trauma [m.s]

xl.

- - -
every patient's story starts the same way. it starts with them being fine, it starts in the before.
- - -

when chloe wakes up, her chest feels heavy, and her eyes flutter open to find mark lying on top of her. his arms are hooked around her waist, his hand resting underneath her lower back and his head rests on top of her chest whilst his body lays between her legs, one of which is hooked around him.

moving her body as little as possible, chloe closes her eyes again whilst she brings her hands up to gently stroke mark's head.

"morning," mark mumbles, his lips pressed against the smooth skin of chloe's bare abdomen.

"good morning."

her eyes remain closed, slowly allowing her to slip back into a slumber, until she feels mark kissing up her stomach, slowly making his way up to her lips.

as their kiss deepens, chloe rolls the two of them over so that she is straddling his lap. rolling her hips against his, chloe also reaches a hand underneath the duvet, earning a moan from mark.

"you've totally ruined sex for me," mark says against her lips.

"what?" chloe gasps, stopping her movements and pushing up on his chest so that she is sat upright, but still has a leg resting on either side of mark's waist.

"not like that," mark pulls her back down to kiss her again, but she is reluctant to kiss him back properly and her brow is furrowed when she does. "i just mean that after you..." mark exhales deeply, his eyes raking down her body. "i don't think anybody else could ever come close to making me feel like this."

"i guess you'll just have to stick with me then," chloe shrugs her shoulders and he smirks, flipping them over whilst reconnecting their lips, his hands wandering down her body.

suddenly, chloe's cell phone begins to sound out from the top of her nightstand and she tries to wiggle out from underneath mark to grab it, but he takes hold of her hands and pins them above her head.

"just leave it," mark groans, continuing to plant kisses all over her.

exhaling deeply, chloe lies back to push herself deeper into her mattress whilst soft moans escape her lips, and eventually her cell phone stops ringing. however, after only a moment, it begins persistently ringing once more and again, mark groans in response.

"it could be important," chloe tells him with a light shrug, reaching out to grab it and bringing it to her ear without bothering to check the caller i.d. "hello?" chloe answers with a slight moan as mark continues kissing her, gradually moving his head further and further down her body.

chloe's brow furrows, pushing herself to sit upright, her back against her headboard and mark groans, collapsing to the side of her and propping himself up on his elbow so that he can still look at her.

"oh, my god," chloe gasps, standing from the bed, lightly slapping mark's arm as she does so, signalling for him to do the same. "don't worry. we'll be right there, addison."

- - -
they cling to this moment, this memory of being fine, this before, as though talking about it may somehow bring it back.
- - -

still wearing the clothes that she had quickly thrown on after speaking to addison, chloe hurries down the hospital corridor to meet the redhead and her accompanying friend as the two of them stand outside a patient room, anxiously peering inside.