Chapter Text
It was a hot day in the African jungle. So hot that Dr. Arizona Adams was sure she has officially sweat through the outdoor clothing she had chosen to wear for this particular expedition. The strands of her blonde hair that had fallen out of her ponytail had stuck to her face with sweat. Her green eyes portrayed the exhaustion that ran through her body.
This job was put together at the last-minute. Being one of the world’s best-known geologists, it wasn’t surprising to Arizona that General Peters had reached out to her for her valuable knowledge and expertise. Particularly her expertise in land rehabilitation after mining. Arizona had done geology work with the military in the past, so she knew what to expect.
“Okay, everyone! That’s lunch!” Arizona had called to the group.
There were murmurs of agreeance as Arizona pushed herself onto her feet. Rehabilitating land was a lengthy process, but something that is arguably not as tedious as it once had been thanks to the technology now available to geologists in the mid-to-late-21st century. It all helped Arizona get the process to where she wanted it to be before she moved on to another project.
Or maybe she’ll get to go back to America for a bit. After all, she was just wrapping up some lab work for another job in South Africa when she got the call from General Peters personally requesting her for this gig.
Arizona sighed in relief as she stepped into the canteen. She was thankful for the shade. She was thankful for the cool area.
She quite enjoyed being able to travel the world and do all of these great things with her geology work. But she will be the first to admit she preferred certain locations over others.
At least this time the company’s great, Arizona couldn’t help but muse to herself. She’d worked with worse people.
She spent some of her lunch break talking to Colonel Sweeney, who was one of the key reasons why Arizona was out in the African jungle in the first place. While Arizona wasn’t familiar with the finer details of the incident due to its classified nature, she did grasp the gist of the situation.
She was particularly intrigued when Colonel Sweeney mentioned his encounter with International Rescue. Even if her work kept her travelling on a regular basis, she was able to keep up with world events. Including the appearance of a mysterious, anonymous organisation dedicated to saving lives. A noble cause, to be sure, but what had made them so special was the fact that they were successful in situations where a conventional rescue was impossible.
Like the Fireflash rescue. Everyone was amazed when International Rescue were able to safely bring down the plane without detonating the bomb and no injuries. Not even minor ones. While yes, everyone aboard had to be closely monitored for signs of radiation exposure for a length of time, it was certainly a better outcome than what could have been.
Then, there were the appearances at other disasters. Even natural disasters. She remembered a horrific mine collapse that had occurred in India. Under normal circumstances, it would’ve taken days or even weeks to rescue the miners, and there almost certainly would’ve been casualties. But a call was placed with International Rescue within the hour of the mine collapsing, and a rescue operation that would’ve taken days or weeks was completed within hours. But that wasn’t the best part of that particular rescue. The best part was the zero casualties.
It went without saying that International Rescue were miracle workers.
“So, you actually met International Rescue?” one of the younger soldiers guarding the civilian contractors excitedly asked Colonel Sweeney. “What were they like? Were they everything the papers say they are?”
“And more,” Colonel Sweeney readily declared. “If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be sitting here today. My men and I owe our lives to them.”
“What do they look like?” that same young soldier demanded.
“I’m not going to reveal that,” Colonel Sweeney quickly declined. “International Rescue do a lot of work for us, and the only thing they ask for in return is anonymity. I for one am going to respect their wishes.” The young soldier predictably pouted at the declaration. Colonel Sweeney then pondered his next words and said, “But I can tell you they are brave individuals. And their doctor is incredible.”
“Doctor?” Arizona repeated, confusion laced in her voice. Nobody had mentioned the outfit having a doctor with them.
“Yeah. They have a doctor that goes along with them treating patients in the field. I can tell you that much,” Colonel Sweeney revealed. “That doctor is one of the best doctors I ever met. Brilliant bedside manner. Dedicated to their work. Frank was so disappointed when he didn’t get to thank them himself.”
Arizona smiled at Colonel Sweeney’s words. She was glad to have meet someone whose life was directly impacted by International Rescue. Although, there was a general consensus about International Rescue. The world may appreciate them for what they do, but they weren’t entirely sure they wanted the opportunity to meet the incredible people behind the organisation.
Especially when you consider how Colonel Sweeney ended up meeting International Rescue.
**
Arizona retreated to her private quarters after dinner. For safety concerns, all work at the site stopped at the same time every day, and everyone was escorted to the accommodation that was organised for the job. Arizona was thankful for the time to herself. She was a social butterfly, but she also enjoyed her alone time just as much. There were times where she needed time alone to recharge – especially after the day like today.
Before she went back to her room, she had given General Peters a progress report, like he expected daily. Arizona was confident that within a week, she could depart and leave the crater to its own devices to complete the restoration process over the next several years. The main point of the job was making sure the area was safe and that whatever happened before – which Arizona still didn’t know – didn’t happen again.
Even then, there will be signs posted around the area and a general warning for anyone who ventured to this part of the jungle to proceed with caution. Especially when you considered the disused military equipment that was still burning away in the crater.
Since Arizona already knew she wasn’t going to be doing anything else this evening – and many of her colleagues were going to turn in for the night after dinner – the first thing she did when she arrived at her quarters was shower to wash the day off of her and change into a comfortable pair of pyjamas. Setting up her laptop at the coffee table, she immediately reached for the TV remote, browsing for a movie she could play in the background.
Arizona became a movie buff at a very young age. It was something that was nurtured within her by various family members – particularly family members like her: one of the few who were not deaf or hard of hearing.
Arizona opted to select The King’s Speech for her viewing pleasure this evening. Out of habit, she pressed the necessary buttons on the remote to turn on the subtitles. Anytime Arizona watched a movie with her immediate family, they always had to turn on the subtitles so everyone could take part and understand what was happening. It was one of the many things in life that made Arizona wonder if being the only person in her immediate family who could hear was a blessing or a curse.
Regardless, Arizona always turned on the subtitles for anything she watched – even if she was alone. She had tried watching movies without subtitles and found it too weird. Also, there were several instances where she found it hard to hear the movie’s dialogue, particularly if the dialogue was drowned out by special effects and other sounds.
One would think it would be something they would’ve fixed by now, but alas, it’s an issue that’s still prevalent. Along with inaccurate subtitles.
When the film started showing the speech the then-Prince Albert, Duke of York was giving at Wembley Stadium for the closing ceremony of the Empire Exhibition in 1925, Arizona opened her laptop. She also wanted to take the opportunity to catch up with her emails – especially since it was her parents’ preferred source of communication whenever Arizona was travelling.
One of the first emails she saw was an email from Oxford University, asking her to do some work with them in their labs. Looking at her calendar to confirm that she didn’t have anything scheduled during the timeline they provided, Arizona fired off a quick email to accept the offer. While she would’ve liked to be able to return to America before flying out to that atomic station in the Sahara Desert to analyse their work from a geological perspective, she was also excited at the prospect of going to Oxford. It was Oxford.
The second email she replied to was an email from her family. Even if Arizona couldn’t always share with them the details of her work, her parents wanted her to email them often so they knew she was okay and happy. Naturally, they would prefer it if she found a more permanent job and settled in one location (preferably back home in Boston), but they weren’t about to stifle their youngest child. They were giving her the room to spread her wings – even if they did find it hard cutting the apron strings at first.
Arizona smiled when she read a funny story her mother had included in the email about her father involving a cooking attempt in the kitchen. Now, her father was great at many things, but cooking wasn’t one of them. While there was never any danger of him burning down the kitchen, he did often experience hilarious mishaps that led to some great stories to share with the family.
Arizona replied to her parents’ email. Since this was one of her jobs that required secrets to be kept, she didn’t divulge anything about the details of her job. But she did talk about some of the people she worked with. The people she shared lunch with. She talked about the gathering they held amongst themselves two nights ago, where they all got together and drank, played games and overall had a great time. It was the perfect winddown they had mentioned needing that particular night.
She also took the time to inform them about the quick job she had just accepted at Oxford, already preparing herself for the list of souvenirs her parents would ask her to send back to them. She also reminded them of her plans after her time in the Sahara. She was going to attend a conference in Chicago and spend a few days there before flying back home to Boston.
Once she sent off that email, she opened the third email she wanted to reply to this evening. The email from her childhood best friend, Dr. Indiana Evans.
Arizona didn’t even try hiding her surprise when she got the email from her best friend saying she was resigning from her job in Rochester to work for Jeff Tracy. Even if the reason she left Rochester was in line with what she would want to do. She would want to do what she could to improve care – particularly trauma care, since she is a trauma surgeon – around the world. She had seen first-hand the difference trauma care can make in a lot of cases, and even when she was in college, she was always passionate about making sure everyone had access to quality care.
‘Hey, Ari,
It’s been a crazy couple of weeks. We have achieved so much already. We helped a regional hospital open its first trauma centre. This is an area where the closest trauma centre was several hours away, so this was quite literally the difference between life and death. It’s a Level II trauma centre and also services neighbouring locations much like Kessler in Rochester.
Gordon got to be there for the opening and he came back with glowing reports. He told me about how he saw first-hand the difference having a trauma centre close by made for the residents. It’s as he said – it’s things like this that make what we do worthwhile.
Sounds like you’re having fun in Africa, though. I’m just chilling on a tropical island with iced teas.’
“Bitch,” Arizona couldn’t help but grumble with a teasing smile.
‘It really is amazing here. I know I’ve said that multiple times over the last few weeks, but so far, I’m not regretting my decision to leave Rochester. For one thing, the more distance between me and my mother, the better. For another, the people I’m living with are absolutely incredible. The hikes I’m going on with Scott are happening almost daily. Every day, he keeps showing me some new part of the island I haven’t explored yet. But we always end up at a bluff watching the sunrise or the sunset.’
Arizona sighed to herself, “Oh, Indy…” She wondered if her best friend had caught onto the fact that she’s falling for one of her very handsome housemates.
She had looked up the Tracy brothers when Indiana first told her who she was working with – especially Scott. When she stumbled upon a paparazzi photo of him shirtless on a beach during a work trip, she immediately began wondering how Indiana was going to live with that 24/7 and resist his charms. Actually, Arizona wouldn’t be surprised if she somehow discovered that Indiana already had a little something going on with Scott.
‘But everyone here is making me feel at home. Alan’s been teaching me how to play tennis. Gordon takes me diving through the underwater caves to help me with my certifications. Virgil has been trying to convince me to be a model for one of his paintings. Jeff always values my opinion. And I enjoy working with Brains… even if I’m having a hard time getting him to take better care of himself.
I’ve mentioned Tin-Tin a few times before. She’s convincing me to go with her to the mainland for one of her shopping expeditions. And yes, I mean expedition. I have been told repeatedly that shopping with Tin-Tin is a true experience. You need to tell me where you’re gonna be over the next few months so we can coordinate our schedules and catch up.
And before you ask, I’m doing my best to stay out of trouble, and I know you’re doing your best to do the same. But you know what it was like in high school – the more we tried staying out of trouble, the more trouble we found.
Your partner-in-crime, Indy’
Arizona snorted at Indiana’s last paragraph before she signed off on the email. She had spoken (or written) the truth. They never went looking for trouble. Trouble always found them. They were never in danger of being expelled or even suspended from school, but they both certainly had a reputation with their teachers that wasn’t entirely because of their academic achievements.
Arizona quickly typed out a reply. Her email to Indiana wasn’t as lengthy as her email to her parents, but it was also longer than the email she sent to Oxford accepting the temporary job they offered.
‘Hey, Indy,
First of all, is it your aim to make me jealous with every email you send me? Because I’d like to tell you that you are very successful. Any chance your boss will let me swing by for a vacation?
Africa is fun… and hot. I love my job, but I’ll be the first to admit that working in a jungle isn’t a favourite. I’m happy to work in mountains or in the desert, but I’m not a big fan of the jungle. At least the company’s great. I don’t know how I would’ve gone if I was stuck with the same people I was stuck with for my last expedition. I’m not kidding. I might’ve needed you to fly out and be my character witness.
Scratch that. You know me too well.
Sounds like all the Tracys are being good to you, which I’m glad to hear. I was worried that I would need to send them a threatening email detailing what I would do to them if they hurt you. Especially Scott. We all know you have a crush on him. Don’t try to deny it. You’re that obvious – even over email.
I’m glad to hear of your success (or, rather, your foundation’s success) getting that new trauma centre open. Even if we lost him in the end, having a Level I Trauma Centre at Mass General gave Ethan a fighting chance I don’t think he would’ve gotten elsewhere. So, I know you hear it a lot – especially from me – but I want you to know how grateful I am for what you do.
You’re right. I’m doing my best to stay out of trouble. Fortunately, I’m not in a situation where trouble’s inclined to find me. At least the trouble you’ll be getting yourself into will be the best kind of trouble.
As for catching up in-person, it might be a while. I just accepted a temporary work gig at Oxford before my work in the Sahara, and then I’ll be in Chicago for a few weeks. Would you and Tin-Tin be interested in checking out the shopping at the Magnificent Mile by any chance? But I do hope our schedules align soon. I miss you, Inds.
Your partner-in-crime, Ari’
Arizona smiled as she sent off her last email for the evening, because it enabled her to close down her laptop and really sit back to watch the movie. When she looked up, she saw she hadn’t missed much in her email writing. She was up to the scene where the future Edward VIII arrived to Sandringham before the death of George V. The King’s Speech was always one of her favourites, so it was a movie she had seen multiple times. She wasn’t worried about missing any key scenes – she knew them all.
Her mind couldn’t help but drift to what Indiana had been telling her about her interactions with Scott. He was the one who picked her up from Rochester and brought her over to her new home and life. And she talked about him in her emails more than she did any other Tracy brother. (In fact, she couldn’t help but suspiciously note that John barely got a mention in recent months.) She knew it would only be a matter of time before Indiana realized her feelings for him – and based on some of the interactions Indiana detailed in her emails, Arizona already knew, even if Indiana didn’t, that Scott was falling for her as well.
Don’t misunderstand her. She was extremely happy for her best friend. So happy, she didn’t know if she could put it into words. They had grown up together, so Arizona saw first-hand what Indiana had to go through with her family. She deserved all the happiness in the world – including her love life. Arizona had heard about the very few relationships Indiana had in college and had been very quick to declare them all losers (except for one Indiana stayed on friendly terms with).
But she also couldn’t help but wish to have someone like that in her life too. Someone who loved her. She wasn’t necessarily looking for the romance she saw in the movies – since, while enjoyable, they were often unrealistic and sometimes downright toxic – but she did often ponder on how nice it would be to have someone to come home to at the end of the day. To have someone to share her triumphs and downfalls with. To have someone who would fight her battles with her rather than for her (that latter point was always very important to both Arizona and Indiana).
She hadn’t dated since college, and she knew her unpredictable schedule made it hard for her to maintain relationships and even meet people (especially since she was strict with her self-imposed rule about not dating co-workers), but she couldn’t help but admit to feeling lonely at times. She thought about her colleagues who talked about having all of these late-night chats (among other things) with their partners and families back home, and she would love that more than anything.
Pushing those thoughts to one side, Arizona focused her attention back to the movie. Even if she did feel lonely at times and wanted a bit of romance in her life, she was also still maintaining the attitude of ‘if it happens, it happens; and if it doesn’t, it’s not the end of the world’. She wasn’t about to start putting herself out there and enter the world of online dating. She was content. For now.
It was just one of those things that would be nice to have.