Title: Physician Heal Thyself
Author: h-bomba
Rating: T
Summary: Post-ep 3x09. Bo comes to a startling discovery regarding Lauren.
Words: 1115 (complete)
"What the hell?"
Five minutes ago, Bo was negotiating the stairs with Lauren as they undressed. An eager exchange of kisses ushered them into her bedroom. Now, stripped down, she was staring at Lauren's arms which were riddled with bruises and needle tracks. It had been weeks since they last made love so when Lauren shed her lab coat and let Bo lead her upstairs there was little formality.
"I've been experimenting," Lauren said matter-of-factly.
"On yourself?" Bo tried to hide the horror she felt. Lauren hadn't been the same since Bo's Dawning ritual. She had been distant, sometimes even cranky but mostly, she just seemed hopeless. Bo had tried to crack her shell and had been unsuccessful up until now.
"Human trials require an endless amount of paperwork. This way circumvents the red tape."
"I can't believe I'm going to say this." Bo smoothed a hand over the tiny wounds. "Don't you think they have those rules for a reason? Lauren, you could accidentally kill yourself."
"Chances of that happening are low. It's free radical therapy."
"But, why?" Bo asked, genuinely perplexed.
Lauren looked at the floor quite suddenly. "To be with you."
"I'm here. You don't need to do this to yourself."
"For how long?"
Bo sat down on the foot of the bed, her shoulders slumping. "So what, you're trying to find the fountain of youth?"
"Something like that," Lauren mumbled, dropping to sit beside Bo on the bed. She looked at her hands. "This is never going to work."
"Hold on," Bo said, snatching one of Lauren's hands. "That's not up to you. You don't get to make that decision. I love you and I will never leave you, you got that? We may not grow old together, but you'll always have me."
"Relationships end, Bo. It's time we faced the realities of this situation."
Bo's frustration was mounting. "I'm Fae and you're not. So we break up? Why did we even try in the first place?"
"It was an experim-"
Bo stood and paced angrily. "God dammit, don't make our relationship into a science project. You know it isn't like that at all."
"I know what it was like," she smiled sadly, "but that's not how it is now."
"You know, I don't even understand where you're coming from right now. Can you please tell me what is going on with you?"
"Your Dawning opened my eyes."
Bo looked on, growing more and more frustrated with Lauren's inability to tell her what was at the heart of her turmoil. "Did Stella say something to you? Kenzi said-"
"Nobody said anything to me. They didn't have to."
"Okay, really. Can we stop with the veiled innuendo and get to the bottom of this?"
"Dyson. You still love him and he loves you and I'm just a human, how can I compete?"
"You don't need to. I love you now. Dyson is in the past."
"I saw what you did for him and how that affected you, Bo."
"Can you see how this is affecting me now? Lauren, I'm seriously worried about you. This," she motioned at her arms, "is not okay. You don't need to do this anymore. Please."
"But what if I can extend my life with you?"
"What if you kill yourself with a bad batch of whatever the hell you are putting in your arms?"
"That's a chance I'm willing to take," she said stoically.
"What about me? Don't I get a say in all this?"
"Bo, I know what I'm doing."
"Lauren," Bo pleaded. "For once, I don't think you do." Bo sat on the bed beside Lauren and sighed. "I love you and you love me and if that's not enough, I don't know what is."
Lauren rested her head on Bo's shoulder. "Science has seen me through the toughest times in my life. Holding on to hope that an experiment will turn out or an antidote will work has saved my life ten times over. With Nadia, with you, I just thought for once I could do something for myself. That I could fix what was broken in us."
"Nothing's broken," Bo said emphatically. We're good."
"I know I can bridge the gap between human and Fae with science. I thought you would understand why I need to do this."
"I don't." Bo shook her head. "You're this… gorgeous, super smart, funny woman and for some reason you can't see that it's enough. That you're enough for me."
"But I'm not. I'm a feeble human, with a lifespan that's a drop in the bucket compared to yours. I can't fulfill you-"
"Stop," Bo said suddenly. "I get it, okay? But none of that matters. Can you get that?"
Lauren lifted her head from Bo's shoulder and turned to face her. Her brow was furrowed, her eyes pained as she looked at Bo before turning abruptly and standing to leave the room. Bo tried to tell her to stop, to come back, but she was gone. She sighed at the ceiling before following after her.
Downstairs, she found Lauren in her lab, dumping test tubes down the sink. Bo stood back as the doctor destroyed her creations, her blonde hair shrouding the drawn expression she wore as she did so. She braced herself on the sink and stilled. A long moment later she was turning to face Bo.
"All gone," Lauren said finally.
Bo took three steps and stood before her. She smiled softly. "How can I show you how amazing I think you are?"
Lauren looked at her seriously. "Kiss me."
Bo took another step forward and pushed Lauren against the cabinets. Her mouth collided with Lauren's, her hands plunging into her hair. The kiss was born of desperation and desire, of hunger and of love. But more than anything this kiss was imbued with awe. Awe for the sweet perfection that was Lauren and for the connection they shared.
Bo's hands found Lauren's waist and lifted her onto the counter. She grunted and pressed herself into the apex of Lauren's legs. Her mouth worked along Lauren's jaw and down her neck before returning to her lips with a crushing kiss. Lauren gripped Bo's shoulders and let herself be taken.
When they parted, Lauren's chest was heaving. Bo grinned at her. "Something like that?" she said.
Lauren threaded her arms around Bo's neck and sighed, resting her forehead on Bo's. "I don't know if I'll ever get used to that."
Bo leaned forward, pressing her lips against Lauren's once more. "I hope you don't."
Fin.