Regard 7: Welcome Back by MasterPages, white, Sam/Annie, hurt/comfort
Title: Regard chapter 7: Welcome Back
Rating: White Cortina
Word count: 1,016
Notes: More necessary OOC behavior here... suspend your disbelief and you should have a fun ride. xp Sorry this one's so short.
Summary: Sam calls Gene's bluff.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
All the old nightmares came back, but it was worse in a way. He felt stifled, like he couldn’t even scream inside his mind anymore. It’s like waking up… I can smell the hospital. I can hear it. His fingers twitched. I can feel those thin sheets. But I can’t wake up there anymore. You don’t come back from jumping off a roof. So why am I dreaming about the hospital?
He couldn’t remember what had happened. Maybe he’d gone to see someone else in the hospital and fallen asleep. No, that didn’t make any sense either…
“I think he’s waking up.”
That sounded like Annie. Not 2006, then. Funny how that relieved him. Another voice was answering her and then it faded away. He fought to open his eyes and managed it at last. There she was, smiling at him.
“Hello, Sam.”
He started to lift his arm, but it barely responded before pain shot through his right side.
“Here.” She put her hand in his and squeezed. “You’re gonna be all right. They got the bullet out with no trouble. It broke a rib, though, one of your lower floating ribs. But if it hadn’t hit that, it might have gone straight through, they said. Your jacket was dead useful slowing the blood loss. Gov’s taken it to be cleaned an’ patched. You had quite a fever, too, but that’s going down nicely.”
Sam smiled and stroked her fingers. “Thanks,” he said, and his voice sounded low and gruff. He cleared his throat. “Thanks for being here.”
“They sent us home about eleven, once you were stable after the operation, but Gov told me to come straight back in the morning and call him when you woke up, so I should go do that. Mind you, I’d have been here anyway.”
He smiled again, bigger this time. “May I have a kiss before you go?”
She leaned down and tenderly pressed her lips to the half of his mouth that wasn’t swollen. Then she ran a hand down the side of his face as she straightened. “I’ll be right back.”
He was in pain and sort of fuzzy and a little confused and tired and hungry and nauseated… but Sam felt oddly content at the same time. So much better than he had been the day before-shivering in a dark cellar, wondering if Gene would find him, half hoping he wouldn’t because it was a trap. Gene had come anyway, and they’d both survived. Not a bad day in 1973. He dozed off again before Annie returned.
When he woke up the second time, it was much less frightening an experience. He remembered where he was and why a lot sooner this time. Annie had left for the office when Gene arrived, and the DCI was sitting by his bed, reading a newspaper. Holding it, anyway; it was hard to say whether or not Gene really read the news.
“Finally,” Gene said when he saw that Sam was awake. He pulled his chair closer. “Will you believe they said you can’t work for a week? And even then they said no field work for another two! You’re no good to me, Tyler.”
“Well… that’s a nice welcome back,” Sam murmured. He glanced furtively at Gene’s face and then closed his eyes. This would be awkward, but it would probably also be his only chance. “I was a good boy,” he said quietly.
“Damnation. You weren’t supposed to remember that.”
In spite of the reaction, Sam couldn’t help smiling a little. “I was still awake when we got to the hospital. Only just, but I was. Heard you threatening someone over my jacket. That’s the last I remember.”
“It’s out being repaired now. Bloke says he can fix it so you’d never know there was a hole. Dunno how he’ll manage that, but I thought-why not try?”
So, a change of subject and that was that. Gene didn’t plan to honor their “deal.”
“It’s probably going to be very expensive; you shouldn’t have bothered.”
“Probably shouldn’t have. Oh well, too late now.”
“Annie gave me the run-down of my injuries. Seems I was pretty lucky.”
“Mm.”
“I figure if I’d stayed where I was, the bullet would have hit a little under my heart. Would have been all sorts of trouble. You knocked me over… you may have saved my life, Gov.” He took a quick peek at Gene before closing his eyes again.
Gene shrugged, uncharacteristically modest. “Shots flying everywhere-might just as easily have knocked you into a worse spot and got you killed.”
“Well, you didn’t, and I’m grateful.”
“No need. I’ll say one thing, though: if you’re not fit for field work, at least I can stick you with all the paperwork for two weeks.”
Sam smiled again, still keeping his eyes closed, not wanting them to betray his disappointment. “You’re always the one to find the silver lining, aren’t you, Gov?”
“Always.”
“How about you-are you all mended?”
Gene scoffed. “He’d barely got started on me. Nothin’.” He paused and then said, “Well, now you’re back with us, I should get back and tie up the rest of the case. Gotta make a statement to the press, too. Once that camera is released from evidence, I’m claiming that film. Gonna sell a copy of our photo to the paper.”
“Oh… my godfathers…” Sam muttered.
“I’ll have one framed for you, if you like.”
A snort escaped him. “Yeah, why not.”
He heard Gene getting up from his chair. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. And then another running through his hair. He didn’t breathe.
“You get better soon, Sammy-boy.”
And the smile came back-real this time, not just out of irony. “Thanks, Dad.” He opened his eyes.
“You say one word about our deal to anyone-anyone-and it’s off. And not only that, but you’ll be transferred. At least, I’ll tell ‘em you’re transferred, but you’ll actually be in the morgue. You hear me?”
“Yes, sir.”
The smile stayed long after Gene left.
Part 8
Rating: White Cortina
Word count: 1,016
Notes: More necessary OOC behavior here... suspend your disbelief and you should have a fun ride. xp Sorry this one's so short.
Summary: Sam calls Gene's bluff.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
All the old nightmares came back, but it was worse in a way. He felt stifled, like he couldn’t even scream inside his mind anymore. It’s like waking up… I can smell the hospital. I can hear it. His fingers twitched. I can feel those thin sheets. But I can’t wake up there anymore. You don’t come back from jumping off a roof. So why am I dreaming about the hospital?
He couldn’t remember what had happened. Maybe he’d gone to see someone else in the hospital and fallen asleep. No, that didn’t make any sense either…
“I think he’s waking up.”
That sounded like Annie. Not 2006, then. Funny how that relieved him. Another voice was answering her and then it faded away. He fought to open his eyes and managed it at last. There she was, smiling at him.
“Hello, Sam.”
He started to lift his arm, but it barely responded before pain shot through his right side.
“Here.” She put her hand in his and squeezed. “You’re gonna be all right. They got the bullet out with no trouble. It broke a rib, though, one of your lower floating ribs. But if it hadn’t hit that, it might have gone straight through, they said. Your jacket was dead useful slowing the blood loss. Gov’s taken it to be cleaned an’ patched. You had quite a fever, too, but that’s going down nicely.”
Sam smiled and stroked her fingers. “Thanks,” he said, and his voice sounded low and gruff. He cleared his throat. “Thanks for being here.”
“They sent us home about eleven, once you were stable after the operation, but Gov told me to come straight back in the morning and call him when you woke up, so I should go do that. Mind you, I’d have been here anyway.”
He smiled again, bigger this time. “May I have a kiss before you go?”
She leaned down and tenderly pressed her lips to the half of his mouth that wasn’t swollen. Then she ran a hand down the side of his face as she straightened. “I’ll be right back.”
He was in pain and sort of fuzzy and a little confused and tired and hungry and nauseated… but Sam felt oddly content at the same time. So much better than he had been the day before-shivering in a dark cellar, wondering if Gene would find him, half hoping he wouldn’t because it was a trap. Gene had come anyway, and they’d both survived. Not a bad day in 1973. He dozed off again before Annie returned.
When he woke up the second time, it was much less frightening an experience. He remembered where he was and why a lot sooner this time. Annie had left for the office when Gene arrived, and the DCI was sitting by his bed, reading a newspaper. Holding it, anyway; it was hard to say whether or not Gene really read the news.
“Finally,” Gene said when he saw that Sam was awake. He pulled his chair closer. “Will you believe they said you can’t work for a week? And even then they said no field work for another two! You’re no good to me, Tyler.”
“Well… that’s a nice welcome back,” Sam murmured. He glanced furtively at Gene’s face and then closed his eyes. This would be awkward, but it would probably also be his only chance. “I was a good boy,” he said quietly.
“Damnation. You weren’t supposed to remember that.”
In spite of the reaction, Sam couldn’t help smiling a little. “I was still awake when we got to the hospital. Only just, but I was. Heard you threatening someone over my jacket. That’s the last I remember.”
“It’s out being repaired now. Bloke says he can fix it so you’d never know there was a hole. Dunno how he’ll manage that, but I thought-why not try?”
So, a change of subject and that was that. Gene didn’t plan to honor their “deal.”
“It’s probably going to be very expensive; you shouldn’t have bothered.”
“Probably shouldn’t have. Oh well, too late now.”
“Annie gave me the run-down of my injuries. Seems I was pretty lucky.”
“Mm.”
“I figure if I’d stayed where I was, the bullet would have hit a little under my heart. Would have been all sorts of trouble. You knocked me over… you may have saved my life, Gov.” He took a quick peek at Gene before closing his eyes again.
Gene shrugged, uncharacteristically modest. “Shots flying everywhere-might just as easily have knocked you into a worse spot and got you killed.”
“Well, you didn’t, and I’m grateful.”
“No need. I’ll say one thing, though: if you’re not fit for field work, at least I can stick you with all the paperwork for two weeks.”
Sam smiled again, still keeping his eyes closed, not wanting them to betray his disappointment. “You’re always the one to find the silver lining, aren’t you, Gov?”
“Always.”
“How about you-are you all mended?”
Gene scoffed. “He’d barely got started on me. Nothin’.” He paused and then said, “Well, now you’re back with us, I should get back and tie up the rest of the case. Gotta make a statement to the press, too. Once that camera is released from evidence, I’m claiming that film. Gonna sell a copy of our photo to the paper.”
“Oh… my godfathers…” Sam muttered.
“I’ll have one framed for you, if you like.”
A snort escaped him. “Yeah, why not.”
He heard Gene getting up from his chair. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. And then another running through his hair. He didn’t breathe.
“You get better soon, Sammy-boy.”
And the smile came back-real this time, not just out of irony. “Thanks, Dad.” He opened his eyes.
“You say one word about our deal to anyone-anyone-and it’s off. And not only that, but you’ll be transferred. At least, I’ll tell ‘em you’re transferred, but you’ll actually be in the morgue. You hear me?”
“Yes, sir.”
The smile stayed long after Gene left.
Part 8