Disclaimer: Um, I don't own the show or the characters. Some (er, most) of the dialogue is from the June 24, 2009 episode.
Author's Note: Ok, first, I want to say that I haven't written fanfic in at least 5 years. Second, I've never written these characters... or this show, lol. This was just meant to be a more Matt friendly perspective. I changed a little of the dialogue from the episode and mostly just wanted to write it the way I saw it in my mind. I tried to just keep it to what was going on, but kept wanting to add past thoughts/maybe feelings, etc. Ugh. Well, maybe I'll write another one. I'm not entirely satisfied with this, but I gave it a try! I'd appreciate any constructive criticism.
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It was impossible not to hear the yelling if you were anywhere near Dr. Matt Hunter's office in General Hospital. It was surprising, though, that no one from the other side of the hospital had come over to ask him to turn his voice down. Luckily for Maxie Jones, no one else was in the vicinity. She was, by nature, a curious woman. If there was gossip or information to be had, she wanted… no, needed to know it. She knew that even if Patrick and Robin hadn't asked for her assistance with the medical malpractice suit, she would've been pulled into it anyway. Her interest had been piqued by Spinelli's information and the fact that the family of Brianna Hughes was suing Dr. Hunter. Her cousins merely provided her with a convenient excuse to pursue a matter she was already intrigued by.
"So you're telling me that I can't access my own office?" Matt yelled, his loud words accompanied by irate gestures. Whenever he felt strongly about something, his hands constantly moved. She'd noticed that about him. Maxie had no doubt that had a stethoscope been resting around his neck, he would have been pulling and pointing the instrument as he argued. It was easy to see his anger, his frustration with his situation. But Epiphany was having none of it, telling him in no certain terms that he would not be getting back into the office. Maxie listened and peeked around the corner as Epiphany informed Matt that the office would not be unlocked until Diane Miller retrieved the necessary documentation regarding Brianna Hughes' death, by order of the court.
Though she could only see the back of him, Maxie knew Matt was seething. And with a final word to Epiphany, he stormed off in what Maxie had come to categorize as typical Matt behavior. She thought it a true shame that he didn't possess a calmer, less hostile personality to fit his good looks. She could admit that she found Matt physically attractive. What she found harder to admit, even to herself, was that she had fantasized about him, too. Sure, she knew he had a temper, and an ego so huge it was a wonder it didn't weigh him down. Yes, he acted like a jerk on a semi-regular basis. But there was something about him that sparked something inside of her. A spark that she ignored. A spark she would continue to do her best to ignore, no matter how persistent he was in his seemingly superficial pursuit of her. Maxie found it easy to deny him when he acted the way that he did, but she questioned herself, would she find it so effortless if he were nicer?
Epiphany's departure reminded Maxie of the issue at hand. With the nurse gone, it took only seconds for an idea to pop into Maxie's mind. She checked to make sure no one was nearby and swiftly made her way to the office door. Thinking on Matt's angry explosion, Maxie wished someone would teach or even mention to him that one catches more flies with honey than vinegar. She had personally perfected the art of improvising and sweet talking her way out of any situation, from finagling free drinks or dinners to convincing an officer not to tell Mac about her speeding habits.
Quickly, she removed a credit card from her black designer clutch, "borrowed" from The Closet at Crimson, and slid it near the lock. She'd barely even attempted to get the door open when someone rounded the corner. As smoothly as possible, she smoothly returned the card to her clutch and faced the man who caught her.
Time to put those sweet talking skills to work.
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After a brief lap around the hospital, Matt Hunter made his way back to the area that housed his office. He knew it was a lot to ask for, but he was hoping that the office would be unguarded and that he could make another attempt to get inside. The surgery, his patient's death, and the lawsuit were taking their toll on him. All he wanted was for it to disappear. Was that too much to ask?
If he could turn back the hands of time, Matt wished he could tell his days-younger self not to perform the surgery. To forget about being compared to The Great Patrick Drake, to be satisfied with what he'd accomplished thus far instead of pushing. But, it was hard being The Great Drake's younger brother. He'd wanted to show Patrick and everyone else that he was capable of doing his job. And what happened? The exact opposite.
He shook his head as he thought about his behavior at Jake's the previous week. It seemed that everything he'd done since convincing his brother to let him take charge on the surgery had resulted in disaster. Now, because of his asinine antics at the bar, Patrick was being named in the lawsuit as well. Which was fantastic. He was not only ruining his career, but his brother's, too.
Taking a deep breath, Matt pushed those thoughts to the side. They weren't going to help him now. He needed to figure out what had gone wrong in that operating room, or before the patient had reached the operating room. Thoughts of his recent actions would most definitely not help him towards that goal. As he turned the corner by his office, he saw none other than Maxie Jones shining one of her smiles on an unsuspecting man.
A Mr. Toussaint Dubois was questioning her about attempting to break into the very same office Matt could not get into. Nothing could have surprised him more than to hear Maxie's cover story.
"See, that's kinda where my personal life gets involved. Dr. Hunter and I, we're not exactly dating, but we hit each other up from time to time if you know what I mean," the blonde lied easily. If Matt wasn't the other half of the lie and privy to the truth, even he would have believed her. Maxie continued, "So I thought that I would surprise Matt and let myself into his office for a little mutual attraction."
That sounds like my cue, Matt thought. Without giving it another second's thought, Matt stepped into the hallway. "Is there a problem?" he asked, coming to stand next to Maxie. He slid his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him, struggling not to let his smile show. There was no easy way for her to move away from him now. And he had to admit that he was not above using her predicament to his advantage.
It only took a couple of minutes for Toussaint to reiterate what Matt had already heard from Epiphany. He wasn't getting back into his office anytime soon. He had been pissed off when he'd heard it the first time, but since he hadn't expected Maxie's ruse to actually work it didn't bother him the second time around. Instead, he played up the lover role she'd cast him in, sliding his fingertips under the hem of her red top and stroking the curve of her hip. Predictably, Maxie tensed and he could see the tightening of her jaw. Keeping his smirk as minor has he could, he suggested, "We'll improvise. We'll just find a storage closet somewhere."
His stunning co-star in this impromptu scene quickly said her goodbyes to Toussaint and dragged him away. Letting his grin loose, Matt waggled his eyebrows at her when she faced him.
The action was promptly met with a slap to his arm. "Don't even think about it." Maxie folded her arms across her chest, "What the hell do you think you were doing?"
"Playing the lusty lover? I think we look good together." At her frown, he continued, "Look, you don't have to be embarrassed. I think it's sexy the way you go after what you want. I'm flattered it's me."
Maxie rolled her eyes. "Your ego is… amazing. Let's get one thing straight. I'm not available. And even if I was, you're not my type. You're conceited, a jerk, and, frankly, unbearable."
At her words, Matt was immediately contrite. "About unbearable," he began, overlooking her other descriptors, "I was, the other night at Jake's. And… seriously, I'm sorry about that. I have every intention of apologizing to Spinelli, as well." He paused before continuing. "There is no excuse for what I did, the way I acted that night. But, this whole situation with Brianna Hughes has me really stressed out. And I'm sorry." Clearing his throat and not giving Maxie a chance to respond, he asked the question that had been in his mind since he'd seen her outside of his office, "Speaking of my job, why are you trying to get into my office?"
For a second, Maxie was silent. She looked into Matt's eyes, almost not believing that the words he'd just uttered had actually come from him. He was owning up to a mistake and planning to apologize to Spinelli. Even more, he seemed genuinely sorry for what he had done. Instead of asking if he had been abducted by aliens, she chose to answer his question. "Well, even you don't deserve to lose everything you've worked for when it's not your fault. Spinelli and I are working the malpractice case and there are a few things that don't add up. I'm actually starting to think you might have just been at the wrong place at the wrong time. Someone who is guilty of something that's yet to be determined is gonna let you take the fall."
He let his grin slide back to his face and took a step closer to her. It took a huge amount of effort for Maxie not to back up, though she didn't let it show. "This is good, Maxie. You believe in me. We're really making progress."
Using every bit of strength in her, Maxie pretended not to notice how close he was. "I think you're innocent. That doesn't mean I want to date you."
"Well, before you go ahead and reject me again, I have a suggestion for you. Try finding out something about me." She opened her mouth to comment and Matt lifted a hand, taking yet another step closer to her. "Wait. You don't even have to talk to me. You can follow me on Twitter. You might even learn something interesting."
Refusing to back down from what was so clearly a challenge, Maxie closed the final bit of space between them. "Ok, I'll follow you on Twitter. But that's about it."
"It's a start and I'll take what I can get." Matt gave her another smile, "I guess I'll see you the next time you want to indulge in… mutual attraction."
Choosing not to comment, Maxie merely walked away. She didn't look back, or she would've seen Dr. Hunter grinning stupidly and sighing as he watched her go.
My overall goal was to show that Matt's interested for real and that Maxie has thought about it. Did it work?? (Be gentle.) lol :D