Snippet 6e

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Paris was truly breathtaking.

The sight of the city of lights was completely different from any sight that could ever be seen in America. The culture and history of the city spoke of an entirely different world from even a place like New York, and navigating along the streets was enough to take a person straight out of their heads and into something completely ethereal.

It had been that way for centuries. And it still held true on the brink of the 21st century - just as glorious and indescribable as it had begun.

Jake could feel Chris's excitement almost pierce the air when he turned the key to their flat on Rue Abel street, the younger man all but bounding into the room when they arrived at it. The apartment was astounding - clearly worth every scent that it had cost to move in. Light wood floors, light streaming in the broad windows, and plenty of room on all sides. Yes...much better from what they had had in New York.

Chris was all over the room in an instant, switching on lights, drawing the curtains, and rushing to explore the appliances they had in the kitchen. Jake hadn't seen him so excited since the day he'd first suggested they move to Paris. Within seconds he'd returned to the doorway where Jake was, and given his brother a big, glomping hug.

"It's awesome!" he exclaimed, grinning into his brother's face before bounding back across the room to look out the window. "We can see the Eiffel Tower from here! Look! Can you see it?"

"It's kind hard to miss there Chris," Jake chuckled, putting his bag down beside the doorway and glancing around himself. It was pretty decent if he did say so himself. "You see your room yet?"

"No!" Chris said, turning to look around quickly. "Where is it? It's the one on the left, right?" He darted across the room to the small hallway just off the kitchen, and ran into the first room on the left. "Yeah! This is it! I can still see the Eiffel Tower from in here!"

"It's hard to miss!" Jake repeated, smiling toward the door as he shook his head and headed into the kitchen. "You hungry, Chris?"

"Yeah! What've we got to eat?" Chris asked as he came out of the room to join his brother, clearly coaxed by the thought of food. He walked over to one of his bags by the door, starting to rummage through it. "Do we have any of that leftover pasta left?"

"Yeah," Jake said, running a hand over his mouth before pointing to the bag. "It's at the bottom of the bag."

"Got it," Chris said, pulling out the small cartons and setting them aside before he reached further into the bag - this time to pull out a small orange pill bottle. He glanced at it, shook it, and then shook his head. "...almost out of pills, Jake. D'you s'pose there a pharmacy guru around on Rue Abel?"

"I have you in for a refill at the drugstore on the corner." Jake said, walking over and taking the container from the floor. "I'll heat this up for ya."

"Thanks," Chris said, getting up and walking over to the small table kitchen, sitting down expectantly. "By the way - did you see that sign outside the auto shop when we came in? The one asking for hired help? D'you think maybe we could look for a shift there next week?"

"I can check it out tomorrow." Jake said, removing the lid and popping it in the microwave. "What do you want to drink?"

"Soda's good. Do we still have that Barq's stuff?" Chris said, already moving to sift through one of the kitchen bags Jake had brought in. "That's good stuff. Do you want one?"

"I'm good, thanks." Jake said, wrapping his hands on the microwave before preceding the beep and taking out the container. He hissed as the steam hit his hand and he waved it quickly before taking it over to the table. "There ya go."

"Thanks," Chris said with a smile, taking the food and quickly stabbing his fork into it. "So what's the schedule for the week, then? I know we're unpacking and stuff today, but what'll we do tomorrow?"

"Well what do you think about getting a tour of the place?" Jake asked, smiling at him as he sat down and pulled in his chair. "Get a lay of the land a little?"

"Wow, can we?" Chris said, his eyes widening in delight at the idea. "Like the full Paris tour?"

Jake laughed, nudging him with his elbow. "That would take more than a day, little brother. Eat up."

"Well, yeah, but," Chris paused briefly to chew his food before continuing. "We will get to see the whole city, right? I mean - if we're going to the clinic tomorrow we'll have to be done by four, but still..."

"We'll see a whole load of it for sure." Jake assured him, chuckling at his brother's enthusiasm. "It'll take us a few days though. You just take it easy."

"'Kay, but we have to see it all by the end of the week," Chris said devoutly, taking another bite of his food. "And when is your motorcycle getting here? By the weekend, right?"

Jake nodded. "Sooner than that even, if my guy has his figures right."

"Good," Chris said, taking the last bite of his food before pushing the carton aside and picking up his soda. "I wanna cruise around Paris in style - and with none of that MoPed crap. It pays to have you as a brother sometimes," he said, winking at Jake before taking another gulp from his soda. "Maybe we should buy some French hats to wear while we ride it."

"Already taken care of." Jake said, grinning at him as he went over to one of the bags. He leaned over and pulled out two matching hats, a cheeky smile on his face. "You like?"

"Yes!" Chris grinned from ear-to-ear, lurching forward out of his seat to seize the hat that he deemed his. "They totally look French! Look!" he put the hat on his head and spun around, arms outstretched. "Don't I totally look French?"

Jake tried to hide his smile as he surveyed the new look. "More like a german trying to infiltrate France." he said, slapping him on the butt as he passed. "You finished with this?"

"With the food? Yes. With the hat, no," Chris said, already walking into the bathroom in search of a mirror. "I think maybe I'll grow a little French mustache to go with this. What do you think? Too tacky?"

"You're a blonde, it wouldn't work." Jake called after him, an amused smile on his face as he began to wash the container. "A fake black one would be stylish though."

"I'm totally getting one."

The rest of the day was a lighthearted affair. Jake and Chris finished unpacking the rest of their things, set up what furniture they could, until the place began to look like a place that could really be called home. Sure, it still lacked a few technical things like a TV and a couch, and maybe a few decoration details, but other than that, it was cozy and perfect.

After it was done, the two brothers settled back for the evening to watch a movie on Jake's portable DVD player with a bowl of popcorn and a couple of beers. It was the perfect start to the beginning of their stay in the new country.

"I like our apartment," Chris mumbled to Jake as the movie began to draw to a close, letting out a yawn and leaning against his brother's shoulder sleepily. "Cin' we take pictures and send 'em into Vogue Furnishings...?"

Jake smiled, his eyes on the tv as he listened to his little brother. "I think they'd like that."

"Hm," Chris agreed sleepily, his eyes staying closed now as the movie continued to trail on. "...m' gonna..." he mumbled, but the words were lost as the typical late-night effect of his medication began to take hold, and he drifted off to sleep without finishing his sentence.

Jake glanced down briefly when he heard the thought trail off, a brief but almost sad smile coming to his face as he reached over and took what was left of his brother's snack and put it on the floor. "Alright Chris, up you go." he said quietly, standing and lifting his brother in his arms before taking him gently over to his new room.

It was a bit cool, and he pulled the covers back before setting him down and gently resting his head on the pillow. "Sleep well, Chris." he whispered as he pulled the covers over him again and laid a brief kiss on his forehead. Chris stirred just barely as Jake stood, causing his brother to smile with a brief shake of his head before turning and leaving the room.

*

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The next day, Jake and Chris managed to get catch the mainstream tour bus around the city, catching most of the local sights and areas to know about by the time mid-afternoon came around. There was almost too much to take in, Paris's vast landscape spinning through their heads long after their tour drew to a close. And it ended promptly at 3:30, just in time.

"I wonder what we'd think of that tour if we took it backwards," Chris said contemplatively as he strolled casually with Jake toward the street, helping Jake wave down a taxi to the corner of the road as they approached it. "I mean, it really seemed like they deliberately built up to the good stuff, didn't they? And, yeah - have I mentioned I can't wait 'til your bike gets here?"

Jake chuckled, stepping toward the taxi and opening the door. "Yeah that'll be nice. I'm surprised at the traffic here."

"Not me," Chris said, scooting into the taxi and making room for Jake. "How far away's the clinic?"

"About 20 minutes." Jake said, leaning forward to the driver. "Can you take us to the clinic on 6th and Lou?"

"Oui," the driver responded, already moving the taxi out into the street again to get them on their way.

"He said 'oui,'" Chris whispered, grinning at Jake as he sat back. "French people are awesome!"

"Merci," the driver said offhandedly.

Chris's eyes widened slightly. "He heard me..."

"The French have very good hearing," Jake murmured into his ear, smiling as he withdrew.

Chris looked over at him, his face looking caught between intrigue and disbelief, as though he didn't know whether Jake was teasing or not. Finally, though, he settled for looking out the window as they drove through the city, taking note of some of the shops and restaurants that were nearby. "I'll get the hang of this city yet..."

Fifteen minutes later, the taxi pulled up alongside the clinic on 6th and Lou, letting Jake and Chris out onto the curb. They paid the driver, and then walked inside, both taking a careful inventory of the place as they stepped through the doors.

The clinic was nice - and it looked, surprisingly, much like the clinics they'd visited in America. Pastel colors, nurses wearing similar garb, and a similar atmosphere in general. Jake and Chris made their way to the waiting room, noting that the front desk was near the wall, just like it had been in America.

It really was uncannily similar.

Chris let out a small sigh as he went to sit down in one of the rows of chairs in the waiting room, while Jake went up to the desk to get them signed in. He cast a cursory glance around the room, noting some of the other patients and some of the decorations. He was about to look back toward the desk, when, suddenly, something caught his gaze and made him look back over at the chairs.

Not far from where he was sitting, two young men, both with dark hair, were seated on one of the bench-chairs by the wall. One of them was sitting up straight, dark eyes aimed straight ahead and unseeing, while the other one - who looked pale and very tired, was resting against him, eyes closed, evidently fast asleep.

For a moment, Chris couldn't help but automatically assume that he was looking at two people who were much like him and Sam. The two looked enough alike to be brothers...very good-looking brothers, actually. They were almost unusually appealing to the eye, like they had been born to become models in a city like Paris. But judging from the fact that they were here, and the aura that both of them gave off...that could not be farther from the truth.

Overcome with fascination, Chris didn't realize he was staring at them until Jake came back and sat down beside him, giving Jake the chance to notice that he had his gaze locked on the two strangers.

He looked vaguely surprised as he watched them. "Wow. Models, you think?"

"No idea," Chris said, still looking at them. "...they don't really looks French, though."

The sleeping one of the twosome suddenly gave a quiet cough, and the one who was sitting up glanced down at him, taking a moment to pull the black coat that was resting over the sleeping young man a bit higher on his shoulders. When he finished that, however, his eyes came up - and his dark gaze came up to meet Jake's and Chris's - obviously noticing that he was being watched.

Jake blinked and looked away, glancing at Chris briefly before letting out a long breath. "Wow."

"Brown eyes," Chris murmured cheekily, casting a discrete grin over at his brother. "Meets your quota."

Jake gave him a look. "You're impossible. Quota is more than brown eyes."

"Yeah, but you like brown eyes," Jim teased, quirking an eyebrow at him.

The sleeping dark-haired man gave another cough, then, drawing their attention back to that side of the room. The one sitting up glanced down at him, gently helping him sit up as the coughs evidently managed to rouse him from sleep.

Chris blinked, as though suddenly getting an idea. He reached down to pick up the Aquafina water bottle he'd brought, before moving determinedly forward toward the two by the wall.

"Here," he said, offering the water bottle with a small smile, even as the dark stare of the man who was sitting up moved toward him. "S' just water. Helps me when my throat gets dry like that."

He realized too late that he'd just made an assumption about why the young man was coughing. It was stupid, really, to think automatically that he shared the same affliction he did. The man who was sitting up, however, did not refute the claim when Jim said it. Instead, with a nod of thanks, he accepted the water bottle, twisted open the cap, and turned toward the young man beside him.

"Zach," he spoke softly in a low and smooth voice, gently shifting the young man until his eyes opened again. "Here. Have some water."

Zach stared at the bottle for a moment, his mind returning to its previous state as he blinked again and reached for it - taking a small sip before handing it back to his brother. "Thank you."

The other man took the bottle back, but Chris couldn't resist speaking up before he had a chance to say anything. "You guys aren't here for a stasis check-up, are you?" he asked, glancing between them. "I'm just - asking. Sorry if it's not my business or whatever."

The first man eyed him, as though watching his expression. "How did you know?"

"'Cause I'm here for the same thing," Chris said, glancing at Zach afterward. "...stasis appointment for a hiliometric diagnosis. Right?"

Zach nodded slowly, glancing at his brother briefly before looking back at Chris. "How far along are you?"

"Phase 3," Chris said, watching Zach and giving him a small smile. He wondered, briefly, if he looked as pale as Zach did at the moment. "You?"

"Same." Zach said, giving him a brief smile. "Later end of it, though."

"I don't know where I'm at," Chris admitted, giving him a small shrug and a smile. "I'm Chris, by the way," he said, holding out a hand. "Chris Pine."

"Zach Kessler," The dark haired man replied, smiling as he shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Chris."

"What party is this over here?" Jake asked, smiling at the small group as he stepped forward. "Making new friends already, Chris?"

"Sure," Chris smiled an almost identical smile, turning it on the two brothers before him after motioning to them. "This is Zach, and - ?" he left the invitation open for the older man, beside Zach, to reply.

The older man gave them both a cursory glance, before he gave them a small nod, almost without emotion. "Luke."

"Zach's here for therapy, same as me," Chris told Jake, before smiling back at Zach. "Is this where you usually come for it? Who's your doctor?"

"This is our first time here." Zach replied, giving Luke a small smile. "We came for the treatments offered and to just...get away."

Jake smiled over at Chris. "Sounds familiar."

"That's exactly why we're here," Chris chuckled, looking very intrigued and delighted at their new company. "I just figured out my doctor's name a second ago - I've got Dr. Urban. Do you have the other guy, then? The one with the asian-sounding name?"

"Dr. Keanu Reeves, yes," Luke said with a small nod. "You're lucky to have Dr. Urban. He's the other greatest name here."

"So Dr. Reeves is really big then, too?" Chris asked curiously. "Are they French? Like, hardcore with the accent and the mustaches?"

"No," Zach said, shaking his head in slight amusement. "They're American."

"Seriously?" Chris raised his eyebrows. "What are the odds? I mean, seriously, in America when I was there last, they gave me this Mongolian dude once, who I swear was out to get me. And he really had a crush on Jake - remember that?" he asked, craning his neck to smile cheekily back at his brother. "When he called you 'se'tula?'"

Luke's mouth twitched. "He called you 'dumpling'?"

Jake laughed awkwardly, looking down as he nodded reluctantly. "Yeah...yeah he did."

Zach looked amused. "That's adorable."

"It really was," Chris sniggered. "And Jake went all red when he said it, even though he had no idea what it meant. I think he could just tell. It does kind of sound endearing."

"You look like someone who would be called 'dumpling' by their girlfriend," Luke said, glancing up at Jake with a crooked smile. "Maybe it's the blonde hair."

"Yeah. The blond hair sells it all," Chris agreed at once. "Jake can't beat off the girls fast enough."

Jake cuffed him lightly, giving him a look before smiling at the two of them. "So where are the two of you living?"

"The complex on Jardins Arago," Luke replied simply. "And you?"

"Rue Arbor." Jake said with a smile. "You should totally come over sometime."

"Yeah!" Chris said eagerly. "I know exactly where that street is! You guys are only a couple blocks away from us!"

"Zachary Kessler?" a nurse suddenly called from somewhere near the counter at the front of the room, coming in from the adjacent hallway with a clipboard. "Dr. Reeves is ready to see you."

"Time to go," Luke said, helping Zach up and glancing once more at Jake and Chris. "We'll see you both soon, I expect."

"Same time next week, if nothing else," Chris said, reaching over to pat Zach on the back. "Good luck with the other-best doctor, dude."

"Bye, Chris." Zach said with a smile and back-wave as he turned to follow the nurse.

Jake turned to give Chris a side smile before a second nurse walked in. "Christopher Pine?"

"Present," Chris joked, before straightening up to follow her into another of the examination rooms, glancing back once to make sure Jake was following him before walking down the clinic hallway.

A few minutes later, Chris and Jake were seated in the examination room awaiting their doctor - and Chris, as usual, took an immediate interest in the various medical instruments around the room. This time, however, he managed to talk to Jake at the same time.

"I like those guys," he commented as he peered at a small PADD on the desk. "Zach and Luke. D'you think we'll see them again here?"

"Maybe." Jake said, reaching over to take the PADD away from him. "I know you'll schedule an appointment for the same time just in case, but I wouldn't get your hopes up."

"Why not? D'you think they'll try to avoid us now that we've talked to them?" Chris asked, moving on to some viewing screens on the wall after Jake took the PADD away. "They seemed really nice. Maybe we can count them as the first friends we made in Paris. That'd be nice, wouldn't it?"

Jake smiled as he put the PADD down. "Maybe. We'll see if we can't get together with them this week."

"Seriously?" Chris said, turning toward him with a distinctly hopeful smile. "That'd be so awesome! We could totally - "

"All right, you two," a nurse suddenly poked her head into the room before Chris could get another word out, smiling at the two of them. "Dr. Urban will see you now."

"Oh, right," Chris said, swiftly moving to hop up on the biobed. "Sorry."

The nurse gave him a smile before turning to open the door wider, and finally show the expected 'Dr. Urban' into the room.

"I assume you're the two Pines." Dr. Urban said as he stepped in - a handsome doctor with dark hair and eyes, no more than 25 - and shook Chris's hand. "I'm Dr. Urban, I'll be looking after you during your stay in Paris."

"Cool," Chris said, beaming back at him as he shook his hand. "Nice to meet you, Doc. Thanks for having us."

"Nice to meet you, Doc." Jake said, grinning as he shook the doctor's hand.

"So what's changed, Chris?" Dr. Urban asked, taking a seat on his stool as he clicked his pen and opened the file. "When's the last time you were in to see someone?"

"Two weeks ago," Chris said, watching him glance over the files in the folder. "They switched my medication, back in the states. It's kind of the same stuff, though. It helps with the dizziness and the pain in my legs."

The doctor nodded, jotting something down. "How's that working for you now?" he asked, looking over at him. "The pain any worse? Feel any unexpected dizziness when you sit up suddenly?"

"Only when I sit up really, really fast," Chris said with a shrug. "And mostly it takes the pain away, unless I've done a lot of walking. Oh...but it does still make me tired. Sometimes it just makes me a little sleepy, and sometimes it knocks me right out. Depends on how the rest of the day has been, most of the time."

The doctor nodded, scribbling. "Nausea?"

"Sometimes when I get dizzy I get nauseas," Chris nodded, still watching him write. He glanced at Jake to see if Jake had any input on the matter, before looking back at Dr. Urban. "Sometimes my pills make me sick, too."

The doctor looked over at him with a curious frown. "How long after you take them?"

"I dunno...an hour, maybe," Chris said with another small shrug. "It made me throw up, once. But that might've also been that pasta we were eating..."

Dr. Urban nodded and went back to writing. "Alright then," he said, finishing up before rolling over to him and reaching up to feel his neck. "Any pain there?"

"Nope," Chris said, keeping still as the doctor's fingers probed at his skin. "Nope, just - ah," he winced slightly when the pressure moved to the gland on the left side of his neck. "...that hurts a little."

The doctor nodded, putting on his stethascope and pressing it to Jim's chest. "Take a deep breath for me."

Chris drew in a deep breath, the sound of it shuddering just toward the end before he exhaled. "Again?"

The doctor's brown eyes turned to his. "Did it hurt?"

"A little," Chris admitted hesitantly. "Not a lot, though."

The doctor nodded, giving him a comforting smile as he removed his hands and picked up a pen light from his pocket. "Keep your eyes straight ahead," he said, waving the light in front of his eyes. "Very good, Chris." he said with a smile as he put the pen away. "Still feeling alright? When's the last time you've eaten?"

"I ate lunch," Chris reported, throwing Sam a quick smile. "We ate at La Ratatouille. It was great."

"Nice place." The doctor said with a smile, giving Jake a brief wink as he went back to his paper. "Who's choice was that?"

"Chris saw the movie so naturally he wanted to go to a restaurant with rats." Jake said, giving his brother a teasing glare.

"Hey! It was not just because of the movie!" Chris said defensively. "It looked good! And it had lots of smooching couples waiting to get inside, so I was like - why not? Ratatouille's totally the best delicacy-French-food out there."

The doctor shook his head, bemused. "You're lucky you got in. Lookin' good, Chris." he said, writing down some more stuff before closing the folder. "I'll call the pharmacy to refill your subscription. Anything changes, let me know."

"Thanks, Doc," Chris said with a smile, shaking his hand as he stood. He frowned slightly when he caught sight of the name of the medication sticking out from Dr. Urban's folder, however. "...what are those pills called anyway? Cyto-arib-something...?"

-

"Cytosine Arabinoside, to be exact."

The dark-haired doctor turned from the counter to walk back over to where Zach was seated on the table, giving him a brief smile before sitting down beside him and pressing his fingers gently against Zach's neck. "It's a mouthful, I know. Patients who use it often shorten it to 'Cyt' to make it easier."

"Tempting," Luke said, watching the doctor work from the chair near the table. "And it's still the best produced drug at the moment?"

"Yes," Dr. Reeves said, moving his fingers to a different spot on Zach's neck. "There are other medications which have stronger doses of the actual drug in them, but they tend to have very unpleasant side-affects...loss of appetite, extreme fatigue, nausea, even night terrors. You're better off sticking to cytosine arabinoside and increasing your dosage, in my opinion."

"Zach's been having some pretty bad nightmares lately," Luke said, glancing at his brother. "I was wondering if they were maybe a side affect from some of the medication. Is it because he's taking prednisone on top of the...'Cyt'?"

Dr. Reeves frowned slightly. "Was that an actual prescription given to you back in the states?"

"Yes," Luke said. "The doctor said it wouldn't cause any adverse side affects, but I'm beginning to wonder."

Dr. Reeves shook his head. "Some of the things they think up over there," he murmured, lifting his stethoscope briefly to Zach's chest. "I would gradually get off the prednisone. Start by taking just one a day, and then one every other day, and so on. Stop when you've got about a week in between it. You'll probably still experience some of the side affects during that time, but they should stop after you've eliminated the drug."

"Is there anything else he should take, then? Instead?"

"At this point, I would say the safest bet is to increase his dosage of the cytosine. We'll start with a small increase, and then gradually work our way up." Dr. Reeves gave Zach as small smile as he touched his throat again. "We won't try to make you any more sleepy during the day than you already are. How's your appetite been, recently?"

"No less than normal." Zach replied, inhaling steadily as he looked straight ahead of the door. "Luke has bettered his cooking to the joy of all."

"You little spoiled brat," Luke said, though his half-smile betrayed the humor he found in the accusation. "You're lucky to have me cook for you."

Zach couldn't hold back a smile.

Dr. Reeves chuckled, lowering his stethoscope and picking up his folder afterward. "Well, at least food is making its way into the equation," he said, jotting down a few things on a piece of paper. He glanced up at Zach a moment later. "Are there any other unusual symptoms you've been noticing? Any other side-affects of the medication?"