Chapter Text
When Al-Hashimi had asked Doctor Langdon, amidst the Fourth of July chaos, what the deal was between him and Santos, the doctor had replied with, “She doesn’t really like me.”
She assumed it would be a petty feud, an argument over a case. Things like this happened all the time, doctors and their constantly inflating egos. Yet, when she rounded the corner and saw that her line of questioning had caused a confrontation, she paused.
Whilst eavesdropping hadn’t been her intention, it ended up being what happened. Only originally planning to just make sure things didn’t get too heated, but when she heard the words “You fucking stole drugs from the hospital,” All that went out the window.
The argument dawdled along, voices raising. Santos was furious, and for good reason if what she was saying was factual.
Al-Hashimi couldn’t believe her ears. Had all this gone on under Robby’s watch? From what it sounded like, Santos had been treated like an outsider, a pariah, since Langdon had been kicked out. The way this had been “handled” was unacceptable.
With fiery words Santos shot back at Langdon.
“Yeah that’s what happens when you fuck up.” Santos spat and crossed her arms.
“You don’t have to accept my apology, I just- wanted to say it, okay?”
“You really wanna atone for your sins?” She licked her teeth. “Tell everyone here you stole drugs and got kicked out the ED because of it. Until then, stay out of my way.” Storming off, her blood boiled.
Al-Hashimi watched as Langdon stood frozen, unmoving.
Her mind replayed Santos’ pouting face, the way her breath shook. She wanted to take her under her wing and care for her. Call it maternal instincts, but maybe it wasn’t that.
So before her shift ended, she kept a close eye on Santos and Langdon. But then, she found Doctor ‘Robby’ and had a conversation, which had been eventful. After telling him, “I’m very concerned,” She paused, “By what I’ve witnessed today, with some of the staff.” To be met with him rolling his eyes at her.
She tried not to hold resentment, but as much as he liked to rub it in her face, this was his ED. And this was how he let things play out.
She couldn’t imagine dealing with the pressure of being in your R2 year and having to walk on eggshells around your coworkers. It was no wonder Santos looked so tense, so wrecked. Now she felt guilty for how strong she had come on earlier that day, threatening to fail her, all while she coped with the return of a coworker who held such resentment for her. All because she did the right thing. She saved his life, his patients' lives. He owed her for eternity.
As she made her way to leave the hospital, she looked for familiar dark brown hair; there she was. She tried to quietly duck away, looking even more worn down the shift now. But Al-Hashimi wouldn’t let her get away that easily, not without checking in with her first.
“Doctor Santos!” She called out after her.
The resident flinched and slowly turned on the balls of her heels where she stood in the parking lot. Now that she stood still, the attending took this as a chance to catch up. Once closer, she could see the bags under her eyes, the way she didn’t try to compose her facial expression. Hair down, she looked softer now.
“Doctor Al-Hashimi.”
“Baran, please. We’re off the clock now.”
Santos avoided her eyes, the hand that clutched her backpack strap gripped tighter. Grounding, the attending noted.
“Oh, um, Trinity.”
It suited her, a beautiful name for a beautiful girl.
“Trinity,” A small smile, “Do you have a moment to speak?”
The shorter of the two brought the hand that rested on her bag strap up to her head, brushing hair away. Her hands shook, Baran noted that too.
“Did- Did I screw something up?” Her eyes fluttered shut for a second, and she looked truly terrified. Terrified of Baran… Did she think she was going to yell at her?
“No, no nothing like that, Trinity.”
The tiniest bit of tension eased out of her body upon hearing those words.
“I’m just worried, is all, I happened to overhear a few things you said in the hall.”
“Fuck,” She shifted on her feet, “Shit- Sorry!” Now genuinely worked up.
“Take a breath, it’s okay.”
A breath came, her shoulders rising with the inhale, dropping with the exhale.
“Is what you said true?” Her aim was to encourage Trinity to open up. But it had the opposite effect.
“Of course it is,” Arms came to wrap around her waist, defensive. “I- I wouldn’t lie about something like that, I promise, Doctor Al-Hashimi.”
“I apologise, Trinity, I didn’t mean to imply you were lying. I was just hoping you would tell me more.” She offered.
“I don’t want to cause any trouble.” The woman in front of her seemed smaller now, more vulnerable and more open.
Baran frowned at this, “You speaking out is never trouble. It takes a lot of courage to do what you did you should be proud.”
A scoff.
“I’m proud of you.” And she meant it, then surveyed the sight before her. The way she slightly swayed, like she might fall asleep on her feet, how sad her face looked, and how disheveled her clothes were. No longer in scrubs, but her clothes told a story, of how quickly she had thrown them on to get out of the hospital.
“Tell me if I’m overstepping here, Trinity, but do you happen to have plans now?”
Whatever Trinity thought she was going to say, it wasn’t that. Her mind thought back to Garcia cancelling on her, another person she had disappointed. Eyes now stung. “No, I don’t.”
“And will you be alone tonight?”
She rolled her eyes and huffed out a depressing laugh. “Yeah.”
“Okay,” Baran nodded her head and started to walk.
“Okay?” Trinity was rooted to the spot, now perplexed.
A motion to her silver car across the lot, “I don’t think you should be alone tonight. I’ll let you spend the night at my place. If you’d feel comfortable with that, of course.”
Mouth agape now, “What, no? I couldn’t put you out like that.”
“You’re not ‘putting me out’ I’m offering, now, are you coming? I’m starving.” She smiled and resumed her movements.
“Oh, okay. Thank you, Doctor Al-Hashimi.”
One eyebrow raised. And Trinity understood immediately.
“Baran,” She corrected herself, and practiced the way the sound felt against her tongue. It was comfortable.
Once they reached the car, Baran realised Trinity preferred the silence in this moment. So she granted her that, wanting to make her comfortable. Wordlessly took her bag and placed it in the trunk of her car.
“Are you working tomorrow?”
“Uh, no, I have the day off for working the holiday shift.” She sniffed.
Garcia was supposed to spend the night, and Trinity had hope she’d stay for breakfast. Wishful thinking.
“If you want sex and eat ramen in bed. I’m your girl.” Just like that, she had reduced their nearly seven month relationship to nothing but sex. Trinity felt used, discarded. “But if you want to talk about this Langdon shit, again…”
“Perfect,” Al-Hashimi smiled.
And Santos just sank into the leather of the passenger seat. It wasn’t a long drive to the hospital, only twenty minutes or so. By the time they had reached her apartment complex, Trinity was drifting to sleep.
“Santos,” The last name slipped out, a habit from the day, and she shook her sleeping frame gently. “We’re here.”
“Hmm?” Her voice mumbled; a thick layer of sleep blanketed her.
“Come on, I know you’re tired, sweetheart, but you must eat first. Plus, my car’s not that comfy.”
Trinity shifted in the seat, slightly leaning into the attending’s touch. Oh, so she was touch starved? Al-Hashimi filed that away for later.
Deciding to take matters into her own hands, she turned off the engine, and now parked. And unplugged her seatbelt, before exiting the car. Reappearing at Trinity’s door, opening it and unplugging her seatbelt.
“Up now,” She commanded.
And on unsteady feet, Trinity obeyed.
“Good girl.” A hand came to hover at the small of her back. Trinity’s face flushed at the name. Interesting.
Then she led her up to her apartment, which was rather large but modest. Enough space for her and her son, and then some.
Unlocking the door, she commented, “My son, he’s at my ex-wife’s tonight, she gets weekends. So it shall just be us for dinner.”
Toeing her shoes off by the door, she encouraged Trinity to do the same.
“Can I trust you not to fall asleep in my shower while I cook?”
A jerky nod.
“Okay, perfect. Stay here one moment, I’ll grab you some clothes to borrow, and some guest towels.”
“T- Thank you.” Santos stuttered. And then she was left alone in the kitchen of her new attending. What was she doing? This can’t have been a good idea. Before she could overthink too much, something brushed up against her legs. Looking down, she was greeted by a long-haired white cat, who meowed to say hello.
“Oh, hi?” Trinity had never been a pet person, growing up, her parents argued that three children were enough, no need for extra lives to worry about.
The cat began to yell at her, rubbing itself back and forth on her scrub pants. “What’s up, little kitty?”
A mew in response. Then two more. Maybe it was hungry? But as her eyes searched the apartment, they landed on an automatic cat feeder. Ah, maybe not.
“What do you need, buddy?” Sleepily, she rubbed her eyes and sniffed. From tiredness, not anything else.
“Oh no, you’re not allergic, are you?”
Trinity snapped her head up.
“Um, no, I’m not. Is- is it okay?” She looked back down at the rather vocal creature. Who had now flopped onto its back and was rubbing its head against her socked feet.
“Oh yes, don’t mind him. He just loves to hog attention. The bathroom is ready if you’d like to shower, then you can get back to getting acquainted with Eugene.”
“Eugene?” She laughed, the cat at her feet purred at the mention of his name.
“My son named him, amused by “old men” names at the time.” Al-Hashimi smiled. “You ready?”
“Yeah, yeah, let me just. Oh, I think I left my bag in your car, fuck I’m sorry.” Why on earth was she apologising?
“No, I brought it in for you.” She nodded her head to the table by the door, sure enough, Trinity’s backpack was on top. She hadn’t even noticed the older woman bringing it in.
“Thank you,” She frowned. Why did she care for her? They had only met today.
“Don’t mention it, follow me.” Then she led her down a hallway, opening the door for Trinity into the bathroom. “I’ll turn the shower on for you, it’s a little hard to navigate at first.”
Trinity shifted on her feet, she felt awkward yet not uncomfortable. She looked around the room, taking it all in. It was nice. Marble tiles, a large shower, and a bath on the opposite wall. And as promised, a change of clothes and a stack of towels on the matching marble countertop.
“I’ll leave you to it then; take your time. I’ll be in the kitchen.” Her hand brushed against the small of her back again as she slipped out of the bathroom. The touch sending shivers down her spine.
The shower was nice, the stream steady and warm. Not near as hot as she’d usually set the temperature, but it was nice. She didn’t want to tamper with the settings, she liked that Baran had been the one to pick the temperature. Although she had said to take her time, Trinity felt rude in doing so. She stepped out, wrapping soft fabric around her and then reached out to the neatly folded pile of clothes. A tank top and some sweats, nothing crazy. But they were Baran’s clothes.
A faint floral scent enveloped her, it must have been her laundry detergent. She slowly padded out of the bathroom, the smell of food getting stronger.
“There you are, just in time.” As she set the plates down on the kitchen countertop. “Nice shower?”
“Yes, thank you. And thank you for having me. I’m sorry to intrude.”
“Nonsense,” She waved a hand at her, “Come eat.”
So she did, and it was divine. A cajun pasta with fresh vegetables. Santos ate it all.
Baran hummed as she washed the dishes, scowling when Santos offered to help. When it was her turn to shower, she told Santos to make herself at home on the couch, Eugene joining her.
She heard the shower turn back on and the faint thud of clothes dropping to the floor. Do not think about your new attending naked.
Soft fur rubbed against her thighs as she sat on the expensive couch. Clambering into her lap, Santos was surprised. He seemed to like her.
The woman who returned from the bathroom was not Doctor Al-Hashimi, it was Baran, a matching tank to Trinity’s, and some sleep shorts, curls now wet and down. She smiled at the sight in her living room.
“He just has to hog all the attention, what about me, ‘Genie’? Am I allowed any of Doctor Santos’ attention?”
The nickname made her smile, but the way her name sounded coming out of her mouth made something flutter inside her. The correct pronunciation. Nothing like the way Robby said it.
Baran now sat next to her, close; Santos could now smell the lavender soap on her skin, the same soap on hers.
“You tired?” Stoking the cat on her lap.
“No,” She shook her head, “The shower woke me up a little.”
“Good, I’m glad,” Now she shifted closer. Trinity eyed the water droplets on her collarbone, hair still dripping. Similar droplets on her face, her eyes dipped to her lips without her permission.
“Hmm?” Hummed Trinity.
Now, Baran looked at her with a look she hadn’t seen written on her face before, hunger. Those big brown eyes dipped to her own lips in return.
“Tell me if I’m reading this wrong.”
“You’re not.”
And then, in one swift motion, she scooped the cat up and placed him on the floor. Tugging Santos into her lap a second later, her legs now bracketed her thighs. Gentle fingers traced the outline of Trinity’s face.
“Please?” Where had that come from?
But Baran indulged her. The kiss was warm and passionate. Her hands moved at her own accord, frantically searching the older woman’s body. Before they came to settle in the wet curls. Experimentally, she gave a tug. Baran moaned into the kiss before pulling away. “Bad.” She chastised panting, but no real bite to her tone.
Lips reconnected, strong hands gripped at Trinity’s thighs, then her hips. The kiss turned into something desperate. Rolling her hips without intending to, the younger ground down into the kiss. Before she could begin to enjoy the friction, she was being moved. She whimpered.
“I’m just repositioning you, baby,” She broke the kiss, “Keep going now.”
She had moved them so that Trinity straddled one singular thigh now. Encouraging hands encased her hips, guiding her movements.
Whining into the kiss, now out of breath. Baran broke away from the kiss, now redirecting her attention to her neck. Suckling gently, not enough to leave a mark, but enough to feel.
“You’re doing so well,” She purred, nipping at her earlobe.
The praise went straight to her head, dizzying. She cried out.
“You like that, hmm? Like being good for me?”
A desperate nod.
“Use your words.”
Fuck. She was hot.
So she told her, “You’re so hot. Yes, yes, I do.”
Continuing to rut down onto Baran’s bare leg. “Such a sweet thing,” She cooed.
“Please, please?” Santos babbled.
“Do you even know what you’re asking for?” Gently brushing the hair out of her face. Then began to suck on a spot just below her jaw.
Her brain short-circuited. Noisily, she moaned. Now embarrassed, she tried to hide her face in the crook of the other woman’s neck. Yet her movements never faltered, she was chasing a high.
“Ah ah, don’t go shy on me now. I want to hear you.”
Jesus. She pressed their foreheads together. She was throbbing now, almost oversensitive from the constant stimulation. As if she could sense this, Baran shifted her leg under her. The action sent jolts of pleasure straight to Trinity’s core.
Grazing her teeth against the skin of her neck, Baran was worshiping her. Nails dug into the attending’s back. She didn’t mind, if anything, it just spurred her on.
“God, yes.” Trinity sputtered.
“I knew you’d be such a good girl for me.” She teased.
With the praise, Trinity’s grinding fastened. It was coming. She was close. She didn’t want the moment to end; she warned the other, “I’m- I’m close.”
“It’s okay, let go for me. It’s okay, Trinity.”
Everything cut to white noise. Her movements were jerky and frantic. Fire pooled in her lower abdomen. Her back arched. She was there. She was intoxicated by the feeling. Even while she started to come down, Baran talked her through it. Blood buzzing in her ears.
“You did so well for me.” Kissing up and down her neck.
Trinity made a strangled noise; it was sinful. But it made the curly-haired woman smile. Pleased with herself. She shifted on the couch, pulling Trinity off her leg. Who whined at the loss of contact but settled back into her arms as Baran pulled her close. They now lay flush chest to chest. Trinity felt safe.
They rested for a few minutes before Trinity toyed with her waistband. A hand came to grip it, “No,” She shook her head, “No need for that.”
“I want to get you off.” She whispered.
“Tonight was just about me taking care of you, maybe another time.” She kissed her temple.
Trinity let herself go lax in her arms, another time. That sounded nice.