A/N Thanks to Forward for the beta!
Disclaimer: I don't own anyone except for the original characters!
George glanced at his case file, sipping at his coffee in an attempt to make himself feel awake. He had felt fatigued all day, the kind of fatigue that seemed to make his body twice as heavy. Even worse, he could feel the deep ache in his muscles, and his head hurt. He shivered constantly, despite the fact that he was wearing a sweater, which meant that he had a rising fever. He was almost certain that he was coming down with a particularly powerful flu.
He just wanted to return home and curl up in his bed with a heating pad. But he knew that wasn't an option, with his caseload- he'd have to tough it out for the rest of the day.
Just as the thought crossed his mind, he began to cough, an uncontrollable bout that left him panting and gasping for breath. He rubbed his chest and coughed again, struggling to clear his lungs.
Eventually, George caught his breath, and he inhaled deeply, letting his lungs expand until they were completely full. Then he rested his head in one hand, even more completely drained of energy than he had been before.
With herculean effort, he raised his head as detectives Benson and Stabler entered the room. "Detectives, what can I do for you?" He asked quietly.
"Doc, we already told you- we need help with the Dawson case, remember?" Elliot asked.
"Oh… Yes, I remember…" George muttered, disoriented. He rubbed his forehead and gave a soft sigh as he searched through the files, only to find that it wasn't there. "Damn it, I can't find the file!" He exclaimed in annoyance. Then he began to cough again. He closed his eyes and held his chest, waiting for the fit to stop.
"Do you feel okay, doc?" Olivia asked worriedly. George nodded, inhaling quickly until he caught his breath again.
"I-" He sighed softly, not wanting to admit weakness. "I think I'm coming down with the flu or something, honestly," He admitted. "I feel like hell."
"You should go home. There's no use in you staying here if you're sick and you can't think straight," Elliot advised.
He shook his head. "No, I need to finish today. With our caseload, I can't just take off and leave you to try and come up with a profile."
"George," Olivia said gently, "You can't come up with a profile right now either. You can't think straight. Plus, you're going to get all of us sick."
George sighed softly in defeat. "Yes, I suppose. Just- call me if you need anything," George said. He stood, walking to the corner to retrieve his laptop and medical bag.
He frowned as his chest began to ache. He knew that chest pain was always a worrying sign; maybe he was sicker than he'd thought. Maybe he was developing pneumonia. The thought caused him to groan inwardly- that was the last thing he needed, to be forced to stay in bed for a week while he waited for his lungs to clear up.
He had passed his desk when, suddenly, the pain in his chest intensified, becoming an agonizing, stabbing pain. George gasped, almost dropping his laptop and medical bag.
"What's wrong, doc?" Elliot asked worriedly.
George shook his head, barely able to breathe, let alone speak, due to the pain. He managed to set his laptop down, then he held his chest and doubled over, crying out as the agony became unbearable.
"Doc, what happened?" Elliot asked. He and Olivia stood beside him, reaching to support him.
"M-my chest… it hurts like hell," George managed to gasp. He knew Elliot knew that, but it was all he could manage. He almost fell over, but Olivia and Elliot grabbed him before he did, and they gently eased him to the floor.
The movement, despite being slow and gentle, intensified the agony. He cried out in anguish, almost clawing at his chest in an attempt to alleviate the agony. George knew, with certainty, that something was terribly wrong. The torturous pain flared through his chest constantly; it felt like someone was stabbing his heart. What had felt like the flu was now something much worse.
"George, calm down, breathe…" Olivia soothed, rubbing his shoulder.
George closed his eyes, struggling to speak. "Oliv- AHHHH!" He screamed, overwhelmed by the torturous agony. His heart pounded in his chest, and he suddenly became aware that the beats were off. He could feel it; the rhythm was completely wrong.
He wondered briefly if he was having a heart attack, but he knew that the type of his pain didn't match. Heart attacks caused a sensation of pressure; stabbing pains were associated with other conditions, though they weren't necessarily less serious.
Through a pain-induced haze, he thought of the various conditions that could be causing his symptoms. A torn aorta would make sense, except for his flu-like symptoms, and the fact that he hadn't done anything that could cause a tear.
He gasped for breath- he could barely breathe, the pain was so terrible. "L… Livia…" He panted. He clenched his teeth, failing to bite back a curse. "Shit! This fucking hurts!"
He realized that he needed to go to a hospital. He tried to speak in complete sentences, but all he could manage was, "Ambulance!"
He closed his eyes, and everything else faded except for the pain. He couldn't hear anyone around him, and he only barely felt them pressing on his neck, checking his pulse. He struggled to breathe through the pain, grasping the bookshelf next to him to anchor him. Nothing existed except for the stabbing sensation in his chest.
Then the pain began to dull, too, and he knew that his body had reached its limit; it couldn't handle the agony anymore, and this was its way of stopping it. He relaxed, not fighting to stay conscious.
He welcomed the black void of unconsciousness with open arms.
Elliot called a bus, then he turned back to check on George. He was alarmed to see George struggle to hold on. "Hang on, doc," He began, but then he realized that George was too far gone to hear him. He sat next to him, trying to think of a way he could help without getting in Olivia's way.
Olivia heard George's breath hitch, and she became alarmed when he went limp. She quickly checked his pulse, alarmed to feel how rapid, weak, and thready the beats were. "How far out is that bus? He's really sick," Olivia said worriedly. She kept one hand on his neck, reaching the other up to his forehead. The skin was scorching hot, even though George was shivering almost constantly.
With how much pain George was in, Olivia had almost expected to find a gunshot wound- but there were no physical injuries. He must have been hiding how sick he really felt, Olivia thought. She'd never seen someone in so much pain without some devastating injury or illness.
She looked over at Elliot. "He has a sky-high fever, and his heartbeat is really-" She trailed off when George began to cough. She tipped him to his side and patted his back awkwardly, unsure of whether she should leave him alone or try to help clear his lungs.
Olivia set her ear in front of George's mouth and listened to his breathing. She could see that his breaths were labored, and once she listened, she heard a definite wheeze. His breathing was rapid and deep, as though he was oxygen-starved.
Elliot leaned forward and pressed his ear to George's chest. A look of alarm crossed his face, causing Olivia's stomach to tighten apprehensively. "What is it, El?" She asked.
"His heart… I think something's really wrong with his heart," Elliot said. "I'm not a doctor, but I'm certain that a heartbeat isn't supposed to sound like THAT."
"Like what?" Olivia asked, looking downwards at George, concern etched on her face. George was rarely ill, let alone like this- it had to be something terrible, if it was causing so much trouble.
Elliot struggled to explain what he'd heard. He knew some medical terms, but not enough to describe the sounds. "Basically, it sounds he has three heart sounds instead of two- instead of going, thump-thump, it's going, thump-thump-thump. And when he has normal heartbeats, they're really weak and they still sound wrong." Elliot tightened his fists nervously as he spoke.
Elliot glanced towards the door, fuming. "Damn it, how far away is that bus? They sure are taking their time!" He exclaimed in irritation.
"They'll be here soon," Olivia assured him. Elliot gritted his teeth and nodded.
They continued to wait, feeling their own hearts pound from fear for the doctor. They couldn't figure out what was happening to George, and they were afraid it might be more severe than they could guess.