My Deathbed (8/8) The big, fat happy ending.
TIMELINE... Part 1: dpracket.livejournal.com/11215.html Sept., 2010
Part 2: dpracket.livejournal.com/11658.html Sept., 2010
Part 3: dpracket.livejournal.com/11434.html April, 2011
Part 4: dpracket.livejournal.com/12222.html April, 2011
Part 5: dpracket.livejournal.com/12393.html May, 2011
Part 6: dpracket.livejournal.com/13675.html Oct., 2011
Part 7: dpracket.livejournal.com/14025.html Sept., - Nov., 2012
And Part EIGHT: dpracket.livejournal.com/15001.html July, 2013
"You turn me on, you lift me up,
And like the sweetest cup I'd share with you
You lift me up, don't you ever stop, I'm here with you.
Now it's all or nothing
'Cause you say you'll follow through.
You follow me, and I, I, I follow you.
What you gonna do when things go wrong?
What you gonna do when it all cracks up?
What you gonna do when the love burns down?
What you gonna do when the flames go up?
Who's gonna come and turn the tide?
What's it gonna take to make a dream survive?
Who's got the touch to calm the storm inside?
Who's gonna save you?
Alive and Kicking
Stay until your love is, Alive and Kicking
Stay until your love is, until your love is, Alive."
--Simple Minds ("Alive and Kicking")
Reid sat in his car in the parking lot of Massachusetts General, staring at his hands on the steering wheel, looking for tremors. He brought each finger on each hand to it's respective thumb and then pulled his hands into tight fists. Solid.
Fifteen minutes later, Reid was walking through the neurology center. Many fellow physicians stopped him to shake his hand or clap him on the shoulder. A couple of nurses hugged him, which he stiffly allowed. Interns wished him luck.
An hour later, after meeting with the patient's family and consulting with another physician, Reid entered the empty neuro surgeons' locker room. As he approached his locker, he started laughing. "Fucking interns..." he muttered, amused. His locker had condom wrappers taped all over it, with a sign that read, "DON'T BLOW IT." Reid shook his head, still laughing, and opened his locker.
Reid gripped the top shelf of the locker, and leaned his forehead on the back of his hand. Deep breaths. Butterflies? Dr. Reid Oliver does not get butterflies. He hung his jacket up inside the locker and removed his watch, placing it on the shelf. He then slipped the gold band off his left hand and placed it next to his watch. I've got this. I've got this.
Reid looked over at the pictures that were taped to the inside of his locker door. He ran his finger down the picture of Luke and himself. Luke was smiling at the camera, and Reid was smiling at Luke. They both wore white button down shirts and jeans. Their bare feet in the water. The ocean laid out behind them. Cape Cod. Their wedding day. "Wish you were here," Reid whispered. Luke had wanted to come in to work with him earlier, but Reid had refused, saying that he needed to face the day on his own. He was kicking himself in the butt for that now because he wanted Luke there desperately. Relax. Just breathe.
Reid took a deep breath. His eyes wandered across pictures of Jacob and Katie, their dog Vito, Luke and Lucinda, his parents on the beach...his eyes finally landing on the picture of a young teen boy with brown skin, curly hair, and a crooked smile. Reid sighed. Never in his life had he had so much to lose. He closed his eyes.
"Cracking skulls, and taking names, Dr. Oliver?"
Luke.
Reid turned around and took three long strides to bridge the distance between them. He needed to feel Luke's arms around him. He pulled Luke into himself, and Luke's arms went immediately around his waist and shoulders. "Hey, there...hello...missed me, huh?" Luke was laughing. Reid didn't answer and dropped his forehead to Luke's shoulder.
"Hey," Luke said pulling back to get a look at Reid, "You okay?"
Reid nodded against the side of his neck.
"You freaking out?" Luke asked, worried.
Reid shook his head no. "I'm just glad you're here. Thank you for not listening to me. Again."
Just then, Mark walked into the locker room. "Oh, gross. It's too early in the day for old people PDA. C'mon! There are children present."
Luke and Reid pulled apart, smiling.
"Hey, Luke," Mark said, "This $5 bill isn't working in the vending machine. Here..." He handed the money back to Luke and turned to Reid. "Hi, Evil D. You ready for today?"
Reid looked at him, surprised. "Why are you out of school, Mister?"
"My counselor thought it would be good for me to be here today...ya know, seeing you overcome obstacles to achieve your goals or whatever...blah, blah, blah. But yo...I'm just happy to get out of class..."
Reid pulled Mark in close to him, gave him a gentle noogie, and kissed the side of his head. "You need a haircut, squirt..."
"Whatever, no I don't...and don't call me squirt...I'm almost as tall as you, and I already out weigh your skinny butt." Mark looked at Luke who was fishing in his wallet for another bill.
"All I have is a ten...will the machine take a ten? If not, go to the nurses station. Stace is out there; maybe she can break if for you. I expect change, and don't leave the waiting area, 'kay?"
"Sure thing, S."
"I'll be out in a few mintues."
"Okay...Evil D., don't screw up." Mark joked. He gave Reid a quick hug and was out the door.
Reid sighed. "I like that kid."
"Me too," Luke concurred. "Hey, so Reid, you okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm good..." Reid said, looking down and rubbing the back of his neck.
"Liar..."
Reid looked up. "Really, Luke, I'm fine. Harrison gave me an easy one. In and out. And Nelson and Rodriguez will be in there too, as back up. Ya know, just in case I flip out or something." Reid tried to laugh, but it came out more as a groan.
"It's okay to be scared, you know," Luke said, threading his fingers into Reid's left hand.
"I'm not scared..." but his eyes told Luke a different story.
"Of course you're not. You're completely prepared for this. You've been scrubbing in and assisting for months. You're brilliant. Isn't that what you always tell me? You know what to do, and you're going to go in there and get it done."
Reid nodded.
"Show me your hands," said Luke.
Reid extended his hands out toward Luke, palms down.
"Rock freaking steady," Luke smiled, knowing Reid's obsession in looking for tremors that were never there. He turned Reid's hands over and kissed each palm gently. He then brought his own hand up to Reid's face. "C'mon, Reid...this patient needs you to be that obnoxious, ridiculously confident, ego maniac of a neurosurgeon that I know you can be."
Reid smiled, but his eyes were watery. "I love you, Luke. Don't think for a second that I don't know that you're the reason I'm here."
"Reid, don't..."
"Let me say this. Please. Listen. You stood at my deathbed and watched me die. I've seen the records. I died. And if it wasn't for you, with your determination and stubborness, I would have stayed dead. But you fought for me, Luke. You. Nobody else. You saved me. And you kept fighting for me, through all of the shit. You stuck by me, even when I hated you and myself and pushed you away. I know it wasn't easy, and I know that *I* wasn't easy. And you still save me, over and over. Every day. I don't deserve you."
"Reid..."
"And Mark, " Reid smiled. "Mark. What a surprise he is, huh? I know he's not ours, on loan from the state, but Luke, I love him. I mean, I really fucking love him. And I'm good for him." Reid shook his head.
"Yes, you are..."
"I never thought I'd be good for anyone. But here we are, this family...this fucked up, perfect little family, and it's everything I didn't know I wanted. Damn."
Luke put his arms around Reid and kissed his jaw. "I love you too, and I'm very proud of you, and just so you know, you save me too. In so many ways. And let's leave it at that because if I say anymore, I'll be a mess."
Reid smiled, leaned into Luke more, enjoying the closeness.
The door to the locker room opened, and a nurse cleared her throat. "They're ready for you, Dr. Oliver."
"Okay, thanks. I'll head down."
"Congratulations," she smiled. "I'd wish you luck, but you don't need it."
"Thank you."
After she left, Reid said, "She's a competent one. Wish I could remember her name."
"It's Renee," Luke said.
"How are you so good with names?"
"It was on her name tag, genius."
Reid stepped back and closed his locker. "Walk down with me?"
"Absolutely," Luke said, taking Reid's hand. They walked out into the waiting room and found Mark , reading a magazine and munching on chips. "C'mon, Mark," Luke said. We're going to walk down with Reid as far as we can."
"Cool. Hey, D?" Mark said, standing up.
"Yes?" Reid said, putting his arm around Mark's shoulder, as they walked down the hall.
"This is a big deal, huh?"
"Yeah. Yeah, it is."
"I know it's probably weird for me to say, because you're not my dad or anything, but.............ah, nevermind..."
"What? Tell me."
"It's stupid."
"Mark..."
"I'm proud of you. There, I said it. Now let's just pretend that I didn't."
Reid swallowed down the lump in his throat. "Good to know..." Reid looked over and winked at Luke, shaking his head, his mouth opening and closing a couple of times, as if he wanted to say something.
"Yeah," Luke said, as he pushed through the swinging doors that led to the O.R. waiting area, "I know..."
fin
And they lived happily ever after. :)