Tackled
Title: Tackled
Author: Timelordshines
Characters: Gwen Cooper, Jack Harkness, Rhys Williams
Rating: PG-13
Words: 1314
Spoilers: S2E9
Disclaimer: Characters belong to RTD and the BBC - I’m just borrowing them.
Written for hc_bingo prompt "Head Trauma".
Author's Note: I'm sorry i've not been commenting lately - I have four pages of entries on my friends page to get through which I will do as soon as possible! in the mean time, I going to spam you all with quite a few h/c fics (hopefully). I have 15 left to write. In 14 days. Wish me luck - I'm going to need it! (And if anyone has a tardis they could lend me so I could go back in time and write more at the beginning of this challenge like I should have done, that would be good!)
Gwen looked at the caller id of her ringing phone. Rhys.
“I’m sorry Jack,” she excused herself, “I’d better take this.” She turned away from her boss and pressed the phone to her ear, “Hi Rhys sweetheart, I’m sorry now isn’t a good time. Can I call you back?”
“Gwen? It’s David.”
“David? Hi. Why are you calling me from Rhys’s phone?”
“I’m sorry Gwen, it’s Rhys. He’s had an accident.”
Gwen’s heart stopped. “What happened? Is he ok?”
“We were playing rugby. He hit his head. The ambulance is here now.”
Gwen’s knees felt week, and she might have fallen if Jack hadn’t wrapped a protective arm around her.
“I’m going to ride with him, can you meet us at the hospital?”
“Ok. I’ll be right there.” Gwen was shaking as she hung up the phone and turned in Jack’s arms to face him. “I have to go to the hospital. Rhys’s had an accident.” She said, her voice sounding strange and echoey in her own ears.
She pulled away from Jack to collect her coat and bag from the back of her chair, her mind in overdrive worrying about her husband’s fate. She fished in her bag for her car keys and promptly dropped them on the floor. Crouching to pick them up her hand closed around Jack’s who had got there first and picked up the keys. “Let me?” he asked.
“No, it’s fine. I’ll be fine.” Gwen replied, brushing her hair out of her face.
“You’re in no fit state to drive Gwen. I’ll take you.” Jack’s tone brooked no argument and Gwen meekly nodded, shouldering her bag once more as Jack laid a hand on her hip and shepherded her out of the Hub.
When they arrived at the hospital, Jack used his Torchwood credentials to get quick answers to his questions and they were shown up to a waiting room outside the room where Rhys was being examined.
Rhys’s mate David was already there, sitting anxiously. He leapt up when he saw Gwen and hugged her awkwardly, before shaking hands with Jack even more awkwardly.
“The doctor is with him now. He’s unconscious but they won’t tell me anything as I’m not family,” he said apologetically.
“Thank you,” said Jack, then he turned to Gwen who was wringing her hands anxiously, “I’m sure the doctor will be out soon and he’ll tell you what is going on. Just give them time to do their work.”
Gwen nodded mutely, not trusting herself to speak. She knew that if she did she would probably start crying and she didn’t want to do that in front of Rhys’s friend.
Sensing that Gwen needed a minute, David offered to go and get her and Jack a coffee.
“Yes please, that would be great.” Jack answered for both of them.
As soon as the door closed behind him, Gwen turned to Jack. “What am I going to do Jack? He can’t die! Please tell me he will be alright! I can’t lose him!”
“Shh,” Jack whispered, gathering his friend into his arms. He wanted to tell Gwen it would all be ok, but he couldn’t offer false hope. He didn’t know the what would happen and didn’t want to make any empty promises until he knew all the facts. Instead, he just held her tight as Gwen clung to him, her hands twisting in the front of his shirt, tears soaking into the material.
Some time later, Jack sensed the door behind him open and David came into the room, clearing his throat noisily. Gwen pulled away from Jack and wiped her eyes on the handkerchief that he offered to her. The pair then took the now rather cold cups of machine coffee that David passed to them. “Thank you,” Gwen sniffled.
The three of them took their seats and waited, sipping at the awful coffee more for something to do in the awkward silence than out of any need for the drink.
Eventually, the door to the examination room opened and the doctor came out. “Mrs Williams?”
“Yes?” said Gwen standing up.
The men stood too and Jack placed a comforting hand on the small of Gwen’s back.
“It looks like your husband has had a lucky escape.”
Gwen let out the breath she didn’t realise she had been holding.
“Mr Williams received a nasty blow to the head, which caused a small amount of internal bleeding. We sedated him lightly to prevent any further damage whilst we did our tests, but it looks like there is unlikely to be any permanent damage. Obviously we won’t know for sure until he regains consciousness, but it could have been a lot worse.”
“Thank you, doctor!” Gwen said with fresh tears, this time of relief, prickling at her eyes. “Can I see him?”
“Of course,” the doctor smiled, spreading his arm towards the door in invitation.
Gwen stood rooted to the spot. She wanted to see him, but was afraid of seeing his injury. Jack used the hand on her back to give her a gentle nudge. Gwen stepped forward, but took hold of Jack’s hand. She needed the strength he gave her.
The doctor glanced down at their joined hands then looked over at David who shrugged minutely. “I’d better go call the rugby team. They are all worried sick.” He excused himself and the doctor followed him out of the waiting room leaving Gwen and Jack to go in to see Rhys in the examination room.
Looking down at her husband Gwen brushed the hair off his forehead above the bandage. She took his hand in hers. “He looks so peaceful. Just like he’s sleeping,” she whispered.
“Yeah, he does,” Jack said and rested his hand lightly on Gwen’s shoulder as they stood hip to hip listening to the bleeping of the machines.
After what seemed like an age, Gwen spoke in a very small voice, “what if he doesn’t wake up?” she bit her lip which was wobbling dangerously, on the verge of tears. Looking down at her, Jack’s heart melted and he felt tears prick the back of his own eyes. He blinked them away. He never wanted Gwen to know the pain of losing a loved one. He gently turned Gwen to face him and wrapped his arms around her, holding her as she struggled not to cry. Jack kissed the top of Gwen’s head and gently stroked her hair.
As he held her, Jack noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. Rhys was coming around.
Rhys opened his eyes, blinking in the light.
Jack kissed the top of Gwen’s head once more, then gently turned her around, lifting her hand to place it back on Rhys’s.
“Gwen?” Rhys whispered hoarsely.
“Rhys? Oh my goodness, you’re awake!” Gwen gushed, grinning madly. She lifted Rhys’s hand to her face and kissed it repeatedly, the tears of relief streaming down her face.
Jack smiled at Rhys, nodded, and backed out of the room leaving the couple alone.
Ten minutes later Jack looked up from where he sat in the waiting room as Gwen came out of the examination room closing the door gently behind her. He stood up, “how is he?”
“He’s ok,” Gwen grinned, “doesn’t remember what happened, but he’s ok.”
“That’s great.” Jack’s grin matched Gwen’s.
“He said he wanted to speak to you briefly, then we’d better call the doctor and let them know he’s awake.”
“Ok…” Jack said, wondering what Rhys could want to say to him.
Jack left Gwen in the waiting room and went back into the room with Rhys, closing the door and turning to the bed.
“You know Jack, as much as I hated waking up in a hospital to see my wife in another man’s arms, I’m glad she has you. Just, promise me you’ll always take care of her?”