With open arms [Ismet Demir & Toris Laurinaitis]

So, another patient added to his roster. Ismet Demir, 13 years old. The report he had been given said that he had been in a severe car accident. Besides a broken leg, Toris was to check for any improvements in his memory, black out frequency, and his dizziness, though it appeared that Ismet had been given medicine for the last condition, though Toris doubted it was the right one. Those ER doctors were usually shoddy with their choice of medicines, usually a better one was available.

Ah, there it was, Room 217. Politely, Toris knocked on the door before opening it and walking in.

"Ismet Demir?"

Ismet shivered, pulling Kadri close and rubbing his stomach. He had started feeling ill almost as soon as he woke up and it hadn't gotten any better since then. The nurse he had told had just patted his head and walked away, and he hoped that his doctor would be able to help him. He moaned and curled up a little as his stomach began to ache, looking up as someone up knocked on the door.

He nodded, watching the doctor come into the room. He frowned, wondering at the safe feeling he got when the doctor came in. He didn't think it was normal, but the dotcor's voice and mere presence made him feel warm and safe. It was strange...

"I'm Toris Laurinaitis, I'll be your doctor while you're here, yes?" He said warmly as he walked over to Ismet's bed, pulling a chair over to be able to sit beside him. "So, before I say anything else, how are you feeling?" He propped his head on a hand as he looked over Ismet.

Complexion seems normal, same with facial features...

"Physically and mentally, of course..." If there was anything the boy wanted to talk about, Toris would listen. Children tended to be more honest than adults, at least.

He watched the doctor carefully before shuffling a little closer to him. "I...my stomach hurts really bad." He whispered, biting his lip. He paused before sitting up, pressing a hand against his stomach.

Ismet stared at Toris, running his fingers over Kadri to calm himself down. He didn't like being so close to strangers, no matter how safe he felt. Especially when he really had no reason to be feeling safe. He didn't know this man; he didn't know anything about him. "Ah...what do you mean by 'mentally' Dr. Toris?" He wondered, hoping he hadn't overstepped his boundaries.

"Your stomach?" Toris said in a concerned voice "That isn't good, not at all. I'll check your medicine, it might be making you feel so bad" He'd have to get the boy some stomach medicine nevertheless...poor kid. Again, he blamed the stupid medicine choices the ER people tended to make. It really bugged him sometimes, watching his patients get sicker because of a bad medicine choice."And I'll get you some stomach medicine, okay?"

"Mentally means what goes on in your head, Ismet" Toris explained "Do you feel really sad or worried? Do you want to talk to be about something, anything?" It was important to let all patients, especially children, have a chance to talk if they need to. It not only gave Toris a better perspective on their personality, but it usually reduced stress in the patient also.

Ismet smiled slightly, nodding. More medicine...did not sound fun, but if it was going to make him feel better than he would deal with it. "Okay." He said, pulling Kadri closer.

Something he wanted to talk about...He wanted to talk about his parents, but he didn't know if he could trust his doctor. Then again, this was his doctor, the one he was going to be seeing the entire time he was in the hospital. Which would be a while if he heard the nurses correctly.

"I...I miss my parents." He whispered, biting his lip and glancing over at the doctor. He rubbed at his eyes when he felt tears come, sniffling slightly trying not to cry. But he missed them...tears started rolling down his face slowly.

"Your parents..." Toris said slowly as he put a comforting hand on Ismet's shoulder "If you want to be sad, no one's stopping you..." Ismet had experienced a great loss, so quickly. How long had the boy been here? Not long, Toris knew. The news had probably been blunt, unforgiving. Toris wondered if Ismet would be able to even attend the funeral when it came around, the car accident was pretty bad, and so were Ismet's injuries.
The boy looked like he was about to start sobbing in a moment, so Toris pulled out a pack of tissues out of his pocket. Yeah, he had tissues in his pocket just in case. It was often that he needed to use them, so the reason he always carried them with him was justified.

Ismet rubbed the tears away roughly, shaking his head. "No; boys aren't suppose to cry." His father had told him so and thus it had to be true, right? His father wasn't to lie and the older man had never lied to him before...except for that one time when Ismet wanted to know where babies came from and Baba had told him they came from the stork. But that was different!

He looked over at the doctor, watching him take a pack of tissues out of his pocket. He wondered why; the doctor didn't look sick and most doctors didn't come to work when they were to avoid getting their patients even more sick. Dr. Laurinaitis shouldn't need to blow his nose...

Toris frowned slightly. "You know, crying would make you feel much better. And I won't tell anyone, I promise. It'll be a secret between you and me." He said, a slightly worried tone in his voice "Everyone cries sometimes. Even me, and I'm a lot older than you"

"You really should let your emotions out...it'll make you feel better, and I'm here if you need me..."

Ismet stared at his doctor, trying to figure out if he was telling the truth. The older man didn't seem like the type to lie, but people will say funny things sometimes to get others to do what they want.

"Do you really cry?" He asked, confused. His father had told him that men who cried weren't really men, but Dr. Laurinaitis seemed like a man to him...He buried his face in Kadri's back and peeked out at the doctor, watching him suspisciously. If a man wasn't a man what was he?

"If I'm sad, I cry. It's only natural for people to do that" Toris explained "Perhaps your dad meant that you shouldn't cry too much. But it's definitely okay to cry once in a while" He looked at the boy hiding behind his plushie and smiled. What a cute stuffed animal that was. But nevermind cute stuffed animals! "I'll say it again, do you need to cry or something?" Toris repeated gently.

Maybe his dad did mean it that way...that way, both the doctor and his Baba were right. Ismet bit his lip, still not wanting to cry. It would feel weird to do that, especially with someone watching him the way doctor Laurinaitis was. "...no. I don't need to cry." He lied, blushing slightly. He glanced away from the doctor, fidgeting with Kadri's paw. He wasn't suppose to lie to adults, but he didn't want to cry in front of someone...

"...alright then" Toris nodded "So, because I'm a doctor, I have to do all those things that doctors do, like checking your pulse and blood pressure and all that. So! Let's begin." Toris took a stethoscope out of a nearby drawer "Can you sit up? I need to listen to your breathing and your heart, to start with" He paused for a moment "And no, today I don't think you'll be having any shots"

Ismet nodded, sitting up for Toris and blinking rapidly as spots filled his vision. That wasn't good...he braced himself with a hand on the bed to keep from falling over, wishing that his vision would clear soon so he could see his surroundings. He didn't like not being able to see. "What would I need shots for?" He asked, trying to distract himself from his faulty eyesight. He had gotten alot of shots back when his family had moved to America, and all Ismet could remember was that they hurt. A lot. He was glad he wasn't getting any today.

"In case you didn't have the latest vaccines...your medical records show that it's all up-to-date, so we'll be fine" He smiled and moved so he could reach the back opening of Ismet's hospital gown, pressing the cold metal of the stethoscope to the boy's back. "Breath slowly" Toris instructed "And, of course, say if anything is wrong." His other hand was rested on Ismet's shoulder, perhaps as a show of understanding, or maybe just to balance Toris in the position he was in.

"Oh..." Ismet muttered, shivering as the doctor moved his hospital gown and pressed the cold -very cold- something or other against his back. He paused at the feeling of Dr. Laurinaitis' hand on his shoulder before taking a deep breath, releasing it slowly and slumping slightly in relief as his vision started to come back. He didn't want to make a big issue out of it, so he was happy that it had come back before he had had to tell the doctor about it. He continued to breath slowly, gradually relaxing and even leaning into the doctor's touch. It was...comforting, in a way, even if that wasn't what the doctor meant with the touch.

Toris nodded, he could hear nothing wrong with Ismet's breathing functions "Good....now hold your breath for 5 seconds." His tone remained soft, and he did notice his patient leaning into his touch. That was good, he had gotten the boy to be a bit more relaxed around him. Because most children were rather intimidated by adults such as he, Toris had made it a priority to come across as more like a parent of sorts. Especially to those who didn't have one, like Ismet. While Ismet held his breath, Toris thought about a change in the IV drip. He'd have to ask about that to the nurse later...

Ismet did as the doctor told him to, his eyes falling closed as he did so. It felt so weird, having someone this close to him that he wasn't related to and probably would never see again once his time in the hospital was over. But...the doctor needed to be this close to do his job correctly. Ismet didn't want to get in the way of that anymore than he wanted to face the fact that his parents were dead.

He bowed his head slightly as he thought of his parents, twisting his hands in his hospital gown. Soon, as soon as his leg healed up and his head injury was fixed, he would be out of here. On his own. With no support, as his only family was back in Cyprus and his parents had no desire for him to go back there anytime soon. He pressed his lips together at the thought, noting that he was still relaxed. How odd...