"Are you alright.. Doctor?" You asked, on the edge of your seat.
He stood silently staring at the now slumped D-Class, his hand slowly reaching to his face.
"That displeased me." He said through is teeth.
You twisted in your seat for a moment, unsure of what to say.
He seemed angry? Hurt? You weren't sure.
Should you have thought more about about sending in a D-Class?
Taking a nervous breath, you leaned over to the mic.
"I'm sorry doctor, I wouldn't have- I apologize for what happened. I should've been more responsible and-" You started, 049 quickly cutting you off.
"Nonsense, my dear. This is not something you could have predicted nor prevented." He laughed under his breath, pulling his hand away from his face and looking towards the window.
It was silent for a moment, as you stared at him through the glass.
"Are you coming, doctor?" He asked, tilting his head a tad, his hands crossed behind his back.
"Oh! Y-Yes!" You said, hurriedly grabbing your notebook, documents, and writing utensil before rushing to the containment door.
Before you could open the door with your ID, one of the two guards quickly stopped you.
"Woah! Dr. Y/N, SCP-049 is not in restraints and is in proximity to the door. Are you sure you wish to enter?" He asked anxiously.
You nodded, "I cannot study this experimentation if he is restrained, but I'll be careful, I promise. Could you..?"
He hesitantly moved out of the way, the door opening and closing behind you after you entered.
049 stepped back a bit, looking between you and the D-Class on the floor next to you.
"What's the matter?" You asked.
"I.. I am not restrained. There are no guards present either..." He said, looking to the glass nervously.
"Oh! I'm in charge of myself now, doctor. Anything that happens is my responsibility." You ensured him, patting him on the arm.
"Now... what do we do with... them?" You ask, turning to see the unresponsive D-Class.
Before you knew it, the D-Class was on the operating table, your notepad ready in your hands as you watched him pull out his surgical supplies and clean his gloves.
"So.. you seemed to carry the D-Class pretty easily! Is strength a strong-suit of yours..?" You asked, your writing utensil hovering over the paper.
He turned to you, chuckling.
"Strength is not an.. 'anomalous' property of mine. It is something I've gained over the years of transporting bodies, to an operating table or not." He responded, pulling out and organizing his surgical tools.
You nodded, noting that down.
"Are you going to write down everything about me, doctor?" He asked curiously.
"O-Oh! Well, what ever helps! You are an interesting person after all, and it's my job to study both you and your cure.. if that's all right of course?" You asked nervously.
He hesitated before placing down the last surgical tool, his head turning to you before going back to his tools.
"You flatter me, doctor." He said, grabbing a scalpel and removing the clothes from the D-Class.
Quickly you turn your head, blocking the view of the D-Class with your notebook, face flushing with warmth.
"Is something the matter?" He asks, hearing him stop.
"No no! I apologize, uh, continue!" You say, turning back and lowering your notepad a tad to see.
049 slowly turned back to the D-Class and continued his experiment, slicing down the center of their abdomen, your embarrassment quickly being replaced with disgust.
"Let me know if this becomes too much. I don't wish for you to be unwell again, especially so soon." He said, continuing his experiment as you noted down his actions with detail.
You shook your head, swallowing down the nausea.
"I-I can do it! I'm determined to be by your side for this, and learn from your experiment today. It's the least I can do after I heard you stopped the one I walked in on." You said, continuing to study his actions.
He looked to you then back to his experiment, "Do not blame yourself. You only wished to inform me of your promotion, and.. Thank you."
"Hm?" You asked, stopping your writing.
"Thank you for trusting me, and allowing this experiment, after I failed my last." He said warmly.
You nodded, warmth reaching your cheeks again, "Of course! I'm more than happy to be by your side for this. We are friends, after all."
"Friends... it's been a while since one called me a friend. I appreciate that, doctor." He said, giving you his attention before returning to his experiment.
As he experimented, you asked questions and he happily elaborated. You learned a lot about the "essences of humors", which you've read a lot about in your historical medicine course and through your textbooks.
049 explained that his cure relied heavily on the humors in the body being 'in balance', or the body would reject the cure, subsequently.
After the experiment was complete, and the D-Class sown up, 049 began to clean his tools and wash the collected fluids off his gloves and gown.
"Is... it successful?" You asked nervously.
"We shall see with time, doctor. If so, they should wake up soon." He said, wiping his gloves dry.
You took a seat, collecting and adding annotations to your notes.
Looking up, you see 049 grab your journal you left him from his bookshelf, walking over and setting it on the table in front of you.
"You finished it?" You asked, looking through it.
There was a blank spot where a picture once was previously taped. It was in the section where you wrote all your studies for your thesis, for your masters in Bacteriology.
The picture was of you with your award for your findings, which was a notable feat, especially because you worked on your thesis alone rather than working in a group like many others did.
You really had your work cut out for you back then.
"Ah, it must have fallen out over time of moving all my books around. I guess it's what I get for using washi-tape. Never quite sticks." You sighed, turning to 049.
"I copied your work into a book of mine, if that's alright." He asked, turning to his book case as you looked over.
Quickly, he stepped into the way of your view.
"Did you find the experiment useful, doctor? I can answer any questions you may have." He said, twiddling his thumbs behind his back.
Something seemed off...
"It was really insightful! I wonder if you wrote down anything else from my studies." You said, leaning over a tad to examine the bookshelf behind him.
Just as quickly as you leaned, he stepping into your view again.
You squinted, "Is something the matter...? You keep.. standing in front of me.. when I try to look at your bookshelf."
He hesitated before answering, "Not at all doctor, why so? I typically stand before those I speak with, respectfully so."
You stood up, standing closely in front of him and looking up at him, before you quickly gripped both of his arms gently.
Just as you gripped his arms, he gasped as you moved him aside, catching view of something taped to the side of his bookshelf.
You let go of him, and he turned to look the other direction, acting oblivious to what you were seeing.
It was the photo missing from your book. Taped to the side of his bookshelf!
"Doctor! You thief!" You laughed loudly, wiping a tear from your eye as you held your stomach.
He scoffed, "A thief I am not! It merely fell out and.. wouldn't stick back to your illustrative journal! You surely jest!"
You could tell he was lying plain as day, seeing him twisting his thumbs behind his back since he was turned away from you.
"You do that when you are nervous, don't you?" You smirked.
"Hm? What do you speak of?" He asked curiously.
"Play with your thumbs." You said.
"Nonsense! I am as 'cool as a cucumber', as your peers say." He turned to you, crossing his arms.
"You can keep it, doctor." You smiled, sitting back down.
"Pardon?" He asked, looking at the photo before turning back to you, his arms uncrossing.
"Keep it! It's better than sitting in a book unseen. I'm honestly flattered." You elaborated.
"You.. of course. Thank you, doctor." He cleared his throat, going to sit down before he heard a creak from the operation table.
Both of you turn to look behind him at the operating table, seeing the D-Class sit up on it's own.
You screamed, "Ok! That's much scarier to see in person!"
Quickly 049 held his hands out defensively, "All is fine doctor! Do not fret, the D-Class is merely cured! It is not a perfect cure, but a cure none the less!"
Just as you are about to catch your breath, it starts to struggle off the table, crawling on the ground.
"Oh god it's like the exorcist! Make it stop!" You scream, hiding behind your chair and using it as a shield.
"I ensure you doctor, they mean you no harm!" 049 said, struggling to hold back his laughter.
"Is it gonna eat me?! I'm not ready for zombies! I can't survive zombies, I don't work out! My cardio is horrible!" You grip tightly to the chair, watching it get closer and scooting away with your chair shield.
049 quickly puts his hand up, the zombie stopping in its tracks.
Suddenly, he let out his laughter, unable to hold it back any more.
"Stop laughing! I was about to be their breakfast!" You said, tears coming to your eyes and your voice breaking, "Stop it!"
He stopped, hearing your voice waver and a sniffle come from you, behind the chair.
"-ah! No no! I apologize!" he cleared his throat, quickly making his way to you and crouching down to meet your height behind the chair, "Are you alright? I shouldn't have laughed... this must be frightening.. for someone seeing the cure for the first time... many react the way you do, assuming I 'raise the dead' or that sort.."
He reached out, pulling your hands from your face, carefully wiping the tears from your now swollen eyes, "Please accept my apology, I'm truly sorry."
"You didn't even- even stop it until now! Stop scaring me!" You hiccupped, griping onto his arms in fear.
He carefully pulled you to him, placing your face to the crook of his neck as he held you close, rubbing your back softly.
Many apologies slipped through his lips nervously, as you eventually calmed down, pulling away and wiping your eyes.
He grabbed his bag from the table, pulling out some tissues and holding them to your nose.
"...what are you doing?" You asked nasally, eyebrows furrowing with confusion.
"Blow." He said.
You laughed, carefully removing his hand from the tissue and blowing your nose yourself.
"I can blow my own nose, doctor. You've been very kind though... thank you.. and- and it's alright. I accept your apology, of course." You said softly, rolling the tissue in your hands.
You looked a him as he sat in front of you, your eyes trailing to his face as you sniffled again.
"How.. how is your face? That must've hurt.." You said, your hand reaching up and touching the side of his mask.
His hand grasped yours softly, taking it off and grabbing you more tissues.
"I can take a hit or two. I am in fine fettle, my good doctor." He chuckles.
You tilt your head, taking the tissues from him and blowing your nose again.
"Er... robust? Healthy? I am alright... my apologies. It seems I confuse you often." He says.
You shake your head, smiling, "The terms you use aren't something I can't learn, I'll get the hang of it."
Carefully he helps you up, placing the chair back at the table and sitting you down.
"You'll have to... remove them from my cell, won't you?" He asked, looking over at the now still and standing zombie.
"Though they're under your control, I will be in.. a lot of trouble, to say the least.. if I don't by the end of our meeting." You sighed.
He nodded, grabbing his journal and standing before the zombie.
"What are you doing?" You asked, watching the zombie perform simple tasks as 049 wrote down notes in his journal.
"Ah. I am testing its retention and motor skills, and then notating such results. Even if they weren't taken away, they would still unfortunately decompose. My cure is... most effective, yet imperfect." He cleared his throat, finishing his notes and sitting down with you after ordering the zombie to stay by the operating table.
After some chatting, you checked your watch, bidding farewell and calling in the guards to carefully escort out the co-operative zombie - thanks to 049's command.
Before you could leave, 049 grabbed your sleeve, stopping you.
"Huh? What's the matter, doctor?" You asked, turning to look at him.
"Ah- uh. I apologize. I don't know what came over me." He said nervously, quickly letting go of your sleeve.
You smiled, "I enjoy our meetings too, I'm sorry I have to leave after such fun we had. I'll see you again tomorrow morning, if you'd like? I could bring breakfast for us, if you'd like?"
He nodded, "I.. await your return, Y/N."