old bets
summary: an old bet has accidentally resurfaced and you question where you stand in your relationship with Jack. warnings: hurt/comfort. insecurity. jealousy. misunderstanding trope-kinda. spoilers for the pitt s2 (especially ep 08). note: gosh it’s finally here. thank you so much for all the love in the og draft! I can't believe it got over 4k notes???? thank you guys ❤️ wc: ~4k images by @wesandresons ; dividers by me lol
When you work in the ER, surrounded by life, death, sorrow, guilt, grief… it’s important to take joy in the moment when you can. Because you can’t dwell too much on the patients you lose. You gotta learn to compartmentalize, no matter how small. And in the Pitt, you do bets. Ahmad is usually the one setting them up, and big or small, there’s always something to bet on.
Today, on the 4th of July, the hot topic is what’s causing Westbridge to divert their patients and how long will they close their ER?
You bet $30 on system overload for 4 hours.
And now, the betting pool only gets bigger.
“So. System overload, huh?” Robby asks, stepping up beside you as he studies the board. “How’d you come up with that one?”
You grin, “Too many medical dramas.”
“God, you watch those?” Robby grimaces, shaking his head.
You shrug, “Jack watches them, too. Actually, it was his idea.”
He chuckles. “I’m sure it was. Speaking of Jack, I’m surprised you let him join SWAT today.”
Sighing, your shoulders immediately fall. It’s a topic you’ve argued with Jack several times. You don’t understand why he wants to volunteer today. The job is dangerous, he’s retired from the army, you can’t wrap your head around why can’t he just work a regular shift. But at the end of the day, you still chose to support him. Because Jack has his demons, too. And maybe this is his way to face them. Whatever the outcome, your job is to be there when it’s over. To hold the line. To catch him if he falls.
“Let him?” You scoff, “No, he does what he wants.”
“Maybe it’s an adventure thing.”
You hum sarcastically, “Mm-hmm, like you and your bike?”
“We all need some sort of therapy, right?”
“I guess,” You sigh again, “Jack’s probably gonna stop by later at the end of the shift. Before you head off on your grandadventure.”
“You know, you’re the only person today who’s called my sabbatical an adventure and not a mid-life crisis.” Robby grins.
“Nuh-uh,” You put up a hand, “I still think it’s a mid-life crisis trip. No helmet, Robby? Really? I saw you pull up.”
He sucks in a breath through his teeth and pretends to busy himself. “Oh, would you look at that. Patients. Back to work, doctor.”
You just shake your head at him.
You spent the next hours moving nonstop. Treating patients, teaching med students and interns, spending some time with Baby Jane Doe. So far nothing has blown up in your face yet, which is a good sign, but it’s the 4th of July. Crazy things are bound to happen on this day.
You just finished taking care of a head lac, sanitizing your hands while you exit the patient room and checking your phone. Jack’s last check-in was a couple hours ago, and you didn’t see it.
→ Change our bet. Cyberattack. 5 hours.
Your brows raise, but there’s a sigh of relief. How does he get intel like these?
Regardless, you make your way towards Ahmad. At least Jack’s safe.
“Oh, I know that look.” Ahmad guesses, “Changing your bet? Gotta double it.”
“Double??” You scoff, “Come on, man.”
“Hey, I didn’t make the rules.” He raises his hands in surrender, “So what’s it gonna be?”
You exhale through your nose, handing him the extra $30. “Cyberattack. 5 hours.”
“Interesting,” He notes, “Princess said the same thing.”
You shrug, analyzing the board for anything interesting. That’s when you notice a sticky note buried under several others. One corner sticks out just enough for you to catch the name written across it; ‘Abbot’. A bet on Jack? What could it be about?
You reached up and picked it out. When you read the content, your face falls immediately.
'abbot <3 mohan. how? when?'
And you see several bets being placed on it.
$20 they makeout in the oncall room. end of month -princess.
$10 they fuck to relieve stress. after 4th of july -santos.
$30 abbot confesses first. before end of year. -donnie.
$40 never. jack wouldn't have the guts to do it. -robby.
$40 also never. mohan rejects him. -dana.
There are several others, but you can't read them anymore. You feel like your ears are ringing, you can't think straight, and you need to breathe.
Jack and Samira? Jack had something with Samira? Why didn’t he tell you? Was it one sided? Does Samira know? Who won the bet? Did anything happen between them? Does Jack still feel something towards her now?
You shove the sticky note in your pocket, rushing out of the room to go somewhere you can breathe some fresh air. You run to the ambulance bay, but Robby’s there right now and you cannot deal with that, remembering that he bet Jack wouldn’t dare make a move on Samira. Which means he knew. No, everyone knew.
Fuck. Just how embarrassing is this? You joined PTMC a little over a year ago and fell in love with Jack. You were never shy about it, never hesitant to be seen with him, or to let people know you were together. And now you’re realizing you might not have been the actual woman he originally wanted like that.
Your stomach twists at the thought. It shouldn’t matter. He had a life before you. You know that. He didn’t owe you anything. Still, something about finding out this way makes you feel stupid, like you walked into an inside joke everyone else was already in on. And you’re the punchline.
You turn to a random patient’s room, pretending to check on them.
“—Our little secret.”
You manage to hear a voice before you open the curtains, and you see your Jack sitting on the bed with his shirt off, with Samira with her gloves on, standing behind him.
Your eyes widen and you stop in your tracks.
If you were being rational and logical, you would be able to make the connection that Samira is patching Jack up from a wound, but you're dealing with too much information too fast, and the twisting feeling in your chest only gets worse.
Jack can see it in your eyes. The way they’re tearing up, how your chest is heaving, and how you can’t really make eye contact—you’re about to panic. Fight or flight. And he knows exactly what happens next if it hits full force: you’d shut down, you’d barely speak.
“Sweetheart—”
“No,” You say immediately, bringing a hand to your mouth because you feel like you could throw up, “Don’t— I can’t—”
He stands up, already wanting to hold you, but you're already stepping away from the room to find somewhere you could be alone.
Are you just a rebound because he couldn’t get Samira? Just a replacement? Did he settle for you? Was he just lonely, and you happened to be there at the right time, saying the right things, filling a space that was never really meant for you? Is he dating you just to get her jealous?
You walk as quickly and as calmly as you can out to the ambulance bay again, seeing it’s empty now.
You let out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding, the cool air brushing against your face. Your chest isn’t heaving anymore. The breaths you take are still short, but your head is clearer now. However, the tightness in your chest, the aching pain, they don’t go away.
Your breath becomes a sob, and before you know it, tears are falling from your eyes.
“Damn it,” you mutter under your breath, wiping the tears with your sleeves.
It’s a ridiculous thing to cry over.
You have Jack. He’s yours. You’re just being insecure. Jealous. Overthinking and overreacting. That’s all this is.
So why does it still hurt so much?
There’s no doubt that Jack wants to be with you. He shows it every day. But if Samira had reciprocated back then… if things had lined up differently… where would that have left you?
Fuck. No. Stop. Stop thinking like that.
You’re not sure when you’ve dropped to the ground, crouching while keeping your head hanging low. All you know is, you’ve probably stayed too long out in the bay, because Robby’s found you and he looks concerned. So you quickly duck back inside.
You’re not trying to avoid Jack. It’s just been incredibly chaotic ever since they announced the system was going offline to prevent a cyberattack—which also means you and Jack won the bet, yay—that everyone’s drowning trying to keep up with the paperwork.
Besides, you haven’t really seen him ever since the little… incident you saw. Right now he’s occupied in a trauma with Robby and Whitaker, your eyes meeting for a fleeting second through the glass doors and you can see him fighting the urge to go to you before Robby calls him again.
You swallow hard. The sticky notes in your pocket feeling like it weighs a ton.
Right after you’ve finished the discharge papers of one of your patients and ding the call bell, you feel his presence next to you, holding your arm and guiding you to the lockers.
He doesn’t look happy.
Once the door closes, Jack lets your arm go, and you’re backed against the wall. His arms are in his pockets, but they might as well be next to your head with the way he’s looking at you.
“What’s going on?”
You open your mouth to speak, but you don’t know where to begin.
I found out about you and Samira. Do you love her or me? What was that ‘little secret’ you guys were talking about? If she told you she loved you now, would you choose her? Why didn’t you tell me?
Jack exhales through his nose, the tension clear. He turns to his locker to grab his things. “Look, I gotta go. Gotta sleep a bit before my night shift later. I know this isn’t ideal, we don’t have much time, but… I’d rather we talk about some of it now than later.”
You close your mouth, nodding and understanding.
He softens slightly. “Baby, please. Tell me what’s bothering you.”
You glance at your feet, biting your lip, pressing your nails to your palms to calm your nerves and finally gather the courage to ask: “Do you have… feelings… for Samira?”
Jack’s head snaps toward you so fast it almost startles you. His brows are furrowed. His eyes are sharp and almost pointed at you, he definitely was not expecting that question.
“Or, did you?” You add, trying to correct yourself.
His hard expression hasn’t changed, but he’s no longer looking at you. He closes his locker, fumbling with his bag.
And it’s his silence that breaks you.
“Jack?” You ask, voice sounding like you’re in disbelief.
“No—” He immediately answers, “—I don’t. Sorry, that question just… took me by surprise.”
You don’t look convinced.
“Baby,” Jack softens, stepping closer, “There is nothing going on between me and Mohan. I promise.”
You bite the inside of your cheek, trying to will the tears away. “Are you sure?”
His brows raise, because why would you ask him that? “Yes—look, where is this coming from? Baby, I promise what you saw earlier was just a coincidence, okay? I was gonna patch myself up but she was already there. There is nothing going on.” He’s holding onto you now, looking deeply into your soul with concern.
Because he needs you to understand there’s no one else in this world for him. His entire existence, his entire life, revolves around you now. He doesn’t know how else to convince you, not when you look like he’s betrayed your trust.
Your lip trembles.
You should believe him. You know he’s probably telling the truth. But you can’t help but feel there’s still something he’s hiding from you. So you fish the wrinkled sticky note in your pocket.
“I found this buried behind the other betting notes,” You mutter, putting the notes in his palm.
Jack hasn’t opened the notes yet, looking at you for an explanation first.
“I would’ve understood if you had just told me in the beginning,” you continue, your throat tightening despite how hard you’re trying to stay calm. “I mean, it’s not like you owed me an explanation. I just… I don’t understand why I had to find out like this.”
He finally unfolds the wrinkled notes, and his jaw clenches when he reads them.
He doesn’t really react. He’s not shocked. And that tells you what you need to know.
“Oh my God,” you breathe, a hollow laugh escaping, the sadness and hurt simmering into disbelief. “You knew about the bet.”
“Whoa, no—” Jack immediately interjects. “Not in the way you think. I found out about this a long time after it ended.”
Your eyes snap to him. “It ended?”
“Yes—”
“Who won the bet?”
“Why does it matter?” Jack sighs but then answers anyway, “I don’t know, honey.”
You bite your lip, trying to look anywhere else but his eyes, but you can’t escape him.
Your mind is still so loud. It keeps going, keeps spinning, feeding you every worst-case scenarios where you're the one who loses. It's exhausting, living in your own head like this. And you don't know how to tell Jack that. How do you explain that your biggest fear isn't what did happen, but what could. That somewhere in the back of your mind you're terrified that if Samira changed her mind, you'd lose him without warning.
“Hey.” His voice drops quieter. His hand comes up to your jaw, tilting your face back toward his. “Look at me.”
You do, reluctantly. And you hate how much just looking at him undoes you.
“I need you to hear me right now,” he says, his thumb brushing your cheek. “Just listen to my voice, okay? Not whatever your brain has been spinning all day. Me.”
“Jack—”
“Yes, I had a crush on Mohan,” he says plainly. “It was nothing. It went nowhere because I didn’t want it to. And then months later, you showed up, and I never thought about her ever since.” He shakes his head slowly. “You’re the light of my life. First time I saw you, I knew you’re it for me.”
Despite yourself, a small, watery laugh escapes you. “We were yelling at each other.”
“In my defense, it was your first day and no one told me there was a new hot doctor in town. And we also made out right after, so…”
You shake your head with a small smile. The ache in your chest hasn't fully gone yet, but is much more manageable now. You swallow hard after a beat passes. “You could've told me.”
Jack nods, not making excuses of it. “You’re right. I should have. I didn't think it mattered enough to bring up. And that was stupid of me. But I promise, it was never something I was hiding from you. I’d forgotten about it. I didn’t even think of it.”
You nod back. “What was the little secret?” you ask quietly. “What I walked in on earlier… what did she mean by that?”
He exhales and opens his mouth to explain, when the locker room door swings open and Robby comes in.
“You guys better not be playing hide the zucchini,” Robby jokes, “Jack, Howard is ready for transport. They need you out front.”
Jack's jaw tightens. He looks at Robby, then back at you, and you can see it in his face, the frustration of fucking terrible timing.
“Give me a minute.” He says.
Robby hesitates for just a second, then gives a small nod and lets the door shut behind him.
Jack turns back to you. His hand finds your face again, tilting up so you're looking at him. “She was helping me with my wound on my back. A bullet grazed my vest. I wanted it to be off the books. That was the secret.” He gave you a summary.
He slings his backpack on his other shoulder and gives your forehead a kiss. “We’ll talk more later, okay? I promise you that’s all it was.”
You nod, not fully trusting your voice.
He lingers a second longer than he should, thumb brushing your cheek, and then he's gone. And you don’t like how everything feels too quiet without him in it.
One year ago…
“Are they still at it?” Robby frowns, hearing the loud voices coming from the supply closet.
You and Jack only met moments ago. It’s your first day in PTMC, and by some luck, you arrived on a stretcher, doing chest compressions on a patient. Robby’s met you before, so though he was surprised, he didn’t get in your way.
However, Jack, having never met you, immediately carried you off the patient, taking over the compressions himself.
“Wha— Hey!” “Somebody get her out of here!”
If it weren’t for Robby finally explaining that you’re the new attending joining them and not a patient or visitor, Jack would’ve probably dragged you out himself.
“Sounds like it.” Dana confirms. “She’s feisty. I like her.”
Robby hums, “Reminds you of yourself, punchy?”
Dana chuckles, “You’re lucky I haven’t actually punched anyone, Cap.”
Your argument with Jack continues.
“You didn’t have to man-handle me like that!”
“I wasn’t man-handling you, it was just easier to carry you rather than pulling you to come down! What if you’d fallen??”
“Well I could’ve fallen with you 'carrying' me anyway!”
Jack scoffs, “What, you think I'm not strong enough to carry you, princess?”
“Don't fucking call me that. And no, I don't think you are.” You step closer as if challenging him.
You stay like that for a second. Eyes glaring at each other, out of breath, bodies so close that you can feel each other’s warmth… and with one glance at his lips, Jack’s resolve breaks. You’re kissing him before you know it. His hand on the back of your neck, the other around your waist to feel your body press against him, while yours are bunched in his scrubs, pulling him closer.
You moan when you feel his tongue intrude your mouth. And Jack’s about to slip his hand under your shirt when there’s a knock on the door.
“Alright guys, quit it.” Robby’s voice booms from outside. “It’s gotten quiet so I’m assuming you’re… doing something else. We got a trauma coming in. Let’s go.”
You push yourself off of him immediately. Wiping your mouth of his saliva and looking away despite your heavy breaths and flushed face.
Jack smirks, licking his lips and opening the door for you, signaling you to go first. You roll your eyes and walk first anyway, cursing on your way out.
“Jack-ass.”
“Brat.”
The memory brings a smile to your face now.
It’s definitely not the most romantic way to meet the love of your life, but you wouldn’t have it any other way. And needless to say, you’re grateful Robby didn’t report you to HR on your first day.
You’ve decided to work an extra couple of hours since things are still chaotic and the night shift would need help. Not to mention that you don’t really want to go home to an empty house right now.
It only took you and Jack about a month before admitting that you wanted to be more than just friends who occasionally make out. And once you’ve embraced the fact that you’re in love with him, everything became easier. It felt like the most natural thing in the world. You still argue, but none of it makes you want to walk away.
“Hi, sweetheart.”
You feel Jack’s arm around you as he kisses your head.
You lean into his touch. “Hi.”
He looks better now after a few hours of sleep, changed into another black t-shirt and dark cargo pants. He stands beside you, shoulders touching. He doesn't say anything right away, and neither do you.
You’ve had the rest of the day to think about what happened. Your feelings. Your relationship. And you have to admit, your earlier reaction was… a lot of anxiety and panic. Jack left you texts throughout the day, and his reassurances have calmed you down, and now you’re ready to talk to him.
“Staying for the night shift?” He asks.
“Just a few hours.” You say, then turn to him.
“Can we… talk?”
His hand finds yours, fingers slipping between yours. “Come on.”
He takes you to the rooftop, where it’s quieter and the chances of someone walking in is low. The rooftop was also where you and Jack managed to um… relieve some stress back then. It was a daring thing that you don’t think you can do again.
The breeze hits your face and you take a deep breath, following Jack to sit a few feet from the edge. He knows you hate dangling your feet, you once told him it’s very dangerous because “what if your leg falls off??”. It puts a smile on Jack’s face just remembering it.
Silence stretches between you, and you know you can’t delay it any longer.
“I’m sorry.”
Jack’s head snaps towards you, looking confused.
You continue anyway. “I saw the bet and my mind immediately assumed the worst. I guess it triggered an insecurity in me…”
“Honey—”
“No, I… I need to get this out,” You take a deep breath, fidgeting with your fingers. “I hate that everyone knew you had a thing for Samira except me.” You admit. “It makes me feel stupid. Most of them were rooting for you to get together and I… I feel like I’m a replacement. Because you couldn’t get her.”
You swallow the lump in your throat. You feel like crying but it seems like your tears have dried out. “And I’m scared that you might leave me for her if she turned out to have reciprocated your feelings.”
Jack softens, scooting closer to you and taking your hands in his, kissing them dearly.
“You shouldn’t say sorry.” He says, “I’m sorry because I didn’t tell you. You’re not a replacement, sweetheart. You never were, you never will be. You're not someone I settled for because things didn't work out somewhere else.” He tilts his head, making sure you’re still with him.
“That crush was just… admiration. Purely surface level. I wasn’t interested in her that way.” Jack explains, “And I guess… knowing my staring problem, I probably wasn’t sublte and people started reading too much into it. And you know gossip here spread like wildfire.”
You press your lips together, nodding while you listen to him.
“But look,” Jack straightens, “I don’t want to downplay your feelings. They’re completely valid, okay? If you told me you had the same thing with… with Robby, I would’ve lost it. I should’ve told you. I’m sorry I didn’t.” He repeats. “You deserved to hear it from me first.”
You let out a breath of relief, nodding again and leaning your head on his shoulder.
Jack puts an arm around you, kissing your temple. “And as for Mohan, there is no scenario where I leave you for her. Or for anyone. You hear me?”
“Mm-hmm.” You hum.
“Thank you.” You say after a second, “for understanding. For apologizing. For accepting me. I love you.”
Jack tilts your head to look at him. “No thanks needed. I love you. I love every part of you.”
You smile at him, finally able to let go of the weight on your shoulders.
The silence that follows is different from before.
“I don’t think you were subtle with me either.” You say after a while, chuckling.
“Honey, we snogged the first day we met. We don’t do subtle.”
You groan, “My God. Who says snogged anymore?”
“This old guy.” Jack laughs. “Now come on. We should go down and talk to Robby before he leaves.”
You exhale, gathering the will to go back into the fray before getting up, then offering Jack your hand. “Alright gramps, let’s go.”
He snorts, shaking his head, but taking your hand anyway so you can help him up. “Don’t push your luck, sweetheart. You’re gonna be screaming this ‘gramps'’ name tonight.”
You gasp, “Ew! Jack! That sounds so creepy.”
“You started it.”
You’re both laughing as you make your way down through the elevator.
“Hey,” Jack calls your attention, smiling and sending you a knowing look. “Just you and me, alright?”
You smile back, “you and me.”
it's finally doneeeeeeeee ❤️ thank you for supporting me and I hope you guys like it 🥹 the pressure is fr fr