This was supposed to be a oneshot that I was writing for VGCG (PreseatheKitsune), but it ended up being longer, so I split it into two chapters. Thus, instead of being a oneshot, it is a ficlet! (I love that word for some reason... ficlet... hehehe)
This is a story about how Derek and Angie introduce Markus and Val to the other important HT user...
...Dr. Kimishima...!
So instead of delaying this even more, I just decided to post the first chapter - the second one is giving me a really hard time for some reason, I'm not exactly sure why. But, it will be up soon.
Until then, hope you enjoy this!
"That was… exhausting…"
Markus Vaughn closed his eyes for a brief moment, allowing himself to relax. He had literally clenched every muscle in his body under the extreme pressure, feeling relief flood through him the second he was done.
The comment was met with a small chuckle from the man at his right, scribbling down something in front of him as he spoke.
"I know how you feel Dr. Vaughn – I still work up a sweat every time I try it…"
Derek Stiles smiled warmly at the younger surgeon before returning to his paperwork briefly to write down a few last minute things.
Markus had just finished with a new simulation created to help train doctors around the world in the treatment of Stigma. Produced by Victor Niguel, the head of R&D for Caduceus Japan, it needed just a bit more tweaking before being sent around the world…
…which was what brought Dr. Stiles and his nurse to America.
"I have to say though – it's still amazing to watch the Healing Touch in action…" the elder surgeon added with a genuine smile.
"Hey…"
Derek's conversation with Markus was cut short when the blonde next to him leaned herself against his shoulder, placing a hand on his arm as the other picked the clipboard up off of his lap.
"What's up?" Derek asked, turning to face his assistant Angie Thompson who was reading over his notes. Faces so close that their noses were nearly touching, the pair traded a few whispers, smiles and a giggle, before Derek reached over and added a few last minute notes to the paper.
And from further away, Valerie Blaylock watched the famous surgical duo, noting how…close, they looked to one another. Thoughts immediately skipped to that of her new boyfriend, still mainly focused on figuring out if Derek and Angie were a couple.
"Alright!" Derek chirped, clicking his pen shut and sitting back in his chair. "You did excellent work Dr. Vaughn – I see that you struggled just a bit when the GUILT came into play, but I feel it's necessary to make other doctors realize how brutal these pathogens can be."
"I agree completely, Dr. Stiles…" Markus replied, tired face cracking a small smile. "It's just been a long day, is all… I'm just glad its finally Val's turn."
Markus shoved the equipment across the table to his girlfriend, who sighed before taking a shot at it.
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Derek and Angie rose to their feet in the middle of Val's simulation, noting the amazing Healing Touch she possessed – one unlike anything they had ever seen. Both stood in awe as the Cheir and Kyriaki literally shredded the patient's insides, without even so much as a flicker in the vitals.
"Dammit…" Val muttered under her breath as her touch expired, sending vitals plummeting at an alarming rate. Though she had tried her best to rebound from the three pathogen attack in time, her efforts had ultimately failed, ending the simulation within just an arm's reach of its completion.
"Dr. Blaylock…" Derek started, writing some more statistics down on his sheet. "That was positively amazing…"
Val laughed out loud at Derek's comment. "Are you kidding – that was awful! I didn't even finish!"
"Whether or not you finished isn't the point – you have an amazing power at your disposal… I think its safe to say you very much impressed the both of us."
Derek nodded along with Angie's comment, placing his hand on the small of her back gently as he moved past her. Val again noted this act of affection, the wheels in her head conjuring up all sorts of explanations.
"Well…" Markus interjected, snapping Val out of her daydream once more. "Is there anything else that you needed from us, Dr. Stiles?"
Derek and Angie exchanged a glance, talking silently with their eyes and facial expressions. Both Markus and Val watched them confused before the pair finally turned to talk to them.
"Now that you mention it, there is one last thing…" Derek interjected, his carefree smile brightening the room. "But, I think it would be great if we could talk more about it over dinner."
"Ugh!" Markus exclaimed, throwing his head back with a laugh and a smile. "I thought you'd NEVER ask…!"
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"So, you'd like us to come with you to Caduceus Europe?"
Markus's question was met with a silent nod from Derek, who was working on swallowing a mouthful of food.
"There are some of the most experienced surgeons in the world over in Europe, and we would like to get input from them as well. Since you two are the leading surgeons against Stigma, it would help if you were there for instructional purposes."
"We've already discussed the matter with Director Quatro, who actually thinks it's a great idea." Angie added, stealing a bite off of Derek's plate.
Markus looked over at Val, who was still eyeing the pair. Unsuccessful in grabbing her attention by just staring at her, he nudged her a few times, finally breaking her out of her trance.
"Hmm?" she asked, watching as Markus turned slightly annoyed.
"I asked if you would like to go to Europe with Derek and Angie…"
"O-Oh…" Val muttered, suddenly smiling. "Sure! It sounds like it'll be a fun experience…"
"Then it's settled!" Derek exclaimed, smiling as he grabbed for his water. "We'll leave tomorrow morning."
Markus continued to stare at Val, her fake smile not good enough for him.
"Val… what's with you tonight?" Markus queried, watching Val slip into yet another trance.
"Hmm?"
"See, that's exactly what I'm talking about!" Markus exclaimed, watching as Val began to take notice. And from across the table, Derek and Angie were pretending not to be paying attention to the two – though they really were.
"What?!" Val asked. "I'm sorry, I've just been thinking about something… it's not important."
Markus grinned, nudging her repeatedly in the ribs. "Oh come on, just tell us!"
Val looked at Markus, his eyes full of curiosity – she knew he was loving every minute of this…
"Will it make things really awkward if I ask?"
Val pondered the answer to that for a moment, finally throwing caution to the wind.
"Forgive me if this is inappropriate…" she started, her cheeks warming slightly in her embarrassment. Derek and Angie looked on confused as Val turned her gaze toward them, unsuspecting that this had anything to do with them. Until…
"…are you two a couple?"
"Val!" Markus exclaimed, covering his face with his hand as the pair listened to Angie and Derek giggle. "I can't take you anywhere, can I?"
Markus tentatively lifted his gaze up toward the famous surgical duo, a sheepish look on his face as he bit his lower lip.
"You'll have to excuse her – she has this habit of asking things which are none of her business."
Angie and Derek were laughing slightly, very good sports about the question.
"Oh, it's alright Markus…" Angie started, a slight giggle still escaping her.
"Yeah, you wouldn't believe how many times we get asked that a day…" Derek explained, smiling back at Val and then turning towards Angie.
"I'm sorry… forget it – I shouldn't have said anything…" Val chuckled, cheeks now a brighter shade of pink.
"No, really…" Angie reassured, reaching for her purse. "It's okay! Derek's right – we literally get asked this every day. So much in fact, that we now have a standard answer we give every time."
Val watched as Angie took out her wallet, flipping it open as she reached across the table and flashed her I.D. right in front of the female surgeon's face.
"Angela Stiles…" Val said with a smile.
"Stiles?!" Markus said, watching as simultaneously, Derek and Angie held up their left hands and flashed the wedding rings to the other pair.
"Yep, she's a Stiles all right…" Derek said warmly, slipping an arm around his wife's shoulders.
"That's great for you guys…!" Markus added, finally joining in the conversation. "How long has it been?"
"It'll be six years in May…" Angie said, trading a warm smile with her husband.
"That's so great – I really had no idea though…" Val said, still smiling broadly.
"Yeah, unless it gets brought up, we really don't get it involved with work affairs… it tends to distract everyone for some reason…" Derek joked lightly to Val. "That's why Ang also goes by her maiden name – we figured it was easier that way. If people want to know, we tell them. If not, then we don't say a word. It keeps our two lives separate… Kind of."
"So, you still get asked a lot though, I assume?" Markus asked.
"SO many times…" Derek laughed, Angie nodding in agreement. "Most think it's the most adorable thing in the world for some reason… and others think that we have no business mixing work and personal life."
"To each his own, right?" asked Val, taking a sip of her water. "Well, I'm sorry for bringing it up… but thanks for being such good sports about it."
"Not a problem…" Angie said, a somewhat sinister grin sweeping her face. "Though you do know you have to tell us what's going on with the two of you…"
Derek just shook his head at his wife, chuckling as Markus and Val exchanged a look.
"Well it took awhile…" Markus started, sill exchanging smiles with Val. "But things finally happened for us…"
Angie and Derek smiled as Markus and Val began the story of how they came to be.
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"Oh my gosh, I didn't even notice how long we've been talking!" Angie exclaimed, catching a glance of the clock on the wall. The four had been talking about all aspects of life for hours, noticing that they were leaving for Europe in a short time.
Derek picked up the check and followed Markus, Val, and his wife out of the restaurant, standing outside to say goodbye.
"We'll come by your hotel in the morning to pick you up…" Markus said, programming Derek's number into his cell.
"Sounds great you two – thanks for a lovely evening!" Angie said, taking Derek's hand in her own as they walked to a waiting cab.
"See you tomorrow!" Val replied, beginning to walk down the sidewalk towards their car.
"I have been waiting for this moment all night…" Markus mused, slipping his arm around Val's waist as they walked.
"What's that?"
"To be able to spend time alone with you... never did I know until we started dating that I could miss someone while they were right by my side all day."
The end of that sentence was met with a kiss to Val's cheek, causing her to smile broadly.
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The next morning was very rushed, due to the fact that Markus and Val had fallen asleep together before they had packed for Europe. After running around in a hectic fashion, the two were surprisingly on time to pick up the Stiles' from their hotel downtown, driving immediately toward the airport.
Val and Angie got the opportunity to get to know each other very well during the flight to Europe, as the first thing both Derek and Markus had done upon boarding the flight was fall asleep. Angie told many stories of Derek hating flying, whether it was on their honeymoon, or the time they had performed surgery in mid flight.
"I wouldn't know what kind of a flyer Markus is – he's terrified of flying over bodies of water, so he takes a big dose of Ambien before boarding and just sleeps right through it."
The women traded giggles and hours more conversation, finally dragging their fatigued men off of the plane as it landed safely in Europe.
After a quick lunch and a long ride in the car that had been arranged for them, the four arrived at Caduceus Europe – a facility bigger than the spacious American branch.
Walking through the front doors, the first person that came into view was a blonde man with a large mustache. He was speaking with an army guard of some sort, reviewing papers and conversing.
"Oh dammit…" Derek muttered, immediately grabbing Angie by the arm and pulling her off and out of sight. Markus and Val quickly followed them confused.
"What's going on?" Val asked as her and Markus struggled to keep up with Derek and Angie's fast pace, now navigating a back hallway.
"That's Langston Miller, the director of Caduceus Europe – he doesn't know we're coming, and I don't want him to." Derek answered, throwing the words over his shoulder.
"Can I ask why?" Markus asked, stopping as the four waited for an elevator.
"It's really a long story, which we'll explain to you later… but he made some very bad decisions regarding GUILT in the past, one of which almost cost me my husband..." Angie began, visibly annoyed. "Then after continuing to make stupid decisions and insisting he had done nothing wrong, our director – Sidney Kasal – stopped talking to him, and now hates him."
"Oh wow… I had no idea…" Val said softly, following everyone onto the elevator as the doors opened.
"We limit our contact with this branch for that reason, mostly because we don't agree with the decisions he makes. But every time we have to come here, he corners us asking why Sidney won't return his phone calls…" Derek said, starting to chuckle. "Director Kasal does the best impression of his voicemails – it's almost like they had a date and Sidney never called him back… he always sounds heartbroken."
Angie and Derek traded a laugh as the elevator doors opened to the tenth floor, walking down the hall as Markus and Val followed them.
Arriving at an office at the end of the hallway, Derek stopped and turned around, looking at the American surgeons.
"This is Naomi Kimishima's office – she's one of the best surgeons out there… why she stays here, I'll never know…" Derek started, earning a nod in agreement from Angie. "She's really the only doctor we came to talk to about this, though there are others here that we are interested in surveying if we can do it sneakily enough… she doesn't even know we're coming."
Derek knocked on Naomi's door, hearing her tell him to come in. He swung open the door to see the silver haired surgeon sitting at her desk, her face brightening as she saw Derek and Angie, accompanied by two strangers.
"Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed, still seated with a surprised look on her face. "Whatever happened to calling people to let them know you're coming?!"
Derek and Angie laughed at her joke, walking into her office, followed by a timid Markus and Val.
"Oh, I'm sorry… Markus, Val, this is Naomi Kimishima, head surgeon of Caduceus Europe and very good friend of ours. Naomi, these are the two Stigma surgeons from the US branch."
"It's a great pleasure to meet you both…" she said, reaching her hand over her desk to shake their hands.
"Same to you, Dr. Kimishima…" Markus said, watching as Naomi's surprised expression stuck, turning back to Derek.
"So… Trying to fly under the Langston radar again, eh Stiles?" Naomi asked, knowing exactly why they hadn't called.
"Yeah, you caught us – we're really sorry we didn't call… but surprises are fun for everyone… right?" Derek replied with a laugh.
Naomi's face brightened even further as she sat back in her chair.
"Speaking of surprises… have I got a big one for the two of you…" she replied, leaving Derek and Angie to trade a glance with one another before their expressions turned to shock.
So yeah - I'll continue this just as soon as I work out all the stupid crap that's happening with the next chapter. (le sigh)
See you next chapter!