Ficlet: First Do No Harm
[Inspired by a tumblr post I can’t find anymore about Ezri comparing Garak’s claustrophobia to her space sickness and making him pass out.]
Julian slammed the padd down on the counter so hard she jumped. “You,” he turned to her, “Went into his shop, a public place, and tried to counsel him. He asked you to leave and you refused.”
“Garak didn’t say that,” Ezri knew.
“Of course he didn’t. Do you think I don’t know him? I’ve known Garak for six and a half years! I watched the security footage. He asked you to leave, and you didn’t! You -” He struggled to keep his hands from fisting, they stopped at claws. “You forced him into therapy in a public place against his will, and how he’s in my infirmary because he couldn’t breathe.”
“Captain Sisko -”
“Captain Sisko didn’t want you to incapacitate him! Even if he had, you are a medical professional - you took an oath.”
“I -”
“First - do - no - harm!” He slammed his palm down onto the empty biobed between them in between every word.
“You’ve broken that rule yourself!”
“When?” Julian shouted, “Tell me one thing you’ve ever seen me do - “
“Jadzia - “
“You’re not Jadzia!”
“No, I’m not! She was never in love with you!”
Julian turned on her, slow and incredulous. “How dare you use my feelings for her against me?”
“I’m not - I’m not! It’s … I …”
He stared, “You’re joking.”
“I promise that I’m not.”
“All those memories - how can you be so uninformed about me? Medicine, ethical medicine is -”
“It wasn’t important to you when you fucked Melora! And what about Sarina, you can’t possibly twist that into - ”
“I’m the CMO of a Space Station! Everyone I fall in love with is going to be my patient sooner or later!”
“Excuse me!”
Their heads whipped around to find Odo, standing in the doorway to the infirmary, and behind him, a horrifying amount of onlookers.
“Whatever is happening in your infirmary, Doctor, is causing a significant noise disturbance on the Promenade. Is this a domestic dispute?”
“You might be onto something there, Constable,” their heads whipped back in the opposite direction, where Garak had emerged from the private room and was only wobbling a little bit. He rasped “If Doctor Bashir and Counselor Dax here were Cardassians, you would have to arrest them for public indecency.”
Ezri’s face burned all the way up to her hairline. Julian took a deep breath and folded his arms across his chest, staring at Garak. “What are you doing out of bed? You’re supposed to be -”
“- resting, yes Doctor, I’m aware.” Garak refused to look at either of them, eyes somewhere around knee level. “I think I might be better off doing that in my own quarters.”
“You can’t stand up straight!” Julian reached out, but froze when Garak flinched back.
“That’s!” Garak almost yelped and then continued a little more calmy, “Quite alright, Doctor … I wouldn’t want to stay here too long. Can’t have you falling in love with me now, can we?”
Julian’s eyes widened, his mouth tight. His head whipped around to face Ezri, who was staring at him again now, still pink with humiliation. His glare burned holes in her.
Garak continued a slow progress through the infirmary, holding on to whatever surface he could find and staying as far away from the two of them as he could. “Constable, if you would be so kind, I would quite appreciate the company on the walk to my quarters.”
Odo strode forward to offer his arm to Garak.
Julian tried one more time, “Garak, you -”
“I’ll be sure to comm someone if I’m having trouble breathing again, Doctor. Jabara doesn’t live all that far from me.”
They watched the two of them leave. When they were out of sight, Ezri turned back to Julian only to watch him Julian collapse, his whole body still, nothing except the look on his face playing out his emotions.
She put it together.
“Oh no,” she whispered.
Julian glared at her, “I think you’ve said enough, don’t you?”