Chapter Text
Adam stalked tons of people. He had new targets almost daily. Sure, he never saw his life taking this turn, but he didn’t exactly complain.
A dark job like this provided him with enough money to have something on his plate every day. It got a little dangerous sometimes, but he lived for the thrill. It was the only thing that made his monotonous life slightly more interesting.
His targets weren’t usually any “big fish”. Mainly dudes that cheated on their wives. He was enjoying it when he first started due to all the drama it caused, but after a while, even that started getting boring.
This latest one, though? He caught Adam’s eye.
He didn’t think the man was worth his attention at first. Just your usual snob with a well paying job, a big house, a wife and a kid that probably got bored of the perfect bubble he was living in and decided to hook up with his secretary, nurse, or really any woman at that point. Sounded like about 98% of the guys he was paid to follow around.
But once he started stalking Lawrence Gordon, he just couldn’t stop.
First thing he found out about him was that he was a surgeon. Apparently a highly intelligent and respected one, too.
Would be a shame if all the dirt Adam discovered on him ever got out.
Then he dug up some more information about his personal life. The man was in his 40’s, married to a woman named Alison, with a daughter Diana.
If only they knew.
He didn’t do anything attention worthy at first, but at least Adam had an opportunity to learn his schedule. Was usually working late, sometimes staying the night at the hospital, only leaving at around 5 in the morning. He looked awful whenever that happened. With massive eye bags and not so maintained hair, slouched posture and almost bumping into his car from tiredness.
In those moments, Adam was actually pretty happy he didn’t go down that path. He couldn’t imagine himself working such a job without wanting to end it all from exhaustion. Sure, becoming a stalker instead wasn’t anything to brag about, but at least he still had time to enjoy his life sometimes.
And then the affairs started happening.
On a particularly cold Friday night, Dr. Gordon left the hospital with some company by his side. A slightly shorter woman with black hair and a blue dress that fell just below her knees. Her walk was proud and confident, with a sly smile not washing off of her lips even for a moment. It didn’t take her long to get into Lawrence’s car.
A click, immediately followed with a bright flash.
The man could look around all he wanted. Adam was far too experienced at this point.
He didn’t remember the last time he was spotted. If he wanted to get paid properly, he couldn’t let that happen.
But it seemed like Lawrence was too tired to look around the parking lot more than once. His eyes wandered around a few corners, but when he didn’t see anything of importance, he just brushed it off and got inside the car.
They drove off soon enough, with Adam following right after.
A motel. What a classic.
Stanheight parked nearby, but kept a safe distance. He sat still in his car, waiting for the two to make a move.
When they got out, he took out his camera again.
Click. Flash.
This time, it was too far to catch Lawrence’s attention.
Once they walked through the motel’s doors, Adam got out of the vehicle, setting himself up in the bushes just on the other side of the street. All the rooms of this particular building were facing the street, so he got lucky there.
Now he had to hope he’ll be able to get some good shots.
He sat there for four to five minutes, adjusting his camera, only getting more impatient by the minute.
Finally, he noticed movement in the corner of his eye. He turned his head around, and although the curtains were closed, they weren’t exactly secure. I mean, what can you really expect from a cheap motel? Certainly not curtains of good quality.
Although blurry, he was able to catch a glimpse of Lawrence and whoever the other woman was with his camera. Wasn’t much, but it should be plenty for now.
He had every reason to dip. He had his proof and secured his money with it, but he just… couldn’t.
He didn’t even care about holding up the camera anymore. He was laser focused on the window, on Lawrence.
It was completely ridiculous, even a little repulsive when he thought about it. But it’s not like he could deny the fact that Lawrence was an unmistakably attractive man.
But he shouldn’t be thinking that in the first place. His job was literally to expose assholes like him, he’s seen countless of them in his life, and he absolutely hated this kind of people. And yet…
He found himself weirdly hypnotized with Doctor Gordon.
During the next few days, he delivered the photos to his commissioner, got new targets, and, technically, his little journey with Lawrence came to an end.
And it sure did professionally, but personally? Adam didn’t quite feel like letting him go.
He observed him for longer than he should’ve. Took more pictures than he needed. Learned more about his personal life than he ever thought he would.
Wherever Lawrence went, he lurked. It became a daily occurrence for Adam to be sneaking around outside of the hospital, waiting for the man to finish his shift as usual. Sometimes alone, sometimes with company.
And if he was being honest, the more time has passed, the more he envied those women. He hated and loved it at the same time.
Stalking Lawrence gave him the thrill he hadn’t felt in a long time. Hell, by now, he could start a separate folder for how many pictures of the doctor he has taken overtime.
He began thinking about Lawrence more, sometimes even dreaming about him. He couldn’t possibly back out now - as much as he didn’t want to admit it, it started to become an obsession.
At some point, keeping a low profile and simply following Lawrence around wasn’t enough. He needed more of… everything. Even exchanging a “good morning” would satisfy him, in a way.
He knew Gordon didn’t just take any patient into his care. He’d need to get seriously hurt, to the point he’d require an entire surgery just to become his patient, and as crazy as he was about the man, he hated pain. He wasn’t that far gone. At least not yet.
So when he found out that the local hospital was looking for a new secretary of any gender and age, despite already having a pretty rough schedule with his current job and no experience whatsoever, he took the chance.
His sick needs took over any rational thought far quicker than he would ever imagine, but an opportunity is an opportunity, and he wasn’t gonna pass up on this one.