fourteen
"Which patient do you have on this lovely morning?" Michael asked, barging into Luke's office and plopping down in a seat and dumping his bag on the ground. Michael was never one for social cues, he did what he wanted and didn't think about the effects until much later on.
He grabbed the glass bowl of gummy worms from Luke's desk before leaning back and putting his feet upon the dark hardwood. Luke had begun to keep snacks around the place for Michael.
"Why are you in here?" The older man asked, swiveling away from his computer to look at Michael. His body was facing Michael, but his eyes were trained on his computer as he tried to go over a long, overbearing email.
"I don't have anything until noon and I don't know what to do with my life."
"Start your taxes."
"It's, like, November," he responded, leaning his head back to pile a few red gummy bears into his mouth. "This place is so boring when nothing is happening."
"Go bother Ashton."
"He's away for the weekend. His daughters are in town," Michael informed him.
Luke turned back to his computer, pulling up the offices' shared calendar. "I've got a teenager wanting to be on birth control in like ten minutes."
"Nice." His response was muffled as he tried to fit a dozen gummy bears into his mouth without choking. Michael was like a child sometimes, Michael was like a child around Luke.
"I don't understand why he'd want that," Luke scrunched up his face, "He's, like, sixteen."
Michael rolled his eyes. "All of us aren't thirty-year-old virgins like you, Lucas." He brought his feet down from Luke's desk, placing the sugary snack away from him before he got [more] sick to his stomach.
"You of all people should—You know what, never mind. Get out of my office." Luke shooed him off, not in the right mood to banter with his coworker.
"It's not nice to be mean to patients or pretty boys like me," Michael pointed out, still chewing on a gummy bear, "Like, if they come in here for something, you've low-key got to give it to them."
"I could come up with a reason they shouldn't have it."
"That's kind of fraud." Michael picked at his nails, trying to pull a hang-nail off with his teeth. He could taste sugar still on his fingertips.
"Fraud isn't the right word."
Michael gave him a skeptical eye, "It kind of is."
"No, it's not all at."
"Okay, but it kind of is."
Luke turned back towards his computer.
"Send him to me, he deserves a good doctor."
Luke looked up, "I'm a great doctor."
"You're a shit basket," Michael said as he flattened out his work clothing. He leant down, rubbing a scuff off of his Oxford shoes.
A nurse brought a teenager into Luke's office the second after Michael sat back up. Luke stood up, holding out his hand, "Trev, good to see you. This is my coworker Michael who was just leaving."
The teenager smiled, giving Mike a quick greeting.
Michael decided to have some fun at the exact very moment. He waited for Trev to sit down, introducing himself as well. "Luke is under some trouble, so we've gotta monitor him, you know?"
"That's not true," Luke corrected, glaring at his coworker. First it was getting him kicked off the subway, now this.
Trev laughed nervously, obviously uncomfortable in the situation. There was a blush rising to his cheek as Luke began to talk about confidential issues. The blonde had given up on kicking Michael out.
Mike didn't interrupt until Luke began to come up with an excuse as to why the sixteen-year-old couldn't have what he needs. He reached into his bag, pulling out a prescription pad and pen.
Luke watched him write down messy lettering, Trev's eyes on him as well. "Clifford, what are you doing?"
Michael folded the paper in half, handing it over to Luke's patient. "Luke and I had a long talk before you got here. We decided that I was a better fit for you than him."
"That's not true," Luke said, ready to stand up and literally start a fight.
"I'm confused," Trev said, looking between both men.
Michael pointed to the folded paper he was now holding. "That's your prescription, you'll be under my third of the practice from now on."
"You can't steal my patient," Luke said, keeping his voice calm, "especially directly in front of me."
Michael stood up, holding out his hand. "It was great meeting you, Trev. We'll be in contact soon."
The teenager—more confused than anything—stood up, shaking his hand and giving him a smile. He didn't take a look back at Luke as he left the office.
It took five minutes and thirty two seconds for Luke to process the situation. Michael was already at the front desk, talking up the pink-haired nurse.
"What the fuck, Michael?!" Luke yelled, pushing out his office chair and standing up.
Mike raised his right eyebrow dropping his handful of gummy bears. The workers at Irwin & Co. were never supposed to swear and never in front of patients. There were appointments going on all around them, dozens of patients in hearing-range.
"You can't do that!"
Michael bit on his bottom lip, trying to get himself out of a bad situation. "I mean, we're the same firm. Technically, I can. I didn't feel although you were doing what's best for your patient."
Luke stormed from his office, standing at the archway. "That's my patient!"
Michael shrugged as he stood up, walking closer to Luke. "Your job as a doctor is to abide to your patient." Mike put his arm around Luke's shoulder and guiding him back into his office, "As a firm partner, if I see anything except that happening, I am allowed to take action." Michael closed the door behind them, setting Luke back at his desk, "I'm also allowed to fuck around with your head."
"Give me back my patient."
Michael rolled his eyes, "I'm not taking your patient, Luke, it was a joke."
"That's not a funny joke! Learn new jokes!" Luke crossed his arms, fuming with anger towards the younger man. "I have never seen such improper behavior in a work place! If you think I'm not going to tell Ashton about this all then—."
Michael stepped forward, alining his body in between Luke's legs. Luke stopped talking, looking up at him from his office chair. Mike put his hands on either side of the arm rest, his nose inches away from Luke's. "Continue," he said, "I dare you."
Luke licked over his bottom lip, his train of thought washed away with any form of professionalism he might have had going for him. "I—I," he stuttered, unable to from a sentence.
Michael smiled, having an effect on Luke that no one else has ever had. "I'm gonna go back to my office now, okay?" He reached up his hand, dragging a finger along side Luke's jaw as the older man nodded. "We don't speak of this to Ashton, alright?" He watched the blonde nod once more.
Mike leant in, leaving a peck of a kiss on the corner of Luke's mouth before leaving the room.
"What the fuck?" Luke whispered to himself as he brought a hand up to his mouth, feeling the breath that Mike left him with.
