Work Text:
Jack realises that he loves her three months into them dating. And that’s terrifying for him, because he’s never fallen in love with someone that quickly before. It’s taken him much longer in past relationships.
The day after this realisation, they’re working the same shift. Not exactly ideal, especially when she’s running a trauma, and Jack can’t help but be insanely turned on by how smart she is. That’s his girl right there. Throwing in chest tubes like it’s nothing.
He’s forced to snap out of his own thoughts however, when a patient comes through the doors.
“Jenny Saeman, 34, hit by a drunk driver whilst trying to get help. Full-term pregnancy, waters broke about half an hour ago. Pretty nasty head wound, GCS was 15 at the scene but she’s been in and out of consciousness in the ambulance.
Jack pulls his gloves on as Samira nods gratefully to the paramedic.
“Hi Jenny, I’m Dr Mohan. Can you hear me?”
“I can’t have her here…. please.” Jenny mumbles, barely conscious.
“I’m going to do everything I can to prevent that from happening, ok?”
…
“Fetal heart rate dropping!”
“CT shows a massive brain bleed. She needs an OR now!”
Samira looks over at Jack, who’s pulling a tray of equipment to Jenny’s bed.
“What- “
“We need to do a crash section now. By the time OB gets down here, the kid’ll already be dead.”
Samira exhales shakily.
“Yeah, you’re right.”
And when they get him out, when that baby cries, everyone in the room breathes a massive sigh of relief.
“Hey, little guy.” Jack whispers, before handing the baby off to a nurse.
Samira looks down at Jenny, intubated and unable to hold her child, and takes her gloves off. She reaches out and strokes Jenny’s cheek with her right hand.
“We’ve got him Jenny. He’s so gorgeous, you did such a good job. We’ve got you, ok?”
She doesn’t notice Jack staring at her.
No one else thought to do that. He’d have never thought to do that.
I love you, he thinks.
…
He thinks it again on the same shift. He heads up to the neuro ward a few hours later, having heard nothing from them. He desperately wants Jenny to be ok, desperately wants that kid to have a mom.
He finds Jenny’s bed, and next to it – Samira.
She’s holding the baby in her arms, face full of light and joy.
“Hey.”
She smiles as soon as she sees him.
“Hi.”
“How she’s doing?”
“Surgery went well. Her husband’s on his way in. Till he gets here, I figured someone should hold him.”
Jack nods. He reaches out and strokes the baby’s tiny hand with his thumb.
“How are you? Good?”
Samira nods, smiling.
“You were fucking brilliant today.”
It’s actually pretty wonderful, Jack thinks, to be up here, to be able to say this stuff to her and be this close to her, without the nurses gossiping or Robby staring at them from down the hallway. It’s what makes him bold enough to kiss her on the side of her mouth.
I love you, he thinks.
…
The third time is in an on-call room. He actually tries to sleep now, largely due to Samira’s insistence that he actually takes breaks on his shift.
He’s beyond delighted when he finds a figure already resting on one of the beds, curly black hair splaying across the pillow.
“Hey, you.” he says, heading over and kissing her forehead.
She grins and shuffles over so he can lie down next to her. He does so without hesitation, and she curls closer to him, her head on his chest and an arm draped across his waist. He kisses the top of her head.
“Is this comfortable?”
“Yeah, course. Why?”
“Just checking. I want you to sleep properly and you can’t if you’re uncomfortable.”
“Of course I’m comfortable. You’re here.” Jack replies, pulling her closer to prove his point.
“Ok. Good.”
She reaches up and kisses him and he’s staring into her big brown eyes and fucking melting.
He so nearly says it then. But he doesn’t.
…
He pulls up outside the pizza shop and turns to Samira, who’s asleep in the passenger seat. The red light from the neon sign of the shop hits her face and she looks so beautiful.
He just looks at her for a second, then reaches over and squeezes her knee. She shifts slightly.
“Mira? Wanna get some food here or just go back to mine?”
“Your place. Home.”, is the sleepy, mumbled reply.
God, I love you, he thinks.
…
He almost tells her when they’re in bed together later that night, when Samira’s certainly feeling more energised.
She’s so fucking beautiful, shivering every time he touches her, moaning his name against his ear that makes him feel he’s going to die.
He thinks about telling her then. But the last thing he wants to do is treat the words like their meaningless, make her believe that it’s just something he’s saying in the throes of his orgasm without actually meaning it. And he does mean it.
So, he just waits. And thinks it instead.
…
They’re both sitting up in bed, reading. Samira’s resting her head on his shoulder. He kisses the top of her head, then gently takes her chin in his hand and turns her to face him.
“I love you.”
Her face breaks out into an enormous grin.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, that’s good because I love you too. Very much. Have done for a while.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I was just waiting for you to catch-up.”
“Huh. Maybe my nickname should be Slow-Mo.”
And then she’s laughing. She loves him. He loves her. They love each other. Always.