Between the Lines of Fear and Blame [Dork Troop]

Josh was holed up in his office, praying that the intern was doing his work instead of trying to see up Janice's skirt, when his phone rang. He checked the caller ID -- Sean had oddly been trying to call him rather a lot lately, which was weird considering that Sean was the one who had ended their friendship according to his rather impaired view of current events -- and breathed a sigh of relief to see that it was Cobalt.

"Cobalt! It's a bit late for lunch, don't you think?" He greeted the other attorney cheerfully, but before he could get much further than that his friend asked him to hold on.

So he held on, curiosity mingling with a strange sense of trepidation. Cobalt had sounded very terse, much more so than usual, even. Something was up. Maybe it had to do with Ben. He hadn't contracted a disease, had he? That would be awful.

Several minutes worth of cursing later and Cobalt began again.

And Josh was sure that his heart dropped straight into his stomach. Liver failure? Leila? He and Sean had sometimes joked about that, said that because they drank so much their livers would one day give out on them, but Leila was only half his age. She couldn't have killed her liver that quickly, she was nowhere near as alcohol dependent as he was.

Was she?

He thought he could hear tears at the other end of the line. Understandable, really. If Janice were in the hospital he would be upset, as well, and Leila and Cobalt had moved cities together.

"Oh." He wracked his brain for something to say, something encouraging, but if the doctor wasn't being encouraging there probably wasn't much he could say to make Cobalt feel better. "I'm so sorry. Can she take visitors? I'll be there as soon as I get off work."

The reason why Cobalt liked Josh so much and the reason why he liked Riley so much were almost the opposite. He liked Josh for his tendency to avoid making a huge deal out of other people's little dramas. Granted, he was awful at staying out of drama himself, and if it involved civil rights, he was off setting things on fire. But all in all, Josh had a sort of benign tactlessness that Cobalt greatly appreciated. It was surprisingly reassuring. So when Josh didn't completely freak out, it helped Cobalt calm as well. "Yeah. She can take visitors. She's a little overwhelmed right now, so I'll ask, but I think she'd appreciate it if you guys came to see her."

Riley, he liked because the other man cared so damn much. Cobalt was of the opinion that wearing your heart on your sleeve like Riley did was a little dangerous, but he appreciated how much Riley cared. He was uncommonly kind, and Cobalt was grateful to have him as a friend. As Riley stammered, Cobalt shrugged, even though Riley couldn't see it. "That would be nice," He confessed, his voice small, "Um... I-I wish I could say she's going to be okay. But...I don't--I don't know if she's going to be." He curled in on himself for a moment, tightlipped and shaking. There was no reason to cry yet. Not until it was all said and done. "I thought you should know," He repeated, staring at the wall.

He sighed with relief when Cobalt didn't deny him his offer. He was already packing up and moving things to his pickup as they spoke. Pulling his phone away from his mouth, he gestured for Rina to come closer. "I'm going to the hospital. Could you please make sure everyone packs their things properly? I really don't want our clients to find a pair of shears in their rose bushes. Thank you, I'll call you when I get back." He gave Rina a rushed kiss and climbed into his truck, putting on his hands-free set and starting the engine.

"Cobalt, I'm on my way. Hey, wait for me at the lobby would you?" Riley said calmly, trying hard to get the memory of going to the hospital ten years ago out of his mind. This was probably not a good time to think about himself. From the way Cobalt and Leila spoke of each other, it seemed as though they were as important to each other as family. Like Janice and Riley were. He couldn't imagine how Cobalt must feel right then.

Riley didn't want to think negative thoughts as he peeled out of the driveway and straight down to the hospital. "Cobalt, why don't you find a seat and have a cup of water? I'll be there soon." The landscaper spoke calmly, glad Josh was also on the other end. He was also calm, which was good considering how the older man was when he thought Sean was dead.

Things were going to be alright, Riley wanted to be sure of that. And it will. In his head, he was already ready to stretch his abilities to include human biology. This was Leila they were talking about. It was worth the risk.

Josh made a mental note to ask Janice about meals that were predominantly fruit and vegetables. He'd never heard her discuss cooking, but she was related to Riley and he was a fabulous cook, so she had surely picked up some skills. If not, they could probably come up with something between the two of them.

"I'll bring dinner just in case. If she isn't hungry, that's fine." But she was in the hospital, and you brought people in the hospital food. "And you need to eat, at least."

He wasn't surprised that the other attorney would choose to stay until being kicked out; he'd expected as much.


Since Riley was already on his way and there really wasn't anything he could do right now to help he added, "I should let you go now. Leila needs you, go be with her. I'll see the two of you in a few hours."