Epilogue
One week later...
Tim sat alone in his apartment.
He wasn't sure how he felt at this point. He'd lucked out and avoided giardia, something he was very grateful for. His ankle still hurt quite a bit, but he had some stronger versions over OTC painkillers and they were pretty good at helping him manage that pain. His doctor said that he'd aggravated the sprain quite a bit since he'd had to walk on it for so long and it would take proportionately longer for it to heal, but once he started his rehab, they'd have a better sense of how long it might take. None of that was unexpected. He could handle that, although he'd be glad when his ankle was hurting less.
No, that was unpleasant but he could handle it.
Overall, he was still bothered by what he'd had to do. ...and it was a case of being forced to do it. He really hadn't had any other option. Because he hadn't had backup. He'd been completely on his own, forced to face those men without any hope of help from anyone. His mind kept going back to it at odd moments.
Gibbs had made sure that Tim went through the process for having some therapy. He said that he'd let Tim manage it as he wanted...as long as he did it and didn't avoid it. Tim knew he needed it.
Now, it was just recovery...and he was still thinking about what had got into his mind. How much more should he be doing with his life? He hadn't mentioned it to Delilah and he hadn't brought it up again to Gibbs, but it was still on his mind. Was it just something that he was thinking about to avoid the more disturbing things or was it something that really deserved consideration?
He got his crutches and made his way over to the window. He looked up at the sky and found that he was actually a little disappointed. He knew the city lights would drown out a lot of the stars, but in comparison to that perfect night sky in Yellowstone...
He laughed a little.
"Figures that I'd suddenly find something positive about that," he said to himself.
But it was true. He'd never seen the stars like that. He'd never seen a sky like that before. It was something that he wondered if he'd ever see again. It was a world away, in the back country of Yellowstone.
Tim crutched back to his bed and sat down. Then, he lay back and stared at the ceiling
...and he started to smile as a thought came into his mind. An idea that he wouldn't be able to implement for a while, but that would give him time to plan.
Why should he assume he'd never get to a place like that again?
There was no reason at all.
He'd managed all on his own in terrible circumstances. Why shouldn't he be able to manage when he planned it?
The smile widened and he felt better than he had since his unplanned trip. He'd never been big into camping, but why couldn't that change? Why couldn't he try for something more?
"I'll see that sky again," he said aloud.
Would that be enough for him, enough to get rid of that feeling of needing to do more? Tim wasn't sure.
...but he was interested in finding out.
FINIS!