Shaun Murphy// living every day

A White Lily

Lilly's POV

I wake up the next morning. No, that would be a lie, because I didn't sleep at all. How does that start again? Oh, right.

The sun slowly rises, awakening my dulled senses and my eyes that were gradually becoming less and less aware of my surroundings. I sit up straight in my bed, feeling like a mess with tangly hair and a stuffy nose. In other words, I didn't get a lick of sleep, and I'm mad. I aggressively rub my eyes and slowly get out of my bed.

Staggering to the bathroom, I grab a hairbrush and drag it sleepily through my knotted hair, wishing more than anything I didn't have to go to work today. Walking into my pizza-smelling kitchen, I grab my things and lazily open the door, before realizing that I actually need to eat breakfast.

So yeah, I'm pretty sleep deprived.

After eating, I get a text from Dr. Melendez.

Melendez: Get here stat, we need as much help as we can get.

My eyes widen, wondering what could've possibly happened. I quickly finish my breakfast and go and knock on Shaun's door.

He answers happily. Oh, I so did not have time for this.

"Hello, Lilly, I have something for you..." He begins awkwardly.

"Come on, Shaun, let's go." I say impatiently, not hearing a word he says.

I turn on my heel and make my way to the elevator. When I don't hear him following me, I turn around, confused.

"Shaun, we're on a clock, let's go!" I look at him, as he stands at his doorway, obviously a little hurt.

He just stares at the floor, until I realize  how rude I was to him.

"Oh crap, I'm so sorry, Shaun, I didn't mean to..." I pause, noticing what he's holding in his hands. A single white flower, a lily. My namesake, ironically.

"Shaun, that's beautiful, where did you get it?" I ask, suddenly forgetting my bad mood.

And the fact that I'm supposed to be at the hospital.

He doesn't answer, looking down at his feet. "Did I do something wrong?" He asks tentatively.

Guilt overwhelms me as I attempt to comfort him. Bad, bad timing for Shaun to have a breakdown. "No, no no no, Shaun. I just didn't get any sleep last night, and I woke up kind of angry."

Shaun awkwardly looks around, trying desperately to find an escape, not once making eye contact with me. I'm not completely sure he's registering what I'm saying.

"I'm sorry if I did something wrong." Shaun says, his normally monotone voice quivering slightly. I can sense his anxiety gradually building, as his voice gets a little louder.

"No no no, Shaun, Shaun, listen," I say in a soothing voice. "You didn't do anything wrong, Shaun, look at me."

His radiant blue eyes meet my dark ones. And for a second, I see a person. A person who is scared to open up to anyone. A person who I don't know. The other side of him.
The quick glimpse of the real Shaun Murphy is soon covered by that familiar, neutral mask of a face.

I gently grab Shaun's hand. He stiffens, then relaxes as he realizes that he's okay.

"It'll be fine, Shaun. It'll be fine." I smile softly at him, guiding him toward the elevator.

Once we finally get inside the elevator, Shaun turns to me and says, "Lilly?"

"Yea, Shaun?" I reply, my curiosity piqued.

"D-do you still want my flower?" He asks nervously.

I laugh, which makes him smile a little, awaiting my response. "Yes, Shaun, always." He gives me the flower, our hands touching for a brief moment before he turns back into stone, a statue staring at the elevator door.

I sigh, a little disappointed. But I feel like I'm breaking through to him, even if it was only a split second.

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After 10 minutes give or take, we arrive at the hospital. The second we walk through the glass doors, we are bombarded with visions of blood and screams.

The ER and trauma rooms are filled with people, there's obviously been an accident.

"Bus crash on Highway 59, this table needs help, stat!" A nearby nurse yells at us. I immediately jump into action. Shaun, however, is not as quick to react. He stands there, nervously wringing his hands.

"Shaun, listen, I need you to go over there and help Dr. Kalu. Can you do that?" I say, desperate.

He takes a few moments, then looks at me. "Yes."

I watch him retreat with his uneven footsteps before I turn and help with a woman who has severe burns. I inject her with a painkiller before I do an examination of her terribly burned skin.

"Put her in Burn Unit 3." I rapidly tell the nearby nurse.

Turning to see Shaun, I see he is wrapping a bandage on a man's head who is obviously in critical condition.

After the room has somewhat cleared out and most everything is under control, I overhear Shaun talking to the man as he wraps him in the white bandage.

"You should be fine, it seems that you only have a minor concussion. You were lucky." He comments offhandedly.

"Lucky? I was just in a bus crash, my wife is in critical condition, and tonight was our anniversary. I wouldn't call that lucky, sir." The middle-aged man says spitefully. If Shaun is startled, he doesn't show it. He simply continues to wrap the bandage silently as the man looks at him in contempt.

"What's your deal, huh?" The rude man adds. "I thought you were a doctor, aren't you supposed to be completely qualified? You know, without problems?" He chuckles disdainfully as Shaun looks at the floor, not meeting his eyes. I can feel my anger slowly starting to rise. I ball my hands into fists, making my knuckles turn white.

I've had enough. "Hey," I say boldly, marching across the room. "You have no right to treat my friend, a surgical resident at this hospital, like that. You don't even know him! He's ten times smarter than you, and a heck of a lot nicer. I think you should give him some respect. And also, isn't he taking care of you? If I were you, I wouldn't be quite so rude."

Now that I'm done ranting, I gently pat Shaun on the shoulder and return to my working area.

As I sit there, filling out paperwork, I think. I think about why people are so prejudiced against people like Shaun. Why they can't accept them for who they are. It's not their fault, and most of the time, they're much more capable than the rest of us.

I just want the rest of the world to see that.

AN: heyyy guys, kind of a filler chapter, but MERRY CHRYSLER...I mean, Merry Christmas 🎄🎁🎉... if u haven't seen the meme we can't be friends😹 but anyway, hope you all have an awesome Christmas, and a happy New Year!!!❤️

~~~Ellie