(Untitled)

[trigger_man]

[OOM: Jack should know that nothing good can come of ignoring his instincts.]

The door opens, and Jack stands blinking blearily on the other side. A patron that looks over is likely to look twice, considering the state of him.

His shirt is soaked through and his wet hair is plastered against his head, but that’s likely to be the least noticeable

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[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy glances up from where he's sitting. He's seen Jack around before now, in passing, but never got around to actually talking to him.

He's got a bit of a spidey sense for blood though, so as Jack passes behind him, he turns around.

"Do you want any help with that? I'm a doctor."

[trigger_man]

Jack tenses as the man next to him turns toward him, and doesn't relax when the man identifies himself as a doctor. He might know that it's unlikely that any doctor in Milliways will hurt him, but instinct makes him look at Guppy a little suspiciously.

"It's nothing major; nothing I haven't dealt with before."

He knows the former isn't exactly true, considering the nausea and dizziness he's been feeling since the blow to his head. He's not about to say that though.

[guppy_sandhu]

"There's no charge if that's what's worrying you." Guppy says.

[trigger_man]

Jack hesitates for a moment, then shakes his head.

"Not really a fan of hospitals," he says, finally. It's something of an understatement, but he's not about to explain why to a total stranger.

[guppy_sandhu]

"Well, we've got a day room. Doesn't look much like a hospital. And you've no obligation to stay."

Gentle smile. "I'm Guppy by the way."

[trigger_man]

"Jack Bauer," he says, the introduction buying him a little time. He's torn between the part of him that doesn't want to take a single step into the infirmary and the part of him that's telling him he shouldn't be such a fucking coward.

"I'm not sure there's much you can do; I've had black eyes and cracked ribs before."

[guppy_sandhu]

"Nice to meet you Jack.

Analgaesia, making sure you've not got any internal bleeding? I could offer you the skin fuser for those cuts but I don't want to completely freak you out..."

[trigger_man]

Jack huffs a short, dark laugh, but stops when pain lances through his torso.

"Yeah, had internal bleeding before, too."

He hesitates for a moment. "What exactly do you have to use to check those kinds of things?"

There is no freaking way he's getting in a CT scan machine or anything like that.

[guppy_sandhu]

"We have this." Guppy pulls out something that looks half way between a glue gun and a large blackberry. "No radiation, no tunnels."

[trigger_man]

Jack hesitates for another moment, then gives Guppy a short, sharp nod. "Okay."

He's not sure whether it's the concussion or the thought of being in an infirmary and being looked over by a doctor that's making him feel nauseous again.

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy gets up, and offers him a hand if he wants it.

"And if you don't like what I'm doing, feel free to walk away at any point. I won't force anything on you."

[trigger_man]

Jack waves off Guppy's hand, partly because he's reluctant to accept assistance, but also because he isn't sure what he'd do if Guppy holds onto him and he has some kind of flashback on walking into the infirmary.

"Okay," he says again, though he's still a little wary. The sensible part of him knows that he should trust Guppy, but there's always that part that still can't drop the suspicion and paranoia.

Slowly, Jack starts heading toward the infirmary doors.

[guppy_sandhu]

Guppy holds the door for him, making sure to not corner Jack.

"Can I ask what happened?"

[trigger_man]

"Got beat up by a couple guys," Jack says. He knows he's stating the obvious, but it's not really a story he wants to get into with a virtual stranger at the moment.

He steps into the day room, trying not to look around too much as he's not sure how he'll react to it. He can't stop hismelf from noticing the smell, though. The Chinese prison's infirmary hadn't been terribly sterile, but there are some scents that are the same, and he can feel his heartbeat kick up a notch.

[guppy_sandhu]

"Take your time, have a seat." Guppy says gently.

It's all sofas, and there's a large fish tank along one wall. Guppy goes in next door, and gets the scanner and first aid kit.

[trigger_man]

Jack slowly takes a seat on one sofa, wincing and holding his ribs as he sits. He doesn't relax, though, sitting on the edge of his seat. The place might be comfortable and designed to put people at their ease, but just knowing it's an infirmary has Jack's instincts on edge.