CHAPTER 1

"When can I go home?"

"String, be patient. Not too long ago we thought we'd lost you; you can't just march out of here like nothing happened."

He had recently been transferred to the hospital in Van Nuys, and that had only intensified his requests to go home.

"That was a week ago. I'll be fine; I just want out of here."

"I'll ask the doctor for an estimated schedule," Caitlin promised. "You stay until they give you the all clear though because you won't rest a day. I know you, you'll go straight back to work trying to pretend none of this ever happened." She got up to find a doctor. "I'll be right back so don't try anything."

After she left, he let out a pain filled groan he'd been holding in. She didn't know half the pain he was in and it was best that way. If she did, she'd probably be asking the doctors to let him stay longer and give him even more pain medications. He was hazy enough, anything else would totally knock him out.

"His muscles have atrophied some from nonuse, and he's still on a lot of medications. If he heals exceptionally quickly, another week and a half."

Caitlin came back in to give him the news.

"No. I can't take much more of this place."

"I know you want to go home, but he's right. Another week and a half won't kill you."

"It might."

"Oh don't be like that you'll be fine."

\A/

The next week, the doctor came in for his daily morning examination. "Your progress is amazing. If everything continues to be good, you can go home in two days."

He breathed a sigh of relief. He'd been afraid that they'd somehow figure out the misery he was going through and make him stay longer. Two more days was plenty. "Thank you."

"Now, once you go home, you'll still need plenty of rest, a healthy diet, and you'll need to relax and take it easy."

He nodded in agreement, but Caitlin could almost hear him thinking, yeah sure, whatever I damn well please and I don't care what you think.

Two more days and he could go home.

\A/

"I said if everything continued to go well he could go home," Dr. Thomas said, "but I'd like to keep him for observation a while longer."

"Why?" Caitlin asked. "Is something wrong?"

"That's what I'd like to find out," The balding older man replied. "We were planning to release him today, but last night his EKG and stress levels were far above normal last night. I wasn't sure if you'd like to tell him of if you'd prefer me to."

"I'll tell him, but he's not going to like it."

"I understand. We'll try to get him out as soon as possible, but those readings being so high could point out an underlying problem."

"Alright," Caitlin replied. String wasn't going to like this one bit. "I do want what's best for him."

"Can we leave now?" he asked impatiently the second Caitlin had set foot back inside the room. He had already wasted way too much time here.

"They want to keep you for observation," she told him frankly. It wouldn't matter how she broke the news he wouldn't like it any better.

"No observation. I just want to get the hell out of this place."

"Your EKG and stress levels were abnormally high last night. All they want to do is make sure everything is alright. So help me String, you make this so much more difficult than it needs to be; Just let them help you."

"I don't need any help," he argued.

"Maybe not, but you are going to get it. It shouldn't be too much longer; You'll be fine."

\A/

Dom came up to visit him later that evening.

"Dom, can't you persuade them to let me go?" String pleaded. "Nobody will listen to me."

"What are they keeping' ya for? Last I heard, you were being released tonight."

"The doctor decided my stress level was a little high," he answered grumpily.

"That's all? Ok, I'll see what I can do."

Dom left the room and walked down the white tiled hallway to the nurses station. "When he's free, can I speak to Dr. Thomas?"

"No problem," the cheerful blonde answered. "In fact, he's coming down the hall now."

"Is there something I can help you with?" the doctor asked cordially.

"My friend is here, Stringfellow Hawke," Dominic began.

"Ah yes, Mr. Hawke. He's a mighty determined fellow."

"He wants to know why his stress levels being a little off is such a big deal. As you are undoubtedly already aware, he wants to go home. He has been here two weeks and four weeks at the hospital in Annapolis before that."

"Normally stress levels being slightly off isn't really a problem, but Mr. Hawke is a little different. He was very seriously injured, and we just want to make sure everything is on the mend before we let him go and that he gets the best possible treatment if there are any underlying problems. Besides that, his EKG and stress levels weren't a little high, they were extremely high. We can't figure out any logical reasoning for him to suddenly be worked up about. If you saw his charts you'd know exactly what I mean; He was perfectly fine, then they drastically rose higher and higher, only to drop back down to almost normal range again," he explained. "All I ask for is a little patience and some more time."

"Thank you, doctor," Dom said politely before returning to String with the answer.

"So?" he queried before Dominic had even fully made it into the small room.

"No. He said they weren't a little high they were through the roof." He looked up at the clock- almost eight o'clock- visiting hours would be over in five minutes. "Listen String, I know you don't want to be here, and I don't blame you, but it doesn't look like you have much choice. I'll let your brother know how you're doing and come by tomorrow."

"Don't bother," he grouched and rolled over uncomfortably.