Hey guys, hope you've had a good holiday. This is my first fan fiction, and the lucky fandom I've chosen is Casualty (everybody cheers :P).

This idea has been rolling around for a while and I like to write, so thought I'd get it out there. Please let me know if you think the characters don't sound right, though I will try to make it sound as convincing as possible.

Hope you enjoy...

This is set around a week or two after Series 26 Episode 17 – Duty of Care.


Under Duress

Lenny

He was met by the bright yellow walls of the newly refurbished reception and the anxious and tired faces of early morning shoppers, hunched over on the back to back rows of plastic seats, as he made his way to the staff room. Noel was dutifully explaining the arrangements for seeing patients to an elderly lady, taking phone calls and attempting to complete various administrative tasks, which were routinely punctuated by a quick wipe down of the desk. He obviously took pride in his work, and his work station, especially as he was one of the first faces patients saw when they came in. He was also a very slight gossip.

As Lenny walked past he could still feel a slight twinge from the nearly fully healed wound on the back of his leg. He often thought back to that particular afternoon and wondered if things could've gone differently; if he hadn't persuaded Frank to ignore the 'snug', if hadn't opened the door when all common sense (and Frank) had been screaming at him not to. He tossed that thought away. The ED was shiny and new again and things were crawling back to normal. No amount of 'what ifs' could change the past. That was something Lenny knew all too well.

If I didn't have an I.D badge on me, you couldn't tell I was a doctor, he mused and noticing gentle conversation behind him, he slowed slightly and turned his head. He smiled a greeting to Scarlett and Lloyd, also dressed casually.

"Ready for another day in the injury capital of England?" he joked wryly as they turned into a corridor, further into the department.

"I think we've been through enough in the past couple of months to handle WW3", Lloyd batted back, voice laced with sarcasm, glancing at Scarlett, who looked up from her magazine with a smile.

She quirked an eyebrow at him as they entered the staff room and headed towards their lockers, "Then why am I still nervous?"

Lloyd grinned, "You're always nervous"

"Am not!" she playfully hit him on the arm with her magazine.

"Now, now, I thought we were civilised adults by now?" Nick said, entering behind them sporting a navy suit, black briefcase and an amused smile.

"Morning Mr. J, are you liking your new ED?" Lenny asked Nick, as he removed his grey woollen jacket and put it in his locker beside his spare t-shirt.

"Of course, why wouldn't I be? Brand new ED, brand new start", Nick cast a cursory glance around the staff room, nodding with approval. It appeared larger and better suited to the needs of a busy emergency team.

Lenny took a quick look around the room too and said in a lowered tone, "Look Mr. Jordan, about that day in resus, one of our first patients, the guy with the leg laceration, I didn't mean -"

"I know, I know, I guess it was just hard losing the first patient so early on", he looked at Lenny, eyebrows raised, "But that doesn't mean you can't retain some decorum, okay Dr. Lyons?"

"Err, yeah of course, sorry", he nodded, fidgeting with his stethoscope and then turning to his locker to get out his scrubs.


Dylan

He had been lying in bed for around the last 15 minutes because he wasn't sure he could bring himself to face the ED yet again. The past few weeks had been challenging, to say the very least, and surprisingly not due to the patients.

It was as if with a glance people could just analyse him, make their own assumptions, and then proceed to gossip about them between themselves. He couldn't help but feel on edge every time he made eye contact with someone, never mind Sam. Samantha. He actually worked very well with her, they knew each other well enough to anticipate each other's next moves, making them a fluid and effective team in resus. But when the patient was being wheeled off and their minds began to wander again after being focussed on a task, the atmosphere would once again thicken.

He was sorry. Sorry that what he had said on the first day back had come out so... wrong. He just came out with the first thing to come to mind, just to, frankly, shut up the ever loquacious nurses. He didn't mean for the entire team to turn around and bathe him in an awkward silence. And for Sam to be standing there, face set in stone.

He hadn't been entirely miserable during their married life together, no, but during the stretches of time when she would storm out after an argument, or completely blank him and what he was trying to say to her – yes, he had been. They experienced oscillating highs and lows in their relationship, but he had always hoped that they would level out and diminish with time. He had been wrong – something he didn't like to admit, and he knew neither did she. But what they had needed was also something neither was fond of; a proper conversation about what was going on and where they were headed. Her leaving for Afghanistan didn't help, he had still thought they had a chance; he had a feeling she did too. They could handle the daily problems that walked through those irritating swinging doors at work; family conflicts, violent attacks, hell, even poisonous gas clouds, but never their own problems.

So it was easy to understand from that point of view that having their relationship made public knowledge made him feel more than a little exposed.

However there was no point in dwelling on the past. It's the now that matters, he thought as he swung his legs over the side of the bed, running a hand through his hair, and right now he really needed some coffee.


Lenny

"Toby Southfield, 12, possible fracture, cubicle 3", Tess handed him the kid's notes. He gave them a once over as he walked to Toby's bed, where the boy's mother was perched beside him, a picture of worry.

"Hi there, I'm Dr. Lyons", he nodded to the boy's mother, then looked at Toby, "Heard you took a tumble off your bike little man, want to tell me what that was about?" he asked as he began to inspect his left arm.

"I was going round a corner and I think my gears jammed or something. I was wearing my helmet and everything but this happened", he explained, seeming more upset by the poor performance of his bike than his injured arm.

His mother shook her head with disproval, "I tell him over and over again to be careful, never ride alone, don't go too fast, but does he listen? No - it's like talking to a brick wall."

Lenny grinned and finalised his conclusion: "Right, this looks like a relatively simple fracture – quite common in children, but we'll need to get an x-ray done to confirm it and find out if there's any further damage. I guess some things just can't be avoided, aye champ?" Toby stifled a grin from his mother.

"Nonsense Dr. Lyons", Jordan arrived just outside of the curtain followed by the newly appointed Dr. Kent. Lenny had exchanged a few words with the man so far but didn't really know him very well yet; he supposed he was going to get a chance to now, judging by Jordan's presence.

"You wouldn't mind if Dr. Kent here takes a look, would you? Maybe get a second opinion?" Kent gave a friendly smile to the boy and his mother.

"Why not?" Lenny replied, albeit reluctantly, "Though I doubt you'll find anything different to what I have" he took a step back to allow Kent to examine the boy's arm. He began gentle conversation with the boy while inspecting his arm.

"See you've got a Man U scarf – I'm an Arsenal guy myself"

"Arsenal? Man U could beat Arsenal any day of the week!" Toby smiled, matter-of-factly.

"You want a bet little man?" Kent laughed, before pausing.

"I may be wrong, but I think there might've been some buckling at the end of the bone. If there is, there's some simple treatment to help reshape it. It's much easier for it to happen to young bones because they haven't fully hardened yet, but it's important to get it dealt with so it grows properly", he explained to the boy's mother.

Jordan nodded his approval and glanced at Lenny.

"Yeah, that would've been more obvious on an x-ray", Lenny reasoned.

Kent agreed, "Definitely, we'll just pop into the x-ray room to take a look at your arm, and if you're lucky you'll get a plaster, how about that?"

Toby gave a grin. Lenny forced a smaller one as he straightened the patient notes.


Dylan

The blonde one looked at him again – Nurse Andrews, that's it. She glanced at Sam absent-mindedly, made the link in her head, and then glanced at him. Typical. This is exactly why he didn't want anyone to know. He hates the way people stare at him now, passing judgement on him for hiding his marriage away. But not just him. They look at Sam as if to say, "She could do so much better... How she puts up with him I don't know... It was probably a convenience marriage..."

He had never really cared what others thought of him. He would just get on with his job, go home, wake up and repeat the process. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy his job, he did. There was always something happening, always something to do, and if he was lucky, a new puzzle to solve. He even found himself making friends, well, acquaintances. He didn't socialize with anyone, banter with Big Mac and Nigel or joke with Lenny and Floyd. However there was a generally comfortable working atmosphere that didn't overlap with his personal life, which suited him just fine.

Though, he had built bridges with Zoe, something which still surprised him no end. She stuck up for him after a few (many) brushes with patients - and Jordan. She was smart, with a dry humour, and a casual disinterest which made him more comfortable around her. She didn't seem to find him too weird.

But of course, Sam had to open her mouth and now everyone knew about Mr and Mrs Keogh. Including Zoe. After he had lied to her face about being married.

During what they both believed were their last few minutes of life.

Damn.

And at that moment he had lost one of the only true friends he had made in a long time.

He was broken out of his reverie by Tess.

"Mr. Bolton, 57, came in complaining of chest pains and dizziness, suspected chest infection, cubicle 5", she listed, distributing the remaining roles with the ease that came with what Dylan assumed was many years of experience.

"You, Nurse..." he tried to inconspicuously read her badge, "...Conway, with me please", he said as he placed his stethoscope around his neck and turned towards cubicles.

"Right, okay", she fumbled with a pile of patient records on the counter and jogged round the desk to keep up with him. Somehow she didn't seem as calm and collected as Tess, which probably wasn't helped by the fact that he was the one calling her. His blunt and unpredictable manner seemed to have that effect on some people.

Mr. Bolton was a man of average build, average appearance and an easily diagnosable (and dull) chest infection, as noted by Tess. Boring.

"Right Mr. Bolton, I suggest you go home and try to ride this one out. A couple of days' bed rest, plenty of fluids, no marathons or other strenuous exercise. If it hasn't improved in three days then go see your GP."

Mr. Bolton looked affronted. "Why aren't you prescribing any antibiotics? This", he gestured to his chest erratically, "This has been bothering me for days, and you're not going to do anything about it?"

"No offense intended Mr. Bolton, but it should be common knowledge by now that antibiotics are not prescribed unless entirely necessary to prevent resistant bacteria from thriving in your chest cavity if the full cycle isn't completed. It's better in the long run to wait for your body to fight it off", and at the man's haughty silence, "are we done?", he paused to look up at Scarlett, who gave a quick nod, "Good, I would say 'See you next time', Mr. Bolton, but that wouldn't necessarily be a good thing, now would it?"


So... there we have it. Please review and let me know what you think.

Till next time,

Anxious Owl (^,^)