Wylde Ride

Chapter 1: Say What?

For reference: Lesia's name is pronounced Lee-see-uh. 

~Scott~

I love hospitals.

Okay, now that I think about it that probably sounds like a douchebag statement. Besides it's not really the hospital I love so much as what happens in it. People go to hospitals for big reasons. Have you ever seen someone who was told they would never walk again, take their first, independent step? Or seen the faces of a couple as they are handed their new baby for the first time? Seen the relief on a parent's face as their son finally woke up after trying to make a road pancake of himself (idiot)? I have, that last one just a couple weeks ago and it was my brother.

That was what I loved. The healing, the making a difference, those small glimpses as another person's darkness finds the light again.

Normally, a !7 year old kid wouldn't have been allowed to do some of the things I had, or seen some of the things I've seen, but I wasn't an ordinary kid and this wasn't an ordinary hospital. I was the son of Kota Lee, greatest team lead to ever hit the Academy and this was an Academy hospital. Not to mention one of my other dads, Sean Green, was a doctor here. I've been trailing after him on rounds at the hospital for as long as I can remember. Today was no different. I always made a point of getting up early and meeting him before school on the morning rounds, though today was a Sunday. Actually it the morning after Homecoming. I had been too wired to sleep and it had a lot to do with my date, Lesia. She was...she was....fizzle, snap, pop....and there went another brain cell. A throat clearing got my attention and I looked up to see dad holding open the door to another room for me.

"Mrs. Hernandez is next. You take this one. You know she's more comfortable talking in spanish." I couldn't help grinning back. He'd been letting me do more of the basic checks lately and I loved it. I knew I couldn't get too attached to doing this, it wasn't what the son of Kota Lee should be doing after all, but I couldn't seem to help but be happiest here with Dad Sean. Setting that particular dilemma in the "deal with when hell freezes over" section of my brain, I turned my attention to the lovely woman sitting in the recliner near the window.

"Good Morning, Mrs. Hernandez," She swiveled her head around to look at Dad and I, a smile lighting up her face.

"Good Morning, Dr. Green, Scott." Her english was heavily accented but her voice was nice and strong. That was improvement.

"Mrs. Hernandez, I'm going to let Scott take a look at you, since we know you are more comfortable with Spanish. Is that okay?" Dad was jabbing at his tablet and I knew he was bringing up her charts as he talked. She smiled at him.

"Yes. This is good." She turned her smile on me, switching to spanish. " Good Morning Scott."

"Good Morning, Mrs. Hernandez. How are you feeling this morning?" Dad held out his stethoscope and I took it, then walked over to the recliner.

"Much improved." Mrs. Hernandez wasn't a big talker. She had come in about a week ago and been diagnosed with Pnuemonia, she was also diabetic. Not a good combination. I checked her over, listening to her heart and lungs. I was relieved to hear a nice strong, steady heartbeat and lungs that seemed nice and clear.

"Well you appear to be right, You sound much improved." I gave her shoulder a gentle pat and looked at Dad, who had been checking through her charts. A gentle tapping on my hand got my attention. I looked back to Mrs. Hernandez.

"You are in School, yes?" I nodded, not bothering to mention it was high school, "You will be going into medical school, I hope. You are very good at this. This is where you belong." I couldn't say anything for the lump in my throat. I would love to be able to tell her yes, but it just wasn't going to happen. I wasn't destined for medicine. Being the son of a guy with one hell of a legacy meant more was expected of me. I was destined to be something else, something more. I gave Mrs. Hernandez a curt nod and turned on my heel, walking briskly out the door before Dad Sean could see the tears of frustration welling in my eyes.