summary; loosely based off of mika’s ( @pittsick ) dennis whitaker bot by the same name
wc; ~2.1k
warnings; 18+ as always, gn!reader and dennis are both first year residents, maybe an incorrect description of switching shifts as a med student/resident but this is my fiction i make the rules, they both work in the er, twink death twunk rebirth, mentions of nightshift, no nothing happened with abbot i just have to glaze him any chance i get so naturally im going to make the reader do that as well, ogilvie being a nuisance (what’s new), kissing but no major smut, reader thirsting over dennis, awkwardness, cuteness overload, reader and samira live together, dennis and trinity living together briefly mentioned
an; i love u dennis i want to have ur children. ive been going feral over dennis since they started promoting his new hair… and his tan… and his arms… and and and… anyways. thank u mika for letting me use your work as my inspiration <3 pls reblog, comment, like, etc., to spread my work. please however do not reblog, reuse, or republish as your own or without asking and crediting both me and mika properly. thank u again to my queen @jclolz22 for proofreading yet again anything i post on this page. divider credit @.chrisssiren. again i am open to reccomendations or criticisms but please be polite! my inbox is always open.
my reqs are open here and my taglist is open here !
Working Fourth of July weekend was one thing. You got the aftermath of those who sat waiting in triage overnight while more pressing injuries were taken care of first. Fingers and toes blown off, eyes with shrapnel in them, a countless list of injuries that were only worsened when middle-aged (usually drunk) men and their families got their hands on fireworks. Working the day of the Fourth of July? Any resident's nightmare. Any worker in healthcare’s nightmare, actually. One of many. Especially in a hospital like the PTMC.
It’s hot, it’s humid, everyone’s irritated, and everyone gets more aggressive. And you? You’re working your first daytime shift after switching to night shift following the Pittfest shooting ten months prior. You worked side by side with Dr. Abbot for the majority of that night and felt he was a better fit for you to learn from, so you submitted a request to the program and moved to the night shift. Nothing against Robby, of course, just different med students having different learning needs to become the best doctor possible.
The last time you really saw Dennis was leaving that shift post-shooting. You had met and shared a previous rotation with him in internal medicine at a different hospital before you both moved to the PTMC for your emergency rotation. He could barely meet your (or anyone’s) eye, tripped over his words as often as he did his own shoes, and apologized far too much for things that weren’t even his fault. He fidgeted with anything he could get his hands on and spent most of that shift covered in various substances. Since then, it’s been passing glances during shift change, the occasional text asking if you had a spare pen he could grab when he came in for the morning, or if he had snacks tucked away in his locker you could snag at two in the morning. But that was ten months ago.
He wasn’t like that anymore. It didn’t happen overnight, though. Not that you would’ve noticed. It was subtle, slow. Piece by piece. He moved in with Santos and started eating properly now that he was properly housed. Started learning to speak up instead of standing quietly, learned to keep steady and calm when performing CPR. He didn’t grow to be arrogant, and his ego never inflated much (if at all); he just grew to be more confident in himself and in his work. More certain of himself and the choices he made. He still gets nervous, but who doesn’t in the hospital you two work in? Even the attendings have their moments.
But now it's your first day shift back. The night shift is transitioning off, and you showed up a bit earlier than needed to gain your bearings and get used to working in broad daylight again. You had been sitting at one of the many computers in the hub, catching up with Javadi, a warm smile on your face as the two of you spoke after months without a proper moment to catch up.
“So why did you even end up switching over in the first place?” She asked softly, eyes tracking your movements as you shed your jacket, hanging it over the back of the chair, and just shrugging slightly. “Thought I’d learn better with the night shift people. Turns out I was right. Abbot is quite the teacher.” You murmur in reply, giving her another smile as you sank back down into the chair, badging in to the computer.
“Do you have any-” She started to speak before abruptly being cut off, your head lifting from the computer at the pause, before a small smile graced your lips when you saw Dennis standing there. “You’re back on day shift?” He spoke, clearing his throat and fixing a few of the curls that rested on his forehead. “Uh… It’s nice. Nice to see you again. Fully, you know. Not for… not for thirty seconds during shift changes.” He chuckled, fixing his scrubs as if to better his appearance while you were looking at him.
You smile just a bit more before nodding, standing carefully and taking a tablet from Ellis as she walked past, gazing down at it. “Yup. Uh, back. In the flesh.” You say, giving him another not-so-graceful smile before clearing your throat awkwardly, motioning to the tablet. “Going to…” You trailed off, your gaze flicking about the hub before walking off when Santos caught your eye, picking your steps up a bit to catch up with her before she walked too far off.
“What did you do to him?” You mumbled, a snicker almost immediately slipping out as she followed your gaze before going back to the chart in her hands. “What? Our farm boy? He moved in with me, and I started feeding him real food, not sandwiches off the hospital cart. Took him to where I get my hair done, too. Plus, I think he bought a gym membership now that he gets paid. Wasn’t all my doing.” She hummed, grinning when she caught your gaze still on Dennis as the two of you walked side by side to check on the nightshift handoffs. “You got the hots for Huckleberry now? You two would be cute.” She hummed, nudging you with her elbow before she walked off when the two of you reached her patient’s room.
~
You spent the majority of your shift avoiding Dennis, because one glance and you were easily reverting into the shy medical student you had been only a few months prior. Blushing like a child, getting flustered, and quickly turning away only to bump into something and embarrass yourself further. You were sitting in the hub yet again at a computer, fingers quietly flying across the keyboard as you spent some time catching up on the few charts you had. You glanced up, however, when a pair of fingers tapped the counter right above where your computer was, letting out a quiet noise before giving Dennis a small, albeit nervous smile.
“Hi.” You say quietly, watching him give a small nod in reply. He was hesitant, that much was clear, but it was also progress from Dennis ten months ago, who wouldn’t have even thought to approach you, so much as ask what he was steadily working himself up to. He tapped his fingers one more time before finally speaking, voice soft and low. “Do you want to go get dinner tonight? As… as friends. Or,” He paused, shaking his head and smiling a little. “No, actually. As a date.” He corrected softly, fixing his watch as a way to fidget without doing so too outwardly, as he waited patiently for a reaction or a response from you.
You blink, staring for a moment to make sure you were hearing properly before nodding slowly. “Yeah, yeah. I’d like that.” You finally managed to speak up quietly. “I’m on a three on, three off so we can go on Tuesday.” You say, watching as he nods before giving the countertop a full palm pat a couple of times and standing up straight. “Yeah. Tuesday. I’ll talk to you later about the details,” He spoke, walking off as the ER doors open and in came yet another trauma.
You watched him go before exhaling with a chuckle, rubbing at your flushed cheeks before going back to typing. “You’re blushing. Like, badly.” Ogilvie, one of the newer med students, spoke as he leaned against the counter where Dennis had just been standing, staring down at you and arching his brows. “Kind of embarrassing if you ask me.” He hummed, reaching just past you to snatch a tablet to use before following behind Dennis like he had been doing all day.
~
Tuesday evening rolled around quicker than you thought it would be. You fussed over your outfit for about two hours before Samira finally helped you pick one, and you were now sitting across from Dennis at the restaurant he had picked. Something nice, casual. Nothing too fancy but perfect for a first date. It was nice, too, to finally catch up. He was speaking softly about something he had gotten to see during the day shift as he watched you sip on whatever you had ordered to drink, smiling just a little before hiding it behind his glass.
“I’ve wanted to ask you out for months now.” He said after a while, setting his fork down carefully and leaning back. “You just switched shifts so abruptly, and our days off never seemed to line up. I’m glad we’re here tonight, though. Really glad.” He added the last part a bit softer, matching your smile as you nodded and wiped your hands off carefully, shifting and taking a moment to look and admire him before speaking up.
“You look good, you know. You have to know that.” You laughed, crossing your legs and clasping your hands together, watching his smile grow a bit flustered. “I mean, I’m serious. Your hair… you’re not so pale anymore.. You’re..” You exhale, shaking your head. “You look good, Dennis.” You finally settled on and repeated, nodding and resting your hands in your lap as he thanked you, discreetly flagging the waiter down before looking back at you.
“Means a lot coming from you. I mean, a couple of people have complimented my hair, but it just… yeah, it means a lot.” He said softly as he smiled, carefully taking the check and thanking the waiter, tucking his card neatly into the checkbook, and handing it back. “You and Samira live close, yeah? Let me walk you back.” He said softly as he slid his wallet into his pocket when the waiter came back, standing up and offering a hand to you, taking it gently and helping you up and out of your chair before pushing it in behind you, leaving the restaurant.
The walk back to your apartment was quiet, but not awkward. A few shared words here, his arm wrapped loosely around your waist, palm warm against your side as you enjoyed each other’s company. You stepped into the elevator once at your complex, quietly pressing the button and exhaling gently, relaxing fully into his grip for the first time all night, your head coming to rest back lightly against his bicep.
The doors parted and arrived on your floor quicker than you wanted them to, leading Dennis down the hallway to your apartment door before motioning to it just slightly. “I would invite you in, but Samira’s still home.” You offered softly as you gazed at him, eyes gently tracing over his face as you watched him nod, stepping a bit closer to you and resting his hands on your waist hesitantly, almost as if he was suddenly scared to touch you.
“It’s okay.” He spoke softly as he nodded, gently pulling you closer to him as his hands slowly rested fully against the skin there. “I had a really nice time tonight.” He spoke softly, thumbs brushing against the waistband of your bottoms slowly, lips parting momentarily as he thought of something to say before closing again, sucking in a small breath before giving you a small smile. “Can I wrap this night up properly? Give you a kiss?” He asked quietly, watching as you nodded before smiling and exhaling a nervous breath.
He brought a hand to the back of your neck and cupped it gently before leaning down. He pressed his lips to yours, softly at first, before scooting closer when he felt you reciprocating, adding a bit of pressure as his hand moved from the back of your neck to the base of your skull. The two of you stood there for a moment with Dennis kissing you oh so softly, almost reverently in a way, before abruptly pulling apart when Samira yanked the front door open, a grin on her face as she looked between the two of you. “Hm. Did I interrupt something?” She grinned, tilting her head.
A breathy chuckle escapes you as you pull away from Dennis, clearing your throat. “I uh, I will see you at work in a few days.” You say softly, watching him as he nods, smiling a little. “Goodnight then.” You mumble, shoving Samira lightly as you go into the apartment, waving to Dennis and watching as he leaves. “Goodnight. I’ll see you soon.” He hummed as he gave you a small wave in return, a satisfied grin on his face as he walked to the elevator. You turn to Samira, a frown on your face. “Seriously?” You huff gently, shaking your head as she laughs and shrugs.
“Couldn’t have you two getting too carried away on a first date. This isn’t some soap opera.” She hummed, following you to the living area for the debrief and every juicy detail you planned to spill. She was your roommate, after all. Nosy and wanting all of the details.
