Don't Over-Think it
(AU where Ben and Leslie are doctors and the parks department works in a hospital. ...Putting parks into the plot of a tv show called Offspring, basically.)
Don't Over-Think it
Gimmeaspinbaby
Ben Wyatt comes to work at her hospital- well, it’s not her hospital, but she works there and she just means that- Oh honestly, Leslie.
Let’s try that again.
Ben Wyatt comes to Saint Francis in March. By mid-March, Leslie hates him.
And by April? April is when she gets drunk at Mark’s leaving party and kisses him.
...Shit.
*~*~*~**~
“You kissed him?” Ann asks, looking giddy and not at all scandalized like Leslie expected her to be.
“I may have,” Leslie says, screwing her face up as she pulls out a clean pair of scrubs from her locker. “Drunkenly pashed Dr. Wyatt, yes.”
“Dr. Wyatt,” Ann scoffs. “More like your boyfriend Ben,” she teases.
“Don’t,” Leslie warns her. “I just want,” She says, rubbing furiously at her head, “To forget about it all.”
“Ok,” Says a voice that’s definitely not Ann.
Oh for gods sakes.
*~*~*~**~
It was Ben. Of course it was Ben.
Why would anything helpful or good ever happen in her life?
Spoilers: it wouldn’t.
*~*~**~*~*
The thing about Ben is that, well... He’s kind of a jerk. But... a not-terrible looking one?
Oh god, Leslie, you’re in way over your head.
“You are never drinking again,” she groans.
“Referring to yourself in second person,” April drawls as Leslie walks past the nurses’ station. “Healthy.”
“Thank-you, April,” Leslie says- with what hopefully isn’t the last shred of her dignity- before grabbing a stack of patient files and heading to room... 205.
...Ben’s there, of course.
Typical.
*~*~**~*~*
Anna’s not fully dilated yet, so Leslie and Ben leave her and her husband with Ann for the moment and take a walk down the hall.
But then they stop.
“Ben, I’m really sorry about-“
“Look, Leslie, I didn’t mean-“
There’s a silence as they look at each other.
“You?” Leslie asks. “You- you didn’t do anything last night, Ben,” She states, confused.
Ben shuffles on his feet, looking side to side before pulling Leslie by the arm into the locker-room.
“You were drunk last night, Leslie,” he tells her- like this is news. “And I... took advantage of that.” His eyes flutter closed. “And I’m really sorry.”
Ben took advantage of her?
Who what now?
“...As I last recall,” Leslie tells him, “I went to grab another drink, you told me ‘Leslie, you might want to slow down on the alcohol,’ and I said ‘Go to hell, Ben,’ before practically attacking you.”
“Well- I mean- yes, but-“
“So you are the last person who has to apologize here, Ben, because it was all me last night, drunk and acting stupid, and-“
And that’s when she finds herself kissing Ben Wyatt for the second time in two days.
Huh.
*~*~*~*~*~
Leslie wonders if Ben knows that she’s neurotic and insane and has a crazy family.
He’s only been here a month, she thinks, that’s not nearly enough time to witness all of things that are wrong with her.
“Stop thinking so hard,” he says, backing his head away from hers and tucking a bit of hair behind her ear as he does so.
Oh,
Well,
Ok.
“I’m not- I’m not-“
“You’re over-thinking this,” he tells her.
Well yeah now she is.
You’re over-thinking this. Does that imply that he thinks this isn’t something to think about? A fling? A one-night... thing? Just a make-out session in the locker room?
...Do those- do those last things even exist? Make out sessions in locker rooms?
“Leslie,” he breathes, coming close again and putting his hands on her shoulders. “Leslie... I really like you.”
Well yeah, ok, maybe she could do with less of that over-thinking he mentioned before.
But then, just as it’s about to happen- what’s about to happen? The beginning of a relationship with mean (?) Ben? Donna bursts open the door on the two of them.
“I fully support the two of you having a moment or whatever,” she says, ignoring Leslie’s noise of protest, “But that woman in 205 needs an epidural and a doctor, and she needs them now.”
“Of course,” Ben says, before walking off, cool as anything.
Leslie, meanwhile, tries to calm down her heart-rate and act normal. Cool. Collected. You know, the usual.
“You’ve got this, Leslie,” she murmurs to herself as she walks out after him.
Donna just shakes her head.
*~*~*~*~*
She didn’t even like Ben before today. (Ok, before last night if she’s being accurate.)
...Not consciously, at least, anyway.
She shakes her head, pulling on some gloves. Not important, Leslie. New life to deliver, Leslie.
“How about we get your baby out, huh?” She says with a smile, trying her best to ignore Ben’s presence in the corner of the room.
...Later.
*~*~*~*~**~
She ducks out onto the balcony for some fresh air.
He follows her.
“Hey,” he says, sticking his hands in his pockets. “Good job back in there.”
“Oh,” She says, brushing him off, “That was nothing. Anna was an easy patient.”
He probably thinks you’re bragging now, Leslie.
“I wasn’t-“
“I know,” Ben smiles.
Her head rears back in surprise. He knows? Knows what exactly?
“Hey,” he says, and suddenly he’s right there in front of her, and like she said before, he’s not exactly terrible looking...
“Do you... want to go get a coffee sometime or-“
“Yes.”
“...I didn’t-“
“I know,” she smirks, repeating his words from earlier.
And just like that, he’s laughing, mean, nice looking Ben laughing on the balcony with her.
Don’t over-think it Leslie.