what the hell am i doing here, what do i deserve?

[coppelganger]

WHO: Sarah Manning and George O'Malley
WHERE: Nonah, #007 > Some bar
WHEN: Backdated to September 7
WHAT: A ~DATE~
WARNINGS: Language, probably. Thanks, Sarah.



[ Sarah has never really done dates. Not the kind where the guy picks you up at the door at a prearranged time, anyway. Her romantic life has always been less… structured. Yeah, that's a good word for it. God, what a joke. Even with Cal, arguably the most sane relationship she's had in a long time, things have been so hectic and filled with clone drama that they hadn't had a chance to do much of anything together before she got Ported in. And now this seemingly normal guy. He's a nurse, for god's sake. Well, surgeon-turned-nurse, anyway.

She's not sure which bar they're going to, but she has a feeling punk rock's not George's style, so she dresses a bit nicer than she might be otherwise. Better to save the real punk stuff for later. Assuming there is a later. She can't help but be nervous as she answers the door—for a lot of reasons—but she manages to hide it well. Acting's always been her thing, after all. ]

Hey, man.

Comments

[puppydoctor]

[His cheeks go a little pink at the arm squeeze, and he laughs. It's been a disastrously long time since he had anyone on his arm - and even when he was married, he was more often on his wife's arm.]

I, uh... I've actually decided to try to get into the surgical residency here. Just speaking of medical care.

[coppelganger]

Seriously? What's that mean, then, med school all over again?

[puppydoctor]

Oh, no, I'm done with all that. Residency's like really specialized training. You get to cut people open, and they pay you for it, but you're still technically in training. It's what I was doing back home.

[coppelganger]

Good luck, then. I hope you get in. They'd be idiots not to take you.

[ She suppresses a shudder, though, imagining it. ]

I couldn't do it myself.

[puppydoctor]

[George shrugs sheepishly, looking at his feet.]

That's what I thought, at first. And I totally botched my first appendectomy. But you just have to want to help people bad enough to where it doesn't matter.

[He gestures across the street as they approach a crosswalk. There's a tiny bar tucked between a closed laundromat and a greasy sandwich place, with brick steps leading down to a modest, neon-lit entrance.]

[coppelganger]

I'm not great with blood.

[ She looks it over and nods approvingly when he shows her the place. It's not one she's been in before despite the close proximity to her building, and it's always good to have a place close to home. ]

You wanna grab us drinks while I get a table?

[puppydoctor]

[George opens the door for her, holding it open with his foot while Sarah passes through.]

Yeah, what'll you have?

[coppelganger]

I'll have what you're having.

[ She splits off from him and finds them a free table near a corner where they won't be surrounded by too many other people. ]

[puppydoctor]

[He splits off with a smile, and heads up towards the bar. The bar isn't busy, but there's a good energy in the small crowd, and the jukebox is crackling out a Johnny Cash tune by the time George gets back with two old fashioneds.]

I'm sort of a whiskey guy. I can get you something else if it's not your thing.

[coppelganger]

I'm good with whiskey.

[ Which is true. She'll drink pretty much whatever. ]

[puppydoctor]

[George generally sticks to beer when he's out with friends, but ever since he got here he's been making his liver work a little harder. He's just got to drink it a little slower than Sarah.]

... So I know you traveled, and I know where you're from. But tell me something I don't know yet. I'm an open book [about all but one thing, really] but you've got the whole mysterious Brit thing going on.

[coppelganger]

Mysterious Brit thing. I see.

[ She laughs and glances down at her drink, deciding what to tell him. There's "Well, I'm part of an illegal and highly unethical cloning experiment," always a great conversation topic for a first date. Right. Or maybe "I grew up in foster care and never even graduated from high school," just to make things extra awkward. Or the good old standby, "I have a kid," to make him run the hell away from her as fast as possible. So many choices.

Of course, lying about Kira is the one shitty thing she won't do, and the longer she doesn't mention her the more like a lie it feels, so in the end she decides on that. If it freaks George out too much, oh well. She won't be one of those mothers who ditches their kid for a guy again, even if they are apart right now. ]

Way to put a girl on the spot. Uh, I guess the biggest thing is that I've got a daughter. Kira. She's eight.

[puppydoctor]

[He feels guilty for asking, after watching her go through the mental debate for an answer - but as soon as she does give one, his eyes light up. While it does come as a surprise, judging her for being a mother doesn't even occur to him. Instead, he smiles.]

Oh man, eight! Is she a handful, or still in the cute, hugging years?

[coppelganger]

She's still a hugger, yeah. She's so smart, though. You'd like her. She'd ask you all kinds of questions about your job.

[ She's clearly relieved by his reaction. ]

[puppydoctor]

Yeah? She sounds like a great kid. And I bet you're one of those really embarrassing cool moms, right?

[He smiles teasingly, but it loses a little bit of luster as his thoughts go in a different direction.]

My ex and I thought about maybe having one, for awhile, but it never would have worked out. Not with our work schedules.

[And his infidelity, but he's not going to mention that.]

[coppelganger]

[ For someone who is generally a pretty cool person, she's not a cool mom at all. Who would have thought? ]

They're a time suck, for sure. Kids, I mean. I've got family to help out, at home.

[ You know, for all those times she needed to run off and ~find herself~ and then, later, to deal with clone drama. ]

[puppydoctor]

Yeah? [For a second he pictures his own mother, with her knitted baby clothes, asking him if he's still trying.] That's good. Great, actually, that kind of support.

[coppelganger]

My mum and I don't always get along, but she's been great with Kira.

[ She takes a drink, relaxing a little bit more. ]

So what about you? Tell me something.

[puppydoctor]

[He shrugs, fiddling with his glass. He's told her most anything that's interesting or incriminating, which basically amounts to an ex-wife and a sort of impressive career.]

I don't know, I'm pretty simple. I've got two brothers, I cut people open for a living, and I killed a turkey once and still have nightmares about it.

... I did get married in Vegas once. That's pretty interesting?

[coppelganger]

Wait, wait a second, rewind. You killed a turkey once? Like by accident?

[ Sorry, Vegas, you have to wait. ]

[puppydoctor]

No, unfortunately. My dad was pretty big on hunting, and he kind of held me hostage in the woods one Thanksgiving until I'd killed a bird.

[coppelganger]

[ Oh, no. She can't help laughing. ]

Aww. You must've been traumatized.

[puppydoctor]

I was supposed to be cooking with my roommates. I did what I had to do.

[He says it with a mock gravity.]

[coppelganger]

I see.

[ She runs her index finger along the surface of the table, looking at him. ]

So what's this about getting married in Vegas?

[puppydoctor]

[He rubs the back of his neck and wrinkles his nose, unsure which version makes him sound the least like a freak.]

My, uh. I lost my dad. And somehow me and my girlfriend thought that running off to Vegas sounded like a really smart way to make things better. I mean, it was her idea, but I was like "Yeah, that sounds really smart!" So we got hitched in the Church of Elvis.

[He does a higher-pitched, self-deprecating imitation of himself.]

It took me two days to realize that I was really, really stupid.

... And now I'm realizing that this is probably not something I should be telling you.