Melissa "Mel" King (The Pitt)

lots of controversial headcanons thrown in, I'm sure

Potential triggers: everything hospital-related? Unsure, but I didn't add any abuse to her past.

I am NOT a part of the Pitt fandom, I don't know popular theories nor ships, so don't give anything for granted but also I might say things that are considered blasphemies here and there is nothing we can do about it.  

My take on Mel ON THIS BLOG:

-I'll write Mel as autistic, which went undiagnosed because she has less 'need for help' than her sister and was able to accomplish all of her goals (even if it came at great emotional cost, but let's be real, autistic girls fall through the cracks every day). Mel herself would feel she cannot be autistic because even people who advocate for an autistic family member and research the topic and are neurodivergent can get some things wrong or have conflicting feelings, and she thinks she's not 'autistic enough' to get the label, which belongs to her sister. She also has adhd which presents itself especially in mood fluctuations, hyperfocusing, restlessness and fatigue after strong emotions.
I do want her to deal with getting a diagnosis eventually, even an unofficial one.
Her work-life is excellent at the expense of her domestic life now that she doesn't have Becca as a motivation to keep everything pristine.

-aroaceness: I already write characters who are fully sex-repulsed and characters who can, under certain circumstances, feel attraction, so I'd like to write Mel as someone who simply doesn't feel it but is not repulsed, meaning she could try and do it after feeling weirded out, though her goals are mostly the cuddles. She won't ever need it, but she'll consent to it the way you would consent to give your partner a massage, with no strong feelings attached at all. I won't be writing it because I barely write smut and this has the potential to make my repulsion go up to the sky, but it can be implied and I feel it needs to be said in case someone wants to ship.
Meanwhile she can have romantic feelings if she shares enough with the other person, besties to lovers.
I think I could only see it with Langdon for now, but like I said a divorced Langdon she's known for more than two days. With everybody else it would be an awesome step to even just feel comfortable and wanted. I can ship her with more people outside of The Pitt show but I don't know if I ship her with anyone else in her hospital. 

-In crossovers threads I may have Mel move from Pittsburgh when her physical presence isn't as required as much by Becca anymore. In the Pitt threads, she will accept invites to go out after work/invite people from now on. 

-her relationship with Becca is a mess. YOU DON'T NEED TO READ THE NEXT PARAGRAPH, THIS IS JUST MY READ OF HER RELATIONSHIP WITH HER SISTER, in case you are curious. Important note though: just because I write her saying or thinking some things as correct it doesn't mean I share that opinion. You don't need to argue with me over this, Mel will make good points and bad points.  

Mel put Becca first and centered her life around her sister, who is also her best friend, but to me even just watching Elf continuously signals that she was doing too much: Becca can be told they'll watch another movie, which is good for her too because it'll teach her to reciprocate the consideration she's offered and even boundaries, but Mel chose to just let her do what she wanted. She caved onscreen as soon as Becca insisted, and now she can't help but bring it up when frustrated that Becca isn't reciprocating that level of dedication: that is a Mel-problem, because Mel is the one who sacrificed herself quietly and more than necessary, and your muse can call her out on it. Then again, I can see why Mel would 'expect' Becca to reciprocate whenever capable and to start pulling back too once she begins to focus on her own life more.
Now Becca is doing well and even pushing Mel away to reclaim more freedom, and Mel finds herself lost. I think it's fun to have flawed characters, so I don't want Mel to have perfect reactions and thoughts.

I see no real mistake in being so taken aback by the idea that Becca was having secret sex: abuse is rampant in these facilities and keeping the relationship a secret from the person who was with her daily for six months is strange (plus Mel snapped after Becca didn't want to talk about whether the 'boyfriend' had checked if she wanted it too or not) and I think it's reasonable to wonder and be afraid. And after that, the feeling of being left out took over. I think it was an understandable freak out even if the execution was poor, and not a sign that Mel is an ableist sister. Thankfully, Becca is having consensual sex so there was no need for it, but she didn't know this at the time.
Did Mel go at it wrong and made Becca feel more awkward and judged than she needed to be? Sure. Was it even more wrong to get on the phone with the facility after? Yes.
Is this just because of her concerns for Becca? Nope, it also came from a place of thinking about herself and being "jealous" of her sister's social life, once the abuse was ruled out, and finding herself suddenly alone and 'left behind' while her sister thrives, which is what she told Dana while venting. She had some mixed feelings there that need to be explored.

Added: April 5th 2026