concordia

twenty five

word count: 1.2k

date written: 7.8.19

verse: medical secrets au

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to say she was distracted would've been an understatement, and it was mostly claire who guided them to the cafeteria as connie's mind was preoccupied by thoughts of greg instead. she knew what he wanted, but she had no intention of giving it to him, especially not after all the threats he'd made, even if it wasn't in her best interests. crossing greg was a bad idea at the best of times but when he was this obsessive... she didn't want to think about it.

"mama!"

she was jerked back to reality by the sound of claire squealing as she released her hand without warning. connie was ready to panic but immediately breathed a sigh of relief when she realized claire was only running to meet elle, sat on the edge of a table while she waited for them. 

"there you are!" elle said, face lighting up as she returned her phone to her pocket and crouched down to pick claire up, lifting her high into the air much to her delight. connie froze, reminded of when greg had said the exact same words just minutes ago, but gathered herself before either of the others could notice and plastered a smile on her face as she joined them. 

"sorry, we lost track of time," she lied as claire rested her head on elle's shoulder, falling quiet. connie knew it was a safe excuse, having used it as a legitimate reason several times in the past. it wasn't uncommon for her to get distracted by paperwork, ignoring the clock as she worked to finish. 

"typical," elle said, rolling her eyes in fond amusement as she turned away and made a beeline for a nearby table. "come on, i'm starving." connie followed her without a word, smile fading the second elle wasn't looking. she couldn't keep it up for long, not when she had bigger things to worry about.

"want banana," claire said quietly as elle placed her in the chair by the window and tucked her in. making a mess was more of a concern with her brothers, but elle knew from experience that it was better to be safe than sorry. 

"and before that?" she asked, falling into her own seat with a faint sigh. she'd been rushed off her feet all morning and was more than grateful to rest them at last. claire took a few seconds longer than usual to answer, but she still asked for the same thing she always did. 

"beanchee 'tato." 

for the first time all day, connie managed a genuine smile. "i'll order," she said, pausing beside claire's chair to press a kiss against her temple before she walked off. in her absence, elle took the opportunity to check her emails, scrolling down to open the few that had come through during the morning rush. meeting, meeting, reminder, conference. she set her phone down with a sigh but immediately frowned when she looked over at claire. she was sat still in complete silence, staring down blankly at the table instead of fidgeting with everything like she normally would. 

"claire?" elle said gently, leaning towards her. claire looked up but didn't say so much as a word, blinking back at her. concern bubbled in elle's chest. claire wasn't a particularly loud child but this was too quiet even for her. "hey, what's the matter?" claire scowled before looking down at the table again.

"saw mean man," she mumbled, tracing squiggly lines across the wood with her finger. connie wasn't the only one with greg on her mind. elle glanced over to where connie was still scrutinizing the menu before rising to her feet and rounding the corner of the table. she lifted claire out of her chair so that she could occupy it instead, balancing her on her lap . 

"when?" she asked, brushing claire's curls back slightly. 

"when coming," claire said, shifting in elle's embrace to look up at her, eyes wide. "he stop mummy." elle's gaze flickered over to connie again, searching for a sign that something was wrong, but she was as blank a canvas as ever.

"did he say anything?" elle asked, turning her attention back to claire. she nodded, twisting the hem of her shirt around her finger. "like what?" this time, claire shrugged, unable to answer. partly because she didn't remember what he'd said and partly because she didn't know how to repeat most of it. elle frowned, running her bottom lip between her teeth. she'd expected that to be the answer, but she'd at least had to ask. 

"have you seen him before?" she tried instead after a moment's thought. claire nodded, pulling her napkin off of the table. "how many times?" elle shifted claire's weight onto her other leg, watching as she began to fold the napkin as many times as she could. 

"lots," claire said. she didn't remember every time she'd seen greg, but it was hard to forget both him and the way he made connie feel. claire had suffered from more than a few nightmares after the first time she'd encountered him. "in car before."

"you saw him when you were in the car?" elle said, trying to make sure she was following along correctly. claire nodded, now folding in the corners of her napkin instead. 

"he come out," she said, gesturing to the cafeteria's doors in lieu of the hospital's main entrance. "mummy closed the door and they talk." she went quiet for a moment and let her napkin fall flat as she twisted around to look up at elle again. "mama stop him?" 

elle's heart ached at her hopeful tone, and she leaned forward to envelope claire in a tight hug, making her squeal in delight when she pressed a kiss to her cheek. "'course i will," she sighed into claire's curls, resting her chin on her head. although claire hadn't mentioned his name, she had a sinking feeling that she knew who the man being referred to was and watched with faint worry as connie paid for their lunch across the room. he'd been hassling her for a while now -- something about wanting her job? connie hadn't been particularly forthcoming when questioned, much like always, reluctant to discuss it and assuring her that everything was fine. 

elle had tried not to worry at first but after the night connie had come home late from work, visibly shaken, it had been impossible not to. even when she'd continued to insist it was nothing. elle reluctantly got to her feet when connie turned away from the counter and made her way back over to them, gently placing claire in her seat again. she already seemed much happier, pretending her crumpled napkin was a bird and 'flying' it around her head. 

"everything alright?" connie asked once she was within earshot, balancing their lunch on a single tray. elle took it from her as she returned to her seat, setting it down carefully on the table. claire immediately forgot her napkin at the arrival of food, bouncing slightly in her chair as she hungrily eyed the little baked potato she knew was hers. 

"yeah, we were just having some fun," elle lied, smiling across at claire as she reached for her plate without much luck. whatever connie was hiding, it would have to wait until they were alone. they weren't going to have that conversation in front of their daughter.

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continues in: 34

previously in: 23