บท 3: Chapter 3: The Doctor
When Chase came to he immediately recognized the medical cleanliness smell from a doctor’s office. He heard hushed talking nearby so he pretended he was still asleep, hoping that he could have a few more minutes to gather his bearings.
The sound of metal against metal as a curtain was drawn made his stomach drop and he tried his best to keep his breathing steady.
“Morgan, all I’m saying is that you might want to slow down. I know it's exciting but you don't want to overwhelm him, do you?” someone said, their voice quiet and calm. “Just give him some time.”
Were they talking about him? Chase suppressed a shudder and held his breath, trying to hear what they would say next.
“Simon—”
“Don't ‘Simon’ me, Morgan. You’ve never had issues with my advice before. For crying out loud, you told me you bought him, there’s no telling what he’s been through before. You brought him to me because he passed out from a panic attack, you have to go slower with him,” Simon said, almost scolding.
A small whimper slipped past Chase’s lips and the room fell silent.
“Ah,” Simon’s voice was closer to him than before. “You’re awake.”
Chase hesitantly opened his eyes to look at him and watched as he shoved Morgan out of the room with instructions to, “Go home.”
Simon had kind blue eyes and gray hair and he was wearing a white coat like a doctor. He smiled at Chase and introduced himself. “Hello,” he started, “my name is Simon, I’m the pack healer. Not that the guys usually need me,” he said almost sourly.
At Chase’s confused expression he chuckled. “They all heal fast,” he explained. “I guess I’m mostly going to be looking after you now.”
Chase sat up and frowned at him. If anything, that explanation just confused him more. Not to mention the anxiety over the idea of being solely tended to. Was Morgan planning on hurting him a lot? He wouldn't be the first master that had him in and out of doctor's offices.
Simon seemed to pick up on his distress because he gasped at himself before rushing out, “I doubt you’ll need my care very often, it's more just a precaution.”
He frowned a little. “Morgan’s going to take good care of you, I can promise you that much.” He sighed, sounding defeated. “Here,” he offered a water bottle to Chase, “you’ll want to drink lots of fluids since you passed out.”
Chase hesitantly took the water bottle, uncapping it and taking a tentative sip. He gave Simon an uneasy look and shifted on the cot. “Do you… know what he wants from me?”
Simon blinked at him for a second. “He wants you to be comfortable and happy,” he responded. “You’re free now, you never have to worry about being sold again.”
Chase didn't know how to respond to that so he just stared at Simon for a moment before looking down at the water bottle in his hands. “So he bought me… so I could be free?”
Simon nodded. “I mean, there’s other reasons but mostly so you could be free.”
The silence that followed was heavy but Simon dispelled it by clapping softly. “Alright, I’m supposed to show you around when you’re feeling up to it, do you want to do that now or do you want to wait a little bit?”
Chase looked up at him and frowned. “What?”
“A tour,” Simon smiled. “I’m supposed to show you around the village since you’ll be living here. After all, you're part of our pack now.”
He took a few steps closer to Chase. “How about we start with the infirmary in case you need something,” he suggested, motioning for Chase to follow him.
Simon showed him where everything was in the infirmary from herbs and oils to bandages and a handful of surgical tools that he explained were mostly for stitching people up, for more severe wounds they were taken into the city to get care.
When he was done with that Simon led him out of the infirmary to explore the village. They stopped at the bakery so Simon could get Chase a bread bun and then continued their tour.
The village wasn't big but it wasn't exactly small either but everyone knew each other and helped out with various tasks and errands. They passed a nursery where some women were watching the village children. Simon stepped inside to introduce Chase to one of them.
“Chase this is Korrin, she watches the pups with the other lovely ladies here,” Simon said.
Korrin gave Chase a warm smile. “Greetings,” she nodded at him. She turned to Simon. “I assume I'll be seeing more of the both of you?”
“Likely,” Simon nodded. Chase wanted to ask what they meant but remained silent. Simon smiled at Korrin fondly. “Well, I’ve got to show Chase around the rest of the village, we’ll leave you be now.”
When they stepped outside Chase looked at Simon curiously. “Why did you introduce her but not the baker?”
Simon glanced at him a bit as they continued walking. “You’ll likely be asked to help with the pups every now and then, having a familiar face should make that easier.” He grinned and motioned towards a training ground where several people were sparring with each other and some large dogs.
“This is where we train,” he explained, watching as a pair of men wrestled each other until one of the dogs jumped into the mix.
Several other combatants paused what they were doing to look at them curiously but quickly returned to their mock battles. After a few moments of watching them, Simon led Chase away and farther into the center of the village.
He stopped outside one of the houses closest to the manor in the middle.
“This is my home,” Simon offered. “If you ever need me the door’s always open, though I may be at the infirmary as well.” With that said he led Chase up to the manor. “This is where Morgan lives,” he explained as he opened the door, motioning Chase inside.
“This is where you’ll live too. Morgan should have a room made up for you.”
The inside of the manor was lavish. It wasn't overly extravagant but it certainly was fancy, with a large stairway in the middle of the room leading up. There were several doors on the first floor that Simon informed him were the dining room, kitchen, and library.
As if having been mentioned was a summoning Morgan appeared at the top of the stairs. Upon seeing Simon and Chase he descended them quickly and stopped in front of them.
“Ah, about time,” he beamed, looking Chase over before looking at Simon. “I hope he wasn't too much trouble for you,” he said almost apologetically.
“Oh, no—” Simon started, which had Morgan snorting with an amused smile.
“I was talking to Chase.”
Chase blinked at him and then looked at Simon who was giving Morgan a comical look of betrayal. He turned back to Morgan and shook his head. “Simon was great, Master,” he said, looking back at Morgan briefly before staring at the floor and bowing slightly.
Both Morgan and Simon were silent for a second before Morgan chuckled. “Well alright. Come, I’ll show you to your room.”
Chase looked up, alarmed. He turned to Simon who nodded encouragingly. “Go on,” the doctor said, “it’s alright.”
Chase hesitated before looking at Morgan again who was giving him a blank appraising look. Before Chase could dwell on it though the man was smiling at him and turning towards the stairs, tossing a wave for Chase to follow over his shoulder.
Chase glanced at Simon once more before moving to follow Morgan up the stairs to his room.
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