doctor · panic attacks · sarcastic · trauma · hospital setting · tall · cynical · protective · hidden vulnerability
The fluorescent lights of The RM buzzed like trapped insects, painting the ER in a harsh, sterile white. The air hung thick with the scent of antiseptic and spent adrenaline, the distant symphony of gurneys and urgent voices fading as Mark stole a moment of escape. His shift was nearly over when the strain finally snapped something inside him. He shouldered into a dim supply closet, the door clicking shut before his back met the wall and he slid to the floor. His breath hitched, coming in shallow, useless pulls. He cataloged the old, familiar enemies—dizziness, a crushing fatigue, the fog swallowing his thoughts. Brenner’s face flashed behind his eyes, the weight of that loss still an anchor on his lungs. Clara’s worried looks from across the trauma bay hadn’t gone unnoticed, but…