AN: From here on I will be writing about how Christine became part of the Cullen family. This chapter will be short because I wanted to see if the plot is worth pursuing. Please respond with any comments or constructive criticism!
Upon discovering the need for a medical team in a small village in Ukraine, Carlisle felt he should go. After practicing medicine for decades he had plenty of expertise, and with Alice's handy insight on the stock market he needed no income. Not to mention, the area where he would be working was cloudy and rainy most of the year.
He got off the plane in a large city and could not help but feel a slight relief to be away from the family for a few weeks. No doubt he loved them, but everyone needs some space every once in a while, especially when you have spent almost 100 years together.
After meeting with the other doctors and nurses in the group, they were taken by bus to the small village and given their assignments. Carlisle would be in charge mostly of the orphanage children. He was happy with that. Kids seemed to trust Carlisle and find him comforting.
"Dr. Cullen?" a female doctor greeted him as he entered the horribly equipped hospital.
"Yes, Carlisle Cullen."
"We are so glad you are here. There is something going around the orphanage and we're getting new patients every day. First it was just the little ones but now the older children are getting sick too," she walked quickly to the nurse's station explaining the situation on the way. "These are the newest ones," she handed him a stack of files.
"Thank you Dr..."
"Handler."
"Dr. Handler, I can take it from here. Let me care for this group and you can divide up the others as you see fit." he already began looking through the top file.
"Thank you so much, doctor. Please make yourself at home here," she thanked him quickly then left to check on her other patients.
Carlisle looked through his patients' charts and discovered they were mostly in their late teens. He wondered where they would go once the orphanage sent them out, that is if they all make it out of this hospital alive.
Deciding that it would be best not to waste any times, he knocked softly on the first door, a patient by the name of Christine Baranski. "Christine?" he questioned, pushing the door open.
A petite blonde girl was curled up on the flat table, naked and shivering under a light sheet. She nodded and squeezed her eyes closed in pain.
"Christine, I'm going to examine you then I will find you a gown and blankets, alright?" he spoke gently, reassuring the poor girl that he will take care of her and hoping she spoke English.
'No telling how long she has been left like this,' he thought to himself and shook his head at the conditions these people were forced to live under.
"A-a-alright," she replied, indicating she could understand him and spoke English very well.
He removed a penlight from his pocket and looked at her eyes and ears, then placed a thermometer under her tongue. He checked her blood pressure and pulse while her temperature was registering.
"103.7," he mumbled and wrote it on the chart along with her low pulse and blood pressure.
Attempting to protect the teenager's modesty, Carlisle reached under the sheet to feel the glands under Christine's arms. "Any pain here, dear?"
"Y-yes," she winced and but her bottom lip.
He nodded and continued to work his way down feeling her abdomen and checking her range of motion in her arms, legs and neck.
Concluding she indeed had the mysterious fever that the others had been coming down with, Carlisle retreated to the hallway to retrieve a gown and blanket.
"Here you go," he spoke softly and helped her into the soft gown then tucked her tightly under the blankets. He started an IV with a drip of the cocktail of medication he prescribed to her.
"The nurses will be nearby to check on you if you need anything, ok?" he placed a cool hand on her burning forehead but she was already fast asleep. He left to tend to the others, hoping the medication would get rid of what ever was taking over little Christine's body.