I'd first like to thank all of my reviewers! TCGeek, who is the best, for becoming my first reviewer!
Atlus © Derek, Angie, Adel, Sylvia, Angeles Bay, Trauma Center, etc.
OneRepublic © "Won't Stop"Pretty pointless, but not total fluff.
CAUTION: SPOILERS FOR TRAUMA CENTER : UTK 2! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
Enjoy!
That morning when she walked into their office, he smiled, "Good morning, Angie." It was like any other morning for the two at Caduceus.
She smiled back as she pushed back a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear and replied, "Good morning, Doctor." This made Derek frown. It took him years to get Angie to address him by his first name, and now she just casually switched back and forth.
His eyes started to plead with her. "It's Derek." He corrected. It wasn't often that he got to correct his ever amazing nurse. It felt somewhat awkward for him, but she just nodded. He handed her one of the coffees he had waiting for her at his desk. Derek inhaled the refreshing smell of the black drink as he brought it up to his mouth and took a large gulp. "Taste good?"
Over the years, he had perfected the art of making coffee for him and his assistant. She liked hers heavy with creamer and sugar, rather than him who liked it black. "Very," She answered him, "You know exactly how I like it." He grinned as he coolly walked over to her desk, where she was sitting. "Dr. Stiles, look at the time!" She suddenly exclaimed when she glanced at her watch. "We're running behind schedule!" Derek's eyes widened as the duo ran to prep for the O.R.
When Angie began her briefing of his next patient, he nodded as he listened. With an outstretched hand, he spoke, "Let's begin the operation!"
Just like any other morning…
"Well done, Dr. Stiles. Looks like he'll make a full recovery!" Angie said with a smile.
The two watched as their last patient for the day was wheeled off to recovery. Derek let out a sigh of relief; it looked like their day was finally over. "We're not on duty tonight, right?" He asked nervously. The only thing between him and his comfy bed at home was the graveyard shift. When she didn't reply, he began to get worried. Her face looked so grave, so serious—
However, it was broken by a small giggle when she replied, "Not tonight, Dr. Stiles. And you deserve a rest, that was six PGS patients."
PGS—Post GUILT Syndrome had been occurring here and there. There were just a few cases nowadays, and the surgery wasn't difficult with the serum that Victor had created earlier in the year. The only thing left to do was just eradicate that, and GUILT would be nothing more than a nightmare to scare children. While for Derek, the risk of medical terrorism still haunted him, knowing that you couldn't completely eliminate such a weapon.
Derek forced a weak smile. This fatigue would still eat at him until he got some sleep. Immediately, Angie noticed his wobbliness. "Derek, let me take you home. You look like you'll fall asleep at the wheel!"
The man chuckled softly as his eyes drooped, accepting the woman's offer. Angie walked him over to her white Chevy Malibu. He had carpooled with Angie very few times seeing as they both had cars of their own and she lived a good distance away. He opened the driver's door for Angie first, barely catching the red tint on her cheeks in the darkness, before he sat on her right side. When he asked about the blush, she replied, "I'm surprised that there are still gentlemen in the world. Thank you, Derek."
"It's nothing! But, thanks, Angie. I really might've fallen asleep. I'm so tired." He yawned, his gratefulness filling every word. She merely smiled slightly (she was quite tired too) as she started the engine.
Once Angie had dropped him off at his apartment, he found himself struggling to walk to his bedroom at the end of the hallway, finally settling for the couch in his living room. In front of him was a photo with Angie from Costigar. Around the time they began to visit different countries regularly, she switched to a blue uniform that showed that she had an International Nursing License. He was wearing a clean white scrub and a white lab coat. With Sylvia Warenburg, the counselor at Camp Zakara, the three of them were smiling.
Those days were very difficult, because there would be sudden attacks at the camp. His mind suddenly drifted to when Angie was held hostage by a child from the opposing tribe. It was a time where he felt as if he couldn't do anything, except watch the person he cared about most get her throat cut. Luckily Adel was from the Razun tribe as well, and could speak to the boy.
Adel Tulba, his apprentice, was an inexperienced doctor that joined them at the refugee camp. When he was caught up in the HOA, Derek was forced to operate on him once again, to take care of the Neo-GUILT in his body due to the enhancements that he had taken. After that dilemma, he was able to return to Zakara and treat more patients than before. Because of him, Derek was able to reevaluate why he wanted to become a doctor, and was able to get back on the right track thanks to Angie.
Derek smiled at the thought of his assistant, and she was the last thing he remembered as he drifted off into sleep.
That next morning, he found himself in another dilemma. How was he supposed to get to work without his car! He groaned in frustration as he looked for any surgical tools. Maybe he could break the lock on one of the cars and jump start it. Angie was definitely not going to be happy, Derek thought grimly. He could only hope that he wouldn't be subjected as target practice to her Aikido. The man found himself a seat on the curb as he waited for the bus to come by.
Then a loud horn woke him and half of his neighbors, as a familiar white car came into view. "Planning on skipping your paper work, Doctor?" She asked with a smirk, when she pulled up next to him. Derek couldn't help but smile at her as he entered the car, and they both headed to work. However, when they arrived together, the duo did not expect such an uproar.
Leslie Sears was the first to spot them, and began a loud screaming fit at the sight of them. "You finally got smart enough, Derek?" She said as she approached him. Derek was confused enough, as he walked next to Angie, getting approached by other coworkers. Dr. Clarks had given them a bright smile, and Tyler wouldn't stop pestering them with embarrassing questions.
"What is going on with them?" Angie finally exclaimed when the two had found peace and quiet in an empty on call room. They both collapsed on the bed.
The man next to her let out an exasperated sigh. Was this just some game of teasing everyone was playing on them? He never had to deal with something this bad, except for Dr. Meyers and Mary at Hope… "Calm down, Angie. It'll probably die down soon." They had very few patients today, luckily, and were able to steal away from the crowd.
She raised an eyebrow at him. "That's a lie, Dr. Stiles, and you know it." She added.
Derek chuckled nervously. "I thought I was hiding it pretty well too…" He said, embarrassed that he couldn't fool his assistant. At the same time, while his cheeks were stained pink, he was amazed at the fact she knew so much about him.
A smile appeared on her face, one that said, 'of course, I would'. "Don't underestimate me, Dr. Stiles."
There was a calm silence, but Derek felt nerved. It reminded him of the time when Dr. Meyers and Mary had watched over their conversation. It felt awkward and uncomfortable. "Uh, hey, Angie, do you wanna go outside now?"
"Okay." However, she wouldn't have minded to stay with him a bit longer.
The two stood up and peeked outside the door before exiting one at a time to avoid any further teasing. Derek crept back to his office, to get ready to go home, when he found Tyler Chase, just waiting for him to show up. The blonde smiled successfully as he hopped out of the couch and put a hand on his best friend's shoulder.
"Hey there, how's everything with Angie?"
Derek blushed furiously, his cheeks turning the darkest scarlet. "W-what are you talking about, Tyler?!" He shouted.
Tyler shook his head. "What? So there's been no progress at all? I would've thought that you had already confessed to the girl! Derek, just go and ask her for a date already! Everyone already knows that you like her." He was getting tired of waiting for his friend to understand his own feelings.
If it was possible, Derek turned an even darker shade of red. "T-Tyler!"
"Oh, c'mon, we're not teenagers. And it's not like you're asking her to do anything; it's just dinner."
Derek could understand where this was coming from. It was only dinner and perhaps a movie. Nothing bad at all. Derek smiled at Tyler as he grabbed his jacket and briefcase from his desk, before running out to catch Angie before she left. When he spotted her at the end of a hallway, he yelled out, "Want to go to dinner with me on Friday?" He wasn't sure if she had heard him, because she remained frozen in that same spot.
But soon the blonde turned around gracefully, like how she would always, when he was running after her. "Sure!" She shouted back at him, with a smile brighter than he had ever seen. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, but her eyes were shining.
Tomorrow they didn't have work, and tomorrow he would plan the most magnificent date for the most amazing girl Derek Stiles had ever met.
The next day…
Angie Thompson felt as if she was being transported from the time she was a teenager. Her stomach was filled with butterflies as she stared at her reflection, where Leslie was helping her with her hair. Cybil Kasal had done her make up before Leslie started on her hair. Earlier that day, the two women had come over to prepare her for her date. Now it looked like she had just exited a salon and had gotten a full-body make over.
"Derek will just love you!" Leslie commented, cheerfully. "We'll be leaving now, but be sure to give us all the details!"
It was the least Angie could do for them. They made her look like a princess. "Understood." She replied with fake seriousness. Both nurse and anesthesiologist went into their respective cars to return back to their homes. "Thanks, you two!" Angie called out after them.
Later that night when she heard a knock on her apartment door, her heart began to race as she stood from her seat in the living room. The door opened to reveal a neatly dressed looking man, her very own Derek Stiles.
He was smiling at her, holding out a bouquet of pink roses. This wasn't the first time she'd seen him dressed in a suit, but there was something much different about him this time. He was wearing black dress pants with a dark blue shirt and her favorite white tie. She was stunned to see that he remembered what she had said during their trip to Japan when he wore the tie at an awards ceremony; it was that or coincidence, but the first sounded better. His hair looked just trimmed, and it was easy to see that he had put a lot of effort.
When he didn't say anything for a moment, Angie immediately became worried she didn't like her new look. Her hair wasn't often curled into loose rings and she didn't often wear her midnight blue dress that exposed her small back. However, she thought it was a special night and apparently, so did he.
Suddenly, his smile turned even wider as he slowly began to blush, matching the color of the roses he bought. "Angie, you look beautiful." He whispered. He watched as she took the flowers he had brought and rushed to find a vase for them, so they could leave soon. She knew it would die eventually, but for this night, she wanted to preserve it for as long as possible. When she was ready to leave, he merely gave her another one of his kind smiles, before walking to her to his car. Like a gentleman he opened his door for her first, and then began the drive that started one of their most unforgettable memories.
Nearing their destination, Derek tied a blindfold around the woman's green eyes. She smiled, but didn't resist to Derek's relief. Then when he finally unraveled the black piece of cloth, Angie was stunned to see a table set out on a balcony overlooking the bay. It was breathtaking. The night was quiet, they were alone, separated by closed doors, and everything was lit by candlelight.
"Angie?" He asked, curiously when she didn't say anything.
"It's amazing, Derek. I can't believe you planned all of this in one day."
It really was a miracle he was able to pull it off, and luckily he didn't have a life where he needed to spend all of his paycheck. Getting a view like this had cost him a very, very pretty penny, and that was only for the balcony. He had to also pay for candles and private service. But when he saw the smile on her face, all of the stress of getting this done vanished.
He laughed modestly, putting his hand behind his head. "It's nothing. I'm just glad to see that you like it." Tyler had reassured him that what he was doing was going beyond amazing, but until he had seen her smile, he was nervous that she wouldn't like it. Even worse, that she would think of him as some sort of stalker and never want to work with him again!
Suddenly, her smile fell into something more serious. "Thank you, Derek." She was still gazing over the sea, not looking at him. She turned to look at him, her smile back, an even deeper meaning behind it. "This is truly the best date or gift or just dinner someone has ever given me. I won't ever forget this night for the rest of my life."
I could die right now, and I would be truly content.
Derek felt his throat close up. How was he supposed to respond? "Ang—" He started, but felt his lips shut, when he saw a waiter come and seat them as well as get their orders. The mood felt tense and heavy. He hadn't said anything since then.
"Thank you, sir. I'll get your order out immediately." The blonde waiter said as he took their menus and orders to the kitchen.
Music inside began to play on the outdoor speakers.
"Dance with me, Angie?" Derek said, as he stood up from his chair, extending his hand to her. That familiar smile he knew, appeared once more as she took a firm hold on him. They swayed to the soft music. It felt nice. It felt right.
Cause I swear it's you
I swear it's you
I swear it's you that I've waited for
I swear it's you
I swear it's you
"I swear it's you that my hearts beat for." He murmured softly into her ear, flowing with the song. Angie could feel her face turn hot, as she looked up at him, frozen at his words. He looked down at her with a serious face.
"Derek?" She said, a questioning look on her face.
And it ain't gonna stop
It just won't stop
"Angie," He whispered. His heart began to race. He hadn't realized what that he had sung to the song.
He hadn't realized what it meant. "Angie, I—"
"I mean it."
Those were the words she wanted to escape out of his mouth. She wanted to hear him say that it wasn't just some fluke that he happened to say the words that she wanted to hear most. Angie looked at him deeply with her bright green eyes.
"I'm sorry. That made things awkward, didn't it?" Derek said with a laugh, trying to recover for his mistake. Suddenly he regretted it. He felt a pang at his heart, when a brief look of hurt passed through the woman's face. "Angie? I'm sorry. I just want to enjoy a nice dinner with you." And hold you in my arms all night long, never letting go, is what Derek wanted to add, but he had already screwed up one too many times already tonight.
He watched as she forced a smile as she replied, "Of course, Derek."
They reseated themselves and fought past through a thick conversation during dinner, before Derek led her back to the car. He shoved his hands into his pockets, like he would with his lab coat and felt the smooth blindfold. Why hadn't he confessed! Now the whole dinner was ruined. Suddenly an idea flashed through his mind. He pulled out the black cloth and shielded the woman's eyes once more.
"Just give me half an hour, Angie. Then I'll drive you home. Please." Derek pleaded as if he was trying to save his own life.
"Okay, Derek. But, please, I'm tired." She stressed. It hurt knowing that he didn't love her back, and wanted this date to end as soon as possible.
Derek grinned, as he carefully sat her in his car. "Thank you, Angie." He whispered to her. He was giving himself one more chance and this time he wouldn't screw it up.
The second time, her blindfold fell, she was at the citywalk. Stores were lined up against the streets, while cars quickly passed by them. The glowing lights were a magnificent sight to see, but did not rival the one previous. "It'll be quick, I promise." Derek said honestly.
He took her to a clothing store and let her pick out any outfit she wanted. It was Leslie's dream for someone to do that for her, and here Angie was, living it. "Are you sure, Derek? I know that dinner must have cost you a fortune. I wouldn't want to impose further."
Rapidly, the man shook his head. "Excuse me," he called out to one of the workers, "Can you pick out an outfit for her? Something comfortable, perhaps?" The worker looked almost radiant when she saw what she had to work with. The employee grabbed Angie's hand as she pulled a quick outfit off the shelves and pushed her into a dressing room. When they found that it fit perfectly, Derek asked for her dress to be bagged, while she wore the clothes outside, and paid.
"Derek…" She whispered, furiously to him. How much money was he planning to spend?
A smile appeared on his face as he told her sternly, "I still have fifteen minutes, thanks to that lady. Now, I'm gonna use it until every second has past." There was a new type of confidence to him. It was just like during surgeries. He had the same confidence that couldn't be beat; the type of confidence that said he knew exactly what he was doing and that he was going to accomplish that task.
With another smile, Derek took her hand as he ran through the semi-crowded streets of Angeles Bay. Suddenly, Derek found himself grinning and laughing, inviting Angie to do the same. As the couple scouted more stores, Angie found something she would be willing to come back to. It was a bracelet, not plain, but not gaudy. When he saw the attention she paid to it, something in the back of his mind said this could mean something.
On an excuse, he bought himself more time, running back to the store before they closed and ordering the bracelet to be engraved with a message. The man at the counter was an elderly man that seemed to sympathize with Derek's cause, even though he had never even spoken a word. "Mr. Stiles, I'll have this out to you, before ten o'clock."
"Really?!" Derek said, stunned at the man's generosity. "Thank you!"
Later when he returned to his date, who was waiting at the park, Angie could tell something good happened and that he hadn't just gone to the bathroom. "Derek, if you spent even more money, I swear, I will pay back every cent you spent on me tonight."
"I can't waste my last few minutes arguing with you, Angie. I want to give you a night to remember." He said with hope in his eyes. Derek held out a box in front of her. "Here, my last gift to you, before I take you home."
"But I need it before 9:45. Is there any way?" Derek asked, begged even.
The old man shook his head. "I'm sorry, son. The person that normally engraves this is working on something else before this." Derek felt his heart sink, but his night of ideas didn't seem to stop. He found one more solution to his problem.
"What if… What if I engrave it myself? I'm a surgeon, I deal with things like this all the time."
Derek watched as the man pondered the idea for a bit before handing him a drill and the paid for bracelet. "Here you go. Please be sure to concentrate."
Concentrate, concentrate…
He felt time slow, as he quickly drilled in his words onto the gold. Once he was finished, the man looked in shock, stunned at his abilities. "Thank you very much. I appreciate this." Derek said behind his back as he ran to Angie.
When the box was opened, a look of surprise was on Angie's face. "W-what? The bracelet from the store?" Derek nodded slowly. He kept a close eye as she examined it carefully, finally catching the engraved words.
I swear it's you that my heart beats for.
It had taken almost the entire space, since the words were done unprofessionally. "I mean it. I'm not saying sorry this time." Derek said with a determined look. It was a side of Derek that she had seen on few occasions, but every single time, it made her heart race.
He embraced her cautiously, not knowing whether or not she felt the same way, only reassured by the return squeeze. When he loosened his grip, sure that she would never abandon his side, he planted a soft kiss on her cheek, leaving a trail of playful kisses as he found his way to her lips. Then their smiles disappeared into their kisses, and soon, their kisses disappeared off into the clear, black night.
Hey hey! This was a story to commemorate my completion of Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2!
But this is also dedicated to TCGeek, for being my first reviewer! YaY!
I am so tired right now, it's already midnight, so if there's any mistakes, I'll be sure to fix it next time 'round.
Oh, also, the title's pretty bad right now. The story's been kinda all over the place... haha...
So what ever happened to our disease fighting duo? Nobody knows... XD