"324B21."

"That's right. The subject's name is Cosima Niehaus."

It's a strange name, one she's never heard before, but as she stares at the picture attached to the file, it somehow seems to suit the wide-eyed, grinning girl staring back at her. She traces her finger over the image, familiarizing herself with the face. It's the same as a dozen others and yet distinct; the energy the girl exudes from her picture alone is completely different from the other subjects. It seems lighter, more airy and optimistic. She's aware that many of the subjects seem to suffer from various mental disorders, but there's no sign of darkness or disturbance with this one, at least not any she can discern.

"She'll be in later today. We like to run tests bi-monthly, just to make sure everything's running smoothly."

"Yes, I'm aware," she replies, flipping through the file.

"Good, good. You should familiarize yourself with the case. Cosima's proven to be quite an interesting subject. I think you two will get along just fine."

She looks up from the documents and smiles at her superior. She had been working at DYAD for a couple of years when Doctor Leekie finally approached her and asked her to be a part of the project. She'd heard about it in passing, fascinated by the prospect of actual human clones, so when he told her that he thought she'd proven herself, she was more than willing to jump onboard. This project could revolutionize the world and ever since she was a teenage girl, sacrificing nights of drinking and partying with her friends to study for exams, all she ever wanted was to be a part of something like this.

"D'accord. Thank you, Aldous."

"No, no, no. Thank you, Delphine. I know you'll be a great addition to the project."

"You're gonna make me late!"

"Aren't you always late, anyway? Why do you care?"

She wriggles herself out of the redhead's grasp, sliding off the bed and collecting her clothing from the floor. She nearly forgot it was the first of the month and if her phone hadn't reminded her with the sound of a screeching alarm, she would have completely slept through her appointment.

"I have a doctor's appointment," she clarifies. "I can't be late. He'll be pissed."

The redhead smirks, descending from the bed as well. She wraps her arms around the dreadlocked girl's waist, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck while the hasty girl pulls her skirt on over her legs.

"C'mon. Stop it. I'm serious," the brunette warns, though her toothy grin strips all danger from the warning.

"Alright. Fine."

The redhead backs off, disappearing into the bathroom. She hears the shower running as she continues to pull the rest of her clothes on in a hurry; as tempting as morning sex is, she's already running behind and she doesn't have the time to indulge. The last time she was late to meet with Doctor Ramos, he'd bitched her out for twenty minutes about the value of his time and her complete lack of respect, among other things. She isn't in the mood to get an earful from him today.

"I'll talk to you later!" she shouts loud enough so that her voice is heard over running water.

The other girl pops her head out from the bathroom door.

"Really? Or are you just gonna ignore my texts for another three weeks and then call me when you wanna get laid again?"

"Hey, It's not like that," she protests.

"That's exactly what it's like, Cosima."

She tries to form some sort of an argument, but she knows the redhead is right. It's not like her to use people, she's always conscious of her partner's feelings, but she's been so busy with school and everything that she doesn't have time for dating or romance. She still craves contact like any human being, sex the most desired form of it, so whenever she finds herself just a little too lonely or a little too horny to deal, she scrambles to make a phone call and then stumbles into bed with whoever's willing to forgive her subsequent negligence. It's been Steph for the last few months, a girl she met in the cafe on campus. They ran into each other again in the library a week later, and then once more in the quad before they finally exchanged numbers. Then it was drinks and weed and lazy Sunday sex. It was simple, and the dreadlocked girl enjoyed simplicity wherever she could find it.

"You know how busy I am. I just don't have time for-"

"I know, I know. This is what it is, Cosima. No use playing pretend, we're both grownups here," she says, waving her hand in dismissal.

Cosima nods, offering Steph a small smile of apology before she grabs her bag and goes darting out the door. She needs to stop at her place first, because she knows if she shows up in yesterday's clothes and makeup, Doctor Ramos will undoubtedly pry beyond what few boundaries exist in her life, if they exist at all.

She needs a shower and a coffee and the five piece on her desk back home if she has any hope of making it through this day.

"Shit, shit, shit," she mutters under her breath, speedily walking down the long, white corridor.

She's eight minutes late and she already knows that Doctor Ramos is going to chew her apart because of it. She can see his office at the end of the hall and she picks up the pace until she breaks into a slow jog. She sees that the door is already propped open so she doesn't bother knocking when she finally reaches it, pushing it the rest of the way open and entering with a burst of enthusiasm.

"I know I'm late! I'm sorry! Traffic was a bitch and then-"

She immediately stops speaking when she realizes that it isn't Doctor Ramos sitting at his desk, but a much younger, slender blonde woman. She blinks rapidly, then darts her head from side-to-side, making sure she didn't walk into someone else's office by mistake.

"I'm sorry," she apologizes. "Did I -"

"You're in the right place," the blonde answers. "I'm Doctor Cormier."

She stands up from her desk, approaching the chaotic brunette with a smile. While Cosima manages to stop panicking momentarily, her confusion hasn't faded yet.

"Doctor Ramos is no longer with us. I'll be taking over for him," she explains.

"O-Oh. Okay."

She finds it odd, but doesn't complain. She never had much love for the man anyway. He was cold and humorless, glaring at her every time she made a cheeky comment, chastising her every time she spoke in slang, which was pretty frequently, her being from the Bay Area and all.

Now that the air is clear, she gives the blonde a once over, trying her best not to let her eyes linger on one place for too long; her hair is wild and golden, like an actress or a model, and it compliments her marble complexion perfectly. She's a few inches taller than the brunette, with a slender build and brown doe eyes that appear mesmerized by the shorter girl, causing a faint blush to creep onto Cosima's cheeks. The doctor bites her bottom lip gently, waiting to pass her subject's inspection.

"Shit," Cosima mumbles breathlessly, unaware that the words have left her mouth until it's too late.

"Pardon?"

"What?"

They both stand there, staring awkwardly at each other, unsure of how to proceed. Delphine decides to make the first move, offering the dreadlocked girl yet another smile and an extended hand in greeting.

"Enchantée."

Cosima accepts her hand, grinning like a dopey child.

"Enchantée," she repeats.

They maintain their grasp a little longer than is custom, neither women able to let go as they continue to stare into each others eyes, smiling. After a few seconds pass, they both become aware of their falter and they nervously withdraw their hands.

"Right. Okay. So, you're French?" Cosima asks, breaking through the thickness in the air.

"Oui."

"That's pretty rad."

"I'm sorry?" Delphine asks, cocking her head.

"Rad. Radical. It means radical. Like, awesome or cool. You know?"

"Oh. Okay."

Both women giggle awkwardly and Cosima stares at her feet, mentally kicking herself in the head for rambling. She has a tendency to let her thoughts flow freely when she's nervous, even against her better judgement. She feels like she's in high school again, uncertain in her skin, and while she's long since grown into herself, the blonde's coyness has her flush and faltering.

"If you would come this way, we'll start with the tests. I don't imagine we'll be too long," the French woman says.

"Yeah. Sure. Of course."

She follows Delphine closely down another hallway and they eventually reach a lab. The doctor leads her inside and by this point, she already knows the drill; she's been doing these tests ever since she can remember, it's become a ritual to her now. She removes her jacket and takes a seat, watching as Delphine pulls gloves over her hands.

"I'm Cosima, by the way," she says, trying to maintain an air of openness. "Right. But you probably already knew that. Stupid."

Delphine chuckles lightly as she watches the brunette stumble over her thoughts. She can see the gears turning in the clone's head, despite the fact that they've only known each other for less than ten minutes. It's a strange, innate understanding that she cannot explain, but it brings a warmness to her skin.

"You can call me Delphine if you'd like," she offers.

"Really? Isn't that a little... unprofessional?"

Delphine shrugs.

"Perhaps."

Cosima's grinning from ear-to-ear again.

"Well, I won't tell anyone if you won't."

"Deal," the blonde replies.

She swabs the dreadlocked girl's arm, then ties a tourniquet around it to make finding a vein easier for her. She's distracted, however, by the artwork on Cosima's arm and her fingers trace the line work, raising goosebumps on the brunette's flesh and sending a shiver up her spine.

"Oh. It's just a nautilus shell."

"It's beautiful," she says.

"Really? I was eighteen, drunk off my ass and sort of trying on the whole rebellion thing," she laughs.

Delphine inserts the needle into her arm, blood filling the chamber of the syringe. Cosima winces, because even though she has tattoos, there's something about this that is far more invasive. Delphine takes note, gently stroking Cosima's wrist with her free hand, attempting to soothe the shorter girl.

"Why the shell?" she asks, seeking to distract.

"Well, I'm from San Francisco. I grew up on the beach, so the ocean's just always felt like home to me," she begins. "And because, well, it's an example of a naturally occurring logarithmic spiral. I've always been fascinated by nature, you know? How these complex patterns always reappear, how there's always this perfect harmony, this balance, this symmetry with everything. I guess I'm just a major dork."

She's mesmerized by the clone's speech, watching as her free hand waves erratically in the air as she speaks, fascinated by the way her mind seems to work and just how human she is. She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but it wasn't the charmingly eccentric girl before her. Delphine finishes filling the last vial of blood, removing the needle from Cosima's arm and pressing a bandaid over the entry point.

"Not at all. I think you're very..."

She pauses, trying to find the word to describe other girl, only one never comes to mind. She smiles coyly when she realizes that she speaks two languages and even if she spoke a hundred more, and she still probably wouldn't be able to find a word that perfectly encapsulates the clone.

"Very... what? You can't leave me hanging like that, Delphine."

"I don't know the word," she confesses. "I can't think of one. But I mean that in the best way."

"... Thanks?"

They continue with the tests, Delphine asking her a series of routine questions that she knows so well by now, she can recite them in their exact order. This is the part where Doctor Ramos used to grow frustrated with her, as it was typical of the brunette to answer the more personal questions with jokes that he was never able to appreciate, but it's Delphine's first time and she doesn't want to make herself look like more of an idiot in front of the woman, so she's on her best behaviour.

"How would you describe your mood?" Delphine asks.

"Fine, I guess. Same as always. I haven't thrown myself in front of a train yet, so that's a good sign, huh?"

The doctor smiles and nods, scribbling in the file.

"When... oh."

"It's the sex question, right?" Cosima interjects.

Delphine raises an eyebrow, glancing in the clone's direction.

"I've answered these questions so many times, I know them by heart. Last time I had intercourse..."

She's hesitant to answer and she doesn't know why. The first time she was asked the question, she felt violated and insulted, asking how necessary such information was. Eventually, she just grew used to answering, learning to view the questions from a purely scientific standpoint. There's no privacy anymore. She isn't sure if there ever really was any. Ramos would ask her and she would answer without fear of judgement, for she didn't care what the doctor thought of her. But it's different with this woman. She suddenly finds herself hyperaware of her situation.

"Last night."

The blonde nods a little too rapidly, only she doesn't jot down any notes this time.

"You have a boyfriend then? Doctor Ramos didn't write anything about that in your file. How long have you-"

"No. No boyfriend," Cosima corrects her.

"Oh."

She can tell Delphine is confused, perhaps waiting for a little clarification. Cosima does her best to explain, her hands flailing wildly in their typical fashion as she tries to find the words to describe her current situation.

"I have a friend. We're not a couple or anything, but sometimes we sort of end up in bed... together... yeah."

"Oh," Delphine replies more firmly, finally cluing in. "I see."

Silence descends upon the two and the air in the room is still, despite their anticipation. Cosima knows the questions that are to follow, but the blonde's reluctant to ask them and so they both shift nervously in their seats. Finally, Delphine closes her file and stares up at the brunette.

"I think that's enough for today."

"Really?"

Doctor Ramos had never cut a session short before. He was very adamant that she answer every question, that it was important data that needed to be collected. From what Cosima understood, he had strict orders that he was to follow and she assumed it was the same for Delphine, as well.

"Won't you get in trouble? I mean, you're kinda sorta supposed to ask me all those super personal questions," she teased.

Delphine suddenly grew very serious and Cosima knew that the time for jokes had vanished. She sat up a little straighter in her chair, locking eyes with the doctor in an intense gaze that made her feel more exposed than any of those invasive queries ever could.

"Can I ask you something different?"

"Shoot."

"Does it...," Delphine began, wondering if she was perhaps overstepping her boundaries. "Does it bother you, all these tests?"

Cosima's brow furrows in thought as she allows the question to stew in her mind. Nobody had ever asked her that before. Strangely enough, she had never asked herself that question before. It seemed rather pointless to ask, so she pushed it far from her thoughts.

"Hm. I've never really thought about it before. Sometimes, I guess. Doctor Ramos was kind of a dick though. He doesn't have your bedside manner," she explains, a Cheshire cat grin settling back where it belongs.

A soft blush starts to creep up the blonde's features and she's fidgeting with the pen in her hand. She was never any good at accepting compliments, but she's normally able to brush them off and wade through conversation. The brunette completely disarms her with a joke and a simple smile.

"But I've been doing this for so long, I guess I'm just used to it. By the time I was six, I pretty much knew the whole deal, " Cosima adds.

Delphine nods in understanding and she can't help but feel somewhat sorry for the girl whose been held under a microscope since the second she was born. Despite this, the quirky girl maintains an innocence about her, with a childlike sense of wonder for the world she was purposely made part of, manifesting itself in a nautilus shell on her wrist.

"Thank you," Delphine replies.

The brunette is unsure of what she's being thanked for, but as the doctor rises to her feet, she does the same. She straightens her dress and slips her jacket back on, unable to contain her smile. She's well aware of the fact that she's been acting like a puppy since the second she walked through the door to meet her new doctor, but there's a giddiness inside her that she can't seem to contain, a burst of life that is strangely unfamiliar to her.

"I guess I'll see you around then, huh?" Cosima asks.

"I imagine so."

It's clear that the meeting is over, but neither woman is entirely sure how to conclude it. With Doctor Ramos, she'd simply leave without saying anything at all, but that doesn't seem appropriate here. She wonders just what would be appropriate; what definition encompasses the boundaries that have been erected between their particular instance of doctor and subject? A handshake seems too informal now, a hug perhaps the opposite. As Cosima stares into Delphine's eyes, she realizes that the doctor is trapped in the very same purgatory.

"Sorry. I don't mean to be such a geek," Cosima apologizes.

"It's fine," Delphine laughs at the fluster the dreadlocked girl has worked herself into, shaking her head to dismiss the clone's apology. "I think it's endearing."

Cosima freezes, the bumbling words and erratic hand movements ceasing as she registers what the doctor says. Endearing. That was something she'd never heard before, at least in regards to her tangents.

"Shit. Really?"

The air in the room changes, catching both women off guard. Delphine finds that it's becoming increasingly difficult to breathe with the clone's eyes settled on her and she feels a tiny surge of unfamiliar panic as she runs a hand through her golden mane; yet another nervous trait of hers, along with the lip biting.

"I should probably..." she begins, pointing towards the door.

Cosima is standing between her and freedom. It takes a minute for the brunette to tune in and realize that Delphine is trying to make her exit and as soon as she does, she's back to her usually awkward self.

"Oh. Right. You probably have a ton of work to do. I won't keep you."

Cosima steps to the left, allowing the blonde to pass. Delphine steps forward to make her escape, but she pauses just before sauntering by her subject, a shy smile on her face.

"Goodbye, Cosima," she says softly, placing a hand on the brunette's shoulder.

Cosima's heart flutters in her chest and a shiver shoots up her spine, the signal reaching her lips and forcing them into a gleaming smile. The two linger for a moment before the doctor finally pulls away, disappearing through the door and leaving the grinning clone standing there, wondering what the hell she just walked into. It takes her a minute to compose herself, but once she does, Cosima makes her way down the hall, heading towards the building's exit; she has a lab later today that she needs to prepare for, but despite this, the only thing on her mind is the feel of Delphine's hand on her shoulder, the blonde's coy smile and the accent which managed to transport her back in time nearly fifteen years, to a state of awkwardly hormonal adolescence. As she pushes through the large, glass doors and is greeted by the sunlight, her smile slowly fades away.

"Shit."

She remembers that despite the hand on her shoulder, the smile, and the irresistible accent, Delphine is her doctor. Despite the flutter in her chest and the aching in the pit of her stomach, Delphine exists on an entirely separate plain, one that the brunette will never be privy to. Upon realizing this, the flutter disappears, replaced by a dull, throbbing sensation.

"Shit," she repeats.

Why does she always find herself in these impossible situations?