This is how I always saw the Trauma Center: Second Opinion level "Second Opinion" play out.
PLEASE DO NOT READ IT IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED THE WII VERSION OF TRAUMA CENTER. (I don't like to spoil peoples! x.x... This was written before I played it... Then I played it and was thoroughly disappointed that Derek and Angie didn't hook up. ;-; )
Okay, I'm a little shy about sharing this fanfic... but I really tried. Please treat it kindly.
Disclaimer!: Trauma Center and all related characters (c) Atlus and Nintendo.
(Although I wish I owned them... D )
A loud, hacking cough… that was never good at all. Especially not for the heart of Nurse Angie Thompson. And extra especially not when the one coughing was her colleague and sort of secret love interest, Derek Stiles.
"Dr. Stiles…?" she asked tentatively. "…Are you okay?" He nodded and wiped the sweat from his brow. She could tell something was wrong-- it's always been said that people have a sixth sense about loved ones… who ever said that was true. Any time that Derek had been under the weather in the past, she'd found out.
"Of course…" he said, wheezing slightly, "F-fine…" He sounded out of breath, "…need to… fin-finish up." As soon as the wound was healed and covered, the doctor reeled backward and was sent crashing to the floor.
"Doctor!" Angie shouted, "Somebody! Anybody!" She looked up to the observation room. "Dr. Kimishima! Help!" Holding her precious friend in her arms, she started to panic. "Derek…?!" Derek cursed under his breath as Angie cradled his body in her arms.
"I… damn it! I was too careless…! I should've…--ngh…!" His still-gloved hand shot to his chest, he balled his blood smeared scrubs up in his fist, turned his head and coughed violently. "…been more careful!" Shifting his hazing brown eyes to Naomi, then over to the panicking Angie, he established the fact that he was at a loss for words.
"Dr. Stiles," Naomi's professional tone cut through the panic and pain like a scalpel forced through the skin of a patient. "We need to check for chiral reaction," she grabbed some gloves off of the desk and put them on, "but there's no doubt in my mind that it's G.U.I.L.T. Are you ready? I will be operating on you. You'll surely die if you refuse my services."
"I accept your services, I have to live… because other people need me," Derek replied through his teeth, he curled his body slightly into Angie's and grasped her clothes, trying to conceal his pain. "Angie, you'll have to… assist Dr. Kimishima… okay?" Angie nodded as the silver haired woman reached down, grabbed Derek's arm and gently pulled him up off the ground. After he changed into a gown and was safely in a bed, Naomi turned to Angie.
"Nurse Thompson, I'd like to converse with Dr. Stiles. Alone."
Much to Angie's dismay, the chiral reaction came back positive. Her Derek was ill, her Derek was in pain. Her Derek had gangliated utrophin immuno latency toxin. "Derek" and "G.U.I.L.T" didn't belong in the same sentence, especially not when "operates on" didn't separate the two. The blonde nurse looked absolutely sick as she waited for the okay to return to the two conversing doctors. She could see their mouths moving through the door's glass window, but could hear no audio to go along with it. She could guess what they were talking about. The usual spiel about dangerous operations such as the one they'd be conducting. He might not wake up, he might not make it, if he does, he could be unwell for a few weeks… the normal chatter. She gasped, realizing the situation. Derek had chest pain… and from the look of the chiral reactions… there were two distinct patterns, he had G.U.I.L.Ts Kyriaki… and Paraskevi. Angie's hopes were almost completely shattered… Derek… he was doomed!
"Nurse Thompson, the patient is currently being tended to by our anesthesiologist, but he's still slightly conscious and requesting "Ang". Please, come quickly." Angie rushed to the russet haired man's side and gently took his hand.
"Angie… do your… best, okay?" Angie nodded. "Just…" he let out a bit of a whimper, but continued, "…forget… that I'm your… friend, okay?" He gave her a sleepy smile and squeezed her hand weakly as Naomi removed the glasses from his face. "Today, I'm… just your… patient…" Derek's hand went limp in hers and before her eyes, he slipped out of consciousness. Looking up toward Naomi, Angie's face hardened with determination.
"Dr. Kimishima. Let's save… this patient," she said, having trouble calling her best friend, secret love interest, and colleague 'this patient'. Handing Naomi the antibiotic gel and the scalpel, they got started. Naomi made her incision and got to work gently suturing the wounds on his heart. "D-doctor!" Angie stuttered, "Paraskevi…! You have to stop it with the surgical laser! Stun it, laser it's tail." Naomi did as instructed and kept suturing wounds created by those knife-tailed Kyriaki.
"I see… hmm… okay, there," Naomi said to herself, placing the first, small, dead, wormlike Paraskevi onto the tray provided.
"The chiral reaction decreased slightly," Angie said aloud, keeping her eye on her favorite doctor's vitals. But not enough to make much of a difference… She sighed slightly, trying to maintain her air of professionalism. You're going to make it, Derek. You have to… The heart rate monitor began to show an abnormality. She began to panic, "He's… he's flat lining!"
"Angie! I need the defibrillator, now!" Naomi barked, placing the paddles over an unwounded area, she tried desperately to shock him back to life. "Damn it, Stiles!" she exclaimed, listening to the heart rate monitor's constant, flat, tone. Angie was panicking on the inside, tears began to gather in her eyes.
"No… Derek, no…" she whispered softly, watching Naomi shock Derek once again. Relief washed over the pair as Derek's heart rate returned, "D-Derek…" Naomi's speed increased; Derek's vitals began to increase…! She was using her healing touch! She had to stop the Paraskevi from burrowing.
"Shit…" she grumbled to herself slightly, coming out of her healing touch mode. More Kyriaki. "Angie. Vital stabilizer syringe, now. I need to get his heart rate stable." Injecting the fast acting, green, fluid into his body, his heart rate began to stabilize. "There… got it. Here's the second and third Paraskevi." After an agonizing period of time, which seemed like forever to Angie, she was finally able to say,
"Chiral reaction is negative." And Naomi get down to suturing, gelling and bandaging the international treasure's wounds. "Operation complete. Now, that wasn't so hard…"
"…Is Derek going to be all right?" Naomi nodded. "Is Derek's heart--"
"He'll recover nicely." Angie breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank god…" Naomi frowned lightly as Angie wiped the tears from her eyes and took a look at her incapacitated partner.
"Why are you hiding your tears from the man? He deserves to know how strongly you feel for him. Don't you think so too?" Angie nodded. "You'll be the first person he'll want to see when he wakes up." Naomi left them in peace, and Angie sat by the unconscious Derek's bedside, gently stroking his hand reassuringly. Leaning in slightly, she felt his calming, warm breath upon her face. She never noticed how handsome he truly was, the glasses just seemed to complement his handsomeness. She just hoped that he'd wake up to put them on again. He seemed so peaceful, just lying there, sleeping, she sighed and wondered if he knew that she was constantly worried about him. He pushed himself so damn hard all the time! They always seemed to be working, him even more, what with that healing touch. After almost every operation he involved his talent in, he seemed to be completely wiped out, physically and mentally. Although he seemed tired and weak, he still managed to grin over at Angie and say, "Operation complete, great job, Angie!" After this… would she ever get to hear him say it again? Crossing her arms and leaning forward, on his stomach, she sighed.
"Oh… Derek… I don't know what I'll do if you don't wake up…" She started to drift off to sleep.
Derek shifted his weight slightly and groaned, his senses focusing on the pressure on his stomach. He could smell Angie, and hear her say, "You're going to be okay, Derek… because no disease is-" Opening his eyes slightly, he decided to make his conscious state known.
"…incurable…" he said, groggily, trying desperately to focus his horrible eyes. Angie's lime-tinted eyes widened, and she shot into an upright position in her seat.
"De-… Dr. Stiles!" She reached over, onto the table for his glasses and placed them in their rightful place upon the bridge of his nose. "You're… you're awake!"
"Well, I'm not dead…" he said, yawning slightly. "Operation complete; great job, Angie." He grinned sleepily. She smiled slightly as tears trickled down her cheeks. She leaned down and gently hugged him.
"I… was so worried…" she said, desperately holding herself back from complete hysteria. "Derek… please. Don't scare me like that!" Derek's grin faded to a happy smile.
"Angie…" he said gently, "Angie. C'mon… stop crying." Struggling to sit up, but finally achieving an upright position with the help of Angie, he pulled her into an embrace. "Angie, look at me," he commanded, and much to her dismay, letting go of her. "Hey… look at me." She tentatively looked up, the whites of her eyes had turned red from crying. "Do I look dead to you?" Angie shook her head. "Well then, stop crying, silly."
"It's… hey, I'm not silly…! Not for worrying about you…" she looked toward her feet, her grasp of Derek's hand tightening a bit. "I was just… scared of losing you. I still am."
"Angie… I- I lo-…" he stopped himself mid sentence, "I uh… I'll be fine." She pulled away from him.
"Derek… You don't understand…" she sighed under her breath, watching him try to push himself out of bed. He didn't get anywhere but the floor, on his knees. "And don't get out of bed!" Her expression changed from saddened anger to exasperation. "Ugh, why is it so hard having doctors as patients…?" He smiled to himself. He'd successfully changed the subject. "I'll help you up, but that's it… Mr. Change-the-subject." She decided to, metaphorically of course, hit him hard, where it hurts. "Then I'm going to get my favorite…" she glared a bit, "…steak."
"But… he-hey! Wait! That's my favorite!" he exclaimed as he was dumped back into bed. "Wait! Angie! You hate steak!" She walked into the hallway. She peeked her head back into the door,
"Derek…?" she asked, he noted her uncharacteristic timidity, and the way she averted her eyes.
"Yeah, Angie?" he replied, pulling up the covers a bit more.
"I- uh… want to congratulate you on… your… survival," she said, sounding hasty. "I'm… so relieved you're all right…"
"Oh. Uh… thanks, but I owe it to you and Dr. Kimishima," he said, messing with his fingers. She waved goodbye and walked down the hall. She couldn't tell him, at least not yet. She didn't want it to seem insincere… especially since he'd been so sick… her feelings could wait… at least until he was well.
Sitting in his bed, he smiled to himself. He'd failed to tell her how he really felt! But… he figured it was for the best, he didn't want her thinking that he loved her because he had just faced his own mortality. His feelings could wait… at least until this whole mess blew over.
"Hey! We're back!" Derek exclaimed, walking into the lounge, located in Caduceus USA, "And I could use a vacation…" Angie gave him a light slap to the back of his head, making a grin set itself upon his lips. "What? I could!"
"You just got back from overseas! Wasn't that enough of a vacation for you? You even got to sightsee a bit!" Angie retorted with a slight tinge of disbelief.
"But then I got sick, I even needed surgery! You were there… weren't you even crying a bit?" Tyler Chase, whom had just walked into the room was a bit taken aback to see Derek teasing and putting his arm around Angie.
"Yes, I was crying, god damn it, don't be so cruel; I was worried, you big jerk! Don't you know that I love you?" Tyler smirked lightly, deciding to make his presence known.
"Hey guys, good ta have ya back." Angie blushed lightly, having confessed her love not only to Derek, but Tyler as well. Derek, seeing the perfect opportunity present itself, whirled her around to face him and planted a kiss upon her lips.
Victor Niguel grumbled as he opened the door and saw something he'd always expected, "Oh geez." The reclusive genius ran an exasperated hand through his dusty colored locks. Can't you two be horny somewhere else?!"