Matt jumped as he heard the bathroom door slam. Mello wasn't exactly a morning person, but he was in an exceptionally sour mood this morning. He stretched and began to get dressed. The rattle of a pill bottle filtered through the door, and Mello emerged a few moments later, looking somewhat more human.
"More painkillers?" Matt asked casually. Mello had been knocking the things back like candy over the past few weeks, and Matt had a sneaking suspicion that there was a reason he wasn't telling Matt.
"Yeah, another headache. Probably just stress or something." Mello flopped into a chair at the kitchen table and leaned on his elbows with his chin in his hand while he checked his laptop.
"Liar." Matt said, sauntering into the kitchen and leaning on the doorframe
Mello glared.
"I"m not lying, I'm fine. It's nothing." Mello said peevishly. He did not want to deal with this conversation right now.
"Mels, I married you, I know you better than that. When you have a headache you run your fingers through your hair. You haven't done that."
Matt was right. He knew Mello's mannerisms like an NES cheat code.
"Okay, Sherlock, if you're so smart, what do you think my problem is?" Mello said sarcastically. He knew he couldn't bullshit Matt for long, but that didn't stop him from trying.
"Judging by the way you're massaging your jaw, your mouth hurts."
Caught in the act, Mello quickly snapped his hands away from his face and folded his arms. He had been unconsciously trying to soothe the throbbing pain in his lower jaw as he waited for the painkillers to kick in. Matt could see in Mello's eyes that he was getting close. Time to go for the kill.
"So, why would your mouth hurt? A cavity, maybe? Or you got in a fight and one of your teeth is cracked? Or," he paused for effect, "your wisdom teeth are coming in?"
At that last one, Mello's blue gaze turned lethal. Matt had hit the nail on the head. Matt had recently felt a slight ache in his own lower jaw, so he had good reason to suspect that Mello had been feeling the same thing for several months, and it was getting worse.
"Maybe." Mello said, "What are you going to do about it?"
"I'm calling a dentist." Matt grabbed his phone off the nightstand.
Mello scowled.
"Fine." he said. He didn't want to admit it, but he was in a too much pain to argue.
The young hygienist at the dentist's office looked a little frightened by the two rough-looking twenty-year-olds, but the dentist was unfazed. He had dealt with more than a few busted molars and knocked-out incisors from fights between gangs. There was a reason Matt knew about him.
"I can see why you're in pain" he said, looking at the X-rays, "your wisdom teeth are sideways. It's common. When do you want them out?"
"Get it over with" Mello said, pouting. He didn't like doctors, and he wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.
The dentist was used to attitudes like Mello's. Gang members were not known for their sunny dispositions.
"I have an opening on Thursday morning at 9:00."
"Perfect. He can drive me." he gestured to Matt, who had insisted upon following Mello to the exam room. "Can I go now?"
"Once you fill out some paperwork at reception. We have to get your medical history and allergy information."
"Fine. Matt, let's go." he grabbed Matt's arm and dragged him toward the reception desk. This place was too sterile, too artificial. He wanted to get back to the gritty underworld he called home.
Once the paperwork was filled out, Mello threw himself into the passenger seat of Matt's Firebird and dug in the glove box for more painkillers. His general displeasure with his situation was an almost visible aura.
"Come on, Mel, it's not that bad."
"Easy for you to say, you're not the one who has to get his face fucked up. Again." he shoved back his hair, displaying the scarred left side of his face. He wasn't bothered by the scars, but he didn't like the idea of someone else messing around with his face. He had had enough of that after the explosion.
"Mels." Matt grabbed his partner's shoulder and turned him to face Matt directly. "I love you, and I hate seeing you in pain. You're going to go on Thursday, it's going to suck, and I'm going to take care of you afterwards. It's not the first time I've had to, and it probably won't be the last. Relax, man, you're going to be fine."
The tension in Mello's shoulders released as he exhaled.
"Dammit, Matt. Why do you have to be right? I'm the one who's always right."
"Because it wouldn't be fair for you to have the looks and the brains in this relationship." he ruffled Mello's soft blond hair.
"Sappy bastard." Mello smirked
"Yeah, yeah. Now gimme some of those painkillers." Matt massaged his jaw with a wince.
Mello impishly raised an eyebrow as he handed over the bottle "Looks like I'll be returning the favor sooner than I thought."
"Shut up. First you, then me." it was Matt's turn to be peevish.
"Deal." Mello leaned back in the car seat "Let's go get some food. I want to devour some curry."
"Sounds good to me. We can stop at the ice cream parlor on the way back. I have a feeling we'll need to stock up."
Matt slouched in the waiting room with his PSP. Mello had come along in quiet, scowling protest and would be out any minute now.
"Matt, you can come back now," a nurse waved him toward the door leading to the recovery room. He had only given his first name he had gone by since he was at Wammy's, and these doctors knew better than to pry. He powered off the PSP and walked through the door. Mello was sitting up on the table, his cheeks stuffed with cotton and a dazed, half-asleep look in his eyes.
The nurse handed Matt a sheet of paper detailing the aftercare Mello would need. A rotation of various painkillers and anti-inflammatories, ice packs, and instructions to call the doctor if anything seemed wrong.
"It took more of the anaesthetic than we normally give a person his size to keep him under, so he'll be groggy for a while." the nurse said.
That made sense. After the explosion, Mello had been given a strong cocktail of painkillers and antibiotics for his burns. For a while, he was also given sedatives to make sure he didn't wake up before his body had healed enough to handle it. During that time, he had probably developed a tolerance for some the drugs.
"Do you think you can stand, Mel?" Matt asked his spaced-out partner.
Mello nodded. With the nurse on one side and Matt on the other, they gently helped Mello to his feet and out to Matt's car. Matt was glad his partner wasn't any heavier, Mello was leaning most of his weight on Matt's shoulder. Once they got his long limbs arranged in the seat and closed the door, he leaned his head against the window and fell back into a half-sleep.
"He should be more awake in a few hours. I leave him in your care, Matt." the nurse smiled. There was something about these two scrawny punks. They really seemed to care about each other, and she had no doubt that Mello would be well cared-for.
Mello didn't even attempt to speak the entire way back to their apartment, but he did look slightly less dopey when Matt helped him out of the car. Mello's frame was about the same size as Matt's, but he had more muscle weight, so Matt was glad he could at least somewhat support himself. He managed to get Mello to the couch and leaned against the couch back, cursing his lack of fitness as he caught his breath.
Mello spit out the lumps of cotton that had stuffed his cheeks and probed around his jaw and cheeks with his fingers, feeling a tingling sensation where the novacaine had started to wear off.
"Thish schucks." he said. His lips were still too numb to properly form the sounds.
Matt snickered. He couldn't help it, Mello sounded hilarious. It reminded Matt of when they were eight and Mello had lost both front baby teeth.
"Schuk yoo, Ma'" even his attempt at cursing sounded childish. He was lightheaded, and his limbs weren't responding the way they normally did. He wanted to just go to sleep and hope that he would wake up feeling better. He sprawled himself out on the worn couch and succumbed to the drowsiness tugging at his brain.
The first thing Mello became aware of when he returned to consciousness was a sharp pain shooting from his jaw and a dull throb in his head. The novacaine had definitely worn off. The light coming from the window showed that it was getting close to evening. He gingerly propped himself up on an elbow. Matt heard Mello moving and turned from the Playstation he had hooked up in the living room.
"Oh, look who's awake. How do you feel? I hope it's better than you look." Matt teased. Mello really did look awful. His hair was all in a mess, and his cheeks were starting to swell. He was a pretty pitiful sight.
"I just got my face ripped open and put back together, what do you think? I feel like shit." He ran his free hand through his hair and carefully sat up. At least he sounded fairly normal now that he could move his lips and tongue again. "Did you pick up the pain meds?"
"They didn't damage your attitude, I see. I got them while you were asleep. I"ll get you some." He started to get up.
"No, I can get it myself." Mello hated feeling helpless, he wanted to at least do this.
Matt eyed his lover incredulously. He should probably insist that Mello stay on the couch, but there was no point in arguing with the stubborn bastard "Okay, they're on the table. Take two of the white ones."
Mello stood up slowly and started toward the felt lightheaded, and the pain in his jaw was making it hard to see straight. As he reached the doorframe, he suddenly lost which direction was up and his knees buckled.
Matt was ready and caught Mello before he hit the ground. He knew this was a possibility. He also knew Mello would try to get up anyway. By the time he got Mello back to the couch, he was back to consciousness.
"What are you doing? I said I could get up myself." Mello glared at Matt.
"Dude, you just collapsed. You blacked out for a second. The doctor said this might happen, you've had a lot of drugs and physical shock. Do I have to tie you to this couch?"
"Sounds kinky, let's try it." Mello tried to smirk, but winced instead. His mouth still hurt like crazy, and his cheeks felt distended with swelling.
"Stay here, I'll get you some painkillers." Matt said firmly. He was going to take care of Mello whether he liked it or not.
Matt returned in a few moments with the pills, a glass of water, and an ice pack wrapped in a towel.
"Here, take these then put this against your face. It'll help bring down the swelling."
Mello obeyed without protest and leaned against the pillows. Matt disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a pint of ice cream and a spoon. Mello tried to smile and winced again.
"Is that what I think it is?" he asked.
"Double dark chocolate. What kind of lover would I be if it wasn't? And there's plenty more where this came from." Matt handed over the ice cream and flopped into the chair, turning on the TV. He pulled up their iTunes and Mello noticed a new TV show in their library.
"What's that?" he asked.
"A little something I got for you. Have you heard of Blood Drive?" he said with a glint in his eye.
Mello shook his head, his mouth full of ice cream.
"It's set in a dystopian future where there is no petroleum, so the cars run on blood. The engine looks like a wood chipper and they throw whole people in there. The show follows a cross-country race that is broadcast to the world."
"That sounds awesome! Bring it on!" Mello said, his mood brightening.
A few episodes later, Matt went to the kitchen to get a drink and order some soup for himself and Mello. He got the next round of meds and another ice pack for Mello and returned to the living room. He couldn't help but snicker when he got a good look at Mello. His face was terribly swollen, but he still had his permanent look of defiance. The effect was just too funny.
"Does it look as bad as it feels?" He asked, pressing the ice pack to his face.
"Yeah, pretty much. You poor thing." he said with exaggerated sympathy. He knew Mello hated to be pitied.
"Fuck you, Matt. You have wisdom teeth too, this is you in a few months. Remind me to stay away from mirrors for a few days."
"I don't care, I'm not vain like you. I don't mind looking like a chipmunk if I have you to take care of me." he smiled coquettishly.
"You are pathetic." Mello said testily.
"Oh, I'm pathetic? Don't make me give you a mirror! Then we'll see who's pathetic!" Matt shot back.
"Shut up and start the next episode or I'll make your face look worse than mine!" Mello threatened.
"Okay, I'll start it. Food should be here in a few minutes."
They finished the series late that night and Matt helped Mello to bed. He kept insisting that he could walk, but after his collapse earlier, Matt wasn't taking any chances. Mello rustled around, trying to get comfortable without putting pressure on his face. The painkillers had reduced the stabbing pain to a dull ache, but it still hurt to lay on his cheeks. He finally settled on his back with a hand by his head to keep it from falling to the side. Matt lay down next to him and put a hand across his chest, caressing the scarred skin.
"Thanks, Matt. You know, you don't have to put up with this. You can tell me to shut up if you want." Mello said.
"I don't love you because I have to, I want to. You should know that by now. I want you to be okay being your worst around me."
Mello put the hand that wasn't supporting his head over Matt's.
"I'm not the easiest person to love, sometimes. I just….wanted to say that I'm really grateful that you're here. I hope I can take care of you as well as you take care of me." Mello's words had a dream-like quality. He was a little loopy from all of the pain meds. It reminded Matt of the way Mello talked after a really good round of drunk sex as he was falling asleep. But his mumbled words were true, and Matt knew it. He gently kissed Mello's distended cheek.
"We can worry about that later, now go to sleep." he murmured.
"Love, you, Matt." Mello slurred.
Matt smiled as he snuggled closer to Mello's side.
"Love you too, chipmunk Mello." he purred with a hint of mischief.
Mello was too sleepy to retaliate.