Chapter Text
July 4th, 2026. 6:57pm.
“You’re in my spot.” Abbot tossed his bag onto the ground and swung a leg over the railing at the edge of the roof, lines around his eyes tensing as his weight transferred to the titanium rod that used to be bone.
Robby sighed, his hands twining through the stethoscope draped around the back of his neck. “I need a minute.”
“I’m not coming up here on Al-Hashimi’s orders,” Abbot said, leaning on the railing and surveying the streets surrounding the hospital. An ambulance wound up the drive, red and blue lights flashing.
“Jack.”
“I like her,” Abbot continued.
“More than me?” Robby turned, dark eyes searching his.
“Come on.”
Abbot edged closer. Robby relaxed as he interlaced his fingers through his.
“You doing okay?” Abbot asked.
“I’m fine.” Robby kept his gaze trained on the ground, a dozen floors separating them from the asphalt.
“You still thinking of driving tonight? After all of this?” Abbot gestured generally behind them, to the steel door that led to the stairs.
“If I don’t go now, I worry I never will.”
“Mike-”
“Don’t. Please.”
“Okay.” Abbot loosened his hold on Robby, stepping back. “I should head back. We have a transfer from Presbyterian coming any minute.”
“Could be them,” Robby spoke towards the ambulance covered by the bay.
“Could be. You coming?”
“Yeah. In a minute.”
July 4th, 2026. 6:58pm
Langdon’s footsteps were soft in the empty hallway, this wing far enough away from the ED that he could hear his thoughts again. He stopped midway down, ducking into room 132.
He would go back up and chart, soon. He just had to take a break. He eased his wedding ring off, twisting the metal when it stalled around a swollen knuckle, and tossed it onto the side table as
he reclined on the bed. The ring spun out of place, clattering onto the floor.
He needed a minute to rest his eyes. Robby would be done soon, off on his ill-planned trip. Not that he’d take Langdon’s advice, but he wished Robby would wait a day, or at least sleep on it before he set out.
It wasn’t up to Langdon. At least he’d be out of view of his attending’s burning glare. In fifteen minutes (okay thirty minutes) Langdon would find a quiet corner to finish charting with a cramping hand, then return to the echoes of his empty apartment.
He sighed, rolling onto his side to look out at the slots of evening light visible through the half-closed blinds. Langdon had to hang pictures or get a potted plant on his next day off. He was a walking cliche of a divorced dad, his living room still an empty canvas for someone else to fill.
It had been almost six months, now.
Footsteps rang in the hallway.
He was allowed to be here. Langdon took a deep breath, willing his pulse to slow as the footsteps drew closer. Residents had so few opportunities for respite, no one would question someone taking a nap before their shift. They may question why he didn’t go home to Abby and the kids. He thought Dana had seen through him today, his features as transparent as glass, shaken after the loss of Louie.
That was a topic for another day.
The door opened. He froze as Mel eased her way in, her eyes still on the hall, her back to him.
“Mel-” he started, trying not to startle her.
It was pointless. She jumped a foot in the air, covering her own mouth to stifle a scream. “Dr. Langdon?” she glanced around the darkened room, her features still half-frozen in shock. “Sorry, I
was just looking for somewhere to take a break, everything with Becca and the deposition today… you know they say driving tired can be as bad as driving drunk? I thought that if I took a break and just closed my eyes, then I could-”
“Mel, it’s okay.” Langdon sat up, suddenly embarrassed to be found reclining in a hospital bed. “Same, I was just trying to-”
“CODE PURPLE,” the speaker above them crackled to life, startling Mel again before she’d had the chance to regain her composure. “Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Centre is under a code purple. Remain calm and follow protocol until the all clear.”
The speaker fizzed for a heartbeat before it fell silent.
Mel dropped to the floor as Langdon hurried to the door, shutting it softly and turning the lock. He pulled the blind down over the window as she crawled to the other side of the room, turning the half-open blinds to the outside closed.
“I’m sure it’s a drill,” Langdon whispered.
“They wouldn’t do a drill today.” Mel curled into the corner, her head between her knees as she tried to even her breath. “Not with the systems being down.”
“Right.” Langdon stood and made his way over to Mel, taking a seat beside her on the ground. “Mel?” he tried to gain her attention as her breath hitched. “It’s going to be okay.”
She nodded into her knees, turning her face away from him. He settled a hand on her back, the tension in her shoulders slackening at his touch.
July 4th, 2026. 7:01 pm
Abbot crouched, pulling Robby down to the packed gravel surface of the roof. “Do you remember your code purple training?” he hissed as he directed them to a corner.
“Hard to stay out of view when you’re on the goddamn roof,” Robby replied, following Abbot’s army crawl to the only sheltered space on the northeast side.
“No way it’s a real threat.” Abbot crouched and crossed the roof to the steel door, trying the handle. “Fuck. Locked.”
“No shit.” Robby tossed his stethoscope to the side, the only thing that was in reach to throw. “Fuck,” he echoed.
Abbot scanned the sky as he made his way back to Robby, sliding to sit at his side. He tugged his bag into his lap, unzipping a side pocket to produce two cigarettes and a lighter. “Think it’s real?” Abbot pinched the first cigarette between his lips, taking a drag before placing it in the corner of Robby’s mouth.
“Would be how today ends.” Robby held the cigarette between his forefinger and middle finger, watching Abbot light his own. “You shouldn’t smoke.”
“You shouldn’t stand on the edge of the roof,” Abbot replied.
July 4th, 2026. 7:21 pm
“Mel?” Langdon asked.
“Yeah?” she directed this response to the ground.
“You okay?”
“Yeah.”
“You sure you’re okay?” he tried again. “Today has been a lot.”
Mel took an unsteady breath. “Becca is having sex.”
Langdon stilled, his hand retreating from her back. He thought the lockdown would be front of mind, the deposition. Her answer surprised him.
“She told me,” Mel clarified.
“Yeah,” he said finally, casting around the barren hospital room for something reassuring to add. “She seems to like her boyfriend a lot.”
“Oh, I know,” Mel took another steadying breath, finally straightening until the back of her head was pressed against the wall. “I just…” she trailed off. Langdon had laced his fingers together to stop himself from reaching out to her again. Her gaze was trained on the places they joined.
His eyes darted to the ring, still on the ground under the bed.
Mel shook her head again, screwing her eyes shut. “I just feel like I put my whole life on hold. I never considered…” she stopped herself, pressing the heels of her hands to her closed eyes. “Sorry, this is really not appropriate.”
“It’s fine, you can-”
“And I’m sorry about Becca,” she continued, launching herself to her feet and crossing the room to glance out the window, inching the blind open and closed into the empty hallway. “She has such a good memory for people, she makes it sounds like I talked about you every day, when it was just the one-”
“Mel,” Langdon crossed the room, taking her hand to pull her from the window. “Code purple, remember?”
“Yeah,” she took a step back, retreating to the corner again. “Code purple.” She pressed her lips together into a grim smile, meeting his eye for the first time since she’d entered the room, her cheeks burning pink.
“It’s fine,” Langdon continued. “What Becca said. I like you, too.”