[01x07: 1:00P.M.]

@kingdonmicrofic | 500 words | Rated G | Read on ao3 | Previous installments here

July 1, 2031 (13 weeks)

Though most people would tell you July 1st is the worst day of the year to go to a hospital, it’s one of Mel’s favorites, excited for the challenges each new academic year brings. New cases, new faces, same-yet-different Mel.

While Mel loves the medicine, she loves the teaching just as much. She remembers her younger self, desperately seeking mentorship, longing for community. She’d had no idea how much the people she met on her first day here would impact her life. It’s an honor and privilege to be part of that. Doing it alongside her husband is an even greater gift.

Standing at the hub, Mel briefly surveys the parade of new people, noticing one in particular—hair up, with large glasses, and a wide, bright smile. The girl approaches Robby, hand out.

“Dr. Robinavitch? Hi! Nell Crane, nice to meet you!”

“Welcome to The Pitt, Dr. Crane.”

“Everyone calls me Nellie! I’m really excited to be here.”

Mel listens as Robby begins his first-day monologue. After the other med students and residents introduce themselves, Robby turns, “Your senior residents are Dr. Logan and Dr. Alvarez, report to them first. They report to either me or our other attendings, Drs. Langdon and King.”

Later, when Nellie asks to present a case, Frank directs her to Dr. Logan. Dr. Logan—Wes—has dark hair and a biting wit (Frank’s taken a shine to him over the years—Mel can’t imagine why).

The patient presents with symptoms of cholecystitis but ultrasound showed no stones or sludge in the gallbladder. As Mel watches them head to North 2, Frank follows the path of her eyes, meeting her gaze with a knowing smile.

All day, Nellie and Wes gravitate towards each other, quickly establishing an easy partnership.

In the afternoon, they lose one—auto versus ped. The patient’s caretaker, his grandson, accidentally forgot to lock the back door, walking downstairs to find it wide open, his grandfather missing.

After, Mel heads to the breakroom, seeing Nellie and Wes sitting on the floor through the window. Turns out, Nellie is her grandparents’ caretaker, necessitating her transfer from Temple. Mel opts to snack at her workstation instead.

After Frank and Mel finish their charting, they spy the duo chatting by BH2. As Mel moves to get up, Frank stops her, tilting his head towards them.

“Um, I hope this isn’t too forward, but uh, I’d love to get to know you better—you know, as colleagues? So, if you’re free—”

“Yeah?” Nellie asks, softly.

Wes squares his shoulders. “Can I buy you dinner, Nellie?”

Nellie blushes, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Yeah. I’d like that, Dr. Logan.”

“Please, call me Wes.”

“Okay, Wes. Where to?”

“Whaddya think, Dr. King? Think they’ll make it?” Frank asks, casually throwing his arm over her shoulder.

tags: mel elementary school nurse au

Frank’s heart hammered as he turned into the elementary school’s nurses office, visions of Tanner bloodied and sobbing crowding his mind. 

@kingdonmicrofic day eighteen: parade - 347 words - established relationship, kidfic, fluff, references to the office

This is the plot of an episode of The Office. Well, not exactly. Mel is not at a pageant but a parade that Penny is cheerleading in, but the effect is the same. Frank is not here, instead at work. It’s been years since they’ve separated workplaces, Mel working pediatric emergency, Frank the second daytime attending at Pitt. He’s not supposed to work weekends, but there’d been a twenty-car pile-up. Mel would have gone in, too, but she has all four kids.

That’s the problem. Artie and Frankie had been bored, and although Mel doesn’t normally use a lot of screen time, she’s stressed. Bad luck; Frank called into work, Abby out of town, Mel’s mommy group friend, Rhea, fighting the stomach flu. So she’d given her phone to Frankie and Artie, let them watch (educational, at least) YouTube Kids.

She’d promised to record Penny for Frank but her phone died, overheated and low on battery. It’s okay, she tells herself; there will be other performances, other parades. Penny looks darling in her outfit and gives Mel a big smile. Mel smiles back and ignores her heart sinking.

Unlike in The Office, Frank does not care.

“There’ll be other parades,” he says, shrugging, as he drops his backpack by the door. Mel had come to him as soon as he’d gotten home to deliver the news, afraid to let it fester. “We’re not Pam and Jim.”

“I thought the same thing!” Mel claps with delight. They had watched The Office together; Frank loves it, Mel had never seen it before getting with him.

She thinks of Pam saying everybody thinks their parents are soulmates, our kids will know that we are. She tiptoes her way to giving Frank a kiss.  

“Soulmates,” Frank mutters.

Prompt: Parade @kingdonmicrofic | 500 words | Rated G | 18/31 | Genderbend/Lesbian Kingdon

Mel has never been to a pride parade. Trinity’s invited her before, but Mel felt strange about it, felt like she would stick out like a sore thumb, like it wasn’t her place to attend. But after realizing the twisty feelings in her gut whenever she talked to a pretty girl was in fact attraction and not social anxiety, Trinity wouldn’t take no for an answer. 

So—newly bisexual at twenty-eight—Mel finds herself dehydrated and exhausted and utterly seen. Her heart is full, her ears are ringing, and honestly, she feels a little dizzy from the heat and the commotion, but, oh dear—

When Mel wakes up, a woman is kneeling over her.

“Here comes trouble,” the woman says. “You okay?” 

“What happened?” Mel groans. 

“You passed out, sweetheart,” she says, putting a hand on the back of Mel’s head and pressing a water bottle to her lips. “Drink.” 

Mel can’t help but obey. “Thank you,” she says after she finishes, sitting up. 

“No worries,” the woman says, standing up and holding out her hand, which Mel takes gratefully. 

The first thing she notices when she’s finally upright is that her savior is very tall. Very tall and very gorgeous. Her dark hair is cut short in an effortlessly fashionable way, and honestly, everything about her feels effortlessly fashionable—her jean shorts, her tattoos, her crossbody bag she’s rifling through—

“Here,” the woman says, handing her a granola bar.

Mel accepts it, and doesn’t even have time to say thank you before the woman winks and walks away, throwing a “Take care of yourself, sweetheart,” over her shoulder.

Mel looks at Trinity, stunned. “What just happened?” 

Trinity regales her with the tale on the way to a nearby bar. Apparently Mel passed out and this woman caught her as she fell—“like it was a movie or something, I swear to god it happened in slow motion.” 

“That was…very hot,” Mel says eventually, sipping on her club soda. 

“Babe, the fact that you didn’t pass out again after she held your head and made you drink was insane. Stronger than me.” 

“I didn’t even get her name,” Mel complains. God, she was just awestruck, she hadn’t said anything had she? She needs to get better at talking to women, at flirting—

“Hey trouble.” 

Mel turns to see her savior making her way through the bar.

“You feelin’ better?” the woman asks, sitting down next to Mel. 

“I am, thank you,” Mel says, ignoring Trinity’s giggles. 

“You gotta do a better job of taking care of yourself, sweetheart.” 

“I thought I was, but—” Mel loses track of what she’s saying as the woman winks at the bartender, grabs a cherry from behind the bar and pops it in her mouth, fiddling with the stem. “Apparently not.” 

“First pride?” 

Mel laughs. “That obvious?” 

“Maybe, but it’s cute.”  

“I’m Mel,” she says, blushing. 

The woman lets the cherry stem drop from her fingers and extends a hand.