FIC: Black and Blue (Luke/Reid, 1/1)
Title: Black and Blue
Author: cindergal
Rating: T
Characters/Pairing: Luke/Reid
Summary: Reid survives the train accident - now what? Part one of what will be a longer series, but can be read as a stand alone.
Word Count: 1758
Disclaimer: I do not own ATWT. No profit, no harm, no foul.
Prompts: Written for the hc_bingo prompt "hospital stay"
A/N: Not beta'd. As always, all mistakes are mine, mine, mine.
Black and blue. That’s what people always say when you have a few bruises. But Reid’s body is black and blue and red and purple, and even green and yellow in a few places. He’s a virtual rainbow of pain.
“I have to change his dressings now, honey. You should probably step out for a few minutes.”
“No!” Luke says. The nurse - Vanessa - raises her eyebrows at his tone, and he runs a shaky hand through his hair. He’s not even supposed to be in the ICU, but he’d already informed Bob that he was the only family Reid had and he wasn’t going anywhere. Bob hadn’t said a word, but so far, no one’s told him to leave. Not that he would, if they did. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I just…I can’t leave him. I’m afraid if I do…” His voice breaks and he clears his throat. “I’m just…afraid.” Afraid Reid will die. Afraid he won’t be here anymore. Afraid someone will take him off the ventilator when Luke’s not looking. Just constantly… afraid.
Vanessa gives him a sympathetic smile, and then dons her sterile gloves and gets to work. Reid’s body is one big contusion, from his head to his toes. There are tubes and wires coming out of him everywhere, and he’s stitched and bandaged in various places. His left leg is in traction.
Luke has never seen Reid naked. The closest he came was the day of Noah’s surgery, when Reid had answered the door shirtless and Luke had been overwhelmed by guilt and lust and - if he’s being honest with himself - something even deeper. Since they’d started seeing each other, he’s had his hands up under Reid’s shirt and down the back of his pants when they’ve had some heavy duty make-out sessions, but that’s it. Luke never got to enjoy a good, long look.
Luke can look all he wants, now. He doesn’t want, but he can’t look away, either. The nurse pulls the drape back up to cover Reid, and he doesn’t move a muscle. He just lies there unconscious, in a medically induced coma to help him heal. They've been gradually reducing the amount of medication he's receiving in hopes that he'll wake up, and Luke tries not to despair that he hasn't yet. There's no way to know, they tell him. Could be hours, could be days. Could be never, is what they think but don't say. Doctors and nurses come in and out and check his bandages and his vital signs and generally make sure he’s still alive. On the plus side, they don't seem worried about whether he's going to pull through anymore, but Luke isn’t leaving until Reid opens his eyes and tells him that himself. Because if Reid says it, then Luke will know it’s true.
*
Reid rises up through the levels of consciousness slowly, like he’s floating up from the dark, cold ocean floor until he finally breaks the surface and sees… the sun.
He blinks slowly, realizing immediately that he’s in the ICU. He’s attached to a heart and blood pressure monitor, and a ventilator breathes for him. His left leg is in traction. All of these things he is aware of immediately because he is a doctor, because the ICU is a place he is intimately familiar with, though not from this vantage point. So yes, these are all things he is aware of immediately, but they’re not what he sees. All he sees is Luke.
Luke is asleep in a chair next to his bed. He holds Reid’s hand loosely in his own. He’s got at least a week’s worth of stubble, his hair is a greasy mess, his clothes are rumpled - he’s been here the whole time, Reid realizes. Whatever the whole time might be. And Reid is suddenly afraid. He’s obviously been seriously injured and he doesn’t remember what happened, and that’s when the pain hits him like a freight train.
like a freight train
He remembers now, the train bearing down on him, struggling, terrified, with the car that won't start, the seatbelt that won’t unlock, the blare of the train whistle and the crunch of metal and shattering glass. He can feel his heart galloping in his chest, and it hurts, and he squeezes Luke’s hand as hard as he can. Which isn’t very hard at all.
But thankfully, it’s enough, and Luke wakes up. The look of surprise on his face would be funny if Reid could find any humor in this situation whatsoever.
“Reid?” He jumps up, never letting go of Reid’s hand. “Oh my God, you’re awake. Can you hear me?”
Reid nods as best he can, and Luke makes a sound somewhere between a sob and a laugh. He leans over, brushing his other hand through Reid’s hair and kissing his forehead. “I love you,” he says fiercely, staring into Reid’s eyes. He calls out to the nurse on duty and asks her to get someone named Dr. Taylor, but his eyes stay on Reid the whole time.
“You’re at Memorial. You were in an accident. Do you know who I am?”
Reid attempts to nod again, unconsciously reaching for the ventilator tube, but he can’t raise his arm because he’s attached to so many tubes. He can feel himself begin to panic, heart galloping in his chest, and the heart rate monitor starts to go off, which doesn’t help any.
“Reid? Reid, look at me.”
Reid, whose eyes have been darting around the room in a panic, returns his gaze to Luke. He looks exhausted, dark circles and stubble standing out against his pale skin. But when he smiles, it immediately calms Reid down, and he realizes that the heart monitor has finally stopped pinging.
“That’s better. I’ve been waiting a long time to see those beautiful blue eyes of yours again,” he says, and Reid wonders again how long ‘a long time’ is. “Eleven days,” Luke says, as if reading his mind. His smile falters, and he wipes the tears from his face with the back of his hand. “Never thought of that as a long time, before.”
*
“Well hello there, Dr. Oliver. It’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance. I’m Dr. Taylor.”
Dr. Taylor is the trauma specialist that Luke has hijacked temporarily from Loyola in Chicago to coordinate Reid’s care. He is the opposite of Reid in every way, big and burly, with an open smile and a cheerful manner despite - or maybe because of - his area of expertise. Reid spares him a fleeting look before his gaze immediately returns to Luke, and Luke squeezes his hand gently. Reid had opened his eyes for the first time about fifteen minutes ago, and he’s barely taken his eyes off Luke the entire time. Luke has decided to take that as a good sign.
Well, in point of fact, Luke is barely able to keep himself from jumping up and down with joy.
“I want you to know that you are a very lucky man, Dr. Oliver.” Reid glances down the length of his body, taking in all the tubes, wires, bandages, and finally his left leg, casted ankle to hip and hanging in the air in traction, and raises his eyebrows slightly. Luke can practically here him say, seriously? “You have a very devoted boyfriend,” the doctor continues, as if he hadn’t seen what Luke had. “He moved heaven and earth - and spent quite a bit of cash, I must say - to get the best doctors in the country to come to this little hospital for you.”
Reid has an ET tube down this throat, but Luke could swear he gives him a smirk upon hearing that. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, or sleep deprivation, Luke thinks. But he hopes not.
“How…how is he?” Luke asks.
Dr. Taylor had warned Luke that Reid had experienced a brain bleed, and there was no guarantee of what his mental status might be, if and when he woke up. There was no guarantee that he would still be…Reid. Luke told himself that he didn’t care, that all that mattered was that Reid was alive. But late at night, when it was just him and Reid and a bunch of beeping machines that kept him alive, he worried.
Dr. Taylor takes his penlight out of his pocket and checks Reid’s eyes, and then asks Reid to squeeze his hands and wiggle his toes. He nods to himself and makes a note in Reid’s chart.
“He seems to be doing remarkably well for someone who just woke up from a coma. We’ll know more when we take him off the ventilator.”
Luke looks over at Reid, who is scowling at the doctor, at least as much as a person with a tube down their throat can scowl. “I think Dr. Oliver would prefer you speak to him directly,” Luke says with a smile. “And use medical terminology.”
Dr. Taylor laughs. “Oh, you can tell all that from a look, can you?”
“Yeah,” Luke says, “I can.” At least, that’s what Luke sees. Maybe it’s all wishful thinking. Maybe he’s making it all up in head. But he doesn’t think so.
“Well, Dr. Oliver, your pupils are equal and reactive, you seem to have normal, though weakened, movement in your extremities - but that’s to be expected after a couple of weeks in a coma, as you know. You have a compound fracture of your femur and three broken ribs on the left side. Your spleen has been removed. You suffered a localized brain bleed in the frontal lobe, and we won’t know if you’re fully oriented or have sustained any deficits until we take you off the vent and can have a little chat, although Mr. Snyder seems to think he can tell just by the expression on your face. I certainly hope he’s right.”
Dr. Taylor goes on to explain that he would send a respiratory therapist in to do a breathing trial, and then he claps Luke on the shoulder and leaves the room.
“So. What do you think of Dr. Taylor?” Luke asks.
Reid makes sure Luke is looking at him, then rolls his eyes dramatically. There is no mistaking it this time, and Luke laughs out loud as a huge weight is lifted from his shoulders. He has his Reid back. He knows for sure, now.
Author: cindergal
Rating: T
Characters/Pairing: Luke/Reid
Summary: Reid survives the train accident - now what? Part one of what will be a longer series, but can be read as a stand alone.
Word Count: 1758
Disclaimer: I do not own ATWT. No profit, no harm, no foul.
Prompts: Written for the hc_bingo prompt "hospital stay"
A/N: Not beta'd. As always, all mistakes are mine, mine, mine.
Black and blue. That’s what people always say when you have a few bruises. But Reid’s body is black and blue and red and purple, and even green and yellow in a few places. He’s a virtual rainbow of pain.
“I have to change his dressings now, honey. You should probably step out for a few minutes.”
“No!” Luke says. The nurse - Vanessa - raises her eyebrows at his tone, and he runs a shaky hand through his hair. He’s not even supposed to be in the ICU, but he’d already informed Bob that he was the only family Reid had and he wasn’t going anywhere. Bob hadn’t said a word, but so far, no one’s told him to leave. Not that he would, if they did. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I just…I can’t leave him. I’m afraid if I do…” His voice breaks and he clears his throat. “I’m just…afraid.” Afraid Reid will die. Afraid he won’t be here anymore. Afraid someone will take him off the ventilator when Luke’s not looking. Just constantly… afraid.
Vanessa gives him a sympathetic smile, and then dons her sterile gloves and gets to work. Reid’s body is one big contusion, from his head to his toes. There are tubes and wires coming out of him everywhere, and he’s stitched and bandaged in various places. His left leg is in traction.
Luke has never seen Reid naked. The closest he came was the day of Noah’s surgery, when Reid had answered the door shirtless and Luke had been overwhelmed by guilt and lust and - if he’s being honest with himself - something even deeper. Since they’d started seeing each other, he’s had his hands up under Reid’s shirt and down the back of his pants when they’ve had some heavy duty make-out sessions, but that’s it. Luke never got to enjoy a good, long look.
Luke can look all he wants, now. He doesn’t want, but he can’t look away, either. The nurse pulls the drape back up to cover Reid, and he doesn’t move a muscle. He just lies there unconscious, in a medically induced coma to help him heal. They've been gradually reducing the amount of medication he's receiving in hopes that he'll wake up, and Luke tries not to despair that he hasn't yet. There's no way to know, they tell him. Could be hours, could be days. Could be never, is what they think but don't say. Doctors and nurses come in and out and check his bandages and his vital signs and generally make sure he’s still alive. On the plus side, they don't seem worried about whether he's going to pull through anymore, but Luke isn’t leaving until Reid opens his eyes and tells him that himself. Because if Reid says it, then Luke will know it’s true.
*
Reid rises up through the levels of consciousness slowly, like he’s floating up from the dark, cold ocean floor until he finally breaks the surface and sees… the sun.
He blinks slowly, realizing immediately that he’s in the ICU. He’s attached to a heart and blood pressure monitor, and a ventilator breathes for him. His left leg is in traction. All of these things he is aware of immediately because he is a doctor, because the ICU is a place he is intimately familiar with, though not from this vantage point. So yes, these are all things he is aware of immediately, but they’re not what he sees. All he sees is Luke.
Luke is asleep in a chair next to his bed. He holds Reid’s hand loosely in his own. He’s got at least a week’s worth of stubble, his hair is a greasy mess, his clothes are rumpled - he’s been here the whole time, Reid realizes. Whatever the whole time might be. And Reid is suddenly afraid. He’s obviously been seriously injured and he doesn’t remember what happened, and that’s when the pain hits him like a freight train.
like a freight train
He remembers now, the train bearing down on him, struggling, terrified, with the car that won't start, the seatbelt that won’t unlock, the blare of the train whistle and the crunch of metal and shattering glass. He can feel his heart galloping in his chest, and it hurts, and he squeezes Luke’s hand as hard as he can. Which isn’t very hard at all.
But thankfully, it’s enough, and Luke wakes up. The look of surprise on his face would be funny if Reid could find any humor in this situation whatsoever.
“Reid?” He jumps up, never letting go of Reid’s hand. “Oh my God, you’re awake. Can you hear me?”
Reid nods as best he can, and Luke makes a sound somewhere between a sob and a laugh. He leans over, brushing his other hand through Reid’s hair and kissing his forehead. “I love you,” he says fiercely, staring into Reid’s eyes. He calls out to the nurse on duty and asks her to get someone named Dr. Taylor, but his eyes stay on Reid the whole time.
“You’re at Memorial. You were in an accident. Do you know who I am?”
Reid attempts to nod again, unconsciously reaching for the ventilator tube, but he can’t raise his arm because he’s attached to so many tubes. He can feel himself begin to panic, heart galloping in his chest, and the heart rate monitor starts to go off, which doesn’t help any.
“Reid? Reid, look at me.”
Reid, whose eyes have been darting around the room in a panic, returns his gaze to Luke. He looks exhausted, dark circles and stubble standing out against his pale skin. But when he smiles, it immediately calms Reid down, and he realizes that the heart monitor has finally stopped pinging.
“That’s better. I’ve been waiting a long time to see those beautiful blue eyes of yours again,” he says, and Reid wonders again how long ‘a long time’ is. “Eleven days,” Luke says, as if reading his mind. His smile falters, and he wipes the tears from his face with the back of his hand. “Never thought of that as a long time, before.”
*
“Well hello there, Dr. Oliver. It’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance. I’m Dr. Taylor.”
Dr. Taylor is the trauma specialist that Luke has hijacked temporarily from Loyola in Chicago to coordinate Reid’s care. He is the opposite of Reid in every way, big and burly, with an open smile and a cheerful manner despite - or maybe because of - his area of expertise. Reid spares him a fleeting look before his gaze immediately returns to Luke, and Luke squeezes his hand gently. Reid had opened his eyes for the first time about fifteen minutes ago, and he’s barely taken his eyes off Luke the entire time. Luke has decided to take that as a good sign.
Well, in point of fact, Luke is barely able to keep himself from jumping up and down with joy.
“I want you to know that you are a very lucky man, Dr. Oliver.” Reid glances down the length of his body, taking in all the tubes, wires, bandages, and finally his left leg, casted ankle to hip and hanging in the air in traction, and raises his eyebrows slightly. Luke can practically here him say, seriously? “You have a very devoted boyfriend,” the doctor continues, as if he hadn’t seen what Luke had. “He moved heaven and earth - and spent quite a bit of cash, I must say - to get the best doctors in the country to come to this little hospital for you.”
Reid has an ET tube down this throat, but Luke could swear he gives him a smirk upon hearing that. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, or sleep deprivation, Luke thinks. But he hopes not.
“How…how is he?” Luke asks.
Dr. Taylor had warned Luke that Reid had experienced a brain bleed, and there was no guarantee of what his mental status might be, if and when he woke up. There was no guarantee that he would still be…Reid. Luke told himself that he didn’t care, that all that mattered was that Reid was alive. But late at night, when it was just him and Reid and a bunch of beeping machines that kept him alive, he worried.
Dr. Taylor takes his penlight out of his pocket and checks Reid’s eyes, and then asks Reid to squeeze his hands and wiggle his toes. He nods to himself and makes a note in Reid’s chart.
“He seems to be doing remarkably well for someone who just woke up from a coma. We’ll know more when we take him off the ventilator.”
Luke looks over at Reid, who is scowling at the doctor, at least as much as a person with a tube down their throat can scowl. “I think Dr. Oliver would prefer you speak to him directly,” Luke says with a smile. “And use medical terminology.”
Dr. Taylor laughs. “Oh, you can tell all that from a look, can you?”
“Yeah,” Luke says, “I can.” At least, that’s what Luke sees. Maybe it’s all wishful thinking. Maybe he’s making it all up in head. But he doesn’t think so.
“Well, Dr. Oliver, your pupils are equal and reactive, you seem to have normal, though weakened, movement in your extremities - but that’s to be expected after a couple of weeks in a coma, as you know. You have a compound fracture of your femur and three broken ribs on the left side. Your spleen has been removed. You suffered a localized brain bleed in the frontal lobe, and we won’t know if you’re fully oriented or have sustained any deficits until we take you off the vent and can have a little chat, although Mr. Snyder seems to think he can tell just by the expression on your face. I certainly hope he’s right.”
Dr. Taylor goes on to explain that he would send a respiratory therapist in to do a breathing trial, and then he claps Luke on the shoulder and leaves the room.
“So. What do you think of Dr. Taylor?” Luke asks.
Reid makes sure Luke is looking at him, then rolls his eyes dramatically. There is no mistaking it this time, and Luke laughs out loud as a huge weight is lifted from his shoulders. He has his Reid back. He knows for sure, now.