it with Farley until midnight.” You look at him.

“Which is in 10 minutes.” He’s about to respond when a girl about your age walks near.

“Could I squeeze through?”

“Yeah, of course.”, you respond.

“Are you guests of this rager or...” You smile. “It’s ours. I’m Arielle and this is Elijah.”

“Hey...”, you can see him blush. He totally likes her.

“I’m Phoebe, I live right down the haul.” You can’t stand to witness anymore of this cuteness and decide to play Cupid.

“Hey Elijah, why don’t you show Phoebe around and let her play a game or two.” You turn to Phoebe. “He’s really good at beer bong.” They nod and head inside as you smile. Suddenly Landry rushes towards you, followed by Jackie.

“Someone just ratted us out! I saw Farley entering the building!”, Jackie says.

“What are we going to do? We can’t possibly get this in control by the time he gets here!”, Landry says.

Shonda’s advice comes back to you. “Okay! Here’s what we’re going to do. Landry, break out the board games and sit everyone down. Jackie, tell everyone to go inside and quiet down. I’ll placate everyone with leftover treats. Go! Between the three of you, with some help from Sienna, Elijah and Phoebe, you manage to get everyone under control. You rush towards your room and slip on a robe just as the doorbell rings. You open it and act nonchalantly as your roommates shush everyone. “Hey Farley, is everything alright?”

“Miss Raines, I received a complaint about your party extending the duration of time and the level of noise.”

“What? Everyone already left and I was getting ready for bed.” You ‘yawn’.

“My apologies Miss Raines, carry on.” He turns around and leaves. “Mission Accomplished! Now, everyone stay quiet please.”, you say as everyone cheers quietly. The party slowly dwindles down until your roommates and Bryce are the only ones left.

“You don’t have to help clean up, Bryce.”

“It’s alright Elle. Also, how come you never told me you could sing? I actually thought that you were lip syncing.” You laugh.

“I learned to play the piano at a very young age. Singing just came naturally. It was one of my mother’s favourite hobbies.”

He smiles. “I think that’s the last of the trash. Goodnight Elle.” He kisses me on the cheek and leaves. I smile thinking I might have just found another brother.

After locking the doors, you head back into your room to sleep. You slip off your clothes and drop them in the hamper. You put on a silky white pajama set and enter you bathroom. You wash your face with a face wash and pat it dry. Skincare has always been something that is very important to you, especially when Naveen has taught you so many tips and tricks from his Indian heritage. You start with your usual eye cream to get rid your dark circles, eyelash serum and lastly a night moisturiser.Then you lightly braid your hair and flop into bed, tucking yourself deep under the fluffy blush coloured blanket.

You wake up to ‘Dancing With Your Ghost’ by Sasha Sloan. You slip on a matching robe and head out to the kitchen for your tea.

“Good Morning Ari!” You notice Elijah at the dining table and greet him back. “Look who was up all night.” He points to the sofa. You walk over and notice Danny sleeping, Sienna lying on him peacefully. You take your phone and take a photo without them noticing.

You tiptoe back towards Elijah and show him the picture. He smiles. “Honestly, Danny would be a much better match for Si, Wayne wasn’t like anything Si described.”, you say.

“Ari, that’s enough playing Cupid. You’re going to be late if you don’t get ready.” You notice the time, no tea for me today! You head towards your room to get ready.

Later that day, you’re walking in the pristine white halls of Edenbrook when you get a page. 911 for Mrs. Turner! You run to the stairs.

I charge into the room to find her in respiratory distress, the nurses running around to help her.

"She's crashing again?" I ask the nurses, shock and fear clearly noticable in my voice.

"Yeah, just like last time," Marlene answers.

"Body temperature is skyrocketing. She's in AFib, her B.P. is crashing and she's got a pulmonary edema," Danny informs me her condition but barely a word enters my brain.

My mind's got blank the second I saw her lying unconscious in the hospital bed.

Get a hold on yourself Arielle! She's your patient, you need to help her. She'd die under your watch if you don't act quickly!

"What do you want to do doctor?" Sarah asks.

"I-I-" I try to say something but my brain gives up. I can hardly form a coherent sentence.

"I want to... breathe," I say, panic rising with each passing second.

"What?" The nurses stares at me shocked. But despite that I take a moment to myself and breathe.

I close my eyes.

I can do it. I have to do it. I just think.

I just have to guide the nurses. Calm down Arielle. You've got it.

I count upto three, to calm down and subside my tension.

"Here's what we need to do.”, I open my eyes.

"Sarah prep the I.V. We have to get fluids in her. Marlene get the ice packs and cooling blankets. Cool her down so that she doesn't get heat stroke."

"Right away Dr. Valentine," Sarah moves to get an IV stand.

I turn to Danny then. "And Danny get the defibrillator. Then we intubate."

"On it doctor," he says and rushes to get the equipment. After dealing with the patient, you head towards the ER. Later, when you’re heading for your lunch break, you come across Dr. Ramsey.

“Rookie. I heard you kept Mrs. Turner alive.”, he acknowledges.

“I did.”, a small beam of pride hits you. He turns and walks away when one of his files fall down. You reach down and can’t but help notice the quizzical patient name, ‘Patient X’ as you pick up the chart. He quickly turns around and quite rashly pulls the CT scan from you.

“Thank you.”, he hurries down the hallway. You wonder who it could be, and why he is so secretive.

[simsadventures]

Better Like This: Chapter 11: What Goes Around

Summary: The team arrives to the workshop. Time is of essence, and they all know it. Warnings: angst, mentions of murder, attempted murder, CPR, mentions of surgery

Word Count: 2670 A/N: What did you guys think? Let me know :) Love you and thank you for still reading this :) xx

P.S.: I tried to do a real description of CPR, not that anyone would remember it after reading, but if only bits and pieces would stuck with you, you could really help someone one day. Stay safe my friends :) here is a link to give a proper CPR

Series Masterlist __ Masterlist

< Previous Chapter

The drive to the workshop was the longest thing Bucky ever experienced. He felt as if the usually 20-minute ride was suddenly taking hours. He was trying to rush Sam, who was driving, to just drive fucking faster, but Sam wouldn’t budge.

“Man, what do you want me to do? Go over pedestrians or what? We’ll be there soon, just try and breathe, dude.”

Bucky was clenching his fists and tried to concentrate on the feeling of your bond. It was still strong, which could only mean you were still alive. It was this knowledge that was keeping him sane. The second he’d feel the bond falter, he’d probably jump out of the car, and ran to kill that bitch and then himself. He knew that such thoughts weren’t doing any good to you nor to him, but he just couldn’t help himself.

He didn’t want to be in a world where you weren’t, even though he was pretty sure you would never want him to do this to himself, were something to happen to you. But the strength of the bond worked miraculously because he still had the will to live and fight.

They were nearing the scene, and he could hear Steve in his ear. “Alright, everyone knows what they’re supposed to do?”

An affirmation came from the whole team, and silence followed. Everyone was nervous. Not only were they on their way to possibly catch the Strangler, the serial killer scaring New York for months now, but also a life of one of their own was on the line. They knew Bucky would feel if you stopped breathing, but still, they couldn’t shake this weird feeling enveloping each and every one of them.

They parked their cars a street down the workshop, so they potentially wouldn’t scare Amber off, if she really were the abductor. Just as they planned, Natasha went first, trying to look as confused as she could, while hiding her own nervousness. She had her earpiece on, so she could communicate with the team, and hear everything that was happening somewhere behind her. She tried to map the surroundings, to see if there were any civilians around, but except two guys vomiting next to one of the bins, nobody was out.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team took another route, trying to get to the workshop from the back. They tried not to raise too much attention so that no passer-by would be hurt if it came to some kind of shoot-out. Nevertheless, they moved swiftly, their guns still in their holsters. They were all wearing bulletproof vests, just to be sure.

When the workshop appeared in front of them, they all crouched. Steve mumbled orders: him, Clint and Tony would take the right side, Bucky, Sam, and Scott had to cover the left side. The rest of the tac team were to cover the very back of the building and wait for further orders. The worship wasn’t big enough to take 15 people at once, and they hoped it wouldn’t be necessary.

Nat gave them a signal and went towards the door. She tried to look through one of the windows, to try and see if you were somewhere there. What she saw made her blood run cold.

“Change of plans. Y/N’s there, and that bitch is doing something to her, guys. We need to act NOW!”

Nobody needed to be told twice, they all ran towards the door, which Nat already kicked in, to try and get to you. Amber abruptly looked around and saw Nat running towards her. She didn’t expect this. She really thought she hid all her traces, but it didn’t matter at that moment. She still needed to kill you, with or without cops in the room.

Bucky was the quickest of the rest of the team to get to the room, and he let out a vicious growl. He could see you, tied to a chair, all bloody and bruised, with a golden arm around your throat. The only thing on his mind was not the freeze and get to you as soon as possible. Someone would take care of Amber, the whole team was there, and it was just her. His only worry was you and your well-being.

Bucky thought you noticed him because your lips curled upwards a little when he marched towards you. Amber was still holding onto, but not for long. Nat jumped on her shoulders and used her elbows as leverage to hit Amber to her neck and head. It seemed to work because, after the second blow, she let your neck go, and tried to get rid of Natasha. The second her grip loosened around you, your head fell backwards.

The rest of the team was now in the workshop, too, and they tried to work as efficiently as they could. Bucky could hear a lot of yelling behind him, but he couldn’t be less bothered by it. He was getting your wrists from the ropes so that he could lay you down and check on you. All the time, he was trying to get you to wake up, but without success.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his chest. It would’ve sent him tumbling backwards if his mind wasn’t so set on rescuing you. He knew what it meant, but wasn’t willing to give up.

“Y/N! Baby, don’t you die on me. I need you, c’mon!” He was screaming now and didn’t realise that the rest of the room was utterly silent.

It was no work at all for them to handcuff Amber, and Clint and Nat were already going towards the TAC team, so they could get her to the station for questioning.

When Bucky finally managed to lay you down, he tried to find a heartbeat, or try to catch a breath or anything that would prove to him that you were still there with him, but he couldn’t find anything. He could distantly hear someone calling 911, and yelling back that the ambulance will be there in a few minutes. In a few minutes, you’d be dead for sure. He needed to save you.

He pushed your neck a little back so that he could clear your airways. Next, he ripped your shirt, so that he could see where your sternum was and to do the CPR properly. He was sure he’d crack a few ribs, but better few broken ribs than no you at all.

He placed the heal of his right hand at the centre of your chest and interlocked his fingers with his other hand, and could see Steve moving towards your head, to help Bucky with the whole process. They both knew it was better if two people did this.

He started pressing your chest, and he tried to do it as hard and fast as possible, he knew he needed your heart to get the shock, fight, and work on its own. When he was on his 30th compression, Steve took over, lifted your chin, held your nose and gave you two breaths, after which Bucky continued to provide you with the heart massage. They didn’t know how long it took for the ambulance to come, but when they did, they resumed Bucky’s and Steve’s action.

They quickly put your into the ambulance and asked if your Alpha was there, seeing the mark on your neck. Bucky nodded and swiftly jumped to the ambulance to be close to you. It was general knowledge, that if one mate got hurt, the other should be as close as possible, their bodies reacting positively on each other. It would basically mean that having Bucky around would cure you faster. At least they all hope it would.

They got your heart beating on its own in the hospital but had to intubate you and breathe with you because your throat was severely damaged. They were scared about your brain function too. They wanted to make sure no serious damage was done, but what they saw on the MRI, didn’t make the doctors happy.

“There’s slight bleeding in her brain. We will have to go in, and stop it so that no further damage is done. Are you ok with that, sir?” one of the doctors asked Bucky.

“Why are you asking me? Of course, do everything you can, just fucking save her.” The doctor just nodded and rushed off. In a minute, Bucky could see your hospital bed with your unconscious body being transferred towards the OR.

Steve and Sam came running towards Bucky. “How’s it looking, man? Will she be alright?”

Bucky couldn’t look up. He couldn’t face his best friends, so he just mumbled “she’s bleeding in her brain, they are trying to stop it now,” and was quiet again.

Steve and Sam exchanged a look, took Bucky, each by one elbow, and led him towards the waiting room so that they could all sit and wait for some update. It a while, everyone was there, the whole team, Bruce too, of course, and your friends, Hope, Wanda and Vis, anxiously waiting to learn what was happening.

In about four hours, a doctor came in. “Anyone here for Y/N Y/L/N?” He got a little confused when all 11 people stood up and marched towards him, with scared expressions. “Oh, ok, we were able to stop the bleeding, but we won’t know about the extent of the damages until she wakes up. She still has to have help to breathe. Her trachea is fortunately not shattered, but it was such a shock for her organism, that it will need some time to heal. Next 24 hours will be critical, if her body can take that, then I’m pretty sure positive results will come.”

Sighs of some relief could be heard from several people, but not from Bucky. “When can I see her?” Was his only question, his posture still as frigid as when he came to the hospital more than 4 hours ago.

“Well, through a looking glass-“

“I don’t want to see my mate through a fucking looking glass. When. Can. I. see. her!” Bucky growled the last part, and despite the doctor being a Beta, he lowered his head submissively. “Right now, sir. But only you, I’m afraid. This amount of people wouldn’t be good for the patient.”

He looked up, half expecting other growls from the mostly Alpha circle around him, but they all nodded in understanding, and let Bucky follow the doctor towards where you were laying.

When he was let to your room, his breath hitched in his throat, and the tears, that were threatening to fall the whole time he was waiting for some update, finally dropped. The doctor mumbled something about leaving the two of you alone, but Bucky didn’t really hear him.

All he could see was his beautiful mate, hooked up to so many machines and tubes, he almost couldn’t see you. There was a tube helping you breathe, just like the doctor said, bandages all over your face, which was now even more purple than when he left you to their care.

He wanted to hug you, be as close to you as possible, but he knew he couldn’t. All of those machines, which he hated and loved at the same time, were keeping you alive, or at least keeping the possibility of you coming back to him sooner.

He grabbed one of the chairs standing in the corner and put it right next to your bed, he could at least hold your hand. He watched you, and couldn’t help but hate himself even more. This was all his fault. Not only did he leave you in his apartment, without any protection, but it was his fucking ex who attacked you and almost took you away from him. His mind was spiralling with all the what-if scenarios. He slowly lowered his head so that it was resting on your hand and started sobbing silently.

The pain in his chest was almost gone, but his insides still burnt from the stress of almost losing you.

“I’m so sorry, doll. I love you so fucking much and I just.. Can’t, I just can’t do this without you, Y/N, so please, please come back to me. I swear I’ll do a better job at protecting you this time, I’ll be the best Alpha. You deserve all the best in the world, and I’ll die trying to give you the world. Just come back to me.”

The team couldn’t hear what he was saying, but they could imagine it all very well. The sight was heartbreaking. They all knew Bucky as this strong, whatever type of guy, who never really showed his emotions. So seeing him so broken down these past few hours was almost unbearable for them. They wanted to help him somehow, but they all knew that the only help he could get was if you woke up.

At the same time, they all felt that this was a very intimate moment for Bucky, so they all silently left, Sam only to the waiting room, if Bucky needed him. He sent the rest of the team home or to the station, to fry that bitch waiting there for them. Nat had a furious look on her face, and Sam knew that Amber was in some really deep shit. Nat was rarely pissed, and when she was, it was as if the hell opened its gates. Same wished he could see what Nat would do to Amber, but knew that Bucky needed someone there, and was willing to skip the fun part to stay with his buddy.

—-

3 days went by, and although they were able to retract the tube from your throat, and your body seemed to be healing nicely, but there were still no signs of you waking up.

Bucky didn’t want to leave your side, and it was only after Sam’s threatening that he got to his apartment, had a quick shower and an energy drink and went back to you. Meanwhile, Sam had to promise he’d stay by your side until Bucky came back. Bucky was very much keen on never leaving you alone again, and if he couldn’t be there for a second, he would make sure you still had your protection.

He thanked Sam when he came back, and Sam knew that it was not only for sitting there with you, which was an obvious thing for Sam to do (you were his friend too), but it felt like a bigger thank you. Sam just nodded and let Bucky sit back to you.

They were chatting silently, when suddenly, Bucky could feel the muscles in your hand moving. He jumped from the chair. “Baby? Doll? Are you awake?”

You didn’t reply, but he could see you blinking behind the closed eyes. It made his heart jump in excitement. He was glad you were there, on the hospital bed, and not somewhere dead, but at the same time, he missed your eyes, which seemed to pierce his soul and look right into him. He missed your smile, which warmed the room immediately. So to be finally able to see all that gave him a whole lot of hope.

He could see your eyes blinking more furiously, and he squeezed your hand, a smile spreading across his face. He saw that the harsh light of the hospital made you squint your eyes when you tried to look around. The first thing you looked at was him, and you squinted harder. You then looked at your interlocked hands and flinched slightly.

When you looked back at him, confusion was written all over your face. What you said next sent Bucky almost to the ground. He really thought the two of you were out of the woods. But, boy, was he wrong.

Your voice was barely above a whisper, but to him, it was as if you were yelling at him.

“Who are you?”

/ Next Chapter >

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 If you like the story, please reblog :) any comments are appreciated, even the critical ones. Always a space to get better, so let me know what you guys think.

[sgtbradfords]

Burning Man

Pairing: Firefighter!Dean x Reader; Dean Winchester x Reader

Warnings: None

A/N: This fic is an AU and I am considering making this into a Occupational Hero’s series! Please let me know what you think!

Dean opened the door, jumping down out of the truck. ‘Another day, another B.S call.’ He thought, sighing as he undone the suspenders of his bunker pants, effortlessly slipping out of the brown pants and boots, placing them on the concrete floor next to the door of the truck. The thing about working at a fire station, was that you always had to be prepared.

“Lieutenant!” a voice called behind him.

Dean turned around, “Yeah Chief?”

“Have you seen your brother around?”

“Not since we drove in together this morning. But me and my guys just got in off a call.”

“If you see him, send him to my office please.”

Dean gave him a two-finger salute as he lifted the hood of the large engine, starting maintenance on the truck with the other members of his truck.

Dean was in the process of helping the rookie of the department Jack, inspect a roll of hose when a shadow cast over him.

“I can feel you staring.” Dean said as he stood, carrying the roll of hose to the truck, reloading it. “What do you want?”

“I don’t want anything.”

“Sammy, we’ve lived together how many years now? I know when you want something.” Dean said as he turned around.

Sam rolled his eyes, “Fine, I need a favor.”

“No.” Dean said as he left the truck bay, going through the double doors heading into the break room.

“You didn’t even let me ask!”

Dean stopped in the hall, turning around. “Every time you need a favor, you ask me. And I always accept like a good brother and then you never end up repaying me!”

“I promise to repay you this time!”

Dean thinks for a minute “How?”

“Metallica.”

“I’m listening.”

“I will get you two tickets to the nearest show, as close to the front as possible.”

“And?”

“And… I’ll throw in… Paying for all the subscriptions for three months.”

Dean thought for another minute. “Deal. Now what’s the favor?”

“I need you to cover my next shift, the chief’s needing someone to go out of town and check something out.”

“Seriously! Dude that’s going to be another twenty-four on top of my forty-eight.” Sam gave Dean a pleading look “Fine. But I expect the tickets to be on the table by the end of the week.” Sam leaned forward, wrapping his older brother in a hug. “No Chick Flick Moments Sammy!”

__________________________

You had just finished making sure all the doors were locked and the lights turned off throughout the apartment as you padded your way back to your bedroom, the events of the day finally catching up to you as you pulled the covers back and settled into bed.

You wish that you could fall asleep as soon as your head hit the pillow but unfortunately that was never the case for you, as it took several minutes of tossing and turning to find a comfortable position.

You’re not a light sleeper, but not a heavy one either. You felt as though you had only been asleep for a few minutes when you got awoken from the strangest dream.

The smell of smoke was burning your nose, the fumes filling your lungs causing you to cough as the sound of your smoke alarm filled the apartment.

You jumped out of bed, opening your bedroom door thankful to find no flames in your apartment, as the sound of more smoke alarms blaring grew louder. You quickly ran to the front door, finding the smoke to be growing heavier, as you grabbed the handle of the front door, the metal burned your hand. You tried your best to shake off the pain before returning to your room, closing your bedroom door before opening the window.

“Help!” you yelled into the night, to the street below that was filled with multiple firetrucks. You began to yell again, inhaling taking a large breath of smoke instead of fresh air, sending you into another coughing fit.

“Move back inside but stay close to the window! We’ve got a crew on their way in to get you!” someone with a bullhorn yelled from below.

You stepped back, staying close to the window, leaving it open to allow the smoke a way out of your bedroom as you waited for help to arrive.

____________________________

Dean had just fallen asleep when the sound of tones going off echoed throughout the building, the lights automatically turning on.

‘Structure fire. Apartment Complex. Smoke and Flames visible.’ Deans adrenalin rushed as the dispatcher relayed the details of the call, causing him to throw on his bunker pants in almost record time before running out to the truck, grabbing his bunker coat off the mirror, throwing it on as he jumped up into the passenger seat of the truck. Dean’s face showing no emotion as the engineer drove lights and sirens blazing towards the location of the call.

They were one of the first few on scene, immediately requesting assignment from the acting commanding officer.

“We’ve got multiple entrapment's, which means we need to move quickly but efficiently. I want half of your men on the west side and the other half on the east side clearing each apartment, the rest of us will take care of exterior rescues, interior attacks and ventilation.”

Dean nodded his head, fastening his air pack onto his back, fitting his mask and hood on his face and securing his helmet onto his head before sliding on his gloves and heading into the fiery inferno.

_______________________

“Cas! Let’s move up another floor!” Dean yelled through his air mask to his partner as they continued to clear the floors of the apartment complex one by one.

Dean and Castiel worked their way up the stairwell, around the lines of hose laying on the staircase, slipping by his comrades as they reached the last floor.

“I’m gonna take the right side, you take the left!”

“Got it!”

Dean moved to the first door on his side, turning around to kick in the wooden object, causing the door to bounce back against the wall. “Fire department! Call out if you can hear me!” Dean moved quickly, keeping his eyes open through the thick smoke, looking for anyone on the floor, checking in obvious hiding places for someone who might be trying to ride it out before moving on to the next apartment.

Dean cleared apartment after apartment, sending the three people he found waiting to be rescued, down the stairwell with another firefighter.

“Cas, last apartment!” Dean yelled over the roar of the fire that had gotten closer “We gotta get a move on, we’re running out of air!”

“What about a window rescue?”

“Not enough time to get it over here!”

“Let’s move.” Cas said as he kicked in the door.

The two men entered your apartment, flames licking at the walls in the corner of your living room.

“Fire department! Call Out!” They both repeated as Cas had cleared the main living room and the kitchen, Dean searching a spare room and bathroom before coming to the last door of the hallway. Dean turned the knob of the door, smoke quickly emptying from the hallway into the room, escaping out of the open window.

Dean walked closer towards the window, the boot on his foot catching on something. Dean squinted his eyes through the mask, trying to determine what it was through all the smoke. The first thing that caught his attention was the sound of someone coughing followed by a low and raspy voice “Help, please.”

Dean’s heart dropped as his adrenaline increased. Dean looked around at the situation before kneeling next to you.

“Miss, can you hear me?”

You coughed, grabbing onto his fire jacket, unable to catch your breath.

“Cas!” he yelled. “I’ve got a victim!” he said, unsure if the other man could hear him or not.

Dean had no choice but to carry out of the room, he hoisted you into his arms, running into Cas on his way out of your bedroom.

“We’re clear! Let’s get her out of here!” Cas yelled as he led Dean out of your apartment, into the burning hallway.

Dean rushed down the four flights of stairs, skipping them two at a time and jumping over any hazards that laid in the way. He quickly got you outside, weaving in and out of the firetrucks that lined the road, running over to the ambulance that sat seventy feet down the street. He placed your limp body onto the ground, quickly removing his helmet and mask to relay information to the paramedics.

“Severe smoke inhalation and multiple burns on her body. She was conscious but weak when I found her.” He told them as they checked your airway and lungs for the level of severity of smoke inhalation, placing the leads on your body to hook you up to the EKG machine.

The paramedic in charge made the call, choosing to intubate because of the possible burns on the back of your esophagus. They pushed the proper medications through the IV line in your arm before placing you onto a backboard.

“Is she going to be ok?” Dean asked as he help lift you onto the stretcher.

“She’s not out of the woods yet, we’ll know more when we get her to the hospital.” They told him as they loaded the stretcher in, shutting the door.

“Winchester! Your crew is needed for overhaul.” One of the commanding officers yelled towards him.

Dean’s heart felt constricted, he’s seen a lot of trauma and gore over the years, many of the cases the root of his nightmares at night. He’s not one to get attached to the people he meets, but for some reason he felt attracted to you.

“Yes, sir!” he yelled, grabbing a pike pole off their truck that was next to him, watching the ambulance drive away, lights and sirens blaring.

__________________________

When you woke up, your head was pounding, your throat dry. The sounds of carts being pushed down the hall and the rhythmic beat coming from the machine on your right becoming increasingly annoying. You found a button on the side of the bed, allowing you to sit up, the red button next to it, connecting you to the nurse’s station which you pressed repeatedly only to receive nothing.

You laid your head back, the sound of footsteps approaching. “Ms. [Y/L/N]?”

“The one and only.”

“How are you feeling?” An older woman with blond hair, wearing navy scrubs asked.

“Like I got hit by a Mac Truck.”

“That’s to be expected, you’ve not had it easy the past few days. Let me just check your vitals…” she said, placing her hand on your wrist. You now noticing the bandages on other arm, feeling the pressure from the one on your leg under the blanket covering you. “Your vitals look good, I will check with Dr. Caggulia about getting you another dose of morphine for the pain once he sees you, he should be in in a few minutes.” She smiled.

“Well I’m not feeling any pain at the moment.”

“That’s great! You were lucky.”

“Are my parents here?”

“I believe so, there is an older couple and a young gentleman waiting in the waiting room down the hall.”

“That would be them, they must be worried sick.”

“Oh, they were concerned but once you started coming around, they were fine! But the gentleman was pretty worried, I don’t think he’s left once since coming in.”

“I think you might be mistaken, I don’t have a have a brother.”

“Oh no honey, he said he was your boyfriend, a looker too.” She laughed as a knock came from the door, the doctor walking in.

The doctor gave you a clean bill of health, reminding you to change your bandages and wanting you to stay overnight since you had been out for two days, giving your body time to begin the healing process.

You had just begun to doze off when the sound of another knock on the door woke you up.

“Did I wake you? I’m sorry, I can come back.”

“No, you’re fine. I’ve slept for two days, I think I am all caught up.”

The man laughed, “I know how that feels.”

“Please, come in.” you told him, gesturing towards the chair beside your bed. “Now I know I’m not suffering from memory loss, so I know you’re not my boyfriend.”

“No.” the man said as he stuck his hand out to be shaken, which you accepted, before slowly sitting down in the cushioned chair. “My name is Lieutenant Dean Winchester with the Lebanon City Fire Department, I am the one that rescued you from your apartment.”

“Well, thanks for that.” You laughed. “I would have rather not met my demise early.”

“Just doing my job.” He smiled.

“So, how bad is my apartment?”

“I’m sorry but there looks to be a lot of fire damage, what didn’t burn up has smoke and water damage.”

“Seriously? I just signed the lease on it. At least I had a fire safe and renter’s insurance.”

“What about you? How are you feeling?”

“Well, the doctor said that I should heal fine, that I get to go home tomorrow but it looks like I have no home to go to, so it looks like I will be staying at a motel for the near future.”

“The Red Cross is putting everyone up in different places across the county, so you should start there.”

“Thanks.” You smiled, reaching for the cup of water on the table. “Sorry, apparently smoke inhalation makes you extremely thirsty. So, how did you find me, aren’t you breaking HIPAA rules being here ?”

Dean rubbed the back of his neck “Well…”

“I don’t mind the company and I’m not going to report you.”

Dean smiled, shrugging. “Perks of having a mother that works in the hospital.”

You looked at the white board on the wall, reading the name of the nurse in charge of your chart for the day, seeing ‘Winchester’.

“The woman that was in here earlier, that’s your mom?”

Dean nodded. “I see the similarities now!” you said. “Thanks for saving me.”

“Just doing my job.”

“If you hadn’t of showed up…”

“But I did.” He smiled.

“But you did.”

[captainkirkmccoy]

Valentine’s Prompt: McKirk’s first valentine’s day as married husbands and their reaction to an now young adult Joanna McCoy dating Kevin Riley who was one of the children with Kirk on Tarsus IV. (I’d might’ve send something similar for the McKirk FanFiction, but I’d suppose it doesn’t matter 💕🙈😃)

“Jim, you sure you don’t want to reschedule? I wouldn’t be disappointed. You and my dad should do, like, married couple things on Valentine’s Day.”

“Jo Jo! Our Valentine’s extravaganza is tradition and we do not eschew tradition in this family.”

Jim could almost hear his daughter’s eye-roll.

“Kay. Um, is it okay if I bring someone?”

“A friend shaped someone or a date shaped someone?”

“To be decided.” Jo muttered.

“Ooh, is this your meet the parents moment? Do I need to prepare scary dad lectures. Or maybe I should leave that to Bones. He can be kinda intimidating.”

“No, oh no. Jim, you can’t tell dad that this is potentially date-like.”

“Why not?”

“Are you serious? Because I’m worried he’d get all weird or have like a coronary or something. He still thinks I’m a kid.”

“Hate to tell you, princess, you are a kid.”

“I’m not a princess. I’m just a girl who wants to bring her sorta boyfriend to meet her dads.”

Jim went quiet for a second as the warmth of that, as it always did, filled him. He was someone’s dad. Damn proud of that fact.

“Okay. I won’t tell Bones. But comm me his name. I need to run a few background checks.”

“Jim!” She groaned and hung up and Jim tried to wipe the stupid grin off his face as he headed to the kitchen where his husband was making baked ziti.

***

Jo didn’t comm him the name nor give any indication about who this sorta boyfriend was but Jim did his best to pepper suggestions about Jo meeting someone and being happy making new friends, yada yada yada so that this new person showing up on their doorstep wasn’t going to send Bones over the edge.

When the doorbell rang, Bones set down the dishtowel he was using to dry some dishes and went to the door, Jim following anxiously behind and wondering if Bones would think he was nuts if he body checked him and answered first.

“Hi, daddy!” Joanna stepped over the threshold and hugged her dad. Jim peered around them to see a light blonde haired freckled kid who looked to be in his late twenties to Jo’s early twenties.

When the boy saw him, he paled, which considering how pale he was, made him look like a ghost.

“JT.” He breathed, and then fell sideways, as if nothing could hold him up anymore.

“Kev? What’s wrong?” Jo shifted so that she could hold on to him, eyes frantically searching his face.

Jesus Christ. This was little Kevin Riley. Practically a baby on Tarsus, Jim had spent most of his time on the colony with the squirt’s arms around his neck. Kevin’s parents had died on Tarsus and had been next door neighbor’s to his aunt and uncle’s. He was babysitting a bunch of kids–the only thing he felt like doing so far from home–when Kodos had sent out his proclamation.

“Kevin Riley?”

And then like Jo had with Bones, Kevin launched himself at Jim with the same spider-monkey limbs that Jim remembered from when he was a kid.

“Oh my god, JT. I thought–I didn’t know if you were still…”

The last time Jim had seen Kevin was when Kevin had to be ripped away from him as Starfleet medical and emergency personnel worked on him. He’d passed out after fighting one dude who was trying to sedate and intubate him at the same time, scrambling for Kevin with the last strength he had left–it wasn’t much.

Jim hadn’t been able to find much out about the kids he’d been with on Tarsus. The nurses and caseworkers assigned to him had thought that he’d been through enough and only gave him the necessary updates on the six kids he’s been with–he saved, they said.

They made their way inside, Kevin wiping his eyes and apologizing for blubbering over Jim. Bones brought them glasses of water and they settled into the living room, Jim following Bones into the kitchen to give Jo and Kevin a moment.

Jim pressed his forehead against Bones; chest, as the other man held him.

“What do you need?” Bones said softly.

“I don’t know. I just didn’t expect him.” Jim felt Bones kiss the top of his head and then he pulled away, looking back toward the living room where his daughter was ready to introduce Kevin Riley to them.

“Should we be worried?” Jim kneaded his palms into his eyes. “I know how fucked up I am because of Tarsus. And how easily I could have fucked up this” He gestured between the both of them. “I mean, you’ve put up from so much for me and I’m so grateful even though I barely feel like I deserve you and Jo most days.” 

“Hey,” Bones reached out and lifted Jim’s chin so that their eyes could meet. “Besides the fact that you’re an idiot for ever thinking that–I want you to know that you deserve everything. Tarsus was and will never be your fault. What happened there and how you reacted was all a part of your survival and you should never be ashamed of that. I love you. I will always love you no matter what, you hear?”

Jim nodded, feeling a wave of warmth spread from the tips of his fingers to his ears. “Thank you.” He said, around a lump in his throat. 

“I’m sorry.” He said, finally. “I’m sure he’s a good kid. I just want to make sure Jo finds someone who will treat her right.”

“Of course.” Bones said with a soft smile. It was the same smirk he got whenever Jim talked about Jo as his daughter, like he was still in awe at the thought of it, just as Jim was. 

“Let’s go give him a chance.” Jim said. He grabbed a platter of hors d’oeuvres that Bones had prepared. Jim had plans for Riley. He knew how much it helped to have people in his corner and if Kevin was okay with it, he would have Jim along with Jo and Bones. 

“Let’s get this Valentine’s Day extravaganza on the road!” Jim said, smiling widely as he entered the living room to see Jo and Kevin stuffed together on the couch, arms entwined, foreheads touching. 

Jo gave him a grateful smile but didn’t jump away when Bones entered with another platter. 

“So, Kevin, what’re your intentions for my daughter?” Bones asked and Jo groaned and Jim laughed and Kevin’s pale freckled cheeks grew pink. 

Yeah, this kid had no idea what he was in for but Jim was ready to help him out along the way.