Flowers and Cards: The Hell? (James)

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Roman didn’t find himself in this area of the hospital very often. He was heading down the hall, looking every inch not a doctor. Especially in this area. His turf was a floor above this, in psychology. But when he’d overheard the nurses in the staff lounge talking about a patient that kept pulling his IV, and they’d dropped a name, he’d nearly dropped his coffee.

No. Way.

He’d gotten the room number out of them easily enough. He had to see if he was right. He hadn’t expected the name to come up in casual conversation, but now he thought about it, it made sense. Sort of. This was the closest hospital to Pilot Ridge. The question was, what the hell had happened to land his best friend in the hospital.

That was what he needed to find out.

Rome knew the hospital well enough – it wasn’t massive – and he managed to find the room number without much trouble. It was one of the wards, and it was actually pretty filled. He glanced around before finally seeing James in the far corner. He recognized the blond man beside the bed as his husband, and the little blond boy as their foster son, Nikolai. He could see the evidence of the IV incidents, blood staining the sheets. He had to roll his eyes. James was afraid of needles. But he was stupid enough to pull the thing out, just so they’d have to re-poke him?

His best friend was an idiot.

One look at the two blonds told him that they needed to go home. Chase was looking like he might pass out, yet he was trying so hard to keep alert. And the kid... Rome shook his head. Visiting hours were close to over anyway. He could find out what happened from James, after he sent his family home. “Hey,” he greeted quietly. It took Chase a moment to recognize him. “I can handle watching him for a while. You guys should go home and get some sleep.” He smiled at the little boy and gave him a little pat on the shoulder. “I’ll keep him company. And make sure he behaves.” He caught Chase’s eye, hoping he would listen and not argue. Thankfully, he looked too tired to argue. After a quick hug, kiss, and a promise to be back as soon as possible, the trainer left the ward, holding Nikolai’s hand tightly.

Rome glanced down at James, arching an eyebrow and crossing his arms over his chest. “I heard you were causing some trouble for the nurses. You know you’re an idiot for pulling out the IV, right?”

If he could keep things light, maybe he could get James to stay calm. He knew what he was like. “You want to tell me what you did to land yourself here? Skydiving?” Even though his tone was playful, he knew it was something serious. Taking the chair Chase had just vacated, he leaned closer. “Seriously, Jay. What happened? You look awful. And so does Chase, for that matter.” Despite his efforts, he knew he looked worried. What could happen to trigger all this?

[Dr. James Campbell]

One of the most common symptoms of head trauma was loss of short term memory. It had also taken a few tries to get the correct dosage for the sedative needed to prevent James from tearing out the IV. (They didn't want to give him too much, since he'd spent a good chunk of the morning unconscious.) He'd been in and out of a haze all day, since Nikki had told him about what had happened. And whenever another cycle of "in" started, he realized someone had put a needle into his arm, and did his best to remove it.

At the time he took out the IV (every...almost every time) James genuinely did not remember that he'd done it before.

Chase saying goodnight with a hug and a kiss was enough to wake James up enough to realize once again that there was a tube in his arm. But for some reason, he had no energy to reach up and pull it out.

He was in the hospital. Why was he in the hospital? And why was Chase saying goodbye?

At least Rome was there. (When did he get there?) "I didn't pull it out. It's right there." He half-heartedly moved his arm a little to show that yes, the tube was still inside. And there was blood on the sheets, which scared him, because while his head hurt, nowhere else did. Was he actually bleeding? "Can you take it out of me? Please?"

But as he spoke and looked around the room, he began to remember the conversations he'd had throughout the day, including the talk with Nikki. It was in pieces, but he remembered more now. "I don't....I don't remember, exactly. I got hit in the head...and was out for a while. Chase got freaked out." He still didn't know what had happened exactly at wherever it was the Gestalt Pair had taken him. If someone had been hurt, if Chase hurt anyone saving him, then he didn't want to say anything else. "Please take out the IV?"

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Roman had worked with a few head trauma patients on and off. Though he hadn’t been privy to James’ file, he’d picked up enough from the nurses to know what was going on. It was weird to think of James like this. He was used to him being smug, know it all, confident. This... was odd. James wasn’t supposed to be like this.

He was also used to having sedatives used for difficult patients. He hated when it came to that for kids, but sometimes it had to be done. They were dangerous, otherwise. And the more James pulled out his IV, the more he’d be sedated. He sighed. Maybe he could talk some sense into him. If he wasn’t being stubborn.

“I see that. But apparently it doesn’t stay there.” It was surprising how much he wanted one of their heated teasing battles right now. This was just weird. “No, Jay. I can’t. I’m not a nurse. Just leave it alone, or they’ll have to poke you again.”

The more he said, the more it began to make sense for Roman. But Chase had looked much worse than sheer worry would do. Something bad had happened. He made a mental note to approach Chase about it. Regardless of his specialty, if something had happened, he’d want to help James through it. “I sent Chase and Nikko home, because they should probably get something to eat, and sleep a little. But I can keep you company.” He managed a little smile at his best friend. “And keep you from pulling out the IV. It’s staying there until a doctor says it can come out, and you don’t count.”

[Dr. James Campbell]

"What good is my Ph.D. then?" James cracked a weak smile at his best friend, and thought for a long moment before continuing. It was almost as if he was too tired to connect his thoughts to actual words. "You're a doctor too. You could say it can come out. Maybe someone will listen to you." They certainly weren't listening to him. He didn't even know why he needed the IV, except to give him a low dose of sedative so he wouldn't pull out the IV. Which didn't make much sense to him; if he didn't have it he wouldn't need it.

He tried to sit up a little, but ended up flopping back in pretty much the same position. It was strange for him too; James would much rather be teasing Rome about his girlfriend or something. (And he was used to being taller than Rome too, looking up at him from the bed was just weird.) "Do you see my glasses anywhere?" He guessed they had fallen off at some point, but hopefully Chase had picked them up. It would help him feel more normal if he could just have his glasses on. It was bad enough that he was wearing a hospital gown, even under the sheets he felt naked. "Do you think Chase can bring me some of my own clothes, or do I have to wear this until I go home?"

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Rome had to smile back at James. “It doesn’t count, you know that.” It was a good source of teasing between them, over who was the ‘real’ doctor. According to Roman, having a doctorate in literature didn’t count. Of course, Kiko gave him the same argument, because she was a medical doctor. “I know, Jay. But I’m not going to, because I’m not your doctor. They wouldn’t listen to me either. Just leave it alone, okay?” He patted the back of his best friend’s hand. Maybe he’d listen to reason.

He wanted James to tease him because that would be normal. This was just... so wrong. “Your glasses? Uh...” He glanced around, finally spotting something that looked glasses-like on the side table. Reaching over, he picked them up and handed them to James. “Here. Better?” Anything he could do at this point to help James feel more normal, he would do. “Chances are, they won’t keep you long. Overnight, for observation, would be my guess. He can bring you clothes tomorrow, if you want. I can text him and ask.” The state Chase had looked like he was in, he didn’t think he’d remember without some prompting. “He must be worried really worried about you. He looked like a wreck.” He couldn’t sugar coat it much. Maybe it was time for a new topic. “So... what’s new at Hammel? Anything interesting?”

[Dr. James Campbell]

"I don't want to stay here." Rome had known him for a long time; they'd met over a decade ago, right around the time James finally stopped trying to escape from Hammel. The divorce was rough on him, and it was nice to have a friend, even one nine years younger, who never attempted to analyze him or even make him talk about it. Rome couldn't see into his head, like Sean, and didn't want to, like Aristea. And since he was also separated from his younger siblings, the little geek had quickly filled in.

Long story short, Rome had seen him vulnerable before, but not in a long time.

It took a great deal of effort to get the glasses from his hand to his face. Whatever was making his thoughts and actions so sluggish was dripping into him through that infernal tube, and no one wanted to help him get it out. He needed it out. He needed out.

"He's gonna pick something ugly and forget a tie." Honestly, James had a bit more faith in his husband than that, but he was trying to default to humor. It bothered him how stricken everyone else looked. He knew he didn't have the full story yet of everything that happened; James really hadn't been in the condition to remember any of it himself. "Nothing's really happening at Hammel." No, he didn't want to make small talk, but he was not going to talk about his injuries any more either. "I think we're getting a dog."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

“I know, Jay.” Really, he did. But nothing was going to change that James had a head injury, and he was going to be held for at least the night. “But I guess they want to make sure you won’t die or anything.” He was joking, honestly. He just hoped that James would realize that. It was hard to think about that, considering how long they had been friends, and how long they’d been tormenting each other. James was very much akin to a brother to Roman, and that just made this that much harder for him.

James was always the strong one. He just didn’t get vulnerable. But here he was, lying in the hospital, looking as vulnerable as he could get.

Operation: Distract James would need to be launched. Soon.

“Oh come on, he knows you better than that. Besides, weren’t you complaining that he and the kids attacked your closet and pulled out all the ugly things? Don’t tell me you put it all back.” If James was going to play it that way, then so was he. With nothing to go on Hammel-wise, he merely shrugged and leaned back in the chair. “A dog? A dog with fur? How’d that happen?” He’d been surprised that James could tolerate their little cat, and cats were fairly neat creatures. “What kind of dog?” It was a good a subject as any, and if he could distract James with the idea of drool and dog hair, so be it. It might let him forget about where he was for a few minutes.

[Dr. James Campbell]

James closed his eyes when Rome started joking and swallowed again. The joke wasn't funny, because still, no one had told him exactly what had happened to leave his head feeling like this. (Or maybe they did. He had a vague recollection of a doctor reading something off of a clipboard to Chase.) People with concussions weren't supposed to sleep, right? Or else they could die?

He looked up at his best friend, eyes wide. "Please tell me you were kidding. Do they think I'm going to die?" It didn't make sense; why would they have let his family leave if that was the case? Rome wouldn't let them go.

It took a few moments of deep breaths for him to calm down. Even with the sedation and the disorientation from the injury and the drugs, his power had him on edge most of the time, and things like that kept his heart rate up higher than it should be. "No, they didn't. They took away all my favorite things." Most of his ties had disappeared, including some of the ones he really loved. His bright green St. Patrick's Day one, for instance, with the embroidered gold shamrocks. And the one with all the lobsters on it. "They took some of the best stuff and called it ugly."

He had to roll his eyes again at Rome. Why was that the question he was asking? "Yes, a dog with fur. She's a Husky, very friendly, and I think she followed Niko home. We..." Great, more lying, "We can't find her owners. No tags or anything, and no tracing chip."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Rome honestly hadn’t meant to upset James. It had been an offhand comment that he hadn’t put any thought into before saying it. Which wasn’t the best idea at the moment. He knew that James had a head injury, thanks to the nurses who had had to deal with him. As to how serious it was... he didn’t have a clue.

“Of course I was kidding, Jay. No one’s going to die.” Okay, if he really did have a concussion, and he fell asleep, he might go comatose, but that wasn’t dying. “Promise.”

He was patient as James worked to calm himself, knowing full well that his best friend needed it. They’d been friends so long, he was just used to James’ quirks and needs. He waited, content not to say anything until James was all right, though he had to smile at what he said. “One man’s treasure is another’s trash. ... Did they at least leave you that awful lobster tie?” Oh, he knew all about James’ extensive tie collection. And the sweaters. “I’m sure they didn’t throw them out. They aren’t that cruel. Maybe it’s like an extreme game of keep away. But for the record, you do own some pretty ugly stuff.”

Why was that the question he had to ask? Simple. Dogs had fur and James didn’t like fur in his immaculate house. He stared at James in surprise. “A Husky. Jay, that’s a big dog. With lots of fur.” But if it was going to make them happy, he’d have to shrug it off. “Just make sure she’s in the yard or something next time you invite me and Kiko over. She doesn’t like dogs. What’s her name?”

Hey, at least this was distracting.

[Dr. James Campbell]

No one's going to die.

"Good," the recruiter murmured, because even if Rome wasn't a real doctor either, he was closer to the real thing than James was.

"It's not awful. Ginny picked it out for me." Granted, his daughter had been three at the time and had been amused at the idea of a piece of clothing covered in the ridiculous-looking animals. She wasn't quite as amused that he continued to wear that tie still. "And you are not allowed to talk about ugly clothing. You're wearing a shirt with a logo for a videogame." Well, James couldn't exactly identify a triforce, let alone say what it was from, but since it was Rome, it was probably a videogame. "At least I dress like an adult." It was a little petty, and a long-tired argument between them, but he preferred it to talking about medical things and why he was in the hospital to begin with.

Rome's analysis of the dog James still hadn't met would have been funny, in a different setting. But now, it was just a bit disconcerting, because he hadn't met this dog, but he'd agreed to her coming to live with them. "Of course we will. I don't think she has a name yet, but I bet Niko will tell me in the morning." He looked off to the side, but trying to keep everything he was feeling conflicted about inside was driving him crazy. He had to confess something. "It's been a....rough day for Niko, but he was so excited and so happy about the dog, I couldn't say no to him. I haven't even met her yet."

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

Roman honestly didn’t realize how comforting what he’d just said might be to his best friend. Whatever he’d said, it seemed to have calmed James down a bit.

“It is awful. It’s a tie with lobsters on it. It doesn’t get more awful than that. How old was she when she picked it out, anyway?” He refused to believe it was anytime recently. Unless it was a gag gift, like those duck pyjamas he’d teased James about for so long. Typical for this kind of conversation, James turned on his own clothes. Rome looked down questioningly at his chest, realizing that he did in fact have a Legend of Zelda shirt on. “It’s not ugly!” He crossed his arms, looking down at James. “And maybe it’s a cult symbol. I might have joined a cult since we last talked.” Unlikely, considering his nature, but all he was saying was that it was possible. “Hey, keep in mind I talk to kids all day. It helps to dress... like... shut up.”

He settled back a bit as they went into depth on the dog topic. He was surprised that James had agreed at all to another pet, sight unseen, but guessed it had something to do with the medication he was on. Sedatives made people agreeable to nearly everything. Shame on Chase for taking advantage of that. “That’ll be good for Nikki. Naming her, taking care of her.” It was good for kids to have outlets, and pets were great ways to reduce stress, not to mention encourage responsibility. He was about to continue, but what James said made him frown. “Why’s that? Because of what happened to you?” He thought carefully about their relationship before offering something to him. “... Do you want me to talk to him about something?” He still didn’t understand fully what had gone on to land James in the hospital, nor what had happened to make Chase look so pale and tired. “Because I will. And if I’m overstepping boundaries, you can just yell at me or something.” He gave his best friend a little crooked smile. Things would be okay for them. Right?

[Dr. James Campbell]

"She was three, and you can shut up. It's my favorite tie." Well, it was now, at least. It hadn't been earlier that day, but since the discussion had started, he'd decided on it. "It's nicer than..."

He'd worn a tie that day. James let his voice fade out mid-thought as he remembered that he'd been dressed in a suit that morning, and currently was not wearing any of it. He didn't know where it had gone, or what kind of state it was in. Chase had mentioned something about blood in the car, but had been quick to reassure him that it wasn't his. After a moment of fretting over the missing clothes, he took a deep breath and forced himself to check back into the conversation. "Kids respect you when you dress like you want respect. And thanks, Romy, that was real eloquent."

James paused again at Roman's offer. He trusted the younger man. Despite their age differences, they'd been close since they were both students at Hammel, and just learning how to control their abilities. And even though Rome wasn't a father himself (Yet, James knew that he wanted a family eventually.) he was good with kids.

And....to be honest, James hadn't trusted Sean quite so much since he'd learned that the psychiatrist had been a part of the day Gabriel Underwood died. Niko had seen way too much terror that day, and really, Rome was the best for him to talk to. "Yeah...that's probably a good idea. I need to talk to Chase." He couldn't meet his friend's eyes. Their son was probably traumatized, and it was their fault.

[Dr. Roman Tilford]

“Since when?” Rome had to laugh. He’d witnessed use of the lobster tie, and how anyone could dub it their favourite anything (unless it was their favourite ugly tie), he had no idea. “It needed to go, Jay. I’d have sided with Chase and the kids.”

He was well aware that head injuries did funny things to the mind. So, he was patient when James seemed to lose interest in their conversation. He couldn’t tell for sure if it was the concussion, or whatever sedative they were slipping into his IV. Either way, he was content to wait until James came back again. Of course, with a comment designed to irk him. “They like me because I act like a - ... No, I’m not even going to go there, because you’ll just make more fun of me.” What he was going to say was that he got along well with the kids because he was able to relate to them well. Granted, that said a lot about his maturity level (or lack thereof), and he knew James would latch onto that. “I aim to please.”

Being a father usually required the prerequisite of being married. At least in Roman’s world. And marriage wasn’t even on his radar. Sure, he loved Kiko. And honestly planned to marry her one day. Just... not now. But he did want kids, once that marriage thing was out of the way. And he did like Nikolai.

“Of course,” he said quietly. He understood that, too. The need for both parents to talk about it. “Whenever you’re ready, I’ll set some time aside. You wouldn’t even have to bring him all the way up here. I’d come to your place, or wherever you think he’d be the most at ease.” He still didn’t fully understand the problem, which would be an issue. He didn’t like flying blind if he didn’t have to. “You know... it would help me a little if you told me what happened. Even a little.”

[Dr. James Campbell]

"Thanks Rome." James spoke just as softly. If it were necessary, he would have been willing to pay extra to get Rome to come to where Niko was comfortable. He'd never had to deal with anything like this before--Thank God--but he figured it was similar with kids as it was with him, last year. The sooner they started talking to someone, the sooner they could start healing.

Oh God, how was he going to explain this? His head was too fuzzy to plan out what he wanted to say clearly, so his words were measured and slow. He couldn't screw this up, because even though Rome was his best friend, he was legally obligated to report a crime.

And in addition to Chase killing Gabriel Underwood, James had no clue if any other crimes had been committed that day. Other than...shit. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes as he tried to remember what had happened. If Rome needed to know so he could help Niko... He couldn't remember it. He couldn't help. "I can't..." His voice broke as he struggled to recall anything after leaving the house and waking up in the hospital. "I can't tell you. I can't remember." When he'd woken, he'd thought that he had crashed the car, with his son inside. Anything is better than that, right? At least Niko was alive; he could focus on that until he could calm down.