[Jaykobell]

"You're a serious one, huh?"

The two had settled on a small table for two, further away from the few staff members who had also decided to come eat breakfast. Neil had brought his own breakfast back: an English muffin sandwich with egg, cheese and bacon, together with a wild berry muffin, and his coffee.

They'd just settled on that he'd asked that question, and being that Cybele was sitting down at the same time, it took her some time to answer. "I'm sorry?" she asked, a little taken off guard by the question.

"I don't mean it in a bad way," Neil clarified, waving a hand and chuckling a bit. "I just mean, you don't need to be like that. Relax," he insisted, raising his hands and lowering them down, inhaling and exhaling at he did so.

Cybele wasn't sure what to make of that; it was her personal work ethic to remain professional, even towards her coworkers. She had been working hard and diligently to keep her emotions under control to be as efficient as possible, but she knew that not everyone had the same mentality. "I'll... keep that in mind," she replied after a moment; she felt rude not replying anything, but at the same time, she didn't quite know what to say, either. She didn't know this doctor yet, and that was why she hadn't allowed herself to be a bit more comfortable around him, despite his kindness.

[Jaykobell]

Neil had picked up on Cybele's reluctant reply, and the doctor didn't push it after that. Everyone had their own personality, and while he would've liked Cybele to be a bit more open, he could tell she wasn't a mean one. Serious, yes; but from what he'd seen, she wasn't a bad person. Maybe part of it was stress, and part of him hoped she would learn to loosen up the more comfortable she got.

"So," he said after a bit of silence, trying to break the ice, "is this your first job in a hospital?" She was a young one, so it was hard to tell.

"No," Cybele replied after taking a sip of her coffee, "I used to work at another hospital. I stayed for about a year." While she would answer if Neil asked her questions, she didn't feel so comfortable asking him questions of her own; not yet, at least. Still, she had to admit conversing made their interaction a lot less awkward.

"I see," he said simply, taking a bite of his sandwich. "So you have some experience already. That's good," he added, nodding, and speaking with a hand over his mouth as he chewed his food.

"A little bit," Cybele said, feeling the need to make it clear that she wasn't the best there was. "I'm inexperienced, to be honest. I still have a lot to learn."

She was a little surprised to see and hear Neil chuckle at her comment. "That's all right; so do I, really. I haven't been a full-fledged doctor for very long yet," he said, and he winked, a grin on his face; something that only inspired a bit of confusion from Cybele.

[Jaykobell]

When Neil noticed that Cybele didn't know what to say, he chuckled again. "It's perfect, don't you think?" he asked, raising both eyebrows and smiling a little at her. "We're two fledglings trying to make it as medical practitioners."

Cybele once again struggled to find the best words for this, and she used her food to stall for time a little bit; in the end, she settled on saying, "That's one way to look at it." Part of her felt a little insecure at the thought of Neil being an inexperienced doctor, but she had to give him the benefit of the doubt. Just half an hour wasn't enough to judge whether or not the doctor was competent.

"I'm the luckiest one between us, because you'll be there to make sure I don't mess up," he said, grinning and laughing a little.

Cybele blinked, and she wasn't sure how to interpret his comment. "I'll do my best," she ended up saying, and while she meant it, she once again didn't really know what to make of his words.

Neil quieted down when Cybele answered him, and he smiled sheepishly at her as he tilted his head. "Hey, don't take it like that. I was just kidding," he said, shaking his head. "Though I can already tell you'll be the brain between us two," he added, grinning from one ear to the other. "Don't fret, though. Everything is gonna be okay."

[Jaykobell]

After eating breakfast, Neil had kept his end of the bargain, and he proceeded to show Cybele around the hospital. They started from the cafeteria and went onward, finishing their coffee as they walked down the halls. Cybele had a chance to meet with some of the other nurses and doctors who worked at the hospital, and it was a nice opportunity to become familiar with new faces. Although she would be working primarily for and with Neil, there would be times when Cybele would need to share patients with the other nurses. Knowing them would absolutely help make working at the hospital more enjoyable.

It took all morning for the two to make the whole tour of the hospital. Once that was done, they returned to Neil's office so that Cybele could familiarize herself with the job and what it would entail, both as a nurse and as Neil's personal assistant nurse. She had the phone extensions to memorize, the phone features, the filing system, the passwords for the computer and its matching system, and all sorts of other things. It was overwhelming to see it all at once, but Cybele took everything one at a time. Some would come with time, and others would need some memorization on her part.

The rest of the day was slow as Cybele settled in, and before she knew it, the day was over as the clock struck seven o'clock. "Phew!" Neil breathed from his desk, stopping whatever he had been writing to raising his arms in the air and to stretch. "Day's over!" He straightened back into his chair, and then he shook his head as he chuckled. "But the work isn't," he added, returning to his papers and picking the pen back up. "Murray's gonna be pissed if I don't give him this before I leave."

Cybele was slowly starting to pack her things as Neil spoke, and her curiosity made her ask, "What are you filling out?"

[Jaykobell]

"Just today's report," Neil answered, although without looking away from the wad of papers he was writing on. "There's not really much to say considering what we did today, but I still have to hand this in. If I don't, he'll think I don't do any work all day," he added, and he once again let go of his papers so he could lean against the back of his chair. "Ah, they're such a hassle, though," he said, twirling the pen in his hand and sighing a little.

Cybele listened as Neil explained what the report was about, and there was a short pause between them before she felt to suggest, "Would you like me to do them for you?" Although that wasn't something her first job had done, she figured that it couldn't be all that difficult to fill out. She didn't mind the secretarial part of the job, and if it did bother the doctor to fill these out every day, she wouldn't mind doing it for him.

Only then did Neil turn around, letting his chair swivel around so he could look at Cybele beyond her desk, his legs nonchalantly crossed. "Oh, would you mind?" He was being polite, but the large smile on his face made it obvious he wouldn't turn down the offer. "That would be great if you could do them." At the end of the day, it didn't matter who filled out the report, so long as either Neil or Cybele signed it to attest the information was correct.

"I wouldn't mind," Cybele confirmed, nodding, as she continued to pack her belongings in her bag to leave for the night. "I can start with tomorrow's, if you'd like."

[Jaykobell]

"That would the best," Neil said, grinning as he turned back to the report with renewed energy to finish it. "Want me to show you the big picture with this one?" he suggested, looking over his shoulder from the desk. "I'm pretty much done, if you want to review it."

"Oh," Cybele said as she stopped packing again, "sure." She left her bag on the desk for the time being and went around, going over to the doctor's desk to look over the report. She figured that it didn't matter how she wrote it so long as it covered the day's work, but perhaps Neil could give her pointers or tips on how he filled up his own.

He went over the report from beginning to end with her, showing Cybele even the most basic of things that they had to fill out, like their names, the day, the time; he showed her how he abbreviated some words to make it go faster, some terms he used often, and the other habits that made his reports his own.

It went by fast, with the two of them finishing the report together. It was usually a bit bulkier in content, but since the day had been a small one, it hadn't been all that problematic or time-consuming. At the end of it, Neil even suggested that they sign the report together. While it only required one signature, it would be nice to sign together, considering it had been Cybele's first day.

They were just done with the report when there was a knock on the door, and a voice spoke behind them. "So, how did everything go?"

[Jaykobell]

"Good, I hope," Murray added, standing behind the two with his hands in his large coat pockets, eyeing the two.

"Well, hey there, Murray," Neil greeted, looking over his shoulder first before turning his chair just a little. "I'd say it went superbly," he added, twirling his pen in his fingers, giving his superior a confident smile.

"You'd say that," the older doctor pointed out before turning his attention specifically to Cybele. "Well, miss Rosemonde?" Neil was the type to classify everything as a good day, that much Murray knew. At the end of the day, what mattered was the nurse's opinion: after all, she was the one who was going to decide if working here would be a good experience or not.

Cybele seemed a little surprised that Murray was addressing her directly; she would've expected the doctor's opinion to be worth more than hers. "Oh, no; the doctor is right," she replied, nodding, keeping her arms crossed behind her back. "The day went beautifully. Doctor Endzela gave me a tour of the hospital, and he was very hospitable."

Murray raised an eyebrow, Neil grinned just a bit more, and after just a short moment of awkwardness for Cybele, it seemed like the three had reached an agreement. "Good," Murray said simply, and his expression seemed to soften just the faintest of ways. "Glad to hear it."

[Jaykobell]

It was a relief to hear that Neil had done his job properly, although there was one last detail to confirm before Murray could let them go for the night. "So then? Where's your report for today?"

"I was just teaching Cybele how to do it," Neil pointed out, and he took the pile of papers to wave it a bit at his superior. "She'll do them starting tomorrow."

"Good," Murray answered back, and there was a hint of annoyance in his voice as he added, "Maybe now I'll get them on time." He then walked over to the two, taking one hand out of his pocket to ask for the report. "In the meantime, give me this one; then you can go home."

Neil did as instructed and gladly handed over the report; his favorite part of it. "And now you know that once the report is done, you're supposed to bring it in to Murray," he pointed out, turning to Cybele, whom instinctively looked to him as he explained it.

Murray flipped through the pages of the report, and as much as Neil usually lacked diligence with them, he couldn't complain about their contents. He skimmed it and went all the way to the last page where the signature was meant to be, and he raised an eyebrow, looking at the page for a moment. "Did you both sign it?" he asked, turning the page around to show what he was talking about. He raised his brow higher when the two practitioners nodded, and there was the faintest hint of a smile on Murray's face. "Hah. Cute."

[Jaykobell]

Neil grinned a little as Murray flipped the report back on its front page, and the head doctor looked satisfied. "Good job, Neil," Murray praised, cocking his brow up and giving the doctor a small smile. "That's how I like it. Keep it up," he added right before turning to look at Cybele. "And I assume Neil was satisfied with you on your first day. I'm expecting great things from you, Miss Rosemonde."

Cybele blinked, unsure if the head doctor was being honest and blunt, or if he was trying to say he, too, had been satisfied with her first impressions. Considering he had been calling Neil by his first name, she figured he meant his words with good intentions. "Thank you, sir," she said, nodding her head. "I'll do my best."

"That's it for today, then," Murray said, folding the report in half and pocketing it. "Now go home. Both of you," he instructed, waving a hand to the both of them as he turned and left the office, almost just as quickly as he'd appeared.

Cybele had nothing to say, but Neil sighed with relief the moment the head doctor was out. "Phew! We're officially all done," he said, getting up from his chair right after twirling in it for just a little. "I can't wait to get home."

[Jaykobell]

"Let's pack up, right?" Neil suggested, and Cybele didn't have to be told twice. She nodded in agreement with the doctor, and while Cybele walked back around the large desk to return to her bag, Neil started packing up his own things. He had fewer than her, considering he was already settled in, but he still bothered to bring back some papers and files in his own bag.

"You know," Neil started to say after a short time of silence, although his back was turned to Cybele as he spoke, "I think today went great." He stretched up to grab some papers, flipped them quickly, and then shoved them in his bag. "You're not a very difficult one," he added, chuckling, and finally turning to look back at Cybele.

Cybele had been glancing in Neil's direction while packing, but she stopped when the doctor complimented her. "Oh," she said first, and she subconsciously started to mess with the handle of her bag, "thank you. I just listen and take notes on what I have to do." She tried to work to be the best she could be, and she wouldn't accomplish that by complaining or being negative.

"Well, I think you're going to mingle in just fine," Neil added, taking his light coat from the coat hanger and slipping it on. "I'm ready to go. I'll see you tomorrow at the break of dawn, right?"

Cybele clipped her messenger bag closed, and she picked it up before nodding confidently. "Of course, doctor."

[Jaykobell]

As time went by, Neil and Cybele grew to understand each other as a team. Cybele quickly learned the layout of the hospital, including the different areas and how to reach them efficiently. Within weeks, she knew how to handle Neil's schedule and how to put in his clients almost perfectly. While she had initially asked many questions — double checking and asking about even the smallest of details — it hadn't taken very long for Cybele to catch on. She even knew Neil's particular tastes within a few months, such as knowing that he started his day by eating breakfast at the cafeteria — English egg muffin with cheese and bacon with a muffin and a coffee, one milk, one sugar — how he liked to eat lunch there as well — and how he liked to swerve in his chair.

From Neil's point of view, Cybele was like a perfect nurse who picked up on things seemingly instantly. She would learn something one day, and by the next few days, she had it down almost perfectly. Looking at it that way, a lot of doctors were jealous of Neil's new nurse, who quickly grew popular within months to a year at St. Lazare. Neil couldn't disagree with Cybele's talent, though there was just one thing that sometimes confused him about Cybele.

At some point, a few months into their partnership, Neil realized that Cybele hadn't loosened up from that very first day. Cybele worked in a fashion Neil deemed almost robotic; where she was so focused and attuned that she literally didn't need to look or ask anything. The nurse only stared at her notepad and wrote seemingly endlessly, taking down details upon details that were told to her. Her diligence was, admittedly, inhuman; and even a little unsettling, if not worrisome.

Hardworking was a quality that everyone wanted, and Cybele had plenty of that in her. But at times, Neil felt like she was either trying to do as much as possible; or that she was trying to cover for him. Other times, he wondered if she was actually any happy doing her job with him.

[Jaykobell]

It bothered Neil for some time, but he was unsure how to bring it up with Cybele. He was sometimes uncomfortable with her, if only because he had this bad feeling in the back of his mind that either he wasn't a good enough doctor in her eyes; or she wasn't happy working for him or at St. Lazare in general. For a time, he wondered how to approach the subject. He had no intention to criticize her; he only wanted to make sure she was happy where she was.

It was a particularly slow and relaxed day. Neil didn't have that many consultations that day, and Cybele was just doing some cleaning in the office to use her time efficiently.

Neil was busy filing out some prescriptions and other forms, though his mind was distracted. He was thinking up things in a loop in his head, and the pen was just tapping on the papers repeatedly. Tap tap tap tap tap...

"Is something the matter, doctor?" Cybele's voice almost made Neil jump, and the doctor straightened up in his chair in a heartbeat.

"What?" he asked, a little taken off guard, and he tried to regain his composure by smiling a sheepish smile full of teeth. "What makes you think that?"

[Jaykobell]

"You stare into space and you tap whatever you have in your hands when you're preoccupied," Cybele pointed out, and in a flash, Neil felt inexplicably self-conscious. "Is something the matter?" she asked again, and when the doctor didn't answer right away, her expression darkened a little. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No!" Neil exclaimed, and then there was another bout of awkward silence due to his sudden outburst. "No, no, Cybele; you didn't do anything wrong," he assured the nurse, and while his mind was going full throttle on the thoughts he had, part of him figured this was the best opportunity to talk about the said thoughts.

"But I was just wondering..." he started, and as Cybele's expression changed to intently listen to him, Neil looked away; and instead of tapping his pen, he started tapping his finger on the his desk, "... are you happy working here?" he asked, and the moment the words came out of his mouth, he could feel Cybele's expression changing to something akin to surprise. "Working... with me?" He'd wanted to say "for" him, but at this point, it almost felt like the other way around.

Cybele looked at the doctor with a surprised, confused expression, and she looked genuinely dumbfounded at his questions. "I'm... not sure I understand."

[Jaykobell]

Neil was conflicted over that answer, because it meant one of two things: either Cybele was doing those things subconsciously; or she was trying to make up for something. "I'm not criticizing you," he clarified, if only to try to get rid of that confusion Cybele felt. "I hope you know that." He scratched the back of his head, and the words failed him to explain his thoughts further.

Meanwhile, Cybele narrowed her eyes, still confused. "All right," she said simply at first, and there was a small pause between them before she added, "But why would you think I'm unhappy working here? Or for you?"

"Well..." Neil tried to say, but even as he moved his mouth, no words came out. He eventually settled on a displeased grimace, because this beating around the bush was helping neither him nor her. "You just... work a lot," he started with, and saying it out loud, it sounded ridiculous. "I mean — I guess I'm trying to say you're not very expressive," he finally said, though he felt like that wasn't any better. On second thought, it sounded rather rude to say that outright.

Something changed in Cybele's expression, and for a moment, Neil was convinced he'd insulted her. But within a heartbeat, her expression changed, and it was Neil's turn to be surprised at seeing Cybele looking genuinely sad and apologetic.

[Jaykobell]

"I'm sorry," Cybele apologized, and she looked down.

Seeing her reaction, Neil immediately felt bad. "That's not how it is," he tried to explain, though he was explaining himself so awkwardly that he was just making it worse. "I'm just-"

"No," Cybele interrupted him, sighing and shaking her head as she glanced away, her eyes still downcast. "No, I know what you mean. I know," she assured him, and she'd understood that it might be something of a problem the moment she'd met Neil. Calling it a "problem" was an overstatement, but such was how she thought; but she'd picked up on the fact Neil wasn't nearly as stone-cold as she was on the job. She had hoped the doctor wouldn't point it out, but maybe he did feel uncomfortable working with someone who was his opposite in that regard.

There was silence for a time, as Cybele felt bad over the situation, with Neil not feeling all that different from her. "When I first met you," he started after some time, speaking a bit slower; if only to give his mind time to think, "I thought it was just the stress of the first day. I figured you'd realize you can have fun working here over time." He tried this best, within reason, to make the hospital a hospitable and friendly place to work at. Not everyone could feel truly comfortable, but he always hoped to make the experience a better one for everyone.