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1.
Frank had a nasty habit, something that developed during college when his roommates would smoke on the fire escape just outside their apartment. It didn’t happen straight away, he would sit and talk with his friends and drink but one night when Louis offered him the tail end of his cigarette butt? The habit went on from there.
He stopped intermittently when Abby came about and they were pregnant with Tanner, wanting to shape himself into a good partner and father and he didn’t want their home or his breath to smell like cigarettes. He took the nicotine patches, tried to distract himself as best he could and used work as a way to escape.
His habit changed into pills then, benzos to be exact and one nasty habit was exchanged for another. Abby wasn’t too happy when she found out, who would? But he found himself not caring, he started smoking in between getting clean and the arrival of his daughter but didn’t care to keep it away from Abby, the only people he hid it from were Tanner, Millie and Mel.
Abby knew he still smoked, she’d glare at him every time he came home and filled their home with the smell of smoke and antiseptic from the hospital. He’d take breaks from the kids, wouldn’t kiss Abby hello or goodbye and often was found on the balcony scrolling on his phone and holding a cigarette in his hand.
Dana wasn’t much better at work, she’d let him smoke with her but not without reminders that he had time to quit before he ruined his body even more. Frank took these comments in stride, just shaking his head and blowing out the smoke while watching Pittsburgh move in front of them. She didn’t approve but didn’t do much to stop him, knowing it would take a lot more than indirect
pressure to get him to even think about it.
When he met Mel though, she didn’t even have to say anything for the thought to cross his mind.
The first time he realised she hated smoking was when he met her on the roof of the hospital after a tough shift. He went up there with two protein bars, a doctor pepper and a pack of cigarettes.
“Want one?” He offered the pack of cigarettes to her, one loosely in his mouth
She shakes her head, pushing his offered hand away with a scrunch on her nose (which definitely didn’t make his heart skip). “I don’t smoke.”
“You don’t? Do you mind if I do?”
She hesitates for a couple of seconds before shaking her head again, shifting on the uncomfortable concrete and opening her can of soda. “I don’t mind. Does Abby know you smoke?”
Frank hums, lighting up his cigarette and breathing it in. “She does, I don’t do it around the kids though since I’m not an imbecile but she doesn’t approve.”
“Why do you do it then? Doesn’t her opinion matter?”
He gives the other doctor a sideways glance, “We’ve been on different paths for months now, Mel. Maybe before I would've cared but now we’re just together solely for the purpose of keeping the kids happy and safe. She has her opinions and tells me them all the time but I don’t listen.”
She looks back towards the view of the city, sipping her Dr Pepper.
“What…” He gulps, “What do you think of my smoking? Or smoking in general?”
He watches her throat bob and her eyes narrow slightly, but she doesn’t look at or answer him straight away.
“I hate it, truthfully. I understand how it can help people with their stress levels but you’re just tempting fate. My mother used to smoke in the house before she died, it was unbearable at first until we got used to it.”
He paused mid drag, looking at the light end of his cigarette, “Oh,”
“You don’t have to stop, it’s helping you.”
“But you hate it, you’re special to me Mel and I don’t want to do anything that makes you uncomfortable.” He stubs it out next to him, throwing the blunt end over the side of the building.
“Have you ever thought about quitting?”
He sighs, bringing a knee up to rest his arm on. “Sometimes, I did for a while but then it just came back. I could argue that I never had a good enough reason to.”
“But your kids?”
“Having kids adds to the stress, especially through med school. I’m trying to find a reason nowadays though.” He meets her gaze and is surprised to see sincerity in her expression.
She doesn’t look at him with sympathy in her eyes, and doesn't look angry. She looks determined, like she wants to help.
“There are many other ways that can help you get over this habit. Distractions are key to success and not overworking yourself.”
He realises that he wants to be clean, for Mel. “What if I don’t manage?”
“Then we’ll try again. You managed with your addiction so what’s smoking? You can do this.”
He nods, his heart growing two more sizes just by her words. If he didn’t realise he loved her before, then he certainly did now.
This girl hated smoking and he was going to get clean for her, not Abby, not his kids (though maybe a 10th for his kids) but for Mel.
2.
Saturday nights are a different type of crazy and nobody knows why.
Maybe it was people going out partying and getting themselves into bother.
Maybe people get themselves drunk to escape reality.
“I didn’t want to be around my wife’s family, can you imagine being stuck with Morticia Adams as a mother-in-law all weekend? The lady has no business being in *my* business!”
“I understand sir but smacking your head on a granite counter wasn’t the best move.” Mel tries to reason, dabbing some gauze at the guy's head as he goes on and on about his wife’s family
“Hey don’t get in my business, you’ll just be like her!” He snaps, causing Mel to jump away in surprise and drop the gauze and antiseptic she was dipping into. “Now look! Some doctor you are.”
“Hey, hey, everything okay here?” Frank popped his head around the curtain, his brows furrowed and his eyes pointedly on Mel, not even caring that the patient was starting to rant. “Do you need a second?”
Mel took a shaky breath, looking back at Mr Diaz and then nodding. “I do,” She stands up, discarding her gloves and ignoring the patient's protests and questions and heads towards the opening of the curtain
“Do you have your app? The lava lamp one?” He asks her, “Go into the break room and have five minutes, you can have my case. It’s just a lady with an injury from cooking dinner, she’s waiting on imaging just to make sure she didn’t hit anything important so you have time.” Frank tells her, a hand on the small of her back
Her hands were wringing together, remembering that her phone hadn’t charged that night due to a fault in her charging cable. She had planned to buy one on the way home from a nearby Target.
“I don’t have my phone on me, it’s in my locker.”
She speaks up, grateful they were in a quieter area of the ER. “My phone didn’t charge last night.”
“Your shitty charger cable finally gave in?”
“It wasn’t shitty, it was well-loved.” She pouts, “Plus I gave all the good ones to Becca for her electronics, you know she can’t go without them on bad days.”
He hums, reaching for his phone. “You know the passcode, go into the break room and have those five minutes. I’ll tell Dana that we’re swapping and that you’re having a break and you should be okay to not be on the floor.”
She doesn’t say anything, just takes his phone and accepts the kiss on her forehead. She turns to move towards the break room, sidestepping any gurneys, ignoring shouts from patients and eventually collapsing down with a huff onto one of the uncomfortable plastic chairs.
She takes thirty seconds to ground herself, breathing in and out and lightly scratching her nails over the textured phone case Frank has and hearing the muffled sounds of the ER.
It lasts longer than thirty seconds though and she probably has three more minutes before she’s expected to go back out so she doesn’t waste time unlocking Frank’s phone (Tanner’s birthday) and she doesn’t have to think when she’s trying to find the little games section he has for when Tanner wants to play on his phone.
But she doesn’t get there.
Or well she does, it’s on the last page but something else takes her attention
Just underneath the group of games that’s labelled ‘Tanner’ there’s a new group that is called ‘Mel <3’ and there are three items inside.
One is her Lava Lamp app, the same one she has downloaded on her phone and looks at the most. It calms her like nothing else can (other than a warm body to cling onto or coach her through her breathing) and it’s her favourite.
The other two are games that she’s played in passing, maybe shared a game or two with Becca on her tablet but her heart blooms in her chest.
He has a whole setup just for her. For when she’s overwhelmed or just needs a distraction.
She hears the clock ticking behind her and she tries to smother her smile as she clicks on the Lava Lamp App and breathes out at the familiar blobs that take over the screen.
3.
Monday mornings were never a favourite in the King Household, much like anyone else in the world but Mel particularly hated these days because it meant Becca was more difficult to wake up and get to the centre.
She loved her sister dearly, she’d never wish to not have her but sometimes she wished that she didn’t have a demanding job alongside being a caregiver.
“Mel, c’mon! We’re going to be late and I want to talk to Josie!” Becca whines, watching Mel scramble around their apartment
Mel had woken up late this morning too, concentrating on getting Becca up, washed and dressed (not that she needed much coaching) and cooking breakfast. She neglected herself until the last minute, throwing on some scratchy scrubs that were the only ones clean and pulling a brush through her hair.
“I’m coming Bec’s, I just gotta find my keys.”
“They’re here, where they always are. You were rushing me this morning and now you’re the one running late.” She points out, swinging her bag and sighing softly. “It’s 6:30”
Mel really tried hard not to snap, truly she did. She gritted her teeth and forced herself to stop looking for her glasses, having taken them off to wash her face but somehow had lost them in that small space of time.
“You don’t have your hair up,” Becca comments when Mel is unlocking the front door and ushering her sister out
“I know, I have spares at work so I'll have them then.”
“It’s a good job you’re not driving then, your hair will get in the way.”
“It is, isn’t it?”
Soon Becca was dropped off and Mel was rushing into work, having five minutes to spare
“Whoa, Mel. Are you okay?” Samira was already in the locker room, just finishing clipping her hair up and making sure she looked presentable. “You’re usually here way before anyone else.”
“Things this morning kinda all went wrong, I didn’t have time to do my usual slow morning.” Mel answers, shoving her bag into her locker and then groaning. “Do you have a hair tie? I forgot to grab one in my rush.”
Samira gives her a look of sympathy and shakes her head, “I don’t. I do have a claw clip if you want that?” She hands her a brown, glittered clip that looked way too big for her head but decides to use it anyway, it would keep her hair back and it would only be for today.
“I should make up a kit to keep in my locker,” Mel mutters, going over to the mirror. “I’ve never forgotten a hair tie before but I guess there’s a first for everything.”
“I usually have plenty but since I usually wear clips, I've just gotten rid of them since there was no point. Trinity always tried to steal them anyway, I’m sorry I couldn't help you more.”
Mel shakes her head, trying not to wince at the scratching of the clip or how the tightness is all wrong. “It’s okay, it’s not your fault. I’ll see you out there?”
Samira nodded and squeezed her hand before shutting her locker and heading out to leave Mel by herself.
The clip was big enough to take in all her hair, comically big really but it did the job. The little spikes weren’t fun though and she cursed herself yet again for forgetting a hair tie.
“Mel, it’s time for the handover!” Robby calls into the locker room, slapping a hand on the doorframe and leaving
Mel takes in a breath, counting to five before putting on a smile and heading out.
“Hey,” She greets, saddling up beside Langdon and tapping her hands on the desk.
“Hey yourself, sporting a new look?” The man’s brows raise
“What do you mean? I haven’t changed anything about myself in the last 24 hours since you saw me.”
“Mel, you’re looking more and more like Mohan every day.”
“Oh the clip, I had to borrow it.”
“Why? Don’t you have any more hair ties?”
“I do but I forgot to grab one on the way out of the apartment, I didn’t even get a chance to do my hair properly which resulted in this.”
He shifts so he’s leaning against the desk sideways, his hip propped against it and his arms crossed.
She tries to ignore the vein protruding from his skin.
“Will you be okay wearing that all day? I know they can be annoying.”
She feels her heart swoon, “I’ll be okay, just gotta keep busy right?”
“Well I mean sure but it doesn't mean you can go around feeling uncomfortable.”
Her hand goes to rest on his arm, right over where the vein is and she has to stop herself from tracing it. “I’ll be fine, I promise.” She glances at the board, “I’ll be alright in chairs, they’ll keep me busy for a bit.”
“I’ll get Santos to swap with you in a couple of hours, she owes me a favour anyway.”
“A favour?”
“Don’t ask, I'll see you later.” He gives a mock two-fingered salute and pushes away from the nurse's desk
-
It’s two hours later and she’s already overstimulated. The waiting times in chairs were ridiculous according to many members of the public and some have threatened to just go through and wait in the corridors, not even caring that there was a waiting list going by priority.
“Melanoma!”
She turns around, seeing Trinity walking up towards her with Whitaker in tow.
“Langdon asked me- well he begged me to come take you off. He’s in North 17 with a little kid, he also said to go to your locker first.” She shrugged, snatching the clipboard from her hands and not so gently hip-checking her towards the doors. “Go while you can, I can handle all these Karen’s”
“Trinity they’re just people who are frustrated-“
“And who needs to wait, why let them expect five-star service? This is a hospital, not the Hilton.”
Mel doesn’t have an answer for that, just shaking her head and walking back out. She doesn’t waste time, going to her locker and inputting the code.
She’s not expecting a bag to fall out, landing at her feet and stealing her attention
There was a note stuck to it, written in his usual chicken scratch
‘For emergencies (: love F x’
She opens the bag, rifling through and finding loads of goodies that she usually reached for or offhandedly mentioned- throughout the shift.
There were hair ties, her favourite gum, some spare dollar bills, her favourite protein bars and candy, small packets of gum like mouthwash that just dissolved on the tongue etc.
At the bottom was a smaller bag, barely bigger than her pinky and inside were little notes folded up. There was a larger piece of paper that stuck out and she read it over
‘Take one when you’re feeling down or having a hard shift, it can be a reminder or pick me up if I’m not here <3’
Her heart is two sizes bigger and her lips are curved into a smile.
She takes a couple more seconds to reread it twice more and then she’s back out on the floor, her hair in its usual braid and a note held to her chest while she finds the culprit
“There she is,” He beams, looking up from his tablet when she comes into view. “You’re back.”
“You are my sunshine, really?” She tilts her head, lifting the note
“You make me happy when skies are grey,” He finished with a shrug
“You’re a sap, don’t you sing that to your kids?”
“And it fits in this context too, it makes you smile though.”
“I can’t believe you did this, how did you have the time?”
“I finished all my cases and went up to the hospital gift shop, Samira had my back.” He taps something on his iPad before continuing, “She saw how uncomfortable you were when she handed it to you and it didn’t take much convincing for her to help.”
“I owe you both something, to show my gratitude.”
“Mel, sweetheart, it wasn’t anything big. You don’t need to give us anything except just accepting it.”
She presses her lips together, “Alright. Where are we with cases?”
“I’ve just finished up in North 17, a kid with a fever. Do you wanna take Central 8? An 80-year-old with a broken wrist.”
“Sounds good to me, boss.”
“Boss? Seriously?” He tugs on the end of her hair playfully as she passes and the smile on his face is fond. “I’ll come in a second, I just need to put these orders in.”
She gives a mock salute and heads off
“You are so whipped, boy.”
“I thought we were done with stating the obvious, Dana?”
The nurse in charge just snorts, “She’s gonna realise one of these days.”
“I’ll be waiting then, I'm patient.”
“You’re quite literally not but sure, honey.”
4.
“Mel we have to find the *right* one! It can’t be a boring tree!” Five year old Tanner Langdon yells as he drags her up the beaten path to where the trees were planted.
He was dressed to the nines in winter gear and looked adorable in his little bobble hat that matched his baby sister's. It was no doubt Abby’s idea to dress him like this, instead of the standard kids' clothing that had cartoon colours or characters.
Little Millie toddled alongside them, Frank holding her gloved hands tight so she didn’t fall over. Her hat was bouncing on every step and her goofy smile was taking up her entire face.
“What kind of tree fits in the living room?” She asks Frank, hearing Tanner babble on
“Nothing too tall, we have high ceilings but I want to be able to reach the top.” He answers, picking Millie up and hitching her on his hip as they get to the busier parts. “Remember Tanner, no running off.”
“Yes, daddy! C’mon, Melly!” He drags the family through the aisles of trees
(“Too fat,”)
(“Too small!”)
(“Too prickly!”)
“Daddy that one!” Eventually, they all settle on one that’s at the end of the row, a middle height tree that had enough space to put decorations on and was tall enough but not too tall.
“That’s perfect T, put the little stick in the ground then and we can go,” Frank tells him, setting Millie down.
Mel watches as Frank helps his son dig the plank of wood into the softer soil, marking that tree as theirs. Millie was just happy to be along for the ride, smacking her hand on top and giggling.
“Are you happy with your choice, Tanner?” She asks the boy, rubbing her hands together in an attempt to warm them.
“I am! Can we go to the park now?”
“It’s the middle of winter dude, I don’t think many people will be there.” Frank reasons, “How about we go feed the reindeer? I saw one or two near the entrance.”
That was enough for the boy to shoot forward, still in the eyeline of the adults but slow enough to wait for Millie to catch up with him.
“You okay?”
She looked up, Frank’s face was close to hers as they walked side by side. His nose was red and his hat low on his forehead. His eyes held concern and his mouth downturned
“I’m okay, are you?”
“You’re shivering and you’re not wearing your gloves.”
“Becca took them, she lost hers on the field trip last week and we haven’t had a chance to buy any more. I’m okay though, we’ll be back in the car soon.”
He shakes his head, “That won’t do.” He fumbles for his car keys, “Let’s make a pit stop at my car before we go to the reindeer.”
She doesn’t have the chance to ask why, Frank is herding Tanner and Millie to the car park and making them wait nearby as he scrambles through the front console.
“Aha!” He stands up, hitting his head on the roof of the car but it doesn’t faze him. He’s revealed to be holding a pair of blue gloves, which look about her size and the same make as her old ones
“You have gloves?” She questions, taking them when he offers them to her
“I would’ve given them to you earlier if I had noticed, wrangling two excited kids into a car while juggling a hot coffee kinda distracts a guy.” He shrugs, “Plus your smile of excitement was blinding.”
She decides to come back to that comment, putting on the gloves and sighing in relief when she doesn’t feel the usual scratching of the label
“I also cut out the label inside, I know you don’t like them. I don’t understand how companies put them there in the first place, wouldn’t it make sense to have them on the outside- mmf!”
She cuts him off when their lips meet, her hands on the lapels of his open jacket and she hears Tanner’s cheerful giggle.
“Mel I-“ He’s struggling to find words when they pull away, brought back to reality when Millie shouts that she’s bored.
“We can talk about this later?” She offers
“Mel I love you, know that. We are definitely talking later but I’m in love with you.” He squeezes her hand that was still by his chest and pecks her lips once more.
Mel turns to the kids, leaving Frank to shut and lock the car. “Ready for some reindeer?” She exclaims, seeing the kids cheer and nod.
“Let’s go then!” Frank finishes, taking Tanner's hand as Mel takes Millie’s. It doesn’t take long for Frank to take Mel’s other hand, squeezing it once more and leading them through the crowds of Christmas shoppers
5.
The shift hadn’t even been too bad, they had good staff and good patients who actually listened to advice when it was given. The waiting times were at an all-time low and nobody was stressing out in the usual ER-type fashion.
It was Christmas Eve, probably the whole reason for the hospital to be less busy than usual when families are taking the time to spend it together but there was always a doubt in her mind that the staff were getting too comfortable
“Are you getting the bus home?” Samira questions, walking out of the main doors with Mel. She was holding her phone in one hand and her water bottle in the other, her claw clip already out of her hair and her brown curls moving in the icy breeze.
“No I'm getting picked up,” Mel replies, grabbing her own phone from the front pocket of her backpack.
“Langdon is off today? I just thought he was working the night shift.”
“He’s working tomorrow instead, he managed to swap with Collins and he has Boxing Day off.”
“Is he working New Year's instead then? They always say if you don’t work one then you work the other,”
“Yeah, he is, New Year’s Eve and day.”
“Oh that must suck, I guess anything for his kids right?”
Mel nods, her phone buzzing. “He’s texting while driving again,” She mutters
Samira laughs, leaning against a nearby tree. “Frank being illegal? Who would’ve thought? How’s that going by the way?”
She feels a burn on her cheeks, holding her phone close and looking away from her friend as she composes herself. “We discussed the kiss once the kids went to bed, we’re on the same page but we haven’t had a chance to go on a proper date.”
“So what have you guys been doing these last couple of weeks? You kissed him at that tree farm at the start of December, Mel.”
She hums, tapping her nails against the back of her phone. “We’ve been busy, just existing around each other. I’ve started sleeping over at his place when Becca is at the centre and we’ve kissed and acted as a couple. I don’t think we really need to go on a date to solidify what we feel for each other.”
She nods, “The date will just tell you guys what you already know. What about a date night in?”
“I don’t think we can do that around the kids,”
“Sure you can, just watch a movie together after they’ve gone to bed. Get candles, take out, watch a romantic movie and call it a first date,” She shrugged. “It doesn’t have to be anything fancy.”
She sees Frank’s car pull up and the passenger side window rolls down.
“Hey sweetheart, Mohan,” He gives a small nod to Samira. “Do you need a ride too? I can drop you off,”
The girl waves him off, giving Mel a knowing smile. “I have someone coming for me already, they’ll be here soon. Go and enjoy your night.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Mel mutters, heaving herself into the SUV and buckling up.
“Hey,” Frank grins, leaning over to kiss her
“Hey there, how was your day?”
“Millie and I made cookies while Tanner watched The Polar Express, he just wanted to eat them at the end. We did some last-minute wrapping presents and now they’re at Abby’s for the night.”
She immediately looks confused, her brows furrowed. “I thought we were having them tonight and then Abby picking them up tomorrow morning?”
“I managed to bribe her into having them, well I say that but it didn’t take long for her to say yes. She’s gonna take them to some party that her new husband’s mom is having.” He waves it off, “I figured we could have a cosy night before the craziness tomorrow.”
“I’m definitely in need of a shower and some of those cookies, I hope you saved me some.”
“Don’t worry, I stashed some away for us. There’s your pyjamas and a towel in the dryer for after your shower and I’ve already queued up some of your favourite Christmas movies,” He tells her, a hand on her thigh that was a comforting weight.
“I hope Elf isn’t one of them.”
He laughs, “No don’t worry, Elf isn’t one of them.”
She sighs and relaxes into her seat, still on a high that he’d do all this for her, just because it was something small she liked doing.
“You didn’t have to do all of this,”
“What, spoil you? I wanted to. It’s things that make you happy and your night better and I wanted to be considerate.” He hums
“I love you,”
“I love you too.”
+1
One thing to note about Frank Langdon is that anything to do with the dentist? He’s avoiding that topic like the plague.
He’s pretty good with keeping up to date with his kids' dental hygiene, making appointments and even joining them in the room but if it comes to his own dental health, that’s where he lacks.
Abby used to go with him, being the hand that he held (and almost breaks) whenever he was in the chair. She was level-headed and reasoned with him whenever he came up with absurd ideas on how to get out of the appointment
(“No Frank, threatening the dentist with your doctor's knowledge on how you know where to stick the instruments up in different places isn’t going to stop the appointment or scare the dentist. Behave.”)
It’s Mel’s turn to be that person once the divorce is finalised and Mel takes over being his partner.
“If you’re good we can stop by that fast food place you like on the way home,” Mel tells him once she’s parked
The man just glares over at her, his hands nervously tapping against his knees. “I’m not a child.”
“You needed to be bribed like one just for you to make this appointment.”
“You said I could’ve done whatever I wanted that night! I didn’t hear you complaining,” He whines, much like a child would
A blush heats her cheeks and she takes a second to compose herself before going back to being firm. “Frank, you need to see a dentist, you have that tooth in the back that has been bothering you.”
“You noticed that?”
“Of course I did, I noticed stuff about you.”
His smile is warm and his hand comes to hold onto hers. “You didn’t have to come today.”
“I wanted to, I'm here to support you. I know you’re comfortable with a specific dentist so I called ahead to make sure you have him today. I also have stocked up on some of your favourite foods at home and they’ll be a surprise later from the kids if you go through with the appointment.”
“I don’t think I could love you any more than I already do.” He sighs
“You’ve been more than considerate with me in the last couple of months so now it’s my turn to give it back. I love you Frank and I’m here for you.”
He nods and shifts, pressing his lips to her cheek.
“Okay, okay I'm ready.” He looks towards the building, “What would happen, hypothetically, of course, if I were to pull the fire alarm?”
She gives him a pointed look, “I’d break up with you while pulling you by the ear to the room.”
“Hot, okay let’s go.”
She shakes her head, a smile on her face.
It was so easy to love this man.