Seize the Day - NaNoWriMo Attempt - Chapter 9
I've pulled ahead a little bit. Kept the kiddo home today from preschool; he was awake most of the time between 2:30a-6a this morning. Considering 2:30a is "sleeping in" for me...yeah. I did get some writing done (3k's worth), but I wanted to have another 5k day. Oh well...
Previous Chapters:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
Savin remained in the hospital room and lifted his eyes to the ceiling once Jazz had slipped out of the doors. He leaned against the wall, running his fingers through his mussed up hair. He could still feel Jazz’s nails scrape along his scalp, digging in as Savin pleasured him. His knees ached from when he had knelt on the hard tile floor, but the pain had been entirely worth it.
He glanced down at himself, snorting when he noticed how obvious his arousal was. Well, maybe it wasn’t entirely worth it. But Jazz had been more than willing to reciprocate -- he just didn’t get the chance to do so. Sighing, Savin rearranged himself inside his scrubs, hoping to make his erection less obvious as he tried to will it away.
He had other patients he needed to visit, after all. And a surgery scheduled in about an hour, as well. Still, he could help pulling out his phone and checking his texts, despite knowing it had only been a few moments since Jazz had left. It was unlikely that the Prince would have finished with his important, Empire-related phone call that quickly.
Once satisfied with his appearance, Savin stepped out of the room. He breathed a relieved sigh when he noticed that the hallway was clear. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he pulled his labcoat to cover more of his front and began heading towards the other side of the hospital. The nurses regarded him with quiet nods and glances, and he couldn’t help but feel a little exposed.
After all, he was the man who supposedly saved the Emperor’s life. Him, a young surgeon -- one that had barely been an attending for an entire year. And now he might actually be dating the Emperor’s son? Were he and Jazz actually dating?
Savin frowned to himself, shaking his head clear of that thought. He and Jazz obviously hadn’t gotten the chance to discuss any of that. But considering Jazz’s lack of protest when Savin made yet another move on him....
“Savin? You listening?”
Savin blinked, his brow furrowing together as he glanced around him. “Mari!” he said uselessly. He gave her a guilty smile. “I’m sorry, I guess I wasn’t really paying attention to anything.”
Mari raised an eyebrow at that, a partial smile taking up the right half of her face. She handed Savin a chart. “Can you give me a surgical consult? I’m not sure how to proceed with this particular case...” she muttered, continuing to study Savin.
Savin took the chart from her without hesitating, flipping through it without question. He glanced over her notes and kept tally of the patient’s personal history, as well as their age. “I’d keep surgery off the table for now,” he said, pointing at a set of numbers on the patient’s lab results. “His liver function isn’t optimal -- you wouldn’t want to put extra stress on him by having him undergo surgery. What’re you doing in the meantime to get his numbers back up?”
Mari snorted, shaking her head as her smile grew wider. “You’ve missed one big important detail, Dr. Bates,” she said, plucking the chart from Savin’s hands. “He needs a new liver.”
Savin’s mouth fell open, only for a moment as he rolled his shoulders back. “I didn’t --”
“You saw Prince Jasper again, didn’t you?” Mari asked knowingly, a quiet laugh escaping her lips. “You look like your entire month’s just been made.”
Savin couldn’t contain his grin as he looked away from Mari. “He was visiting his father,” he answered, rubbing his finger along his nose. His fingertips brushed the bridge of his nose before he realized he wasn’t wearing his glasses.
“Oh?” Mari asked. “How’s the Emperor doing, anyway? They don’t let any of us who weren’t initially put on his case near his chart.”
“The surgical site is infected,” Savin said with a frown. He settled his hands back inside the pockets of his lab coat and kept his eyes off to the side. “He’s not septic, but...”
“You’re afraid he might become septic,” Mari finished for him, her own smile disappearing. “How is Prince Jasper handling it?”
“As well as he can be,” Savin said, keeping his voice low. “He knows that we’re doing all that we can to target the infection and get rid of it. But -- he’s acting in his father’s place, right now, as Emperor. I really don’t know how much Jazz really understood of it all.”
“I have a feeling he didn’t come here just to visit his father, either,” Mari muttered, moving closer to Savin. She narrowed her eyes at him, studying him before rolling her eyes with a snort. “You two had sex again.”
“We didn’t -- I wouldn’t do that at the hospital --” Savin stammered, feeling his face heat up despite himself.
“Are you sure about that?” Mari asked, snickering. “Because I remember when we were in medical school -- and how you would pull me into any spare room you could to have your way with me, when we were dating.”
“That was -- I was younger then!” Savin protested, moving in close to her. He looked around the hallway, noting whether any nurses seemed to be listening in. “I’m not about to compromise my career in order to get laid.”
“Sure you aren’t,” Mari said with a snort. She put a reassuring hand on Savin’s shoulder, patting it lightly before moving away from him. “Either way, Prince Jasper didn’t come here for just his father, that’s for sure,” she insisted, smirking at him. “So what did he want from you?”
“Just to see me again,” Savin insisted, trying to sound intimidating and failing. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I mean, I don’t even know if we’re dating or what --”
“Do you want to date him?” Mari asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Well, yeah, I would like to get to know the guy better,” Savin said. He couldn’t hide his smile again. “And he certainly can keep up with me, it’s just --”
“He’s the Prince,” Mari stated simply, her own smile fading somewhat.
“Exactly,” Savin said. “Anyway, we can talk more about this later -- when there’re less nurses around to overhear. I need to get back to my other patients, anyway.”
Mari glanced around the hospital hallway, her eyebrows bunching together. “Afraid your father might hear something second hand?” she asked, changing the subject.
Savin just shook his head and turned on his heel. He could feel Mari’s presence beside him as he resumed his trek through the halls and to the elevator. Once they reached the elevator, he pushed the down button and glanced over at Mari. “My father doesn’t particularly care about my sexuality -- you know that,” he said, speaking just loud enough for Mari to hear. “So no, I’m not worried about him overhearing anything, it’s just --” He paused, waiting for the elevator doors to open and close behind them. “I don’t want him pulling me off of Emperor Callahan’s case, because I’m ‘involved’ with the Prince.”
“I don’t think you’re going to be able to keep your involvement with him secret, Savin,” Mari muttered, leaning against the back of the elevator. “The media follows Prince Jasper’s every move -- and Hajime watches the news like it’s his job.”
Savin blanched and ran his fingers through his hair. “Trust me -- I’m aware,” he said, still keeping his voice low. “And I rather he find out through me, but -- look, I totally don’t want him to find out through the news. And I don’t want him to find out now, while I’m still Emperor Callahan’s primary.”
“Then having sex with Prince Jasper in the hospital is probably a really bad idea,” Mari said, giving Savin a wry smile. “Keep it in your pants next time he comes here, okay? I’ll try to do what I can to keep rumors from reaching your father. You do what you can to keep your face out of the news.”
Savin nodded. “Will do.” He turned to Mari and smiled at her before giving her a brief hug as the elevator doors opened. “Thanks for making me go out with you the other night,” he whispered into her hair.
“You’re welcome,” Mari chirped as Savin pulled away from her. They turned, noticing two nurses standing before them. Savin ignored the odd looks they gave him and stepped out of the elevator doors, leaving Mari behind. “Oh, and Savin?” Savn turned to face Mari, noticing the sly grin on her face. “Good luck.”
Savin nodded, smiling back at her in response before turning on his heel and heading towards his next patient’s room. That hug would give the nurses something to gossip about. Mari and Savin’s history wasn’t exactly private, anyway.
He just hoped it would provide the nurses with enough of a distraction.
***
Jazz slipped the earpiece out of his ear, fingers grasping the small object tightly. He swallowed thickly, ignoring the tears that threatened to escape his eyes.
“I take it the conversation did not go well,” the head guard asked nonchalantly, his grip on the steering wheel tightening. “Will you be alright, Prince Jasper?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Jazz whispered, thankful that his voice didn’t crack. He cleared his throat and rubbed his eyes, willing his tears away. Didn’t go well was an understatement, one he didn’t want to think about, right at that moment. “I need to rearrange my schedule,” he murmured to himself, pulling his phone free from his pocket.
The Western colonies wanted to see him, sooner rather than later. Did he even have a solid enough proposal to give them? Despite the looks of confidence he received from his council earlier that day, Jazz wasn’t so sure his plan was the right one, anymore. Biting his lip, he looked at his upcoming week before dialing a number and placing the phone to his ear.
“Yes, this is he,” he said, putting a hand to his forehead. “I can fly out this evening and be there by tomorrow, to address the colonies’ issues personally.”
He’d need to pack a set or two of clothes. Grab one of his suits. Message Savin that he would be out of the area for a few days, at the very least, and warn his council that he wouldn’t be home for the next few days. He wouldn’t be able to keep up with his father’s treatment, his father’s recovery, not until he came back.
He pushed these thoughts aside, ending his one phone call and moving on to the next. “Alexandra,” he began once she had answered the phone. “I need to travel to the Western colonies tonight -- something’s come up.”
“It doesn’t have to do with United, does it?” Alexandra asked, worry lacing her voice. “Their military has been ramping up again, you know. I meant to bring it up today in the Council meeting, but...”
“No -- as far as I can tell, it doesn’t have to do with them,” Jazz answered, shaking his head. “Mitchel would have contacted me if it had something to do with them, I think. The colony’s governor contacted me directly instead of going to him.”
“Jasper, be careful -- Mitchel is never as straight forward as you think he is,” Alexandra warned, sighing into the phone.
“I’m aware,” Jazz muttered, frowning to himself. “But he wouldn’t fuck around with something like this, y’know? Anyway -- that’s not the point. The point is, I’m leaving in about an hour. Can you help me get my things ready for travel? And can you keep an eye on Dad until I get back?”
“Of course I’ll keep an eye on your father,” Alexandra said, sounding almost hurt that Jazz even had to ask. “Is it alright if I enter your living quarters, then, if I’m to help you pack?”
“Yes,” Jazz said. “I would ask Mitchel to pack things for me -- but I don’t want him to even know I’m leaving tonight. I’m sure you can understand why.”
Alexandra snorted into the phone. “Of course I do. Are you on your way home from the hospital?”
“Yes. I should be at the Palace in about ten minutes. I’ll see you there.” Jazz then hung up his phone with another sigh and wiped his palms on his jeans. They had begun to sweat, nervousness taking residence in his stomach and causing it to churn. His first real diplomatic meeting, and he’d have to do it without his father. Without anyone with him to provide him support.
“I can do this,” he whispered to himself, putting his head in his hands and forcing himself to breathe deeply. “I can do this. I was born to do this.”
His fingers shook as he pulled his hands away from his face and picked up his phone. He found Savin’s name in his contacts, clicking on it. Won’t be home for the next few days at least, he began typing, chewing on his lip as he thought of his next words. Please keep my dad in the hospital until his infection is clear completely. Keep me updated on his condition as much as possible. Texts would be preferable.
He stopped, starting a new paragraph. I might not be able to talk to him myself about adding you to his medical staff. If all else fails, I can always add you to mine, but if you can talk to him yourself, that might be best. He seems to trust you. Hopefully that’ll be enough.
Once he finished, he sent the text and leaned his head back against the seat of the car. By noon tomorrow morning, he’d be sitting in an unfamiliar office, waiting to discuss something political with a man he’ll have only just met moments before.
Was he really ready for this?
Next Chapter
Previous Chapters:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
Savin remained in the hospital room and lifted his eyes to the ceiling once Jazz had slipped out of the doors. He leaned against the wall, running his fingers through his mussed up hair. He could still feel Jazz’s nails scrape along his scalp, digging in as Savin pleasured him. His knees ached from when he had knelt on the hard tile floor, but the pain had been entirely worth it.
He glanced down at himself, snorting when he noticed how obvious his arousal was. Well, maybe it wasn’t entirely worth it. But Jazz had been more than willing to reciprocate -- he just didn’t get the chance to do so. Sighing, Savin rearranged himself inside his scrubs, hoping to make his erection less obvious as he tried to will it away.
He had other patients he needed to visit, after all. And a surgery scheduled in about an hour, as well. Still, he could help pulling out his phone and checking his texts, despite knowing it had only been a few moments since Jazz had left. It was unlikely that the Prince would have finished with his important, Empire-related phone call that quickly.
Once satisfied with his appearance, Savin stepped out of the room. He breathed a relieved sigh when he noticed that the hallway was clear. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he pulled his labcoat to cover more of his front and began heading towards the other side of the hospital. The nurses regarded him with quiet nods and glances, and he couldn’t help but feel a little exposed.
After all, he was the man who supposedly saved the Emperor’s life. Him, a young surgeon -- one that had barely been an attending for an entire year. And now he might actually be dating the Emperor’s son? Were he and Jazz actually dating?
Savin frowned to himself, shaking his head clear of that thought. He and Jazz obviously hadn’t gotten the chance to discuss any of that. But considering Jazz’s lack of protest when Savin made yet another move on him....
“Savin? You listening?”
Savin blinked, his brow furrowing together as he glanced around him. “Mari!” he said uselessly. He gave her a guilty smile. “I’m sorry, I guess I wasn’t really paying attention to anything.”
Mari raised an eyebrow at that, a partial smile taking up the right half of her face. She handed Savin a chart. “Can you give me a surgical consult? I’m not sure how to proceed with this particular case...” she muttered, continuing to study Savin.
Savin took the chart from her without hesitating, flipping through it without question. He glanced over her notes and kept tally of the patient’s personal history, as well as their age. “I’d keep surgery off the table for now,” he said, pointing at a set of numbers on the patient’s lab results. “His liver function isn’t optimal -- you wouldn’t want to put extra stress on him by having him undergo surgery. What’re you doing in the meantime to get his numbers back up?”
Mari snorted, shaking her head as her smile grew wider. “You’ve missed one big important detail, Dr. Bates,” she said, plucking the chart from Savin’s hands. “He needs a new liver.”
Savin’s mouth fell open, only for a moment as he rolled his shoulders back. “I didn’t --”
“You saw Prince Jasper again, didn’t you?” Mari asked knowingly, a quiet laugh escaping her lips. “You look like your entire month’s just been made.”
Savin couldn’t contain his grin as he looked away from Mari. “He was visiting his father,” he answered, rubbing his finger along his nose. His fingertips brushed the bridge of his nose before he realized he wasn’t wearing his glasses.
“Oh?” Mari asked. “How’s the Emperor doing, anyway? They don’t let any of us who weren’t initially put on his case near his chart.”
“The surgical site is infected,” Savin said with a frown. He settled his hands back inside the pockets of his lab coat and kept his eyes off to the side. “He’s not septic, but...”
“You’re afraid he might become septic,” Mari finished for him, her own smile disappearing. “How is Prince Jasper handling it?”
“As well as he can be,” Savin said, keeping his voice low. “He knows that we’re doing all that we can to target the infection and get rid of it. But -- he’s acting in his father’s place, right now, as Emperor. I really don’t know how much Jazz really understood of it all.”
“I have a feeling he didn’t come here just to visit his father, either,” Mari muttered, moving closer to Savin. She narrowed her eyes at him, studying him before rolling her eyes with a snort. “You two had sex again.”
“We didn’t -- I wouldn’t do that at the hospital --” Savin stammered, feeling his face heat up despite himself.
“Are you sure about that?” Mari asked, snickering. “Because I remember when we were in medical school -- and how you would pull me into any spare room you could to have your way with me, when we were dating.”
“That was -- I was younger then!” Savin protested, moving in close to her. He looked around the hallway, noting whether any nurses seemed to be listening in. “I’m not about to compromise my career in order to get laid.”
“Sure you aren’t,” Mari said with a snort. She put a reassuring hand on Savin’s shoulder, patting it lightly before moving away from him. “Either way, Prince Jasper didn’t come here for just his father, that’s for sure,” she insisted, smirking at him. “So what did he want from you?”
“Just to see me again,” Savin insisted, trying to sound intimidating and failing. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I mean, I don’t even know if we’re dating or what --”
“Do you want to date him?” Mari asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Well, yeah, I would like to get to know the guy better,” Savin said. He couldn’t hide his smile again. “And he certainly can keep up with me, it’s just --”
“He’s the Prince,” Mari stated simply, her own smile fading somewhat.
“Exactly,” Savin said. “Anyway, we can talk more about this later -- when there’re less nurses around to overhear. I need to get back to my other patients, anyway.”
Mari glanced around the hospital hallway, her eyebrows bunching together. “Afraid your father might hear something second hand?” she asked, changing the subject.
Savin just shook his head and turned on his heel. He could feel Mari’s presence beside him as he resumed his trek through the halls and to the elevator. Once they reached the elevator, he pushed the down button and glanced over at Mari. “My father doesn’t particularly care about my sexuality -- you know that,” he said, speaking just loud enough for Mari to hear. “So no, I’m not worried about him overhearing anything, it’s just --” He paused, waiting for the elevator doors to open and close behind them. “I don’t want him pulling me off of Emperor Callahan’s case, because I’m ‘involved’ with the Prince.”
“I don’t think you’re going to be able to keep your involvement with him secret, Savin,” Mari muttered, leaning against the back of the elevator. “The media follows Prince Jasper’s every move -- and Hajime watches the news like it’s his job.”
Savin blanched and ran his fingers through his hair. “Trust me -- I’m aware,” he said, still keeping his voice low. “And I rather he find out through me, but -- look, I totally don’t want him to find out through the news. And I don’t want him to find out now, while I’m still Emperor Callahan’s primary.”
“Then having sex with Prince Jasper in the hospital is probably a really bad idea,” Mari said, giving Savin a wry smile. “Keep it in your pants next time he comes here, okay? I’ll try to do what I can to keep rumors from reaching your father. You do what you can to keep your face out of the news.”
Savin nodded. “Will do.” He turned to Mari and smiled at her before giving her a brief hug as the elevator doors opened. “Thanks for making me go out with you the other night,” he whispered into her hair.
“You’re welcome,” Mari chirped as Savin pulled away from her. They turned, noticing two nurses standing before them. Savin ignored the odd looks they gave him and stepped out of the elevator doors, leaving Mari behind. “Oh, and Savin?” Savn turned to face Mari, noticing the sly grin on her face. “Good luck.”
Savin nodded, smiling back at her in response before turning on his heel and heading towards his next patient’s room. That hug would give the nurses something to gossip about. Mari and Savin’s history wasn’t exactly private, anyway.
He just hoped it would provide the nurses with enough of a distraction.
***
Jazz slipped the earpiece out of his ear, fingers grasping the small object tightly. He swallowed thickly, ignoring the tears that threatened to escape his eyes.
“I take it the conversation did not go well,” the head guard asked nonchalantly, his grip on the steering wheel tightening. “Will you be alright, Prince Jasper?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Jazz whispered, thankful that his voice didn’t crack. He cleared his throat and rubbed his eyes, willing his tears away. Didn’t go well was an understatement, one he didn’t want to think about, right at that moment. “I need to rearrange my schedule,” he murmured to himself, pulling his phone free from his pocket.
The Western colonies wanted to see him, sooner rather than later. Did he even have a solid enough proposal to give them? Despite the looks of confidence he received from his council earlier that day, Jazz wasn’t so sure his plan was the right one, anymore. Biting his lip, he looked at his upcoming week before dialing a number and placing the phone to his ear.
“Yes, this is he,” he said, putting a hand to his forehead. “I can fly out this evening and be there by tomorrow, to address the colonies’ issues personally.”
He’d need to pack a set or two of clothes. Grab one of his suits. Message Savin that he would be out of the area for a few days, at the very least, and warn his council that he wouldn’t be home for the next few days. He wouldn’t be able to keep up with his father’s treatment, his father’s recovery, not until he came back.
He pushed these thoughts aside, ending his one phone call and moving on to the next. “Alexandra,” he began once she had answered the phone. “I need to travel to the Western colonies tonight -- something’s come up.”
“It doesn’t have to do with United, does it?” Alexandra asked, worry lacing her voice. “Their military has been ramping up again, you know. I meant to bring it up today in the Council meeting, but...”
“No -- as far as I can tell, it doesn’t have to do with them,” Jazz answered, shaking his head. “Mitchel would have contacted me if it had something to do with them, I think. The colony’s governor contacted me directly instead of going to him.”
“Jasper, be careful -- Mitchel is never as straight forward as you think he is,” Alexandra warned, sighing into the phone.
“I’m aware,” Jazz muttered, frowning to himself. “But he wouldn’t fuck around with something like this, y’know? Anyway -- that’s not the point. The point is, I’m leaving in about an hour. Can you help me get my things ready for travel? And can you keep an eye on Dad until I get back?”
“Of course I’ll keep an eye on your father,” Alexandra said, sounding almost hurt that Jazz even had to ask. “Is it alright if I enter your living quarters, then, if I’m to help you pack?”
“Yes,” Jazz said. “I would ask Mitchel to pack things for me -- but I don’t want him to even know I’m leaving tonight. I’m sure you can understand why.”
Alexandra snorted into the phone. “Of course I do. Are you on your way home from the hospital?”
“Yes. I should be at the Palace in about ten minutes. I’ll see you there.” Jazz then hung up his phone with another sigh and wiped his palms on his jeans. They had begun to sweat, nervousness taking residence in his stomach and causing it to churn. His first real diplomatic meeting, and he’d have to do it without his father. Without anyone with him to provide him support.
“I can do this,” he whispered to himself, putting his head in his hands and forcing himself to breathe deeply. “I can do this. I was born to do this.”
His fingers shook as he pulled his hands away from his face and picked up his phone. He found Savin’s name in his contacts, clicking on it. Won’t be home for the next few days at least, he began typing, chewing on his lip as he thought of his next words. Please keep my dad in the hospital until his infection is clear completely. Keep me updated on his condition as much as possible. Texts would be preferable.
He stopped, starting a new paragraph. I might not be able to talk to him myself about adding you to his medical staff. If all else fails, I can always add you to mine, but if you can talk to him yourself, that might be best. He seems to trust you. Hopefully that’ll be enough.
Once he finished, he sent the text and leaned his head back against the seat of the car. By noon tomorrow morning, he’d be sitting in an unfamiliar office, waiting to discuss something political with a man he’ll have only just met moments before.
Was he really ready for this?
Next Chapter