Author's Note: I suck. I'm sorry I'm almost a week late, but I've been short on inspiration. And then school started… Well, here it is. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Chapter 10: I'll Cry Instead
"Lanie!" Kate yelled as soon as she entered the E.R. on the Lenox Hill Hospital. She spotted Lanie not a second later. She was sitting on one of the couches in the waiting section, rubbing her hands together furiously.
"Kate!" Lanie got up from the couch fast.
"Where is he? Do they know what's wrong?" Kate asked, tears forming on the side of her eye.
"They don't. He's stable now, and there is no sign of hemorrhage. He hasn't thrown up since we got here, so they can't examine that. He's asleep." Lanie said, doing her best to calm Kate down. "Where's Castle?"
"He's trying to park." Kate said, distracted. She just wanted to see her son. Hold him tight, and tell him everything is going to be alright. "Where's the doctor? Can I talk to him?"
"He said he would be back in a few minutes. I know the guy, we went to college together. He's good, Kate. He's the best." Lanie said.
"I need to see my son, now." Kate said nervously.
"I'll ask the nurse to call him." Lanie walked away slowly.
"Lanie?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks." Kate walked over to the couch and sat down. The fact that her son, her baby boy, was now lying alone in a cold hospital room made her sick.
"Kate!" Rick yelled. "Kate!"
"Rick, I'm here!" Kate watched as Rick ran over to her.
"Where's he? How's he?" Rick asked. Kate embraced him tightly, realizing that he was even more nervous than she was. "Kate. How's James?"
"I only know he's stable and they don't know what's wrong with him. Lanie is talking to the doctor."
"What do we do?"
"I don't think we can do anything. Just sit here and hope for the best. And you should call Alexis. She deserves to know that her brother is at the hospital."
"I'll go outside and call her. I'll be back in a couple of minutes."
"'Kay."
"Kate, Dr. Yanovich needs to ask you a few questions." Lanie said, suddenly appearing next to Kate. A dark haired tall man as standing next to her, holding a few folders.
"Hello Mrs. Castle. I'm Doctor Robert Yanovich, I'm taking care of your son. Can you answer the questions?"
"Yes, of course. I'll answer anything. But my husband stays at home with him, so he might be able to answer your questions better than I will."
"Is he on his way?"
"He's just outside calling James' sister. He should be back in a second."
"Okay." A minute passed by before Rick appeared next to them.
"Rick, this is Doctor Yanovich. He's taking care of James."
"Hello. Richard Castle." Rick offered him a hand, which Doctor Yanovich shook.
"Good night. I need you to answer a few questions. Is that okay?"
"Yes."
"Mrs. Castle, are you breastfeeding?"
"On occasion. I work, so usually James takes my breast milk on a bottle."
"But you do breastfeed sometimes?"
"Whenever I can." Kate answered.
"Okay. Was he in contact with any sick people recently?"
"No." Rick and Kate answered, in unison.
"Okay, thank you. We need to run a few tests. It'll probably take an hour before we get the results."
"We'll be here." Rick said. "Thank you." Doctor Yanovich nodded and walked away.
…
"Mr. and Mrs. Castle?" A nurse called.
"Yes." Kate said. "We're here."
"Doctor Yanovich is waiting for you on room 13."
"Thanks."
…
"Excuse me. Doctor Yanovich?" Kate knocked on room 13's door softly. She entered the room slowly, with Rick following her closely behind.
"Mrs. Castle. I have some news."
"Good or bad?" Kate asked, apprehensive. She really didn't know what to expect.
"You get to decide that. I need to examine you."
"Me?"
"Your nipples, most specifically."
"What?" Rick asked, annoyed.
"I need to see if they're cracked. The blood might've gotten into James' system that way." Doctor Yanovich gave Rick a quick look "I can ask a female nurse to do it, if you like."
"I'd rather." Rick said, still annoyed.
"Okay."
"Can we see him before that?" Kate asked. She was not exactly happy with Rick's little jealousy attack, but she needed to see James.
"The exam will take about a minute. You can see him right after that."
"Okay."
…
"You can put your shirt back on now." The nurse, Janet, told Kate. The exam really took only a minute, and Kate was glad it was over.
"Thanks. Can I see my son now?"
"Yeah. Your husband is waiting outside." Kate opened the door and saw Castle standing.
"Let's go see him."
…
"Hey, baby boy." Kate said, placing her hand on James' stomach. The sight of her son lying in a hospital crib made her want to cry. But she couldn't. "Mommy is here now. Daddy is here too, see? We're all here. You're going to be alright, little man." Tears started rolling freely through Kate's cheeks. James was staring at her, his face puffy. He started crying as well, making Kate's heart ache. "Hey, Jamie. Don't cry, don't cry." Rick held the little boy's hand on the other side of the crib. He wanted to make him feel better. He wanted to make Kate feel better. But he felt terrible himself, and was fighting back tears.
"What about we sing you a song?" Rick dried James' tears. "Out here on the fields…" Rick gave Kate a look, as if asking her to join him
"I fight for my meals…" Kate sang, her voice still shaky.
"I get back into my living." They both sang this time, a little louder. "I don't need to fight. To prove I'm right. I don't need to be forgiving." Kate held Rick's other hand, and continued to sing. "Don't cry. Don't raise your eye. It's only teenage wasteland."
"Excuse me." Doctor Yanovich said. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I have the prognosis." Kate's heartbeat quickened and she squeezed Rick's hand.
"What is it?" Rick asked.
"Mrs. Castle, you have cracked nipples."
"What does that mean?" Kate asked.
"That means little James here is a little hard at suckling and that made your nipples bleed. He ingested the blood. Therefore, he threw up blood. He drank blood."
"What do we do?"
"I'll give you some nipple cream, and it should be fine. James is fine. You can take him home now."
"Thank you, Doctor Yanovich. Thank you so much." Kate said.
"Yes, thank you." Rick said. Doctor Yanovich nodded and left the room. Kate and Rick exchanged a quick look, and Kate shouted:
"Sally, take my hand. Travel south crossland. Put out the fire. Don't look past my shoulder." Rick joined her only a moment later.
"The exodus is here. The happy ones are near. Let's get together. Before we get much older. Teenage wasteland. It's only a teenage wasteland. Teenage wasteland. Oh, oh. Teenage wasteland. They're all wasted!"
Author's Note: A long one. What a rarity that seems to be. I hope you enjoy it. Please leave a review! Oh, and just a reminder, tomorrow we'll get to see the first season 5 promo!