All the characters and events in this story are fictitious. Any resemblance to real people, either living or dead, is entirely unintentional.
The story is copyrighted and may not be reproduced in any way without the express permission of the author who can be contacted at:
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PJ
D'n'M Part 4
From Chapter 16:
Dan hadn't got far on the journey back to school when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket as a text arrived. He stopped pedalling and looked at the message on the screen. It was from Dods.
Where the fuck are you man? Why aren't you at the hospital?
Chapter 17:
"You've gotta let me see him." Dan didn't know whether to shout or cry.
"Young man, I haven't `gotta' do anything. And please keep your voice down, this is a hospital ward not your high school sports field." Maybe he'd just hit the stupid woman, nurse or no nurse.
"You don't understand, I ..."
"I understand that hospital rules don't allow anyone other than close family members to visit patients just out of surgery."
"Surgery? What sort of surgery? Is he okay?" He had no fucking idea things were that bad, in fact he knew almost nothing, only the little that Dods had been able to tell him as he stood at the side of the road trying to take in the news that M had been knocked down in a hit-and-run on Sunday evening and had been in St. Luke's ever since. Thankfully his dad had been at home when he called and had straight away driven into town to pick him up and bring him to the hospital. There had been awkward questions about why he wasn't in school and a surprised silence when Dan explained where he had been, though not why, despite Roger's best efforts to find out. He'd left his dad to park the car and then run every step of the way to the ward Dods had told him that M had been admitted to.
He took a couple of breaths. It was obvious that shouting and making a fuss wasn't the way to get to see M, not with this dragon in charge of the nurses' station. He needed to try a different angle. He put on his `persuasion' face, it could usually be guaranteed to work with his dad (his mum was a much tougher nut to crack).
"Please nurse, just for a couple of minutes. I promise not to upset M or get in the way." He applied his most appealing smile - it had been known to get him out of detention a couple of times.
"Smile or no smile, rules are rules. Only close family members allowed. I suggest you go back down the corridor to the waiting area, or better still, go home." This was a conversational battle she'd had a thousand times before and it was one she had never lost. Today was not going to prove the exception to the rule, not if she had any say in the matter, and she did -- a lot.
Dan was on the verge of doing something that would almost certainly have landed him in the youth court when he heard a voice calling him.
"D. There you are. What took you so long?"
Before he could reply the nurse dragon cut in with a question of her own, "You know this young man Mr. de Beer?"
"Yes, he does, I'm M's ..."
"Yes nurse Hatchet, this is Daniel, Milo's cousin." Gerry kept a straight face pointed at the nurse but managed to slip in a wink in Dan's direction as he walked up and gave him a hug. "They're more like twins than simply cousins and Dan is definitely the best medicine Milo could possibly have at this time."
"Thanks Ger ... Uncle Gerry." And to the nurse, "So I can see him now?"
The nurse dragon looked entirely unconvinced, but short of calling Gerry de Beer and out-an-out liar she had no choice but to allow Dan in to see Milo.
"Very well, he's in room J9. But only for a few minutes, and don't disturb him if he's asleep. I'll be coming by to check as part of my rounds." She clearly wasn't prepared to give in gracefully.
Having got what he wanted, thanks to Gerry turning up at just the right moment, Dan didn't bother wasting any further breath or energy on this woman. Instead he turned to his `uncle' who led him a short distance in the direction of Milo's room. Out of earshot of the nurses' station Gerry briefly explained what had happened on Sunday evening. It turned out that Milo and Grey had been cycling back to Grey's house having spent some time at the pool when a truck had come up behind them and driven more or less straight into them both. Thankfully it was still broad daylight and there were people about who saw what happened and called for the ambulance. Gerry explained that the driver of the truck didn't stop but that the police were confident of tracking him down thanks to the number of witnesses who saw exactly what happened.
"He'll be so pleased to see you, D. He was asking for you over and over before the surgery. It'll do him a power of good to know you're there when he properly wakes up." Dan was feeling bad enough before, not being with M when he had been in such a desperate situation, but hearing what Gerry was saying now felt like having a knife twisted in his guts. "He's asleep at the moment but I'll take you in and then you can sit with him while I go for a coffee. I've been here all night. He should be waking up again soon." Dan noticed that the skin on Gerry's face was a strange grey colour. It reminded him of his own dad around the time of the Roberts abuse. It must be tough being a dad, he thought. "Oh D," Gerry interrupted his thoughts as he pulled Dan into a tight hug, "You've no idea how pleased I am to see you. Now you're here I know M will start improving." No pressure then.
Although he still had no idea of the extent of M's injuries, D couldn't bear to waste any more time standing there in the corridor when he could be with him. He pulled himself free of Gerry's arms and, without waiting, set off to room J9, not exactly running but not far off. At the door, rather than bursting straight in, he stopped to look through the window. And what a good thing that turned out to be as it gave him the chance, before going in, to get over the shock of seeing just how bad Milo looked. He took some more deep breaths and wiped away the moisture that had instantly formed in the corners of his eyes. More or less confident that he could hold it together he pushed open the door.
"Fuck M, what's happened to you?"
Milo was completely out of it so was unable to hear the expletive or to respond, it was Gerry, coming up behind him, who answered.
"He's got broken ribs, three, maybe four, a broken right tibia - that's the shin bone to non-medics like you and me - and internal bleeding into his abdomen. He's also pretty badly bruised and scraped but that should heal quickly. It was the bleeding they were most worried about but the doctors think the surgery has got that under control. They put him in here so they can monitor him round the clock while he gets plenty of rest." Gerry laid a reassuring hand on Dan's shoulder.
"But he's gonna be all right?" Dan could barely ask the question for fear of the answer he might get. Had he been able to see himself in a mirror at that moment he would have seen that his face had turned the same colour as Gerry's.
"They've assured me that his life isn't in any danger but he's got a long road of recovery ahead of him, including more surgery in a day or two to pin his leg back together. So you're not to worry." Easier said than done. "You sit with him while I go to the canteen. I won't be long, and don't annoy Nurse Hatchet. Talk to him. They say he can hear you even though he's completely out of it." Shit, maybe he had heard the expletive after all.
Gerry left the room and Dan looked around, trying to orientate himself. In many ways it was strangely and reassuringly familiar from all the hospital dramas that seemed to be forever on TV. There was a beeping sound coming from some sort of monitor screen on one side of the bed and, on the other, a transparent plastic bag with a long tube hanging from a hook. One wall had a window covered with a partially closed venetian blind and opposite that an open door through which Dan could see a toilet and wash basin. There was a TV screen fixed to the wall above the door that he had come in through. And, of course, there was the big hospital bed, and on the bed, at the centre of all this equipment and paraphernalia, lay M, bruised, bloodied (still) and bandaged M, bare-chested and unnaturally still, eyes closed and mouth slightly open. The long tube attached to the bag ended in a needle inserted into the back of one hand and a cable led from the monitor to a clip attached to the middle finger of M's other hand. Various moving coloured lines tracked constantly across the screen accompanied by a series of fluctuating numbers. Yes, all very familiar but also very, very scary.
There was an uncomfortable-looking armchair beside the bed, on the same side as the intravenous drip. Dan sat. Initially that's all he did, sit, but after a few, restless minutes he edged the chair far enough forward so that he could reach out to do what he had been wanting, no, needing, to do ever since that phone conversation with Dods, and that was to touch M. He began by gently holding two fingers of his right hand (the one without the drip inserted). They were warm, not hot, even though the temperature in the room felt to Dan like 100 degrees. It wasn't long before holding two fingers had become lightly stroking up and down the smooth forearm, smooth, Dan realised because of the recent pre-match shaving. He stopped stroking. The shaving! The shaving with Grey. Oh shit! Grey! He hadn't given Grey a thought, not a single thought since receiving that first text from Dods. How bad was that? He'd ask Gerry, he was bound to know what had happened to Grey. That decision made, Dan turned his attention back to M and resumed the stroking.
It seemed only seconds later (it was actually nearer ten minutes) that the nurse dragon appeared, ordering him out of the room as there were various checks she needed to make. Dan opened his mouth to argue that he would keep out of the way until she'd finished but then noticed Gerry standing behind her shaking his head and beckoning him to leave the room. Dan reluctantly complied.
"No point in rubbing her up the wrong way," (that put an unpleasant image in Dan's head). "You need to stay in her good books if you're going to be allowed to spend time with M."
Dan could see the sense of that, much as it pissed him off, and he nodded. He followed Gerry along to the visitors' waiting area, more of an alcove than a room, but light with windows on three sides and furnished with a variety of two-seater sofas and easy chairs. In one of the chairs sat his dad. Roger stood up as Dan walked in. He had his `serious dad' face on, a rare and usually unrelenting expression. He launched straight in.
"You and I need to have a talk about why you weren't at school this morning. And why you went to see Dr. Margelles without talking to me and your mother first."
For the second time in just a few minutes Gerry managed to come to Dan's rescue before he could say something he'd later regret.
"Maybe later, Rog? D's had quite a shock in there. M's in a bad way and I reckon D needs some time to take it all in."
"Fair enough. It'll keep." Roger's tone had only moderated by a couple of percentage points. Dan knew he wasn't off the hook, not by a long way. But Gerry was right, seeing M in that state had been a shock and he did need time to process what he'd seen. Then he remembered Grey.
"What happened to Grey? Is he here too? Is he okay? Can I see him?" The questions ran out of him in an uncontrolled rush.
"Whoa Dan, slow down." Gerry led him to one of the sofas. Roger remained standing. "Yes, Grey is here in the hospital and yes, he is basically okay."
"How badly hurt is he?" This was Roger, asking the question that Dan had been about to ask.
"He's been badly shaken up and his close encounter with the road has taken lumps out of him, mainly down his right side. His right arm is broken and they think he's got a concussion. Last time I asked they were trying to get his pain under control, poor kid."
"Can I see him?" asked Dan.
"Sorry D, I don't think we can play the `cousin' card twice." Gerry grinned, Roger looked puzzled.
"They only let family members in to visit," explained Gerry, "So, as far as the hospital is concerned, D is M's cousin. I don't think Nurse Hatchet believes it but, short of calling me a liar, she's got no choice but to go along with it. Hopefully things will be easier once M's been moved to a different ward and they'll do that as soon as they're sure his condition has stabilised."
At that moment all three saw the nurse walking past the waiting area, back towards the nurses' station. Had she heard what Gerry had said about the boys being cousins? If she had she was showing no sign of acting on it. Dan was the first to realise that whatever checks were being made on M, they must be over. He had only one thought in his head.
"Can I go back to see him now uncle?" The last word was said loudly, entirely for the nurse's benefit.
Gerry replied at normal volume. "That's up to your dad. From my point of view that would be great. I still haven't managed to get hold of Milo's mother so it would be good to know there was someone with him while I try calling again."
Dan bristled at the mention of Grace de Beer. He still hadn't forgotten or forgiven her for what she did to M when she threw him out for being gay. But for now he had no energy or head space to waste on re-opening that particular issue, his focus was entirely on M.
"Please dad, can I stay?" There was no false smile or insincere pleading look on his face, just raw need in his eyes and desperation in his voice.
Roger was not, by nature, a hard man and he loved his son unreservedly.
"You can stay for an hour. I'll leave your bike locked up in the cycle park. But don't think we won't be talking when you get home. You've got a lot of explaining to do."
"Thanks dad, you're the best."
"Hm, you might want to review that opinion after we've talked, so don't be late." Roger turned to Gerry. "Don't let him outstay his welcome or make a nuisance of himself, and if you want him gone then just tell him to come home."
"I'll do that but, like I told the nurse, having D by his side is probably the best medicine M could have right now."
"Okay. I'll see you back at home." And in a louder voice, "Do as your uncle tells you and don't be late back." Dan understood that if his dad was happy to let him stay and also to go along with the `cousin' subterfuge then he couldn't be entirely in the dog house. He stepped forward to give Roger a brief hug before turning and heading back to J9.
This time when he got to the door he knew what to expect on the other side so went straight in. M was more or less exactly as he'd been before except the light blanket that was covering the lower half of his body had slipped further down so Dan could now see part of the dressing that had been stuck over the surgery wound. Without thinking or questioning his motivation he went over and lightly kissed it and then did the same to M's cheek. Then he moved the uncomfortable chair closer to the bedside and sat down, immediately taking hold of M's hand. A feeling of calm instantly washed through him.
Over the next hour Dan talked. He didn't believe the thing about M being able to hear and understand what was said, how could he when he was so obviously and completely out of it? So he told M everything that had happened to him in the past few days. He told about going back to the gym for the dog-tags and what he saw Tye and Eddy doing in the locker-room and the way his body had reacted. He repeatedly apologised for still not having retrieved the tags and promised to do so as soon as. He re-lived every detail of his date with Christy -- every detail, from the frustration of waiting around outside the restaurant, the excitement of making-out and touching her tits, right through to the confusion and humiliation of getting so close to being jerked-off on his first date but then losing his hard-on at the last moment. He had a brief internal debate with himself but then thought, `What the fuck,' and told of relieving his sexual frustration once he got home and the shock of seeing an image of M as he cummed. He told how sorry he was not to have been at the swimming match - how had he got on in his races? -- and went into another lengthy apology for lying about being unwell and how it was a gutless excuse to avoid having to talk to him. Weirdly, the hardest part to talk about was his visit that morning to see Dr. Margelles (even weirder that he called her by her actual name and title, not the nick-name he had given her and usually thought of her as). But explain it he did, even including the changes to the pictures and the latest hair colour. He told M about being affected by Performance Anxiety, emphasising, though for whose benefit he wasn't sure, that just because it had happened once didn't mean it would ever happen again. He found himself not saying much about the counsellor's theories about relationships and feelings, mainly because, like he told her, he needed time to think about all that stuff and he definitely didn't yet understand it enough to put into words that would make any sort of sense, even to M in his unconscious state.
Dan had just got to the point of telling M about the phone call with Dods when the door opened and Gerry walked in. Dan looked up and saw what looked like tears in the man's eyes. It quickly became clear that they were tears of anger mixed with frustration (definitely mostly anger)
"I don't believe that woman. Her only son, just out of surgery and banged about like a rag doll, and what does she say?"
Dan shook his head although he knew the question wasn't real, or even properly addressed to him.
"His own fault! His own fault for being a filthy faggot. She said he got what he deserved. Can you believe that? What he deserved!" He was almost shouting now. Dan tried to quieten him, afraid that Nurse Hatchet would hear and throw them both out.
"And what will I tell him when he wakes up and asks about her, which I know is exactly what he'll do? Before the surgery I told him I hadn't had time to speak to her. He won't believe that a second time. Bitch!"
Although Dan 100% agreed with Gerry's assessment of his ex-wife he was still shocked to hear it being expressed out loud. And to him, a kid, and his son's best friend.
"Don't mind me D, just letting off some steam. She gets me so angry. How can she not see what a great kid M is? She's missing out on so much. It won't be long before he's off into the world on his own. If she hasn't made her peace with him by then I can't see it ever happening."
"That'll be her loss, and totally not your fault `unc'!" Dan thought the little joke there might bring a smile to Gerry's face. The plan worked.
"Yep, you're right D. When did you get so smart? And talking of smart, it would be a very smart move if you did as your dad told you and got off home now. I don't want to be held responsible for you getting into more trouble than it looks like you've already cooked up for yourself. Off with you."
Dan knew Gerry was right, although he really didn't want to go, more because he desperately wanted to stay with M than because he wasn't looking forward to his next meeting with his parents - and he wasn't, looking forward to seeing them.
As he cycled home images of M lying unconscious and vulnerable battled for space in Dan's head with just what he was going to say when asked to explain his behaviour and actions, not just skipping school that morning but all through the day on Sunday and even the way he was with his mum when he arrived home on Saturday night. Part of the problem, a big part, was that he could barely explain it to himself so what chance did he have to make anyone else understand? He knew that M would understand, but M was well and truly out of it. Fuck!
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