Code Wight: Tertiary Referral

"I can't do this anymore."

Morticia whispered this to herself as she sat on the tile floor of the cold, artificially lit morgue, ash piling next to her. She looked down at the cigarette in her fingers, faint wisps of smoke trailing from the smoldering end of the stick, and she grunted, taking another pull of the addictively warm  tobacco, the raw heat suffusing her cold, dead body. But soon enough, it was over, and she let her pale arm fall once more to the floor as smoke gently wafted from her mouth.

"Damnit kid, on top of everything else in what passes for my life, why did you have to do this to me?"

She could feel the whispers of tears in her eyes, a faint echo of life trying to force itself free. She produced many kinds of fluids in her condition, yet not tears. How odd it was to reflect on the loss of something that gave her so much stress in life. The troubles of being a Wight and a doctor, huh?

 Probably should have just stayed dead, she thought bitterly. Would have been better for everyone.

The sound of footsteps came to her, heralding the arrival of someone to the morgue, likely to chastise her for being too slow with the autopsies, but it wasn't like they were getting any deader. She knew that it was her duty to follow through, give peace of mind to people about their loved ones, but she had no peace of mind herself since this morning. Perhaps she always knew it was going to happen anyway, told herself that she didn't need to worry about it, that her heart was as cold and dead as the rest of her.

A lie, of course. It was one she kept repeating to herself over and over, but one she couldn't escape. And now here she was, sitting on the floor, tears in eyes, like some kind of damn intern who lost her first patient. Of course, that was exactly the wrong thought to have in this situation, and she grit her teeth as she did so, eyes flaring with blue light.

The door to the Morgue opened and a man stepped in, white lab coat hugging his attractive torso. He looked around the room for a moment before his eyes fell upon Morticia and he tensed up, muttering, "Jesus Christ."

Morticia couldn't help but smirk at the mirror of their positions, so similar to how they'd first met. How long had it been,  eight months? It was hard to remember after the happiness she'd had recently. She sighed and took a metal canister out of her unkempt lab coat, and realized dully that she was having trouble opening it as her hands were shaking. Still, she managed to do so, smothering out the butt of her cigarette before snapping it shut and looking up to the man, speaking in a cool tone. "Good evening, Dr. Dinglemeyer."

Josh closed his eyes and took a deep breath, removing his hands from his well maintained lab coat, which hung open to reveal the ceil scrubs underneath. He squatted down, bringing his green eyes to the same level of Morticia's glowing blue orbs. He was handsome, especially since he was far more confident than he was when he first started as a medical intern. It's crazy what a year will do to someone, taking them from crying in the morgue to being the best intern of the Hospital.

He gazed into Morticia's eyes for a long while before a hint of sadness filled his expression and he sighed out, "The announcement..."

Morticia lifted her chin and stood up, smoothing out her orange sweater and black skirt. Josh gave her an odd expression as she huffed, crossing her arms under her breasts before saying, "Announcement, bah, like that's got me down. You know me better than that, kid."

Josh looked down before shaking his head and standing up as well. "I thought I did... Look, Morticia, I know it's not what you wanted to hear, but if we can just sit and talk about..."

"I said, it doesn't have me down." Her eyes flared and Josh held up a hand in placation.

"Alright then, Dr. Ortega. Look, I came down here to check on you because you weren't answering your phone."

"I turned it off."

"That's..." Josh looked bewildered. "That's incredibly irresponsible! What if there was an emergency that needed your attention or if someone just wanted to..." He stopped again before sighing. "Fine, I get it, but Morticia, there actually is an emergency, and you're the only one who can help."

"For what." She said, a little venom in her voice.

"Dr. Franklin called in sick and the on-call doctors are slammed. Since there's a shortage of work to do in the morgue..." He hesitated before sighing, "Look, Morticia, I need your help."

She stared at him blankly, no expression present within her cold eyes. He didn't flinch, of course, why would he after all this time? She continued to stare for a few moments longer before hanging her head and sighing.

"You know how to send mixed signals, kid."

"Morticia, please. I know you're a mortician, but you know more about anatomy and pathology than anyone and you're still a doctor so-"

"I haven't touched a patient in years, at least one that wasn't already dead. What makes you think I can do this now?"

"Because, I know you, and I know that you're a damn good doctor, even if you work on the dead." He looked her straight in the eyes. "I know we have some... trouble right now, and if it were up to me, I'd rather let you have your space, God knows you need it after... my acceptance elsewhere."

"If you know that, then why bother me?

Josh grit his teeth and took her cold hand in his. She tried to pull away from him, but he held firm, his arm straining against her undead might. She didn't struggle for long though, and after a moment, a look of pure despair appeared upon her face, and she leaned into his chest. Her lips quivered as she asked in a choked voice, "W...why does it have to be like this? Why do you have to leave?"

He closed his eyes, embracing her close to him. Over these past months as an intern, their relationship had grown from a senior doctor bullying a poor intern, to lovers, one of which still bullied a poor intern. It was an open secret that they had a relationship together, and while everyone found it scandalous, Josh didn't care, because he had Morticia. The same went for her as well, for her insecurities about being the only Monster in the Hospital always faded when she pressed close to him.
He shivered ever so slightly as her clammy skin pressed against his scrubs, permeating his chest. At first, it was disorienting, but long nights spent holding each other taught him to crave the way his warmth suffused itself into her skin, something he knew she craved, perhaps more than he did. It was almost like they were made for each other.

Of course, life doesn't work that way, does it? Josh's clinical internship was almost over, and his future was steering toward a residency, something both of them were very happy about. He put all of his power into making himself the best intern he could be. Sometimes he would even collapse on the floor of the morgue from exhaustion, finding a blanket over him and the calm smile of his lover when he awoke. He did everything right, made damn sure he was good enough to go where he wanted, and where he wanted to be a resident was here, at this very Hospital.

Instead, he was matched to a Hospital four states away. They read the letter together this morning, and re-read his rejection letter for his home Hospital. The words never changed, and  soon enough, it sank in that he would have to move. Morticia hurriedly placed calls to the new Hospital, and some nearby, hopeful they'd have a position for a talented mortician. As soon as she mentioned she was a Monster though, they all grew quiet and politely told her to go through other channels, code word for "fuck off." After the fourth decline, she quietly retreated to the morgue, despite the fact that her shift wasn't for a few hours.

The thought of being torn away by fate so cruel made Josh squeeze Morticia tight against him, which she did not deny him, instead, merely sinking further into his embrace. He could feel her shaking against his chest, and he was certain his top would have grown wet with tears, had she the ability to produce them. He let her have her moment though, feeling the same way she did, but what could he do? It was out of his hands.
He took a deep breath before gently releasing her, to which she shuddered a few times before wiping at her eyes, though there was no reason to do so. She blinked, looking at her hand before giving a choking laugh.

"Damnit kid, look at you, making me fall into old, dead habits."

"Wouldn't that be more... living habits?"

"Yeah, I guess so." She smirked before taking a deep breath and composing herself and saying, "Alright, I...
I needed that."

Of course, she thought, I'm sure it will hurt worse later though.

"Are you ready to go then?" He asked, looking at his watch.

"Yeah... let's get this shit over with." She walked past him to the stairs, her heels clicking against the
floor. Josh watched her open the door before looking back at him, shaking her head, and walking up the stairs. He lingered a moment longer himself before shaking his head as well and walking after her, muttering to himself.

"Damnit..."

-----------------------------------------

The Hospital stank of disinfectant and stale urine, something that all Hospitals across the world shared. The soft light of fluid pumps and ECG units played as the quiet motions of tired staff continued their endless struggle against inevitability, their actions sounding in time with the beeping of equipment and the shuffle of footsteps through the halls.

When Josh had first arrived, this place had seemed so big, so terrifying to him, that he felt smothered by it all. Now that he was near the end of his first year as a Doctor, it all seemed so... trivial now. Sure, there were still things he didn't know how to do, still many cases he freaked out about, still emotions he felt whenever something didn't turn out as expected, but his confidence was much stronger now. It amazed Morticia to see him assuredly striding the hallways, smiling and waving to nurses and other doctors as if he owned the place.

This is his element, isn't it? She thought with a sinking realization. This is the world of the living above, and I can only exist in the lair of the dead below.

Josh gave her a pained look out of the corner of his eye, yet he kept confidently forward through the halls, stopping only once to check on a patient. As he looked over the chart of an older woman, her diagnosis likely diabetes due to her enormous girth, Morticia locked eyes with the woman on the bed. The obese woman snorted in a breath, her little pig eyes glaring at the Wight with a mix of contempt, fear, and jealousy, as if saying, "You're only popular because you're a monstrous slut."

Morticia knew not everyone thought of Monsters in this way, in fact most did not. But whenever she'd walk the halls of the upper world and see these looks, it hurt her more than she could care to admit to anyone other than Josh. How deep life could cut, even to those who no longer bleed.

Josh nodded, spoke a few words to the woman, and quietly left the room, Morticia in tow. He sighed as they walked to an elevator, waiting as the dull thrum of the lift cables moved the heavy object toward them. "I'm sorry about her, she's a rather crotchety old gal who refuses to stop drinking the diet soda and eating eight cheeseburgers a meal."

"Huh? Oh...." Morticia said, coming out from her thoughts, the last rays of the sunset playing on her pale features from the window behind them. "It's nothing."

"I'm worried about you."

"You're not making it any easier, kid."

"Are you certain that you can't... I mean, there has to be something else you could do?"

Morticia turned a cool look toward Josh, eyes shimmering blue. "You don't know what it is to be a Monster. Not everyone is like you, not everyone can look past this pale skin, these unnatural eyes. To find work in a field such as this, something I'm good at, and you know I'm damn good at it, is some kind of Godsend."
She took a deep breath before looking away and continuing, "And even if it wasn't because of what I am, having to compromise on what I'm good at doing, at what I enjoy doing?..." She shook her head. "What if I asked you to give up being a Doctor?"

Josh was quiet as a bell chimed, heralding their ride. As the doors opened, he said simply, "I see your point."

They boarded the empty elevator and rode in silence, their thoughts likely on the same subject. As the elevator chimed their arrival on the third floor, the doors opened to the scene of a madhouse.

A patient on a gurney was wheeled past, two orderlies and a nurse hovering above the patient as a tired looking doctor barked out orders. Josh watched with a determined expression before pushing forward, Morticia in his wake. As soon as he reached a desk, a beleaguered looking nurse slapped a stack of files on the table and growled at him, "Damnit Dr. Dinglemeyer, where have you been? There was a ten-car pile-up on the freeway that just got here and..." She trails off, noticing Morticia who was looking about, her expression a little overwhelmed.

"Is... is that Dr. Ortega?"

Josh picked up one of the files, scanning through it before quickly grabbing another one, making an annoyed face. "Yeah, morgue was dead quiet, and it's going to stay that way if I can help it. Has anyone gotten vitals on these yet?"

"Judy is currently working on them, but she's being stretched thin."

"That's fine, I'll go for the critical ones with Dr. Ortega then. Where's Dr. Howard?"

"Dr. Howard? Last I saw he was speaking with the surgeons about a case." Morticia frowned at the mention of the senior clinician's name, though no one seemed to notice.

"Fine, I'll have to run everything through Dr. Ortega then." He looked back over to Morticia and raised an eyebrow. "Any objections?"

She blinks a few times, taken aback. "N...no, of course not, but wouldn't that be stepping on the toes of Dr. Howard?"

The nurse snorted, "Oh he'll be fucking pissed." She blanched as an alert went off on a nearby computer, to which she started hurriedly typing, printing off papers. "Of all the nights, it has to be the ones I take a double shift on..." She waved a dismissive hand at the two of them, and Josh and Morticia took the stack of files, shuffling off to the first bed as Josh read the file.

"Alright patient is Henry Tinsley, a twenty-four year old male with a tachycardia, dyspnea, and multiple contusions along the body from blunt force trauma due to seatbelt and airbag impacts from the car accident."

"Sounds like he might have sustained pulmonary contusions as well." Morticia said, musing it over. "Of course, we can't tell without diagnostic imaging, he might need to go to surgery."

Josh nodded his head sharply, "My thoughts exactly, but let's take a look at the patient." Morticia grunted in agreement and the two walked to the bed where the patient lay, unconscious and breathing quick, shallow breaths. A young, blond nurse, perhaps in her mid-twenties, who was standing next to the bed turned to Josh as he approached and sighed in relief.

"Oh thank God. Dr. Dinglemeyer, I can't find Dr. Howard anywhere, and this patient's breathing has worsened. I can't hear his heart sounds well either."

"It's fine Judy, what's his temperature?" Josh asked, putting his stethoscope on as he walked up to the patient.

"99.8, thankfully. Pulse is 130, respiration is... about fifty. Blood pressure is stable, for now." Judy said, watching as Josh put his stethoscope upon the man's chest, his eyes looking up as he searched about the chest. He frowned, leaning in close, as if getting close would somehow allow him to hear better.

"Jo...Dr. Dinglemeyer?" Morticia said, looking concerned. "What's wro-" She cut off as Josh held up a finger.
He searched a little longer before pulling off the stethoscope and handing it toward Morticia.

"Heart and lung sounds are muffled, can you take a listen?"

Morticia took a deep breath, her pale face looking afraid. "I haven't listened to a live heart in... I don't know how long."

"Please?" He looked at the nurse, who was watching their interaction. He grit his teeth and shook his head, "For me?"

The nurse quirked an eyebrow at that, but said nothing as Morticia took the stethoscope, gripping it tightly in her hand. Damnit kid, she thought. First you mess me up this morning, and now you go and do this to me? Isn't it enough? Still, she put the ear buds into her ears, the rubber feeling warm , thanks to Josh having used it beforehand.

She stepped up to the patient and placed the stethoscope on his chest, listening. At first, she couldn't hear anything, and she began to wonder if all the skills she learned so many years ago had faded away to nothing, when she heard a muffled, wet sound in the lungs. She frowned, listening closely while placing her cold fingers upon the man's chest, causing him to shudder under her touch. Moving the stethoscope to the heart, she heard a similar situation, and she pulled back, grunting.

"Sounds like he's got fluid in his chest."

"I thought so." Josh said before turning to the Judy. "I need equipment for intubation, and start this man on Lasix, 40mg IV." He tensed up then, looking to Morticia. "That is... if the senior clinician approves of it."

Morticia put a hand to her head and sighed, remembering that Josh, for all his skill, was still an intern.
"Yes, please start Lasix, and put in an order for thoracic radiographs."

Judy blinked, looking at Morticia as if seeing her for the first time, and then nodded her head. "Of course, doctor...Ortega?" Morticia waved her away as the nurse moved to a crash cart, digging for the equipment for intubation.

"I was going to get the radiographs." Josh said, shaking his head. "Thank you for putting in the order though, and confirming my finding."

"Well, you had the basics down alright." Morticia sighed, feeling her hands shaking a little. Is that her need for another smoke, or excitement from practicing medicine again? She didn't know, but it felt... well, good! She looked back to Josh as the nurse reappeared, handing the equipment to him. He flipped out the laryngoscope with practiced ease and smirked at Morticia.

"Dr. Ortega, would you like to assist me while Judy goes to get the other orders in?"

"Of course, Dr. Dinglemeyer." Morticia says, a small smile on her lips. Judy had an odd expression at the interaction, but she left, allowing the two to start intubation. Morticia held the head back while Josh positioned the laryngoscope in the patient's mouth, holding the tongue out of the way and visualizing the trachea.

"I figured you might know your way around medicine again. It's like riding a bike, right?" Josh said as he slid the tube in effortlessly, before securing it into place.

"I wouldn't say that."

"Yeah, but you can still do it, you still have the talent for something like this. Feels nice to get out of the morgue, huh?" He smiled at her, causing her to frown, wondering what had him so happy as Judy came back in, a worried expression on her face.

"Doctor Ortega, there's more patients that need help! Dr. Dinglemeyer, they're requesting your aid over in bed twelve."

The two looked at each other, and Josh grit his teeth. "Alright. We... we'll talk later." He smiled, "We have lives to save, right?"

Morticia couldn't help but roll her eyes smile back at his enthusiasm, feeling a spark lit within her. This kid, this is what he does, gets under my damn skin. He thinks a little emergency medicine is going to cheer me up? He really has a lot to learn about pleasing women.  She was still mad at him, oh so very mad, but there were more important things to do, such as saving lives.

So, with a little more confidence, Morticia and Josh split up and began triaging cases the best they could. Morticia would say it's tiring work, but being undead, she managed to keep going where other doctors had to stop and pause. She even maked a tsk tsk at Josh as he banged his head against a wall at one point, groaning from the stress.

It was exhilarating, and Morticia began to wonder why she ever decided to become a mortician. Didn't she always want to save lives as a girl? And yet, there she was, wearing a dirty lab coat, smelling faintly of formaldehyde, her days spent in the dungeon. Dying changed things for her, that was certain of, and though she'd probably never know why or how she was re-animated as this... Monster, she knew deep down that she'd always regret abandoning her real dream for something, as much as she hated to admit it, safer.

"What do you mean, they didn't take him to radiology?" Josh said, his voice rising above the chaos in the ICU. Morticia immediately picked it out and finished what she was doing, handing off orders to a rather skeptical looking nurse, before walking over to Josh.

"What's wrong?" She asked, and Josh waved a hand at the empty bed where their first patient sat beforehand. Nurse Judy shook her head, slapping some papers in her hands.

"Dr. Howard changed the orders, he requested the patient go straight to surgery." She sighed and shook her head again. "I'm sorry Dr. Dinglemeyer, but I don't have time to discuss this, you'll have to bring it up with him."

Josh stood there, mouth agape as Judy rushed off, a little too quickly, to another patient, checking on their medications. Morticia frowned and looked to Josh who just held his head, groaning. "Damnit, we could have possibly medically managed this. Why would an internal medicine Doctor want him to go to surgery?"

"I'm not certain, but hey, you've been doing a great job up here, it's something I never really got to see down in the morgue." She moved to embrace his arm, but stopped, pulling herself back and looking abashed. "Sorry."

"It's fine. I'm just glad to see you smiling again. Crying doesn't suit you."

"You know damn well I can't cry, but... thanks." She looked back over to the ICU, noting that things had died down, thankfully with few actual deaths. Most of the work at this point is in the hands of the nurses and the surgeons. In fact, as far as she's concerned, none of her patients need her at the moment...

"Hey, Josh..." She muttered, putting a hand on his chest, causing him to stiffen. "I think we've earned a little break, don't you?"

Josh looked a little nervous at that. "Hey... Morticia, I don't think we should do anything like that... it's just going to make it harder later..."

"Oh, shut up, kid." She said, settling her head on his warm, strong chest. "Just let me have this, after working me to the bone... please?"

He sighed and looked over his order sheets before following Morticia to the on-call room.

-----------------------------------------------

"H...hey, Morticia! Slow down a little."

Morticia looked up at Josh, his manhood firmly in between her blue-tinged lips. "Wfy?" She asked, the vibrations of her tongue and lips sending shivers down his shaft. "Dun youf wanna cun?" Before he could reply, she slid his member further into her mouth, feeling the hot pressure of his head press against the back of her throat. She didn't have much of a gag reflex left anymore, so she took him to the base with minimal effort, looking up at him with the smuggest expression one could make with a cock in their mouth.

"Ah... gah, damnit, you've made your point." He said, and she slowly retracted her head, removing her lips
from his rod with a wet, "pop." She licked her lips and began stroking him slowly, her cold breath tickling his head as she spoke.

"You can't tell me you don't like this."

"I mean, you're right, I can't."

"But you got so sad beforehand." She gently licked the tip, feeling a generous amount of pre-cum slide deliciously across her tongue. The flavor always excited her, like the appetizer at a rich restaurant.

"Well, come on, we're both trying to make our peace, right? Doing this is just..." He took in a sharp breath as she suckled the tip as well as using her tongue to caress around his urethra, taking in any errant drops of lewd fluids. "You have to understand."

"I do, trust me kid, I do. But maybe we should spend what little time we have together the best we can?" She gently traced around the tip with her tongue before making a pleased little sigh. "I enjoyed working together, you know."

"Really?" He said, genuinely surprised. He considered for a moment, making a rather unfortunate sound as she squeezed his balls. "Hey, you know I don't like that!"

"Yeah, well maybe I don't like people lying to me in order to get me out of the morgue."

"O...oh, you've figured that out."

"No shit, Sherlock. Still, it was nice, so I'll forgive you." She sighed and ran her tongue up the frenulum, and he shivered in delight, his penis twitching in agreement. "Looks like you're about to blow."

"And whose fault is that?"

"I don't know, certainly not the woman you're going to be leaving in a month." As she said this, she gripped his balls tighter than before, and he winced. She chuckled wickedly before sighing and letting him go. "But... I know it's for the best."

"Morticia..." He said, and she shook her head, taking him in her mouth again, savoring the flavor his manhood while running her tongue around the head, feeling the dam within him about to break. He grunted and placed his hands on her head, forcing her further onto him, a move he only recently found the, well, the balls, to perform. Thankfully, she found it exhilarating.

Her increased fervor pushed him over the edge, causing him to release a torrent of hot, sticky cum into her mouth, each pulse hotter than the last as it slapped the back of her throat, sliding down into her stomach, suffusing her with warmth. Some blasted back, congealing on her tongue, sending her awash with a rich, salty flavor that would have made her eyes water in joy if she could.

It was over sooner than she would have liked, but it always was. When he came, she could just wallow in that feeling forever, lost in the power of his ejaculation. Still, all good things must come to an end, and she slid her mouth off his cock, swirling around the gift he had given her. She moaned contentedly before swallowing it, her eyes burning that unnatural blue as she did so.

"Christ Morticia, you're an animal today. Is the prospect of having to leave me just that much of a turn on?"

"Har har." She moved an errant strand of hair from her eyes before undoing her skirt, dropping it to the floor and revealing a pair of ivory-colored, slender legs. She waggled her hips for him some, the black lace of her panties contrasting sharply with her skin. "Maybe it's just your cock I like, hmm?" She bent down to kiss the tip gently, running her hand down the shaft before sighing. "I don't know, maybe we can make something long-distance work."

"It's going to be three years." He said, gently running his hand through her dark hair. "It wouldn't be fair to either of us."

"Maybe you're right, but I just... I don't know, I felt connected out there. Working with you, as corny as it sounds, made me feel alive."

Josh was about to reply when Morticia's phone rang, the theme song to Beetlejuice playing through the room. They both groan as she pulled her phone out of her coat pocket, flipping it open and answering, "Dr. Ortega speaking.... uh huh.... yeah... wait, what do you mean he's dead?!"

Josh sat up straight, his face serious, eyes focused on Morticia as her expression grew progressively darker. "Why didn't you call me before... No, I put him on morphine and... what do you mean 'that's not what these orders say?' I fucking wrote the orders!" She growled, thrusting her free hand into her coat, which was she was still wearing, despite the rather... lewd actions occurring, and pulled out her cigarette case, snapping it open out of reflex. "No, no I didn't...  damnit, I'm coming to look over those orders."

She stood up suddenly, throwing her phone into her pocket before shoving a cigarette into her mouth and pulling out her lighter. "Fucking telling me I fucked up, I know what I wrote..." She produced a flame, but before she can light the cigarette, Josh calmly placed a hand on her wrist, shaking his head.

"Morticia, stop and tell me what's going on."

"Damn nurse told me the patient in bed seven died on my treatment plan, when I KNOW I put him on the best plan for the time being."

"Well, people die, despite our best efforts sometimes."

"You're telling me?" She said, giving him a flat stare. He coughed into his hand and waved for her to continue. She grumbled, putting the cigarette back into the case. "I mean, I haven't been up here in... hell years, but I felt like I still knew what was going on." She looked down for a moment before gritting her teeth and strode to the door.

"I'm going to find out just what happened."

"Ah, Morticia?" Josh said, and she stopped, crossing her arms under her breasts to face him. He pointed at her legs, and she blinked a few times before looking down to see that she was only wearing her panties, her skirt still discarded on the floor in the corner.

She sighed and shook her head. "Oh fine, if you insist."

---------------------------------------

"I don't believe it." Morticia said, looking over the order sheet for her third patient, staring in disbelief. "I didn't order any of this, but my damn name is right here." She slapped the papers before looking back to Josh. "What the hell?"

He looked over the papers too, frowning deeply. "You're right, this is your signature, but... why would you order 6cc of valium?"

"Maybe if I were an idiot." She growled, looking over to a nurse who was giving her a look of disgust, the woman scampering away as soon as she was caught. "That's what it looks to anyone on the outside I bet."

"Well, it's not just you." Josh said, frowning. "My orders have been changed also. That guy who went to surgery? Completely unnecessary, but at least he'll live."

"Yeah, but your orders are being changed by Dr. Howard, it has his signature on them, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well... who's changing mine?"

Josh went quiet at that, thinking it over.  He looked over at the nurses who averted their gazes from his, and he frowned. "I don't know, but something smells fishy."

"It's not me." Morticia said, waving a hand dismissively.

"That...that's disgusting." Josh said, shaking his head, "But no, I meant that something doesn't seem right about all of this. Why would someone want to harm your patients? It's not something any good doctor should do, but clearly someone on the staff is doing this."

Morticia sighed and looked back over at the entrance to the ICU, her eyes narrowing as the one man she didn't want to see entered the room. It was, of course, Dr. Howard.

He was an older gentleman, with a receding hairline and a stern face, but a large, imposing stature. His white lab coat, pristine and well kept, contrasted sharply with his dark, pressed slacks. He checked over a list of papers in his hands before handing them over to a nurse and stalking off to one of Josh's patients.

"You know what, I bet I know who did this." Morticia growled, clenching her fist.

"Huh?" Josh said, looking over to see Dr. Howard. He looked between him and Morticia and he a few times before blanching. "Morticia, come on, he's an asshole, but he wouldn't..."

"Are you sure about that? Come on, you know that he's tried to screw me over the past, especially after I shed light on that politician who overdosed..." She trailed off, her eyes going wide. "Oh no. If he decides to report these cases to the board, they're going to question why a mortician is working the ICU, and..."
"And you'll lose your job." Josh finished, hanging his head. "There's no good evidence to get your license revoked though."

"On who's word though? Mine against his?" She waved her hand at the nurses. "Theirs? I mean, it's been fun to practice medicine again, but I could tell that they don't want to work with me, they find me creepy and unnerving, the damn creature of the dungeon. No one's going to stick up for me here, the only person I can turn to is..." She trailed off, and Josh's spine stiffened as she turned her gaze to him, those eyes, those unnaturally blue eyes, pleading.

He gulped and closed his eyes, looking down. He'd seen her in moments of weakness before, far more often than she'd ever admit. She poured all of her stress onto him, and he accepted it, but now... what would be the best thing to do? If he supported her and her suspicions against Dr. Howard, it could cause him to lose his residency position. Yet he didn't help her, he doubted that she'd lose her position, especially due to that affirmative action bullshit. Of course, she'd break it off with him, perhaps a little more painfully than otherwise, but it would be final.

"Final, huh?" He muttered, clenching his fists. It was the best way he could think of, a proper excuse to finally wrestle these emotions down. He'd hate himself for a long time, but if he had to rip the bandage off in one motion, he would. He squeezed his eyes shut, preparing for what he was about to do.
Forgive me Morticia. He thought. Please, please forgive me.

 Morticia cocked her head, blinking. "What was that?"

"Morticia, I... I can't. I can't risk my residency." He took in a deep breath before saying, almost pleading.
"You have to understand."

She took a step back, staring at Josh in disbelief, her cool body feeling practically sub-arctic as his words flowed over her. "Josh, please, I need your help, I can't do this on my own. I... I helped you out today!"

"Yes, you did, and I thank you for it, but we've both been saying it all day, yet neither of us can accept it. Well... I have. I'm sorry Morticia, but I won't help you."

She looked down, running a shaking hand through her hair. "So... this is how much I meant to you after all. Did you ever really love me then?"

"Morticia, don't do this..."

"Because I love you. I want to be together, I realized that again tonight, but if you don't then..." She closed her eyes and took a shuddering breath. "Well, then that's it, isn't it?"

She met his eyes, and he shied away, unable to meet her gaze. She began to nod her head, biting her lip as she looked off to the side, before chuckling. "Fine. I'll figure this out on my own then. Go ahead, suck his cock, I don't care, but don't... don't speak with me again." He said nothing as she turned away, wiping at non-existent tears, the sound of her heels clicking against the floor ringing in his ears as she left him.
Josh watched her until she was out of sight before he slowly exhaled and wiped his hand across his forehead, already feeling the regret of his actions. What's done is done though, and there's nothing left for it, but to go back to work. He shook his head, gripped the papers in his hands, and stalked off to speak with Dr. Howard.

-------------------------

Morticia slammed her fist into the wall, her unnatural strength fracturing the drywall and making an orderly jump into the air. Well that's really going to help my case. She thought bitterly as she leaned her forehead the wall. Why did he have to lead her on this evening only to do this? Was it his intention to hurt her even further? Where did she mess up? What could have gone wrong?

She scanned her memories, the good, and the bad, trying to find where she had messed up, but she couldn't find anything that made sense. Why then? Why would he just... dump her like that?

Because he wants to spare you the pain of hope. Was the only answer that played through her mind. He doesn't want to drag this out, but you do, you stupid girl. She grit her teeth, knowing that the words were the truth,  but unable to accept it. The world surely was not so cruel as this, and yet... where was she now? An undead Monster attempting to cry in a hallway, that's where she was. How pathetic.

She reached into her pocket for her cigarettes, looking toward where the elevators were, and considered retreating to the morgue, to return to her corner like she was before Josh dragged her out. Who did she think she was, trying to leave her little lair? Some kind of... human?

At that thought, she gripped the box of cigarettes tight in her fist, crushing it utterly before tossing them into the trash. Fuck them, fuck all of them. She might not be human anymore, but by Jesus FUCKING Christ, she wasn't just going to let them give her shit for being a Monster. She didn't need Josh's help to figure out who was framing her, she didn't need  anyone's help. She was a doctor, a damn good one too, and she was tired to wallowing in grief in the morgue.

"Thanks, kid." She said, adjusting her coat and making an about face, walking briskly back to the ICU. "But I got this."

------------------------------

"Sir, I don't understand why this patient went to surgery before getting diagnostic imaging performed." Josh said, handing a file to Dr. Howard, who didn't take it, merely looking over some papers he was already holding. Josh blinked and pulled the file back, though the older doctor looked up at him a moment later.

"Surgery is the way to go on that case, didn't have the time for imaging."

"But sir, it... I mean, they didn't find anything surgical during the exploratory. His recovery is going to take longer because of the surgery, and we'll have to be careful with our drugs..."

"Well, it's fine. He has very good insurance, they'll cover it."

"Yes but... I mean, it's just not good medicine."

Dr. Howard stopped and looked at Josh with an annoyed expression. "Dinglemeyer, you're a competent intern, I'll give you that, but how long have you been practicing medicine?"

Josh gulped, knowing where this was going. "Less than a year... sir."

"Less than a year, yes. Now then, how long have I been practicing medicine?"

"Thirty-three years, sir." Josh said, looking chagrined.

"That's right." He poked Josh in the center of the chest, looking the poor intern in the eyes. "Now then, I think I know what I'm doing here, unlike that little Monster of yours."

"She's not... look, we broke up anyway."

Dr. Howard pulled back and rubbed his chin, a smile appearing on his face. "Is that so? Bet she was real shaken up about that huh? You finally figured out that it wasn't going to work out, huh?"

"I... no sir, it's the distance. My residency, you see."

The older doctor smirked. "How unfortunate. You're better off without her though, good idea to break it off, she'll be bad to be around soon."

Josh stood up straight, furrowing his brow. "Sir?"

"I've looked over her treatment plans, and that poor kid who died was a clear cut case of mal-practice. Not even being a Monster is going to save her in the courts. I already started filing the paperwork against her."

"Sir, that's not right! Someone changed her orders." Josh said, seeming a little worried. A manner of minutes is not enough time to just drop months of a relationship, and Josh could not keep himself from trying to defend Morticia. Besides, Dr. Howard really seemed intent on punishing her for some reason. He couldn't have really be the one to... no, certainly not...

Dr. Howard waved a hand dismissively. "That Monster tells nothing but lies anyway. Perhaps her deciding to come up here was a good thing. It just showed that she knows nothing about medicine. The Hospital will be better off without her."

"If you say so sir." Josh said, feeling a little disturbed by what was said. Perhaps he could probe Judy for any answers on the subject, maybe clear Morticia's name and... no, no, he had to stop and just let her go. He took a deep breath and nodded to the senior clinician. "Well, I'd like to talk to you about the patient in bed fifteen..."

------------------------------------

"You ain't no doctor here, we ain't got no pale skinned witches as doctors."

Morticia grit her teeth at the Head nurse, the portly woman not even paying attention to her as she typed things up on a computer. She took a deep breath and put her hand on the computer, the warm electronics feeling nice against her cool hands. "I am Dr. Ortega, one of the morticians, and I'll have you know that Wights are not witches."

"Yeah, but you're still pale skinned."

"Are we really going to do this? Jesus Christ..." Morticia said, feeling anger stir within her. She still hadn't gotten used to being discriminated against, even though she's been dead for years. Growing up a little white girl, you didn't get that much. Sitting in her morgue, she didn't get it much either, but the stress of this night compounded with this made her have to fight hard not to just unleash the power within her and strike this woman's soul from her body.

Well, she thought she could do that anyway, it's not like she got an instruction manual on being a lady of the dead or anything.

Still, she managed to calm herself enough to ask in a cool tone, "Look, I just want to know which nurse was handling the orders for beds seven, eight, fourteen, and seventeen."

"And I just want to know why I should tell you anything. Your orders got that poor boy killed."

"Those weren't my orders."

"Well your name was on them. Died before we could even call your skinny ass in to try and save him. Now, why don't you just let the real doctors clean up your mess, and you just go back to your little morgue where you belong."

Morticia closed her eyes and shook her head before gently allowing some of the pent up power in her flow outward. Had her eyes been open, they'd be flaring blue, but her hand upon the computer began to shimmer green with aetherial light. Before anyone could tell what was going on, she lifted her hand, the energy lingering in the form of a claw around her hand, and the back of the machine dented, causing the device to sputter before smoking gently and dying out.

By this point, Morticia had walked away, leaving a cursing nurse in her wake. Well that's just great. She thought bitterly, looking around the room. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed an intern watching her jump a little before huddling up and scurrying away. Morticia frowned, wondering that the hell that was about, and followed after the woman.

She turned a corner to see the intern look over her shoulder and jump again, moving faster, yet trying not to run down the halls. Morticia grit her teeth and began to pick up pace, prompting the woman to move even faster, turning down another hall, but jumping back as a gurney rolled by, forcing her to panic some and dash past them when the hallway was cleared.

Morticia pushed forward, the orderly moving the gurney jumping back as she leapt over the cart, her monstrous strength allowing her to easily clear it, despite her skirt. She moved with a powerful momentum after landing, growling at the stunned looking intern, "For Christ's sake, stop running!"

If she wasn't running before, she was now, bolting down the hall again. Morticia rolled her eyes and picked up the pace, feeling her body power her forward, gaining upon the woman, who once again turned yet another corner. Morticia rounded it, preparing to grab her, but was shocked to see she had vanished.

"The hell?" Morticia said, scratching her head as she looked around the little hallway. There were a few patient rooms, empty, oddly enough, and no one else in sight. She pondered where she possibly could have gone. Checking all those rooms could take forever, and the intern could escape, though she wasn't certain why she was even running, before she found anything. She about dropped the whole thing when she noticed another door, one leading to a closet off in the corner.

"Oh no, you have got to be kidding me." Morticia said, rubbing her forehead. "Please tell me she isn't that stereotypical." She walked forward, put her hand on the door handle, and opened it, the door swinging inward to reveal a frightened looking intern.

"Oh come on, even the kid had the originality to cry in the morgue."

"D... Don't eat my soul!" The girl squealed, knocking over a few brooms and a mop, huddling in on herself as tears began to fall from her eyes. Poor thing, she was much shorter than Morticia, and her mousy features and over-sized glasses made her look like some poor dormouse or something. The fact that all she could probably see of Morticia in the door way were her bright, glowing blue eyes, probably didn't help the situation.

She sighed and rubbed her forehead, getting really sick of this shit. "Calm the fuck down, I'm not going to eat your soul."

"I told him I didn't want to get involved, but he made me!" She cried, outright bawling. "I didn't want to mess with one of the soul-eating undead, but he threatened to drop my residency if I didn't do it!"

Morticia frowned deeply and took a step forward. "What are you talking about? Who told you to do what?"

"Please don't hurt me, please don't hurt me, please don't hurt me." She muttered over and over, going into a fetal position. "Mommy, I just wanted to be a doctor, mommy, please..."

Morticia put her hands to her face, groaning. "Kid, I'm not going to... Stop crying for fuck's..." She threw her hands up, obviously not going to get through to this girl. "Fine, whatever, you want it like this?" Her eyes began to shine bright blue and her full power was unleashed around her as an oppressive force rustled the janitorial equipment around her, throwing around paper towels, cleaning supplies, etc.

She spoke in a slow, imperious voice to the woman, her entire form radiating with unnatural nobility. "Thou wouldst deny answers to one of the undead? Cease your senseless mewling and provide me succor, or perhaps I shall indeed feast upon your soul!"

"Ah! N...no, please!" The woman said, holding up a hand, her eyes utterly terrified. "Please, Dr. Howard, he told me to change the orders, said they were wrong, that he had his own set of orders!" She shudders, "But they don't make sense! It's only what a student would do if they didn't know better! I didn't think anyone would die because of it though, but that poor man..." She starts snuffling, "Please, please don't hurt me, I'm so sorry, I didn't want to..."

Morticia's face grew positively livid, and a claw of green energy coalesced around her hand, which she swiped through a rack cleaning supplies, shattering bottles and splattering cleaning fluids everywhere. She didn't care, she was just furious!

Howard! The bastard was framing her! But how was she supposed to prove anything? A terrified intern wouldn't be a good witness, especially if she dragged her out to the ICU. No, no that wouldn't look good at all. She might just have to confront Howard herself...

She looked down at her hand, seeing the energy flowing through her, feeling how good letting the power out felt. She wasn't exactly certain why her voice and manner of speaking changed when she unleashed this, but again, no instruction manual. Still, she moved her gaze to the terrified woman and was reminded again how acutely different she was now. Sighing, she let the power dissipate, and became, once again, merely a very pale skinned, blue eyed, cold to the touch, and generally dead, woman. Well, alright, that's not normal at all, but that's who she was.

She turned about the room, noticing the destruction, and sighed, shaking her head. "Sorry about the mess kid, you might want to find a new closet to cry in before you inhale too much bleach." With that, she left the terrified intern and clutched her fist, walking down the hallway with strident purpose. It might cost her everything she'd worked for, but fuck it.

I'm coming for you Howard, you bastard.

---------------------------------

Josh sighed, closing the file he was holding. Dr. Howard had changed another of his plans, going for something that technically made sense, but was unnecessary. A CT scan on someone where radiographs would have been more than sufficient? Changing from morphine to fentanyl? Scheduling for biopsies on what was benign via aspiration? It just didn't make sense.

"Hey Judy..." He said, shaking his head. "Is Dr. Howard's behavior, a little... off?"

She paused in preparing catheter supplies, looking up at Josh. "Hmm? What was that?"

"I mean, his treatment plans are technically fine, but... why? Does he just not trust my judgment?"

"Well, he was never fond of you after you got together with that Wight, err... Dr. Ortega."

"Come on Judy, he can't really hold that much of a grudge against her."

"Well, his son did marry an Ushi-oni, although it wasn't exactly on his terms, rape and all. He never really got over that fact, lumps all the Monsters together."

Josh frowned. "I never... knew that. Still, it's not really a good reason, you know?"

"It is what it is, Josh." She said, smiling wanly, "Just let it go, you only have a little time left here as it is, and I don't want to see anything happen to you."

"Thanks Judy, it's just been a long night. Emergency after emergency, my orders getting changed, then Morticia... Dr. Ortega's patients getting the wrong treatments... I don't know, I'm just really tired."

"A shame about that one who died, but he wasn't the only one. It was one hell of a wreck. I did think their treatments were a little weird, though but when I tried to call Dr. Ortega, I was stopped by Dr. Howard."
Josh frowned, crossing his arms.  "What do you mean, 'you were stopped by Dr. Howard?'"

She looked down, obviously trying to avoid his gaze. She began to fumble with her supplies, not really accomplishing anything as her eyes darted from him to the supplies. "Look, forget I said anything."

"Josh, I don't know what happened, alright? I do know that Dr. Howard is a senior clinician, and his word can make or break your career." She gripped a roll of tape tightly as said. "Besides, what do you really owe that Monster?"

He took in a deep breath, spine straightening. "Morticia was right, he did change her orders, didn't he."

"Josh, I don't know, I just kept my head down and did my job..."

"Your job is to save lives." He said, gritting his teeth as all the weight of the day pressed upon him even more than before. "Your job is to do whatever it takes to make things right for the patient, not to meekly down under the might of those above you. You may not have taken an oath, but I have. I admit, I don't know everything, hell, I barely know anything sometimes, but I DO know when something wrong has occurred, and I will do my damndest fix it."

He began to breath heavily, venting his turmoil upon the stunned looking nurse. "And as for Dr. Ortega? You know what I owe her? Everything. I would have fucking killed myself if she wasn't there for me when I needed her, and every time after that. I owe that woman, Monster though she may be, God damned everything!" He reached out and stabilized himself on the bed, his other hand upon his forehead as he realized just what'd he'd done earlier this evening. "Oh Jesus... Morticia..."

"Jo...I mean, Dr. Dinglemeyer, I... I'm sorry." Judy said, hanging her head low and putting her hands to cover her face. "What was I doing? I should have questioned him, maybe that boy would have..."

Josh took a shaky breath, getting some control over himself, and put a hand on her shoulder. He wasn't certain whether he was helping her or himself at that point. "We can't change what's happened, but we can always fix what's broken now." He took out a notepad and looked over at Morticia's patients before jotting down her orders from memory and tearing off the sheet. He handed them to Judy and said, "Go and implement these orders, I'll take the fall if anything happens, alright?"

"Oh no, I can't do that, when he finds out, he's going to be furious! He'll call in something to revoke your residency!"

"I don't care." Josh said, crossing his arms. "I just don't care anymore. I didn't realize it at first, but I was focused on the wrong thing. Now I know what I should do, and it starts with getting these people the right care."

Judy nodded her head slowly before looking over the note and nodding, gathering up another nurse as she moved to complete the orders. Josh watched her go before shaking his head and taking out his phone. He needed to make this right, and this was the first step.

Hang on Morticia, I'm coming for you.
-----------------------

Morticia stalked the halls like a Monster possessed, her rage almost palpable around her. Of course, she could always manifest her anger tangibly, like before, but she chose not to, instead using the kernels of fury to keep herself going. She turned down hallways, forcing surprised looking staff and patients to leap backward, their faces fixated in terror. The only ones she didn't seem to bother were other Monster patients, but they were so few and far between that it didn't matter. Not that she cared what anyone thought at this point anyway.

Her path brought her back to the Head nurse, who was still rooting around her computer. Morticia slapped the monitor, causing it to shudder violently, and the nurse looked up, a look of rage on her face. "Oh, it's fucking you a...gain..." She trailed off as she beheld Morticia's burning blue eyes, and she slowly licked her lips and went silent.

"Where. Is. Doctor. Howard?" Morticia asked, her teeth grit together. The head nurse took a shuddering breath and pointed back toward the ICU, her hand shaking violently.

"H...he went back to the I...ICU, said he had to...to fix your mistakes and get information t...to report you." She winced, pulling her bulk inward. "Please don't hurt me, I have kids!"

"That's all you people care about." Morticia hissed, her voice venomous. "Your own damn lives, never thinking about anyone else. Disgusting." She turned and stalked away from the Head nurse, her footsteps ringing loud and clear against the smooth floor. As she opened the door to the ICU, she heard Dr. Howard's voice, and her eyes flared in rage.

"Nurse! What are you doing? Who gave you these orders?" He demanded, his presence overbearing the form of the nurse, Judy, who had a look of terror on her face.  Morticia noticed the drugs in her hands, the same ones she had originally ordered to be given, and she narrowed her eyes, opened her mouth, and projected her voice through the room.

"I did. I told her to do that."

Everyone not performing a critical procedure stopped and turned to Morticia, a look of shock on their faces as the Wight walked up the senior clinician, folding her arms under her breasts. He looked startled for only a moment before his face began to turn red. "Dr. Ortega, how dare you show your face around here after what you've done. Your orders are horrifically incompetent, and then you have the gall to try and cover it up by forcing the nurses to do the correct treatments? I thought you might just lose your license, but I'll see you buried for this."

"Been there, done that." She said, flipping her hair. "And don't you try to pin the blame on me. I wrote my damn orders just fine, it was YOU who went and changed them."
He scoffed, lip twitching in disgust. "You DARE try to pin this on me? You spend your time lying about my patients in that morgue, and then you decide to come up here and LIE about your lack of medical knowledge?" He thrust a finger at her chest. "At least try to think up a better lie than saying I changed your orders! Your signature is on them!"

"You got that poor, mousy little intern to do it for you!"

"And now you're blaming the interns, pitiful, truly pitiful."

Morticia grit her teeth as everyone began to look at her with disgust. Judy hung her head, unable to look her in the eye, and it began to dawn upon her that everyone was against her from the start, that in some way, he was probably waiting for her to come out like this and confront him. The thought made her even angrier, and her fists began to glow green as she fought to keep her Monstrous instincts in check.
She felt a hand on her shoulder then, and she turned, utterly shocked, to find Josh standing there, his face set in determination as he faced Dr. Howard. "Dr. Howard, if you must know, I'm the one who changed the orders."

The older doctor's eye twitched once as he regarded Josh. "What are you doing, Dinglemeyer..." He said in a low, threatening voice.

Josh didn't falter though, merely squeezing Morticia's shoulder even tighter. "What's right, Dr. Howard." He turned then to Judy and waved to her. "Judy, may I see that note of orders you have in your pocket?"
She jumped, her expression startled, and she looked between Dr. Howard and Josh before whimpering and reaching into her scrub-top pocket, pulling out the note with Josh's handwriting. She handed it shakily to Dr. Howard, and he looked it over, his expression growing even darker.

"What are you doing?!" Morticia hissed in his ear. "You said you weren't going to get involved!"

"I was wrong." He whispered back, shooting her a quick smile. "I lost sight of what really mattered to me all along."

Her eyes went wide in shock, and she stared at him dumbly, unable to comprehend what he'd just said. She was only jolted back into reality when Dr. Howard growled, "Dr. Dinglemeyer, are you saying you're an accomplice to this malpractice?"

"The way I see it sir, no malpractice has occurred on my, or Dr. Ortega's behalf. In fact, I believe it is you who's done wrong by these patients by not allowing the nurses to do their jobs correctly."

"Preposterous!" Dr. Howard said, crumpling the note in his hands. "Nurse, tell him that you were doing your job."

Judy looked between Josh and Morticia, the two standing firm together, and Dr. Howard, his face red, body seething with rage. She took a shuddering breath and turned to face the senior clinician, gripping her fists tightly as she said in a defiant voice, "No. I won't lie about this. You told me not to call Dr. Ortega about her cases, not to change what is obviously bad medicine!"

Staff all around began to mumble to themselves, looking suspiciously at Dr. Howard, who narrowed his eyes in response."Nurse!" He growled, jamming a finger toward her, "This will be your job!" He whirled over to Morticia. "Fine, even if she did do what she said, that still doesn't change the fact that you made poor medical decisions! A man died because of you!"

"Actually... sir...." A small voice said, and the three of them turned to find the intern that Morticia had trapped, cradling a stack of papers in her trembling hands. "I... those orders weren't the ones that Dr. Ortega had made... I changed them."

Josh blinked, looking surprised as people began to openly speak their surprise amongst themselves. He took his hand from Morticia's shoulder and walked toward the mousy woman, taking the papers from her hands before scanning them and saying, "Oh Gina... why did you do this?"

She sniffled slowly raising a finger toward Dr. Howard. "H...he made me! Said if I didn't use my art skills to forge her handwriting, he'd take away my shot at a residency! But I couldn't keep quiet, the guilt was crushing me." She openly bawled, "I'm so sorry!"

Josh gently wrapped an arm around her, giving her a hug before being relieved by a beleaguered looking Judy. He sighed and nodded his head in thanks, looking back up at Dr. Howard, new found determination on his face. "Sir, I think you have a lot of explaining to do."

Everyone's angry expressions turned upon the older doctor and he looked about, his earlier confidence fading away to surprise and panic. "Wh...what is this? You'd take the word of an intern and a MONSTER, over me? I've given years to this place, and you side with them!"

"Well, when you're being so loud about it, yes." An older woman wearing a lab coat said, walking into the room with a deep scowl on her face. "People are trying to recover from their illness and injuries and you're making a damn racket in here." She put her hands on her hips, blowing away an errant strand of graying hair.

Dr. Howard blanched as he saw the woman, stuttering, "C...Chief Kleinberg, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I got a call about some funny business going on with some accounts here in the Hospital. Seems some insurance claims were getting billed awfully high, which normally wouldn't concern me since we need the money, but they all seemed to be from the same Doctor." She shook her head, "And now I come here seeing a scene from a damn medical drama. This is what happens when they coop me up in that office all day..."

Dr. Howard stood straight, a little light of hope on his face. "I am glad to see you here then, because I
have some serious charges of malpractice to make."

Dr. Kleinberg nodded her head, "Oh indeed, I do as well." Dr. Howard smiled widely before she rounded on him, her face serious. "You're coming with me to my office, where we'll talk this over. I can't believe you managed to talk me into keeping this young man from a residency program here."

Josh's eyes went wide before he glared at Dr. Howard. "Is that so? That's very interesting to know."

"Oh hush, Dr. Dinglemeyer." She said, giving him a stern look. "You're not free from admonishment in all of this either. Dr. Ortega is a fine enough doctor, but you do NOT call up a mortician to work in the ICU without my say so, and I know it was you who did it, you loverboy. And as for you Dr. Ortega, the way you handled this was unacceptable. I will be speaking with all of you in turn, however..." She seemed to fume as she looked at the senior clinician."Howard, in my office, NOW."

Dr. Howard slumped, all of his energy draining from him as a look of utter weariness and defeat appeared on his features. He looked to Morticia, his eyes still smoldering in hate, before merely shaking his head and following behind Dr. Kleinberg. She stopped as she reached the door, Dr. Howard walking past her, and she turned to Josh and Morticia, frowning deeply. "You two, get out of here, and the rest of you, stop staring and get back to work."

As soon as she walked out, everyone began chattering to themselves, moving back into the familiar rhythm  of their work. Judy nodded to the two and walked away with Gina, the girl looking almost catatonic. Josh and Morticia blinked, stunned by the events that had just occurred before breaking into large smiles and embracing each other. Josh held her tight as she grasped his back, pressing his warmth into her, emotions spilling forth from her unbidden.

"Josh... you... you came back for me."

"I'm so sorry about before, Morticia, I thought I was doing the right thing, but you must have been hurting so much. I'm sorry, I'll do anything to keep you, even give up being a doctor."

She pulled back, her eyes wide. "W...what?" She searched his expression before inhaling sharply. "You really mean that, don't you?"

"I do..." He said, putting his hand on her head, pulling her in close to chest, feeling the coolness of her skin against his heated body. "I love you Morticia."

"I love you too." She said, sniffing, once again wishing she could produce tears. She embraced him tightly, holding onto his torso so hard, she thought she might break him. She didn't care, she just wanted to hold him tight for as long as she could.

"Now that is quality programming." A hoarse voice said, and the two looked over to a nearby Hospital bed, where a beleaguered patient lay, smiling widely. "Hey, you two aren't going to turn this show x-rated, are you?"

Morticia eyed Josh with a lecherous expression, her lips curling upward. Josh coughed and rubbed the back of his head before grabbing at a curtain around the bed. "I think you should get some rest sir." He pulled it closed as Morticia began to drag him off.

---------------------------

"You know we're in deep shit though, right?"

"Yeah."

"Even if they nab Dr. Howard, we're going to get some serious reprimands."

"Most likely."

"Things could be very, very serious for us going on."

"Oh, they certainly will be."

"Morticia... did we do the right thing?"

Morticia paused, her sweater half pulled over her head, exposing her lily white abdomen and black lace bra. "You really want to get into this right now?"

"I mean, in the heat of the moment, it felt so right, but the long term consequences... gah, waiting for the hammer to come down is killing me!"

She sighed, and finished removing her sweater, letting it fall to the floor of the morgue. Josh was too tired to go home, and Morticia was far too impatient to wait for anything like that. Besides, the morgue was familiar to them, the cold and quiet space filling them with a sense of ease. Also, it was technically Morticia's shift still.

Morticia walked over to Josh and gently pressed a finger to his lips. "Shhhh. Stop talking, kid." She then moved into him, pressing her lips to his, cooing softly as he took the hint, wrapping his strong arms around her backside, his warmth permeating her body. He said that when she touched him, she made his body tingle from the cold, in a rather pleasurable way. When he touched her, however, his warm body made her skin ripple with the heat, suffusing her with energy that felt so good, it almost made her cry from the joy.

She felt her desire pulse within her and she used this to increase the passion in her kiss, her cold lips opening to taste his tongue, hot breath tickling the back of her mouth, while his wet tongue slid around with hers. It felt a little odd, kissing him without having had a smoke in awhile, but she realized that she could feel more from him without the conflicting sensation of the tobacco. It almost made her want to drop the habit. Almost.

He pulled back from her kiss after awhile, panting, and she had to remind herself that he actually needed to breath, something she forgot about in her lust sometimes. She took the opportunity then to lift his shirt from his body, exposing his roughly haired chest, and she ran her fingers through it, getting a good grip, causing him to inhale sharply, as he always did. In retaliation, he deftly moved his fingers upon the small of her back, undoing the clasp of her bra, the offending garment sliding down and freeing her ample bosom to Josh.

"You're frisky today, aren't you? What, does playing knight in shining armor get you off?" She said, a wicked grin upon her face.

"Shush." He said before taking her hand, his fingers interlacing with hers, mouth pressing once more to hers. She allowed him to take charge, leading their dance of tongues, her mind growing faint from the pleasures of his passion. He ran his free hand up her waist in a sensual motion before cupping her breast, the sensation of his fingers on her firm bust sending shudders down her spine, especially when his strong fingers brushed her nipples.

She pressed her own freehand on the small of his back, leaning into his pleasures, allowing him to slowly push her downward until her back was on the floor, the cool tiles feeling almost warm to her. She arched her back as he squeezed her breast, yet kept up his oral assault, and she moaned while being kissed, dropping back as he pulled away from her, breathing heavily.

She looked up at him, her chest rising as she became more and more aroused. His body was straddling her, and he never looked so manly as he did when he was doing so. She smiled up and him as he put his hands on her skirt, undoing the button and sliding it down. "Look at you kid, taking charge of things. You've certainly grown up, haven't you?"

"Only because I have you."

Morticia felt an acute wave of embarrassment at that and, if she could, her cheeks would have flushed. She looked over at her right hand, and she held it up to up him. He stopped pulling down her skirt and looked at her curiously before lifting his own right hand, interlacing fingers again. She smiled warmly at that, feeling the strength within his fingers, the reassurance in his touch. She closed her eyes and smirked, whispering,  "You're too good for me."

"Morticia, please. Without you, I might be dead. I owe everything to you, I'd give anything for you."

"Jesus kid, that's really sappy, even coming from you. It's like your proposing to me or something."

He paused, his expression becoming serious for a moment, and she felt a spike of panic at her sudden words. Before she could say anything else, he shrugged and replied, "Maybe I should."

Her breath, well, if she actually needed it, caught in her throat. She could feel her mind racing as she whispered, "J...Josh?"

"Yeah... yeah, maybe we should get married." He licked his lips, chuckling softly. "I don't have a ring or anything, but... Morticia Rosalina Ortega, will you marry me?"

She stared up at him, back on the floor, chest bare, man straddling her. As a little girl, she never expected her proposal to be like this, but when she had died, she never thought she'd ever get proposed to anyway. It wasn't ideal, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized it was perfect. She nodded her head a few times, her icy eyes shimmering with emotion, and she squeezed his hand tightly in hers. "Yes, oh God, yes."

He leaned down and kissed her, to which she reciprocated with a fiery passion, this time being the first to pull away, licking her lips and releasing his hand. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Josh blinked before chuckling and pulling her skirt, panties included, all the way off her smooth legs, tossing her clothing to the side. He admired her womanhood for a moment, sliding his fingers over her slit, causing her to shudder at his touch, her lubricating juices sticking to his fingers. He played with her wetness in his fingers for a moment before smiling and standing up, unbuttoning his pants and sliding them down along with his boxers, freeing his erection.

Morticia's eyes sparkled as his rod hung over her, and she let out a rather unladylike squeal of joy, reaching up to grasp it. He shuddered as her fingers brushed his shaft, and she could feel the blood flow through it, each pulse of warmth tingling her fingers. She ran her hand down his rod before caressing the tip, watching in wonder as it grew larger, as if a beast was awakening from its slumber. When it reached its maximal size, she let her hand fall, spreading her legs wide.

He didn't need her to say anything else, and he grabbed his cock in one hand, the other sliding along her thigh. He guided himself to her entrance, sliding his length along her cunt, giving her shivers. She pouted and he chuckled before placing the tip at her entrance, and then pushing in to penetrate her.

She felt her back arch as an explosive warmth spread within her as her insides were spread by his manhood. Her walls contracted against the invader, potentially in welcome or rebuke, either way causing her to gasp in the sudden pleasure of his entrance. She shivered, washing in the glory of his girth. When they first started, she tried to take the lead, but recently, when he took it instead, she allowed him, wanting to feel the power of his passion.

He bottomed out in her, and she shuddered, her cunt molding itself to the shape of his cock. She took his right hand in hers again, and smiled up at him, her serene expression turning to shock as he began to thrust within her. She was caught utterly off guard, and the convulsions she felt as she rocked in time with his motions made her entire body radiate in pleasure.

"F...fuck! Some warn... ahn... ah! Warning next time, kid!"

"Sorry, you just feel so good, and I mean..."

"Jesus Christ... always so eager..." She said, looking off to the side, smiling as he continued to thrust into her, her body acclimating to his motions. "I'll forgive you, after everything you did today."

"So magnanimous."

"I don't need an...uhn... any sass from you!" He thrust particularly hard, pressing against her womb, and she bucked, her mouth making a goofy looking smile. God she loved when he was rough like that. "Aww fuck it, just make love to me kid."

"I love you too."
She closed her eyes as he picked up his pace, pulling in and out of her, catching her up in the motions. He didn't choose to change positions, and she didn't really care to, imagining all the times they'd do this together in the future, no matter what path it took. She imagined him impregnating her like this, though it was impossible given her condition, but it still made her feel a warmth inside, one completely different from the massive meat stick sliding inside he.. I love you so much Josh. She thought, rocking back as he began to buck faster.

Morticia began to feel something well within her, the tell-tale signs of an orgasm, and she gripped his hand tightly, shaking her hips with his motions, trying to coax her release out. She could feel his cock twitching within her, swelling inside, growing almost painfully hot as he ravaged her pussy. She leaned forward and he got the message, inclining himself to kiss her, his tongue moving sloppily as their bodies rocked back and forth from their motions.

Morticia gasped as she heard him grunt, and his cock twitched violently before plunging fully within her, slamming against her womb and exploding with his seed, pulsing once, twice, three times... she began to lose count as the pressure against her deepest regions sent her over the edge, and she cried out in release of her orgasm, basking in the fire in her abdomen. She almost wept as she felt the wet, sticky warmth that clung to her dead organs, her insides coated with the embodiment of Josh's love.

He held himself there, panting, for a few, long moments before slowly removing his cock from her, his sperm sliding down the inside of her thigh. Her hand shaking, she ran it over her slit, feeling the lingering warmth coating her folds, and she sighed in contentment. "Josh... you know how to please me."

"I should hope so, would have been silly to propose like that otherwise." He said, before frowning over at his pants, which were buzzing gently. Morticia lay in a dazed stupor, radiating satisfaction while rubbing her belly, which felt like a furnace. She didn't pay attention as he reached for his phone, scanning over the screen before smiling broadly.

"Hey kid, think you can get me some smokes from my office? I broke my last box and... why are you smiling? I know I'm a good lay, but..." She trailed off as he showed her the phone, an e-mail message saying,

"See me in my office tomorrow. We will discuss your  future at this Hospital- Dr. Kleinberg, Chief of Medicine."

Morticia read it over two more times before smiling broadly and stretching her lithe body out, Josh laying down next to her as she snuggled up to him, his body no long feeling so much warmer than hers. With their actions, he'd warmed her up and she'd cooled him down, bringing their respective temperatures to a pleasant equilibrium. She sighed contentedly, rubbing her body against his side, her thoughts lost in the future."

"Hey kid... I mean... honey?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm not kidding about you getting me those smokes." She chuckled softly against him as he groaned in annoyance. Ah, now things were just right.