Peso
"I don't understand. Why didn't you say anything?! They probably hate you! They probably think you're personally being sent by the board to get rid of them all!" Hinley's voice came from his phone that lay in the middle of his small dining table.
He and Alec were seated around the table in his small dining room that was attached to the kitchen in his apartment. Sounds of the city could be heard through the sliding glass door that led to the balcony. It was open enough to let in a slight breeze, barely strong enough to ruffle the papers that covered the table.
Spread across the table were numerous files, all about the crew that he would soon be joining. Professor Inkling hadn't even bothered acting surprised when Peso asked if he could have similar files of the crew members, like the one they had received of him.
It was the three of them himself, Alec, and Hinley Adams. Peso and Hinley had gone through their entire residency together, Alec joining them in the second year after things just weren't going right for him at the hospital he had chosen. It had been the three of them for the longest time until Hinley got a job at her dream hospital and left them behind a few years ago.
"Because I was the one who suggested it in the first place. During my interview, I stupidly said 'Oh just get rid of the crew members who are the problem.' So, what could I have said?" Peso argued.
"That you're just a two-bit, backwater doctor from a nowhere hospital in the south, how could you have known they were going to take you seriously?" Hinley shot back.
Alec started laughing from across the table, grabbing a different file from the center of the table.
"Thank you, thank you, both of you. For your endless support when I need it."
"I still don't get why you're even complaining," Alec said opening the file, 'It's the Octopod. It's gonna be so cool. They would have to drag me out of it."
"Then you go. You would like it. I don't even know anything about it." Peso complained.
"Why don't you know anything about it? Don't they have a website or something?" Hinley asked, "Plus there has to be like articles about them and stuff. Right? I mean don't they make discoveries? And they probably publish their research."
"I just haven't had time yet." Peso started to explain. He didn't have many patients of his own, working in the ER, but he did have a few, "Stone took all my patients, but everything else has been a lot to deal with on short notice, I've had to cancel appointments, cancel trips and everything with my apartment. Luckily my landlord was surprisingly understanding, and I'll be getting to keep my apartment."
"Of course," Hinley commented, "They get the money and don't have to deal with you. A perfect world for them."
"They're also letting me use the building's garage to store my car –"
"For a fee," Alec commented grabbing another file and spreading out the papers in it.
"I've also had to other things to deal with, figuring out what to take, what to pack away what to just leave covered. It's just felt like a lot."
Alec pulled out another paper from the file, "Well if you want to start learning about the crew one thing I know; this," he held the paper in his hand out to Peso, "is probably the smartest person on the whole crew."
"Wait, wait, hold on who are you looking at? Come on I have to dig through digital files." Hinley whined.
"Turner Bunswik," Alec answered, while handing off the paper, "She's the one who built-slash-designed the Octopod, all while she was a teenager. That's just impressive. She looks like she might be pretty too."
Peso squinted at the small picture, "Have the hospital's printers always been so shitty?"
Hinley laughed, "You printed all those at the hospital?!"
"They're basically kicking me out, they should expect it," Peso said defensively. Today had been his last official day at the hospital, and he may have used hospital resources for his own purpose today but what would they do? Fire him?
"He also stole one of the portable blanket warmers, but I'm not supposed to tell anyone," Alec said grinning wide.
"And you are doing such a great job at not telling anyone," Peso balled up the sheet of paper and threw it at Alec.
"How is everything at the hospital?" Hinley asked, "Still purposely understaffed?"
Hinley was one of the few outside of Attenburg's circle of trust that knew the real reason Savannah Grace was working on such short staff.
The buyouts.
They weren't entirely sure when it had started, it had only come to their attention when West Wood (or Silverwood Hospital as known to those outside their medical community) had been bought out two years ago by Centre Point. Then six months later West Wood closed for "remodeling", and a few months later it was announced that it would be permanently closing.
At first, no one had thought much of it, until a traveling nurse mentioned that she had just finished an assignment at another hospital Centre Point owned. That got Peso looking into it. From everything he had learned and shared with the Chief, it looked like some pharmaceutical company was buying up hospitals and then using those hospitals to buy others, and Peso had only guessed that the smaller hospitals in the area, North Winds (Grand Winds Medical Facility) or South Shores (Shoreline General Hospital) would be next.
As he had asked the Chief what would happen to their doctors if Centre Point did the same thing to them. Bought them and then laid everyone off? The Chief had argued that it wasn't East Grace's concern or problem. Peso had argued differently, he had friends who worked in both hospitals, and he didn't want to see them lose their jobs over something like this.
He may or may not have been the one to convince the Chief to hold off on hiring for a while, just in case Centre Point tried to pull the same stunt. Other heads of departments had agreed with the idea too, so it wasn't entirely his fault the hospital was currently short-staffed.
"We're," Peso paused, "Or I guess they are still short-staffed, but it's going to come to an end soon. At the beginning the Chief only agreed to do this for so long. Centre Point hasn't made any moves so…" he trailed off.
"I don't trust it," Hinley said after a moment, "Like everything your sister found out pointed to them buying another hospital almost every year. Why are they waiting now? Have either of you heard any rumors from South Shores or North Winds?"
"Nope," Alec answered, "but that doesn't mean that one of their boards isn't trying to hold out for more money in a buyout or something."
"See?" Peso started, "How is it fair that I have to leave when so much is already going on?"
"And how would you being here make a difference?" Alec pointed out, "Or it is you alone that can stop a corporate buyout and lower the rising cost of medical procedures?"
Peso shot Alec an annoyed look, but it quickly replaced with guilt, "I just feel bad leaving in the middle of a situation I basically started."
"Don't worry too much," Hinley said, "The hospital has been doing alright and even if they do start hiring people and Centre Point buys someone, East Grace might still be able to take some staff." Then, in a more excited tone, "Finally! You know you could have sent these to me in one email or at least put the name of the person in the subject bar?" her tone carried more annoyance toward the end.
"I didn't get them all at once," Peso tried defending himself, but he knew he probably could have sent them to her in a more organized fashion.
"Oh, she is really pretty," Hinley said, "Oh, dang she's like super important too. I don't even know what a CEngO is…is it important?"
"Chief Engineering Officer. You know how you have a board, then a CEO? She's basically one of those people right under the CEO. So yeah, important." Alec explained.
"See you know all this stuff." Peso started complaining again. He still had his doubts that he was the right person for this job.
"I only know it because Iris has become obsessed with the Octopod in like the last year. She's starting that "wants to be a marine biologist" phase everyone has." Alec explained. Iris was Alec's niece; she was turning eight at the end of the year.
"She's so obsessed that she told you what a CEngO is?" Peso asked, he didn't believe that.
"Technically she told me Bunswik was a congo, so no I actually had to look it up."
Both Peso and Hinley started laughing.
"She was so sure of herself too." Alec ranted shaking his head, "I asked, I was like are you sure that's the right word? She got defensive. Just because you're a doctor you think you're smarter than me. No brat, I think I'm smarter 'cause I'm a grown-up."
"Sounds like you got just as defensive back," Hinley choked out between laughs.
Suddenly, Hinley let out a pitched gasp that had both Peso and Alec jerking their heads up. Peso glanced over at Alec, then toward the phone. "You ok Hinley?"
"Have you seen your new boss?"
Peso and Alec exchanged confused looks, "You mean the Professor or Rogers?" Peso asked.
"Ew, Adams. The Professor is way old. You're gross."
"No! The Captain."
Alec rifled through the files, leaning in to check the names, until finally, he pulled one to himself. He flipped it open, "Oh. Albinism or just old?" What do you think?" He handed the file over to Peso.
Peso looked at the small image in the file and couldn't stop the thought that the hospital's color printer absolutely was horrid. "Without being able to see his medical file I would assume neither. I don't even know how old any of them are yet."
"You don't have access to their medical files yet?" Hinley asked.
"No, not yet. I won't until my first day. So soon, but not yet." Peso explained, "Though I have started emailing with the doctor who's on board already, Dr. Bakewell. We've been discussing what they currently have stocked on the sub."
"Well, I want to know. Time to Google," Hinley giggled. Peso assumed she was talking about whether the Captain had albinism or was just old. He could faintly hear the sound of typing from over the phone.
"Why are you concerned about what they have on hand?" Alec asked, flipping open another file.
"During our talks, Rogers asked if I wanted to get the Medical Bay stocked to my liking, but that I would have to get a list together quickly."
"Hope you put contraceptives on there."
"I did not, and I've already submitted what I think they need." Peso heard a chair creaking and looked up from reading about Captain Barnacle's military work history and saw Alec pushing against the table to lean his chair back. He had a skeptical look on his face. "What?"
"I mean maybe it's just cause you're out of practice," Alec shrugged, "but I know how boys and girls play together."
"It's a work environment. They're all on the clock constantly. Hinley stop laughing."
"No, no he's right. He's right. They're at work and I'm sure no one would ever behave like that at a workplace," Alec said dropping his chair back to the ground with a loud thud. "Oh yeah, by the way, did you hear one of the new residents is sleeping with Jenson? Yeah, someone caught in them in a supply closet…at the hospital…which is both their place of work, funnily enough…they were –"
"Alright, I get it!" Peso cut him off loudly, "But I already sent in my order, so that's that."
"What about the free clinic?" Hinley offered, "They get stuff from partners every couple of months, so they donate their current freebies to replace it with new. You could see if the chief would be willing to donate to the IORCE. IORCE is also a non-profit so it would still be a tax deduction.
"Also," Hinley continued, "It is albinism. Now you guys can be like genetic disorder buddies."
"Yeah, you know for some reason I don't think that's really a bonding thing though," Peso offered, "So I guess I'll just have to figure something else out."
"Oh, look up if any of them have had psychiatric stays!" Alec added. Unhelpfully in Peso's opinion.
"That also doesn't give bonding. It gives stalking."
"There is a tab for crew information."
"Click it!" Alec said, trying to egg her on.
"Don't," Peso was starting to get annoyed, "Neither of you thinks this is weird?"
"What?"
"Googling them and trying to get information about them? It doesn't seem weird or wrong to either of you?"
"Absolutely not," Hinley quickly answered, "If I was about to move in with a bunch of people I didn't even know I would literally find out everything about them. And I mean everything, straight down to their most embarrassing high school relationship."
"Exactly," Alec chimed in, "These aren't just going to be your coworkers who you see for eight or so hours a day and then leave. You have to live with these people full-time for an entire year.
"And," He continued, "Do you really think that none of them have looked you up? I bet by now at least half the crew has googled you."
"They've probably even formed solid opinions of you…since you know you are going there to fire everyone clearly." Hinley added.
Peso thought about it for a moment. They were right, these people weren't just going to be another group of coworkers, they would also be roommates…housemates? Submates? Maybe it wasn't as drastic as he had thought to learn more about them. Or if they just kept it to general information then it wouldn't feel as wrong to him. He would be with them for a year so it wasn't like he wouldn't be able to learn about them as time went on.
"Fine," He said finally, "But nothing that's actually personal. I don't want them to think I spend hours online stalking everything about them."
"Okay," Hinley said slowly, drawing out each syllable, "I'm going to try not to take that personally. Just chalk it up to you being a man and not understanding how hard it is to be a woman."
Peso rolled his eyes, "You know I didn't mean it like that."
"Whatever. Let's see, oh okay." Her tone changed from annoyance to interest, "So crew information isn't really much or anything just interesting facts about the crew. Like apparently they have the most diverse crew in terms of where everyone is from out of the three main subs.
"It looks like about fifteen percent of the crew is American, twenty-three percent British, so that's the highest, and then its seven percent of a bunch of others." She started listing, "There's French, Irish, Scottish, Italian, Canadian, Caribbean, New Zealander, and Japanese. So that's like a lot. But that will be fun everyone is so different!"
"Yes I'm sure that will be a great opening line," Alec commented absently opening another file, "We're all so different! See how much different I am from you?"
"Quit being an ass I meant like holidays and things like that, plus everyone probably speaks their own native language too."
Peso tuned out the sound of his friends bickering, which he had had much practice doing over the years. It didn't matter what they learned of the crew tonight, he would still be with these people for a year. The contract was signed and there was no going back now.
He took in a deep breath and looked out the balcony door, he couldn't see the ocean from his apartment but it was out there. And somewhere in that ocean was the submarine he would be calling home in just a few days. He let his breath out slowly. It still didn't feel quite real to him yet.
Author's Note
Posting on FF is so much harder then AO3. I don't know if I'm doing this right.