FLATLINE // kazuscara

3

"How's the lasagna I recommended you?" Nurse Freinz asked, poking around her bowl of salad with her fork. 

They were out for lunch today. It was rare for Kazuha to not have scheduled work in the middle of lunchtime, since surgeries usually take long hours to complete. The benefits of being a cardiovascular surgeon, he guesses. 

"Not my type, but it's good." Kazuha nodded as he wiped his mouth. He never enjoyed eating pasta-related foods, since they remind him awfully of the everyday items he has to encounter. Mainly blood and hearts. He swore he's seen them too much it made his heart almost thump out of his throat thinking he was eating a plate of beating hearts than lasagna.

"What about you? Are you okay just eating a bowl of salad?" Kazuha asked, folding the tissue he just used to wipe his mouth neatly into a square. "I mean, you're a nurse. You have to deal with people every day all day. Are you sure a bowl of greenery is going to sustain you for social drainage?"

"I'm fine." Nurse Freinz assured him, giving him a wide smile. "I'm on a diet these days, so..." she batted her eyelashes, looking away from Kazuha.

"For what?" Kazuha asked, expression morphing into surprise. "You're so skinny. If you keep eating what bunnies eat you're going to end up seeing an orthopedic surgeon because I can see your skin wrapping around your insides." he shook his head.

"Plus, you're already beautiful. Salads aren't going to preserve that beauty of yours." Kazuha inched towards her, setting an arm on the table they shared. 

Nurse Freinz stopped chewing the lettuce in her mouth. Lifted her head, and stared at Kazuha blankly. Kazuha wants to say he saw a sliver of bliss in her eyes, but he dismisses it. It must've been his sleep deprivation acting up on him again. It causes him to see things that don't exist. 

"You... think I'm beautiful?" Nurse Freinz choked out, the salad still in her mouth. She covered her mouth in embarrassment, turning her head away from Kazuha.

"Duh," Kazuha exclaimed, "you're very beautiful. Don't let other people tell you otherwise. Not even your own diet." he smiled, his eyes forming an arc. 

"Would you like something else to take back to the hospital?" Kazuha asked, handing Nurse Freinz the menu. "We have about 15 minutes left until our lunch break ends." he checked his watch. 

"No, thanks. Really." Nurse Freinz smiled, pushing back the menu back to Kazuha, "I'm very full and energized for work. You should be worrying about yourself instead. You have another surgery scheduled for two o'clock this afternoon, right? Make sure you have enough energy yourself." 

Kazuha looked at her, stoned. Well, Kazuha is a big eater. A small bowl of salad would be close to nothing for him. He is stunned at how a mere bowl of greenery could give women enough to sustain themselves for another 6 hours until dinner time. And even during dinner, they don't eat close to enough.

"That's okay," Kazuha beamed, "let's go back, 'kay? We'll be scolded again if we don't get back in time." 

"Going to your next operation?" a doctor jogged up to Kazuha, leaning against the wall to watch as Kazuha got ready for his upcoming operation.

"Yeah," Kazuha breathed, putting on protective layers of surgical clothing. "this 75-year-old man wants to do open-heart surgery, crazy what length people would go just to see their grandson's marriage. I mean, I hope the old guy knows their marriage is only a forced marriage to make him happy." he scoffed as he adjusted his clothing, tying his hair in a bun.

"Bummer," she shook her head, "enough about old men. How was your lunch with Nurse Freinz?" she asked, crossing her arms. 

"Don't even start. That lasagna was going to be the end of me. I swear I saw them beating like actual hearts." he rolled his eyes, rushing over to the sink to clean his hands of germs and bacteria. "But aside from that, it was okay. Nurse Freinz was generous enough to pay for our lunch, which was really the only good thing that happened today."