A/N: This fic was conceived while talking on the phone about a private message we'd received; it was completely random, but sometimes some of the best fics just pop out of nowhere. This is more of a prolouge and will get much Housier later on. We will continue, but only if you like it.
Disclaimer: We -really- do not own House. Not even one little syringe.
Written by Hadley AND Marie, the Bloody Koalas.
"So, Miss, how are you doing today?" The nurse's nametag had a slight glare, but Anna Curtin could make out the barley legible name. She smiled back at the kind nurse whose hair seemed to be graying.
"Just fine, actually, Nurse Brenda!" The nurse smiled back, and Anna tried not to flinch as Brenda took her arm and began to stick the needle into her swollen vein. Brenda noticed her discomfort. She looked at the young women with concern.
"Are you alright?" Brenda placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm fine. I've been giving blood for a long time now; I should really be used to this." Anna was surprised at the discomfort in her arm, which seemed to be growing. It had never hurt like this before. She shrugged it off, and tried to situate herself in a comfortable position on the metal gurney she was lying on.
"I'll get you some juice, honey; I'll be right back." Brenda smiled kindly at Anna before she turned away to fetch the juice.
"Thank you," Anna called out weakly, to Brenda's turned back.
Anna laid back and tried to relax. She breathed in and out, deeply looking around the room, casually, desperately trying to ignore the searing pain in her arms. She focused on all of the posters plastered on the walls, most of which read, 'Give Blood Today' or 'Save a Life Now'. Suddenly a sharp burst of pain pulled her out of her reverie, making her gasp. She clawed at her sweater sleeve trying to pull it up to see her skin. The fabric ripped as she yanked the indigo sleeve off of her arm. Dark red hives were scattered across and up her arm, perhaps her whole body. Anna tried to control her frantic breathing. What on earth was happening to her? She tried to call for Nurse Brenda as she ripped the transfusion needle out of her arm. Blood spurted from the open vein as the needle was roughly pulled out.
Anna staggered to her feet, slipping in puddles of her own blood as she scrambled to the door. One step at a time, almost there, then she fell to the floor as a sharp pain grew in her abdomen. She lay there gasping, tears streaming down her face. Her vision blurred, and it seemed as though she was looking through a tunnel. She opened her mouth and must have resembled a fish out of water as her mouth opened wide and shut spasmodically; her lungs needed air, now! Anna started seizing on the floor, still attempting to scream for the help she knew would arrive too late.Please, just make the pain STOP! Her seizuresended as quickly as they had begun,yet her body wasslowly giving up the fight for life. All was silent in the clinic room as Anna Curtin let out one last strangled gasp before falling deathly still. Her eyes stared up at the ceiling of clinic room number three, expression frozen in pure agony, her last desperate call for help falling upon dead ears, to be frozen forever onto her blue lips.
Brenda returned to clinic room. She juggled the multiple cups of juice as she tried to open the door.
A smile lit her face. "Well, sweetie, here I am…" the comment slowly trailed off as Brenda beheld the horrific scene before her. The glasses dropped, shattering upon impact with the ground and mixing with Anna Curtin's blood, as Brenda let out an ear- splitting scream. What the hell had happened? Curious clinic patients and doctors alike flooded the room, surrounding a very pale Brenda. Hushed gasps, whispers, and shouts filled the air as they beheld the gruesome sight. A tall, very pale doctor stepped toward Anna's motionless body. Shakily, he held his fingers to her still-warm neck, anxiously searching for a pulse. He looked toward the crowd. "She's… dead."
Brenda, who seemed to have regained her cool, shook her head in despair. Her eyes filled with tears as she examined Anna's mangled and swollen body. "But...how?" The comment received silence. How had this happened? How had Anna died?
A/N: If you like it, we'll continue...