orangetoughguy

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1st

accidental audio | open to action at the hospital

[Rrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiing.

Rrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiiing.

This is a patient trying to get a nurse. He mutters.]

What the hell does it take...

[Said patient is now turning the device around and around in his hands. Funny looking phone, this.]

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"Makes you a real social worker," he says with no hint of facetiousness in his voice. In a way he'll never say, Freddy can relate. Sort of. But it's true he can recognize the people working here just to pay the rent, the ones working here because that's what mom and dad expected, and others who actually care about their professional choice.

"New to the ward? Yeah, I am," he says casually which doubles as carefully because giving away his medical history is a bad idea considering his situation. He knows his own record anyway, nothing worth noting, nothing that'll complicate his recovery. He really has no idea what Peter truly means.

"Right," he laughs again but it's in good nature, just as Freddy's comment was not facetious. He shrugs, as if to say 'and that's that' but the man's next reply has Peter blinking once then sitting up a bit straighter. He didn't mean it like that, but it makes sense enough that Freddy wouldn't know what he did mean. Considering how they showed up, it would be surprising if anyone gave them the crash course, period, though he suspects Cameron would have taken care of some of it if he's been awake before now too. May be that it's better not to try to explain the way reality has been bent for just about everyone, as it doesn't escape Peter that he is someone who came here more prepared for it than most. If you've traveled through time, among other things, traveling to another world is less of a jump for someone who, for example by contrast has only traveled out of the country.

Not quite the same thing. You know. At all.

A lot of this depends, of course, on how much Freddy is willing to believe.

"Well I'm Peter," he nods once at the man, introductions minus a handshake or really anything, a direction without being actually verbalized; stay still. At least for now. He figures it won't last if the patient's as eager to leave as he seems. Of course, as long as his partner or whoever is out, Peter guesses the man won't be going anywhere at all.

Because Peter looks nothing like Cameron, he doesn't get the benefit of receiving Freddy's name. Of course it would be easy to just ask her for it but win some lose some. Nothing against Peter himself or anything. If their roles were reversed he'd understand, wouldn't he?

"Nice to meet you, Peter. You been here long," Freddy asks, referring to the hospital staff, not the location of the hospital. The latter he hasn't learned yet, might not learn until he gets out.

Peter, for the record, would not understand, but then, that's less about their roles being reversed and more a matter of requiring their personalities on the whole. He would never find himself in that position otherwise.

"A year and a half, more or less," he nods, aware that he means something other than what the man in the bed means, but that's fine. Let him find out. It's, in its own way, easier and simpler than trying to force-feed the change in scenery to him. All in all, he feels like he's the more forthcoming out of the two of them but this isn't unusual, and Peter doesn't read into it much, because from past experience, he knows assuming much of anything about anyone is just asking to be proved wrong sooner or later; probably sooner.

"Long time," he remarks, still working the career angle because he has no reason to think otherwise. "You doin' somethin' on the side," asks the patient who may be overstepping boundaries in terms of personal intrusion when he is, as Peter notes, not as forthcoming.

"Helping at the Welcome Center," he ticks off one finger. "And part-time barista," another finger before he drops both hands to either arm of the chair. "Fills the hours fast," he explains in case this assortment of occupations and volunteer-work is a bit on the curious side, which in the actual world he comes from, he knows it likely would be even though there exist workaholics who probably do ten times as much. "There's something for just about everyone," he adds, the tone implying that he means this is relevant to Freddy even if the man doesn't know it yet.

"Welcome Center?"

This he asks with what is undoubtedly some kind of snort. Where are they, Santa Monica? Beverly Hills? Shit's too kind to be anywhere near the center of LA. Not to mention most of the staff has been easy on the eyes, including the little Irish girl running back and forth. This guy, well, even Freddy can observe he's not exactly unattractive. What's more important is it seems they're in some part of the city that has 1) good Samaritans 2) a decent hospital 3) a well-meaning staff 4) some kind of welfare program in place. It's no place for a crook like Joe Cabot unless he wants to hide in plain sight. On second thought, it's exactly the kind of place he'd expect the man to send Larry to, you know, if he weren't dead. Shit, at least he thinks Joe's dead. Otherwise, whoever brought them here could very well be someone who wants to laud them as heroes, having knocked off a rival in a criminal game. It looks nice and he's sure Peter here, Cameron, the nurse, all of them are good people, but that doesn't make it safe.

"Glad you got it all worked out for yourself," he says to Peter, smiling. It's an honest smile.

"Welcome Center." Statement rather than question, and it's an answer in that sense. Pretty much. Standing, he glances down at the man this time, a level stare for all that it's at a downward angle, as he measures all the things Freddy hasn't said and weighs them on some half-determined scale of nothing versus something.

"You will too, if you're here long enough," he says and heads for the door after a glance at the monitors. He doesn't waste time asking if Freddy needs anything else at the moment twice, instead pausing at the door to say, "Just so you know, the alert works fine. You just press it once." And he isn't all the way out the door as he leans in it instead, arms crossed, waiting for any kind of reply first.

That response draws his green eyes to narrow just slightly, not so much in suspicion as it is in surprise. Does Peter know more than he lets on? Interesting. That's one to watch out for, Freddy thinks to himself. He nods, letting his expression relax once again.

"Thanks. I'll exercise some restraint," he jokes, waving the device though he knows he's referring to the buzzer. "See you around, Peter," says the dirty blond. If they do, he'll have more reason to believe someone's keeping tabs on them.

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1st

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after

this is the closest thing to disaster ... the kind of thing you laugh about after