Moon Tide
First Encounter
"So…can I ask for a favor?" Akira asked.
"I'm already providing you with prescriptions," Tae replied bluntly as she read through medical records. "And I'd like to keep my guinea pig around longer, so no more experiments until the other ones are out of your system."
"It's for a friend. Please?"
Tae observed Akira, noting that he expressed genuine worry despite his normally cool composure.
"What's the job?" Tae sighed.
"My friend's son has been sick for a couple of days now, the general hospital's too crowded from the train incidents to see him."
…While that sounded plausible, Tae thought this "friend" would at least call for a house doctor or even travel further out the city to see to this.
"How old's his son?"
"He's about to take his entrance exams."
Still pretty young, then… Tae thought.
"Can your friend afford it? You know how expensive my treatments get."
Akira nodded.
"Fine, I'll see him."
"Oh, thank you," Akira sighed with relief. He then pulled out his phone to text his "friend".
Tae still had a feeling this was fishy. She's dealt with shady patients who couldn't afford health insurance or didn't want their medical records shared with the government-funded hospitals. But she made an oath to take care of anyone who needed her, and pay was pay.
"Buddy, you have no idea how much I owe you one," the man spoke out loud as he read the text. "Don't worry, Kaoru. We just found you a doctor that can help."
He brushed the matted hair of his son away from his face as the boy continued to breathe uneasily.
Within half an hour, Akira's "friend" appeared carrying a sick boy in his arms. Oh, the airsoft store owner, if Tae recalled correctly. She heard about him through some of her patients. ...Taller than she originally thought.
"Hello, you must be Akira's friend," Tae greeted as she walked out of her office. "I'm Doctor Takemi."
"Iwai Munehisa," the man replied. He then directed his attention to the boy. "And this is your patient, Kaoru."
Tae placed her hand on Kaoru's forehead, definitely to check his temperature but to also buy her some time so she could look at Iwai closely.
Definitely on the rugged scale for handsome. Stubble, pierced ears, and...a gecko tattoo on his neck. Hm, he's definitely someone with a shady past. But his voice is very easy on the ears, and he seems to have a perfect balance of being threatening and caring. Well, threatening to those that annoy him and caring to those that he genuinely likes.
Upon inspection, Kaoru seemed to have a mark similar to Iwai's tattoo. Same place and everything. The kid's clearly too young for tattoos, though.
"Yep, that's definitely a high fever," Tae spoke. "Let's get him to the exam room."
Tae let Iwai inside, and then handed him a clipboard with some paperwork.
"While I'm looking over your son, I'll need you to fill out some key information."
Iwai looked hesitant at first.
"Don't worry, this is only so I can cross-reference for potential organ donors. We're not monitored here."
"Well, all right," Iwai sighed.
Kaoru groaned when Tae put her stethoscope over his heart. He kept trying to curl up.
"You'll be okay, Kaoru. Can you relax a bit?" Tae asked gently.
"It hurts..." Kaoru groaned.
"I know. It's no fun being sick. But I'm here to help you feel better."
Iwai handed Tae the finished record.
"Thank you. Now, what have you dealt with so far?"
"He can't keep food down," Iwai explained for his son. "He throws it back up. Even water's starting to cause problems."
"And how long has he been throwing up?"
"Two days."
"Did you eat or drink something that tasted funny, Kaoru?"
Kaoru shook his head.
"Then this looks like a case of stomach flu. I'm no pediatrician, but I can prescribe some antibiotics or supplements to help Kaoru keep food down. Otherwise, check to see if it passes within a couple of days. This tends to last a week if it's not too severe."
Tae and Iwai's eyes met briefly. She winked at him, which made his cheeks slightly pink.
"Actually, mind if I talk with your dad alone, Kaoru?" Tae asked. "I'll have my good friend to watch over you."
Iwai furrowed his eyebrows, but ultimately agreed. He held the door open for Tae as she returned to her small booth.
"You seem to be an interesting man, Mr. Iwai," Tae spoke nonchalantly as she started writing out the expenses. "The only things you and your son share are the marks and the very names you own."
Iwai remained wary.
"But I'm glad he has a caring father like you, blood related or not."
Now Iwai smiled slightly. Guess he didn't have to fully explain things, after all.
"I'll admit my life wasn't always great, but Kaoru makes every bad moment more than tolerable for me."
Ah yes, an ultimate weakness: intimidating men that actually have hearts of gold. Tae should at least try something to keep him around.
"Tell you what, if the hospital's crowded again, or something from your past comes back to haunt you, I'll keep my doors open 24/7."
She then ran her finger up his shirt, neck, jaw, cheek, and then on the bill of his hat.
"Who knows, I might be able to help you with your physical?"
If Iwai weren't blushing before, he certainly was now.
"Damn, right to the point," he breathed. "In that case, I'll return the favor by offering some security. While this ain't a really bad part of town, I can still make sure this place stays clean. I do tend to make some pretty nice deals with customers that know what they're talking about."
Tae originally wanted to make a remark about airsoft guns, but she had a better retort in mind.
"Hm, seems pretty pricey. I think I can only make up for such a generous offer with coffee at LeBlanc's."
"Seems fair. And while I can afford Kaoru's treatment now, I feel a trip to the observatory will have to make due for upcoming visits."
"Make it the amusement park and we have ourselves a deal."
On the bill was not only the (relatively expensive) treatment costs and prescription recommendations, but also a phone number.
