***Sorry to kill another story on you guys, but A few of my favorite things was a confusing mess. A few of you have expressed disappointment that when I kill a story, I delete it. I do this because I have been burnt too many times by orphaned stories. You get into it and wait...but nothing so you are left hanging forever. Terrible. Secondly, if I have an unfinished story I obsess about it and become totally unable to write anything. I do have the document files, maybe if there's an interest I'll publish them all under a fractured story collection or something. Anyway, sorry-another one gone.
Before the haters hate, I know head injuries don't act this way or cause these symptoms, and I don't care. LOL :) Thanks for reading-Pox
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A wobble was the only warning Jack had. The team was walking down the hall to debrief. Mac paused in midstep, wobbled into Jack then was on the floor. Jack, Riley and Bozer stared at the unmoving blonde a long second before it sunk in.
"Mac?" Jack asked his brow furrowed in worry. He crouched beside Mac. The mission had been a simple handoff that went off without a hitch. Jack didn't see any bruises or wounds. He put the back of his hand against Mac's head. No fever or chills. The kid was just-out.
"Jack, what's wrong with him?" Riley asked.
"Mac? C'mon, man, you promised no more of this dramatic stuff." Bozer said crouching on the other side of Mac. He put a hand on his best friend's chest. Mac's chest rose and fell easy and regular, his heart beat like normal.
"What is going on here?" Matty asked striding to the group. Her eyes widened and she pushed Bozer and Riley aside. She half-turned to her ever-present minions.
"Get medical up here." She turned back to Jack, "What happened? You didn't report any injuries."
"There wasn't any; I don't know what's wrong." Jack met Matty's gaze a note of panic in his eyes. He turned back to Mac when the younger man let out a soft gasp and his body jerked.
"Mac?" He asked. Mac's eyes slowly fluttered open.
Mac blinked confused. He put a hand on his forehead and closed his eyes with a soft moan. His head was going to explode.
"Mac? What's going on? You sick?" Mac narrowed his eyes against the over-bright lights over him. He frowned.
"How'd that get there?" Mac mumbled confused. Jack followed his pointing finger to the recessed light fixture in the ceiling. Mac glanced at Jack surprised to see the team staring down at him, "How are you all standing upside down?" His teammates shared a confused look.
"What are you talking about?" Matty demanded. Mac shook his head then moaned closing his eyes. Mac let out a long sigh and moved to sit up. Jack pressed down on his chest. Mac slid on the tile and cried out softly as his head banged against the floor. His eyes lost focus again.
"Mac?" Jack asked. Mac's eyes fluttered and he went limp, his eye slumping to the side. Jack glanced at the others in panic, "Mac!" Jack tapped Mac's face, "Don't do this, dammit."
"Coming through." A familiar voice said. The team left an open path for Doc Carl and Sally. The young curly-haired doctor crouched by Mac. He glanced over at Jack.
"What happened?"
"I don't know. We were just walking and he fell down."
"Pulse is 110 B/P 100/40." Sally said pulling the blood pressure cuff off. Doc Carl frowned and felt along Mac's neck and head. He scowled when he got to the back of Mac's head.
"He has a swollen area."
"What?" Jack asked his eyes narrowing as he looked down at his partner.
"Maybe it was from that fall last week." Bozer said looking at the others with wide eyes.
"Fall? You said there wasn't any injuries in Rapa Nui?"
"There wasn't!" Jack whirled on Bozer, "Fall?" Bozer stepped back as Hank and Tomaz, the new orderlies, rolled a cart to Mac's side. Jack, Doc Carl, Sally and the two men in scrubs lifted Mac onto the cart.
"Ok, Sally, we need some fluids-" The young doctor's voice was cut off by the ding of the elevator. Jack whirled on Bozer who shrank back.
"What's this about a fall?"
"Mac, was fixing the deck and fell off the ladder." Jack's eyes were smoldering coals.
"He said he was fine!" Bozer whined.
"And you believed him?" Jack's voice wasn't quite a bellow.
"He looked fine." Bozer said. Jack could see guilt fill Bozer's eyes. He spun and shook his head. He wasn't mad at Bozer, not really. He couldn't believe he missed it.
"Alright, enough blame." Matty snapped.
"Yeah, it isn't our fault. Mac should know better than to hide things by now." Riley said anger in her voice.
"You'd think so, wouldn't you?" Bozer said. Jack huffed.
"I gotta go downstairs."
"Go, Jack. Keep me up to date." Jack nodded as he jogged down the hall and took the stairs.
The world was acting very strangely, Mac thought as he groaned holding his head to keep it from rolling off his neck. Everything slid by like he was in a blender. Voices circled but remained too blurry to catch. He reached out to stop the confused Wilt a Twirl-no that's not right. Mac turned his head away as he slid under explosions of white lights.
"What's not right?" The voice was familiar, warm. Mac squinted up. Doc Carl stared down at him. His curly hair looked like it was on fire. It took Mac a long minute to realize it was the bright light behind the doctor. The doc had a deep furrow in between his eyes. This meant he was puzzled. He was puzzled! Mac opened his mouth to ask the doc just what the hell was going on, when he was suddenly exploding. It took Mac a long minute to realize he was puking, then another to realize he didn't feel well at all.
Doc Carl's eyes widened in surprise and he gracefully side-stepped. Mac felt familiar hands under his shoulders sitting him upright. Mac closed his eyes. A regiment of blade-footed soldiers trooped across his head. Mac's body jerked and he again exploded. The smell was terrible and he was covered in yuk. Mac gagged and spit.
"Well that was less than pretty." Sally said at his side. Mac rolled his eyes in her general direction and aimed the strongest glare he could muster at her. She laughed moving so he leaned against her, "It's ok, Mac. We'll get you cleaned up, let it all out." Mac's eyes burned with tears as he again wretched. How much had he ever eaten in his life?
"Ma-ew." Jack said wrinkling his nose. Mac leaned his head back tired. How had his life gone to shit so completely in...Mac coughed and spit. How long had what is going on been going on? Mac frowned. Everything in his head felt fluid...and slimy. And his head. Mac moaned reaching up to feel his head. Had he been clubbed by a baseball bat? Mac couldn't remember...couldn't think. Even his teeth hurt. Mac's gut churned.
Jack caught his arm by his elbow.
"Don't touch...anything, ok?" Mac blinked up at him. Jack's head seemed to wobble side to side like a staticky image. Mac turned away his gut heaving again.
"Why don't you get him cleaned up? We need a CT-"
"We get to clean him up?" Mac thought Jack's voice had too much snark in it.
"What can I say? It's good to be the doc." Doc Carl said laughing. It was a nice sound, the kind of sound that made you want to live.
"Ok, brother, let's get this-ugh-" Mac heard gagging beside him. Mac turned aside waiting for the older man's puke to add onto his own.
"Don't you dare!" Sally growled.
"Sal-"
"HANK!" Mac cried out, the yell reverberated through his skull, "Sorry, kiddo."
"Wow, that got ugly fast." Mac stared up into the new orderly's face. He hadn't had a chance to meet the two new guys. Hank looked like the stereotypical platinum blonde tanned LA laid back beach boy, but Mac knew he was anything but. He was almost done with his third doctorate from UCLA. He was a forensic genius and willing to work under Sally's command. To Mac that made him a long suffering saint that was interesting to talk to. The blond Adonis also had a nimble soft touch.
Mac burped and moaned as he was folded then helped off the table to a wheelchair. He realized how wet and gross he was. He bent forward retching again.
"Jack…" He said in soft misery.
"It's ok, Mac, he had to step out." Hank offered.
"You know how sensitive his gut gets." Sally murmured in his ear. Mac leaned forward gasping in pain as he snorted in laughter. Jack? The idea of his partner having a sensitive anything caught him as funny? Mac giggled.
"Sally, is he ok?" Mac growled at the soft question asked over his head. Ok? He was covered in vomit, did he look ok?
"Sorry, man." Mac frowned up at the man.
"Did you just read my mind?" Hank shared a nonplussed look at Sally. Sally shrugged and locked the wheelchair.
"Can you walk to the shower?" Mac closed one eye and looked up at her. It kept her three heads from screaming at her like fiery demons. Sally rolled her eyes and nodded at Hank. Mac pushed himself up and staggered forward. The pair took his arms and half spun him. He teetered on his feet. When had the floor become so wobbly?
"Not that way, that's the laundry machine." Hank offered. Mac's head leaned forward and he closed his eyes. A supernova burned behind his eyes. His hair hurt. He bent forward almost falling out of their hands. Another set of hands around his chest helped hold him upright.
"You going dancing without me, brother?" Mac sank gratefully onto the shower bench and gratefully let them take his soiled shirt. He looked up at Jack, his body losing stress at his partner's presence.
"You came back," Mac's voice cracked with the ridiculous amount of gratitude he felt. Jack looked down at him and smiled.
"Of course, I always do, don't I?" Mac nodded and curled forward a nuclear firebrand travelled down his neck from the back of his head. He cried out and reached out grabbing Jack's shirt. Mac leaned forward and once again his gut inverted.
"Yuk, ugh, kiddo what the hell did you eat."
"Nng." Mac mumbled spitting. He could feel Jack move beside him as he turned on the shower. The water was hot. Mac turned his head aside as Hank hosed him off with the handheld. Each drop was a drill of acid. Mac couldn't hold back a cry of pain as he was pummeled in his aching head. Even his eyelashes hurt. Sparks seemed to explode behind his eyes and he felt himself suddenly turn to goo.
"Whoa! Easy...gotcha." Jack said. Mac felt familiar arms catch him before he slid off the chair. Mac's head fell forward. Everything went a sour yellow and fuzzy. Mac's forehead leaned into Jack's wet T-shirt as he was lifted and stripped out of the rest of his dirty clothes. Mac's muscles tried to work, to hold him up, but the bones they clung to had the firmness of Jell-o.
Mac moaned as meat hooks grabbed his scalp and tried to pull his head apart.
"Doc Carl wants to get an MRI, I need to clean your hair." Sally, of course, bitch. Jack chuckled in his ear. He must have growled that out loud. Served her right. Bitch. Mac gasped as his head was again pummelled by air jets of water.
"Easy, kiddo…" The voice came from a black tunnel that seemed to stretch more and more until he couldn't see the light anymore.
Jack tightened his grip on Mac as the kid went limp. He leaned Mac's head forward and gently felt the kid's scalp.
"It's right here." Sally said gently. Hank turned off the water and stepped out returning with a handful of thick towels. Jack followed her directions and gently parted Mac's hair. His eyes widened and they shared a worried glance. There was a large bump, but it was mushy, clearly healing. Around that was a giant thick bruise. It had been a big bastard.
"Jeez, how the hell was he up and walking around with that thing?" Hank asked as he handed Sally a towel. Sally gently towelled Mac's head dry. Jack supported his partner as the two medics dried him off and slid him into a gown.
"That's Mac." Jack sighed his frustration evident. Sally put a hand on Jack's shoulder.
"None of us noticed, Jack. This isn't on you." She said. Jack's jaw clenched as he bent and lifted Mac laying him on a fresh gurney and covered him with a blanket.
"I tell you this, Sally, this boy ain' gonna be doin' nothing until that is better and I mean better as in totally healed." Sally met Jack's resolved look and nodded.
"Right there with you, Jack. Time to teach our boy how to take care of himself."
"Damn right."
"Even if we have to tie him down." Sally growled. Her and Jack shared a grin as they pushed the unconscious man to MRI. Hank stopped and shook his head. He'd heard about Mac and Jack, of course. Every new person, especially in medical, were trained about Phoenix's best team. It hadn't taken a genius to pick up on Sally's fierce protectiveness about the young agent. Other than a few lively scientific conversations and Mac helping him on his thesis, Hank hadn't had much contact with the blonde. Mac struck him as a perfectly capable, incredibly smart and strong person. Mac was quiet and brilliant. It was easy to see why he was universally loved by everyone in the building. Hank had never known what the phrase heart of gold meant until he met MacGyver. Hank smiled. He could feel himself want to protect that specialness. He could see how easy it was to become a member of the kid's flock of Mother Hens. Hank laughed. As if there weren't over a hundred in this building already. All of them together couldn't add up to the smothering the two who left with their favorite charge was capable of.
"Mac, you are so in for it." Hank said as he bent to clean up the shower, "Sorry, man." Sorry, not sorry. Hank thought this was going to be an awesome job after all.
