Ric and Serena Fun

“Serena, what are you thinking?”

“What do you mean? I’m thinking about what I’m working on here.” She commented, purposefully typing the next few letters loudly for him to hear.

He leaned against the wall, looking down at her. “I am talking about what happened today. You didn’t even bother to tell me that you hadn’t got it, I had to find out through everyone else.”

She shrugged, “I would have told you tonight. Being turned down for a promotion isn’t really the kind of news I wanted to share.”

“Do you want to talk about it now?”

She shook her head, not having looked up a single time since he began speaking.

“For pity’s sake, would you just yell, scream, say something, Serena!” All she had done since they got back home had been sitting at the dining table, staring at her laptop.

“But I don’t have anything to say.”

“As if I’m going to believe that. I know what you want so don’t shut me out.”

“So what? I’m supposed to get angry because for some reason I cannot make the grade for CEO position? Of course I want to know what is so defective about me that they keep choosing someone else. And do you expect me to be so pissed off over it that I want to leave? Because, trust me Ric, if you fucking push me on this I will walk.” Her voice had remained steady through her words but the anger and frustration was shining in her eyes.

He sighed, not wishing to be the reason for her making a rash decision as they definitely wouldn’t keep a friendship going after that, never mind anything more than that. “Serena, would you just look at me?” The look came across rather as a glare when her fingers stopped moving across the keys. “There is nothing wrong with you and although I don’t know why they keep hiring people worse I want you to stay.”

“You’re probably the only one who wants that then, and you have your own reasons - where else could you turn up and get your leg over?”

“That’s not fair. I have supported your deputy role for the majority of time you’ve had it. You know how much better I think the hospital would be with you ruling over it.” He knew she was hurting and doing her best passive aggressiveness towards him but sensed that he still did have to make her feel.

“So what do I do when people who matter don’t think I can do the job?” They both heard her voice catch in her throat and she put a hand to her forehead, wishing it would help remove what was coursing through her mind.

He pulled out the chair next to her, the table corner between them. “I don’t know Serena, I can’t understand their motives.”

“I don’t want to go back.” He was the only person she would tell this to.

“Yes you do,” He took her hand on the table into his own and ran his thumb over the back of it, “You can give hell to whoever it is and show exactly the mistake they made.”

“I’m tired of that though. What attempt was this… the third, fourth?”

“If quitting is honestly what you want then I won’t stand in your way but it shouldn’t be this easy or quick a decision.”

“What? Do you think working with you is such an irresistible pull to stay at Holby?” She said, finally smirking a little.

He enjoyed their banter usually but on this occasion he kept the atmosphere serious. “We’d lose a great surgeon if you went.”

“What would we do?” Their eyes got hold of each other’s and she tried to convey how sorry she was for what she had said earlier. They had grown into the relationship and regardless of what she had insinuated they did not just show up and expect a night together.

“I think we’re both old enough to figure it out. And if you’re away how long do you imagine me being kept around for?”

Ric watched his partner while she looked back with as many feelings mirroring back. “I sometimes wish we could have been like this for a lot longer.”

They weren’t usually a pair for having such conversations; the handful of days surrounding their relationship’s first steps was probably the last proper time. It didn’t mean that they had not thought about it in their own heads but they weren’t all hearts and flowers, it simply didn’t feel necessary.

Serena gave a thin smile in agreement, “We never quite managed to be on the same page back then, now we may be fine admitting we were attracted to each other years ago but until recently I thought I knew the guys who suited me best.”

“It was worse when we were on the same ward every day, knowing that you were with someone else at night. Not that I’m any better than them but it’s a nicer feeling personally.”

“You are.” She muttered, pressing her lips to his bare shoulder. There was no hesitation in that belief of hers. She knew Ric had his issues, she wasn’t short on them herself truth be told, but the way he treated her was different to her former lovers. There was no need to turn up any of her attributes for him because he didn’t care for a fake version of her. He had allowed her to act like that for a little while at the beginning but he wanted the same Serena that he’d always known, so told her. The trust and admiration they had for the other was unquestionable and so unique to this one of their several past conquests.

“To see you with Edward was awful. It killed me to see him take over and alter what you are.” Her head was resting on his arm as they lay in bed. It was later than either would normally stay there if they weren’t on a night shift but they had no real reason to get up.

“You think it was easy to know you’d rather go after a twenty-something year old?” Serena had yet to be subtle about her feelings towards that incident with Lila but it had affected her.

“I never had a chance with you,” He said, running a finger down her jaw.

“Well, you made out that you and Edward were new best friends.”

“You would have asked for an explanation if I had instantly expressed hostility.”

She smirked and shook her head, “No, I just put that kind of thing in my notes for the Ric Griffin Masterclass In Grumpiness textbook I’m compiling.”

“I was about to offer my skills in making breakfast but I don’t think you deserve it.” He commented, leaning in to capture her bottom lip in his own.

The kiss deepened but before it continued she paused, finding the comfortable spot of her makeshift pillow once more, “I need a coffee regardless so I’m going down, do you fancy one?”

“I won’t refuse. Do you want me to come and make something for us?”

“If you still like me enough,” She said with a playful pout.

“I think I could summon up adequate feelings for you.” He teased, a hand stroking her waist before they made an effort to move.

She covered her underwear with Ric’s hospital hoodie as he found his shirt lying on the chair next to the bed - the evening before had not been a rip-the-other’s-clothes-off coupling, that side of their relationship was still wonderful but definitely less spur of the moment. However, the thought of getting fully dressed was barely considered as they were safe in the knowledge they had nothing much planned for this day. They had very few qualms about wandering around the house like this as it was private enough and were too charmed to have the usual self-conscious concerns.

The Ric and Serena Purple Wonderland Episode