Fic: Let Me (Get What I Want) Part Three
Title: Let Me (Get What I Want)
Author: gradgirl (aka Ali)
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~12,000
Summary: “What’s going on with you and Luke Snyder?”
Author’s Notes: Written for sripley for LuRe Santa Project. Hope you enjoyed it. :-) And finally, broken into 4 posts due to posting size thank you for reading!
Thank Yous: Thanks to my amazing beta, reilaroo. I honestly can’t post anything without you. And thank you to jassanja for creating and organizing the LuRe Santa Project. It was so much fun and wouldn’t have done it without you. And finally thank you for anyone who reads and comments. I appreciate it beyond words.
Previous Parts: { One} { Two}
Part Three
Reid was terrible company at dinner, but Wesley pretended not to notice. He talked about anything but the surgery, and Wesley didn’t ask about what he had walked in on between Reid and Luke Snyder.
After leaving the doctor’s lounge, Luke went back to Noah’s room. He needed to stay with his ex-boyfriend. There had been brief glimpses of something beyond him and Noah, the moments when he selfishly thought of wanting something more from Dr. Oliver than to fix Noah. He was worried about Noah and yet when Dr. Oliver had touched him and called him Luke, the last thing the blonde thought about was his ex. Then Wesley had walked in, and as much as the blonde wanted to yell at the man to go away, he was still grateful.
Luke had lost his focus, and he wanted to make up for it. So he barely left Noah’s room. He knew when Reid made his rounds, and he made himself scarce, not wanting to run into the doctor. Reid seemed to return the favor.
The doctor reviewed his case notes, constantly re-checking all of Noah’s tests. Most of all, he tried to focus on Wesley, the emails and texts continued. For some reason the idea of this guy, the random emails and meaningless dinners were exactly what Reid needed. He couldn’t close his eyes without seeing Luke’s sad eyes. The moments when he wasn’t working or in contact with Wesley, Reid could hear the pain in Luke’s voice as he had asked Reid if the doctor hated him.
*
Forty-eight hours later, Noah woke up. Luke had been talking, nonsense about the new films that were opening that week, promising Noah that as soon as he got out of the hospital, they would go.
“You hate foreign films,” Noah’s voice floated through the room. It was thick and scratchy.
Luke sat perfectly still as though it was a hallucination and if he moved, reality would come crashing down. He didn’t know what he would do then.
“Luke…” Noah moved, his head turning in the direction of Luke’s voice. His eyes were closed, the natural inclination to move toward Luke’s voice even if he couldn’t see him.
The blonde jumped from his chair and leaned over Noah. “H-how are you? I should go get Dr. Oliver.”
“Wait,” Noah said, his grip tightening. “I want…” He took a breath, his mouth feeling dry. And finally, the brunette’s eyes slide open. He blinked rapidly and wanted to close them against the harsh florescent light. “Light,” he murmured.
Luke’s mouth fell open. “Noah, can-can you see?”
He turned and slowly his eyes opened and focused on Luke. “Those are the eyes I’ve been waiting to see,” he murmured.
The blonde smiled, a chuckle bubbling out of his throat. “You can see?”
“Yes,” Noah answered. “Everything. After all this time… Thank you.”
Luke hastily shook his head. “It wasn’t me, it was…”
Before he could finish that thought, the door opened. Luke turned, his gaze meeting Dr. Oliver’s. It was the first time they had seen each other since the night of Noah’s surgery. A smile split open Luke’s face, and he couldn’t be sure if it was gratitude for Noah’s vision or he had missed seeing the doctor. Reid hesitated for a moment, his own gaze locked only on Luke’s.
“Dr. Oliver!” Noah called out, and the redhead jumped.
“Yes, Noah,” he said and then paused for a moment. “Noah.” He quickly moved toward the bed, brushing past Luke, his shoulder briefly grazing the blonde’s chest.
“Hi, Dr. Oliver,” the brunette greeted him. “You’re actually younger than I expected.”
“You can see,” the redhead deduced incredulously. “I need to examine you,” he said and turned back to Luke, but the blonde had already slipped out the door.
*
Several minutes later, Reid walked out into the hall. He was surprised to see Luke wasn’t there, but he wondered if the young man went to call his parents. They were at the hospital almost as much as Luke was. For the first time in a few days, Reid felt like he could breathe again. The surgery was a success. Noah’s vision was almost as good as new. He could see clearly, nothing was distorted, and most of all, there did not appear to be any complications. Reid would be able to release his patient in just a few days…to return to Luke.
That last thought made the doctor’s good mood fade, but he refused to dwell on it. He had done his job. Except for meetings, Reid wouldn’t need to see Mr. Snyder any longer. He let out a breath and decided to give Wesley a call, see if he was free for dinner.
Walking into his office, though, the idea disappeared. “Mr. Snyder.”
Luke was perched so he was leaning against Reid’s desk. He offered that smile again, the one full of hope and joy. He’d only seen it once before, but Reid knew he could love that smile.
“Hi,” he started with instead of asking why he couldn’t be called Luke again.
“I-I thought you’d want to be with Noah,” Reid commented.
Luke slowly stood up. “I will, I just… There were some things I need to say to you.” He quickly closed the distance between them, but he didn’t have to go far. The office was small, but more than that, Reid found himself moving closer to Luke as well.
“You-” The doctor shook his head. There was something about Luke Snyder that made him feel so many things. Right now, he felt nervous and unsure. He was certain that Luke would never leave Noah’s side. “I thought you would be celebrating with Mr. Mayer.”
The blonde’s head tilted slightly to the right, and he worried his bottom lip. The doctor’s gaze was drawn to Luke’s mouth, and not for the first time, he wondered what those lips tasted like.
“Dr. Oliver,” Luke finally said. “I…” He shook his head and suddenly smiled. “Why is it that I’m having so many problems telling you…”
Reid couldn’t say anything himself. A part of him wanted Luke Snyder to be completely out of his life. He felt too much around the young man. Outside of his work and chess, Reid didn’t have strong feelings about anything. A part of him hated the young man for that. But then he’d see the nervous, impish smile and the light in Luke’s eyes when he looked at Reid. He’d seen the look before, patient’s family members who were grateful for saving a loved one’s life or doing the impossible. He knew whatever Luke was about to say was going to be all about Noah, just like everything in Luke’s life.
All of sudden, Reid was propelled forward again, straight into Luke. The blonde’s arms were vise-like around Reid’s body, and Luke rested his chin on Reid’s shoulder.
“Thank you,” the young man whispered, his breath warm against Reid’s ear, and the doctor shivered slightly. “You’re as amazing as you always tell me you are.”
Despite himself, the doctor smiled and his hands came up slowly. He tried to pat Luke on the back, but the young man’s grip was so tight that once the doctor was able to get his arms up he found he could only rest them against Luke’s back. The young man shuddered and Reid’s heart started to pound. He attributed it to the close proximity and his claustrophobia.
“And when I think,” Luke continued to whisper these words into Reid’s ear. Maybe he wasn’t ready to look at the doctor, but Luke realized that he felt even more vulnerable sharing his thoughts this way and yet he couldn’t pull away either. “I’m so sorry for… I never should have… Reid…”
The doctor pulled away suddenly, and the younger man stumbled a little feeling so lost.
“Mr. Snyder, I don’t want to hear it,” he insisted.
Luke wasn’t sure what he had done now. For every step he thought he was taking toward getting to know Dr. Oliver and breaking down the distance between them, something would happen and he’d felt further away from Reid than ever before. He wouldn’t allow himself to wonder why it was so important.
“Dr. Oliver...” The blonde took a deep breath and straightened his back. He decided to try a different tactic. “How are things with… Wesley?” he asked. He still couldn’t stop himself from adding a hiss to the name of the man who Reid had been seeing.
The doctor’s eyes flashed for a moment. “Do you really want to know?”
“No,” Luke admitted. It was as though Dr. Oliver had slipped him a truth serum. The younger man couldn’t not be honest with Reid, even when it was awkward or hurtful like when he had asked Dr. Oliver if he hated Luke.
Reid wasn’t sure what to do with that information. He hated feeling so unnerved around the young man, and Luke had actually reminded Reid of Wesley. He might not feel for Wesley what he felt for Luke, but in a way Reid was grateful. He was glad to be in an adult relationship because every time he was around Luke Snyder, he felt like a babbling teenager. Reid didn’t want to be that guy.
“You should go, Mr. Snyder.”
“Dr. Oliver.”
He shook his head. “Noah’s vision is restored. What more do you want? Your boyfriend’s waiting.” He walked around Luke and went over to his desk. He needed to catch up on some work.
“He’s not my boyfriend!” The blonde’s words were so insistent that Reid found himself looking at Luke.
“That’s none of my business,” Reid finally answered.
“Isn’t it?” Luke was dying to ask.
“We’re not friends, Mr. Snyder. You said what you came to say, and I have work to do. Good-bye.”
The blonde opened his mouth, dying to ask if Reid meant for good, but he knew that was ridiculous. They still had the Snyder Pavilion, and Luke was on the board. They would continue to be a part of each other’s lives. He smiled gently to himself.
“Mr. Snyder-”
“I’m leaving,” he replied. “I just…”
“I did my job, Mr. Snyder.”
“There’s just one thing.”
Reid had picked up a file and slammed it down on his desk. “What?” he demanded.
Luke found himself smiling at the redhead’s response. He was getting to the doctor, which was good, because he had one more button to push. “You can hide behind Mr. Snyder all you want, but I’ve heard you call me Luke. And maybe we’re not friends, but I know I mean something to you.” His smile deepened and he breezed out of the doctor’s office. He leaned against the door as soon as he closed it. Luke felt his heart pounding in his chest. “Because you mean something to me,” he whispered.
*
Onto Part Four...