Disclaimer: These characters are not mine and no infringement upon Atlus is intended.
A/N: So, I haven't written anything on FanFiction for a while. Read my older stories if you wish, keeping in mind that they were written long ago. Anyway, my HoneyBun turned me on to the Trauma Team game this past Christmas and now I am hooked. This has been niggling around in my head for a bit and I finally found time to work on it. Hopefully I have stayed true to the characters. I plan for this to be a long multi-chapter fic, so while I have some of my own, more are always appreciated and credit is always given. Constructive criticism is always wanted and thanks for reading!
The Road to Recovery
"Mmph," emitted from the formerly sleeping Naomi's mouth as her eyelids began to painfully creak open
Where am I? This isn't my bed…this isn't my house. What…Naomi's mind was reeling as she strove to catch up to her current situation.
"Oh! You're awake. How are you feeling," Tomoe asked, rising from her vigil in the cold and strangely uncomfortable chair.
"Tomoe? Where am I? What happened?"
"You collapsed outside of Alyssa's room. CR-S01 operated along with Maria. The Rosalia virus mutated your genetic disease, causing it to attack your heart. CR was able to remove the disease from your body completely," Tomoe said as she helped the patient to sit up.
Naomi looked at Tomoe, fearful and uncertain. "Completely?"
"CR will be coming in soon to explain it all to you but from what I understand, yes. In fact, I should go and alert him that you are awake. Will you be okay by yourself or should I send for a nurse?"
"No," Naomi answered somewhat shakily. "No, I'll be fine. Thank you"
"Being attentive is the path of honor. I shall go and fetch him then." Tomoe bowed and Naomi listened to her shoes briskly click down the hallway. As the sound receded, she released a deep breath and leaned back further into her pillows, closing her eyes.
So relaxed was she that she failed to hear the soft pitter of little feet on the tiled floor or see the small child's head poke around the doorjamb.
"Naomi," a familiar voice queried. Naomi's eyes popped open. "Are you still sleeping? Because I'm not supposed to be in here if you are but I really want to be in here so please don't be sleeping."
The new mother smiled. "No Alyssa I'm awa…" Alyssa's face lit up and she made a running leap onto the hospital bed. "Yay! Naomi I missed you. They wouldn't let me come see you or talk to you or anything! Are you hurt or sick? Because I don't want you to go away from me again. I want to be here, right next to you." By this time tears were rolling freely down Naomi's face.
"Naomi, why are you crying? Did I upset you? I didn't mean to upset you!" Naomi chuckled slightly and motioned for Alyssa to come and sit up next to her at the head of the bed. Once she came near enough, Naomi gathered her up into her arms and hugged her for all of her worth. "No Alyssa, you didn't upset me. You just made me very happy. I'm glad that you want to stay with me because I want to stay with you. I'm not going away for a very long time." Alyssa snuggled deeper. "Good. Because I won't let you." Naomi smiled, closed her eyes, and rested her cheek on the little girl's head, reveling in the feeling.
This is the sight that greeted CR-S01 as he walked into the room inform Naomi on the surgery and her condition. Something stirred in the pit of his stomach, but he could not identify it and so put it out of his mind to focus on the task at hand. He cleared his throat softly, hoping to avoid waking the child. Naomi stirred and blearily focused her eyes on the young doctor.
"How are you feeling, Dr. Kimishima," CR softly inquired.
"Very weak and tired, but much better than I expected Doctor. They tell me you are the one who operated on me. Thank you."
CR shook his head. "It is my duty to treat all who need my help. You were very lucky. When the Rosalia infected your body it absorbed your genetic condition and mutated into a more powerful form of the disease, one that was almost parasitic. It had centered around your heart. You are very fortunate that you were at the hospital when your attack occurred. If we had not been able to target the infection when we did, you probably would not have lived. However, we were able to completely extricate the disease. While your heart's performance may not return completely to where it was previously, you should be able to live a full life free of any relapses or major complications." He gave her what she guessed was a smile—on his stiff neutral face it was hard to tell – while she nodded gravely in understanding. "We would like to keep you here for two more nights or so just to run some tests and keep an eye on you, and then you can go home to recuperate."
A thought occurred to Naomi. "When can I return to work?"
Depending on your rehabilitation progress, I would say you can return to the office part-time in about a month, full-time in two to three months, and the field in four to six."
For the first time in the conversation, Naomi looked alarmed. No work at all for an entire month? What on earth am I to do then? I am not the type to sit at home and knit. She decided to hold her piece for now and renegotiate later on, despite her previous knowledge of the medical field and consequences of procedures such as these.
CR continued on oblivious to his patient's reaction. "For now I recommend getting some rest. You will most likely have visitors later and a nurse will come by in an hour or two to check on you. Would you like me to request a bed for the little one?" Naomi looked down at her sleeping charge and smiled. "No, she is fine where she is. There is no need to disturb her." CR gave one final nod and turned on his heel to check on another patient on the ward. As he strolled out the door he ran headlong into a frantic-looking FBI agent.
"Have you seen a little girl with brown hair, about this tall," he wheezed, pointing to a bit above his waist, "With bandages?" Before CR could reply, Naomi called out, "Little Guy? Is that you?" The agent froze, deer-in-the-headlights eyes giving him an even more distraught quality. CR stepped around him to go check on other patients, exposing him to Naomi's full line of sight. The sight that met him as he walked towards her gave him such relief that he all but crumpled into the abandoned chair by her bedside, like a marionette whose strings had just been cut.
"You had me so worried," Little Guy exclaimed. Naomi smirked.
"Well, as you can see, I'm fine." Little Guy looked up at her face in surprise.
"Not you…w-well yes you, but also…she…Alyssa. One minute she was sound asleep, I come back from the bathroom, and she's gone! I've been looking for her for the past hour and a half."
Naomi giggled slightly and winced at the pain that brought her. "Shh, she just fell asleep. This all was just as trying and exhausting to her, poor thing."
Little Guy lowered his voice to a whisper. "Her? What about me?"
"You're a grown man Little Guy. I'd be disappointed if you didn't have any more stamina than this," Naomi replied with a wicked grin. The teasing was just too easy.
"B-b-but she, and you…I didn't…*sigh*"
They sat quietly for a moment, she in weariness, he in exasperation. He looked up at her face again. "How are you, really?"
She opened her mouth to give the standard reply and paused. The look on his face told her that, despite her lackluster people skills, the standard reply would be neither appropriate not appreciated. "I-I don't know, honestly. Still in shock, I suppose. I just can't believe that it's all truly over. I have this life in front of me that I never anticipated and not a clue what to do with it." Hysteria was beginning to creep into her voice. "What do I do, Little Guy? What am I supposed to…"
"Shhh," he soothed, grabbing the hand nearest to him. She never noticed how strong and steady his hands were. He could have been a surgeon with those hands. "We'll figure it out, one step at a time."
She took a breath. "We will?"
He nodded firmly. "We will." She nodded in reply, albeit less surely, and once again settled back into her pillows as her eyelids began to descend. He smiled as he took it in: Naomi's left arm encircling the sleeping child nestled next to her on the hospital bed. He knew now that he was meant to be a protector, no matter what had happened in his past or what would happen in his future. He would protect Naomi and Alyssa's rest for as long as possible.
A/N: So here we go! Hopefully I will get a chapter uploaded by the end of the weekend. After that it will probably be about once a week, as I am a college student and mid-terms are only around the corner. I'm thinking on first names for Little Guy and I have one in mind, but I'm not quite sure. Suggestions?