A/N-Hi! I used to write as George Girl, and someone recently commented on one of my old Zax stories which led me to youtube, which led to me being right back here writing about Zax after so many years! Hope you enjoy. Timeline in the story is a bit wibbly-wobbly, to quote a Time Lord, because I can't remember when anything happened anymore.
Max was hiding outside and trying not to have the unlit cigarette he held when he heard it. The unmistakable sound of muffled sobbing.
With a frown, he walked slowly to the corner of the building and glanced around. Curled up with their knees to their chest sat a child of about 9 or 10, moving only every so often to wipe their face against their sleeve.
"Are you ok?" Max asked hesitantly, wondering if he should go and get a nurse.
The person lifted their head, and max saw now that it was a girl. A girl with a very dirty face, stripes of pale skin showing only in tear tracks.
He was about to ask again when she opened her mouth. "Does Zoe Hanna still work here?"
Max glanced back at the entrance of the hospital, as if hoping Zoe might magically appear. "Yeah, she does. I can…" he gestured to the building and took a step back, quickly stopping when she shook her head vigorously and then tried and failed to stand as though she didn't want to be left alone. "I could…I can call her and ask her to come out?"
At this, the girl hesitated and nodded.
Nodding back, Max pulled out his phone and managed to call Zoe without even looking, his eyes on the young girl.
"I'm busy." Zoe answered, though there was a smile in her voice.
"Can you come out the front for a minute, please?"
"Max! We are trying to quit! Look, if you're really desperate for a distraction, I can meet you in your office and show you my-"
"Now, Zoe. Please."
Zoe stilled when she heard him using his gentle voice, the one he used when he was worried, or when he was trying to get through to her. "…ok. I'll come now."
"Thanks." He hung up, relieved because he was sure she would know what to do. "She's on her way."
The girl began scrubbing her face hard again with her sleeve, still sniffling as tears continued to fall.
"Are you cold?" Max suddenly wondered, feeling the cold even through his hoodie. Without waiting for a response, he unzipped the hoodie and approached to drape it gently over her shoulders.
"…it smells like Zoe used to smell." She offered quietly.
"Yeah." Max smiled. "Don't tell her, but I leave it in her office so it smells like her. It's comforting, isn't it?"
As the girl nodded, Zoe rushed out the entrance. "Max?" When he took a few steps back so she could see him, she asked, "Are you ok? You sounded.."
He gave a wary nod, feeling out of his depth, and reached for Zoe. "I'm fine. There's someone asking for you round here."
"Wh-" she began, then spotted the curled up person, who she instantly stepped toward. "Are you-" she started again, stopping when the girl lifted her head again. For a moment she didn't recognise her. And then she did. "Sharice?!"
The girl's tears began again in earnest as Zoe rushed to her, enveloping Sharice into the warm safety of her arms. "What are you doing here?" Zoe asked softly, dropping a kiss to her hair without thinking.
Sharice sniffled again. "My feet hurt."
Zoe looked down at the feet that were as dirty as the face. Then she looked up to Max, swallowing against the lump in her throat. "Can you bring a wheelchair out, please? We need to get her inside."
Max nodded, taking a step back. "You'll be ok?"
Zoe nodded back, managing a small smile.
Max studied her for a moment and then disappeared inside as Sharice gripped tightly to Zoe's dress and buried her face.
"What are you doing here, Sharice? I thought you were with your grandparents in Scotland?" Zoe asked softly. Unable to extract herself from Sharice's hold, she stayed where she was, trying to assess her condition as best she could whilst rubbing her back to try and calm her.
"I needed you." Sharice offered.
Zoe swallowed again, releasing a shaking breath as Max reappeared.
"Can you help her into the chair, please." Zoe looked up at him. "This is Max. Remember I told you about him in my emails?" Zoe offered the girl in her arms, trying to gently pull herself away again.
This time sharice reluctantly let go and allowed max to lift her into the wheelchair. "You smell like Zoe, too." She sniffed.
Max grinned, glancing up at his wife, but his smile faded when he saw Zoe turn slightly away and gulp some air in to try and calm herself. "There we go. Now, how about we take you inside into the warmth?"
Sharice looked up at Zoe who nodded, walking beside the wheelchair as Max pushed it.
"Where to, boss?" Max asked. When he received no reply, he glanced at Zoe. "…Zo?"
"Hmm? Oh. Cubicles? No. My office."
"Sure?" Max questioned.
Zoe nodded, placing her hand on Max's back, her fingers gripping the maroon material tightly. She had thought Sharice was growing up and forgetting her, given she hadn't replied to her last few emails. She had seemed happy with her life, and it was all Zoe could hope for her from afar.
Once they reached her office, Max parked the wheelchair and turned immediately to embrace his wife, and Zoe briefly hid her face against his shoulder, breathing in the comforting smell of him. The time of her life that Sharice had been part of had been so unstable, so full of anxiety and overwhelm, and it had all come flooding back.
"Zoe?" Sharice finally asked into the quiet, trying to turn in the wheelchair.
Zoe drew in a deep breath and finally released Max to sit in front of Sharice. "Right. We need to clean you up and check your feet, then we need to talk. Max, can you please go and find Robyn and ask her to come in, and then can you try and find a change of clothes and something to eat."
Max nodded, squeezing Sharice's shoulder. "Any requests? I bet your favourite colour is… neon orange?"
Sharice smiled at this and wrinkled her nose. "No way. It's purple."
"Purple. Good choice. I'll see what I can do." He promised, glancing at Zoe again before he left the office, shutting the door softly.