Mr Densen- Denmark
Andrei- Moldova
Franz- Kugelmugel
Mei- Taiwan
Hunapo- New Zealand
Michael- Molossia
Elise- Liechtenstein
Arjun- India
...
Heeey I'm back. Sorry this took a while. Not gonna lie, it's not been a good week. Anyway, the action's starting to pick up.
More illness mentions in this, as well as violence and mentions of abuse.
...
"Hey, Angie!" Stelios grinned as he spied his friend in the corridor. Angie, arms laden with envelopes containing x-rays, simply nodded and continued walking.
"How are you?" he asked, jogging to catch up with her.
"Good. Busy." She talked distractedly as she walked down the corridor. "Mr Densen in the liver department tried to discharge himself because he wanted a drink, which is rather odd since he's usually well behaved. I want to run a few more tests on Mr Adnan before he's moved to the hospice tomorrow. Oh, and I have to run these down to the paediatric ward. This kid- Andrei- came in with a broken arm a few days ago and the doctors want to check that it's healing well. They've stuck him next to his best friend, Franz; which is nice in theory, but Franz is really sick and they don't know if he'll pull through so it's distressing for his friend."
"That's awful to hear," Stelios looked down. He wasn't sure what branch of medicine he wanted to go into, if he was completely honest, but one thing was certain where Stelios was concerned: he was never going into paediatrics. Seeing people suffering and dying every day was awful enough, but seeing it happen to small children was too much. Mei, one of the other junior doctors, wanted to get a job on the paediatric ward and he and Angelique thought she was insane.
"Hey look who it is, the Angels!"
Stelios and Angelique wheeled around to find Dr Hunapo Davies walking towards them with their usual kind smile on their face. Stelios liked the consultant, who had taken the junior doctors under their wing from day one. Hunapo was patient with them, and was always willing to help when they were stuck, which was pretty often given that they'd only finished medical school three months ago. They were easy to talk to, even if their sense of humour was a little twisted at times.
Stelios and Angelique had earned themselves the nickname 'Angels' in reference to their names, and the fact that they were rather well liked by patients for their personalities, even if they were a bit useless medically. It was something Mei had come up with two weeks in and had just stuck. Stelios adored the nickname and loved the connotation. He was an angel! People already thought he was gentle and caring enough to warrant such an epithet.
Unfortunately, it also meant few people bothered to learn his real surname.
He didn't mind if it was a patient with speech problems or dementia or was just elderly, but surely the more senior doctors could at least make an effort. So far only Angie and Dr Davies- and one or two others- had managed it. He swore he spent most of his life telling people how to pronounce or spell Angelopoulos. He wasn't even using the full version of his forename dammit! The only effort people could possibly make was with the surname.
"Morning, Dr Sheep."
Dr Davies' mouth curled upwards at the nickname. There was no real reason behind that other than their hair, and that doctors apparently had a poor sense of humour.
"I hope you two are staying out of trouble," they said, giving them a mock-glare. The young pair laughed.
"We're too busy to get into trouble!" Angelique exclaimed before remembering the pile of scans, gasping, and dashing off to deliver them. "Gotta go! Bye!"
Stelios gave a small wave before turning back to Dr Davies.
"And how are you my boy?" they asked.
"Good. Tired, I guess. And hungry."
"Yeah that's the price of fame," Dr Davies winked, "still, you get used to it."
"It's been months now," Stelios whined, "I'm still not used to it."
"You'll get there. Just push through." Dr Davies let out a sigh, running a hand through their hair. "Still, one day you'll be a consultant like me and it'll all be worth it."
Stelios laughed. "If you say so."
"Dr Angel, I need you to book a scan with the radiologist," Dr Kirkland barked, joining them, "stop standing around, boy. You're not paid to chit-chat."
Stelios wasn't too fond of Arthur Kirkland, one of the doctors in the General Surgery department. He was sure the man was nice enough, they just didn't get along. Stelios didn't understand Arthur, and Arthur's people skills left much to be desired. They were generally snarky and rude towards each other, unless talking about Cat Stevens or singing along to his music, then they were suddenly kindred spirits. This fact had first become known at a work party when Stelios had found a guitar and started making his way through various songs with Arthur joining in suddenly. The other hospital staff knew this, and if there was a situation where there was a chance of Stelios and Arthur getting into an argument, someone would start singing 'wild world' and everything would soon calm down.
"Sorry sir," Stelios said through gritted teeth.
"Well, I need a scan booked for Mr Michael Jones in General Surgery."
"I'll talk to the radiologist right away."
"I swear that boy's brother will give me grey hairs before my time," Dr Kirkland sighed.
"Oh? You mean Alfred?" Stelios asked.
"Yeah, he was playing 'war' with Michael last time I saw, hands as guns, shouting stuff in the phonetic alphabet and the like. I was leaving just as the nurse was telling them off."
"I remember learning the phonetic alphabet," Dr Davies commented.
"Oh yes?"
"Yeah, I only got round to learning to spell my name though."
"Interesting. Can you spell your name phonetically, Stelios?"
"Err, sure," Stelios internally panicked, desperate not to look like a fool in front of the other doctors, "sunshine… tequila… egg… lard… eyes… oranges-"
"Dr Angel," Arthur began.
"Yes?"
"Just get the scan booked."
"Right away, sir."
"Sunshine? Tequila?" Dr Davies raised a bushy eyebrow, "got a holiday on your mind?"
"You don't know the half of it sir!"
…
"I guess you were very brave," Feliks commented as he changed Toris' dressing. "Stupid, but brave."
Toris tried to scowl, but his face stung with blistered second degree burns. As if things weren't bad enough without his best friend also being one of the nurses on the ward his was staying in.
Feliks never missed an opportunity to chide him, and although Toris knew he was just scared of the thought that he nearly lost his dear friend, he was still rather disgruntled. What was he supposed to have done? Just stood outside the burning tower block and let Raivis die? All the same, he'll admit his plan was rather flawed: he got lost in the smoke and the fire department ended up dragging them both out, and he was now in hospital too.
But Raivis was the only family he had in the country.
He prayed he wouldn't lose the boy after all this.
Raivis was in intensive care now, and had been for several days. He was in a stable condition and things were looking positive, but so much could go wrong and Toris couldn't allow himself to become hopeful just yet. He'd not seen his cousin since the fire, and wasn't allowed to visit him just yet. Not until his own injuries had healed and Raivis was out of intensive care.
"You'd have done the same for your younger siblings," he commented as Feliks tidied away his tray of food. He was perfectly capable of walking down to the canteen, but Feliks wouldn't let him. Still, Toris wasn't used to being fussed over and even pampered, so he decided to enjoy it while he could. God knows how Feliks milked every small cold and paper cut he got.
"Can you fluff my pillows please?" he asked, laying back in bed.
Feliks rolled his eyes.
"Oh come on." Toris looked up with large eyes.
"Fine," Feliks sighed, "but only because you always took care of me when I was ill."
"Also it's your job."
"Well it's not really. And one more comment like that, and I'll slap the Lithuanian out of you. Burns or no burns."
Toris stuck out his tongue, which was returned. Feliks fluffed up his pillows before jokingly blowing him a kiss and striding off to check on another patient, a boy with third degree burns covering his arm from where he'd been scalded with a pan of boiling water.
"Do you do that to all you patients?" he asked.
"Aw, Yong Soo, are you jealous?"
…
"Sir," Monique tried again, looking down at the hooded man she'd told off earlier and thinking that it might have been better to have just kicked him out once he'd started getting aggressive.
But he'd looked genuinely ill. Still did. Worse, even.
He wasn't responding to her voice, and she wondered if he knew she was even there. He'd been in a pretty bad way earlier, and his health had definitely deteriorated further. It was hard to see under his hood, but it looked like his skin was peeling.
"Sir, I'm ready to see you now. Come along so I can see what's wrong."
Tsvetan looked up, and Monique cried out.
He was drooling, mouth curled into a feral grin as he licked his lips. His teeth had lengthened, becoming yellow and pointed whilst his skin took on a waxy, grey texture. And it was definitely peeling, revealing black, necrotised flesh underneath that was oozing with pus. But the most striking, horrific change was the eyes: completely neon green with no humanity left in them. They looked at her hungrily, manic and wild.
Then Tsvetan lunged at her.
…
Elise Vogel's story was like so many he'd heard before and would again. Unfortunately.
She explained it as Dr Kapur stitched up a rather nasty bite mark on her leg. Physically abused from an early age by her parents, when she was fifteen her brother had died trying to protect her from a particularly savage beating. He'd stood between her and her violent, drunken father and his malnourished, broken body couldn't take it any more.
Elise had run away after that.
Dr Arjun Kapur had heard the story that followed from far too many vulnerable young women: homelessness, drugs, prostitution. Elise was one of many people who had been cast aside by life. Ever since her brother died, Elise had not known love, not had anyone to care for her.
While Dr Kapur stitched her up, Elise asked if she could have a blood test for HIV, just in case. No problem. She needed tests anyway because of her bites, to make sure she didn't catch something from them. Elise was worried about the trouble she would be in, and since it was possible to charge more if she could prove she didn't have any diseases, she hoped that would stop her pimp from being particularly unpleasant when she was discharged.
She asked Arjun if her beauty was ruined, since she was nothing without it, and he said 'of course not'. Elise nodded, but it was clear she didn't believe him.
Arjun asked how she got bitten, and in so many places. She explained a client's dog had gotten loose and attacked as she was leaving the hotel. She'd fallen and it had ruthlessly bit into her from all sides before its owner had eventually gotten bored and dragged it off.
He asked about the bruising. Her clients, again.
Now she was stitched up, she would just have to wait for her test results. Arjun gave her a tenner and told her to buy some lunch in the canteen while she waited.
It wasn't enough, and he knew it. He wanted to wrap her up in a warm blanket and keep her safe and take her home just so she had somewhere to go that wasn't a hostel or motel room. He wanted to protect her from the evils of the world. But ten pounds was all he could give.
Just as she was thanking him, a scream sounded down the corridor.
