im thinking of samira mohan again, i do think its interesting thank you for asking that robby does apologize to her when he dose not fully do that to many characters. specifically being that their relationship is so split between robby being like you can do more i belive in you but also not trusting her when she does try to do more? he wante her to live up to some great potential he had decided she has while also not givng her any support and activily undermining and making her second guess herself very weird and odd of you robby. i would almost say he sees so much of himself in her he is in a way trying to push her out of the ed to try and save her in the most i know better than you do way. i do think samira and frank have this is common where robby pushes them so much because of how much he thinks they can do and it continues to backfire traumastically im interested in seeing the ways we will see him continue doing this feels like its going to hit whitake next and (poor whitaker) but ill love to see it
sources: l.e.s. by donald glover // this year by the mountain goats // maya hornbacher, madness // watchisjawdrop on tumblr // wuntrum on tumblr // kim kardashian // unknown // godblessryankent on tiktok // nayyirah waheed // unknown // lev st. valentine
Just because you did something wrong in the past doesn’t mean you can’t advocate against it now. It doesn’t make you a hypocrite. You just grew. Don’t let people use your past to invalidate your current mindset.
Thinking about how sometimes when you’re in an unsafe or tense environment for so long that when you eventually have your own safe environment for a while your nervous system basically does a hard reset and you can’t do anything but sleep and cry for a while
Dennis who was raised in his family’s house, always on edge. Fighting for his survival whether it was avoiding his dads fists, his moms quiet disdain, or his brothers definitely normal (according to some of his teachers growing up) violent bullying towards him. He had to be scrappy to eat, whether that’s quickly pocketing some of his moms cooking when he passes by the kitchen to eat later (yes he’s had to put a handful of pork in his pocket before and eat it with the lint and dirt on it) or running faster than his dad’s belt.
He was raised to be apologetic about his existence, sucking on his fingers in anxiety everytime he heard his dad come in the house. (That only lasted a month until his dad smashed his hand on the table with his work boots)
He was a quiet kid because he was made to me. He would be scolded or popped on the mouth if he spoke too loudly or whined about his brothers stealing his food. He never got to explore who he was safely, when he found out he liked music that wasn’t just the church choir, he had to hide in the hay pile in the barn late at night to listen to modern music on the handheld radio.
When he found out it was boys that made his heart race and palms sweat, he never told a soul. Not until Mathew B. Cornered him in a church closet a day before his 17th birthday and kissed him.
He never told anyone. But his pastor saw them come out and told his Pa.
Dennis left that house at 17 with two black eyes, a broken nose, cheekbone, and a lip that split up to his nostril almost. He could hide his fractured arm and deep black bruises on his stomach and legs under his baggy clothes.
When Dennis went to college it was to study theology. To make his pa do anything but hate him, or to learn how to speak to God correctly so he would stop getting punished.
He slept in a dorm for one year until that debt got too high and his loans wouldn’t cover it anymore. He shared that dorm with a Christian jock who invited over guys that looked at Dennis like they wanted to eat him or kill him. He got very little sleep in that year.
Dennis continued school while in a homeless shelter down the road. He slept with his backpack in his arms and a quiet prayer on his lips. One that rarely worked.
At some point, Dennis was almost through his second year of schooling when one of his bunk mates at the shelter got stabbed. Dennis stayed with him, pressing on the wound. He went with him, because Daryl had nobody else and Dennis knows how that feels.
He watches as they save Daryl’s life barely and that sets a spark in Dennis. An expensive one.
He sleeps on the streets those multiple years of school. He goes hungry and he sometimes stands outside of clubs and lets older guys use his body for money and for a bed at night. The first time it happened, Dennis was just looking for a place to sleep and for some pleasure. When the guy pulled out 200$ and his own business card for Dennis to call whenever he needed that…exchange, Dennis realized how profitable that might turn out to be. Well, not profitable. The money was never enough to put anything back. He was still homeless but he had scrubs and he had wipes and he had a mostly stable eating habit. Not nearly enough vegetables but lots of oats and tuna and crackers.
That ends after Dennis ends up in the free clinic with black eyes and preventative medicine and a counselor talking to him about if he wants to pursue legal action.
By that time, rotations are too much anyway. He gets through most of them without anyone having a clue he didn't have a home to go to. He finds the 8th floor where it’s too hot, smells like mildew, and he can hear the despair and the sirens at all hours of the night.
Then Trinity. Oh Trinity. His Trinity. She saved his life, he knows it deep down. She saved his life, and was mean about it the whole time. She’s the nicest person Dennis has ever met. Trinity lives in deep downtown, in a worser part of the neighborhood.
Trinity is loud and doesn’t back down. Not even when their neighbors threaten her, so Dennis never sleeps deeply in that house after one neighbor tries to break in their house.
Dennis gets stitches in his arm and a bedside police interrogation after that break in. But the guy didn’t reach trinitys room so it’s good. He did his job.
After that day, something changes in the ER.
Robby's the one who stitched him up. His huge, padded hands holding Dennis's arm with the most delicate of touches. Robby tells Dennis he was lucky the cut wasn’t deeper. He tells Dennis him and Trinity need to move, and Dennis laughs in his face.
Immediately flinches back once he realizes what he did. Instinct over anything.
Robby looks at him with a soft questioning look, but doesn’t push it.
Dennis explains in a broken, whispered sentence. They’re both broke, they were $100 short on rent this month as it is and it’s only $1000 a month for a two bed, two bath. That’s a goldmine in the city.
Dr. Robby hums but says nothing further. Rubs Dennis’s shoulder when he goes to walk him out of the room once his stitches are done.
“Good Job, Dennis.” Trinity laughs at Dennis from across the floor when Dr. Robby says that to him. Tells Dennis he looks like at Robby like a beaten lovesick puppy.
Dennis barely sleeps at all after the break in.
Robby notices. Trinity notices, she doesn’t sleep either.
It’s when Mel’s sister fully moves out of her house to be with her boyfriend that stuff changes.
Trinity takes Mel’s spare room. $200 a month because Mel has a hefty savings from her parents passing and she only has to pay a water and WiFi bill.
Dennis is homeless again. But of course. He has Trinity in his life and she would never let him suffer.
She tells Robby.
They’re all standing around the hub, some charting, some night shift coming in and going over patients with the day shift doctors. Trinity is standing next to Dana when Dr. Robby walks by.
“Hey, Dr. Robby,” she waits until he stops, “Dennis is moving into your spare room, Kay? Or else he’ll be homeless and mopey.”
The hub stops. Jack barks out a laugh loud enough for a baby in the pediatric room to start crying. Dana makes eye contact with princess and Perlah, mouth wide open. They all wait for Robby to explode, or laugh, or something.
“Sure thing. You guys are off tomorrow right?”
And so that is that.
Dennis packs his two boxes of stuff up, panic bakes a couple dozen things of different cookies. fills out the HR paperwork he has to, since Trinity asked so publicly so everyone knows.
Robby comes in and smells good and handles Dennis’s stuff with care and hums in appreciation when he sees the cookies.
Dennis lasts three nights in his room at Robby’s.
Then he lunges his body across the kitchen counter when him and Robby are talking in the kitchen, and Robby asks if Mel and Trinity are coming over to see him again.
Robby kisses him like a man starving, like he’s on death row and Dennis is the last steak he’ll ever enjoy. He cradles Dennis face in his hands and places kisses all over his face.
Dennis begs for Robby to bend him over then and there, but Robby gets him into his room and onto the bed.
It’s the best night of Dennis’s life. He cries through it, telling Robby he’s just happy.
They continue after that, hold hands when they’re out in the city. Robby stops him in the hallway and kisses the top of his head every time they pass each other.
Robby does the grocery shopping and grabs enough food for all of the girls to come over and eat. Remembers that Trinity’s hair straightener broke (because she screamed about it in his house) and buys her one.
Jack comes over more and they plan a camping trip now that Dennis is involved and he’s an outdoorsy man.
For two months straight it’s pure bliss, Dennis couldn’t be happier. He just wishes he could sleep deeply throughout the night. But he’s still stuck in his ways and everytime a car rattles too loud, or the wind pushes against a window, he bolts up ready to fight for his life or to protect Robby.
Then one night, a patient from work follows Dennis home. Waits until they’re asleep and quietly breaks in.
Dennis wakes up to a man groaning in pain and Dennis doesn’t even want to get up. He failed at his job. He couldn’t keep Robby safe, he knows it. Why didn’t he wake up? Why didn’t his body do its purpose?
“Den, baby, will you call Jack and 911? In that order?”
And Dennis opens his eyes to a see Robby, dressed in only boxers, with a bloodied hand around his ex-patients throat.
Dennis gets through calling Jack, answering some of his rapid-fire questions with a shaky voice (it’s never been shaky like this, his body always responds to danger boldly before it can start to tremble)
Talks to the police with tears pooling in his eyes. Calls Trinity when the sun starts peeking over the horizon and Robby is talking to a deputy.
He tells her, “I was so scared, Trin. I was convinced I failed my job, I knew it, I just knew it.” And he cries for 10 minutes. Listens to her voice go soft.
She tells him, “it was never your job to take care of everyone, fuckleberry. you have to take care of yourself before you can help anyone else. And it sounds like Robby got it covered for you, babe.”
For a couple of nights, Dennis has nightmares. Of finding Robby’s beaten body. Of his family, scolding him for failing everyone. Of Trinity in trouble and he won’t save her.
Robby holds him every time, kisses his temple. Whispers to him that Dennis has never let him down. Robby won’t let anyone hurt him.
Then Dennis sleeps through the night. Robby finally gets him up 15 minutes before they’re supposed to be clocking in.
The next day, Dennis sleeps through the night again. Robby has to almost shoulder carry Dennis to the car at 7:05am.
He calls Jack on the way and looks at Dennis worriedly, watching as Dennis’s eyes just fill with tears over and over again.
They have the next day off and Dennis sleeps until 3pm, wakes up and rolls back over and just cries silently. Can’t even talk to Robby when he comes in the room.
Robby tells himself Dennis gets one week like this, then he has to handle it more sternly.
Dennis sits on the couch with Robby and cries silently a lot. Brings up his mom’s phone number and just stares at it for 30 minutes at a time. Trinity texts him a lot. Javadi sends him funny and motivational TikToks. Mel FaceTimes him when he doesn’t answer Trinity. Samira doordashes them some soup and sends Dennis a couple texts with too many emojis in it.
They’re supposed to return to work the next day but Dennis won’t even get up at all this time. His body is made of cement. It scares Robby enough to call Jack. Asks him to pull a double, and he’s so sorry.
Dennis sleeps all day long, only eats one piece of peanut butter toast.
Robby cries in bed next to him, texts Trinity silently. Dana calls him and they talk for a while, she comes over and helps clean the kitchen and make a week of meals.
Brushes the hair out of Dennis’s face and mutters to him that he has two more days of this before Robby calls in the real Calvary.
Robby goes to work the next day because he has to, and he can feel the drag of depression catching him too if he stays in the dark house too long. Jack catches him at the hub and tells Robby to hand over his keys, he’s gonna sit with “Robby’s boy” for the day.
Jack sits bedside with Dennis and eventually drags some words out of him.
Texts Robby slowly throughout the day.
“Your boy says he’s just exhausted. His body feels like sand when he tries to move.”
“He’s swears he’s not gonna hurt himself, he acted surprised I asked,”
“On the bright side this is the equivalent of the sleep he got in one month during his first rotation so, maybe it’s just sleep debt.”
“Never been safe to sleep or let his guard down. Should we kill his dad?”
Trinity sees one of the texts and quietly tells Robby, “it just happens sometimes. I left my stepdads house and I almost flunked college because I slept for a month straight, cried, and smelled like shit the whole time. He’s healing, he feels safe with you. Sometimes what looks like suffering is just a body resetting to be better.”
Trinity is right, as always. And a week later Dennis is back in the Pitt. His hair is brighter than ever, his bags under his eyes are more like creases, and he’s more affectionate than ever with Robby. And Trinity, and Dana, Mel, Samira. Jack. The nurses, all of them. Donnie even.
He sleeps through the night and drags Robby to all the farmers markets now. Let’s trinity drag him and all the girls to the club.
Dennis is finally safe for once in his life and able to let his guard down. He’s able to take care of himself now, is able to love the others around him more than ever.
(I have no clue how long this is, i wrote it over the course of 3 days at work, some of it could be ineligible or unconnected, I’ll figure it out later but this hasn’t left my brain so I just had to write it.)
i think its actually funny as fuck you can tell when my intrests turn to a diffrent think just form how consume i am by them anyway shane hollander has great crash out poetential and idk if im projecting but he to me seems like a very pushing it down and seething about it later kinda guy, which is very relatable to me. like he is very much the type to avoid rocking the boat as a poc who is aware he can't really get away with being agrressive like other players/ people. I also think shane (hockey player) hollander is not starting fights but he sure as hell is finishing them like there is now way he isnt targetted during games as both a captain and just for racism reasons like people definatly come after him and i choose to believe he always wins :)
Hi friends, I need some help here. I know a lot of you are barely keeping your heads above water, financially, or are already drowning yourselves. But maybe some of you can help me.
Last year I broke a tooth. It's in the front and I really don't want to just get it pulled (which is all my insurance will pay for). But to get a crown and all the stuff that goes with it is a bigger expense than I can cover. Now usually I'd try to save up for it, but that broken tooth is now hurting me as infection sets in. I gotta get this squared away quickly.
I'm having trouble with bills already, plus paying for someone to keep my daughter when her regular respite worker is unable to but I still need to keep appointments for myself or my mother. (mom is 81 and has afib, kidney disease, and congestive heart failure. she's going to the doctor a lot)
Anyway, long story short,
I started a GoFundMe for the dental bills.
I also could use some money for the other stuff but that's not as urgent. My cashapp is finally set up: $beingagreenmother and there's still my ko-fi
even if you can't help, if you could reblog and share this around that would help too
Like a month ago I messaged a craft group about accessibility for wheelchairs and the answer I got was “there’s a lot of stairs but we have cute boys who can carry you”.
And it’s…not good. As a wheelchair bound person I largely depend on people when I want to go out and do *anything* so I’m used to it, I laugh it off, make an annoyed post about it and off I go. But I wanna just say a thing real quick.
Even if I wasn’t gay, wasn’t a survivor scared of men, getting help as a disabled person is just…Not a pleasant thing to us! Imagine for a sec how you’d feel being carried up a flight of stairs. You’re a grown person. You’re being touched in an awkward way. You’d rather do it yourself. You’re So Uncomfortable. It’s not where I look for the beginning of a romantic relationship.
So like…could abled people stop doing this thing where they think helping us in a condescending and infantilizing way is cute? Cause I’m real tired. Just get me a ramp or lift and I’m cool. I don’t need a dating service when I’m just trying to go about my day
Seems like it should be obvious that carrying someone around, especially someone who might be more fragile than ever given their disability, is not a safe or comfortable thing for the person in question.
They really expect someone to trust a complete stranger to carry them up and down stairs, a scenario in which it would be incredibly easy for the disabled person in question to be dropped, something that could result in severe injury or even death.
Also, more often than not, being carried by people who aren’t trained to do it hurts, so apart from being frustrated, embarrassed, and afraid, you also get to be in pain while it’s happening.
im thinking of heather collins and samira mohan again your honour specifically thinking of how supportive and trusting collins was to samira reasuring her, telling robby he was being too hard on her, like i can just imagine the ways their mentor mentee realationship would have grown and i genuinely think it would have looked kinda like cassi's and victoria's. mrs heather collins i love you so much. i also this collins being there would have changed things for dana theyve been in the pitt together for years they both confided/comforted eachother in a way. idk i just think heather collins is not talked about enough as being a character that you can feel missing and i think samira is gonna feel the same way next season which is gonna hurt so bad.
Okay so whoever said that Dennis Whitaker is like an emotional support puppy who needs a bright service dog vest (I'm so sorry I can't remember the OP, please @ me if it's you) thank you for your service but also I can feel myself taking it way too literally.
Because hybrid au where that's actually Dennis' job? Where he has soft, floppy ears and a tail that's usually going at a calm, lazy wag but which can turbo boost to frantic, happy, leg-smacking thumps, or slowly lower in sympathy as needed.
He's brought on initially to boost patient satisfaction scores (not sure if Robby would have been the instigator as a sheer act of desperation or if Gloria forced it on him), but then he just starts...wandering around the staff when he's not occupied.
He lets Mel rhythmically stroke his ears in silence, despite her initial earnest mortification.
"Oh, no, no, I'm - I'm so sorry if I was staring! I would never...that's completely..."
She didn't seem to know what to do with Dennis' amiable smile, the cocked head that conveyed that he didn't understand why she was upset but he would quite like to fix it.
"Um...you're a colleague. Please don't ever think I don't know that, or that I think of you as - as less. I would never just - touch you without consent."
Her view of his professional status may be a legally grey minefield that he couldn't even begin to navigate, but he could definitely fix the other thing.
"But I'm giving you my consent. That's what I'm here for - I like to make people feel better."
And it just sort of opens the floodgates, so now whenever he's not with patients, he's with them.
Letting Langdon gently, idly tug on and play with his tail while he considers the board, occasionally yanking it away from him and turning around to grin and playfully push his hands away when he tries to retrieve it.
Sitting next to Santos while she charts, happy to be quiet and ignored other than the occasional ruffle of his ears.
Happily taking the hybrid-safe chocolates that Shen brings in with his iced coffee, listening intently, ears slightly pricked, while the man describes what coffee tastes like.
He doesn't usually have much to do with Abbot when their shifts align, and at first he'd been pretty intimidated by the man. The way he stood made Dennis think he might be ready for a fight at any moment, and the intensity of his dark-eyed stare made Dennis' ears go back and kinda made him want to roll over and show the man his belly, just in case.
But then that face that had looked so intense and stern suddenly broke out into a grin as someone thought to point Dennis out to him. There were suddenly all sorts of new wrinkles folding their way out from his eyes and the corner of his mouth, and he reached out and ruffled Dennis' hair, gently rubbing his ears once, twice, and he winked, and Dennis felt his tail start to power up behind him.
"Hey kid, Robby told me about you. You're the reason he doesn't look like something's gonna pop anymore. You're doing a good job."
Dennis automatically turning on his heel to follow behind Abbot when he strides away to begin hand-off, only stopped by Perla directing him to a particularly distressed patient in chairs.
On the rare occasions that Abbot has actually needed his services, all Dennis has had to do is sit next to him, pressed up against his side with his head on Abbot's shoulder, breathing steadily and nuzzling occasionally until Abbot takes in a less shaky breath and stands up. He always thanks Dennis, quietly strokes behind his ears for a few seconds before walking away, patting his leg for Dennis to follow so they can both get back to work.
Since he's primarily day shift, he spends most of his time with Robby, who pretends not to need his help all that much, but who always guides Dennis towards his next task with a hand or two on his shoulder or the back of his neck, often imparting a squeeze that makes Dennis' tail twitch happily. He'll pat Dennis on the back for a job well done, and very hesitantly reach out to slowly rub the tip of one ear when they lose a patient and Dennis' tail is tucked firmly and unhappily between his legs.
Sometimes, when Dennis is in the room during procedures, keeping either patient or family calm, Robby will make eye contact with Dennis as he explains what he's doing, just the same as he does with his medical students. It never seems to matter to Robby if someone is gripping his tail or if an anxious child practically has him in a headlock to squeeze his soft ears, Robby will look at Dennis like he's included in the conversation and the pop quizzes he likes to throw at his interns and students, and it never fails to make his tail wag just a little.
ive been thinking of this the whole season but heather collins really haunts the ed like the realtionships that surrounded her in season 1 that you can feel her missing in season 2 collins reassuring and supporting samira telling her she knows what shes doing and that she is suited for the ed, collins also had a storyline that was directly about her struggles outside being pushed down in a way that sometimes makes me wonder if robby is comparing samira to heather in a way. Collins is also such a steady presence in the way mckay is because she came into the medical field after having a different career. The ED is not the only world she has ever known, which adds to her grounded nature shes confident in her abilities and others because she can see them as more than new doctors. Personally i also think shed also have a different perspective about whitakers and robbys weird boundries because shes been on the other side of being both pushed and pulled by robby. Even dana's floundering to feel in control in the ed like they confided in eachother last season they cried together like i just miss her and it burns .
I'm not so much shocked that Supriya is leaving (that happens and maybe it was her decision idk) as the audacity to literally fill her place with another woman of colour.
They announced it at the same time like we were just going to be like oh! yeah that works! not like Samira is a great character whom I care about a lot, I just wanted a brown woman there!
That actually makes it feel like Ellis is only being promoted to a regular to shield them from criticism. Scratch that, that is the main reason.
To be clear, I love her but do they have plans for her? Were they ever planning on giving her a bigger arc as a character?
Is she going to speak in expository dialogue on the struggles she's faced as a black woman to teach the white audience empathy?
Let's just hope her storyline is better than the one Samira got this season.
samira mohan you are were shinier than all the stars, robby on the other hand he is so controlling over the er in a certin way like the day shift has big coworkers not friends and the way he laid out everything for dana was sooo interesting to her the choice of being able to go home and take a break and choosing to come back is her saving grace. robby needs to know everything happening which is fully what i think is most of his issue with langdon tbh hes so much more pissed that he didnt notice it was happeing in his er. it really does feel like they are gonna hit robby with mandetory therapy
Dennis who has significant hearing loss after a farm accident as a kid.
Dennis who can’t afford working hearing aids, so makes do with a pair he found on Facebook marketplace.
Dennis who favours one side significantly, to the point of being convinced that everyone knows (they don’t), and they all must hate him for being useless (they don’t know).
Dennis who uses these janky hearing aids despite constantly giving him a migraine, because he can’t let anything compromise his chances of being a doctor.
Dennis who completely understands that Abbott needs a break from his prosthetic, and is often the first to volunteer to cover his charting in the middle of the shift.
Dennis who cannot give himself allowances, because he’s not properly disabled; not like Abbot is anyway.
Dennis whose hearing loss is “self inflicted” and therefore needs to deal with the consequences of his actions (he was six).
Dennis who absolutely will not let himself have hearing breaks in the middle of a shift, no matter how much pain his ears are in.
Dennis who can’t take his aids out at night because he sleeps in shelters, and his hearing is the first line of defence against an attack.
Dennis who recognises the symptoms of an ear infection, but can’t afford antibiotics and the hospital cracked down on “borrowing” medicine.
Dennis who collapses mid shift after a particularly bad bout of vertigo.
Dennis who doesn’t really remember much after this because the floor was suddenly very, very close, and he was suddenly very, very cold.
…
Robby who sees Dennis pass out on shift.
Robby who curses these damn med students for drinking too much caffeine and not eating enough food.
Robby who walks over to Dennis and tries to rouse him.
Robby who thinks Dennis looks a little too out of it for it to just be low blood sugar.
Robby who touches Dennis and notices he’s ice cold.
Robby who holds Dennis as he starts seizing.
Robby who catches a glimpse of white in his ear, surrounded by red, angry tissue.
Robby who swears loudly and violently when he realises “god-fucking-dammit he’s deaf”.
Robby who curses every god he knows the name of (and he knows a lot) for putting Dennis in this situation.
…
Dennis who wakes up with a very stressed Robby next to him, saying words like “septic shock” and “septic encephalopathy” and “infection spread” and “potential brain damage”.
Robby who raises his voice in frustration, and Dennis who flinches imperceptibly.
Robby who drags Dennis to audiologist appointments and forces him to pick multiple different types of aids so he’ll be comfortable wherever.
Robby who pays for the new aids, but lets Dennis think insurance covers them.
Abbot who forces Dennis to take hearing breaks whenever he takes leg breaks because he’s “bored” and “needs company”.
Abbott who, for the first time in Dennis’ life, sits him down and teaches him the ASL he learnt from his vet friends.
Dennis, who when he formally attends ASL lessons, realises he’s been taught to swear like a sailor, and his vernacular is entirely comprised of military slang.
Dennis who doesn’t understand why Robby and Abbott are being so nice about being deaf, and explains all about how it was his fault that he lost his hearing (he was six).
Abbot who gives Robby a look, and signs him up for therapy the next day.
Dennis, who comes to the realisation that the factors surrounding his hearing loss are heavily consistent with signs of child abuse.
Robby, who can only hug Dennis as he breaks down, mourning the childhood he thought he had.
Abbot, who makes him hot cocoa when he wakes up from nightmares and rocks him back to sleep,
And Dennis.
Who finally feels, for the first time in his life, he is not just tolerated, but wanted too.
me and @microbiologistmusings made a guide! we were talking about how frustrating it can be when so much (well meaning!) art of wheelchair users seems to get the chairs...not quite right. so maybe this will help :) i had a lot of fun drawing it and thank u to levi for your unending wisdom <3
I need y’all to realize that DIRECTING an episode does not equal WRITING an episode. I love that Shawn Hatosy directed Ep. 9 but people are crediting him on the written interactions between characters that SHOULD actually be credited to Cynthia Adarkwa, a Ghanaian American woman. Who wrote episode 9. And the interactions you’re all loving and feeling devastated over.
I think Shawn did an amazing job and helped pull great performances out of the actors, but once again, those performances and dialogues were created and written by Cynthia Adarkwa and the writing team.
the people yearn for the 2014-2017 era of biological bdsm aus-
His eyes widen in panic, and he scrambles to get off of Robby's lap and out of Jack's hold. "Fuck, fuck, fuck-"
"Hey, hey," Robby says, trying and failing to grab Dennis before he launches himself upright. "It's okay. Take a pause."
"I'm fine," Dennis snaps, even though he's clearly not. The Drop has left him sweaty, his body fighting against it's needs every step of the way. It wasn't even a good Drop, it was done out of pure necessity, so he barely feels any better than he did-fuck, how much time had passed?
"It's only been ten minutes," Jack says as if he can see Dennis running the calculation in his head. "That's all. You didn't want to stay down and we couldn't get you to listen."
"I didn't-" god, he's so fucking screwed if he doesn't fix this now. "I didn't Drop. It was just a low blood sugar thing. I'm fine."
"Dennis," Robby sounds pained when he says his name. "That was a Drop. A bad one."
"No. No, it wasn't. I'm not a-" he can't even get the word out so he just shakes his head. "I'm not that."
Dennis tries to head towards the door of the patient room that they've managed to sneak him into. But Jack blocks his path quickly, one hand keeping the door shut before Dennis can even try to open it, the other gripping his wrist with a vice.
"Sit down," Jack orders, his voice lower than Dennis has ever heard it. "Now."
Any hope of salvaging this moment goes out the window with that tone. Dennis shuffles back to the bed and plops down, avoiding making eye contact with either one of the doctors.
"Your file said you were a neutral," Robby says carefully. "Are you a late presenter?"
Dennis purses his lips and stares at the white sheets on the bed.
"Was that your first Drop?" Jack asks. "Or just your first one in a few weeks?"
He doesn't have to tell them. This is breaking so many HR violations. He didn't even Drop fully so there's nothing wrong with him. There's nothing to report.
"Dennis," Robby tries again. "Sweetheart-"
"Dennis," Jack snaps. "Start talking. Now."
Dennis can probably count on one hand the amount of times someone's used their dom voice on him. His dad when he told him he needed to hide his sinful nature from the church. A boyfriend who would use it to get him to stop crying.
So he doesn't have much of a wall to stop himself from talking.
"It was my second. I haven't Dropped since I was home. In Nebraska. I'm not a late presenter. I just lied on the forms because I didn't want to deal with it."
"How have you avoided a Drop for this long?" Robby asks softly.
"Subdrop meds. I take one a week. Two if I need."
"Are those prescribed?" Jack asks.
"No. I have a dealer. He told me this new brand wasn't as strong but I needed something."
A quiet falls over the room. Everything in Dennis wants to bolt for the door but he knows exactly how that will end. He's not fast enough to beat them out of the hospital, and he's a newly outed Sub that hasn't dropped in years. He'd have a APB out within seconds. Jack had connections. Dennis wouldn't make it down the street.
"What the fuck were you thinking?" Robby's voice is a lot angrier than it was a few moments ago. Dennis tries to shrink back but there's a grip on his jaw and he's forced to look up and make eye contact.
Dennis has seen upset Robby. He's seen mad Robby. But he's never seen those emotions directed at him, and he doesn't fucking like it.
"Do you know how stupid this is? How dangerous it is to be an unknown Sub that hasn't dropped in years? Working in a high pressure environment? You're lucky Jack and I caught it before anyone else did. Before no one did and you were by yourself out there."
"Take a breath," Jack tells Robby sternly, putting a hand on his husband's shoulder. "We got him. That's what matters."
"I'm sorry," Dennis says timidly. "It's-I've never had a problem before today."
"There wouldn't be a problem if someone knew."
"Yes it would," he says before he can stop himself. "It would. Because then there'd be questions and forms and mandated break days. You have no idea how much of a problem it would be. You have that luxury to do whatever you want. I don't."
"Those mandates are in place for a reason," Jack says firmly. "So things like this don't happen."
"Nothing happened," Dennis stresses. "You two made something happen. I had it under control."
"Is that why you had to practically run out of the room?" Robby asks. "Is that why we found you seconds from passing out in the ambulance bay? Because you had it under control?"
Dennis has a feeling he's not going to be winning this fight.
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