𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓'𝐒 𝐋𝐔𝐕? ─ Jackson Avery

⸻ six

      AFTER ARRIVING IN the E.R., the duo had been assigned to work with Owen on one of the dishwashers who lost his left arm in the accident. 

"Ok, I need another 4x4," Owen said as he and Sage cleaned the spot where his arm used to be. He finished cleaning the spot and spoke again, telling Sage, "Ok, dress him. I'm gonna take another look at the arm. The wound's completely macerated and contaminated. Why wasn't this guy brought in first." 

"He was lying in dirty dishwater for a while before they found him," Jackson explained. 

"They forgot I was back there," Frankie, the patient, told Sage as she continued dressing his wound. 

"No, I'm—" she began, trying to comfort him but he cut her off before she could finish her sentence.

"It's all right," he interrupted. I'm not... I'm not too big on talking to people, and... nobody talks to me much back there. They just, you know, bring me the dishes. I lost my arm. I don't want to have one arm. I don't want to be a freak. I... I don't like people staring at me."

"We're going to do everything we can," she assured him. 

"Please." She nodded and offered him a light tipped smile, which he returned. 

"Ok, Frankie." Owen appeared on the other side of him. "I'll take you up to surgery now. We're going to try and reattach the arm, ok?" Frankie was wheeled out and Owen turned to the two residents. 

We have an open O.R. I'll prep him, work on the stump," he told Sage before turning to Jackson.  "You debride the arm, tag the vessels, and get it up to me as soon as you can, okay?" 

"Ok." She pulled her hair into a ponytail as Owen left. 

"So, no date?" Jackson smirked as he began to work on the arm. She rolled her eyes, biting her lip to hide a smirk of her own.

"Don't start," she muttered, grabbing the bag off of a nearby table. "Valentine's Day is stupid anyways." Jackson looked up at her, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Why do you think that?" he asked. She shrugged, and started towards the door. 

"It's a corporate holiday," she said. "If you love someone, you shouldn't have to have some stupid holiday to celebrate it."

"Ouch." She turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. He just grinned at her and said, "Who hurt you?"

"Have fun with your arm."

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