Fic: Fate (4/?)
Title: Fate
Author: slayerkitty
Genre: Romance, Angst, AU
Rating: PG-13 for language (For now, rating may be upped later.)
Characters: Luke/Reid
Disclaimer: As the World Turns and it's characters are not mine, no matter how much I enjoy playing with them. :)
Summary: Luke is in car accident on the way home from a business trip. Reid saves him in more ways than one.
Author's Notes: So, this was sort of inspired by sripley's "It's the What If Factor." I was re-reading it, reveling in her ability to change up the story so awesomely and still keep it true to the characters, and thought to myself, I can do that. So this is me trying another take on the the Luke/Reid relationship with a different beginning, and we'll see where we end up. Story starts in January 2010. If it isn't said enough, the medical stuff I am making up as I go.
I didn't intend to put this up until tomorrow, but I had so many lovely comments waiting for me when I got home, I couldn't resist. This is my favorite chapter so far. Someone let me know if I'm wrong.
Thanks to eimeark and mon_alice especially for their comments! :)
Prologue: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/500229.html
Chapter 1: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/507184.html
Chapter 2: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/508139.html
Chapter 3: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/512260.html
Reid walked into the local coffee shop. It wasn't a Starbucks or anything, but he assumed it would be rather difficult to screw up coffee. He’d taken a much needed break, getting a few hours of sleep and a shower before stopping off for a caffeine fix. He was in a hurry to check on Luke. It had been almost two days, and while his EEG results weren’t anything to worry about yet, Reid was starting to anyway. Luke should have woken up by now. He bought the local paper, even though the thought of reading about anything involving this backwoods town gave him hives, but he needed a distraction.
He needed to stop thinking about Luke Snyder for five minutes.
Reid took his coffee when it was ready, grabbed the paper and sat in a corner of the shop. He'd just flipped open the front page and groaned. So much for not thinking about Luke. There he was, his picture in the paper next to an article about the crash.
“Dr. Oliver?” a male voice said, getting his attention. Reid looked up to see a slightly older man with dark hair staring down at him.
“Who wants to know?” He asked.
“Jack Snyder, Oakdale P.D.” Jack answered, sitting down opposite him. Reid narrowed his eyes.
“Can I help you?” It wasn't an offer.
“You're a hard man to track down.” Jack ignored his tone.
“And yet, you managed it.” Reid threw the paper down on the table in annoyance. “Let's just save time. What do you want?”
“I'm here to talk about the accident.” Jack replied.
“I assumed.” Reid said, motioning for Jack to continue.
“I need to file an official report and take your statement.” Reid rolled his eyes.
“Fine.” He agreed, taking a sip of his coffee. It was surprisingly good. “The road was icy, I lost control of my car, and Luke lost control of his car trying to avoid hitting mine.” Reid paused. “I got lucky, but Luke's car went off the road and flipped over.” He picked the paper back up and pretended to start reading it. “Are we done now?”
“I just have a few more questions.”
“Seriously?”
“You know, you're lucky I haven't given you a ticket or anything.” Jack finally snapped. “The least you could do is answer my questions.”
“A ticket?” Reid asked. “You've got to be kidding me. For what?”
“Reckless driving, fleeing the scene of an accident.” Jack looked smug. With an exaggerated sigh, Reid set the paper back down.
“Fleeing the scene?!” Reid stared at him in shock. “I was saving a man's life. Doesn't that mean anything to you people?” Jack didn't say anything. He just sat there with a smirk on his face. Reid wanted to hit him. “What else would you like to know?” He said, clenching his jaw.
Jack asked him a few more inane questions, and Reid wondered how any crimes got solved in this town with cops like this.
“We had the cars towed.” Jack finished up. “Luke's is obviously totaled but yours was fine and I had the driver drop it off at the Lakeview for you.” Reid was taken aback by that news.
“Thank you.”
“If you think of anything else, here's my card.” Jack handed it over as he got up, and Reid took it reluctantly.
Reid crumpled the card in his fist as he watched the detective stop and say something to the woman at the table next to his, before turning and walking away. He was regretting his decision to stay in this town a little more every minute.
“Don't mind Jack.” Reid looked over at the perky blond sitting at the next table. “He's just trying to do his job.”
“I'm sure that would be a first for him.” He replied. The blond woman shook her head, with a small smile.
“You're the guy who saved Luke, right?”
“And who are you? The welcome wagon?”
“I'm Katie.” She answered. “Katie Snyder. This is my son Jacob.” She gestured to the baby in the stroller next to her.
“Another Snyder?” Reid stared at her. “Are they breeding you people in a barn somewhere?” Katie opened her mouth to reply when Jacob let out a wail.
“Come on, Jacob.” Katie pleaded. “Not now.”
“Listen, this has been...fun.” Reid moved to get up, as Jacob's wailing went impossibly louder.
“You're a doctor, right?” Katie asked, ignoring his look of disbelief. “Could you look at him for me?”
“I'm not a pediatrician.”
“Please?” Katie begged. “His pediatrician is out of the office until next week and I really don't to take him to the ER.”
“Can't anyone in this town take 'no' for answer?” Reid snapped, shouting to be heard over Jacob's cries.
“Fine, forget it!” Katie yelled, not caring that she was attracting a crowd. She frantically began packing up her stuff, Jacob still wailing. Reid sighed, ran a hand over his face and stood up.
“Wait.” He said, not sure how or why he was agreeing to this. “I'm headed back to the hospital. Bring the kid along and I'll check him out for you.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She practically squealed.
“Only dogs can hear you right now.” He said, grabbing Jacob's diaper bag before Katie could. Reid gestured for her to lead the way out. “What have I gotten myself into?”
*
Luke was floating.
Peaceful. Calm.
Time meant nothing.
Sometimes he could hear voices. They were always soothing, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying.
One voice particular stood out…he knew that voice.
It always faded it and out.
He didn’t know how to reach it, how to make it stay.
Luke twitched his fingers, feeling pressure on his hand. There was a sudden beeping noise in the background. It was irritating him, interrupting his quiet. He moaned, wanting it to stop.
The beeping seemed louder now, the grip on his fingers tighter. Someone was holding his hand.
Everything hurt.
His head, and his chest and everywhere else all the way down to his toes. He thought he might throw up for a second; waves of dizziness washing over him with the pain, and maybe he would have if he could have moved.
He registered that someone was talking to him and he turned his head toward the sound. It’s not the voice he was hoping for, but this one is pleasant.
“Luke?” The voice said.
Is he talking to me?
“Luke, can you hear me?” The voice asks. “If you can hear me, squeeze my hand.”
He tried, weakly curling his fingers around the hand holding his.
He gathered all his remaining strength, and for the first time in two days, Luke Snyder opened his eyes.
*
Luke stared into a pair of blue eyes.
“Luke.” The man gasped. “Oh, thank God.”
He tried to find his voice. It took a moment.
“Do I…” He began. He tried in vain to moisten his mouth with his dry tongue, before speaking again. “Do I know you?” He managed to get out.
“Luke, it’s me.” The man answered. “It’s Noah.”
With that, he realized he didn’t even remember his own name.
Fighting off panic, he looked at Noah.
“I don’t…” Luke said. “I don’t remember.”
“You don’t remember me?” Noah said, sounding upset. Luke tried to shake his head and regretted it. He moaned.
“I don’t remember anything.” It came out in a whisper.
Suddenly the door to his room opened, and Luke looked over to see what he assumed was his doctor in the doorway. He looked pissed.
“Who the hell are you and what are you doing with my patient?”
Author: slayerkitty
Genre: Romance, Angst, AU
Rating: PG-13 for language (For now, rating may be upped later.)
Characters: Luke/Reid
Disclaimer: As the World Turns and it's characters are not mine, no matter how much I enjoy playing with them. :)
Summary: Luke is in car accident on the way home from a business trip. Reid saves him in more ways than one.
Author's Notes: So, this was sort of inspired by sripley's "It's the What If Factor." I was re-reading it, reveling in her ability to change up the story so awesomely and still keep it true to the characters, and thought to myself, I can do that. So this is me trying another take on the the Luke/Reid relationship with a different beginning, and we'll see where we end up. Story starts in January 2010. If it isn't said enough, the medical stuff I am making up as I go.
I didn't intend to put this up until tomorrow, but I had so many lovely comments waiting for me when I got home, I couldn't resist. This is my favorite chapter so far. Someone let me know if I'm wrong.
Thanks to eimeark and mon_alice especially for their comments! :)
Prologue: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/500229.html
Chapter 1: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/507184.html
Chapter 2: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/508139.html
Chapter 3: community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/512260.html
Reid walked into the local coffee shop. It wasn't a Starbucks or anything, but he assumed it would be rather difficult to screw up coffee. He’d taken a much needed break, getting a few hours of sleep and a shower before stopping off for a caffeine fix. He was in a hurry to check on Luke. It had been almost two days, and while his EEG results weren’t anything to worry about yet, Reid was starting to anyway. Luke should have woken up by now. He bought the local paper, even though the thought of reading about anything involving this backwoods town gave him hives, but he needed a distraction.
He needed to stop thinking about Luke Snyder for five minutes.
Reid took his coffee when it was ready, grabbed the paper and sat in a corner of the shop. He'd just flipped open the front page and groaned. So much for not thinking about Luke. There he was, his picture in the paper next to an article about the crash.
“Dr. Oliver?” a male voice said, getting his attention. Reid looked up to see a slightly older man with dark hair staring down at him.
“Who wants to know?” He asked.
“Jack Snyder, Oakdale P.D.” Jack answered, sitting down opposite him. Reid narrowed his eyes.
“Can I help you?” It wasn't an offer.
“You're a hard man to track down.” Jack ignored his tone.
“And yet, you managed it.” Reid threw the paper down on the table in annoyance. “Let's just save time. What do you want?”
“I'm here to talk about the accident.” Jack replied.
“I assumed.” Reid said, motioning for Jack to continue.
“I need to file an official report and take your statement.” Reid rolled his eyes.
“Fine.” He agreed, taking a sip of his coffee. It was surprisingly good. “The road was icy, I lost control of my car, and Luke lost control of his car trying to avoid hitting mine.” Reid paused. “I got lucky, but Luke's car went off the road and flipped over.” He picked the paper back up and pretended to start reading it. “Are we done now?”
“I just have a few more questions.”
“Seriously?”
“You know, you're lucky I haven't given you a ticket or anything.” Jack finally snapped. “The least you could do is answer my questions.”
“A ticket?” Reid asked. “You've got to be kidding me. For what?”
“Reckless driving, fleeing the scene of an accident.” Jack looked smug. With an exaggerated sigh, Reid set the paper back down.
“Fleeing the scene?!” Reid stared at him in shock. “I was saving a man's life. Doesn't that mean anything to you people?” Jack didn't say anything. He just sat there with a smirk on his face. Reid wanted to hit him. “What else would you like to know?” He said, clenching his jaw.
Jack asked him a few more inane questions, and Reid wondered how any crimes got solved in this town with cops like this.
“We had the cars towed.” Jack finished up. “Luke's is obviously totaled but yours was fine and I had the driver drop it off at the Lakeview for you.” Reid was taken aback by that news.
“Thank you.”
“If you think of anything else, here's my card.” Jack handed it over as he got up, and Reid took it reluctantly.
Reid crumpled the card in his fist as he watched the detective stop and say something to the woman at the table next to his, before turning and walking away. He was regretting his decision to stay in this town a little more every minute.
“Don't mind Jack.” Reid looked over at the perky blond sitting at the next table. “He's just trying to do his job.”
“I'm sure that would be a first for him.” He replied. The blond woman shook her head, with a small smile.
“You're the guy who saved Luke, right?”
“And who are you? The welcome wagon?”
“I'm Katie.” She answered. “Katie Snyder. This is my son Jacob.” She gestured to the baby in the stroller next to her.
“Another Snyder?” Reid stared at her. “Are they breeding you people in a barn somewhere?” Katie opened her mouth to reply when Jacob let out a wail.
“Come on, Jacob.” Katie pleaded. “Not now.”
“Listen, this has been...fun.” Reid moved to get up, as Jacob's wailing went impossibly louder.
“You're a doctor, right?” Katie asked, ignoring his look of disbelief. “Could you look at him for me?”
“I'm not a pediatrician.”
“Please?” Katie begged. “His pediatrician is out of the office until next week and I really don't to take him to the ER.”
“Can't anyone in this town take 'no' for answer?” Reid snapped, shouting to be heard over Jacob's cries.
“Fine, forget it!” Katie yelled, not caring that she was attracting a crowd. She frantically began packing up her stuff, Jacob still wailing. Reid sighed, ran a hand over his face and stood up.
“Wait.” He said, not sure how or why he was agreeing to this. “I'm headed back to the hospital. Bring the kid along and I'll check him out for you.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She practically squealed.
“Only dogs can hear you right now.” He said, grabbing Jacob's diaper bag before Katie could. Reid gestured for her to lead the way out. “What have I gotten myself into?”
*
Luke was floating.
Peaceful. Calm.
Time meant nothing.
Sometimes he could hear voices. They were always soothing, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying.
One voice particular stood out…he knew that voice.
It always faded it and out.
He didn’t know how to reach it, how to make it stay.
Luke twitched his fingers, feeling pressure on his hand. There was a sudden beeping noise in the background. It was irritating him, interrupting his quiet. He moaned, wanting it to stop.
The beeping seemed louder now, the grip on his fingers tighter. Someone was holding his hand.
Everything hurt.
His head, and his chest and everywhere else all the way down to his toes. He thought he might throw up for a second; waves of dizziness washing over him with the pain, and maybe he would have if he could have moved.
He registered that someone was talking to him and he turned his head toward the sound. It’s not the voice he was hoping for, but this one is pleasant.
“Luke?” The voice said.
Is he talking to me?
“Luke, can you hear me?” The voice asks. “If you can hear me, squeeze my hand.”
He tried, weakly curling his fingers around the hand holding his.
He gathered all his remaining strength, and for the first time in two days, Luke Snyder opened his eyes.
*
Luke stared into a pair of blue eyes.
“Luke.” The man gasped. “Oh, thank God.”
He tried to find his voice. It took a moment.
“Do I…” He began. He tried in vain to moisten his mouth with his dry tongue, before speaking again. “Do I know you?” He managed to get out.
“Luke, it’s me.” The man answered. “It’s Noah.”
With that, he realized he didn’t even remember his own name.
Fighting off panic, he looked at Noah.
“I don’t…” Luke said. “I don’t remember.”
“You don’t remember me?” Noah said, sounding upset. Luke tried to shake his head and regretted it. He moaned.
“I don’t remember anything.” It came out in a whisper.
Suddenly the door to his room opened, and Luke looked over to see what he assumed was his doctor in the doorway. He looked pissed.
“Who the hell are you and what are you doing with my patient?”