flatline [m.s]

clxx.

- - -
talking with a patient's family is a crash course in grace under pressure. one clumsy word, one careless gesture can cause irreparable harm.
- - -

"what are you doing tonight?" jackson smirks as he approaches maggie at the main nurses station in the hospital lobby.

"that depends on what you're gonna say next," she tells him, beginning to lean into him slightly.

"well..." jackson places a hand on maggie's arm and gently strokes it up and down. "i was thinking that we could go to that little italian place down town, and then we could go back to my place... what do you say?"

"i say..." maggie trails off and her brow furrows as her eyes focus past jackson. "i'm sorry, does that woman look like me?"

jackson turns his head to to see the woman maggie is referring to, speaking to a nurse, whilst a man stands behind her.

"i'm wondering if you can help me? i'm looking for richard or alivia webber," the woman asks the nurse, who doesn't get the chance to respond before lia approaches them.

"sabie?" lia's brow is furrowed as she approaches her, but a smile immediately takes over when the woman turns around.

"lia!" the woman squeals, pulling her in for a hug.

"i'm guessing you're related," jackson states the practically obvious, and maggie rolls her eyes at him.

"maggie," lia calls over, and once she has her attention, she waves her over. "maggie, meet our cousin sabrina- sabie, our uncle- chris."

- - -
ideally, you're dealing with a healthy family where the main focus is on the well-being of their loved one but that is not often the case.
- - -

"so you're like a super genius, right, like lia?" sabie asks. "not that i'm surprised. genius is in our blood. you know i got into stanford? would've gone too, except in state tuition is a whole lot cheaper."

"i'm sorry this is just so weird," lia looks between the two of them. "i mean, you look the same, sound the same. you're more like twins than you and i."

"i know, right?" sabie chuckles. "when uncle richard called and told us that our little alivia had a twin sister, i was expecting another lia. but you're another me."

"really? i mean, genetically we're-" maggie begins, but she cuts herself of when sabrina pulls her phone out and leans in to take a selfie with her. she then shows her father, lia, and maggie. "now that is weird."

- - -
but a surgeon is required, above all, to tell the truth. and the truth is messy. grace under pressure. one clumsy word, one careless gesture can cause irreparable harm.
- - -

lia is leading the way to find richard, as maggie and sabie walk just behind, getting to know one another, and chris walks just behind them.

they eventually spot richard reading through a patient chart at one of the nurses stations, which is when sabrina passes lia to run and greet him.

"uncle richard!" she grabs him for a hug before, and his eyes go wide due to the shock.

"sabie? what are you- what's going on?" richard looks between them all before his eyes return back to his niece that's stood before him.