First of all, a disclaimer: Not mine, don't own. In addition, I am not a medical doctor, so if I have mistreated the lovely Ryan Wolfe, I apologize. Although, frankly, he deserves what he gets after jumping off a bridge. He's lucky he got off this easy.
This is a companion piece to Season 9's episode 2, "Sudden Death." One shot for now.
My thanks to Gooniegirl3333 for beta reading. Any remaining errors are mine.
Natalia leaned forward, a can of diet soda in one hand, and stared at the television screen in the break room of the Crime Lab. The news station was replaying a clip of two police officers chasing down a well-known athlete. Taken by a Miami tourist earlier that day, the shaky version of events focused on the young football star as he jumped off of a bridge to a stairway landing to evade the police. A shout from above drew the scene abruptly upward, where an officer clung to the side of the bridge one-handed, while the other police officer attempted to pull him to safety. The video zoomed in on the dangling cop's face - he was smiling - while the other officer frowned intently. As the feed ended and the news anchor moved on to other topics, Natalia set her soda aside and shook her head.
What had Ryan been thinking? Clearly - and appropriately, Natalia thought - Eric had appeared shocked and fearful. But the latter made it look like a day at the amusement park. Local news media had been replaying the video for hours - alternately praising Ryan for his bravery or cursing him for his idiocy, sometimes both at once. Patrol had dubbed him Superman.
She shook her head. None of this paired with the Ryan Wolfe that she knew. Sure, swaggering and bravado fit him pretty well at times. But jumping off a bridge after a suspect? Ryan's afraid of heights! It simply made no sense.
And he's bragging about it. To Erica Sykes, no less! The newscaster's visit to bring Ryan a photo of a dead girl had not gone unnoticed. Natalia had heard that some serious chemistry sparked between the two.
It boggled her mind that Ryan could still find a manipulative gold digger like Erica attractive. She's fake and exploitative. And he falls for her charms every time. Unbelievable. Natalia mentally threw her hands up. Not like I can tell him. He'll never listen. She's just going to burn him again.
Jealousy slithered uncomfortably near. There had been a time when she and Ryan had been close, so close that she had wondered if they might wind up together. Despite their disastrous first date, Natalia had truly believed that they might start something after he had confessed his ordeal with the Russians to her. But somehow, things had never progressed. And then Jesse had shown up and Natalia had thought that maybe ...
No, I'm not going to think about Jesse today. It was hard enough to work every day in the Crime Lab where he had died. Natalia could still see Jesse's prone body lying still and cold on the floor. She took a shuddering breath and sighed.
Time to get out of here and go home. She absently made her way toward the locker room and pulled open the door. Natalia's breath caught. Ryan sat alone on the bench, shirtless, flexing the muscles of his right arm. He was more built than she remembered; his scars more numerous than she could recall. Some had been inflicted by the Russians; others, she knew, were the result of childhood beatings by his father.
She had expected that Ryan would stop flexing when she came in but he mustn't have heard her. She sauntered over to him and cleared her throat. "I see Superman's checking out his super arms." As Ryan started and reached for his T-shirt, Natalia squeezed his right shoulder. "Nice muscles, show off." The flinch was barely perceptible, but Natalia felt him jerk away from her. She frowned and looked at his face, trying and failing to catch his eye. "Ryan, are you all right?"
He flicked a glance at her before sullenly answering that he was okay. But in that small hesitation, Natalia felt Ryan's discomfort as clearly as if he'd spoken aloud.
She sat down on the bench beside him and dropped her purse by her feet. "What's wrong?"
He turned away from her, stood, and began to pull on his shirt. "I'm fine, Natalia." No sooner had the words left his mouth than he winced, as he struggled to put his right arm through the sleeve.
She stood and helped him ease the shirt on. "So, you normally have this much trouble getting dressed?"
"Very funny." He reached into his locker with his left hand and grabbed his jacket and a set of car keys. It took him a second try before the door closed with a clang.
Natalia snatched the key ring from his hand. "You are not driving tonight, Ryan. Your reflexes are shot. You're moving like you're eighty years old."
He glared at her, but it was more of a weary pout than a true expression of anger. "Fine," he conceded. "Take me home."
The car that pulled into Alexx Woods' driveway was unfamiliar, but the occupants weren't. Dr. Woods rushed out of the front door to greet them.
"Natalia!" The older woman hugged the driver as soon as she had emerged from the car. "It's so good to see you."
"You, too, Alexx." The women parted with wide smiles on their faces.
Movement from inside the car drew the doctor's attention back to the passenger's side. As soon as the young man had emerged from the car, her stern voice could be heard on the next block. "Ryan Uriah Wolfe! If you ever pull another hair-brained stunt like that, you will answer to me. Got it?"
The reply was sheepish and spoken to the ground. "Yes, Alexx."
Natalia stood next to them, eyebrows quirked. Uriah?
As Natalia puzzled over Ryan's middle name, Alexx rushed toward the young man and pulled him into a bear hug. His entire body stiffened at the contact and both women heard his sharp intake of breath. Releasing him gently, Alexx held both of his hands and looked at his face. "Ryan, baby, look at me." His hazel eyes were dulled with pain. "Where does it hurt?"
Natalia fully expected that Ryan would evade the question like he always did, so she was surprised when he gave what sounded like a truthful answer. "I think I pulled a shoulder muscle. Horatio checked me out in the field but it didn't hurt this much then."
"Mm hmm. Maybe you'll think twice next time about jumping off a building." Alex put her arm around the young man and led him into the house, with Natalia trailing behind.
"It wasn't a building. It was a bridge," Ryan clarified.
"Mm hmm. Did anyone else take a look at that shoulder?"
"I tried to make him go to the quick clinic, but he refused," Natalia interjected.
"And that's why you're here, isn't it?" They were standing in the middle of Alexx's nicely apportioned living room. "Well, you picked a good night. Henry took the kids out to dinner so I could finish up on some paperwork."
"Sorry for the intrusion, Alexx. We can leave," the injured man said, already moving toward the door.
"Oh, no, you don't, Ryan." Natalia noticed that Alexx grabbed him by his left arm instead of his right. As she steered him down the hall, she called over her shoulder, "Natalia, honey, make yourself at home. I'm going to give Ryan a quick exam in my office."
When Ryan emerged from Alexx's home office fifteen minutes later, Natalia was surprised to find his right arm in a sling. She dropped the magazine she was skimming and hurried down the hall to his side. "Ryan, you okay?" She touched the fabric of the sling gently, marveling that the material was stronger than it looked. It was only then that she noticed the compression wrap peeking out from beneath the sleeve of his T-shirt. Alex must have immobilized his shoulder as well. She wondered briefly how many other medical devices Dr. Woods had hidden around her house.
Ryan used his good hand to run his fingers through his hair. "Yeah. Alex thinks I just strained my shoulder. No big deal." He grinned at her and Natalia smiled back.
Alexx stalked down the hall to stand by her patient, speaking with a deep frown. "That is not what I said, Ryan. You need to take it easy for the next few days. Keep icing that shoulder and wear the compression wrap and sling like I showed you. If you don't see any improvement in the next 48 hours, I want you to see an orthopedist." As Ryan opened his mouth to protest, Alex continued. "I don't want to hear it, Ryan. No driving, no upper body exercise, no going into the field, no flying off buildings like you're Superman. You need to rest and take care of yourself, baby." As Alexx took Ryan's free hand in hers, Natalia studied his face. There was a softness to his eyes when he looked at the doctor.
"Yes, Mom," he replied lowly, without a trace of sarcasm. In a louder voice, he added, "Thanks."
She drew him close and gave him a peck on the cheek. "I love you too, baby."
Natalia found herself blinking back tears at this little exchange. She had known that Ryan and Alexx were good friends, but it was clear from this interaction that they considered each other family as well. A small surge of happy touched Natalia's heart; she had seen glimpses of Ryan's dysfunctional family of origin - save his Uncle Ron and niece Lacey - and she was glad that he had someone else to love and care about him besides herself.
Wait. I love Ryan? Well, of course I do. He's my teammate, my friend. But the pounding in her heart as she pondered this question belied her true feelings.
Okay, I admit it. I love Ryan. But that doesn't mean that we should pursue a relationship or anything. Think of Mexican wrestling.
Her first date with Ryan had been an unmitigated disaster - so bad, in fact, that they had agreed to never speak of it again. Ryan had spent a good portion of the evening placing bets on the event, although Natalia hadn't realized at the time that this was the reason he kept checking his watch and leaving her alone in the dingy bar / arena. In her boredom, she had drunk too much and openly flirted with the waiter, going so far as to plant a sloppy kiss on the man's cheek while Ryan watched, his cheeks bright red with anger, embarrassment, or humiliation. At the time, Natalia didn't even care. She had thought of the interaction as appropriate payback for a terrible evening. She hadn't known or understood about the depth of Ryan's addiction, and had teased him mercilessly when he let slip that he had borrowed money from Eric to pay for their date.
Nothing went right that night. Why would I even consider trying that again?
"Earth to Talia." When Ryan gently touched her arm with his free hand, she could feel goosebumps rise on her skin. He looked at her with a tender expression on his face, eyebrows furrowed. "You okay to drive?"
She pulled away to regain her composure, and - just for a second - caught a glimpse of hurt in Ryan's eyes at her actions. Natalia impulsively grabbed his good hand and squeezed. "I'm fine, Ryan. Just tired, sorry." She dropped his hand self-consciously and folded her arms across her suit jacket.
His hazel eyes found and held her gaze. "I was thinking we could order Mexican and pick it up on the way to my place." He gave her a tentative smile.
She studied his eyes. So often, Ryan's brows were knotted in concentration that she had almost forgotten what he looked like when he wasn't deep in thought. Alexx must have given him something for the pain, she surmised.
As if on cue, Alexx handed her a small, nearly empty pill bottle. "Make sure he takes another one of these before bed." As Natalia furiously flushed at the mention of the word bed, the doctor continued. "And do not let him drive, operate machinery, or make any important decisions tonight."
Like whether or not to sleep with me. Once the thought had entered Natalia's mind, she couldn't get it out of her head. She could feel her cheeks burning.
"Alexx, I just need a ride home. I don't need Natalia to baby-sit me." Ryan attempted to fold his arms and tried to look stern, but the effect was more petulant child than determined police officer. Natalia nearly laughed.
Alexx looked at both of her former teammates with an amused expression. The love in her eyes was nearly palpable. "Yes, you do, baby. You do need her." The good doctor winked at Natalia.
Natalia's eyes widened in shock. Did Alexx really just say that?
"Head home, you two. I'm calling later to check up on you, Ryan. You'd better answer."
"Yes, ma'am."
The two criminalists walked out of Alexx's house, arm in arm. After Natalia had helped Ryan to secure his seatbelt, she walked around the front of her car to the driver's side. Alexx was standing in the doorway watching them. "Take care of my baby."
Her concern made a lump rise in Natalia's throat. Do I love him that much? To love, honor and cherish him in sickness and in health?
She nodded at Alexx before stepping into her car. "I will."