Needs-a-hug!Ryan for Maria (lost_talent)
Losing a patient was a notoriously difficult time for any doctor, and Dr. King was no different. It had been an almost hopeless case from the start, a car accident, parents had died at the scene and the little girl hadn't had a chance. Of course that hadn't kept him from trying his hardest to do whatever he could to save her. Everyone had said it wasn't his fault, that it had been near-miraculous that he'd kept her alive for that long. But still, peeling off his gloves and scrubs and slowly leaving the hospital, Dr. King - or Ryan, as he honestly preferred to be called - couldn't help feeling utterly hopeless.
The park bench was a nice spot to sit and brood for a moment, slowly processing the thoughts swimming in his head. It was quiet, peaceful-
"Doctah KIII-IIING!"
....well, it HAD been.
This joyful greeting came about two seconds before the cannonball-esque tacklehug of a certain pixie-ish little girl. Letting out an "oof!" of surprise and feeling a smile cross his face, Ryan laughed softly. "Hello, Maria."
"Whatcha doooin'?" the little girl chirped, sitting back and beaming up at him, brown eyes bright and clearly enthralled. No matter what he said or did, she still seemed fascinated by it. It was definitely good for the ego.
But today was a bit different, and the clear resemblance of the patient of before and the bouncy child sitting next to him wasn't doing very good things. Sighing softly and glancing away, Ryan shrugged. "Just sitting."
He'd underestimated the ability of kids to sense moods. Scrunching up her little face - he'd once scrunched his nose, Maria scrunched her whole face - and crossing her arms, the girl declared, "You look sad. Like Mommy does sometimes. Your eyes are all gloomy. How come?"
Blinking several times, then chuckling in spite of himself, Ryan shrugged a shoulder. "Long day at work."
"Do you need some Oreos?" Clearly Maria was a firm believer in the ability of these cookies to cure all illnesses, sadnesses and woes.
Laughing a little, Ryan shook his head. "I'm not very hungry, thanks."
"Do you need a hug?"
This froze him for a moment, the easy transition from sweets to affection, that belief that a simple hug could fix almost anything. Had he ever believed that? Had he ever been like her?
Looking down at his feet and taking a slow breath, Ryan finally managed to reply, in a slightly strangled voice. "Yes. I think I do."
And just like that, Maria grinned and threw her little arms around him, giving him the biggest bear hug she could muster. And, even though it was probably simply the power of suggestion, he did start to feel just a tiny bit better.
The park bench was a nice spot to sit and brood for a moment, slowly processing the thoughts swimming in his head. It was quiet, peaceful-
"Doctah KIII-IIING!"
....well, it HAD been.
This joyful greeting came about two seconds before the cannonball-esque tacklehug of a certain pixie-ish little girl. Letting out an "oof!" of surprise and feeling a smile cross his face, Ryan laughed softly. "Hello, Maria."
"Whatcha doooin'?" the little girl chirped, sitting back and beaming up at him, brown eyes bright and clearly enthralled. No matter what he said or did, she still seemed fascinated by it. It was definitely good for the ego.
But today was a bit different, and the clear resemblance of the patient of before and the bouncy child sitting next to him wasn't doing very good things. Sighing softly and glancing away, Ryan shrugged. "Just sitting."
He'd underestimated the ability of kids to sense moods. Scrunching up her little face - he'd once scrunched his nose, Maria scrunched her whole face - and crossing her arms, the girl declared, "You look sad. Like Mommy does sometimes. Your eyes are all gloomy. How come?"
Blinking several times, then chuckling in spite of himself, Ryan shrugged a shoulder. "Long day at work."
"Do you need some Oreos?" Clearly Maria was a firm believer in the ability of these cookies to cure all illnesses, sadnesses and woes.
Laughing a little, Ryan shook his head. "I'm not very hungry, thanks."
"Do you need a hug?"
This froze him for a moment, the easy transition from sweets to affection, that belief that a simple hug could fix almost anything. Had he ever believed that? Had he ever been like her?
Looking down at his feet and taking a slow breath, Ryan finally managed to reply, in a slightly strangled voice. "Yes. I think I do."
And just like that, Maria grinned and threw her little arms around him, giving him the biggest bear hug she could muster. And, even though it was probably simply the power of suggestion, he did start to feel just a tiny bit better.