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Lilly hasn't been this frustrated at a dilemma in a while.
It's her new team; FIXER, they're called. She fits in a whole lot better than she did at her old base, and Wes seems to feel the same way (despite the... increase in workload.)
A workload that Lilly hasn't been helping with in the slightest! And it's like she's not trying to help! she really is, though, and she appreciates everything that Wes has done, both for her and their new team. But there's one member of the team, another rookie like her, that's making her job so much harder.
And he doesn't even mean to! Adam- Target, the rest of the squad calls him- is an absolute sweetheart, despite the fact that his brothers and (more prominently) his father were hardened war vets. Instead of getting ready to aim and fire like the rest of his lineage, he spends his time birdwatching. And it's fascinating, and his slightly southern voice makes Lilly feel like she's listening to a documentary in her bunk instead of doing her job on lookout.
Target's rattling off the names of bird species that can be found in the trees of a tundra about five hundred klicks east that he someday wants to visit. Lilly is trying her best to not let her imagination get the better of her, focusing on the lifelessness of the base in front of her. "Yeah, the place is pretty desolate, but the wildlife love to roam where us people don't," He says. "Plus, with this armor, I prolly wouldn't even get cold! It's got... thermals, and stuff."
"I know, Target," Lilly says, equally fond and exasperated. "I'm wearing the same kind of armor as you."
"Well that's just it!" Target says, and she can imagine the smile lines behind his helmet, stretching all over his face. "You could come down there with me and see them! These helmets take great footage, but there's no video quite like the real thing."
Lilly couldn't help the laugh that came from her, breathy and light. "I suppose we'll have to see if Pops will give us some time off. Not anytime soon, though; I don't want to make the Boss angry when I... just got here."
Her radio beeps, and an incoming transmission from Wes pops up on her HUD. "Hold on, Target, I have to take this," she says, accepting the transmission. "Hey Wes. Do you need something?"
"Ah, not much, Lil. I just need you to help me out with my patient for a bit." Wes' voice on the other side of the line was comforting, like it has been for as long as they've known each other. "I don't know if you've noticed, but he's a bit of a flight risk. I need you to grab things so I can make sure he doesn't... run off."
"I got it, I'll be down there in a minute or two," she says. "Over."
The transmission ends, and Target looks at her through the visor of his helmet. She can only barely see the outline of his eyes, but she imagines they're a cool blue color. Something dark and transfixing that makes you want to know more. "I presume that was our new doc," he says.
"Sure was. He needs my help so that Peanut doesn't hurt himself again. You probably know how he is more than I do."
"Ah, not much more than you. He was asleep most of the time I was around before you guys. Seemed real ill... I'm glad he's doing a bit better now, though!" Target shrugged, maybe just because he's relishing in his unlocked armor. "Go see the doc. I get the feeling he has a bit of a temper under that helmet. I know I would."
"Okay. Bye, Target," Lilly says, headed down the stairs toward the medbay.
"Bye, Lilly!" He calls as she's walking away, and it makes something twist in Lilly's gut. Her HUD says that her body temperature has raised 0.6%, and she swats the notification away.
The clank of her armor underneath the metal stairs is what she focuses on until she reaches the medbay, Peanut sitting upright and cross-legged on the examination table. Wes' shoulders appear to slump in relief when she arrives. "Lilly, it's good to see you."
"Hey, Wes. What did you need me to do for our patient?" She looks to Peanut, who waves and beams, his helmet off and discarded on the floor by Wes' feet.
"I just need you to watch him while I sort out my equipment. Don't let him stand up, don't let him run off." He glares at Peanut through his visor, and Lilly is somewhat grateful that Wes keeps his helmet on most of the time; his glares can kill, even if they're not directed at you.
Lilly salutes in lieu of a confirmation, and Wes nods as he goes to sort out his equipment. "I'm glad you're watching me, nice lady! The doc can be kind of mean."
"My name is Lilly, Peanut," Lilly reminds gently. "You don't have to keep calling me 'nice lady.'"
"I know that! Oh, you know what else I know? The doc had to do a blood test on me earlier, and I learnt that I'm allergic to peanuts! Which is super ironic, because that's my name!" He looks up at Lilly earnestly, and she nods through his entire explanation. Maybe if she can keep him talking, he won't feel as inclined to give her the 'welcome tour.'
"Really? How did you not notice that you were allergic before?" Lilly asked.
Peanut shrugged, trying to get up. Lilly tilted her helmet, and he sat back down. "I dunno! I guess I never thought about it."
I guess I never thought about it. Lilly thinks about birds and a smile hidden underneath a blue helmet, thinks about how her throat closes up whenever she's around that same person. Thinks about the notification informing her that her body temperature raised when he said her name.
Wes comes back, breathing a sigh of relief when he sees his patient still sitting on the examination table. "Thank you, Lil. I can take it from here."
"Actually, Wes, can I talk with you for a minute?" Lilly asks, shifting from one foot to the other. He must pick up on the fact that this isn't something she wants to discuss in front of the patient, because he ushers her to the door of the medbay with a glare at Peanut that can only mean don't go anywhere or I'll make sure you never can again.
Sometimes Lilly wonders if Wes ever actually took the Hippocratic Oath.
"So," he says pleasantly, "Is something the matter, Lil?" There's a hint of concern in his tone; Lilly hasn't pulled him aside like this since their last base, and when she did it was mostly to talk about the others in her squad talking badly about her.
"Nothing serious, I just... want to ask you something. And it's kind of a stupid question."
"There's no such thing as a stupid question."
"It's a medical question."
"Well that changes everything. There are a lot of stupid medical questions, but I'm sure I've heard them all. Lay it on me."
Lilly rolls her eyes, fond at the slightly teasing tone of her otherwise expressionless long-time friend. "Um, so... Is it possible to be... allergic to a person?" She asks.
After a moment of silence, she feels the judging eyes of Wes on her. Seems like she just asked a stupid medical question, and it's probably one he's never heard before. "...This is about that Pendleton boy, isn't it?" He asks, voice lightening.
Lilly sucks in a breath between her teeth. "Maybe?" she says, voice raising an octave.
"Maybe." Wes sounds unimpressed. Lilly shies away, sighing.
"I'll tell you this, Lilly; there is no such thing as being allergic to a person. At least, not in my records. And I studied medicine and allergies for about four years." Wes unclasps his helmet, looking up at Crash to make sure there's still someone on lookout before doing so. "But that doesn't mean there's no reason behind feeling unable to breathe whenever you're around someone. And your heart beating fast, and... all that crap."
Lilly forgets, sometimes, that Wes is more emotionally constipated than she is. She giggles, and he must catch it, because he glares at her. It shuts her up in record time.
"Just... stop asking dumb medical questions to get an easy way out of this hole you've dug yourself into. I get enough of those from my patient in there," Wes points his thumb backwards, where Peanut hasn't moved by some miracle. (Probably because the two of them are blocking the door.)
"Alright," Lilly says, rolling her eyes once more. "You'd best get back in there, then. I'll try not to bother you from hereon out with... this."
Wes shakes his head, and Lilly only sees a hint of a smile before his helmet fully secures back over his face, clasping with the rest of his suit. "Just go enjoy the rest of your downtime. I'm sure Pops will call for a change for people on watch any minute now."
Lilly leaves Wes to his devices with a wave and finds Target waiting for her at their favourite spot, close enough to the trees to get a good look at the vibrant colours of the birds but far away enough not to spook any of them. "Well welcome back! Doc must've kept you busy. Peanut kickin' up a ruckus?"
"Not today," Lilly says, leaning over the guardrail. "I needed to ask him a few questions. Hope I didn't make you wait too long."
Target tsks underneath his helmet. "That's nonsense if I've ever heard it. I'd wait as long as it takes for someone like you."
He says it so... offhandedly, and Lilly honestly considers the allergy idea again. It'd be a lot easier. "Oh! Well... I'm glad you've taken a liking to me." She hopes her voice isn't too squeaky. She feels like her voice comes out squeaky.
"We're a team, silly! I've taken a 'liking' to everyone. You're surely my favourite out of the current bunch, though." It's silent for a few beats, and Target looks behind his shoulder. "Don't tell Crash I said that."
Lilly laughs, something more whole than her usual breathy giggle. "I won't." Her own smile mirrors the one stretching across Target's face.