Archive of Our Own ^beta

Sylvie pulled into the parking lot and parked her car, looking over at Violet. The other woman looked rather nervous, fidgeting with one of her rings. 

“You okay, Vi?” Sylvie asked softly. 

“Yeah just, just a bit nervous,” Violet shrugged. Sylvie reached over, taking her hand. 

“Hey, I’m here with you. We’ve got this,” She said. Violet took a deep breath and nodded.

“Yeah, we’ve got this,” she agreed. Sylvie smiled and kissed her cheek quickly before the two got out and headed into the restaurant. Yolk was a cafe/brunch restaurant chain, and Sylvie and Violet were at the original location located in the South Loop. Sylvie scanned the area, smiling when a familiar figure waved her down.

“There,” she nodded to the familiar brunette figure of Dr. Natalie Manning. 

“Natalie, hey!” Sylvie said, pulling the doctor into a hug.

“Hey Sylvie, Violet. You remember Saraya, right?” Natalie said, motioning to the woman next to her. She was shorter than Natalie with tan skin and dark brown hair. 

“Halstead and Manning’s girl,” Violet smirked, recalling the time she and Sylvie had come across Saraya when the latter had been at a coffee shop and encountered a fainting woman.

“Ha ha ha, you always gonna call me that?” Saraya deadpanned. Violet shrugged, smirking still.

“Maybe,” she joked. All four burst out into laughter, taking their seats and opening their menus. A few moments later, the waiter approached.

“What may I get you ladies to drink?” he said. 

“I’ll have a hot chocolate,” Sylvie said.

“I’ll have the Gingerbread Cold Brew,” Violet added.

“I’ll just have a coffee,” Natalie said.

“And I’ll take a White Peppermint Mocha,” Saraya said. The waiter nodded and wrote down the orders.

“I’ll bring those drinks back out in a moment,” he said, retreating. The four women fell into silence briefly as they looked over their menus, deciding on what to eat. A short while later, the waiter returned and set down the drinks.

“Are you ready to order or do you still need a moment?” he asked. 

“I think we’re ready,” Natalie said. The waiter nodded and flipped to an open page in his ordering book. 

“I’ll take the Very Berry French Toast,” Sylvie said. 

“I’ll take the Meat and Two Eggs, scrambled. Bacon as my meat,” Violet said. She was so used to the bacon and eggs breakfast at 51 that she had a tendency to also order it when eating out. 

“I’ll have the Avocado Toast,” Natalie told the waiter her order.

“And I’ll have the El Torero Scrambler,” Saraya said, folding up her menu. The waiter nodded and wrote down the orders before collecting the menus.

“I’ll let the kitchen know,” he said before walking off.

“So, how has work been?” Violet asked, looking at the two sitting across from her and Sylvie.

“About as good as a busy hospital can be,” Natalie laughed.

“Which is to say it’s been okay…other than dumbass doctors ordering MTPs on patients who don’t need them. Patients who say ‘oh, I’m having a rough night’,” Saraya grumbled. Natalie laughed and put her arm around the other woman.

“What Raya means is that some of the doctors on the floors are idiots, not us in the ER,” she joked. Saraya rolled her eyes, a smile tugging on the sides of her mouth.

“You work in the lab, right?” Sylvie double checked.

“Yeah, I had just started about two weeks previously when that crazy outbreak happened a few years ago. I was mostly training in Blood Bank at that time, it’s where I work mostly now. Kind of my favorite department,” Saraya said.

“Blood Bank…so like, blood types and stuff?” Violet asked. Saraya nodded, taking a sip of her mocha.

“Yeah, doing type and screens on patients and setting up units on them. If they have antibodies, we’re testing and figuring out what they are. And of course, when we get gunshot victims we’re setting up MTPs or restocking the fridges in the ER. Least that last one gives me a chance to see Will and Nat,” she said. Natalie smiled at that, kissing her cheek briefly. 

“So, Will had work today?” Violet asked. Natalie and Saraya both nodded.

“Yeah, he couldn’t get it off. Ethan was going to New York to visit an old friend of his, so Will had to fill in. It’s him and Dr. Campbell,” Natalie said.

“Is it confusing, having two people with the last name of ‘Cambell’? I know Stella has said that part of the reason she continues to use ‘Kidd’ is so that she and Kelly will always know who people are talking to over the radio,” Sylvie asked. Natalie shrugged.

“Not really. I mean, we mostly call Maggie by her first name, so Lincoln having the same last name isn’t as confusing since we usually call him by his last name,” she explained.

“That makes sense, he seems like a nice guy. The few times I’ve talked to him, dropping off patients,” Violet commented.

“He is. He hasn’t become super close to us yet, but he’s a good doctor,” Natalie said as the waiter brought out their food. Once again, the foursome fell into silence as they ate their food. They were about halfway through their meals when a loud thud caught their attention. The group looked up to see an older man tilt sideways in his seat before falling. 

“Shit!” Violet said as the four jumped up, with Saraya pulling out her phone as she rose. 

“Raya, call 911,” Natalie commanded as she, Sylvie, and Violet ran towards the unconscious individual.

“Already on it, Nat!” Saraya replied, putting her phone to her ear and speaking into it hastily. The other three made their way to the man, Sylvie and Violet gently laying him on the ground. Despite not having worked together in years, the two seamlessly fell back into their old routine. Natalie, meanwhile, knelt down next to the man.

“Sir, sir can you hear me?” she said. There was no response. Sylvie pressed her fingers to the man’s neck and looked at Natalie, shaking her head.

“Dammit,” Natalie muttered before raising her voice louder. “Raya, let them know the man has no pulse!” Saraya glanced over at her and nodded, relaying the message to the dispatcher on the other end of the phone. Natalie began CPR while Violet ran to see if the restaurant had an AED on site. She came back only moments later, shaking her head.

“No AED,” she reported. 

“Shit, we’ll rotate CPR until the ambulance gets here,” Natalie decided as Saraya joined them.

“911 said it’ll likely be ten minutes or so,” she said. Natalie nodded as Sylvie switched in. One of the people watching looked uneasy.

“What are you guys doing? Why don’t you just shock him?” she asked. Saraya whipped her head around, dark brown eyes angry.

“One, you don’t shock a flatline, which it appears he has. Two, you are explaining to a doctor and two paramedics how to do their jobs. Why don’t you just shut up,” she snapped.

“Raya,” Natalie said. The two exchanged a look for a long moment before Saraya sighed.

“Listen, this man is in good hands. We have a doctor from Gaffney here and two CFD paramedics, they know what they’re doing,” she said in a softer tone as Violet and Sylvie switched places. 

“Does anyone know this man?” Sylvie asked the growing group. There were a few mumbles and murmurs of negativity before one of the waiters spoke up.

“That’s Michael Kauffman, he always tells us to call him Mickey,” the waiter said.

“Do you know his age or any health issues?” Natalie quizzed as Saraya tagged in to give Violet a break.

“I think he’s in his sixties. His wife died last year, he comes in every day,” the waiter said. 

“Good, good. That’ll be good information for the paramedics to know,” Violet said as she checked the man’s pockets. “Yep. Michael Kauffman, sixty-five. I don’t see any health problem cards.” 

“Okay, okay,” Natalie said, swapping with Saraya, who checked her watch. 

“Hopefully the ambulance is here soon,” she said. “It’s been about eight minutes.” Just as she spoke, the door opened and paramedics rushed in.

“Wow Mikami, caught a case on your day off,” Paramedic Bessel said. 

“Ha ha ha, very funny,” Violet told her fellow paramedic as Rodney Ogle swapped in with CPR. Natalie stood, facing the two.

“Patient’s name is Michael Kauffman, he’s sixty-five,” she reported. The two paramedics nodded and shortly thereafter were headed off to the hospital with the man onboard.

“Thank goodness you four were here,” a man who appeared to be the manager said. Sylvie waved him off.

“We’re just doing our duty,” she said, the others nodding in agreement. 

“Still, your meals are on the house,” he said. 

“We can’t let you do that, sir,” Violet said. 

“Please, it’s the least I can do. Mickey’s one of our regulars, you may have saved his life,” the manager insisted. The four women all looked at each other, silently having a conversation. In the end, they looked at Natalie.

“Fine, but just this once,” she relented. The manager nodded as the four went back to their table to finish their brunch.