james [s h a k e] wilson

james [shake pt 2] wilson

168 hours prior.

___ went to take another sip of her coffee, just to find that it was gone, with just a cold drop finding its way into her mouth. She sat the cup back down, and pondered running to the cafeteria to get another dose of caffeine. She felt the aching of the back of her head creep its way into her mind, reminding her of the lack of sleep from the night before. She let out a sigh, before folding the folder in which the current case file sat.

"Going to get more 'Crack in a Cup'?" her sarcastic, lanky boss called from his desk across the room. "People don't stop dying because you're tired, ___." He added. She restrained the urge to roll her tired eyes, taking in a deep breath before flashing him a smile.

"No, but they may die if all of us aren't up to our best. Which includes me." She swallowed, pushing her chair back from the table and standing up. She felt her knees ache and tired feet begin to throb the moment she put her weight on them.

"What makes you think you're going to have the answer to this because you had coffee?"

"What makes you think you'll get the answer if I don't?"

And with his mouth shut, she began making her way out of his office, and out of the door. She yawned as she rifled a hand through her hair, every step radiating pain up through her calves as her exhausted body continued on. Her mind wandered in an in-cohesive thought pattern as she droned on for coffee— she might even opt for an energy drink, despite being the first person to warn everyone of how dangerous they are. 'I'm so damn tired, I think this is an exception.'

She turned the corner, and stepped onto the elevator. She didn't even register who else was in the cab until she heard a familiar clearing of a throat. Her tired eyes shot up, and felt a smile creep on her face.

"You look awful." His soft voice rang out with a gentle laugh. She let out a soft laugh herself, and readjusted her lab coat. Her eyes met his soft brown ones, the brunette man with a warm smile pressed a button as the doors closed.

"Yeah, that's what I get for working on his team." She said, referring to the rough man with blue eyes she continuously clashed with. "I haven't slept in two days. I feel like I'm going nuts."

"Two days?? That kind of sleep deprivation can't be good."

"No shit. I can't stop drifting off. But we are so close to cracking this case."

"You've been saying that for four days, ____. Get some sleep." He said, before feeling the elevator cab come to a gradual stop. The doors opened on the bottom floor, directly into the cafeteria.

"I forgot to press a button but I guess it worked out. Grabbing breakfast?" She asked, and he gave her a chuckle.

"Making sure you don't OD on caffeine."

158 hours prior.

____ felt a tap on her shoulder, during her from the sleep that she had accidentally fallen into in the chair next to the patient's bed.

"You were right. It was an infection. Broad-spectrum antibiotics worked." Foreman said, quietly. She sat up from the slouched position she was in epic too tired eyes a few times before I look it up at the tall, Black doctor with a faint smile on his face.

"Brain damage? From the uh... the fever?" She asked, feeling her mouth dry and neck sore from the position in which she'd unexpectedly and unintentionally fallen asleep in.

" if there is any, it's minimal. He still hasn't woken up so we're not sure, but we will do some generalized testing once he's awake. We didn't see any on the MRI." His warm voice made her feel a little better about passing out next to the sick man. "You did some really great work, ___."

"Thanks, Foreman."

"Go home. I'll call you if anything changes."

She was quick to make her way to her locker. Unable to focus on packing the bare minimum of her things up, she sat for a minute, fighting the urge to fall back asleep. It took her a little longer than it should've to remember her lock combination as she felt she was battling herself.

"Hey." She heard a voice call from her right. She glances up and is greeted by the same warm, brown eyes she'd met in the elevator this morning.

"Hey, James." She said softly, feeling her dry throat scratch at itself with every syllable.

"I'm taking you home. House demanded." He said, and she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah right. I'll be fine."

"You haven't slept for coming up on three days. Your cognitive function is that of someone who is over the legal limit of alcohol. You're not driving. That's a fast pass back here." He said, and she just found the ground with her eyes. "Besides. I watched you for all of three minutes to try and remember your lock combination. Worry about your dry cleaning later and come on."

She fought the urge to argue, holding her tongue and falling behind the tall brunette who was now in his casual clothing. 'He must've gone home and come back. He could've just called me a cab.'

"Thanks." She said softly, her worn eyes finding themselves struggling to keep from drifting closed.

"Yeah." He said, flashing a warm smile, and before she could register where they were, they were already in the parking garage and she was climbing into the passenger seat of his car. She fell asleep sooner than he could pull out of the garage, and he laughed softly to himself.

'Only she could preach the importance of sleep like it was gospel but find herself sleep-deprived.' He thought. He glanced over to her sleeping figure, and watched as her chest rose and fell, hair disheveled from the ponytail it was falling out of.