Hospital Gossip part 2
gos⋅sip [gos-uhp]
noun, verb, -siped or -sipped, -sip⋅ing or -sip⋅ping.
-noun
talk or rumor, esp. about the personal or private affairs of others: the endless gossip about Hollywood stars.
, familiar talk or writing.
-verb
to talk idly, esp. about the affairs of others; go about tattling
"Kill him! Make him suffer!” The previously calm man bellowed out to the alchemist. Immediately, the alchemist focused his attention to the Hand around Edward’s neck and crushed his windpipe close. Not enough to snap his neck but enough that he couldn’t breathe any longer. The man before him smirked cruelly, watching as Edward gasped and struggled uselessly against the hands. His eyes were wide and dilated not seeing anything around him. Saliva slid from the corners of his open mouth and tears leaked from his eyes. His struggles were becoming weaker and weaker as the lack of air slowed his mind process down until the only thought running through his panic-ridden mind was, ‘I’m gonna die! I’m gonna die!’
His vision was becoming blurry as black spots made their way through. His sense were dulling and his previously wild and frantic movements were nonexistent. His body slumped as unconsciousness creeped it’s way into Edward’s mind.
Distantly, Edward heard the shouts of men, and the opening of the warehouse doors. He opened his eyes weakly and through his hazy vision he watched blue uniforms rushing about, trying to subdue the men who had awakened from their fight with Edward. Only now, the number of enemies seemed to have at least doubled. But out of all the uniforms only one of the faces were staring directly at him and Edward’s vision focused solely on that one person. Black hair like a raven and coal black eyes to match. A young looking face and the standard blue uniform with an addition of white gloves. The face of the man was twisted in an expression akin to fear and panic as they met Edwards’s half-lidded gaze. For a moment time froze between them. The sounds of gunfire and bodies hitting the stone floor faded away and for a moment it was just the two of them, Roy Mustang and Edward Elric.
Edward felt his eyes drift close at that moment so he didn’t see the fear morph into anger. He didn’t see the glove hand rise in the direction of the alchemist holding him up against the wall. He didn’t see the snapping motion of fingers against ignition cloth nor did he see the flames engulf the other alchemist.
But he did feel the heat of the flames lick his skin like the touch of a worried parent; warming his suddenly very cold body. After that all feeling left and Edward allowed himself to succumb into darkness.
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It could have been minutes or hours that Edward lied on the floor, drifting about in a state between awakening and unconsciousness. But when Edward next opened his eyes, the sound of gunfire had ceased and the face of Roy Mustang was above him, an unclothed hand resting on his cheek, subconsciously brushing away the tears that had leaked through earlier. A relieved look spread across his face when Edward opened his eyes and a light smile graced his lips. Edward coughed harshly, sitting up slightly so his weight rested on his automail arm while his other hand went to his throat. Edward felt a hand on his back in an attempt to bring some comfort to him. He wheezed in deep gasping breathes, overjoyed at the feeling of air filling his lungs. Roy moved from his knees form when he was leaning over Edward to the balls of his feet. Edward raised his head and looked at Roy. His hair sticking to his sweat-soaked face, silently Roy lifted his ungloved hand and brushed the golden locks away from Edward’s face.
“Are you okay?” Roy asked softly. I took a moment for the words’ meaning to register in Edward’s mind before he nodded silently. Roy seemed to let go of the last of his worry in a deep sigh. “You had everyone worried.”
“Chest hurts,” Edward rasped weakly, wincing as the words left his mouth. Recognition flashed in Roy’s eyes before he nodded in understanding. Edward looked around the room; observing the damage done. Blood was spattered along the walls and several bodies covered in white sheets were scattered amongst the room. Towards the center, a large group of unruly looking men sat in various position all with their hands handcuffed behind their backs. The smell of burning flesh suddenly shocked Edward’s scent of smell, causing him to fall into another fit of coughs. Roy’s hand automatically found it’s way to Edward’s back. When the coughing ceased, Edward looked around for the source of the smell.
His gaze soon found it’s way to where the man in the shadows was hiding. The cement stone was charred black along a large portion of the wall as well as the sides of two separate pillars where the man must have stood between. In the center of this charred chaos was a white blanket covering what was supposed to be a human body. Even with the blanket covering the body, Edward could tell that the shape was deformed. Whoever it was had obviously been in a lot of pain as he died, crawlingly along the floor. The charred limbs had curled slightly and one of the arms was uncovered. The arms was horribly burned to a charcoal black, what was left of the skin was peeling off in large chunks, exposing blood vessels and mussel tissue that was also slightly charred but still retained some of it’s former color. The entire arm was curled inward, right down to the fingers. Edward stared at the hand for a few moments, feeling Roy shift beside him to see what he was seeing. With wide eyes, he glanced up at Roy who was looking at Edward. An unspoken question wrote itself in Edward’s eyes to witch Roy nodded slightly, his back stiff as if expecting Edward to blow up at him.
Instead Edward asked, “Who was he?”
“He was a state Alchemist known as the Stone Arm Alchemist,” Roy Replied with a quick glance in the body’s direction, “He and one other State Alchemist were in on the operation, along with several other civilian alchemists. The head of this operation was a terrorist leader known only as 0. Apparently, their goal was to hold as many children as possible for hostages as a diversion, their main goal was to attack the military base why we fretted over following false clues.”
There was silence for a moment as the two sunk into their own thoughts about the case. “What about the kids? Are they okay?” Edward said after a moment.
Roy chuckled softly and said “Yes they’re all fine. The ones you sent on ahead contacted me through a pay phone on Main Street. They were picked up and sent to the hospital for some checkups, most of them will be staying there the night but the doctors say that they should be well enough to head home soon. The other two are sitting in the Paramedic Van right now. Where you should be,” Roy’s voice took on an angry tone, “What were you thinking Fullmetal? Where you trying to get killed? You should have waited for back up! If we had been any later you would be dead right now you know that!?”
Edward responded to Roy’s anger with his own, “There were kids here Mustang! What you expected me to leave them in this place for any longer than necessary? No way!”
“That doesn’t change the fact that yo-“
Bam!!!
And he fell, blood suddenly pouring from different areas of his body. Angry shouts from the uniform filled the air and more gunfire went off as a man with a shot gun (4) fell to the ground. Quickly Edward turned Roy face up and pulled his red coat from his body and pressed it to the wound on Roy’s chest, using his body weight to put pressure on the wound. The warm bubbling blood was quickly soaked in by the coat, as Edward concentrated on putting as much pressure as he could on the wound with out hurting Roy. The uniforms around them were panicking as they quickly went through the remaining criminals, checking for weapons and leading them outside, not thinking about Roy for the moment as they concentrated on keeping everyone safe. Blood squirted from Roy’s wounds and soaked Edward’s shirt.
“Dam it Mustang! Don’t you die ya’ here me? Don’t you fucking die you bastard!” Edward yelled angrily feeling moisture running down his cheeks. Roy’s breathing was sounding almost like hiccups as he struggled to breath. His eyes were clouded over in pain but he seemed to be concentrating on Edward’s yelling.
“N-n-not plan-aning on-it shor-orti,” Roy managed to get out between hiccup like breaths; before a hacking cough made it way through Roy’ mouth, spraying blood onto Edward’s face, “A-are yo-you cry-ying Fu-fulme-etal?”
“What are you talking about you bastard? Can’t you tell it’s raining?” Edward replied shakily.
“No-ot gon-gona-ana di-ie,” Roy said with such assurance that Edward believed him.
“Can we get a medic over here!?”
The two stared at each other; both remembering what had happened not long before. The sun’s rays illuminating the room in light as dust danced playfully in the sun beams. Up and down floating about. No cares, no worries, no pain. Just up and down floating about.
“I’m sorry,” Edward rasped out, head bowed and eyes screwed shut, “For not calling for back up. If I had you wouldn’t have gotten shot, I’m sorry.” Silence reigned through the room.
“Someone had too-save your ass-Fullmetal.” Roy wheezed between shaky breaths. Edward let out a breathy laugh.
“Yeah.”
Neither of them talked for a long while after that. The two for them just turned their heads too the window and watched the remainder of the sunrise, together.
When the sun was in the sky, and even the moon had disappeared from sight, Edward turned to speak to Roy, only too find the man asleep once more, a calmer sleep than before. Shaking his head lightly Edward stood from the stool and stretched out his stiff muscles. Glancing over Roy once more, Edward pulled the white hospital sheet to his shoulders, leaving the right arm with the wiring exposed as too not disturb it. With his job done, Edward turned around and headed too the door, pausing once at the door before glancing over his shoulder. A small sad smile crossed his face and than Edward left the hospital room and into the hallway.
For a while, Edward did nothing but wander through the hallways, his head too full to do much of anything else. His mind was racing through everything. Eventually, Edward stopped in front of an open door.
What had caught his attention was a familiar voice. And when Edward looked in, He saw a woman in a bed, looking quite tired, holding a bundle of pink blankets in her arms. A small cry sounded from the bundle of blankets and the woman cooed softly. Right by her side was a tall man with a blond beard smiling like he was the proudest man in the world. Edward’s gaze drifted to the man’s feet and he smiled.
Fuzzy green socks.
Edward chuckled quietly, but it was enough to catch the couple’s attention. Mr. Wilson smiled at Edward before saying something to his wife. A flash of recognition went through her eyes and she smiled at Edward as well. Mr. Wilson walked over to Edward.
“I didn’t get the chance to thank you now did I?” Mr. Wilson asked kindly.
“A-ah, there’s no need for that. I didn’t do anything.” Edward replied, slightly confused as to why the elder man wanted to thank him.
“That’s not true, I was worried out of my mind for my wife, but you were right, the doctors here are excellent. Both of them are just fine. Please, come in. I would be honord if you would stay with us for a few minutes,” Mr. Wilson insisted. Edward hesitated for but a moment before he nodded and stepped inside.
It was a beautiful sight indeed. The young baby girl in her mother’s arm was beautiful. She had tufts of brown hair. And her eyes were gray, as most babies eyes are when they are born. No doubt she would inherit her mother’s hazel eyes or maybe her father’s blue eyes. She definitely resembled her mother more though. What with the brown hair, soft complexion, and cute little nose, it was no doubt that the two of them were mother and daughter. Ten fingers, ten toes. Two arms, two legs, two eyes, two ears, two nostrils. Humans always do come in pairs don’t they?
“She perfect,” Edward said softly as a small smile unknowingly took over his face. The little girl was staring at him with wide eyes, the sunlight from the window dancing in just a way that gave her a bit of a ‘I-know-something-you-don’t-know’ look. And maybe she does know something more. Maybe she knows more than any adult ever could. Because all she has learned of this world so far is the love and warmth of her parents, something that seems to be forgotten as we age. It is sad, yes. But that’s how it goes. Because right now this little girl knows nothing but love and affection; she hasn’t been hardened by war or pain or hatred. If only we hadn’t forgotten. Edward mused for a moment, ‘if only we hadn’t forgotten what it felt like to be loved unconditionally, if only we adults could see the world the way she does; a place where only hope lies for the taking.’ Briefly, Edward tried to remember his own mother, but the memories were beginning to become fuzzy, as age tends to affect the memories.
“Yes,” interrupted his soft musings, “She’s is perfect.”
“What have you decided to name her?” Edward asked, desperate to run away from his sudden realization.
“Her name is Trisha.”
Only to run smack strait into them.
“It’s a beautiful name.”
Again, Edward found himself wandering the hallways. He only stayed a few minutes longer to converse his congratulations to the happy couple and was told that he could contact them at any time before being handed a slip of paper with their number on it. The slip of paper was hidden deep with in his pockets. He had no intentions of ever calling them. Look forward, never back. But he would keep the number. Because if he had learned anything, it was that things change, and maybe someday he would want to call them. Maybe someday, but not today, and not tomorrow, but that option was comforting to Edward, an escape almost.
A loud wail broke through Edwards thoughts. It was a loud, pain-filled cry of despair so agonizing that it froze Edward to the spot as fear clenched in his own chest suddenly. Forcing himself to calm down, Edward quickly ran towards the wail only to freeze in front of the door when he did so.
“MY BABY! MY PRECIOUS LITTLE BABY! IT’S ALL YOUR FAULT! MY BABY IS DEAD BACAUSE OF YOU!” The loud screaming went on like this. The sound of mother who had lost her child. The door creaked open slightly and Edward saw a woman hunched over a bead holding onto a small form in her arms as she yelled at the doctor. The doctor just stood there. He made no move to call for security, he just stood there and took the verbal beating, looking for all the world as if he had just made a great sin and was accepting the punishment that tagged along with it.
And suddenly Edward Recognised the woman screaming. She looked so different when h had lost saw her. Her face was now blotchy and red, screwed up in a look of hatred so great that Edward nearly flinched. Tears were flowing down her face as she screamed vile curses at the doctor, rocking her child in a familiar rhythm.
Much like she had mere hours before, when she had been rocking her son, cooing to him softly as she smiled at Edward.
She was the woman from the waiting room. The woman witht the son who had the high fever. And the doctor was the doctor who had deemed that her son could wait a while longer. And the boy she was holding was the son she had been rocking so softly, so lovingly. The boy was dead, the mother was hurt, and the doctor was ashamed.
What a sad bond to have.
Edward suddenly felt as if he should move. He had no right to be witnessing this, an angry mother in grieving. He should leave and give her the privacy she deserves. Quickly, Edward turned and hurried down the hall. Taking random hallways as he tried to escaped the echoing sound of the screaming woman. But no matter how far he was from it, he could still hear it in his head. Those horribly sad cries of rage; no mother should have to go through that.
And suddenly Edward froze.
He stood there for a time, eyes wide as he tried to comprehend fully what all of this meant, it was too much to handle at one time. A light pain was beginning to make it way through though, in his flesh arm and leg.
“That’s right…I fractured those didn’t I…?”
“Now, now! Sit still! It will only be a little while than you can leave okay/” said to Edward as he continued to examine Edward’s arm and leg. Mumbiling Edward sat still for the rest of the examination before the doctor ‘hmpfd’ quietly and said, ”You have hair-line fractures in your arm and leg. They shouldn’t take long to heal, a month at most” The doctor walked out of the room, to do whatever it is doctors do when they need to put a cast on someone. The door was left wide open and no one was in the hallway.
Edward smirked to himself.
‘Chance!’
Maybe he should have stayed and gotten that cast….
Nah.
“Excuse me! Who are you?” A stuck-up sounding voice called. Edward turned and saw a nurse. Tall with high heals, too much make-up with a general demeanor of a ‘holier-than-thou’ type of persona. Edward disided it would be best to ignore her and moved on.
“You are not supposed to be here! This is the Oncology ward, unless you’re a patient or have a visitors pass I’m afraid you’ll have to leave,” The woman said none-too-kindly.
Edward gritted hit teeth, he was not in the mood to deal with this shit right now. Suddenly, words from a earlier conversation flowed through his mind. ‘Okay than, I’ll get right on that. Oh and by the way, if they give ya any trouble give them my name-‘
“Emily Dawnson.”
The woman froze. Her eyes wide and her breathing halted for a moment as she stared at Edward as if he were a ghost. Gasping suddenly she said, “W-what did you say?”
“I’m a…friend of Emily Dawson’s. I’m afraid I got a bit turned around and headed in this direction instead of where I was supposed to meet her. Where might I find the lounge?” Edward said with a false polite voice as a small tick on his forhead began to make itself known. Wordlessly, the suddenly shaken nurse pointed to a hallway next to them. Edward nodded silently and headed down the hallway.
In a matter of minutes, Edward once again found himself in the lounge of the hospital. Stiff plastic chairs were still lined up in rows. The nurses table was still filled with gossiping woman(and a man too, but we won’t get into that). The doctors still had that confidence around them as if they never made a mistake, including the doctor from before, although he now had a light red hand print on his face, they all had it. Edward knew it wasn’t true. It was all an act. No doubt as soon as those doctors got off their shift some of them would be drowning themselves in alcohol. Edward wanted to go up to them and show the people here the truth behind these doctors but he wouldn’t. The patients here needed the doctors to at least appear as if they never made mistakes. There were more people in the chairs now. Children and adults alike lined in several chairs.
Edward headed for the chair he had occupied before as none had claimed it. But the chair that the woman with the child had been taken, now occupied with a sickly looking old man who periodically coughed into a handkerchief. The chair that Mr. Wilson had been using, at least half of the time, had been taken as well. His was taken by a slightly overweight woman holding an icepack to her neck and occasionally cringing in pain if she moved to suddenly. And the old man’s chair had been taken as well, by a little boy with a black eye and a split lip wearing a baseball cap, looking for all the world stubborn as his mother scolded him for fighting with his younger brother.
Edward sat and he listened around him.
"Sure has been cold latly"
"Yeah, it has been, especially at night."
“Did you hear? The young boy from earlier? He died! It’s such a shame. And to think all he had was the flu. If he had been treated sooner he would still be here. The boy’s mother slapped that doctor though.”
“Good for her. He deserves it.”
"The Old Man's gone too. He just left a few hours ago. Don't know where he went."
"Probably going back to his box."
Laughter
“You know that State Alchemist? The one who came here half-dead? He’s gonna be fine. He’ll be stuck here for a little while longer though.”
“Well there’s some good news.”
“Yeah. Hey, Have any of you talked to Amanda from the Oncology Ward?”
“Hmm, is she the one who where’s all that makeup?
“Yeah that’s the one. She had a complete breakdown today. I found her in the closet crying. She kept saying something about Emily”
“Edward?” A stern voice called to him. Edward looked up, seeing the tense faces of Mustang’s crew as well as Alphonse. Hawkeye seemed to be the one to call him so he looked at her.
“He’s fine. He’s gonna be stuck here for a while though.” Edward responded. Loud hoots from the men rose is response. Hawkeye nodded professionally but even she couldn’t hide a small smile on her face.
“Mr. Elric! I finally found you! Running off like that without getting your cast! I swear, teenagers these days…” Edward’s doctor finished with a mumble as he approached the group.
“Brother…You ran away from the doctors again didn’t you?” Alphonse asked with an exasperated sigh. Edward laughed a bit nervously while rubbing the back of his head. The doctor began to fuss about him, still mumbling about stubborn teenagers. While the other adults of the group just laughed.
Edward looked at Hawkeye again and their eyes met as a silent message was passed between them:
He’s going to be just fine.
“Hey, boss? Which room is the chief in?” Havoc asked still chuckling to himself, “I think Hawkeye here wants to give him the rest of his paperwork.”
Edward snickered behind hit automail hand. Before he gave them the nessacery number and continuing on,"I'll meet you there later, doesn't look like I'll be escaping again until I get this damed cast on. You too Al, I'll meet you there." The group agreed and headed in the direction of Roy's room, Al though a bit hesitantly.
The Doctor dragged Edward to the paitent room fuky intent on getting Edward's limbs in some casts. Edward rolled his eyes. He doubt he would need them long, he could walk just fine after all. Out of the corner of his eye, Edward thought he saw a person, no, two people standing near eachother. When Edward turned his head to look, he saw the familar figure of Emily Dawnson and the Old Man. for a moment they three of them made eye contact. Edward blinked, and the two of them were gone.
As Edward was dragged away, blaming his lack of sleep for the things he was seeing, he missed the lsat but of an earlier conversation.
"I can see why she was so upset, I still expect emily to pop up randomly like she used to."
"It still feels like she's alive ya know?"
"Yeah."
"..."
"Hey, have you heard about the cute new paitent in room 312? I hear he's single!"
Owari