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“Mm, these tarts are so good, you should open a bakery,” he mumbles as he pops another one of your strawberry tartlets into his mouth.

The damn tarts were the reason you were in the current position, you’d brought him some of your baked goods, while he was out working hard. He was so grateful that he’d ended up fucking you behind the barn.

“Can’t believe you’re abandoning me to go to medical school,” you pout.

His arm tightened around your waist as his forehead dropped to your shoulder, gentle lips pressing a kiss there. He always got so clingy after sex, “I’ll miss you,” he mumbles against your warm skin, “won’t forget you.”

“You’d better not.”

You didn’t know why you decided to drive to Pittsburgh from the farm when a plane would have been quicker, hell it would have been cheaper too, but you wanted to leave as soon as possible. Your mom wouldn’t be back for another 2 weeks and you couldn’t wait that long. You didn’t even call your dad because what could you say? You needed to decompress before you went insane.

The drive to Pittsburgh went by in a blur, every time you caught a glimpse of yourself in the mirror you were reminded why you were running away. You couldn’t believe this was your life, it looked like you were going to a damn Halloween party.

No one paid you any mind as you walk into the waiting room, they were too caught up in their own shit. Cassie stopped when she saw you, she didn’t say anything, she just gently took your hand and led you into the back. Dana was at the nurse’s station talking to a doctor, she freezes when she sees you before she rushes over, cupping your cheeks.

“Sweetie, what happened?” her jaw clenches when you shake your head, she wasn’t pissed at you, she was pissed at the situation, “Santos! Get over here.”

When Trinity realised it was you, her eyes bugged, “oh, Y/N,” she smoothed your messy hair away from your face.

You’d met her about a year prior when she saved you from a drunken dickhead while you were up visiting Jack. She quickly became your closest friend, though you hadn’t seen her since she starting working at The Pitt.

“C’mon, I’ll help clean you up,” she wrapped an arm around your shoulders.

“Please don’t call my dad,” you say to Dana.

She runs a hand through her hair as she looks at Trinity, “look after her.”

Trin passes you a bottle of water before she began to clean up your cuts and scrapes, “does that hurt?” she asks when you wince.

“Not so much anymore,” you hiss through your teeth at the sharp sting.

“You don’t have to be brave, not with me. Have you told anyone else?” her voice was soft as she dabbed at the cut on your forehead.

You scoff as you ice your eye, “no one would believe me, everybody thinks he’s such a stand up guy.”

“And you won’t ask for help,” she finished for you, making you laugh. She was right, you didn’t want to inconvenience anyone, “fuck, sorry,” she bit her lip as the scab on yours split.

“You’re coming to say with me, there’s enough space for you, you’re not going back to that farm, you brought your stuff right?” you nod at her question, you’d brought some of your things with you.

“Don’t you have a roommate? Won’t he mind?”

Trin rolls her eyes as she mops up the blood pooling at the corner of your mouth, “Huckleberry? He’s like a lost puppy, easy to please. Don’t worry if he just fucking stares at you, he has an issue speaking to attractive women. He won’t give you any trouble, I promise.”

You grin, already feeling so much better, “why do you call him Huckleberry? Seems kinda mean.”

“He grew up on a farm.”

“So did I!”

“Yeah, well, you’re not a country bumpkin,” she grins before going quiet as she looks at you, “do we need a kit?”

“No, he didn’t touch me like that.”

The door flies open and your dad stands in the doorway like an avenging angel, before you or Trin could speak, he gestured for her to step out into the hallway. She shoots you a glance as she walks out into the hallway. After a couple of minutes, your dad comes back in and gathers you up in his arms, being careful not to jostle your injuries.

“Hey, kiddo,” he strokes your hair and you cling to him, smelling the cherry car freshener that lingered on his clothes.

“Hi dad. I didn’t know where else to go,” he shushes you gently, kissing the top of your head.

He pulled back and cupped your face, his eyes searching yours, “Santos says you were attacked? Sweetheart if it was that little toe rag you brought up for spring break,” he trails off, his nostrils flaring.

“Peter?” you ask, “no, we broke up months ago. It was Tommy.”

“Your stepdad?” his voice went deathly quiet as the colour drains from his face, you could tell he was trying not to lose it, “has it happened before?”

You shook your head, “no, I mean he’s always been a bully but it’s never got physical. Mom’s away and he got really drunk,” your voice cracks and you blink tears out of your eyes, you didn’t want to cry over this, you did that enough on the drive up.

“I’m going to call your mom, then Robby and I are going down there to kick his ass and get the rest of your things,” he kisses your forehead, “Santos said you didn’t need a rape kit, that true?” when you nod he strokes the hair away from your forehead, “and you’re gonna be okay staying with her?”

“Yeah dad, I’ll be fine,” you knew that he secretly wanted you to stay with him but he’d never ask and he’d never push you.

“Right, kiddo. Let’s go,” he stands you up and takes you out of the bay. A young doctor asks him for a consultation and when you nod at him to go, he pulls you into a big hug, “you let me know if you need anything okay? I love you.”

“Love you too.”

You walk up to where Trinity is typing on a computer, she glances up at you before she locks it and stands up, “Langdon says I can leave early and take you home. He was in a good mood to, must have gotten laid recently or something.”

“Watch it,” Frank scowls as he walks up to the board, glancing at it before he looks over at you, “hi, Y/N.”

“Hey Frank.”

“What happened?”

Before you could even think to reply, Trin spoke up, “she fell ice skating,” the lie was so spontaneous, you almost burst out laughing.

Frank looked confused, “huh, well take care.”

The aroma of delicious takeout food practically filled the hallway as you and Trin walked closer to her apartment, the smell only growing stronger.

“Fuck,” she groans, “forgot Huckleberry took a half day for his date.”

She pushed the door open and let you in and you saw two people sitting on the couch with takeout, it all looked very romantic with candles on the coffee table. Trin threw her keys into the bowl.

“Huckleberry, this is Y/N, she’s gonna be staying with us.”

The man turned round and there he was, he was there like a deer in headlights as he stared at you. You couldn’t believe he was just, there, like nothing had changed. His date looked between the both of you with a puzzled expression.

“Earth to Huckleberry, did you hear me?”

He snaps out of it, “yeah,” his voice cracks, he clears his throat and tries again, “yeah, of course. That’s fine.”

“I’ll help you with your things,” Trin nodded at you.

About half an hour later, you were unpacking and Trin was in the shower, and Dennis lingered in the doorway, having said goodbye to his date. He knocked on the doorframe, grabbing your attention.

“Hi.”

“Hi,” he says softly, looking at you like he couldn’t believe you were real.

“Didn’t mean to put a damper on your date.”

He laughs as he steps further into your room, still looking like a startled baby animal, “don’t worry, it was kinda awkward so you did me a favour. Can I ask what happened?”

“Fell over ice skating,” the lie that Trin had created slips out of your mouth easily.

“You ice skate a lot?”

“Not at all,” you laugh, making him grin as he runs a hand through his hair. He looked good, like really good, “Look Dennis,” you started.

“Don’t, honestly. Whatever happened in the past doesn’t matter. I’m just real glad to see you.”

----------------------------

After your shift one night he had proposed the idea of him helping you with school and your bills. And in return? All he wanted was a few nights of your time, to take you on dates and to hospital fundraisers, he was lonely. You were okay with that, so what if the devastatingly handsome doctor didn’t want to kiss you?

You’d managed to shove your feelings down, that was until you saw a paparazzi photograph of him with a beautiful woman, a woman his age. Jack had found you that night, crying at the bus station. He wiped your tears and told you the woman was his sister. That was the night he had kissed you and everything changed. Three years on, you were in your last year of school. You weren’t quite Jack’s girlfriend, but you belonged to him.

On one random Tuesday in April, you found yourself sitting under the fluorescent lights of the hospital with what you hoped wasn’t a broken hand. Jack was currently away at a hospital conference and he was due back the following day. You knew that he would want to know you were at the hospital but what could he do from miles away?

A young doctor popped his head in before walking over, he looked twitchy and nervous, he must have been an intern.

“Hi, I’m Dr Whitaker, what seems to be the problem?”

“Um,” you wince as you move your hand, “I fell in Pilates and my hand really, really hurts. I think it might be broken.”

“Damn, Pilates is brutal,” he chuckles.

You flush as you feel a wave of embarrassment wash over you, “I tripped on the way into class.”

Dr Whitaker smothered his laugh with a cough as he typed some information into the system before wheeling over, “let’s take a look.”

He gently took your hand but before he could get much further, the door swings open. You gasp as you see Jack in the doorway, though he’s not looking at you. His dark eyes are trained on Whitaker.

“Whitaker,” his voice is deathly quiet, “Robby needs you in trauma one.”

“But, I,” Whitaker started.

“I said go, now. Go be useful somewhere else,” his eyes flash, his voice so deadly that Whitaker quickly scrambles out of the room.

Without a word, he walks over and kisses you. Hard. When he pulls away, he cups your cheek and kisses your forehead, “what are you doing here?”

“Came back early to surprise you, needed to drop something off here first,” he mumbles against your skin, “got here just in time to see Whitaker with his paws all over you.”

“He was just doing his job.”

“Sugarplum, his job,” he starts, gently rotating your wrist, shooting you an apologetic look when you wince, “was to assess the damage, not cradle your hand like it’s a fuckin’ art piece,” he presses a kiss to your wrist, “just a bad sprain, angel.”

“You were mean to him,” you pout. Jack pauses as he looks up at you, “mean?” he scoffs “you’re mine, sugarplum.”

“Does he know that?” you knew everyone that Jack worked with but you hadn’t recognised Whitaker. He must have been new.

“No,” Jack grumbles, averting his eyes.

“You should apologise to him.”

Jack barked out a laugh, his eyes crinkling. His laughter abruptly stopped when he looked back at your face.

“You serious?”

“Yep,” you raised an eyebrow at him as you sat back on the exam bed, just waiting. Sometimes Jack had to be reminded that people had feelings.

With a huff and a roll of his eyes, he stalked out of the room, the door banging behind him. You had a perfect view through the glass. You watch Jack walk up to Whitaker who was charting, he obviously wasn’t needed in trauma one. Jack spoke with him, gesturing with his hands as he glanced at you, after a couple of minutes, they shook hands and Jack walked back to you.

“Done?” you grin as he grumbles and wraps up your hand.

“I’m taking you home, smartass,” he helped you up, “got a present for you.”

“Last time you said that, I had to take the morning after pill.”

He laughs as he holds your good hand, “I promise it’s safe this time,” he kisses his cheek, “missed you Sugarplum.”

“Missed you too Jacky.”

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