RP LOG with 1twntyovreighty | More time

[geniuscowboy]

Chris couldn't believe it was time for another meal again. He still felt full from the last time, and now there was more food in front of him. He had woken up to a kitchen staff member sliding the tray onto his bed table and now he was looking at the cover of the tray suspiciously. If there was porridge under there, he would pitch a fit. Someone would end up with it up their ass, no question. There was a few more moments of giving the tray the evil eyeball before he looked over at Rick, forehead creased curiously to try and suss out what his brother had on the menu. Only, he found Rick already smirking at him and creating a shield around his own tray with his arm so Chris couldn't see. "Hey!" Chris immediately protested. "That's not fair. That's... cheating!"

"No, it's preventing another brotherly pouting fit," Rick explained with another smirk. He picked up his fork to poke at his chicken something-or-other just in case porridge was about to come pouring out of it. Chris wasn't the only ones with sludgy porridge nightmares. "Just stick to your own food, bro. Better you don't know what it is your missing."

"This is not food, this is... is... " Chris struggled to take the lid off the tray and ended up dropping it on the floor. He was about to get pissed off at the fact when he looked at what was on offer for dinner. "Oh, hey. Vegetable soup. I can deal with that. Ice creeeeeeeeam," he added and picked up the small tub with a grin. "Dairy and sugar free chocolate, but not porridge. I would do a happy dance if I could, you know, move without ripping my bladder out by the roots."


Rick relaxed when he saw Chris was actually pleased with his dinner and took his arm away so he was no longer hiding his own meal and could pick up the knife to start eating. "Maybe your girlfriend had a few words with the kitchen staff. I've seen her when she thinks she's protecting you and it is as scary as all hell. I wouldn't be trying to feed you porridge if I knew who would be shoving a spatula up my ass in retaliation."

Chris was holding the tubes away so he could get his spoon into the soup. It wasn't overly hot so he didn't burn himself, he was just bloody glad there were no scary nurses there to try and feed him. He would sit here all night to get through it if that was what it took. "It was spatula worthy, dude. The crap was friggen grey. It was like something that comes out of you after you've eaten dodgy chicken." He managed to slowly get a spoonful of the soup into his mouth, and it really wasn't half bad. For the first time since he woke up, he actually had a bit of an appetite. "So, um... shaved your head, yeah?" he soon added, trying not to make a huge point of it.

Rick was chewing on his chicken slowly, surprised to find out that it was a bit like one of those kiev things. Apparently the kitchen was feeling ambitious tonight. He paused as he shot Chris a look though, not sure at first what his brother was trying to achieve before he started to nod. "Yeah, I did. I'm sorry, I mean, I would have said something... I asked Bella to do it. Right before I managed to get her off." Rick wasn't exactly sure why he felt a need to add the last bit, but he was smiling a bit with how proud he was at the fact he did have the ability to still engage in some sort of sexual activity. "She brought the razor with her. I wasn't actually going to ask her, but she just knew."

Chris had paused, about to put the next mouthful of soup in his mouth, but at Rick's declaration, he spilt it back into the bowl. "Dude, if you tell me there was an encore with the razor and her in anyway, I'm going to give you the silent treatment forever," he warned, trying to get any potential images out of his head. "I saw that episode of Sex and the City with the lightening bolt. Me and Serena had this whole discussion on it after the fact, only before I realised what we were actually talking about and I stopped it. I mean, seriously, a freaking lightening bolt? So, you're okay with it? That's a big step. The head thing, not the lightening bolt. But did it, you know... any reaction to what you were doing?"

Rick pointed his fork at his brother. "There were no lightening bolts or me going near her in any way with the razor, okay? So kill that before you start thinking anything more about my... um, doctor's pubic hair in any sort of interesting shape. There is no freaking way that something like that would ever be sexy. It's about ten shades of wrong. Same as the Brazillian. I get a chick that's totally bare down there and I just can't help but think about the fact that maybe she hasn't gone through puberty." Rick pulled his mouth to the side before he stabbed at his chicken. "No, no reaction."

Chris was watching his big brother, sniggering. He might look like a pile of shit, but he was still Chris Deleo under all of it somewhere. It just hid a lot more lately. "I wouldn't worry, anyway. When a chick's pregnant, all that shit generally goes out the window because it supposedly hurts about a hundred times more than normal. Serena's not into that much either. I prefer her how she is. She's gorgeous. Drives me wild. The morning I got back from Wimico, she was in bed and I came home and yeah... stopping now. Sorry." He bit down on his lip and watched Rick closely. "I'm sorry, dude. I am. If it's any consolation, I can't do anything like that right now, either. I can't even pee. Totally riding in the sympathy boat here. Boat sails up, metaphorically, of course."

Rick snorted with amusement as he wriggled to try and get the pillow in a better spot behind his back. Truth was he'd be grateful to just get back to Chris' and home to sheets that didn't feel stiff, and something to sit on other than a bed. "You don't have to stop, you know. I don't mind you talking about sex, or about Serena. It's okay. Just relax. It's not like I can do anything with the visuals anyway, is it? Well, I didn't touch Bella's breasts. I'm not suicidal. She seemed alright with me touching other parts of her. I just wish I could actually get my boat sails up... That we both could. What's the point of these hot chicks looking after us, and we can't even get comfort sex?"

Chris bit down on his lip, running his spoon through the soup. "It wasn't really a visuals thing, you know? It was just... amazing. I mean, I was a mess. I don't even think I took my shirt off, but it was like comfort sex, but it was even more than that. She's been so fucking amazing putting up with all my bullshit. I feel crappy when I get shitty with her. You know the worst part? Even if I could get a boner, I'm not sure I could do anything with it. I just can't feel good. I feel better, but I still don't feel good." He fell quiet for a moment and looked back at Rick. "I'm glad they brought me here, though. Just, please don't get Bella off in my presence. I love you, dude, but no. That's my niece or nephew she's got in there."

Rick winked at his brother. "Deal, but I might just have to rush your recovery when it comes to being able to go to the toilet. Probably safer to just lock you in there than leave you in the hallway while I get Bella off. I'm glad you're here, too. It's nice to be able to just talk. Hang. Not have to try and bribe everyone I know to get info on how you're going. You'll probably take a while before you feel anywhere near to good. I wasn't even sure I would. But I guess the kidney did the trick. I'm also glad you have had Serena through all this. She's... she's a really special woman, bro. You're lucky."

"Hey, you are so not locking me in the shitter! That's child abuse, and I'm still your little brother, technically," Chris protested. "I might just punish you for that thought and tell them I need bed pans. That's an awfully thin curtain, you know. I'm sorry I've been making with all the weird medical complications. I guess I really am trying to get some good research in there. I'll just be glad to go home, though. This place depresses me. I miss home. I miss my bed. I keep trying to tell them that if all I'm going to do is sleep here, why can't I just sleep at home. It's totally irrational, and the doctor in me is calling me an idiotic prick, but it just sucks. You're about ready to go home, and I should have been home two days after the op. I'm glad you're doing well, though, bro. I am. I know I haven't really indicated that much and I've been a total ass knob about this whole thing, but I am."

Rick scrunched up his face before he started to shake his head emphatically. "Oh no. No fucking bed pans. Even I don't put you through that! There are some things that still need to remain a little sacred between brothers. Look, it's okay. I get it. The operation should have been routine, but it wasn't and now you're stuck. And I still can't help feeling guilty over that. I never wanted anything to happen to you in there," Rick told him quietly. "I wanted you to be the one that came out of it okay."

Chris watched his brother in amusement and then gave him a knowing smirk. "If I was sick, and needed bed pans, you really wouldn't mind if I did. I know you wouldn't," he said quietly. "You're with the big brother bravado and all that, but I know now when it comes to the crunch, you'd do whatever I needed. You might think you wouldn't know what to do, or if you were really helping... but you would. It's just taken me a long time to actually trust that again. But I still remember that time I fell in the lake from the wharf, and it was that freezing day. You jumped right in and pulled me out, and you were crying. Only, once you knew I was okay, you stopped and belted me in the arm and told me if I told anyone you cried, you would hit me harder." He gave a laugh and then bit down on his lip. "It's why I went back to Wimico. I wanted to feel that if I fell again with all this, you'd be right there to pull me back out. And you are. I just gotta remember how to call out to you again like I did that day."

Rick wished their beds were that little bit closer so he could touch his brother's arm, and so he could punch him in the arm for making him cry again. Rick's throat had another lump stuck in it as he felt his bottom lip tremble. It meant a lot to hear Chris say what he had. More than Rick was ever going to be able to say without crying like a baby. He rolled his eyes slightly as he flashed Chris a crooked smile. "I'll still hit you hard if you tell anyone. You really know how to scare the shit out of me, bro. I'm just glad you're okay."

Chris looked back at his dinner again. The vegetable soup that was so blended it just looked like coloured water, and the ice cream that probably didn't even have any cream in it to be entitled to be called ice cream. It was like he needed to learn how to eat again, too. He felt more vulnerable than anyone realised. To know his heart had stopped and there was a very close chance he might have died, he was suddenly seeing the world through Proctor's eyes. That didn't mean he necessarily liked it. He could just think back to some of the things his boss had said over the time and actually understand them now. He was stuck in a hospital bed, in a gown with no back in it, eating worse than baby food, with tubes in a lot of uncomfortable places. But at least he was alive. "You know what I want to do? Go to Australia, surf on Bondi Beach, just for the hell of it. To say I did it. But I'll take Miami Beach, with Serena. It means just as much. I just... don't know how long it's going to take me to get better. I promised I'd look after you, but what if I can't?"

Rick tried to swallow back any tears before they escaped and cleared his throat as he slowly started to cut up his chicken again. "I'm not gonna need much, bro. I can tell you that right now. Just put up with me crashing in the bed as you, and maybe puking into a bucket when I can't be bothered getting up for the toilet. I don't know if I'll get any better with the chemo or not. I can't even remember how much more Bella said I was gonna need. She made it sound like it wouldn't be much more. Then you won't have to worry about needing to look after me." He turned his head to look back at Rick. "If Australia's something you really wanna do, then why not do it when you're feeling better? Take Serena. Make it a romantic trip."

Chris gave a slight nod. "Sure... except, I don't know if I'll be able to surf anymore. It's okay, though. It's something I knew from the get-go. Transplant donors are encouraged to try and protect the kidney they have left, so contact sports are out, and surfing was on that list. Apparently contact by surfboards is just as potential for injury as, you know, the school jock of the football team." He cleared his throat and took some more of the soup, watching it spill off the spoon a little. This was one of the factors he hadn't spoken to about anyone. He had kept it to himself until now. It just felt weird to say it out loud. "I'm sure it won't be much more. Optimistically, the tumours were taken with the kidney, so you're free, and she hasn't said otherwise. Maybe just a couple more hits of chemo to be on the safe side, and you'll be home free. The whole taking care of thing, though... bed and buckets I can do, man, but you pass out on me in the bathroom, there's no way I'll be able to lift you or help you to the toilet. Not with the dirty great wound in my stomach now. It'll be about six weeks before they let me lift anything, if I'm lucky."

"So basically what you're telling me is that if I pass out in the bathroom I'll just have to stay there for six weeks. Nice, bro. Real nice," Rick teased as he chuckled a little. The laughter soon died on his lips though as he realised the enormity of what Chris was saying. "You practically gave up surfing for me. Dude, why didn't you say anything? I didn't even... I didn't even realise that was gonna be a thing. I know what the beach means to you, what the water means."

Chris scrunched his face up. "No, this is that part I hate, where I have to admit I'm too weak to take care of you like I promised. Unless I pay for a live in nurse, or get someone to come stay with us." He waved his fingers slightly. "Hey, you know me. I'm not gonna give up completely. I just have to be aware of the risks, and you know, pick smaller waves or something. I can still have the beach and the water. It's just, if there are ever any serious accidents, there would just be more risk than normal. But in my own defense, I've never had a surfing accident beyond a mere concussion or a pulled hamstring. I've got a good track record, and awesome board."

Rick pointed at him. "You better touch wood, bro. Don't need you jinxing yourself. Maybe this is a good chance to do some bonding with Serena and teach her how to surf so you can live vicariously. And you really don't need to be spending money on a nurse or anything. You've spent enough on me, okay? I'm good. We'll figure it all out somehow."

"Dude, this table is plastic. Do I look like I can go find some wood? I just don't want to turn into one of those people. That are scared to live, scared of their own shadow because of their health. What's the point of living if you're always just waiting for something to go wrong? I'll be careful, of course I will, but I ain't ready to stop living yet. I think that's why I took it so hard when I woke up and realised I was actually technically dead for a very short time. You know, in my job, it's all about saving lives, but once we patch the people up, we don't really think about the aftermath so much. That gets passed on to other doctors to take care of, but those people would all go through some sort of thoughts like this. Just like you, like Dave. It was just more prolonged. I'm just to the point now where I'm thinking why the freaking hell am I trapped in a hospital bed when I could be out watching the sunset, or feeling the sand under my feet." Chris started making patterns in his soup absentmindedly. "I miss my job. I actually miss work. Most people would say I'm a freak, but I do. I just don't know if I'll end up going back to that job for too long. And what about you? Have you thought much what's going to happen once you get back on your feet?"

"I'd say I knew exactly where you could find some wood, but hard-on jokes aren't gonna cut it right now considering neither of us can get it up. You'll never be one of those people, Chris. You haven't given up yet so why start now? Plus you understand all the sides. As a doctor, a patient, a loved one... You have the full pictire. I know being trapped in a hospital bed isn't really where you wanna be," Rick said as he let out a sigh. "But seriously, man. I'm just grateful you're alive. I'm grateful that you'll even have the chance to see the beach again. I think maybe this time in a hospital is a small price to pay. Besides, we're getting some quality time here. Don't rain on my parade. You are a freak, bro, but I still love you. I'll go back to being a pilot. They got a team here that I might be able to get a job with. Bella's brother is a flight medic."

"I didn't just mean with your job, but okay, we'll roll with that," Chris replied as he once again started to lose interest in his food. He looked at the soup, and then his spoon. His appetite was waning again. "Have you met her bro yet? Has he threatened your testicles? Or is that just isolated to Bella for the moment? Seriously, Serena's brother gave me the total overhaul, I think I was left with a hint of whiplash after it. I think even my sperm felt uncomfortable."

Rick shook his head. "Sorry, I guess I just figured since you were talking about your job, that's what you meant. I don't know, bro. I really don't. I didn't exactly get much past sticking around in Miami in my thought process. I mean, I'm gonna be a dad. So there's a date with Bella on the cards. She's making me wait until we're sure I'm back on my feet. There'll be getting ready for the baby... That'll be big. Nope, no brotherly meet and greet but I did get told he might avoid the physical overhaul because of the cancer. She hasn't even told him she's pregnant. Not yet." He sniggered as he looked over at Chris. "Well, Serena's a pretty special girl. Only makes sense that the brother would give you the works."

"By date, you mean date right? You're not just talking about the birth or anything. Because I see you're hooked on her. She's making with all the small gestures, and each and every time she is stealing a piece of your heart. Trust me, I know. Serena did it with me, only we were too busy trying to act like we were in the school ground with me pulling her pigtails and teasing her... literally. We just didn't realise what was going on until we were naked on my sofa with old movies playing in the background. Then I got sick and puked on her... literally. It was true love," Chris said with a laugh and put his spoon down. "I saw her with him in the ICU. She was hugging him at the staff station. At least, I hope it was, otherwise she has a hot medic boyfriend in the wings somewhere. He looks like her. Same colour hair. The guy has to know something is up, right? She's not been acting herself."

Rick flipped his brother off. "Of course I mean a proper date. I want to take her out, show her the town. Give her the date she deserves. I'll even wear something other than a hospital gown showing my ass. It still feels like a step up being able to wear a white t-shirt and boxers. I really like her, bro. I can't exactly deny that. I'm still in awe of the fact that she's carrying my kid. But, um... She's... well, there's a chance she might not be able to carry it full term," he revealed in almost a whisper. "Old moves, sofa sex and puking? Definitely sounds like true love to me. If she does have a hot medic boyfriend waiting in the wings, I might just have to kill him. I'm assuming he does, but she's doing a good job at avoiding it."

Chris smirked. "Oh yeah? I think she actually likes the view of your ass, though, bro," he pointed out mischievously. "They only keep you in the gowns if they think they're going be having to defib you or shove a trachy in your throat..." He looked down at his gown with a snort. He was pretty sure he could get his bitch on and demand clothing by this point. He hadn't nearly karked it in days now. But he was soon looking back to Rick, his eyes widening a little. "She thinks she's gonna miscarry? That's... are you okay? That's pretty heavy. She must want it though. She hasn't really freaked out about being pregnant like most chicks in her situation would. If it happened to me and Serena, it would be panic stations all over."

"I think she's had too much else on her mind to panic over before she has time to panic over the pregnancy..." Rick shifted in the bed, his appetite gone for the moment. He gave slow shake of his head. "And no, I'm not okay. I just didn't really know what to say. She can't not try and carry the baby. If this is her one chance... If this is the only chance either of us have then we just need to wait it out. I just think it's a pretty fucked up thing for a person to go through."

Chris nodded, frowning as he looked over at his brother. "I've had a patient in her position once. Sort of. More like she knew that she would die during childbirth, but still carried the child with intent on giving birth to it. She wanted to save the kid's life. Which she did. Well, we did. Turns out fate made the choice for her. She was in a car crash before she even hit eight months. We saved the baby, and she died from internal injuries. I'm not exactly sure what my real point is here, but I think it's a maternal thing. I think waiting and seeing what will happen is better than just turning your back on it and deciding it's not even worth the risk. Cancer is a tricky thing, too. The pregnancy might be a heavy toll on her body, but she still wants it. Wants it with you. That's huge, dude. That's special."

Rick frowned a little as he listened, not sure he was exactly liking Chris' point until he reached it. The story just had him worrying over Bella, and he really hoped she wasn't about to get herself into a car crash. Maybe he just needed to tell her not to drive for a while. "Do you think she could actually relapse if she carries the baby?"

"Bella had juvenile leukemia, so maybe not. She would know her own body more than anyone else possibly could. I think if she was concerned there was a risk of that, she would at least tell you. All I'm saying is that she might need to just be extra-careful. Reduce her workload, rest, not overdo it. Or she'll weaken herself, and that's when the risk will come," Chris explained. "She'll probably need someone to keep her grounded, which I would think is where you step in."

"You think I'm really capable of keeping anyone grounded?" Rick asked with slight amusement. "I don't even know how to talk to her about things like cutting back her workload. It's not like I'm the expert. I've never knocked up a chick before, I've never been around anyone that was pregnant except for Mom and I was like five years old."

"Nope, I don't," Chris threw back with a laugh and pushed the table with his tray away so he could rest back on his pillow. "You say that to her, and she'll probably tell you to go fuck yourself sideways. But offer to take care of her, it's a different story. I have a confession to make. I got jealous when I thought you might want to go stay at Bella's. I started to get the shits about it because it felt like we hadn't had enough time yet, but... it was stupid, and I was drugged. I'm sticking to that story, by the way. You should be with your family, if that's what she wants. You gotta take care of them. Being around is the biggest of that."

Rick drew his eyebrows together as he looked over at his brother, Chris' comments once again tugging at his heart strings. "Dude, I think they gave me your girl kidney. All I want to do is cry all the time. And I'm not going to stay with Bella. Not yet. I'll just stay with her if you can't take care of me after the chemo, but then I'll be right back with you. I'm not leaving you just yet. I know Serena's gonna be living with you, but she still has to work. Someone's gotta be there while she's working."

"Maybe you're sympathetically pregnant," Chris said with a devious smirk as he planted the seed in his brother's mind. "Serena's probably already moved in. I haven't asked her. I should ask her. It was all planned and going ahead, I just put a spanner in the works by bleeding out. There's gonna come a point where Bella needs you more than I do, though. She's having a tough time of it already and she's a couple of months in. I don't even know where she lives. Is it close?"

"I've only been there once, but I think so," Rick murmured as he fell quiet and considered the sympathetic pregnancy thing. He had heard about stuff like that, but he wouldn't have ever assumed it would happen to him. He hadn't even thought he'd ever be a dad. "You can still both need me. Once I'm back on my feet, I can be there for both of you. I will be there for both of you."

"I know. I guess everything is still a lot for us all to wrap our heads around. Too much to think about all at once," Chris mumbled. "Then there's Mom."

Rick raised his eyebrows. "What about her?"

"Well, she's all... I dunno. I don't. Something's not right, though. I keep seeing her talking to Proctor, which scares the knob off me. She wouldn't stay at my place, either. She stayed at a hotel. I know I should have gone to see her when I went back home, but I don't even know what I was thinking. I just wanted to get back here, and I couldn't tell her. I couldn't... I can't stand seeing her cry. It always makes me think of that night," Chris said helplessly and rubbed his forehead with his fingers.

Rick stared down at his plate of food. "I want her here. I want her to live in Miami near us, but I know she'll keep telling us Wimico is her home. But why? Why the hell is it her home after everything that happened? There's nothing good in that town. Not for her, not for us. There are teaching jobs here, there's more kids that would wanna learn science here. We're here. I know she's probably wondering why we think she's a horrible mother, why we can't trust her with what's going on in our lives... She probably just wants to feel needed, but thinks we don't need her."

"I was so wrapped up in my shit here over the last couple of years, that I just assumed she was getting on okay. I mean, I called her regularly, but the months just all blended in together because I was working such screwed up hours. It's only been about the last six months that everything blew up. Work changed, Serena started with MT1, Proctor came, I managed to get my head out of my ass long enough to realise I was hot for a colleague. The only bad thing in a long time was hearing you had cancer, and the sinkhole thing. After that, it was just like everything got worse before I could take it all in. I just never meant to hurt Mom," Chris insisted quietly.

"So let's fix it. We should ask her to stay. Right? I want her to stay," Rick said as he tried to sit up a little straighter. He was starting to get restless again with thoughts of Bella, his mom and Chris battling for attention. "She should get a chance to be around if I'm going to be a dad, and you're going to be getting ever closer to settling down with your true love."

Something suddenly dawned on Chris and he looked over at Rick with a smirk. "You're making Mom a grandma. A real proper grandma. I am so glad I wasn't the first to do that, no offense, dude."

Word Count | 5,354