The Doctor Is In [Harley]

Harley had managed to catch a little bit of time to himself today than he normally did, he enjoyed his job, especially seeing the smallest hints of progress with some of the people here, but he still liked to have time to recharge. He was distracted in the small kitchen making a pot of coffee when he heard the door open, wondering who that could be. Ian maybe? He was early, "you want a cup of coffee?" He said, barely missing a beat as he turned to the man, "here early to get it over with quicker?" There was a sort of jesting tone to his voice, he never blamed anyone for not wanting to be here, it was natural after all.

He smiled at the man as he poured his own cup of coffee, ready to do the same for Ian if he wanted, "you've been doing excellent work in the medbay, Mr.Kelley." He said with a genuine tone as he moved to his desk, "before we start, I want to show you something." He dug in his desk before pulling out his dog tags, holding them out, "I just want you to know that I am not here to preach textbook bullshit at you, if you don't want to talk to me, I can't force you to." He shrugged, "I'm not speaking about things I've no knowledge of. I was down this road." He tucked them in his pocket and gave a gentle smile, "I just...I want to help. The world fucks people like us over left and right, I want to help."

Ian gave a bit of a nervous laugh at the question about his early arrival. "Am I that obvious? And uh, sure. Coffee's great, thanks."

He studied the other man as he worked on the coffee, he'd expected someone who... He guessed looked more like a shrink. The older man in a tweed coat. Or the woman who stares over her glasses into your very soul and asks how things make you *feel*.

He smiled at the compliment about his work. "Thanks... It's been a while since I've worked directly with patients... instead lots of lab work, lectures... It's good to be back."

He followed the other, taking the offered dog tags and turning them over in his hands before handing them back. It didn't take away all his unease, but it brought his guard down a little. "I appreciate the honesty." He said after a moment. "I've never been good at these sorts of things... But i need that checkmark in my file that says I'm not crazy."

He moved to take a seat, spreading his hands. "So... I'll try and be honest and cooperative back with you."

Harley didn't waste time sweeping back to the kitchen to prepare him a cup a coffee, "straight black? I tend to overfill mine with sugar, guess I figure I've had enough bitter for a lifetime." He laughed softly and shook his head, bringing Ian a cup and setting it down in front of him with sugar and a spoon, so he could have it how he preferred, "getting to put your skills into actually helping in a hands on way is incredibly rewarding."

He chuckled softly, "mm. Obvious isn't the word I would use, but no one wants to come talk to me." He hadn't had many people actually come back after the initial visit, which was unfortunate, "I'm happy that people have spoken to me at all...There is so much pain here." His voice had a hitch of pain, he was usually so good at retaining the patient-doctor disconnect, but he genuinely felt an overwhelming empathy for these people.

He cleared his throat and nodded, "I aim for honesty, the same honesty from me that I ask for in return, respect is a two way street, as they say." He couldn't help a gentle chuckle at that, giving him a knowing wink, "you want to know a secret? When I had my first appointment, I slammed my hand in a door and broke every finger, just so I wouldn't have to go." He scoffed and rolled his eyes, "they bandaged and splinted my hand and made me go anyway."

He nodded at Ian's words and smiled, "that's all I ask for in the end, if you leave here and decide to never come back, I wont fault you, but my door is open for you at any time, and everything said in here is confidential." He nodded, looking over his face, "how have you been holding up since arriving? I understand it was your son who invited you? The med bay has seen some rather gruesome injuries, are you handling it alright?" He chuckled, "you seem to have slipped into the role quite organically, which is good, but I imagine the sheer volume of injuries in such a short time has been a tad much, am I correct?"

He winced a little at the story of what he'd done to his hand... But he could relate. He'd had a few crazy thoughts on how to get out of these sorts of things himself in the past. Leaning forward he added just a little sugar to the coffee then sat back with it in his hands as he listened.

"Sol, yeah. He spends most of his time down working on the computers and such." He smiled, his whole expression lightened when he talked about his son. "He saw the staff was stretched thin here and asked if he could ask me to come."

He took a sip of the coffee, his expression growing serious again. "Everyone in there has been through a hell of a lot...I just..." he shook his head. "It's not field work..." there was a sense of relief in his voice at this. "Maybe a little tired, but I'm fine. It's the rest of them I worry about in all of this."

Harley smiled when Ian did, admiring the way his face lit up when he spoke of his boy, it was easy to see just how much love he had for him, and he hoped Sol knew that, "he sounds like a smart boy. You care a lot for him, hm?" He chuckled softly, "your whole face lit up a bit just thinking about him." He figured that was an innocent observation to make, he usually tried to avoid letting people know he was watching their faces, but it was endearing just how much his whole face changed. It was cute. He laughed softly, "no kids of my own, but I am the oldest of about nine siblings, so I've done my share of helping to be a parent."

His attention turned back to Ian when he spoke, listening carefully, "Yes, it seems so much bad happened so quick...And most of them already had traumas from before coming here." He looked thoughtful, "thrown into a situation like this without any chance to first heal the mental wounds you were already licking. It's hard." He glanced up at him and gave a concerned tilt of his head, "what worries you, if you don't mind my asking?"

He smiled. "He's a good kid. Always has been. Smart, funny, knows exactly what he wants out of the world and has his act together enough to get it...takes after his mother." He added the bit of a barb against himself without even really realizing he'd done it as he took another drink before resting the mug on his knee.

"Nine? Damn...second of four myself and some days that felt like too many." He laughed. Normally these sessions only served to make him feel on edge and defensive, but so far this one was doing a good job of letting him just...be..without feeling like he had to put on some kind of 'saying the right buzzword' act. Didn't hurt he wasn't bad to look at either.

Wait...what? He shook the thought away with another mouthful of coffee. This coffee really needed more vodka in it.

He let out a sigh when they started talking about his patients. "Yeah, I just...these are not people who've had easy lives. Hell, I could about make a whole new person out of the collective pieces this bunch is missing." He gestured towards the other, signaling he agreed with him. The more he talked and as he became a bit less guarded the more the New York accent rose to the surface.

"So...you ever been in a situation where...you know you're in over your head. But you know you can't go back neither. And the things people do in that moment of fucking desperate crazy that always happens?" He raised his hands to indicate around him. "For what it's worth, I'm glad someone decided to bring you onboard. There's a lot I can fix...but what you do? They're gonna need it every bit as much." In an odd contradiction, as much as he resisted such services for himself he was often quick to praise their merits for others situations.

Takes after his mother? Those words struck Harley as odd when he heard them, it made it clear that he didn't see himself in a very positive light, Harley normally tried not to analyze people in this way, but sometimes body language and small abs could speak volumes. Insecure perhaps? He chuckled, "he sounds like he takes after you just as much from where I'm sitting." He shrugged a little, "admittedly I don't know you as well, but you're a good man. You must give yourself more credit where it is due." He nodded as he said this, in a gesture that was final, he believed what he said.

He laughed though at that, nodding, "yes, I had to play parent a lot, my mother was very ill often and my father could never be bothered to be a parent." He shrugged, "you do what you have to. Mom passed far too early and my siblings were scattered to the four corners because of the shitty fostering system." He looked to the side with an embarrassed expression. "sorry I'm...Oversharing...Aren't I?" He felt comfortable with Ian, it was beginning to get very hard to keep the patient doctor distance around this group.

He listened carefully as he spoke, nodding slowly to indicate he understood exactly what he was talking about, "Mm...Can I be candid with you for a second? I know exactly what you mean..." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "some of the people I've spoken too...There are things wrong with them that are...Severe...Not hopeless, and not enough to make them unfit for combat. But I worry so much for them." He looked up at him with an exasperated, but thankful smile, "thank you. I love this job, I do, but it gets tiring feeling like people don't want you around. No one wants to see a shrink, and I don't blame them...But I only wish to help."

He brushed aside the comments about how he should give himself more credit with a wave of his hand and a glance to the side. It was all well and good to say he should take more credit and believe in himself and all that...but they were things easier said than done. But that wasn't an argument he felt like having right now.

He shook his head to show he wasn't bothered by the other's sharing. Not orthodox maybe, but he found he really didn't mind. "That had to have been rough." He frowned. "What happened, you ever get back together with them again? Still get to see them?" he asked, genuinely curious.

He gave a short laugh, feeling bad for a moment at his own reluctance at coming here. He'd never really thought about it that way, that the shrink could feel bad at people's reluctance at visiting, only from the side of the person who didn't really want to be there in the first place.

"I think I understand that a little...most people don't like to go to doctors either unless something's gone really wrong." He smiled wryly. "So...what can I do to help? These people are in our care, makes sense to work together some in order to better help them." He offered.

He chuckled softly at his dismissive wave, shaking his head, "yes sorry...I suppose saying and doing are very different things. Well, I'll give you that credit where you cannot, eh?" He gave the man a soft smirk and dropped the subject at that, he wasn't here to force him to talk about things he didn't want to, after all, that would only serve to create a distance between them that he didn't want.

When he seemed genuinely interested in what he had to say, he sighed softly and shook his head, "it was...I did so much for my siblings Ian...And now I don't know where any of them are." He looked down at the surface of his desk and frowned, "I kept in touch as best I could for a while...But eventually I lost track of them one by one. I accepted it y'know? They're adults. But..." He laughed and ran a hand through his hair, "now I get to thinking and it's like...What if some of 'em were in LA?" He cleared his throat and chuckled, "ahem..Uh...But this isn't my time, it's yours Ian. My apologies..." He was getting worse about this, or maybe he just felt a bit at ease with Ian. He wasn't sure which it was.

He gave Ian a genuine smile at his offer of help, nodding, "well...I just..." He gestured as he tried to find the words, "I need them to know that I am not like what people think shrinks are...I'm not here to spit textbook buzzwords and call it a day." He looked thoughtful, "I'm here to help. To really and truly help. I care about everyone here...I just need them to know that." He shook his head, "I'm not here to judge or label anyone, I'm only here to help them hurt less inside." He looked down, "this is an amazingly strong group, I only want to empower them further." It was frustrating, wanting so badly to help but knowing that no one wanted it, that they'd be content if you just packed up and left.

There was more he could have said about the other's family, but he was right...this wasn't friends talking over lunch or something like that, this was still his session and he should stay focused on that. He sighed quietly to himself, leaning back on the couch.

"Hmm, no, so far you're doing a good job of that." He agreed. "I mean, you haven't yet asked me about shit like...what color are my feelings...or how it's somehow all my mother's fault or...or maybe if I was just nicer to my inner child I'd be happy..." He smirked a little. "I've heard some crazy stuff, what can I say?'

He finished the cup of coffee, setting it down on the table in between them. "I'll tell them that." He promised with a bit of a smile.

Harley chuckled softly, tapping his chin, "Mm well, if you wanted to speak on a more personal level...We could go for lunch in town?" He chuckled and shrugged, "nothing fancy, just a meal between friends, y'know?" It would be nice to make friends with at least one person on this base, and Ian was admittedly a very attractive man, it would give him a chance to test the waters so to speak, unprofessional as it might be.

He nearly snorted coffee out of his nose at that and laughed, "Good heavens, do shrinks still ask such asinine things?!" He rubbed a hand over his forehead and tsked, "hmph. The first appointment I had after returning home, my shrink flat out asked me how it all made me feel." He smirked, "I have never walked so fast out of a room." He sighed softly and shook his head, "I don't want people to feel that way, so I speak to my patients like I would any other."

He gave Ian a genuine smile back and nodded, "that is all I can ask..." He tilted his head with a thoughtful expression, "do you have any other concerns you would be willing to share?" He felt that was an innocent enough question, he could open up the floor for Ian to voice whatever he was comfortable with saying.

Ian was surprised at the offer for lunch and blinked a few times. But... There was nothing wrong with lunch between colleagues and peers to better get to know each other, to be friendly and better work together, right? He smiled.

"I think would like that."

He laughed at the next part, nodding again. "Hand to God, this chipper young thing barely out of school once asked me what color feelings were... Weirdest damn conversation I ever had in one of those offices."

He went quiet for a moment, then slowly shook his head. "I don't really have any of my own concerns for myself... I'm actually feeling quite well lately..." only a partial lie, his typical issues were at least in a lull currently.

Harley's face lit up when Ian agreed to it, chuckling softly, "awesome! I will be nice to speak outside of this..." He gestured around, "sort of setting, I wont feel as inclined to shut up though. A warning." He laughed, he knew he could be very talkative when he wasn't putting on that professional air, not that he was beingas professional here. It felt a bit less necessary here, and the people in this operation seemed like they needed less professional airs and more nitty gritty help. Lucky for them he knew how to provide both.

He shook his head in disbelief at that, snorting, "what do they teach these kids." He put a hand over his face and let out a long suffering sigh, "*mujhe maaf karado. I assure you we are not all like that. Some are just...Ah...New age?" He said this with a smile that insinuated that he had a much less kind word in mind, but new age sounded less rude.

If Harley picked up on Ian's half lie, he kept it to himself, quirking his head, "anything I can help with? Perhaps since you are helping me, I can aid you." He rubbed a hand over his chin, thoughtfully tugging at his goatee, "Of course only disclose what you are able, but I feel we can work together, and make some real...Ah...Headway, I believe is the term..." He wanted to help, and Ian wanted to help, if they helped together surely that would be double the aid?

*Hindi: Forgive Me