Am I A Tree
While the other interns are at work, Evan bakes thirteen different types of muffins. Every counter is filled with them.
He looks around, wondering if he’s gone insane. “It’s enough muffins. We don’t need all of these. No more muffins.”
But the silence gets to him and he starts making a new batch.
〚*〛
Dorcas shuts the door, flipping the blinds closed. She shimmies in, Marlene staring at her. Kicking off her shoes, unlacing her pants, climbing on top of Marlene.
“Hi.” Marlene says, dazed, “Cas, what are you doing?”
She leans down, her braids falling over her shoulders, planting a kiss on Marlene’s neck, “Just because you can’t use your hands doesn't mean you can’t enjoy.”
The door opens and Marlene’s eyes flick over, “Ma, Dad!”
Her father is carrying a bouquet of flowers while her mother stares, back and forth between her daughter and her daughter's girlfriend. “Marlene Mckinnon.”
Dorcas practically falls off the bed from ripping herself away from Marlene, stealing one of her blankets to cover herself up.
Her mother stares at her daughter, the father walking out of the room already, “Is this a new service the hospital is providing?”
〚*〛
Dorcas finds Barty a half-hour later, “I told you to guard the door, idiot!”
“I had a code blue.” Barty gives her a dirty look, “What’s with you?”
“Her fucking parents walked in!” Dorcas shrieks, trying to remind herself not to start screaming where everyone can overhear. "I want my twenty bucks back."
Barty rolls his eyes, “I saved his life, if you were wondering.”
“Whatever,” he scoffs, “I already spent it.”
“On what?” Dorcas asks.
“Bet.” He sighs, “I lost.”
“You’re an imbecile, actually, Crouch. A total, complete fucking imbecile.”
Mary steps up to both of them, “Do you two have time to round or are you too busy getting naked on hospital property?”
“No,” Dorcas points, “I wasn’t naked. No, I wasn’t naked!”
〚*〛
They walk into the first room, Mary’s jaw dropping, “Ms. Seabury, what-what are you doing?” She’s got at least five different elaborately frosted cakes scattered around the room. “No, I’m sorry, you cannot be eating.” Mary takes the fork from her.
Barty thinks she needs to meet Evan, maybe she'll eat some of the hundreds of muffins their house is filled with.
Albus walks in the room, “What is all this?”
Ms. Seabury gushes, “This is chocolate raspberry souffle cake. It is the best thing I have ever tasted in my life. Well,” she backtracks, “except maybe for the banana cream torte there. It’s stunning, really. Did you know bakeries deliver? Please, grab a fork, all of you. Dig in.”
Mary shakes her head, stopping Barty from stepping forward and joining her, “Ms. Seabury, you’re scheduled for surgery this afternoon.”
“Can we push the surgery to tomorrow maybe?” She takes a bite of the chocolate one again, “Oh, you’ve gotta taste this.”
“Ma’am,” Mary tries to level with her, “you’ve got an aggressive form of lung cancer, the sooner we get you into surgery, the better your chances of survival.”
“So I heard,” she nods, “it’s all very aggressive. I mean, it’s very,” she starts laughing. Hysterically laughing. “It’s funny really.”
“How so?” The Chief asks, like he is missing something.
“I have never smoked a cigarette a day in my life.” She assures them, “I have never smoked pot, I have never drank. Before today, I hadn’t had a dessert in ten years. I am the picture of health, and I have lung cancer. I mean, come on. It’s absurd right?" She notices their unsure demeanor, "I’m sorry, I think I’m on a sugar high.”
They step out of the room, the Chief takes this case over. “Schedule her for tomorrow, Mulciber, and get her a psych consult.”
“Yes, sir.”
As he leaves, Dorcas, Regulus, and Barty have a silent fight about who should address Macdonald.
“You do it,” Dorcas says, under her breath.
“You do it.” Barty snaps back.
“So, Dr. Macdonald?” Regulus cuts in, walking beside her, “Can you talk to the Chief about Rosier?”
Mary stops in her tracks, “Excuse me?”
“See if he can come back.” Dorcas tells her.
“He is baking. A lot of baking. Nonstop baking. It seems like a waste for his talent, all those medical skills to go into muffins.” Barty tries to persuade her. “We just thought you might be willing to help since Evan was your-”
Macdonald waves her finger, “Stop talking.”
They continue walking again. Dorcas mumbles, “I told you it wouldn’t work.”
The next room they enter is for Dr. Potter’s patient. James eyes Regulus on his way in, a smile hiding behind them. “Good morning, I’m Dr. Potter,” he introduces himself.
“It doesn’t feel like a very good morning to me. I have to have brain surgery. Pretty scary. Plus, my sister is nervous, and when she gets nervous she sweats, and the windows in her don’t open, so it’s pretty rank.” Well, he's. . . he doesn't hold back.
“Benjamin.” She shushes him, face pink.
“Was I rude, Ruthie?”
“Let’s let the doctors talk,” the orange-haired sister tells him.
Dorcas is presenting, “Benjamin O’Leary, thirty-two, in for the removal of a brain tumor that is pressing on his frontal temporal lobe. Clearly it’s affecting his impulse control.”
Benjamin is blunt, as usual, “It makes me say everything I think, which apparently is annoying. At least this doctor is annoyed.” He gestures to Dorcas, “But, it’s hard to tell because this doctor always has an uptight, pinched look on her face.”
Barty snickers at that.
“Am I annoying you?” He asks.
“It’s fine.” Dorcas stares.
The sister doesn’t seem satisfied, “You can’t say it’s fine. He doesn’t perceive sarcasm or irony. If he’s annoying you, you’ll have to tell him.”
“Maybe I’m not annoying her.” Benjamin decides.
“No, you are.”
Mary is disappointed, “Dr. Meadowes.”
“What?” She says, turning, “He asked.”
“Okay,” James holds the chart, his eyes moving away from Regulus, “Benjamin, Dr. Meadowes is going to be your doctor, annoyed as though she may be, she’ll prep you for surgery today. Do you have any questions from me?”
“Yeah,” he decides, “what’s up with you and the black-haired dude?” Regulus feels put on the spot, eyes falling on him. “Yeah, you." Benjamin turns back to Potter, "The way you keep looking at him, might as well just mount him right here and now.”
Regulus tips his head down, unbelieving.
“I’m sorry,” Benjamin says, “was that rude?
Dr. Potter laughs awkwardly, “Um. . .”
Outside the room, Mary stares at them, “I’m proud of you all.” Although she doesn’t look or act like it, “You make me proud. You reflect on me well. Black, if you think you can keep your clothes on long enough to follow up the labs, I’d appreciate it. Crouch, cover the pit.”
Barty walks off, laughing. Speaking under his breath, "Macdonald thinks you're a dirty whore."
"At least I'm not a pining slut." Regulus snaps back at him, the two of them heading in separate ways.
〚*〛
Dorcas is turning the corner when she runs straight into, “Mrs. Mckinnon!”
The woman takes her glasses off, looking Dorcas up and down, wearing that stupid pantsuit of hers.
“Hi, I’m Dorcas. I-I may have said that earlier, but I was, um-”
“Too busy getting busy, hm?”
“Mrs. Mckinnon, I assure you that-”
Dr. Potter shows up, “Mrs. Mckinnon? Are you Marlene’s mother?”
“Yes.” Dorcas smiles, putting on her best fake face.
“And you are?”
James is so people-y, everybody likes him. This is perfect. “Hi,” he shakes her hand, “I’m Dr. Potter. I’m the surgeon who operated on Marlene. You can call me James.”
“Oh,” she realizes, “thank you. Brilliant surgeon, and a handsome man, too. Your parents must be very proud.”
Well, something like that.
Mrs. Mckinnon is already making requests, “Do you mind, Dr. Potter, if I borrow your young intern for a quick cup of coffee? I’ll bring her right back.”
He agrees, “Of course, Dr. Black can cover for you.”
Dorcas’ eyes pierce James, as though she is trying to hurt him with her brain. “Dr. Black is very busy. She has charts to do for Dr. Macdonald.”
James waves her off, “I’ll take care of Macdonald. You guys go, have fun! Nice meeting you.”
“Thank you,” she nods.
Dorcas stares at her, panicking, “I just have—can I meet you in the cafeteria in a couple of minutes?”
“Yes.” Mrs. Mckinnon smiles, “I look forward to it.”
〚*〛
James and Regulus are in the stairwell. He thinks it’s funny to make a joke and say, “This is a change from the elevator, at least. A little more public, I like it.”
Regulus is angry, “You can’t be making jokes like this. Macdonald will kill me.”
He frowns, “I’m sorry.”
“Whatever,” Regulus shakes it off, “are you coming back tonight?”
James’ hand finds a spot on Regulus’ hip, pulling him closer, “Mhm, or we could go to mine. It has a little more. . . privacy. No roommates, no distractions, no middle of the night baking. You know, when I headed downstairs to get you water, he was still up.”
"No wonder you took so long." Regulus puts the pieces together, “But I’ll be there.”
James steals a kiss before leaving, “Good. I’ll cook you something,” he says, hand disappearing from his waist.
Regulus tilts his head, “Like what?”
“You like pasta, I can make that.”
“So could a toddler.”
James kisses him once more, “I love it when you’re sweet to me.”
〚*〛
Dorcas steps into Marlene’s room, her father sitting in the corner, reading a newspaper. She smiles, awkwardly, approaching her girlfriend.
“Your mother wants to have coffee with me.” The way she says it would make anyone think that was the absolute worst thing in the world, “And she thinks I’m a stripper.”
Marlene sets her book down, her mouth turning up and into a smile.
Dorcas folds her arms over her chest, “You think this is funny? It is not funny!”
She shrugs, “It’s kinda funny.” Marlene’s gaze softens, “She’s just my Ma, Dorcas. You’ll love her when you get to know her. Everyone loves my mom.”
Dorcas shakes her head, “Save me from this, got it?”
〚*〛
Benjamin is flattering Regulus, “You know, you’re very pretty but you look kind of tired.”
Well, he didn’t get much sleep last night.
Not after James showed up.
“Good to know.” Regulus says, working without looking up.
“Did you have sex with that brain surgeon?” He blurts, carelessly.
His sister is appalled, “Benjamin.”
“It’s okay,” Regulus scribbles his numbers down, “and no. I have not.”
Another lie.
“I would,” Benjamin looks at his doctor, “he is hot. In a smart athletic kind of way, it is sexy. I mean, I would totally have sex with him if I could. You look like you could. What is the holdup?”
Regulus is getting sick of all his questions, “I’ll be back after the anesthesiologist comes to talk to you.”
He walks to the attending lounge, ignoring Pettigrew and Lupin who are in a cheerful conversation with his boyfriend. He doesn’t have to say anything. Regulus stands in the doorway and stares at James, expression hard, before he takes a hint and gracefully exits, following behind his intern.
They end up in an on-call room. Regulus shuts the door behind James.
“What’s wrong?” The tall one asks, eyes worried.
Regulus rolls his eyes, “Your stupid patient has the hots for you. And he can’t stop himself from telling me. Literally.”
James laughs, relieved.
Regulus scoffs, annoyed he doesn’t care more about this.
James takes his face in his hand and then pulls him until they’re connecting. “Nobody is going to take you from me, baby.” He says, letting Regulus’ hands slide into his hair. Mouth falling open.
James is inching them back until he falls flat on the bed, pulling Regulus on top of him. He pulls the light blue scrub top off of Regulus, tossing it on the floor.
“We shouldn’t be doing this.” Regulus groans, letting his full weight drop on James.
He’s sitting up, beginning to stop whatever is about to happen when James flips them effortlessly, settling on top of Regulus.
His hands roam his body, Regulus far too focused on his own issue.
“James,” he calls out.
James has only just now gotten his shirt off, “Be patient.”
Regulus moans in response, James’ hand finally finding the slip of his waistband.
Then the pager.
The fucking pager.
It goes off.
James checks it, “I am so sorry.” He is sitting up, apologetically staring down at his boyfriend, “I have to go. I can’t ignore a page.”
Regulus leans farther back into his pillowcase, angry at himself for getting far enough that he needs James to stay.
Angry at James for leaving him at a time like this.
James kisses him on the cheek, “I’ll make it up to you later.”
Regulus waves him off, “Goodbye, James.” An edge tinting his voice.
James leaves the room, Regulus yanking his shirt off the floor, stuffing it back over his body.
He waits a few minutes before leaving, needing time to calm himself down.
〚*〛
Sirius pushes Mulciber out of the way, getting to his patient, “What do we got, Jill?”
“Harley Hernandez, fourteen, was street luging when he lost control of the car. Witnesses say he was catapulted at least twenty feet into the air, landed on a pile of tree trimmings.” She folds her arms, nervous-looking. “Broken pelvis is apparent as are, I would guess, some pretty massive internal injuries.”
“You would guess?” He turns his head, “What do you mean?”
They pull him out of the ambulance and Sirius doesn't need her to explain. The boy has a tree branch shoved through his body, going in through his abdomen and out through the back of his shoulder.
Sirius has seen bad. He was a soldier, for crying out loud, but this? He’s fourteen. This should not be happening to him.
He’s blinking, somewhat conscious. “It’s all right, Harley,” Sirius says, pushing him inside, “you’re at the hospital. We’re going to take care of you now.”
“Hospital? What’s the matter with me?” He asks, slurring.
His father, dressed in a sweater and a jacket, slams the car door, “What’s the matter?” He asks, explosively, “You’re an idiot! Your friends are idiots, you’re an idiot, and you don’t use the sense that God gave you!” He tries to start waving his hand in the boy’s face when Sirius has to nudge him backwards, reminding himself to not actually put his hands on this man.
Mulciber takes care of it, shoving the man back hard, “You’re blocking our path, dude.”
He slams into the wall, harder than he intended.
Macdonald has to now leave Harley and Sirius to see the damage on Mr. Hernandez. He’s got a bloody nose, now hurling insults at the intern.
“He was blocking the paramedics.” Mulciber shrugs, “I did what I had to do.”
“No, he is terrified!” Macdonald shouts, “His child is a tree!”
It’s not supposed to be funny. He does his best not to laugh.
Macdonald is screaming at him in the ambulance bay now, “Mulciber, listen to me, you will not get physical with another human being on my watch ever again, you will not question my authority, and you will not in any way do anything to bring me down either!”
She storms off, going to her patient.
〚*〛
Dorcas is fiddling with the cup in her hands.
Mrs. Mckinnon is gushing about her daughter, “As you know, I’m sure, she graduated first in her class at Tulane.”
“I did know that,” Dorcas nods, enthusiastically. “Actually, I graduated first in my class at Stanford.”
“Ahh,” she says, no longer boastful and more calculated. Like when Marlene does it, she can be proud but for Dorcas? She isn’t proud, instead she looks at her like she was bragging. “So, I assume that you will go for pediatrics? Obstetrics, perhaps, or family medicine?”
Dorcas tilts her head, “Oh, I’m in the surgical program.”
“But after you’re married?”
Her mouth feels dry all of the sudden, “Married?” An awkward laugh, “Uh, I’m sorry, married?”
Mrs. Mckinnon is not subtle in the slightest, “Oh, Dorcas, come on, you must have considered the possibility. Sure, I wasn’t delighted when Marlene told us she didn’t have any interest in marrying a man. But who am I to judge, as long as she gets married at all. Has a family?” She licks her lips, “I don’t know a young woman who wouldn’t want to marry my daughter, given half the chance. She’s beautiful, she’s brilliant, she is the best thing I’ve done in my entire life. She is the most important thing in the world to me.”
Dorcas blinks, because. . . wow. Just wow. That was, that was really something. Maybe it’s because she doesn’t have the type of mother-daughter relationship Marlene so clearly is involved in, or maybe she is just so judgmental that she cannot possibly fathom that this might actually be her life, but Dorcas wants to laugh because this does not feel real.
Luckily, she doesn’t laugh in her girlfriend’s mother’s face. She stands up, pointing and relieved, “Mckinnon’s here. Marlene is—Marlene Mckinnon is here.”
Marlene smiles, her arm in a sling still, “What a surprise,” she feigns, “my two favorite ladies all in one place.”
Mrs. Mckinnon sighs, clearly unimpressed, “Marlene, what on earth are you doing out of bed?”
“Well, I. . .” Any day she could’ve come up with a fantastic excuse. Marlene isn’t stupid—everybody knows her mother thinks she is damn near Albert Einstein—but of course, right now her mind is blank. “I wanted to get some, uh. . . I-stretch my legs, Ma.”
“But you’re not supposed to stretch your legs.” She reminds her, “You’re supposed to be resting.”
“Right,” Marlene recalls, “but I wanted to have, uh, some air. . . some stretching, some air, and some coffee.”
Dorcas is trying to signal her to sit down, stay a while.
“Does anybody want any coffee?” Marlene asks, smiling.
Dorcas stares at the table, “We already have coffee. Please have a seat.”
“Kay,” she clears her throat, “I’m getting coffee then.”
Marlene steps to go to the cart when her mother leans forward, all-knowing, “You did this.”
“What?”
“You did this.” She repeats, “Dorcas. Listen to me, it’s not that I don’t like you, I think you’re a very smart, very attractive young woman. But you’re selfish.”
Dorcas scoffs, “I beg your pardon?”
“Oh, you pulled her out of a sick bed because you were uncomfortable. That’s selfish. You’re selfish and my daughter is giving and the combination. .. well, it’s not going to last. Not much longer.”
It feels like a threat.
Dorcas doesn’t feel threatened, not usually, she’s a shark. Nothing scares her. But she feels like she is being threatened. Maybe it’s because she has something to lose. That Marlene’s mother has the opportunity and the ability to take her away from Dorcas.
She struts back over, “Hey, hi, alright. Yay,” Marlene grins, “what are we talking about?”
〚*〛
Sirius has Mary scrub in with him.
“His kidney is gone.” She notes, “There is just no way to save it.”
“Just focus on keeping the renal artery under control.” Sirius instructs, “Will somebody page Frank Longbottom and tell him to get in here? He’s got about fifty bones to reset.”
“I’ve got another bleeder.” Mary murmurs, clipping it off.
Sirius addresses the entire operating room, “Okay, pace yourself, everybody. We have a long way to go. We have enough blood standing by?”
In the gallery, people fight for seats to watch. Barty comes in, awestruck. “Is that a tree?”
“Yeah, stupid brother didn’t even ask me to scrub in.” Regulus rolls his eyes, clearly in a bad mood.
Barty ignores him, “They’re operating around it?”
Dorcas is ranting about something completely different, “I mean, she’s worse than my mother and that is saying something. Both of them, dark and evil.” She kicks Barty who was standing in front of her, “You’re blocking my view, Crouch.”
Barty sits on the ground in front of them, inching towards the glass like a little kid at an aquarium.
“Next time she even looks at me sideways,” Dorcas decides, “I’m going to tell her what I think.”
Barty tilts his head back, “Regulus, you’re afraid of intimacy right? Can I ask you a question?”
“What the fuck.” Regulus hits him in the back of the head, “Don’t ever say that.”
“If I sleep in a bed with someone, but we don’t get together or anything, would you call that platonic or would you call that like, nearing romantic?” He says, tilting his head back.
Regulus fakes a smile, “I call that pathetic.”
“I want my patient back, by the way.” Dorcas changes the subject, “The one you stole after. . . Ma cornered me.”
“That’s fine,” Regulus says, “I’m sick of him. I’ve gotta go check on Evan anyways.”
〚*〛
Mulciber is paged out of surgery to get told off by the nurse who caught his patient shoplifting chocolate from the hospital gift shop.
She’s too excited to be a thief, “I’ve never done that before. It was exhilarating.”
The nurse turns her head, voice lower, “And now she is planning to leave.”
“You can’t leave.” He tells her.
She seems uninterested, “Look, kid, I’m not going to stay here and prepare for death. I’m going to enjoy the time I have left, alright?”
Macdonald is going to murder him.
But thankfully, she doesn’t know yet because she is currently updating Mr. Hernandez about his son, which isn't going all that well either.
“There is extensive damage. We had to remove one of his kidneys and a portion of his bowel.”
“But the tree is out?” He asks, hopeful. “You got it out, so it’s okay, right?”
Oh lord. Mary braces him, “Well, Mr. Hernandez, the branch is actually still there. We are operating around it which is partly why it’s taking so long.”
He’s all anxious and panicking, “His mother is not here yet, I mean—do you think that—oh, no. You think he’ll be okay by the time she gets here?”
Mary apologizes, “I’m sorry, I do have to get back in there. I promise you we are doing everything we can, okay?” She tells him, "I only came out to give you an update."
“An update that he is still alive?”
“Yes, that he is still alive.” She nods, hoping he can take as much comfort as possible from that one fact.
〚*〛
Evan steps into their favorite bar, owned by a woman named Sybill.
“Heya kid,” she greets Evan, looking at his dirty hair and eye bags. “How are you doing?”
Considering her bar is just a two minute walk from the hospital, all of the staff drinks there. She knows everything about everything when it comes to Hogwarts Hospital. Some of them even say she can predict the future.
Evan doesn’t answer her question, only notes, “I have some muffins for you. I made a lot, and I was. . . running out of room. I thought, maybe you would like some. I’m a good baker.”
He drops them off and leaves.
At home, Regulus eats lunch with him, not asking a million questions about where he has been. In fact, the only question he asks at all is if, “Next time you are making some muffins, can you make some orange ones? Their my favorite and I haven't had them in years.”
〚*〛
Dorcas is watching an interaction between Marlene and her mother. Barty snickers when he walks by, “She’s still here.”
“Never leaves.” Dorcas says, “I’m not even entirely sure she’s human, the way she hovers around her daughter all hours of the day.”
Barty looks her up and down, “Like what you’re doing.”
“Look, I am not selfish.” She points out, “I am by her side. I-I took off my clothes this morning, that is not selfish. I’m going in for surgery. Do selfish people save lives? The answer is no.” Dorcas leaves the nurse’s station, trying to prove her point.
〚*〛
Upon the third time her patient asks the question, “Do you have a boyfriend?” Dorcas wishes she hadn’t switched Regulus back in the first place.
She must’ve known when he gave it up that something was wrong.
“He’s going to keep asking until you answer.” The sister fills her in.
Dorcas knows that, she just wanted to ignore him. “No,” she fails, “I have a girlfriend. Now, can you look here?”
She holds her fingers out, “If I had a girlfriend I would not be as angry as you. Why are you so angry?”
She drops her hand, “My girlfriend’s mother called me selfish.” She rolls her eyes, getting more annoyed every time it's brought up.
“Are you selfish?” Benjamin asks, “You seem kind of self-obsessed to me.”
“Hey,” his sister says, trying to remind him to be kind, not that he can help it.
“I’m a surgeon,” Dorcas moves, “in order to be a surgeon, a certain amount of self-obsession is necessary. My girlfriend gets that. Her mother doesn’t, it’s her problem.”
Benjamin starts spilling his own life drama, “I used to have a boyfriend and then I got a tumor and he understood. Tried to. He loved me, his mother didn’t. My offending everyone offended her. He said he didn’t care what his mother thought, but he did. Cause now, it’s two years later, I’m having brain surgery, and only my sister Ruth is with me.”
Ruth frowns, Dorcas feeling momentarily bad for her.
She goes to scrub in, Potter already there. She doesn’t know how this works and isn’t afraid to ask, “When the tumor is gone, will it bring his old personality back?”
“If we get the tumor out and Benjamin lives, everything else is icing on the cake.” He says, “We just have to hope for the best.”
〚*〛
Frank has finally begun working himself, Sirius trying to get to know him as they spend time in the operating room together. That goes a little sideways when they realize how complicated the patient is.
“I’m locking down the external fibrillation.” He tells the room.
Sirius shouting over them, “No active bleeding.”
“Hold pressure on the liver, Mulciber.” Macdonald orders. “Don’t move.”
The Chief looks at the unknown man, “You with the saw, don’t make a move until we get our hands on every vital organ.”
Sirius feels momentarily concerned for his family, “The parents—have they said their goodbyes?”
“Mom isn’t here yet.” Mary announces.
Mulciber is snarky enough to add, “And the father was too busy blaming him to say goodbye.”
“Speak only when you are spoken to, Mulciber.” Mary says, her voice threatening to kick him out of the room completely.
“Alright everybody, take your positions.” Sirius says, “Cut carefully, we will get this thing in pieces.”
〚*〛
In a different O.R., Potter points out something Dorcas hasn’t noticed.
“It’s too close to the cavernous sinus. Suction a bit.”
Dorcas does, listening when James asks for more.
“I’ve got a bleeder.” He drops the instrument into a tray, “The brain is starting to swell.”
“V-Fib.” Dorcas calls out.
“Get the paddles.” He instructs. “Move!”
“Clear.”
“Come on,” James begs, “come on.”
Dorcas shakes her head, “No change.”
The nurse tells them, “Epi and Atropine are in.”
“Still in V-Fib.” Dorcas gives the update.
“Shock him again. Go, now.”
〚*〛
Sirius pulls the first piece of branch away, the renal artery collapsing.
“Hepatic artery is gone.” Macdonald shouts, adding salt to the wound.
“B.P. dropping. He’s bleeding.”
“Lap pads, now.”
Every doctor in the room is moving. Like a beautifully organized machine. Everyone is working like mad, hands quick and sharp, doing everything possible to save this boy.
〚*〛
In the bar, James is drinking. He texted Regulus he would be there, waiting for his shift to end.
It was a rough day. There’s so many people here.
Mary and Lily are sitting at a little circle table, the ginger one driving a conversation.
Sirius and Remus sit beside him, the two of them laughing at something James hadn’t heard.
Peter is flirting with the bartender while Evan is approached by Barty, who just strolled in the door.
Evan’s being all weird, offering people muffins.
Mulciber is talking to a girl who looks very familiar, it turns out to be the patient he kept losing earlier.
James sits in his little stool, head in his hand. He spins a little bit, back and forth.
The alcohol in his mouth makes his shoulders loosen.
He orders drinks, missing Regulus’ text that he’s staying back for another hour, curious to watch a quick procedure that Dr. Longbottom is performing.
Dorcas comes in, sliding into the opposite side of the booth from Evan and Barty. She grabs one from his basket, “What’s with muffin-palooza?”
Evan looks hopeful, “I baked them.”
“Congrats.” Dorcas stares, a bit confused.
“Are they good?” Evan asks her, “I think I might start a bakery because they won’t let me back into the surgical program. You’re always brutally honest, tell me if they’re good.”
Dorcas takes a bite, “They’re delicious, Evan.”
〚*〛
Mary is on her way out when she sees her patient's father at the bar, drinking and staring off in space.
She sits beside him, “Are you okay? Your son is going to be fine.”
They saved his life.
He shrugs, “He was off with his friends. I let him go off with that thing. I knew better. I knew better. His friend, he has this driveway up on a hill. I can’t stop-” his voice cracks in a way Mary never wants to hear again, “picturing him going down that hill. And I didn’t stop him. I should have stopped him.”
Mr. Hernandez takes a swig out of his drink, the ice clinking against the glass.
Mary tries to alleviate some of the pain, “Kids spin outta control sometimes. They. . . spin out of control. You can’t-”
“You can control them. It’s your job as a parent to control them. Ever since the divorce,” he dumps the words out, “I only see him every other weekend. I never would have bought that and I never would have let him go off on his own that way before.” He assured her, “I went soft. I went soft when I needed to be a father.”
Sometimes even Mary Macdonald doesn't even know what to say. This is one of them.
He finishes his drink and Mary steps away, she needs to go home. She needs to hold her own son.
Her baby.
〚*〛
Dorcas has one non-alcoholic drink before she heads back to the hospital to check on Marlene, hoping that maybe, just maybe, her mother has scattered off to whatever place she came from.
But she hasn’t. She is still standing by her daughter's bedside, cradling her injured hand.
Upon noticing her arrival, Mrs. Mckinnon says, “Dorcas, it’s late, Marlene needs her sleep.”
Dorcas watches Marlene tilt her head to the side, not bringing herself to look at her.
“I know,” Dorcas speaks, “I just wanted to see if either of you needed anything before I left for the night.”
They graciously decline.
“Goodnight Marlene,” she adds, “sleep well.”
On the way out of the hall, she passes by Mr. Mckinnon, who doesn’t stop, only smiles and says, “Hang in there.”
〚*〛
Regulus stops at home, figuring James might be there waiting. Inside, Evan is taking the citrus muffins out of the oven and putting in another batch of banana. He walks to the kitchen where Dorcas, Barty, and Mary are all standing.
“I’m busy,” he murmurs, not looking up to see who is behind him.
Who showed up.
Mary hands her baby off to Regulus, who looks annoyed he had to hold him, trying to then hand Tuck to Barty, who swerved out of the way so fast.
Evan snaps around, staring at his resident. She gestures for them to leave. Regulus dumps the child off to Dorcas, claiming he needs to go meet up with James.
When he calls him, Sirius is the one who answers.
“James, where are you?”
“It’s Regulus!” His brother shouts into the speaker.
“Tell him to come,” Lupin’s voice appears. “Fix James.”
“Where are you?” He repeats himself.
Sirius is cracking up, for no apparent reason, “We accidentally got James drunk.”
“Alright,” he sighs, “I’m coming to pick him up.”
“What about me?”
Regulus hangs up the phone, turning the engine over to pull out of his driveway.
〚*〛
Mary sets her purse down, staring at him, “I went soft. I. . . had a baby. I swore it wouldn’t change me. But I just—it does change you.” She steps across the room, only a counter-top between them. “I got tired. I got busy. I stopped teaching. I stopped teaching when you needed a teacher the most.”
Evan thinks this is stupid, he doesn’t want to talk about it at all.
His eyes are set on the batter in the bowl, “You couldn’t have stopped me.”
“Yes, I could’ve.” She’s sure. “You couldn’t have stopped you but I could have. And in the past, I would have. I went soft. And I’m partly to blame for what happened and. . . I want you to come back. You will talk to the Chief, we will work it out, because you are talented, and you’re capable. And we all make mistakes.” She walks around to yank the spoon out of his hand, “And it’s enough muffins, Evan.”
〚*〛
Regulus shows up and Sirius runs across the room to hug him, screaming, “Remus, this is my brother!”
Remus looks slightly impartial, but based on the rare occurrence of a smile on his face, he is clearly at least a little bit drunk.
James is unmoving at the bar.
For whatever reason, everybody else got happy-drunk and James just. . . did not. He’s moping. His head leaning against the smooth wood of the table, frowning.
Regulus peels away from them, sliding in next to James, his hand landing on his thigh.
“James? You okay?” He whispers, car keys skill in his opposite hand.
James lifts his head up, imprint etched on his cheek. “Oh, my patient died.”
“I heard. Dorcas told me.” He nods. “Let me take you home.”
He shakes his head, “No, thank you,” he points, “I have a boyfriend.”
Regulus rolls his eyes, “How many drinks did Sirius feed you?”
“You look like Sirius.” James tilts his head, “Sirius!” He waves him over, “Doesn’t he look like you?”
Sirius erupts in laughter, arm swinging around his baby brother.
Regulus pushes off of him, “James Fleamont Potter, get up so I can take you home.”
It’s almost two o’clock in the morning.
“You’re in trouble.” Sirius whistles, not so casually.
James shakes his head, “My boyfriend’s going to be mad if you touch me again.” He says, gesturing to the way Regulus has his hand on James’ back. “He gets jealous.”
“I am your boyfriend and I do not get jealous.” He says, knowing damn well that is a lie. When the two of them finally get outside, Regulus notes, “You’re going to be so hungover tomorrow.”
James just gazes at him, admiring the way his eyes look now, bad mood slipping away, “I love you.”
Regulus has never seen him like this before, “You didn’t know who I was five seconds ago.”
He buckles James’ seat-belt and heads inside to call a cab for Remus and Sirius.
By the time he gets back to the car, James is already passed out.