In many ways Juliet was instantly fascinated by Ethan sweeping in like that. He was so calm and collected and yet she could feel a little bit of tension in him, whenever he looked at her, like he was itching to take care of her himself, which would be perfectly in character for him. He was just that kind of man to want to take care of you, he loved his job, thrived in his job, he wanted to take care of people, it would be perfectly natural for him to want to take over. Protocol said he couldnโt, for good reasons. Juliet suspected that was hwere the tenstion came from: Him wanting to do something and not being allowed to.Once she sat again, she continued leaning into him, hoping to distract herself from the pain the extraction of the shards would cause her. They couldnโt give her painkillers yet, she was no idiot. They needed her to be lucid enough to tell them what other places hurt, while she was this lucid. She had Ethan by her side now, she could do this much easier. She clung to him, fingers tightening whenever the paramedics - Akamu and Kala - pulled a shard out. They were quick and smooth, they clearly knew what they were doing, just as Ethan said. Before he had arrived they even tried striking up a conversation to distract her, now they seemed confident in Ethanโs presence doing enough. They were good at reading the room, she gave them that. They were really, really good.
Ethan meanwhile seemed quite invested in doing whatever he could to ensure he was involved without actually breaking the protocol, happily entering a little bit of a grey area for her. She looked up at him, feeling warmer, safer than before. He had everything under control here. He knew what to do. Except he had to know she couldnโt just stay at the hospital. She had to find her boys. She pushed up a little.
โEthan, I have to find the boys. I have toโฆโ she instantly felt dizzy again from the movement, which was not a good sign, she knew. Everything in her body screamed from pain. Tears from pain shot to her eyes and she could hardly hold them back. Juliet buried her head in Ethanโs side again, just to hide them. Part of them were now in defeat, because she knew, no matter what she said, she could not help find her boys. She was too injured. She shouldnโt hold onto that kind of hope.
โActually,โ she heard a familiar voice, raspy, as he approached the pair. The returned leader of Five-0 stood close by, after having placed a hand on Gordonโs shoulder and coruching down to their level.ย โDoctor Shah, I have to ask you to break protocol with this. These guys got the jump on four highly trained ex-service members, they are as dangerous as it gets. Kingโs Medical is a nightmare to secure on a good day. With whoever that was out there and as dangerous as we have reason to assume they are, we would have to use extensive resources to secure the place just to keep Juliet safe. Your place would be significantly easier to secure and require less man-power. We need every man we can get to help us find Lieutenant Magnum,ย Sergeant Wright and Major Calvin.โ
It made senseโฆ. Kingโs medical was huge, with a lot of entrances, which helped with daily procedures, but not to keep one specific patient safe. She guessed the only reason why McGarrett so confidently asked Ethan to break protocol and take her home instantly, was because he was a doctor and could provide the medicinal care himself, if needed. His house was also really a lot easier to secure. She really had to give up her attempt to be part of the resuce of her friends. Steve was right, to get the jump on all four of them, and the dogs, they needed to be highly trained themself. If she came along, she would instantly become a liability. She sighed.
โI think Steven is right, Ethanโฆ Iโฆhate to admit it, but I amโฆin no shape to defend myselfโฆ and they do need all hands on deckโฆIโmโฆokay with that.โ As in she would behave and not try to get out there and help. She just hoped Ethan saw it as Steve did and as she did.ย
โ jules... jules! โ ethan lightly reprimanded her as she once more stubbornly got up, ready to do whatever it took to find her boys. he took a hold of her, carefully navigating her to sit back down once more, allowing her to just sink into him and disappear, his arms wrapped around her once more in a comforting embrace. โ nice and slow. you'll help find them and save them, okay? and you can do that from the safety and comfort of a bed, too. we'll get your laptop, clothes, toiletries and everything else you'll need, and you can easily work something. i believe in you. โ he was her number one fan, through and through, and if there was anybody who could help find thomas, TC and rick, it was her. she knew them the best, was witness to what happened, and while that made her a liability, ethan would do anything to keep her safe and at the same time make sure she could do whatever it took to help five-0 and HPD in this.
as commander mcgarrett approached them, asking him specifically to break protocol in this very specific situation, ethan hesitated for just a little bit. obviously everything he would do was strictly against all ethics and morals he had as a doctor, but somehow, he assumed that steve would make sure he had his hands free and nobody breathing down his neck for everything he would do, all until the guys were found and were safe and sound. things could then resume like they were before. steve was right. there were times when protocol simply had to be broken and this was one of them. the fact that steve asked him to do it held weight in itself, and should anybody question his to the outsider very questionable decisions, he would simply direct them to five-0 and HPD and have them explain the situation and blatant protocol breaking if they were insistent on it.
now despite his initial hesitation, steve's blessing pretty much did the trick and allowed ethan to spring into action without thinking twice. he nodded, gently pecked her lips in assurance before he left her side, only for a few moments to get his medical bag from the back of his car, it's content being everything he would need to do a thorough preliminary check on her, hoping deep down that juliet, in fact, wouldn't have to go to the hospital. once back with juliet, ethan offered her a kind and assuring smile before pulling on surgical gloves and taking a small flashlight out, one that he usually used to determine whether the patient was disoriented or had a concussion, though with kala informing him they already checked that, it would be of good use to take a better look at juliet's injuries. and, well, he'd check again himself whether or not she suffered from a head concussion, just to be on the safe side.
โ everything seems fine for now. do you feel any pain in your head or neck? โ he asked as he checked her head injury. now ethan was sure that akamu and kala already asked her that question, but again, for the sake of being sure himself, he asked again. he would probably end up asking her a lot of questions that would be repeated, though it was a routine for him, and he was sure juliet would understand.
ethan then turned to the two EMTs. โ how far are you with the shards? โ
โ we have a few big ones to pull out and we're done. โ kala said.
he nodded. โ good. after you're done, kala, stay here. we'll get juliet to my house and i need you to come with us. there's probably lots of smaller shards in the wounds that will need to be taken out to avoid further damage and possible infection. โ the young paramedic nodded at that as ethan turned to akamu. โ i'll have to hijack a couple of IVs and an IV stand from the ambulance to have just in case, and probably the whole medication bag while we're at it. if anybody asks why things are missing, direct them to me, and i'll direct them to five-0 and HPD if needed. โ there were also other things he needed, but those he either had at home or, in worst case, he could send kala to the pharmacy to fetch them for him.
โ doctor shah, i'll eventually have to go back. โ kala then said, and it was met with ethan's soft smile.
โ i know, i'll make sure you do. i'll get you a cab, pay for it, you won't have to worry about it at all. i just need you there to help me set everything up and make sure that juliet's stable and that the wounds are properly taken care of. โ kala nodded and set back to work, which allowed ethan to focus on juliet again. he gave her a soft smile.
โ i racked up quite a few days off, i'll take those so i can stay home with you all the time. my guess is that either commander mcgarrett or gordon will have a few of their guys around the house, so nobody will get to you, and it still stands that if you want to help, we'll get your laptop and everything you'll need so you can help. i know you care a lot about your boys and want to help find them as fast as possible. โ not to mention, there was another good thing about him being able to break protocol. โ to make it a bit easier on you, i'll be thomas, rick and TC's doctor. i think commander mcgarrett will extend breaking protocol on making sure your boys are okay, too. โ