Strange Little World

Half the week Eddie managed to get rid of Coop by either giving an excuse that he had to be somewhere else, or disappearing from the hospital completely. Because there was no doubt about it, Coop came into his private little office and wanted to eat lunch with him every day. He didn't hate the hotshot doctor, just got a little too annoyed with him at times. He laughed, more like all the time. But he was actually nice and far from boring. And Eddie's total reluctance to talk at first, steadily led to listening more clearly and talking little by little.

He felt bad for Coop sometimes, knew the reason he came to him so often. He was lonely, the nurses weren't too fond of him, hell they hated him. And he was kinda awkward to be around, freaking people out and giving off the persona of a self absorbed prick. But maybe that was a little too harsh. He did always bring the lunch, and he did always ask about his life. He wasn't such a narcissistic asshole as rumors spread around, not when you got to know him a little better.

More and more he hung around him, more and more he stayed put waiting for him to come with lunch for the two of them. If Coop ran into him in the morning and asked him, he would start saying yes more often than not. Because Fitch Cooper was starting to rub off on him. Maybe even starting to become sort of a friend. And could he unload this onto Jackie? No fucking way. Neither was he gonna go prancing about and letting his growing friendship with the doctor be known. Luckily he had his little office to hide in, luckily people who did notice, like Thor, Zoey, and Sam, didn't ask so he didn't need to tell.

He didn't want to think about the reason why he was becoming closer to Coop. Didn't want to admit it was because of his failings with Jackie, of her bullshit, of her perfect little family and her complicated pill absorbed life, of her little consideration and dwindling friendship with him. And if Jackie wanted to judge then fine, he just wanted her to know he had his needs too. A need for someone to talk to every once a while. And unfortunately, Coop was the only one who seemed to listen and who seemed to care.

He broke out of his thoughts and looked up from his paperwork as the door opened a little. Coop walked in carrying boxes of food and a couple cans of soda.

"Hey."

"Hey." Eddie put the paperwork he had been filling out down, and rolled back from the counter to give the doctor some room.

"Got Chinese. Let's see…"

"Again? We've had Chinese for the past two days, Coop."

He shrugged, "The line was too long at Quiznos."

"What about Thai?"

"It was too far of a walk. Look, if you don't want yours, I'll take it."

Eddie sighed and grabbed the white box out of his hand, "It's fine, just give it to me. There's no way you're eating my lunch. I'm starving."

He stretched his leg out to pull a chair over for him, "Just sit down and eat, I've got paperwork to fill out."

"Geesh, give a guy a break. I've been working four hours straight. I'm sick of all the nurses breathing down my neck and shoving forms in my face."

Eddie laughed as the doctor collapsed onto a chair across from him, popping open a can of soda and handing it to Eddie while he popped the other one open.

"What?"

"You really gotta lighten up."

Coop frowned and started picking at his food with the chopsticks, "No, I don't. Nurses are supposed to be the ones who lighten up patients faces, who bring flowers and lollipops and all that shit."

He shoved a bunch of noodles in his mouth and chewed on them frantically, lost in thought and it amused Eddie to see him look so distraught. Amused him enough to forget about his lunch for a few moments.

He laughed again, "Guess Jackie should be a doctor then."

"Jackie, Coop said astounded, Jackie? Don't even get me started on that topic."

Eddie rolled his eyes, wondering why the hell he even brought her up. It had been bad when Coop had had a crush on her, and now it was even worse that he hated her. Eddie wasn't planning on him to shut up anytime soon for him to get a word in, or even to change the subject to something Coop wouldn't complain about. He had no one to blame but himself for even allowing the doctor to sit with him in the first place. Time to suck it up and deal.

"Okay, so first she criticized my tweets. And that right there, is a total breach of personal space. I mean, when she's insults them she insults me. Considering it's my life, right? And another thing, she has nothing, nothing but countless insults for me. I'm the doctor and she's the nurse and she acts like she's my superior. Where the hell does she get off? I know she doesn't act that way towards you. It's just me, telling me when and how to do my job and probably thinking she should just do it herself. She needs to back off and stop pushing my buttons."

Coop got so riled up that his chopstick floated out of the box and pointed at Eddie over and over like accusing little fingers. Accusing little fingers that he really didn't appreciate.

"Just put the chopsticks down, Rambo."

"Do you get where I'm coming from? Eddie, you're the only person I can count on in this damn place."

Eddie nodded reassuringly, hopefully to shut him up, "Just put em back in the box and eat your food. You're making me depressed."

Coop stuck them back into the box and pulled them back out to examine a piece of chicken, "Does this look fresh to you?"

Eddie merely shrugged and continued eating, "Don't ask me. You're the one who brought me this masterpiece."

Coop sighed and threw his box in the trash. Eddie glanced up at him, realizing today was one of those days where he would have to push for answers. If he didn't, Coop would sulk and he'd be damned if he could handle that.

"What?"

"I was just thinking about this patient I had today. Swallowed three forks and I just thought about them cutting up his insides and all that."

"Hey! I'm eating!"

The doctor merely ignored him and continued talking. Eddie, his lunch officially ruined thanks to that vivid image, threw his half-eaten lunch in the trash on top of Coop's. He leaned back in his chair and decided to listen, cause what the hell else did he have to do besides paperwork?

"I just couldn't focus. I mean, I never think about stuff like that. It was weird and I'm just not on top of my game today or something. That's why I had to vanish and get in here before I lost it completely."

Coop looked up at Eddie worriedly, "Do you think this is normal? Or will I think about stuff like that from now on?"

"I don't know. Don't look at me, I'm not a doctor."

Coop suddenly appeared to be the most depressed he had ever seen him. He put his head in his hands and started pulling on his hair a little, stressed and confused.

"Shit, he mumbled, I can't work like that. I had to give it over to O'Hara. O'Hara, of all people. I'm supposed to be the perfect image of a doctor in this city, I'm not supposed to break down and cry like a baby in the pharmacists office."

Eddie suddenly felt bad, and instead of saying something, cause he really didn't have anything to say, he hesitantly put a hand on the doctor's shoulder, very lightly. He was instantly rewarded, or cursed, with a huge hug. How did Coop even move that fast?

"Hey! Coop, come on, get off of me."

He could breathe fine, that wasn't the problem, it was just beyond awkward.

"Thanks Eddie. You know, you always make me feel better. And I really needed that."

Eddie just stood there, letting Fitch Cooper hug him, not bothering to struggle. What had he even done? If anything, he was the one being comforted. After a year or so, he finally pulled away and smiled at Eddie, sitting back down in his chair.

"Thanks again, buddy."

Eddie tried to act all natural, despite the fact that he was shaking all over, trying to get rid of that weird sensation of being hugged by a pretty disturbing and potentially psychotic doctor.

"No problem. Let's just, get back to normal now."

Coop nodded enthusiastically, "Sure thing."

The door flew open before it could get any more awkward. Zoey burst in, dressed in her girly pink nurses' outfit meant to cheer the lives of patients, and looked at the two of them. If anything, Zoey was making it even more awkward. Either she was waiting for someone to say something, or trying to remember why she had come into his humble abode in the first place.

Eddie took the plunge, "How can I help you, Zoey?"

"Oh. I was uh…, she glanced around briefly before turning back to the both of them, I was wondering where Jackie is. A patient uh, needs her and well, I thought she would be in here with you. Not like with you, but uh, you know, just needing you for something. Or, just here to get drugs…, she hesitated, for a patient."

Eddie just smiled and pretended not to notice the angry look on Coop's face, and how very very awkward and fucked up Zoey had just made the situation. He wanted to throw everyone out and die in peace behind the walls of his little pharmacy. But more than often, especially lately, he didn't get what he wanted.

"Haven't seen her, Zoey. Check the chapel."

The young nurse lingered for another moment, before nodding and closing the door softly behind her. Eddie didn't even have a moment to collect himself before the doctor was on him again.

Coop turned to him, "See what I mean, the nurses treat her like a god around here."

"Goddess."

"What?"

"Gods are males."

"Who gives a fuck about that?"

Eddie shrugged, "I do."

As far as he was concerned, he needed a break. He was sick of hearing about Jackie, Coop, and all of their problems. What about Eddie? What about Eddie's problems?

"Coop, I got work that needs to be done."

He immediately stood up, "Say no more. I'll catch you on the flip side."

Never again. Those words just weren't made to come out of Fitch Cooper's mouth.

The door opened and closed again, leaving Eddie happily alone in his strange little world of narcissistic doctors, nurses that came in every color and personality, and endless shelves of papers and pills that the latter he should have every right to consume.

Maybe Coop would grow on him. Then again, maybe not.

FIN