Chapter Text
“Well, Ms Lehane, it’s certainly a most impressive résumé.”
Faith smiled and did her best to project an air of faintly embarrassed modesty whilst wanting to punch the air at Clinical Director Grayson’s praise. “Um, thanks, that’s kind.”
“Seriously,” Grayson studied the document in front of him. “Graduated pre-med UCLA in three years, GPA 4.0. Made varsity track team in your freshman year, student council year after that… did you never sleep?!”
“Sure, I got plenty of sleep as well.” Faith laughed softly. “Key thing is to pick the right classes and activities, then focus on your strengths and be honest about your weaknesses. Like, I hit on lucky with the track team when I first got here, but there’s way better athletes and it made sense to concentrate on my academics after the first couple of semesters.”
Grayson nodded approvingly. “Quite right, and if I may say so, very wise for someone of your age. I understand why Professor Wyndam-Pryce speaks so highly of you.”
“He does? That’s wicked great to hear. I mean, his lectures are something else. Fascinating stuff.”
“Yes, we’re lucky to have the benefit of his insight a few days a month anyway.” Grayson steepled his fingers as he leaned forward. “Ms Lehane, I’m going to be blunt, so please forgive me. You’d have no difficulty finding an internship at any hospital in the state. Why Westwood Psychiatric? It’s not what one might call the ‘glamorous’ side of medicine after all.”
Faith was prepared for a question like this, but she paused for a few moments so that it looked as if she was carefully considering it. “Well – I think mental health doesn’t always get the attention it should. A physician should treat patients holistically – body and mind. Often the mind gets forgotten about, or if it does get a thought then it’s all about what drugs to prescribe. Sometimes that’s the right answer for sure, but other times – the doctor should go deeper. An internship here would help make sure I never forgot that.”
“Bravo! I can tell the Professor really has made an impression on you!” Grayson stood up abruptly and held out his hand. “Welcome to the team, Ms Lehane. How soon can you start?”
Faith grinned as she shook his hand. “Soon! As soon as you like. Tomorrow?”
“Perfect. I’ll get someone to sort out all the paperwork.” Grayson picked up his desk phone. “Sylvia? Can you find a nurse who can show our latest intern the ropes?”
After a few minutes of awkward conversation, Faith was relieved to hear a knock at the door. A young nurse in blue scrubs came in. She had long brown hair and seemed nervous. “Director Grayson, hi! I, er, got a message -”
“Ah, Nurse Burkle. This is Ms Lehane, our new intern and a prodigy by all accounts. Please take her to HR to get all her administrative stuff sorted, and tell them to look sharp about it as she’s starting tomorrow. You can give her the tour while you’re at it.”
Out of the office and out of earshot of Sylvia the secretary, Nurse Burkle asked, “Ms Lehane, are you really a prodigy?”
“I’m not seein’ it, but Grayson was wicked impressed that I finished pre-med in three years. So I figured I’d roll with it.” Faith shook her head. “And please, call me Faith. Miss Lehane sounds like a schoolteacher.”
“So, you’re like Dougie Howser or something?” Nurse Burkle laughed. “And yes, call me Fred!”
“Fred?”
“Short for Winifred, but nobody calls me that! Well, nobody who’s not my family anyway.” Fred hesitated, but apparently decided she could trust the new arrival and asked, “So, why here? I mean, if you don’t mind me asking. What with you being a prodigy and all. There’s kinda – cooler places to be, you know?”
“Like I told Grayson, I’m wicked interested in mental health. ‘Sides, Wes put in a good word for me.”
“Wes? Oh! Professor Wyndam-Pryce!” Fred lowered her voice. “He’s quite – dashing, isn’t he? And that accent is – wow.”
“Not floatin’ my boat, but not judgin’ ya, Fred.” Faith winked and grinned at the flustered nurse. “Just messin’ with ya. Speakin’ of accents, that a Southern twang?”
“Texas. And I’m guessing you’re from Boston?”
“Right first time! Had to keep toning it down with Grayson though. Figured he’s the kinda dude who’d judge shit like that.”
“He’s got everyone terrified but when it comes down to it… he just sits in his office while we’re at the coal face!” Fred looked pleased with herself at this but then her nerves seemed to falter. “Anyway! This is HR. They’ll sort you out with everything, then I’ll meet you back here and give you that tour he was talking about?”
Turned out there was a lot to be sorted out with HR, and after seemingly endless form filling, mugshots and a lecture about the code of conduct all employees were expected to follow, Faith was beginning to regret applying for the role at all. When it was finally over, she grabbed her newly minted security pass and lanyard and rushed out to find Fred waiting outside.
“Hey!” Fred brightened to see her new colleague. “I see you got the white coat!”
“Yeah, feel like a bit of a fraud when I’m years away from bein’ an actual doctor. Not gonna lie though, kinda looks good.” Faith caught a glimpse of her reflection in some glass and couldn’t keep the smile off her face. Wicked cool. And sexy. Gonna be beatin’ ‘em off with a stethoscope.
“It does! And you’ll find it makes folk take you way more seriously. Staff and patients. Well, the ones that, you know. Have a clue what’s going on. Let me show you around.”
Fred took her role as tour guide very seriously, pointing out everything from the break room to the fire escapes to the hospital gardens all whilst providing a surprisingly detailed history of the facility. She also introduced Faith to various colleagues and told her all about the drinks that the day shift staff would meet up for every Tuesday. “You must come tomorrow! It’s a chance to meet everyone, and it’s always fun!”
However, Fred’s upbeat manner became rather less so when they moved on to the inpatient wards. Things started off okay, as she showed Faith the recreation areas for short-stay voluntary patients, the therapy rooms, the colourful sections set aside for minors. But much of the hospital was very different.
In truth, the whole facility was looking rather tired, but the wards which were home to the long-stay patients had a drabness and grimness all of their own. As far as she could tell, the place was spotlessly clean, but the absence of any obvious colour beyond institutional grey and green lent a miserable backdrop to the patients shuffling around, watched over by tough-looking orderlies and exuding despair.
“Man, this is…” Faith struggled for the right words. “Look, I don’t wanna say ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’, but…”
“I know, it can be depressing. But some of the patients – the doctors have tried everything, but nothing seems to work.” Fred turned down a different corridor. “Take the women here, for example. It feels like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel for some of them. Like the woman in this room, she believes she’s a bat.”
“A bat?”
“Yeah, she keeps trying to hang upside down. Falls of course, so the whole room has had to be made safe with mats, and soft cushions and… well, you can imagine. Then there’s this patient,” Fred gestured at a door. “Two of her babies died within a couple of years – it wasn’t her fault, they had a rare condition. But people talked, and between her grief and the gossip… it broke her. She’s… well, I expect she’d, you know, herself if she was ever given a sharp object or clothes that weren’t paper…”
Faith shook her head. She’d been expecting these sorts of stories of course - she’d read dozens of textbooks on curious cases recent and historical alike, but it hit differently in a place like this, with real people suffering just a few feet away. She realised Fred was speaking again.
“And then there’s Buffy Summers. Maybe the weirdest one of them all! She’s been here six years, convinced she’s living in this fantasy world where she fights monsters. She can be quite chatty though, would you like to meet her? I think she enjoys company, can be lonely in here.”
“Yeah, for sure.” Still lost in her own thoughts, Faith followed Fred into the room, and was immediately transfixed by the sight of a small blonde girl of about her age. She was perched on a chair, arms wrapped around her legs and wearing the standard patient uniform. There was something about the girl, something calling out to her, and when she turned to look at her visitors, Faith found herself almost lost in the hazel eyes that were so young and yet she somehow knew had seen so much.
“You bitch! This is all on you, isn’t it? You’ve done this to me!” Buffy sprang up from her seat and launched herself at Faith, who stumbled backwards in shock, but soon righted herself and, gripping Buffy’s painfully thin upper arms, easily held her at a safe distance.
“Woah woah woah. Take it easy there. Think ya got me mixed up with someone else, I just got here. We never met till a few seconds ago -”
“Liar! You lie and lie and you’re meant to be in jail,” Buffy struggled uselessly against Faith’s grip. “How did you get this strong? What demon did you sign up with this time? Did you really think you would -”
Buffy never finished her sentence as an orderly appeared and pulled her away. He held her still while a shorter, older man – a doctor by his white coat – plunged the contents of a syringe into her arm. Buffy crumpled and lost consciousness.
“Good lord, haven’t seen an episode like that for a while.” Noting her security pass, the doctor introduced himself as Dr Rogers. “You must be Wyndam-Pryce’s wunderkind intern! I hope that unfortunate incident didn’t put you off. We’ll look at upping the patient’s meds -”
Faith looked at the unconscious woman and felt a sudden urge to protect her. She shuddered when she noticed the restraints on the bed. “I’m five by five, think somethin’ just scared her. Look, I’d like to try and help Buffy if I can. Sounds like there’s some interestin’ research possibilities too?”
Rogers shrugged. “Be my guest. No one else can get through to her. If anything, she’s getting worse.”
“Yeah, I’ll talk to the Prof, see if he’s got any ideas.” Faith was about to say more, but Rogers had already left.
“If you can help her, that would be amazing.” Fred took the orderly’s arm. “Faith, Charles Gunn. Charles, Faith Lehane. Sorry your first meeting was so awkward.”
Faith shook Charles’s hand. “Nice to meet ya. So you guys are…?”
“Yes we are!” Charles kissed Fred’s head. “18 months now! What’s this about you bein’ some bigshot anyway?”
“Ah, don’t listen to alla that crap. Just got kinda lucky on my finals questions and Professor Wes decided to mentor me.”
“Think you’re being overly modest! Sounds like your grades were pretty amazing…” Fred’s voice tailed off as she watched Faith walk over to Buffy and tuck a blanket round her. “Erm, the sedative should wear off in an hour or so. She’ll be fine.”
“Just doing my job,” Charles said. “Girl was attacking you.”
“Yeah, I know. Just feelin’ for the chick, that’s all.” Faith sighed. “How old was she when she first came here?”
“About 16, I think. I heard her parents checked her in after she burned down the school gym or something.” Fred looked thoughtful. “They were probably worried about the police, criminal charges, that sort of thing.”
“Mighta been better to let the law take its course.” Faith gazed at the slight figure on the bed. “She’da been out by now.”
Charles scoffed, “Maybe, but, c’mon. Ya know what kinda reception a little blonde chick from the ritzy side of town gonna get in jail.”
“I dunno Chuck, not lookin’ much better for her here from where I’m standin’.”
Sensing the awkwardness, Fred returned to Faith’s academic achievements. “Your folks must be so proud of you, Faith! Do they think it’s amazing?”
“Think they’re pretty happy, yeah. But they’re both kinda high achievers.”