Day 39: Doctor's Office 3 (Dr. Kisugi) [Second Shift]

[damned_doctors]

The files for today's patients were waiting on Makiko's desk when she arrived, left in an untidy-looking heap that drew an irritated frown from the doctor. It was a pity she hadn't yet had the time to deal with the nurses here as she had back in the hospital at home - none of them would have left her office in anything but a pristine state, not if

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[forgot_it_all]

"Don't be afraid, Jordan. Dr. Kisugi may be new, but she's a wonderful doctor." Even if the nurse was doing all she could to cheer Ritsuka up, he wasn't moved in the slightest. Muraki had suddenly been transferred, leaving Ritsuka with an uneasy feeling that was only confirmed when he was told he had therapy today with someone new. He didn't like changing doctors. It had taken him a long time to get used to Muraki after he had lost his own therapist back in Japan, and then even he was gone.

Trailing after the nurse, he obediently entered the office as directed. The nurse retreated after that and Ritsuka was left on his own with this new doctor. Dr. Kisugi? She looked Japanese, and honestly, the Spartan design of her office definitely felt Japanese. Only, in that creepy perfectionist way. Great.

Bowing politely to his new doctor, Ritsuka stayed by the door, not sure what to do or how to act around her yet.

[damned_doctors]

And here was the first one now. Makiko's expression never changed from her default slight smile as she glanced up from her files to regard the boy, giving no indication of what she was thinking. Not terribly interesting, overall: a little too sweet to be at all palatable, but then that would certainly help her self-control here, considering that it would be unwise for her to give in when she still had work to do to establish herself.

Still, though, at least he might prove to be amusing for the time she was forced to spend with him. She could hope.

Makiko nodded to the boy, gesturing for him to take a seat in front of her desk. "Good morning," she began, then paused a moment to glance down at the file on her desk before continuing, "...Jordan. I'm Dr. Kisugi. How are you feeling today?"

Not that she particularly cared, of course. But it might prompt him to speak, at least, and if he did then she wouldn't have to.

[forgot_it_all]

She was smiling, but something about it seemed like it was the same sort of smile Ritsuka gave people when they asked if there was anything wrong. It wasn't sincere, but it wasn't insincere either. It was a smile without meaning, and that was something unpleasant in Ritsuka's mind. Still, when she offered him a seat, he nodded and moved to take it.

He climbed up into the chair and quickly corrected her on his name. "Ritsuka. My name is Ritsuka." Even if he knew it was useless, at least Muraki had humored him a little. "...I know it's not the name you're supposed to call me by, but I prefer that."

Looking down, he rubbed one of the bruises on his elbow and then fell silent for awhile. He'd been wanting to talk to someone, right? So having a therapy session was perfect, wasn't it? It should have been and yet he couldn't figure out what to talk about. He didn't know this lady and he didn't trust her yet. "...I'm fine, Dr. Kisugi. How are you?"

[damned_doctors]

Makiko studied Jordan thoughtfully as he moved toward the chair, comparing her observations with what she'd read in the file. He was at least willing to cooperate to an extent, seeming more uncertain of her than outright rebellious or argumentative, which would certainly be a plus. And at least he didn't seem like the type to rearrange her desk in an attempt to get a rise out of her

[cigarettes_plz]

Badou's head was swimming with new information, most of it Not Very Reassuring, but breakfast had gone pretty well for the most part. He sort of wished he'd actually eaten something though. He needed to make more valuable contributions to the Badou Nails Beer Gut Fund.

He should spend the next shift re-organizing his notes like a responsible little PI, then he could go find someone to complain at for the rest of the--

"Hey, where are going Nurse Cankles? Did you miss your medication or something? Sunroom's back that way." Shit, she was finally going to kill him and toss his body in a shed. It just had to be the morning that he'd missed his usual tirade. He knew this day had started off too decently.

"As I've told you already, you have a therapy with Dr. Kisugi." The nurse replied curtly. There wasn't time for much more discussion. She shoved allowed him in and shut the door firmly, leaving Badou to stand there with his hands in his pockets.

"...Hey."

[damned_doctors]

When he entered Makiko didn't bother to look up, her attention instead fixed on the notes she was adding to the file on her desk. How they expected her to keep up when they were overloading her with patients, she didn't know, but she did have to wonder if the place particularly cared about the patients getting better, considering some of their practices. Not that she minded - the longer they stayed, the easier it was for her.

"Please, have a seat, Mr. Riedel," she said, gesturing almost absently toward the empty chair with her free hand as she continued to write. She finished the last sentence with a neat tap of her pen and only then glanced toward the man, whereupon her gaze focused with slightly more intensity than was her standard.

Interesting. Far more interesting than the others who had entered her office so far. Considering that he was a man, though, not likely to stand up to real pressure, but he might actually not be a waste of her time

[cigarettes_plz]

Well, at least she seemed disinterested. With any luck she'd find him boring enough to let him get out of here and continue being useless elsewhere. He'd never done much in the way of dealing with psychiatrists, unless his caseworker from way back when counted.

Badou crossed the room and slouched into the offered seat. Ugh, that name. He didn't bother to correct her. She was doing a fine impression of a creepy robot anyway, so she probably had the usual reply at the ready.

"Ok. So what do we do? Hold hands and talk about our feelings?"

[damned_doctors]

Makiko smiled just slightly, though the expression was a mere movement of her mouth without any sign of it in her eyes. "If you'd like that, I suppose I could manage something. But you certainly don't seem like the type." Even just looking at his physical appearance would give that indication, really, without the other information she had.

She glanced down and leafed through his file for a moment, lips pursed in thought. "These sessions are entirely for your benefit, Mr. Riedel, so it's up to you. If you'd like, you could begin by telling me a little more about yourself - something more than what I already have on paper."

After a moment of that she glanced up again, studying him with that same almost-smile. "After all, there's never enough information in these to really get an idea of who a person is. How best I could help you to get better."