The First Thing that Comes to Mind
Summary: Jesse plays CatchPhrase… by himself.
Disclaimer: I don't own DM or any of its characters. Nor do I own the rights to CatchPhrase. Nor do I own Dr. Scholl and his company. I don't even have a pair of his gel insoles. I'm so not gelin'…
Author's Note: Another dumb, pointless Jesse humor fic! This was made purely out of stupidity (that shocks you, I'm sure). My best friend, who shall be called mellon-nin -for appropriate reasons-, and I were hyper and thought of this mini-plot. Needless to say, it got written. Thus, I dedicate it to her for letting this plot bunny loose!
Jesse lugged his tired, worn body through the halls of Community General. It was the end of another long 18 hour shift and Jesse's aching feet were leading him to the black leather couch in the doctor's lounge that seemed to be beckoning him. It had been the same scenario for the past week and a half. Wake up at two in the morning, work an 18 hour shift, go to Bob's and work until closing at ten, go home and sleep for a blessed three hours. It was insane, Jesse knew, and sooner or later his body would give out on him. It seemed that all he was running on was the countless number of cups of the generic coffee supplied by the hospital that he washed down at every opportunity. But the determined doctor felt that work was his only sense of relief. It was in work where the rest of the world seemed to still and he could stop thinking of her. Susan Hilliard, Jesse's girlfriend for a somewhat steady year or so, had dumped him for a chiropractor. The throbbing in his feet reminded him of the throbbing in his heart, but with a sad reality, he knew that the pain in his heart could not be consoled by Dr. Scholl's Gel Insoles.
"Jesse!" The door to the doctor's lounge was in sight. It was only a few mere yards away. Why did he have to get stopped now?
"Hey Amanda." He said slowly, not stopping his attempt to at least get in the door of the said room. She can follow me, he thought, trudging farther away from the sound of Amanda's high-heels hitting the tile floor with a crisp click of each heel.
"Will you stop a second?" She asked with a smile, putting her hand on his shoulder forcing him to stop and face her. Jesse's spirits dropped.
"Hm?" He asked, keeping his sky blue eyes on the door of the lounge. He thought he could smell the weak coffee tempting him to drink the entire pot.
"Well, I know you've been a little…" She gently cupped her friend's chin, forcing him to look at her. "Depressed lately. So, I figured I'd buy you this." She handed him a plastic oval device. "Maybe we could play it together sometime." The colleague offered. Jesse, however, was staring at the thing, mesmerized. Amanda's sentence would have made perfect sense had Jesse been fully paying attention. Instead, all the young doctor heard was "Maybe… play it… sometime." He nodded his thanks before continuing his previous path to the doctor's lounge, and, more importantly, the leather couch inside. Amanda watched Jesse enter the room and shook her head softly before heading back to work.
The comforting sigh of the cushions gave immediate relief to the tired doctor as Jesse sank into its receiving embrace. He lay there for a moment, eyes open, staring at the ceiling, thinking about Susan. His weary mind lead him through memories of Susan's light laugh, the way she looked at him, the way her petal soft lips touched his. Suddenly, the idea hit him: He didn't need Susan; he needed a new girlfriend. It wasn't Susan's laugh, eyes, lips he needed, it was another girl's! It made perfect sense. With a grin, Jesse sat upright on the couch only to realize that the electronic object from Amanda was still in his hands. He looked at it closer to read the name printed boldly on the front: "CatchPhrase".
"Interesting." He mumbled, his thoughts of needing a girlfriend temporarily put to the side. He was trying to figure the device out when he inadvertently pressed the top silver colored button. Instantly, a loud beeping filled the once quiet air, causing Jesse to jump. On instinct, he looked down at his beeper, only to find no numbers on the small screen. He frowned and shook the small black box, only to receive no response. The beeping continued, picking up speed with each passing moment. Jesse's heart began to race as he looked around wildly trying to find the cause of the insistent noise. The beeps grew closer together and Jesse was sure that something evil was about to pounce when, suddenly, the beeping stopped. Jesse froze, his eyes the only thing moving, half expecting a man with a gun to be standing somewhere in the room. After a while, he was convinced that he was alone. The breath he didn't realize he had been holding released as he gaze subconsciously came to rest on the "CatchPhrase". With slightly trembling fingers, he pressed the top button, and, again, the shrill beeping filled the air. Quickly, Jesse pressed the button again, and the sound promptly stopped. He smirked. He had been bested by a non-living object. Determined not to be made a fool of again, he boldly pressed the bottom silver button. Words suddenly appeared on the screen. "History", "Around the House", "Sports", "Food and Drink". Jesse grinned. He knew he could handle "Food and Drink", even if he had no clue as to what to do.
Jesse pressed the top button, and different words appeared on the rectangular screen. "Bloody Mary" it said. More like Bloody Susan. Jesse thought with a chuckle. He had no clue how the game was supposed to work, but he didn't care, as he pressed the bottom button again. "Two peas in a pod". Not Susan and I, he thought, anger clouding his eyes. The bottom button was pushed again. "Lemon". Like "Lemon Curd" that's slang for girlfriend! Jesse realized with a grin. The game was telling him he needed a girl. Eagerly, he pressed the button a third time. "BBQ wings". BBQ? I'll meet her at BBQ Bob's! He pressed the button faster. "Sweet". She'll be sweet to me! Jesse found himself smiling. Was it some sort of future-telling game? "Hot Dog". Jesse paused. Hot dog? Shrugging his shoulders, thinking it was a fluke, he continued. "Milk". What? "Fried Chicken" What is it talking about? The quickening beeping personified Jesse's rising anger. "Mixed Drink". That was the last straw. With a boiling frustration, Jesse hurled the offending object at the far wall. It made a satisfying bang before falling to the floor, the beeping prematurely interrupted. Jesse glared at it for a moment before standing from the couch and walking out the door. He would have to tell Amanda that the game didn't work. Even before it hit the wall.