The Bicycle Thief
Disclaimer: Sadly, I own neither Saving Hope nor Daniel Gillies.
Pairing: Joel & Alex (or if you prefer) Alex & Joel.
Rating: T
Summary: An incident in the E.R. takes Joel on a trip down memory lane.
It was a beautiful summer day in early August when Joel strode into the E.R to answer Zack's page.
Alex had the morning off but he'd see her later.
She probably took the kids to school and daycare this morning and is either running or riding her bike.
The same one he'd paid that kid to steal all those years ago just so he could give her a ride home.
It was the best fifty bucks he ever spent.
All those years of history together.
Four years of marriage.
Three children.
Joel thought to himself with a smile.
"What've we got Zack?" Joel asked pulling on a trauma gown and gloves over his scrubs.
"MVA. SUV versus a female pedestrian on a bike…."
Zack was about to go on but Joel interrupted him before he could continue.
"What are the injuries?"
"Open tibia/fibula fracture of the right leg, dislocated left shoulder, abdominal hematoma from when she went over the handlebars, and multiple lacerations and contusions…"
"Nice. Is she conscious?" Joel asked, smiling, about to pull back the curtain where the patient was waiting.
"Yeah…But hey listen Joel…" Zack tried again.
"She's still conscious with all those injuries? That's amazing. She must be in a lot of pain. Since Alex isn't here let's put Reycraft on standby in case it's a ruptured spleen."
Zack nodded. "Yeah. Okay. But Joel…"
Joel glanced at Zack, "We're about to go into a trauma here. Head in the game, mate."
The smile disappeared from Joel's face the moment he saw the familiar face of his patient.
Alex.
Just one look at her face told him how much pain she was in but in spite of it she looked from Joel to Zack and back again.
"Zack, why didn't you tell him?" She whispered through gritted teeth.
Zack shrugged, "Sorry Alex, I tried but he wouldn't even let me get a word in."
Then Zack looked at Joel, "I tried to warn you, man."
Alex gave him a half smile, "That's okay, Zack. Thanks for trying."
Seconds later, Joel was at her side, "I'll get you started on a morphine pump for the pain, love. Then I'll reset your leg and pop your shoulder back in. I've been here soon if I'd known…"
Alex shook her head, "Joel, baby it's okay. You're here now. I'm just glad I didn't have the kids with me when it happened. The car just swerved onto the trail. I didn't have time to move out of the way."
Her breath caught in her throat as the pain threatened to swallow her whole.
Malanda appeared beside Joel with the morphine pump, and Alex barely felt the stick as her best friend stuck the I.V. in the crook of her arm.
"Thanks Mal," Alex whispered, her eyes never leaving Joel's. "Would you help Joel reset my leg?"
Malanda nodded without hesitation, and she felt Joel's hand above her knee and Malanda's hand below it.
"Nice legs, Reid," Joel whispered, caressing her thigh.
Alex smiled, as Joel turned to Malanda, "We'll put back on three. I'm sorry Alex. This is still going hurt a lot."
She took a deep breath and listened to the familiar comforting sound of Joel's voice as he counted, "One…two…three."
Pain radiated up and down her leg as she heard the bones snapping back into place and she couldn't fight the scream that burst from her throat.
"I'm sorry love. I'm so sorry. I know it hurts." Joel whispered his voice suddenly against the shell of her ear.
"Joel, hold my hand, please."
"You got it," Joel replied, tucking a loose strand of her dark hair behind her ear even as he glanced at the deep cut across her forehead that was still gushing blood.
"Jesus, Alex, you're bleeding." Joel said, turning away from her for a moment to bark orders in that sexy voice of his. "Can I get five mikes of lidocaine and a suture kit over here, please?"
God, I love it when he takes charge.
It turns me on.
"Okay Reid, I need you to stay very still." Joel said, caressing the side of her face with one hand and opening the suture kit with the other. "How's your pain?" He asked as he began to stitch up her forehead.
"It's better." She replied, a little too quickly, letting him know without saying it that she was still in a great deal of pain.
"Uh huh." Joel said looking up from his suturing for a moment to meet his wife's gaze, "Now I know why you're so bad at poker. I'm sorry you're hurting."
"Joel, baby don't apologize it's not your fault. It's mine I should've been paying closer attention."
"It is not your fault that a car hit you and knocked you off your bike. Do you hear me, Alex Reid?"
Alex nodded almost imperceptibly as her husband finished suturing her wound, bandaged it, and kissed her forehead for good measure.
"If you want to blame someone blame the driver who hit you? Did they at least ticket them?"
"I don't know. I was pretty out of it for a while." Alex admitted.
"Okay, love let me pop that shoulder back in all right?" Without waiting for her reply he braced her shoulder and kissed the back of her neck, sending shivers of desire down her spine to distract her from the pain as he fixed her shoulder with a barely audible pop.
"Thank you, Dr. Goran. That's twice that you've done that now." She said softly.
He knew she was referring to the time she was referring to the time when she was attacked by an agitated patient in the E.R. and Joel had to relocate her shoulder then as well.
"Yes ma'am. You're quite right, Dr. Reid," He answered, gently letting go of her arm and placing it by her side.
"Better?" He asked, still not letting go of her hand, "You know for a doctor you really are accident prone Alex."
"Oh shut up, Joel." She said, hitting him lightly in the arm and then drawing back and wincing in pain.
"Alex? What is it, love? What hurts?" He asked, all traces of humor had vanished from both his voice and his expression.
"It's nothing. Probably the hematoma from when I went over the handlebars. Just give me an ice pack and I'll be good as new."
Joel gave her a skeptical look, "Reid, I just reset your leg and your shoulder. I should put you in a cast, a sling, and maybe a plastic bubble to keep you in one piece. You won't be good as new for a few weeks at least."
"Joel baby, I'm…"
The last word caught in her throat as she was overcome by pain.
"You were saying, Reid? Lie back and lift up your shirt for me."
Alex complied and couldn't help but smile.
"Now ordinarily slipping my hand under your shirt would be an irrefutable turn on." Joel whispered, kissing her softly on the mouth.
"For me, too." She replied through gritted teeth.
Joel smiled, but his expression turned completely professional once more as he looked at Alex's injuries.
There was indeed a large hematoma just beneath her shirt that would probably have to be drained of blood in the O.R.
But what concerned him most was the way her abdomen felt beneath his fingers.
Damn it.
That explains why she'd been in so much pain.
It hadn't been the open tibia/fibula fracture.
Or the dislocated shoulder.
The source of her pain was most likely a ruptured spleen.
"Your abdomen's rigid. We don't have time to do an ultrasound but I'll bet you a dirty weekend it's full of fluid. We've got to get you to the O.R. right now. Somebody get Reycraft in here please?"
Joel shouted across the room all decorum and politeness forgotten.
Alex grabbed Joel's hand as he watched her beautiful blue eyes dance back and forth in panic.
"Joel, baby, please don't leave me." She whispered, holding onto him even tighter.
Never.
I'll never leave you.
I love you.
Joel shook his head, "Alex, I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to scrub in. I'll be right there with you the whole time."
"You promise?" She asked, pressing her lips against the mole behind his ear, hoping to distract him so he wouldn't notice her body quaking with fear.
"I promise." He replied.
"Dirty weekend." She whispered in his ear before he pulled away to go and scrub.
Alex Reid, you saucy minx.
I love you.
By the time Reycraft appeared to take Alex to the O.R, Joel had already scrubbed and was waiting by her side.
"Okay. Let's get this party started people." Reycraft looked surprised when he caught sight of Joel.
"Dr. Goran, you're scrubbing in?" He asked, uncertainly.
But it was Alex who answered, "Don't worry Reycraft. It's your surgery. Joel's just here for moral support."
Reycraft nodded, and it was only then that Joel spoke up. "Don't screw this up. That's my wife."
"Yes sir." Reycraft said with yet another nod before he and Joel steered the gurney toward the elevator.
"Joel, Charlotte gets out of preschool at twelve thirty this afternoon."
This time it was Joel who nodded, "I know love. I'll go get her. Don't worry."
"And Luke's bus gets to the house between two forty-five and three so one of us is going to have to be there…"
Joel leaned down and pulled his mask away from his face for a moment, stopping her nervous rant with a kiss.
She's such an amazing mother.
Even minutes before she has major surgery she's worried about our kids.
"Alex Reid, wife of mine, love of my life, you're about to have surgery, perhaps now isn't the best time to go over the kids' daily routine."
"I know Joel. But just in case…"
He met her eyes from behind his surgical mask, "You're going to be fine. Do you hear me, Alex Reid?"
Alex nodded just once wishing in that moment that she could kiss him.
"I love you, Doctor Goran. Thank you for staying with me." Alex said softly, exhaling deeply as she spoke.
"My pleasure Doctor Reid. And I love you, too. Now lie back and relax. I know you'll still look like a million bucks without your spleen."
Alex laughed out loud, shivering as they entered the cold sterile environment of the O.R. Joel glanced at the scrub nurse and gave her his most charming Joel Goran grin.
"Can we get a warm blanket over here please?"
Seconds Alex was no longer cold as a warm blanket was draped over her.
As the anesthesiologist prepped the drug cocktail that would put Alex to sleep, Reycraft looked at Joel.
"The warming blanket is going to have to come off when I start the procedure."
Joel rolled his eyes, "I know that, Reycraft. I was just making the patient, who also happens to be my wife more comfortable."
"I thought you were just here for moral support." Reycraft said.
Joel nodded, "I am here for moral support. But I'm here for her moral support not yours. So how about you don't tell me how to do my job and I won't tell you how to do yours? Got it?"
"My hero," Alex mumbled, just before the anesthesiologist instructed her to start counting backwards from ten.
10…9…8…
Joel smiled from behind his surgical mask but Alex could see it in his eyes, "And don't you forget it Reid. Sweet dreams."
7…6…5…
"Love you Joel, baby…" Alex mumbled her voice trailing off and the words running together as the drugs started to make her drowsy.
4…3…2…1
"Love you too, Reid." Joel replied, "See you soon all right?"
"Mmmkay…Wait Joel…What happened to my bike?"
The last thing Alex Reid heard before she lost consciousness was her husband's laughter followed by his reply.
"Let's just say you're gonna need a ride home, Reid."