My Home From Home - Chapter 28: Chapter 28

"IT'S CHLAMYDIA ISN'T IT!?" Henry's eyes widened as the young woman sitting across the desk from him screamed at the very horrified looking young man next to her. He tried to maintain a calm and collected exterior as he watched the scene unfold before him, but in that moment he literally would've given anything to be anywhere but there. "WHERE IN GOD'S NAME DID YOU GET CHLAMYDIA, KEVIN?!" She hit him repeatedly on the shoulder with her handbag, her eyes filled with rage.
"Karen, I didn't, I swear! I wouldn't ever do that to you! It can't be!" Muttered a very flushed looking Kevin Timmins to his wife, Karen, as he raised his hands defensively to block his wife's blows; Kevin worked for the Hudson's Bay Company selling furs throughout the area and often travelled for work; he'd come into the infirmary complaining of pain whilst urinating, frequently having to do so, and an odour of sorts; but without any signs of discharge that one might associate with a venereal disease.
"Mr and Mrs Timmings, terribly sorry but if I may just interrupt for a second. I think it'll be of some comfort to you, Mrs Timmins" " Henry cleared his throat, locking eyes with Mrs Timmins, before turning towards Mr Timmins. "And Lord only knows to you, Mr Timmins... That you do not have chlamydia, or any venereal disease for that matter. You've got a urinary tract infection."
"But... He's a man?" Karen's priorly fiery hazel eyes seemed to wash over with genuine confusion.
"Yes, it is certainly less common in men than it is in women, but it does happens nonetheless." Explained Henry clearly, the corners of his lips perking up into a slight smile as he glanced up to see a look of relief wash over the wretched Mr Timmins' face. "I can prescribe paracetamol for the pain, and cranberry juice to help with the infection; other than that I would suggest drinking plenty of water." Twas a difficult time treating bacterial infections prior to the advent of Penicillin, yet they somehow made do.
They both thanked Henry for his help, Kevin looking more relieved whilst Karen seemed a bit embarrassed by her outburst though Henry couldn't blame her; with the dysuria being common between both urinary tract infections as well as venereal diseases, it wasn't as though she was off in her own laymen's diagnosis of it.
He watched the young couple leave, muttering to one another as they seemed to bicker; he couldn't make out what they were saying yet he could only imagine it was somewhere along the lines of Kevin saying 'I told you so', and Karen not being terribly pleased that he did so. As they turned the corner out of the examination room, Henry finally relaxed his spine, slouching onto his desk and holding his head in his hand as he let a chuckle escape him for the first time since the whole ordeal began.
As the bell's above the front entrance jingled to indicate they'd stepped out of the clinic, it didn't take long before he heard an all too familiar sound of frantic heels heels clicking against the hardwood floor. He glanced up knowing all too well what he'd see; Mary peeking into the office, her auburn ringlets cascading down the shoulders of her aubergine coloured dress.
"I take it you heard, then?" Henry shot her a knowing look, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back in his chair as he watched the young secretary cover her mouth; both giggling like gossiping school children as Mary stepped into Henry's office and sat down in the chair across from him.
"Honestly, with her screaming it like a banshee, I'm surprised the whole town didn't here." Recounted Mary, craning her neck for good measure to ensure nobody was around before turning back to Henry; their giggling turned into outright snickering.
"We really shouldn't laugh, it's terribly unkind. Not to mention the poor chap looked scared out of his wits, heaven bless him." Henry huffed as he tried and failed to regain semblance; dabbing the laughter induced tearing. "Anyway, have we got any appointments on the docket for before lunch?"
"I don't believe so..." Mary blinked her gaze up as she tried to recall if there was anything she'd forgotten.
"Brilliant, well I was thinking perhaps we could get some steak and kidney pies from Emily's for lunch. It's been ages since we've had a good catch-up." Smiled Henry warmly, earning him an eager grin in return from Mary; he loved his chats with Mary, he always found her witty and clever but most of all he liked checking in to make sure she was alright. She was his friend as well as employee and it was his job to ensure her welfare was upheld.
"Sounds like a plan to me." Just as the auburn haired young secretary was mid thought, both Henry and Mary's attentions were drawn out towards the waiting areas as they heard the bell above the door jingle, paired with the sound of the cold winter wind ushering in the unknown visitor.
"Are we expecting anyone?" Asked Henry as they exchanged yet another confused look.
"Not that I'm aware of." Stood Mary hastily walking towards the doorway. "Just a moment, Doctor. I'll just see who that is." Henry hummed in acknowledgement, watching as she disappeared out into the waiting area.
The pretty dark haired doctor pushed himself to standing, letting out a huff as he took Kevin Timmins' now updated file and walked it over to the filing cabinet to stow it away. He could hear distant conversation coming from the reception desk though he couldn't decipher what they were saying nor exactly whom the other voice belonged to; however it wasn't long till he'd find out.
"Timmy is here, he says he's feeling well." Mary peeked into he office to brief Henry; with a knowing look in her eyes, as though she knew something that Henry didn't.
"Timmy Bates?" Henry cocked an eyebrow at the young lady, earning him a nod from the Mary. "Right, well go on and let him in, I can work through lunch this time round, perhaps we can have a proper catch up tomorrow, then. But you go on to Emily's and see if she's free." Mary smiled with and a nod before she was off back to the front reception to call in the young Timmy Yates.
Timmy was a bright and motivated young lad, eighteen years of age and one of the top pupils at Fir Creek schoolhouse; set to finish secondary school in the spring and write his leaving exams to go off to university. His teacher, Ms Gillings expected bright things of him, and from what Henry had seen it was quite plausible. The last time he had come into the infirmary, it was for his routine physical; Henry found him to be sharp as a tack and incredibly inquisitive about everything medical. A bright young lad indeed.
Henry slipped the manila folder out from the filing cabinet, one with 'Timmy Bates' inked in on the tab; he walked back towards the desk and placed it atop the mahogany surface before straightening out his waistcoat by the hems and sitting himself back down.
"Dr Dunmurry?" Henry heard a voice at the door with a knock, prompting him to glance up through his dark brown fringe at a young chestnut haired lad standing in the doorway with a polite smile.
"Ah yes, Timmy!  Please, come in. Do sit down." Henry gestured him in welcomingly towards the chair across from his own; watching as the chestnut haired lad shut the door behind him and awkwardly stalked towards Henry's desk to take a seat. "Right so, what's this I hear of you feeling poorly?" Henry gave the lad an empathetic frown, resting his elbows on the mahogany bureau.
"Yeah, I think I have a cold." Timmy coughed rather unconvincingly, periodically glancing up to lock eyes with Henry as though gauging whether or not the young doctor was buying his story. "I don't feel well enough to go to school..." He trailed off as Henry pursed his lips to keep from smiling; he'd seen this before. People who come in to the surgery in hopes of getting a doctor's letter to skive off of their lessons or work; it wasn't hard to spot such cases, but general rule of thumb that Henry followed religiously was to treat all cases the same and examine with utmost thoroughness.
"Oh well that won't do will it." Henry's frowned with furrowed brows and soft empathetic eyes as he gauged the situation. "What other symptoms are you feeling besides a cough? Any fever, chills, congestion, nausea." He rested his finger over his lips as he waited for a response.
"Um...I.... Uh..." Stalled Timmy, shifting uncomfortably in the wooden upholstered chair he'd been sat in; his striking green eyes seeming to glaze over in a daze as Henry's deep blue gaze scanned his face to analyse him carefully.
For starters, the young lad he looked tired; his eye sockets riddled with bags and dark circles, a clear bit of puffiness in his under-eye area allowing Henry to infer that he'd indeed been crying. He looked emotionally unwell, and from what Henry had knew through his clinical experience, emotional health was as, and at times more important than physical health. He may have called round to the surgery for a different reason entirely, but Henry nonetheless saw something else altogether to be concerned by.
"Timmy, mate, is everything alright with you?" Henry lowered his voice, taking a softer tone as a genuine look of concern washed over his visage. "You know, anything you tell me in this room as a physician is held to the strictest confidence. Medical or even personal. So if there is something that is bothering you, you can tell me. Being a general practitioner it's within my scope of practice to listen to any problems especially since they might be hindering your psychological and emotional wellbeing."
Henry's soft blue gaze remained fixated on Timmy's meadow green eyes; he glanced up to lock eyes with Henry, briefly breaking eye contact. He let out a heartbroken sigh, closing his eyes as Henry noticed a tear escape down his cheek.
"You don't have to speak about it if you're not ready. But just know I can help you if something is wrong. Think of me as less of a doctor, and more of an older brother figure or a friend who won't judge you. Is it perhaps schoolwork that is stressing you, or causing anxiety? Sitting examinations for your secondary school certificate can be terribly daunting." Henry shot the younger chestnut haired lad an empathy ladened look paired with a reassuring gleam as he observed the younger green eyed boy glance up again with tears pooling in his blood-shot eyes; only further confirming Henry's suspicions that he had indeed been crying lately. And that's when Timmy lost all semblance of control; succumbing to his pent up emotions and fully breaking down into heart wrenching sob after another.
"Mate... " Henry sighed pityingly, pushing himself up to standing before he walked towards the boy across the desk, kneeling down next to him like a supportive brother figure. "There, there, mate. Surely, It can't be as bleak as that. Why don't you tell me what's wrong and I can try and help you." He fished out his handkerchief form his suit jacket pocket and handed it to the boy, watching as he dabbed the tears off his cheek.
"The boys at school." Timmy managed to eke out the words between heart-wrenching sobs. "They. They call me names." Henry felt dread wash over his body as the young meadow-green eyed lad's eyes wept; sending tear after tear cascading down his lightly freckled cheeks. He felt dread because he knew how Timmy felt; he knew exactly how he felt. Because when he Timmy's age as well as younger, he was teased and bullied at school.
"Timmy..." Henry whispered breathily, placing a supportive hand on the boy's shoulder. "I'm so sorry, mate. I know exactly how you feel."
"You do?" Timmy's peridot green eyes shot up towards Henry's, watching as the raven haired young doctor nodded to him in the affirmative. "Then please! Please write me a note to excuse me from school! Please!"
"I can't do that, Timmy." Henry frowned, he wished he could do it, but he knew that it wouldn't do much good. "You have to face your problems head on. Running away from them only means they've won. You can't let bullies win, mate."
"You don't understand." Timmy mumbled, burying his face frustratedly into the palms of his hands "They. They call me a fairy. A queer. A freak!" Henry felt his heart sink in his chest; if all this didn't hit a bit too close to home til now, it certainly had done after that last bit. "I'm not a freak." Muttered Timmy bitterly through gritted teeth; a look of despair and desperation in his eyes that Henry knew all too well.
"Of course you're not a freak, Timmy. Bullies are just cowards who want to make someone feel miserable because they themselves are miserable inside." Sighed Henry, his hand moving down from Timmy's shoulder to give him a reassuring pat on the upper back. Timmy hissed in pain as Henry's hand made contact with his coat, his body convulsing visibly. Henry's eyes widened at the bizarre reaction; something was almost definitely off. "Timmy, mate are you... alright?" His blue eyes locked in on Timmy's and though Timmy remained silent, his silence spoking volumes more than imaginable. "Timmy. Show me your back, please." Henry felt a deep sensation of dread overcoming his body; fearing that his suspicions might indeed be correct.
Timmy's bright green eyes pleaded with Henry, pooling with yet more tears before he ultimately sighed and slipped off his coat. Henry gulped, practically feeling his heart beating through his clothes as he watched with bated breaths whilst the boy slipped off his off-white shirt to reveal a barrage of blue and purple bruises that punctuated his snowy white skin.
"Good God..." Henry gasped quietly under his breath, his eyes flashing with horror at the state of him; bruises all over his torso, his arms and grip marks on his wrists. "Timmy, who did this to you...?" Henry felt his eyes watering as his gaze scanned Timmy's sullen looking face.
"The boys at school..." Timmy's lips quivered. "Mostly Jacob..."
"Jacob McAllister?" Henry furrowed his brows, frowning as he watched the chestnut haired lad nod wearily. Jacob was another student in Timmy's year, he always seemed so charming, but little did anyone know he had a side to him that remained hidden. "God, Timmy. You've go to tell your par-."
"No!" Henry was cut off by Timmy raising his voice to him; a look of deep despair in those peridot eyes that shattered Henry's heart from within. "No! I nobody can know! You promised you wouldn't tell anyone... He'll kill me..."
"Now hang on just a minute, Timmy." Henry cut him off tersely. "This." He gestured towards Timmy's wounds. "This isn't just some schoolyard bullying. This is assault! I'm sorry mate, but I will have to urge you to tell someone. Your Parents, Mrs Gillings, Constable Wilson, anyone! And if someone is threatening you then that's even more grounds to tell someone"
"No!" Timmy sniffled as he frustratedly pulled his shirt back on, buttoning it up before slipping his coat over it. "I should've known I couldn't trust you." He spat bitterly, though his eyes were practically dripping with terror.
"C'mon, mate. Don't be like that." Henry sighed with disappointment, feeling an inexplicable sensation of suffocation as he watched the lad storm towards the door. "I just want to help!"
"Nobody can help me." Timmy let out an audible sigh. "Nobody."
And with that Timmy rushed towards the door, turning the knob and throwing it open to take his leave; only stopping dead in his tracks with an audible gasp as he nearly crashed straight into Thomas outside the door.
"Oh hello there, Timmy. How are you today?" Smiled Thomas with his usual friendly, courteous demeanour that he always had with the townsfolk. "You alright, bud? You look a bit flushed? Are you feeling well?" Thomas narrowed his gaze in concern at the boy, as Henry stood in his office and observed the interaction curiously from afar. Timmy blushed. A distinctive blush that wasn't quite 'flushed' like Thomas had characterised it.
"I-I um... I gotta go." Stammered the chestnut haired teenager, before rushing off, his cheeks flushing even brighter red as Thomas stared confusedly at the back of his head before turning to Henry and cocking a brow questioningly. "What was that all about?" He asked as he stepped into Henry's office and closed the door behind him; twiddling the lock with his fingers to insure they had privacy.
"I couldn't tell even you if I wanted to. Doctor-patient confidentiality." Henry's body slouched in pure exhaustion as Thomas stalked up to him with a cheeky smile.
"I know, I know." Thomas rolled his eyes in jest, cupping Henry's face in his palm and placing a loving peck onto his pouty pink lips. "But try to go easy on yourself sometimes."
"How do you mean?" Henry's brows furrowed at Thomas' words as he gazed up perplexedly into Thomas' lovelorn brown eyes.
"I just mean that sometimes, you get a little too invested." Thomas pushed the raven black hair out of the blue eyed boy's face. "It's good to care for your patients and I appreciate that; but don't forget to look after yourself and your own mental wellbeing."
"I think you'll find that easier said than done in my line of work." Henry shot Thomas a knowing look, as he playfully prised himself off of his Thomas' scarlet tunic. "I wasn't aware we were meeting today, is everything alright? Is there something you needed?"
"Oh! Nearly forgot, sorry." Chuckled Thomas as he dug into his tunic pocket and fished out a folded up sheet of paper. "Got this just today in the mail. Need a doctor to sign off for my physical fitness to send off to headquarters."
"Oh? Well aren't you in luck. I happen to be a doctor." Flirted Henry playfully, taking the folded paper out from between Thomas' fingers and unfolding it to read it. "Right, this looks like a run-of-the-mill physical, I could work this into the schedule right now, if that works for you?"
"Works perfectly." Thomas smiled, putting his swoon-worthy dimples on display for the attractive young doctor.
"Brilliant, go on into the examination room and I'll be right there." Henry nodded, turning on his heels to gather his supplies when Thomas held onto his wrist to stop him.
"Hey. You okay?" Thomas spun Henry around and pulled him into his arms; his deep brown eyes gazing into Henry's.
"Y-yes, of course." Henry shot Thomas a puzzled look, paired with a rather forced laugh that Thomas could see right through.
"You sure?" Thomas furrowed his brows knowingly. "You'd tell me if something was the matter, right?"
"Of course. It's nothing, really." Henry tried with all his might to be convincing that time around; but it really wasn't nothing. Thomas sighed softly, pursing his lips with a nod; he didn't pry any further, but he knew Henry wasn't telling him why he was so preoccupied.
Henry gathered the things he needed to do Thomas' physical, stethoscopes, mercury thermometers, reflex hammers and there sort, before making his way across the hall to the examination room. He knocked the customary two times before cracking the door open to see the young handsome Constable in scarlet sitting on the examination table with his boots dangling down.
"Right, let's crack on with this shall we..." Henry washed his hands in the wash basin before turning around to face Thomas. "Constable Thomas Daniel Wilson. Aged 27, date of birth the 18th June 1893..." Henry muttered as he read through the medical clearance sheet. He went item by item, checking Thomas' temperature, his weight and his height.
"Alright, everything looks good so far..." Henry muttered as he filled the sheet mindlessly, glancing up towards Thomas with a cold professional tone. "You'll need to get your kit off for the next bit."
"You don't have to has me twice." Thomas joked with a cheeky wink, and though Henry usually blushed like a bashful schoolboy whenever Thomas teased him so, this time he did nothing. "Are you sure you're alright."
"I'm fine, really." Henry replied tersely, though not impolitely; his eyes were blank, almost eerily so, as though broken and haunted by the ghosts of his past.
"Alright." Thomas sighed, trying his best to hide his disappointment leaving it be so Henry could go on with the rest of the physical examination. He silently stripped down out of his tunic and shirt so Henry could take his blood pressure and check his respirations with the stethoscope; kicking off his his trousers for the reflex test and peeling off his underpants for the testicular and hernia examination.
Thomas tried to tell himself Henry's silent, methodical, thoroughness was merely his professionalism; but something in those eyes told him there was more. They were focused and present, but at the same time he couldn't help but see this tinge of melancholy in them that turned his stomach; lacking the brightness that seemed to illuminate any room the handsome young doctor entered.
"Everything looks normal." Henry noted mundanely, glancing over the paper one last time for good measure; dipping the fountain pen into the ink one last time before signing his signature on the line labelled 'Physician's Signature'. "And there you are, you're fighting fit." He folded the sheet back along it's creases and handed it to Thomas with a smile; a smile that once again didn't match his eyes.
"Thanks." Thomas managed to eke out a smile to mirror Henry's though he couldn't help but feel a preoccupation over the one he cares about most being upset. Henry leant in and gave Thomas a soft peck on the lips, before turning on his heels to leave the examination room. "Hey." Thomas held onto Henry's wrists once again. "I know you may not want to talk about some things. Maybe you can't talk about it. But if you ever do want to talk... I'm always hear to listen. Anytime you want."
"Thanks..." Henry's sad eyes seemed to warm ever so slightly, making Thomas smile as he saw a glimpse of his Henry shine through in that moment. Henry felt his heart swell with a sense of something he'd never felt before; the sensation of knowing someone cared truly for him. "I'll keep that in mind..."