Hey, I had this thing in my mind - how about Robby or Langdon falling for (possibly more, iykwim) a NICU doc? Caring for babies makes everyone 100000x more attractive. Also, love what you do, keep doing it!!! 🙏🏼✨🤌🏻
frank langdon x fem!nicu!reader
warnings - infant death (in the past and not at all graphic), kissing, moving very fast
a/n - lowkey lost the nicu plot on this i'm so sorry…..
Frank didn't even quite know what he was doing still in the NICU, he had come down minutes prior in order to bring in a baby that had been born in the back of the ambulance on the way to the hospital. He found himself unable to leave, as his eyes had been captured by you, a shining light among the uncertainty of the NICU. He watched, mouth agape and heart pounding in his chest, as you fluttered about the room, softly humming, cutting through the prevalent hissing of oxygen, handling the fragilest beings with the utmost care.
Frank managed to stay like that for a solid two minutes before you eventually turned to notice him.
"Oh! Um, I know you already dropped off that little one, do you need something else?" you ask politely, voice as sweet as honey. You'd seen Frank a few times when he needed to come by the NICU, and you had always found him quite attractive. His piercing blue eyes and sharply sloped nose made him quite easy to look at, but you knew he was married after catching the glint of silver tangled around his finger.
"No- sorry- I'm just tired, spaced out a bit, I should be getting back to the ED," Frank explained, anxiously running a hand through his hair. You watched, mentally noting the new lack of ring on his left hand.
"Alright, well, good luck down there," you softly reply, causing Frank's heart to softly flutter.
Frank found his thoughts drifting back to you throughout the rest of his work day. The color of your eyes, slope of your nose, the fullness of your lips claimed his every thought, serving as a beacon of beauty among the darkness the ED had bestowed upon his mind.
He kept thinking of you, even as he walked out of the hospital and got into his car, I mean, he had only been officially divorced for 3 weeks, how could he already have fallen for someone knew? Was it too fast? Did you even like him?
Suddenly, Frank was brought out of his thoughts as he spotted you out the window, waiting at the bus stop in the pouring rain, no raincoat. Frank's heart skipped a beat at the sight of you, despite your soaked status, you were still just as gorgeous as ever. Before Frank even knew it, he was pulling up beside you and rolling down his window.
"Hey, do you need a ride home?" Frank questions, watching as you startle at the sudden interruption.
"Oh, Frank, sorry, I was worried you were some sort of creep... but um, are you sure? Would your wife not mind?" you strategically question, posing it in the hopes of confirming his new relationship status.
"Um- my- I don't have a wife, and before you say anything about getting my seats wet, I have kids, the car has seen much worse," Frank explains, a charming smile playing on his lips.
"I guess I'll take the ride," you murmur, a small smile spreading across your face as you round the car to enter on the passenger side.
As you slide into the black leather seats of Frank's SUV, you note that he had already turned the seat warmer for you. Music played softly over the radio, something by Death Cab for Cutie that you couldn't quite place, but it brought a nice ambiance when paired with the noise of rain hitting the windshield.
"Here, put in your address," Frank instructed, passing you his unlocked phone, opened to maps. You quickly accepted it, your fingers brushing his own, causing both of your hearts to pick up the pace. You type in your address, slightly cringing when you see that it seemed to be about 20 minutes out of Frank's way.
"Thank you for the ride, Frank, I really appreciate it, especially since it’s so out of your way," you explain, dipping your head out of shyness as you felt Frank glance over at you.
"I really don't mind, I mean, between you and I, I've been kinda lonely lately, and I certainly don't mind having a pretty girl in my passenger seat," Frank comments, lips curling up into a smirk as he watches you realize what he just said. You immediately felt your neck and face heat up, a fluttering sensation overcoming your stomach as you fought the urge to shade yourself from his praise.
"I- I- I mean I wouldn't mind keeping you company?" you squeak out, hoping to sound sultry and confident, but coming out as more of a question. Frank softly chuckled, a low rumble in his chest that only served to fuel the butterflies that had taken up residence in your gut.
"We could start tonight, have some dinner if you're okay with that, I'm not trying to invite myself into your home or-" you cut Frank's sudden nervous rambling off by placing a delicate hand on his shoulder.
"Frank, I would love to have you over tonight," you reply with a syrupy sweet smile, the confidence in your voice betraying the anxiety wracking your body.
"Great, that sounds great," Frank answered, letting out a shaky sigh before fully focusing himself back onto the road.
Eventually, you and Frank arrived at your apartment. Upon entering, Frank was enveloped with the warm, soft scent of vanilla and something homey that he wasn't quite educated enough to name.
"Welcome home," you exclaim, turning around a few feet in the entryway in order to observe Frank's reaction. You watched as he took in his surroundings, from the ceramic flower-shaped dish that held your keys, to the various deep green coat of paint on the walls of your living room, complimenting the plants that seemed to cover every inch of the room.
"Wow.... it's gorgeous in here, the place is very you," Frank comments with a smile, coming up behind you so he can place a large, warm hand on each of your shoulders. "What's the dinner plan?" Frank questions, hot breath ghosting over the crown of your head.
"Well, I was planning on making some ramen with gyoza and pickled cucumber salad," you answer, shuffling back a bit, relishing the warmth of his body.
"You making that all from scratch?" Frank inquires, giving your shoulders a light squeeze.
"Mmm, I'm not thattttt fancy, Frank. The ramen is premade and so are the gyoza," you clarify, drawing out your t and finishing it with a satisfying click of your tongue.
"Well, why don't we get started on that?" Frank suggests, releasing you from his hold in order to allow you to lead him to your kitchen.
You lead Frank out of the living room and into the nearby kitchen. The walls are saturated with a deep raspberry tone, complimenting the decorative tiles making up your backsplash. As Frank takes it all in, you make your way to your freezer, sliding it open and retrieving the bag of frozen gyoza before tossing them in Frank's direction.
"Here, get started on these while I work on the salad and ramen. Pans are in the bottom left drawer by the stove," you note as you begin to take out the supplies needed for your portion of the cooking.
The both of you find yourselves in a groove, working seamlessly as you flow around the kitchen to the tune of whatever song was playing from your playlist. Frank appreciated the variation in the playlist, mixing between RnB, alternative, and classic rock.
In a small lull while everything cooked and marinated, Frank finally spoke up, "So, uh, what made you wanna work in the NICU?"
"Oh, well uh, when I was about 7, my mama had another baby, but she was born very very premature and spent weeks in the NICU. I had been really excited to have a sister, and we got closer and closer to her coming home, but just- something happened a week before she was meant to come home, and she passed," you explain, rested against the counter. Frank watches as your hands come together, nails sliding against your cuticle to tear and pry at the skin. He abruptly reaches out to take your hands into his own, his thumbs rubbing soothing circles on the backs of your hands.
"I could not imagine how difficult that was for you and your family, and I am so sorry it happened, but, thank you for sharing this with me. I think that your background makes you 100 times better than the average NICU doctor," Frank delicately explains, continuing his soothing movements as he speaks. “I wanted to work in the ED after my mothers life was saved in that very same hospital after a car wreck.” he explains, moving forward to press his forehead to your own. Your eyes softly fluttered shut, a fluttering feeling invading your stomach once more as Frank’s hot breath fans across your face. “Can I kiss you?” Frank softly questions, eyes fluttering in a manner where you can feel his lashes tickling your brow.
“Yes-“ you breathlessly reply, faces pressing closer, lips soon to meet, all to be suddenly startled apart by the timer going off. Both you and Frank immediately burst out into a fit of giggles as you both move to deal with the food.
“Let’s try that again later,” Frank comments as the both of you begin to plate up dinner.
After eating dinner and spending some time curled up on the couch together, it came time for Frank to leave.
The two of you stood in your entryway, your arms draped loosely around Frank’s neck.
“So, should we try this again?” You softly suggest, cocking your head to the side a bit.
“Yeah, I think so,” Frank murmurs as he moved in, nose smooshing beside yours, breath mingling before his mouth met yours. The plushness of Frank’s lips contrasted drastically with the firm planes of his body, he tasted of vinegar and sugar from the cookies you had snacked on while lazing on the couch. Your tongue prodded at Frank’s lips, requesting entry to his mouth, which he eagerly allows. Your tongue’s tangled as Frank pulled your body impossibly closer to his own, the heat from his body mingling fully with yours.
After what felt like hours locked in the heated kiss, the both of you simultaneously pulled away with a gasp, foreheads resting together as you caught your breath.
“That- wow- that was great Frank,” you breathlessly whisper, slowly disentangling yourself from his body.
“Yeah- um- I’m really glad we did this- and I would love to do it again, I- I left my number on a sticky note and put it on your fridge so- if you want- we can set up a proper date,” Frank explains, anxiety creeping back into his voice.
“I would love that, I’ll text you tonight Frank, okay?” You reassure softly.
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll see you at work tomorrow, honey,” Frank says with a smile.
Needless to say, Frank was visiting the NICU a lot more….
