Looking around the tiny, dumpy motel room one last time, Aurie makes sure she hasn't forgotten anything before leaving. Walking to the nearest bus stop, she leans against the sign next to the packed bench and waits for the bus to arrive. She wraps her bare arms around herself against the early morning chill but knows it won't last when the day finally warms up.
Allowing her mind to relax for the first time in days, she starts getting a little excited at spending the day with Dr. Sloan. She needs a fun diversion after all the stress she just endured.
The arrival of the bus breaks her musings. Having finally grasped LA's mass transit system, Aurie settles into her seat and watches the city roll past the window. Her mind wanders back to the white-haired doctor she met for the first time yesterday.
She always tries to stay emotionally distant from people. With some of her friends, that's been easy. Everyone has their issues and likes to focus on their own shit. If things get too screwy, it's that much easier to cut ties and put some distance between herself and them. She finds it hurts less that way.
Dr. Sloan is different, being friendly, warm, and surprisingly honest. He seems genuinely interested in her, not politely pretending. Then despite being certain neither he nor Steve could be her father, he's still willing to inconvenience himself to take the paternity test for her peace of mind. That speaks volumes about his character.
It may be why she feels so comfortable around him like she grew up with him. She knows it's never a good idea to hang out with total strangers, especially men she doesn't know, but for some reason, she trusts Dr. Sloan enough to chance it to spend the day with him.
Stepping off the bus outside of Community General she heads inside, pleased today is off to such a good start. Remembering the route from yesterday, she hovers outside his office door. Peering inside, she watches him sitting at his desk, engrossed in paperwork. Feeling like now may not be a good time to show up, she slowly turns around to quietly wander off and come back later.
"Good morning," his voice stops her dead in her tracks.
Mark had felt another presence and looked up in time to see Aurie turning around to leave. Smiling, he removes his glasses and gestures with them to the empty chairs in front of him.
"Come on in and have a seat."
"Morning," she smiles back. "Are you sure I'm not bugging you?" she hesitantly asks.
"Not at all. I'm just about done with this," he assures her.
"Okay," she nods, stepping over to ease into one of the chairs.
"I've also got good news," he continues. "One of my appointments canceled, so we can head out of here that much sooner. I see you're all set for anything today," he comments, eyeing her clothing.
He notices she's wearing the same jeans and duct-taped sneakers with a worn, faded T-shirt.
"I decided to go comfortable because of all the walking we'll be doing," she shifts in her seat self-consciously, confirming his suspicions she doesn't have a lot of money for anything.
"Good thinking," he nods in approval. "After I finish this, I have that remaining appointment. You can wait for me in here then we'll go set up those blood draws in the phlebotomy lab."
"Fleh what?" she asks, arching a brow in confusion.
"Fle-bot-oh-mee," Mark enunciates carefully. "The phlebotomy lab is where blood draws and other specimens for testing are taken."
"Oh," Aurie nods in understanding as another thought occurs to her. "Well, while you're taking care of your patient, I can go to that phlebo-place thingy and set that up," she offers. "It's just like scheduling any doctor's appointment, right?"
"Yes," he nods in agreement before making a face. "Phlebo-place thingy?" he repeats. Smiling in embarrassment, she shrugs as he decides to wave it off with a chuckle. "Never mind. Are you sure you don't want to wait until I get back? I shouldn't be gone more than an hour."
"Not unless you need to sign something," she shakes her head. "It gives me something to do. I have to deal with paying for them then contacting Taylor and all that."
"Okay then. We'll be out of here even sooner," he muses thoughtfully. "When you schedule the blood draws tell them I'm ordering the tests and need them expedited. If they ask, let them know I'll send the forms later. When you're finished, come back here. The door will be unlocked, and you can use the phone to call Lawrence to let him know."
"Sure thing," she agrees. "Did you ask your son Steve if he'd take the test too?"
Mark hoped she wouldn't ask that. Although he agreed to take her to meet Steve for lunch, something nags at him not to let them meet right now. However, knowing Steve, he'd find a way to meet her in a less pleasant environment than BBQ Bobs. Sighing in resignation, he decides to answer.
"Yes, I did. He won't agree to do it unless he meets you first, so I suggested we'd meet him for lunch."
Aurie gapes at him in surprise but stays silent as her expression becomes unreadable. Her gaze briefly drops to the desktop before meeting his eyes.
"It's only fair, I guess," she shrugs indifferently. "I mean I went through the trouble of meeting everyone else individually." Smirking she adds, "Thought you'd be telling me it was a go. That's okay, 'cause it can't be any worse than when I met Taylor," she laughs, but the nervous rubbing of her hands on her lap gives her true feelings away.
Mark is relieved she agrees to it. Obviously, she's not comfortable meeting new people and Steve tends to make people uncomfortable sometimes. It's not a great situation, but her willingness to go ahead with it despite her clear discomfort is a good sign.
"All right then. I hope you like ribs because we'll meet him for lunch at BBQ Bobs."
"Mmmm, that's great. I love ribs," Aurie happily replies.
"Excellent," Mark nods in agreement. "Now we should get moving before it gets any later. Do you know how to get to the scheduling office for the lab?"
"Uh, no," she hesitantly replies, the confusion clear on her face. "They have a scheduling office?"
"Yes, they do. Right next door to it. It's on the first floor. Just follow the signs."
"That easy?" At Mark's nod, she adds, "Really? Just seems this place is so big. Don't I need a road map and a compass?"
"Only for the parking lot," he quips as he shuffles the papers together and places them into a large manila folder before standing up.
Following his lead, Aurie stands up while grabbing her backpack.
"It might be easier if you leave that here," he suggests. "We're going to do a lot of walking and it's likely to become a burden to you. I'll be locking the office when we leave for the zoo, so it'll be safe in here."
Briefly hesitating, Aurie considers it before nodding.
"I left the family fortune at home," she quips. "And I want to have fun, not get annoyed at lugging this around."
Setting it back down, she digs into the front pocket to get what she needs before following Mark out of the office.
However, contrary to Mark's rousing endorsement, Aurie finds herself again hopelessly turned around. The corridor looks familiar to her, but, then again, they all look the same.
Stopping briefly at a cross-section, she studies the signs hanging from the ceiling. She keeps looking for the 'flebatummy' lab, but it's not up there. Just a bunch of words she has no clue how to pronounce, much less what they mean. Except 'ER.' That one is a no-brainer. Any idiot knows that one.
She didn't realize she passed through that particular hallway at least three times. However, Jesse Travis did. He didn't pay much attention the first time the young teen passed by the doctor's lounge. He thought she looked familiar on the second pass but shrugged it off and continued reading his magazine because lots of people pass through the corridors, sometimes the same one more than once. It's the third pass that captures his attention. Setting the magazine aside, he waits to see if there's a fourth time. Like clockwork, she appears looking lost.
Rising from his seat, he steps out and finds her standing a short way down, looking up and studying the directional sign at the junction of the corridors.
"Hi, there," he greets from behind, startling her. With a slight jump, she turns around to face him. "Need help finding something?"
Warily, she eyes him. He looks like a doctor, but anyone can dress in a lab coat to pass for one. He has a nametag, but the print is too small to read.
"Maybe. Why?"
"Because you look a little lost." Sensing her tension, Jesse smiles to put her at ease. "I'm Doctor Jesse Travis."
Holding out his hand in greeting, he patiently waits until she hesitantly takes it. Cute or not, she's not going to trust he's not some sort of psycho killer.
"Are you really a doctor?" she asks warily.
"Yes, I am," Jesse confirms cheerfully while reaching for his nametag and handing it to her.
While she examines the badge, he studies her. He figures she's not much older than sixteen, maybe even fifteen. She's already cute but will be a real looker as she gets older. He wonders why she's wandering the hallway when she looks back up at him and hands his badge back.
"Thanks." Gesturing at his badge, she apologizes, "I'm sorry, but you never know what nut jobs are around."
"That's okay. You can never be too careful. Anyway, you look lost. I can point you in the right direction, miss uh…"
"Auralia. I'm trying to get to the flebahtummy lab. I can't find it on this stupid sign," she explains, gesturing up at said stupid sign.
Glancing up at the sign, he frowns in confusion.
"It's right there," he states, taking his turn to gesture up at the sign. "In the list on the right, third line down. See the arrow? It's pointing that way," he points down the hallway to the right.
Looking where he indicates, Aurie's shoulders sag a bit in defeat as her face grows hot in embarrassment.
"Shit," she mutters. Seeing the confusion on his face, she explains, "I thought phlebotomy was spelled differently, f-l-e-b-a-h-t-u-m-m-y."
Using his best poker face, Jesse bites back a laugh and resumes his helpful voice.
"Hey, it's an easy mistake for anyone to make." He drops his voice to a more conspiratorial tone. "And I'll let you in on a little secret." Pausing for dramatic effect, he looks around furtively before leaning in closer. "I could never spell that one right. Spelling is not one of my strong suits. Just don't tell the nurses that. Could hurt my reputation as a doctor."
He straightens up, arching a brow and nodding knowingly.
Feeling better, Aurie can't resist laughing a little and shaking her head. Despite enjoying talking to the cute and funny doctor, she decides to get going before she ends up embarrassing herself further.
"Thanks for the help or I'd have been here all day," she smiles shyly. She takes a couple of steps backward toward the right hallway. "I've got to get going. Nice meeting you, Dr. Travis."
"Nice meeting you too!" Jesse calls back with a wave as she disappears around the corner.
Noticing the watch on his waving hand, he sees the time. Jerking a little as if shocked, he rushes back to the ER since he's long overdue from his break.
Returning to his office after his scheduled appointment, Mark finds Aurie hovering over his teaching skeleton. She gently opens the jaw, leaning down and forward a little to peek at the underside of the skull. She finally notices him when he steps inside and walks over to his desk.
"Is that real?" she asks, stepping away from the skeleton.
"Yes, it is," Mark answers, settling into his chair.
"Are you kidding?" Her expression changes comically from shocked disbelief to revulsion. "Eww!" She promptly wipes her hands on her pants to clean off whatever she got from touching the skeleton.
While adding some final notes to the file he carried with him, Mark can't resist chuckling at her.
"It's a teaching skeleton and for years the only way to get one was if someone donated their body to science when they died," he explains. "Nowadays realistic replicas are made in vinyl or plastic. And you don't have to worry about catching anything from touching one."
"Okay, but still. I mean, that was a real live dead person," Aurie grimaces, shuddering while settling into a guest chair.
"Well, they're not really alive anymore when they're dead," Mark chuckles again. Ignoring her glare, he patiently explains, "It's a useful tool to help doctors learn and those body donations did a lot for advancements in medicine especially in the past several decades when it was no longer taboo. A lot of our knowledge today comes from doctors and scientists studying cadavers and skeletons."
"Really?" Aurie asks, still skeptical.
"Yes, really," Mark rolls his head in an exaggerated nod. "Cadavers are not only used by medical students to study but also to practice using a scalpel on. By the time they graduate and become doctors, they are quite skilled at using a scalpel. A necessary skill if you're going to end up performing surgeries."
Mark keeps his tone light but wants to make Aurie understand the importance of what he's saying.
"Oh," she replies, absently picking at the worn hem of her T-shirt. "Still seems kinda creepy. I mean, that was a living person." Gesturing at the skeleton, she adds, "Now they're hanging in a doctor's office wearing a feather boa and a straw hat."
Briefly looking down, Mark chuckles in embarrassment before looking back up at her.
"Well, the hat, tie, and boa isn't usually part of the curriculum. And sometimes, some people can't handle the idea that used to be a living person at one time," he points at the skeleton for emphasis. "Which is why not everyone is cut out to be a doctor."
Aurie considers his words for a moment then nods in acceptance.
"So, did you take care of everything for tomorrow?" he asks, changing the subject to more important matters.
"Yeah," she nods again, straightening up in her seat. "Five blood draws are scheduled for about eleven tomorrow."
"Five?" Marked asks in confusion.
"Well," Aurie hesitantly explains. "I felt like a hypocrite believing Mr. Davis and not anyone else. So, I scheduled the tests and called him first. I said it wasn't fair he got out of taking the test just because he said he wasn't my father when everyone else said the same thing. I asked him to please take it. He said okay." Aurie smiles when she notices Mark's shocked expression. "No one can bitch 'cause he's getting jabbed like everyone else." Her expression becomes hesitant. "I know your son hasn't said 'yes' yet, but I figured it'd be better to schedule five and only end up with four if he says 'no.'"
Blinking to overcome the shock, Mark finally finds his voice.
"Yeah, that's perfectly fine. I think you did the right thing by asking Spencer Davis to take the test but," he leans in closer, concern etched in his features. "Can you afford that many tests?"
"I know," Aurie sighs. "Pretty much wiped out most of my savings, but don't worry," she quickly adds when it looks like he's going to protest. "I had already taken care of the important stuff like bills and junk. It's all good."
"Are you sure about this?"
"Yes," she answers with a determined expression. "I saved it once, I can do it again."
"All right then," he concedes, not completely convinced. "Did you call Lawrence too?"
"Yes," she sighs in annoyance, rolling her eyes. "Wasn't happy to hear from me. Once I gave him the details, he said he'd come then hung up. It went better than I hoped. Short and to the point. The way I like it when dealing with him."
With a grin, Mark shakes his head. One of the things he's enjoying about Aurie is her sense of humor. He has a feeling he's only scratching the surface.
"Well, we can tell Steve about the test when we see him. Now for the important part. Where would you like to go?"
"Um, I don't know," she shrugs. She thought he had already decided. "I thought I'd be at your mercy. You live here."
"Well, I do have a suggestion. Have you ever been to the zoo?" he asks with a mischievous glint in his eye.
That's an easy question to answer, but she isn't going to admit she's never been to one.
"Uh, the L.A. Zoo, nope."
"Well, that's where we're going," Mark replies enthusiastically as he stands up and removes his lab coat.
Standing up Aurie stretches, watching Mark walk over to a coat rack by the door to hang his lab coat on it. Belatedly she realizes he's dressed casually compared to yesterday.
"All set then?" he asks when she joins him at the door. Aurie nods. "Good, let's get going."
After locking the door, he offers his arm. She hesitates, not understanding the gesture until she remembers seeing it on a TV show or movie or something. Smiling at him, she accepts the quaint gesture by taking his arm and allowing him to lead her out of the hospital.