A cargan ficlet that got stuck in my head and I have an hour and a half before I sleep.

Italic are flashbacks.

How to Save a Life

"Thanks so much for the marriage. Logan." The black haired Latino takes a sip of his steamy coffee in the café of the hospital. He lowers the cup to the table, revealing his joyful smile to the doctor. "Really Logan. When I got cut off my insurance because of all the diseases I have, I thought I was going to die. But here you are."

Logan plays with his hot cup, grinning a weak smile, playing off a shrug. "I wasn't planning to ever get married anyways. I mean I practically married the hospital when I signed my life to it seven days a week, twenty four hours a day."

"Mmm, don't say that." The excited new husband quickly returns the cup to the table after a short drink. "You are a great guy. The fact that you would throw away your choice to marry someone for a guy you never met shows how incredible you are."

"Really Carlos, it was nothing. James is my best friend and you're his friend. I would have done it for anyone James told me to marry."

"Yea." Carlos fumbles with the cardboard holder around the paper cup. "But the fact that you chose me, a man with twenty different diseases and counting, chances of dying increasing with everyday on earth, lives in the hospital more days than he does at home-" Carlos starts laughing mid sentence, smiling genuinely. Logan crooks his head, not understanding why the man is so happy in his condition. "I'm just so lucky to have you. Thanks Logie."

"Logie?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought since we are married, the least I can do is give you a nickname."

"I guess that is fine," the doctor answers, checking his vibrating pager. "Um… I-"

"Say no more." Carlos waves his hand in the air. "Go save a life."

"Ok, see you later?"

"Promise."

A siren howls through the white halls of the third floor, the emergency room floor. A doctor and his four residents push a stretcher into a vacant glass room where they immediately hook the unconscious man to various machines.

"Dr. Knight, is this-"

"Yes, this is Carlos Pena, Dr. Pena's husband." The head doctor answers. "Lucy! Stop freaking out and page Dr. Pena."

"But, but Dr. Knight. We can't contact the doctor. It's against the rule for the doctor to work on his family member."

"Dak! Page Dr. Pena now because Lucy can't. Do it. Logan has to know."

Dak trembles, hands shaking with his pager.

"CAN YOU DO IT?"

"I'm sorry sir. Give me a second and I'll do it." Dak explodes with a voice as shaky as his body.

"And text James Knight to come as soon as possible. He's at a restaurant not far so he can run here in ten minutes." Kendall commands, injecting the feverish body with a couple of vials of painkillers and fever reducers.

"Done, Dr. Knight. I paged and texted." Dak dashes to Lucy's side, fixing the triangular pillow under the body.

"Shit! I need you two to go to the supply room and grab two bags of one thousand cc of blood. RUN!" The other two residents run out the door, not even noticing the brunette doctor walking to the door they just left.

The doctor turns into the room, stopping halfway through the doorway with his rigid, immobilized body. His pupils dilate with fear and his skin pales whiter than his normally pasty complexion. The clipboard falls from his loosed fingers, the loud contact to the floor alerting the other doctors of his arrival.

"CARLOS!"

"What is this?" Logan asks after returning home from enduring a seven hour surgery, furrowing his brows. His body is sore all over, as he fakes his interest at the fixed kitchen table.

"This is your dinner, Logie." Carlos presents the buffet of pastes, sauces, salads, soups and wines. He smiles, gesturing his open hand for Logan to take a sit.

"Oh no Carlos. I am going to sleep. I just did a seven hour surgery standing up and I am dead." Carlos ignores the complains, and locks one of his hand with Logan, tugging the doctor the seat. "I'm really tired and I can't function, Carlos."

"You need to relax, Logie." Carlos whispers into his ear, pulling the man into the chair.

"No, Carlos. I oo. I mean I oo, oh god, that's good." Logan moans, his tense shoulders melting away with Carlos' gentle hands. "Oh god that is good, Carlos. Do it again and my neck too." Logan adds, closing his eyes to the comfort of his husband's massage.

"I'm glad you like it." Carlos comments, rubbing large circles into the knots of the doctor's spine. "I know we are not in love like normal couples but that doesn't mean I get to leech off of you without giving you something to relax at the end of the day. You deserve it."

"Yes, I deserve it. Give it to me harder Carlos. And don't forget my neck. That is the most important part." Carlos giggles, pressing hard up the row of tense nerves along the spine and up the neck, making the brunette's breaths long and loud.

"How's that?"

"Really good." Logan rotates his arms, cracking his back. "I guess I have time to eat." Logan quickly grabs the fork. Carlos giggles, taking the seat next to him and passes the bowl of salad.

…

"No, really! This is too much." Logan laughs a hiccup, sipping from his wine glass. "This is too much for dinner, Carlos. This marriage is for the insurance not for a slave in the kitchen."

"I know." Carlos sloshes the red wine on his tongue, tasting the woody notes the wine offers. "I wanted to give you something. It's not fair that I was thrown into your life."

"Hey, you weren't thrown into my life." Logan remakes, resting a hand on Carlos'. He picks up the tan hand, playing with the simple white band around the finger. "I accepted your hand in marriage."

Carlos slides his hand against Logan's other one, playing with the ring. He kisses the hand gently before swinging both pairs of connected hands. He looks up into Logan's eyes, smiling that genuine smile that baffled the doctor earlier that week. "Thanks Logie. And I mean it. If you want anything, anything at all, tell me and I'll do whatever I can."

Logan couldn't help it but a smile creeps on his clear face; the realizations of Carlos' lack of fear of death and his permanently tattooed smile presents themselves to Logan's wine filled mind. Carlos is hopeful, carefree and optimistic. He is everything Logan isn't; he is the other half to complete his realist, careful and pessimistic self. He is the man Logan is meant to marry.

"Well, I kind of want a real kiss."

"A real kiss? We kissed at city hall." Carlos responds, watching Logan lean closer to him.

"That kiss was for you to have my insurance. I want a kiss for you to be my husband."

Carlos snakes one of his hand around Logan's body, connecting their lips together. They close their eyes; Logan mimicking Carlos' hands around the Latino's fit body.

"Wow." Logan silently whispers, as their lips disconnect an inch away. He opens his dazed eyes, linking with his husband's. "I like that."

"I like you too." Carlos mishears Logan's words but Logan doesn't mind. The brunette smiles, quickly pecking Carlos' lips once.

"I like you, too."

"Clear!" Logan yells, thrusting the metal plates onto Carlos' body. The body jolts to the 100 volts but the patient's eyes remain closed. Logan gasps, panting loudly. "Again. Clear!" Nothing changed. The heart monitor beeps a long sound; a dash line replaces the numbers on the machine.

"Time of-"

"Don't you fucking call time!" Logan yells at Lucy, his angry eyes burn a hole through her. "He is not dead!" The frantic doctor checks the defibrillator, adding another twenty volts. "One more, one more, Carlos, one more."

"Stop it, Logan!"

"Get your hands off of my husband!" Logan yells as Kendall rests his palms on the cold chest. "Move, so I can save him."

"Logan, he is-"

"DON'T SAY IT!" Logan cries, throwing the two metal pads on the floor, cracking the tiles. "Don't say it! Carlos is not dead!"

"What the hell is happening?" The chief barges into the room. "I can hear you from-" He stops, noticing the body on the bed. "You are not allowed here. Who paged him?"

"I-I-"

"I did." Kendall jumps in front of his resident. "Logan needs to be here for his husband last-"

"He's not dead!"

The chief shakes his head, pinching his nose. "Damage control, doctors." He says as he leaves, brushing shoulder with a tall man in the doorway.

"No." The visitor whispers. "Carlos can't be. He is-"

"HE'S NOT DEAD!"

"James, close the door." Kendall commands, watching Logan hammering the wall, crying on his arm.

"Logan." James whispers, resting a hand on the shoulder. "Logan, Carlos is a strong man and fought everything life threw at him. He deserves to go. You can't be selfish and wish for him to be pain just to be with you, right?"

Logan's sobs slow down, his red eyes peek at his friend. He shakes his head.

"Let him go and be happy." James comforts, wrapping his long arms around him.

"But I love him."

"We all did."

"No. I LOVE him. I love him like a husband." Logan cries, the tears staining the leather jacket.

"Logan. Look." James drags the doctor to the bed and points to Carlos' face. Logan wipes his eyes and finally notices the lingering smile pastured on the pink lips.

"He's happy." Logan mouths before looking up at Kendall. "Say it, Kendall."

"What?"

"Say it. It's the first thing I learned as a doctor. You have to tell me he is dead so I can get pass the initial shock." Logan sternly answers, hands forming fists; the nails digging into the palms.

"Logan…" He pauses, eyes forming tears as he watches Logan hold his. "Carlos is dead. I'm sorry." Kendall quickly adds, his body breaks as he stares at the brunette's stoic face. He knows the smaller doctor is hurting, holding a façade. "Logan?"

"Everyone leave me." Logan's request echoes in the room as the four other exits.

"I'll be here for you." James offers, holding Kendall's hand as they leave, closing the door.

Once the other vacates, Logan breaks, his head crashing into Carlos' abdomens. He cries louder than ever, fisting the green sheets. "You were supposed to marry me for insurance. You were not supposed to make me dinners or give me massages every night for the last six months. We were not supposed to go on dates to movies or the beach or ANYWHERE! I am married to this hospital and you're just a guy who needed my insurance!" Logan yells, kicking the heart monitor out of frustration. He returns his gaze to the smile on Carlos' face.

"You're not supposed to be charming and cute and beautiful and perfect. You're supposed to be dying and ugly. How can you be so good looking and attractive when you're dying everyday?" Logan asks in a high pitch tone. "I'm a doctor and I know people lose their muscles and beautiful skin with everyday fighting for their life but you don't. You become more and more perfect." Logan sighs and wipes his sweating forehead. "I wasn't supposed to fall in love with anyone but you made me. You did this. You make me fall in love and now you leave me."

Logan sits down on the bed, curling his hand on Carlos', taking a final look at Carlos' peaceful, happy lips. "Don't misunderstand me this time, Carlos, ok?" Logan asks, leaning down to place a simple kiss on the smile. "I love you. I know now that I married you because I love you.

"It wasn't for the insurance."

I hope you enjoyed it. I felt sad writing this but *sigh. Cargan is cargan and I love cargan =]. Sorry if it felt a bit rush but it was ficlet and not a full story.

Please review =]