It's all in your head, bb (Peter, Charles, maybe Abby)

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

Peter hated MRIs, he decided. Technically he had decided this several MRIs ago, but he was rudely reminded every time he slid into the vile machine and it beeped viciously at him. Then he would listen to inane music on his iPod for twenty minutes while he tried to ignore the jackhammer-like sound the machine made as it worked.

Still, it was better than as stereotactic biopsy. God he hoped he didn't have to have another one of those.

When it was all over he jumped up and pulled his own clothes on, discarding the hospital gown in the 'used' bin with gusto. The results would take awhile and all he really wanted to do was drink which wasn't entirely helpful.

Instead of giving in to the delicious amber liquid he really wanted, Peter went in search of someone to talk at. Perhaps he could find one of the Littletons who worked at his hospital, or even one of the residents who felt like a chat. Upon entering the residency ward, Peter spotted Charles Allen and lifted a hand in greeting. "Hello, Charles. You're looking well."

Comments

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

"Afternoon, Bossman."

Sometimes Charles didn't know why he still stayed at the hospital. He'd been dragged in with a mysterious sickness, years ago, but there'd been no real reason to stay. He wasn't short of money, didn't need a free place to live. He could even get another job, move on to another city. There were people in other cities too, but perhaps Charles didn't like them as much as the people at Peter's hospital. Maybe the staff thought of him as more of a nuisance than a resident, but he tried to provide a valuable service - boosting morale.

Mostly he liked the people there.

"How's tricks?" Charles asked Peter, looking up over his newspaper at the man. He was never one to pass up a conversation with anyone, especially not someone that he liked talking to.

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

Taking the moved newspaper as an invitation, Peter went to go sit beside Charles before he let out a sigh. "Tricks are stressful," he admitted. For some reason, Charles was exceptionally easy to talk to, and Peter loved that about him.

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Charles nodded, a gesture of understanding. "Well, if you have a hundred children and a hospital full of supernatural beings who act like children, I expect you've got a fuckload on your mind." He smirked for a moment, folding the newspaper and tucking it under his arm.

"You should take a leaf from my book, Bossman. No worries, except the morning's headline." It wasn't strictly true, but Charles shrugged.

"So what's up, the teenage one still kicking off?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

Peter cracked a smile at that and he leaned his head back against the sofa. "That is a very valid point," he admitted. "Oh yes, Anna is still being quite a handful. Her new thing is just not acknowledging I am in the room at all and that's been going on a few days, which is super fun!"

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Charles hesitated before answering, and then picked up the newspaper once more. He scanned the headlines quickly, and then looked over at Peter.

The smirk returned. "Like that?"

Charles chuckled, finding himself far too funny. "It's shit, Bossman, but I guess that's kids. Remember how Zach refused to acknowledge I existed, then took off? He was at least thirty, too, didn't have age as an excuse." Charles was unconcerned about his brief encounter with his son. "At least yours have to live with you and depend on you. Stop her pocket money, she might be more talkative then?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

It actually made Peter laugh, which was nice for a change. "You make a remarkable teenage girl," he informed Charles with a grin.

"She's already grounded so she doesn't have anywhere to spend any pocket money anyway. Lydia only did the teenage rebelling thing for a week. I was so not prepared for this."

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Charles nodded, folding the newspaper away once more. "Maybe just make sure she's busy all the time, and eventually she'll have to not resent you," he suggested. "Send her here, to volunteer cleaning up or something equally shit."

Charles paused. "But you know, I'm not exactly father of the year so what do I know? I'll be sure to tell you if I see her running around Dwyer Street, though," he told him.

He huffed a small sigh. "So is it just the kids, 'cause you look like a wet weekend right about now."

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

The thought of Anna anywhere near Dwyer Street was terrifying. "Er...yes, that would be for the best. She does sneak out sometimes and she thinks we have no idea, but she tends to head to the Littletons' house, so we don't bother her about it. Better than letting on that we know and sending them somewhere else."

Then Peter took a deep breath. "It's not everything. I've been having pretty bad headaches so I just had an MRI. Don't know the results yet."

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Charles was ready with a smart answer about Anna's antics, but he kept it unsaid. It said something that he was willing to filter himself when it was needed around Peter. He nodded curtly, unwilling to speculate negatively on what the headaches might mean for Peter.

"Again?" he asked, seeming a bit surprised by Peter's news.

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

"Again," Peter said with a groan. "The doctors told me to expect the tumour to come back every so often. Forever. Every so often forever." Peter was fairly sure being immortal should mean he didn't have to deal with glioblastomas. Unfortunately, it did not.

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

"Pardon my French, bossman, but that's a crapload of bullshit."

Charles frowned at the idea of it, going through the same illness every few years. His words were fairly succinct, if the language was a little choice, and he turned his frown to Peter.

"Is there no way around this cosmic shit? I mean, I don't mind being old. But there's too many downsides, aren't there?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

The corners of Peter's mouth lifted up when Charles correctly assessed the situation for him. "It really is," he agreed. "I could always just choose to let go, but if I did that I'd never hear the end of it from Aly. Besides, I have things to do. Don't I?"

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

"What, looking after your kids? In here and out there?" Charles's frown softened a little, and he shrugged his shoulders. "Just a shame, right? No way of getting away from that, unless we replaced your brain or something."

A beat. "And I'm pretty sure that won't be possible, yeah?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

Peter chuckled and he turned his head toward Charles. "Already considered that on several occasions. Pretty sure it's impossible, unfortunately." It felt nice, at least, not pretending that everything was okay with someone. "It would be nice not to panic every time I had a headache or forgot something."

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Charles nodded. "I got your back, Bossman," he told him, giving him a gentle punch to the shoulder. "You need any of us to pick up slack around here while you're agonising?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

It made Peter feel warm inside that he knew people would step in and help if it was necessary. He smiled at Charles as he said, "you do a lot around here already. But I won't say no. It ca get pretty bad. The first time I dealt with it, I ended up forgetting who everyone was by the end."

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Spotting an opportunity for levity, Charles seized it. "Oh, Bossman, I don't believe you could ever forget a face as handsome as mine." He smiled across at him.

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

That made Peter chuckle and he finally lifted his head back up. "Oh well, clearly I could never forget you."

Abby Littleton entered the residents' common room looking slightly harried. "Christ, there you are," she hissed at Peter, and then she moved over to grab Charles' paper, roll it up and swat Peter over the head with it. "You were supposed to wait for me!"

"Ow?" Peter said, though it hadn't really hurt.

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

Charles looked up at Abby and grinned, brushing off the sombre conversation that he'd just been having. "Doctor Abby! Why the violence?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

"Because he never listens to me!" Abby declared, pointing at Peter who just looked bemused. "I have the results, Peter. And I could have given them to you twenty minutes ago but instead I was wandering around your gigantic hospital looking for you!"

Peter sat up quite straight all of a sudden, and then he glanced sideways at Charles before looking back to Abby. "Can you tell me now instead of making what you just went through into a screenplay?"

Abby gave him a withering look and then she sat down beside Peter, who hoped she knew he didn't mind if she told him the results in front of Charles. "No shadows," Abby informed him. "The scan was normal and I think your headaches are stress-related."

Peter just leaned his head back and he let out a deep breath of relief while Abby shrugged in Charles' direction.

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

"Congratulations, Bossman," Charles told him with a nod. Unwilling to make too much of the news, he smiled. "So doesn't this bring us back to the idea that it's your girl Anna's fault, right?"

[father-peter.insanejournal.com]

The relief Peter felt was hindered somewhat by the reality that some day the results of his MRI wouldn't be clean and that day wasn't necessarily far away. "Thank you," he said to Charles anyway. Then he snorted and let himself cheer up a little. "I doubt it, but she probably doesn't help," he admitted.

"And if you slept and ate a little more, it would help," Abby said, sounding very bossy.

[charlesallen.insanejournal.com]

"Do as the good doctor orders, Bossman," Charles told him, "She doesn't just say it because she likes the sound of her own voice!"

[abigail-lilith.insanejournal.com]

"She does though," Abby said with a wink. "My voice is as excellent as my advice." To which Peter laughed and Abby looked triumphant.