Chapter Fifteen - Bedside Manners

Patrick took a deep breath as he entered Robin's hospital room and glanced around at the variety of machines and equipment that were hooked up to keep her alive. Her beautiful features looked so pale and he almost had to look away. He glanced quickly at the monitors to check Robin's vital signs. Even though he could hear the rhythmic beeping, he still needed to reassure himself that Robin was simply sleeping.

He paused for a moment to watch Robin's mother, Anna, who was asleep in the chair next to Robin's bed and smirked for the first time since this whole nightmare began. That woman was bound and determined that she was going to be allowed into this room and, for some reason, she was determined that he was the one who was going to make that happen. Anna seemed like a woman who, like her daughter, could give him a run for his money and so Patrick bargained away his soul to get her permission to stay at Robin's side. She had to agree to scrub up as if she were going into surgery herself and then wear a surgical mask to cover her face, protecting Robin's sterile environment. But in the end, he was glad he could do it. If things had been different, Patrick would have wanted his own mother at his side. Or, at least, his father. Though he hated to admit it.

He gently laid a hand on Anna's shoulder, careful not to startle her, and she looked up at him with tired eyes. "You fell asleep." He whispered, not sure why he did so.

"No." she replied sleepily, shaking her head stubbornly. "I was just resting my eyes. Is there any change?"

Patrick shook his head and said, "No. I'm just checking her IV fluids to make sure the drugs are being administered properly."

"Checking up on Alan's work?" Anna asked with a smirk. "A man who has been a doctor longer than you have been alive?"

Patrick returned her smirk and said, "I have my own personal reasons."

"I know." Anna said simply, looking back at Robin's sleeping form.

"You must be exhausted from your flight." Patrick said quietly, ignoring the ache in his chest he felt when he saw Anna look tenderly at her daughter. It must be tearing her up inside to see Robin like this and be powerless to do anything about it. Patrick doubted that Anna had ever been powerless a day in her life. "Why don't you go get your legs under you for awhile? Take a walk, get some coffee and some fresh air, talk to your family." He suggested.

"I don't want to leave her alone. In case she wakes up..." Anna protested, shaking her head.

"I have a few minutes, so I'll sit with her for awhile." Patrick replied. "Don't worry."

Anna was hesitant for a moment, but then saw the look in Patrick's eyes. He had been stand-offish and difficult and frustratingly professional since she had arrived, but Anna could see right through this young doctor's act. He was scared to death for Robin and had no idea how to deal with that...as a doctor or as a man. As a mother, it did her heart good to know that Robin had found someone who cared for her this way. Deciding that maybe a little time alone with Robin would do young Dr. Drake some good, Anna smiled a tired smile. "Okay." She said quietly, standing up. "I won't be gone long. Call me the moment there is any change in her condition."

Patrick nodded and said, "And don't take off your mask until you get out in the hallway." Anna pretended to salute him as she left the room and Patrick shook his head. Like mother, like daughter.

Patrick pulled up a chair beside Robin's bed, took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. Her hand was warm from where it had been tucked into Anna's, but it was lifeless. He didn't know what to say and sat there silently for a few moments before clearing his throat. "Hey Robin. Your mom took a break for a few minutes, so you're stuck with me for now." He paused for a moment and then reverted to doctor mode. He pulled Robin's chart out of the rack at the end of her bed and looked it over. "OK, Dr. Scorpio, let me give you a rundown on your condition. Last night, in a moment of intense clarity and medical genius, I was able to isolate the bacteria that is causing your infection and we have administered a course of drug treatment that should have you back up and around shortly. You'll be groggy, confused, and in a lot of pain, but we've got more good drugs for that." He shook his head with a wry smile on his face, although he didn't find anything funny about the situation. "We found the answers we were looking for in your research, so now you have plenty of ammunition to come back at me with when I make fun of all the time you spend on your medical research." He closed the chart and took her hand in his again. "So now all you have to do is wake up. It's all up to you, Robin." Patrick didn't expect the tears that began to well up in his eyes, so he swiped at them with his hand. He didn't do sentimental, even when he was sitting alone in a hospital room.

"Look at this," he laughed to himself, but found nothing funny about any of this. "All that lecturing you did to me about bedside manners? Well, it must have been in preparation for this." Patrick looked all around the room again, his eyes finally coming to settle on her serene face. "You see, this is why I never get too close. Because I never wanted to ever hurt this much. God, I'm lying to everyone, pretending that everything is ok. That I'm this cool, confident doctor whose only fascination with this case is that I get to explore the mysterious world of immune deficiency." He stroked the back of her hand and confessed, "I know that they don't believe me, but I'm just not ready to let them know how deeply I am hurting. Or how scared I really am."

Patrick was silent again for a little while and just listened to the sounds of the monitors. Finally Patrick whispered, "It's time to fight the good fight, Robin, this time for your life." In a stronger voice, he continued, "And you've got to win. Because there are so many people out there just waiting for you to get better. Everyone is out in the waiting area just waiting for you to wake up. And I mean everyone...your uncle Mac and the girls, Jax, Emily, Lucky, Nikolaus. Even Jason had the nerve to show up last night, but Mac took care of that very quickly. They're all out there waiting for you to wake up." He tenderly smoothed a strand of Robin's dark hair off her forehead and was quiet for a moment before he hung his head and whispered into the darkness, "And one person right here who's waiting, too."