In His Eyes
Disclaimers: See Chapter 1.
Author's Notes: So many impatient people . . . Want to see some action, huh? *grin* Hang in there—you'll be rewarded, I promise!
Chapter 11—Friendly Intervention
Day 8—Saturday
Jason sat mumbling under his breath at the breakfast table. He was annoyed at himself for sleeping so late. Even though it was the weekend, he had meant to be up by 8—8:30 at the latest. It was now 10:30. He wanted to get over to the hospital and hang out with Tommy. He figured his bro would be lonely—God only knew why the Olivers didn't spend more time with him. They visited him every day, usually twice, but they just didn't hang around like Jason knew his parents would if it were him in the hospital.
'I guess they're just different—I don't know.'
Not that Jason got the impression that Tommy missed them. They had never seemed all that close, anyway. This was another foreign concept to Jason. So when he called Tommy's room to apologize for being so late, he was understandably surprised when Mrs. Oliver answered the phone.
"Mrs. Oliver, this is Jason. Is Tommy awake?"
"Jason, hi. Yeah, he's awake but he's not feeling well today."
"Oh? What's wrong?"
"Well, a couple of things. He has a high fever and the doctor thinks he's suffering from post-concussion syndrome. They tried to sit him up for the first time this morning and it seems to have triggered some problems."
"Great . . . poor Tommy . . . I thought he was getting better."
"Hopefully it's just a temporary setback. He's been nearly flat on his back for a week now, you know. Sitting up gave him a really bad headache and made him dizzy and nauseous. He's resting right now."
"Tell him I'll be up there in about half an hour to see him, okay?"
"I will and thank you for being such a good friend, Jason."
"No problem. Tommy's like a brother to me, you know."
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Jason made his way to Angel Grove Memorial very soon after talking to Tommy's mom. He had let the rest of the gang know that Tommy wasn't feeling well today and they all promised to drop by too.
As Jason figured he would be, Tommy was alone when he walked in and he didn't look good at all. He was pale and sweaty and his breathing was quick and shallow. He was being given oxygen. Jason's stomach knotted up when he took Tommy's limp, hot hand in his own—Tommy didn't react.
"Bro, can you hear me? Tommy?"
There was no response.
The nurse came in about then and Jason started peppering her with questions.
"He was fine yesterday. What happened?"
"He started running a fever during the night and he still has it. I was just going to see what his temperature is now."
She placed the electronic thermometer just inside Tommy's ear and took the reading.
"103," she told Jason who was hovering nearby. "He must have an infection somewhere. We're doing blood work to try and determine what the problem is."
"His mom told me he was dizzy and nauseous. Did that go away?"
"No, and he became somewhat unresponsive a little while ago. He's going for an MRI soon."
'Unresponsive? That's not good at all. Damn, Tommy . . .'
The nurse noted Jason's reaction to the news. She thought she needed to clarify.
"I don't mean unresponsive like unconscious or in a coma, by the way. He's not that bad."
"That's good. Had me worried there for a minute. I'll call his brother and uncle and let them know."
"His parents have been here most of the morning. Wouldn't they have let his family know?"
"No, that's his adopted family. I'm talking about his birth family. The Olivers wouldn't have called them."
Jason still didn't understand the problem between the Olivers and the Truehearts. Didn't they both love Tommy?
Jason continued trying to talk to him. He stroked his hair away from the big bandage that Tommy still wore on his head. He ran his fingers along the strong jaw line.
"Tommy? Come on bro, make some noise for me."
He picked up Tommy's hand again and held it tight.
"Please—you're worrying me."
He looked intently at that beautiful face. The bruises and cuts looked much better and the swelling had gone away. Except for the lack of color, he looked like himself again.
He patted Tommy's cheek. "Open your eyes—come on. Tommy, please wake up."
Jason was getting himself worked up. He couldn't stand to see him like this. Finally, Tommy gave him a little encouragement. He moved his head slowly from side to side and moaned a bit. Then he blinked a couple of times and opened his eyes.
"Hey there. Feeling bad today, huh?" Jason leaned closer and stroked his hair. Tommy nodded—he was too weak to talk.
"They'll find out what's wrong and fix it, don't worry."
He looked around to make sure they were alone.
". . . and if they can't, Zordon, Alpha, and Billy can."
The corners of Tommy's mouth curled slightly.
"They're gonna do some more tests soon. I think the nurse said you're going for an MRI in a little while."
He had no sooner gotten that sentence out of his mouth than he regretted it. Tommy's eyes widened and he looked apprehensive. Jason recalled the last time they went through that.
"Bro, it's okay. Don't worry. I'll be there if you want."
Tommy nodded slowly, but still looked uneasy. He closed his eyes again and Jason saw a single tear trickle down his cheek. He patted his arm and said in a soothing voice, "It's okay. I'm here and we'll get through the MRI again just like we did last time, okay?"
As well intended as it was, Jason's assurance didn't seem to help that much. Tommy took a ragged breath and squinted—more tears fell from his closed eyes.
"Tommy . . . the test isn't what's bothering you, is it?"
He shook his head slightly.
"So what is it? Can you tell me?"
Those big eyes opened again and Tommy tried to speak. Nothing much came out. Jason leaned his ear as close to Tommy's mouth as he could and he could barely make out,
". . . thought I was getting better . . . want out of here."
Jason repeated what he heard and Tommy nodded.
"You are getting better, bro. This is just a temporary setback—nothing more. The nurse said you have an infection somewhere that's causing the fever. Once they figure out exactly where the problem is, they'll give you some antibiotics or something to clear it up . . . and you're weak because of the fever and because you can't eat much, that's all."
Tommy mouthed 'MRI' with a questioning look.
"I don't know—probably just a precaution. That and they need to make sure your head injury is healing like it's supposed to."
"Exactly right. Couldn't have said it better myself," the nurse said from behind Jason, making him jump. Tommy grinned slightly.
"It's just a precaution," she added.
"And was I right about him being weak because of the fever and not being able to eat?" Jason asked.
"Most probably." She extended her hand. "Nice to meet you, Doctor . . . ?"
Jason grinned and shook her hand. "Scott. Jason Scott."
"Well, Dr. Scott, I see your name here in Mr. Oliver's chart as the one who can help him get through an MRI. Would you like to come with us?"
"Sure, I'll be glad to."
An orderly came in and prepared Tommy's bed to be moved, trying hard to keep all of his IV lines out of the way and untangled. As they moved out into the hallway and towards the elevator, Tommy reached out weakly for Jason's hand. Jason grasped it and smiled at his bro.
"It's okay," he said softly.
The Olivers came up the hallway and saw them pushing Tommy towards the elevator. They also saw Jason holding Tommy's hand.
"Oh, is it time for the MRI already?" Mr. Oliver asked.
"Yes sir. Would you like to come down to the lab with us?" the nurse asked.
"Yeah, we may as well. Jason, since we're going down, you don't have to. If you want to wait in Tommy's room that would be fine."
"Well, I promised Tommy that I would be there with him during the test—like I was last time. He gets so upset over that machine, ya know."
"Yeah. If he wants you there, it's fine."
Tommy looked at his mom and nodded. He definitely wanted his bro there.
They all reached the MRI lab and waited in the holding area until it was time for Tommy to be taken back for the test. Tommy's parents tried to talk to him, but he wasn't responding very much—just a head shake or a nod.
In the course of the conversation, Mr. Oliver said something that made Jason mad. Maybe he was just trying to help, but it sure didn't seem like it. He told Tommy that being afraid of things like enclosed places or heights or whatever was like being afraid of the dark—it was childish and he was too old to act that way. Jason countered that, while phobias might be irrational, they are very real and hard to deal with. He should know--he had an intense fear of snakes.
When Tommy was taken back, he pulled Jason right along with him and they repeated the method they had used before—Tommy kept his eyes closed and held Jason's hand while Jason talked nonstop to keep Tommy's mind off of the test. If it ain't broke . . .
Out in the holding area, the Olivers looked through the picture window and watched the test. Jason looked so comfortable and natural sitting by Tommy's side and was speaking so sweetly to him that the young Radiology assistant made an unfortunate assumption. She asked Mrs. Oliver, "Is that your son?"
"Yeah, the one having the test."
"Oh." She turned and looked through the window. "They make a cute couple."
It took a minute, but after it sunk in as to what she was implying, Mrs. Oliver's face nearly fell off. "What?! They're not a couple! They're best friends! What makes you think . . ."
The young woman's eyes got big—she knew she'd put her foot in it. "I'm sorry ma'am. I meant no offense. I just assumed that since . . ." She had seen them holding hands and heard the way Jason was talking to Tommy.
"You assumed wrong! My son is not . . . whatever you're insinuating!"
"Forgive me, ma'am. I didn't mean to upset you." She walked off mumbling something about someone being in denial.
The test was over in about 35-40 minutes and Tommy was taken back upstairs. Tommy's parents noticed how he wouldn't let Jason out of his sight, but they chalked it up to how much Tommy had missed his best friend since he'd been gone.
'That girl downstairs must be crazy—there's no way . . . that's disgusting,' Margaret Oliver thought to herself.
Once Tommy was settled back in his room, more of his friends came to see him. They had been warned that he wasn't feeling well today, so they didn't stay long so as not to tire him out. Jason finally had a chance to call Sam and David and let them know what was going on. They were going to visit him later on that day anyway. Now they decided to bring him a special gift.
Jason was sitting in the bedside recliner talking to Tommy about what was going on in their mutual classes when Tommy's brother and great-uncle walked in carrying something wrapped in white tissue paper. It appeared to be about the size of a dinner plate.
"Hey Tommy. Not feeling so good, huh?" David said as he approached the bed. "Hey Jason."
"Hi David, Mr. Trueheart. Good to see you both again," Jason answered as he got up to shake Sam's hand.
"Jason. Nice to see you too," Sam replied, looking a bit worried.
Tommy looked up at both of them and managed a weak "Hi" and a small wave.
"Sam and I brought you something for your room—I hope you like it," David said and placed the wrapped gift in Tommy's hands.
He was propped up about halfway between sitting and lying down, so he was able to see well enough to carefully unwrap his present. As the paper came off, Tommy smiled broadly when he saw a beautiful handmade object of leather, colourful stones, and feathers. Jason was standing beside Tommy's bed, watching.
"Is that a dream catcher?" he asked.
Tommy shook his head and motioned for David to explain to Jason.
"It sort of looks like a dream catcher, but this is what we call a medicine wheel. The written prayers and little sacred objects go in this leather pouch in the middle and it's hung near the bed of the sick person."
He carefully pulled the folded paper from the little pouch.
"Sam is going to chant the prayer over Tommy and then we'll put this on the wall."
The older man prepared himself and stood on the other side of the bed from Jason. He placed both hands on Tommy's head and closed his eyes. Tommy was lying there quietly with his eyes closed and a small smile on his lips. Jason suddenly thought that David should be by his brother's side, so he moved off and silently invited him to take his place.
Everyone was quiet for several moments and then Sam began chanting in a low voice and moving his hands down Tommy's head, neck, and chest. In the middle of this, the door opened and in walked Adam and Rocky who hadn't been able to visit Tommy earlier in the day. Jason held his finger to his lips so they would know to be quiet and motioned for them to join him at the foot of the bed. They all looked on in fascination as Sam moved his skilled, weathered hands over Tommy's body and chanted something they couldn't understand.
Adam stood there looking at his injured friend and leader. He had known since shortly after they met that Tommy was of Native American heritage, but he hadn't realized until now how very native he looked. Of course, the presence of Sam and David and the fact that the old shaman was performing a native rite greatly added to the impression, but still . . .
When Sam finished, David hung the medicine wheel on the wall above Tommy's bed and then leaned over and hugged and kissed his little brother.
"You're going to be fine, Falcon. Don't worry." He stroked his brother's long hair and smiled at him. "You'll be outta here soon."
"I hope so," Tommy said weakly.
They all sat around talking for a while. Tommy remembered something that he wanted to talk to Sam about. In his weak voice he said, "Sam, I need to ask you something."
"Sure Tommy, what is it?"
"We were talking earlier about the accident and Jason said that he thought I had someone watching over me—like a guardian angel. What do you think?"
"Well, our tradition has always been that we hold our ancestors in high regard. In return, their spirits watch over us, guide us, and help us. We don't use the word 'angel', but it's essentially the same thing."
"Could my parents be watching over me . . ." he moved his hand over to touch David, ". . . us?"
David covered Tommy's hand with his own and looked at Sam.
"Absolutely. No doubt in my mind that Joseph and Elizabeth are keeping watch over their baby boys. They loved you two so much in this life--that love would definitely carry over to the next," the wise, older man said gently. "They would be, no are, so proud of you both."
Tommy and David shared a warm smile.
The nurse came in sometime later to give Tommy his test results. The MRI was fine. His head injury was healing well and his blood work indicated a definite infection which was causing the fever. It would take until the following day to get all of the results back—they wanted to make sure it wasn't staph. She gave him the first dose of antibiotics and said that he should hopefully start feeling better by morning.
Tommy, along with everyone else, was very relieved that this setback was minor and easily fixed. Rocky, Adam, Sam, and David left to let Tommy rest and Jason was about to do the same.
"I'd better be going and let you rest. I'll be back tomorrow."
"Jase, thank you . . . for everything," he said, sounding quite tired.
Jason put his hand on Tommy's arm. "For what? I haven't done anything."
"Yes you have. I would have been so lonely up here without you. And what would I do without Cocoa?" He squeezed the little bear tightly and smiled at Jason who beamed at him.
'Damn, he's so cute holding that silly bear.'
Leaning over Tommy's bed, Jason said, "Hey, I'm your best friend. What else am I supposed to do? Just concentrate on getting better so that we can have some fun together, okay?"
The sight of those big chocolate eyes looking up at him, so close . . . it gave Jason a case of the butterflies. Tommy just nodded and kept looking into his dark eyes.
'That beautiful mouth is so close . . . it would be so easy . . . but no, he's not feeling well today,' Jason thought as he hovered over Tommy's bed. He hugged him gently and quickly pressed a kiss to his bro's forehead. He could feel the heat from his skin.
"I really hope you feel better soon. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Yep, tomorrow. Good night, Jase."
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Day 9—Sunday
The day had gone by pretty quickly. Tommy had slept late—his body was recovering from the infection and needed more sleep. The good news was that the infection was not staph and his fever was almost gone. He felt much more like himself today. His stomach was better able to tolerate food now, so he could have light meals and that would make him stronger.
When Tommy awoke at around 10am, Jason was napping in the recliner beside him. He wondered how long he'd been there. He just watched him sleep for a while, thinking how innocent and boyish he looked.
'He is so handsome—you'd have to be blind not to see that—that coal black hair and dark skin . . .'
Eventually, Tommy decided that he wanted some company, so he raised the head of his bed up a little and leaned over as far as he dared until he could just touch him. He stroked the back of his bro's hand until he woke up to find Tommy grinning at him.
They spent most of the afternoon talking and laughing with their friends. Tommy would watch Jason when he wasn't looking and Jason would do the same to Tommy. Zack noticed—why were they so oblivious?
Mondo decided to attack the city in the late afternoon and everyone ran out except Jason and Zack. It was the first attack since the one that had injured Tommy and Adam. Why he had waited so long was anybody's guess, but the rangers beat back the monster with relative ease. It was the proclamation that Mondo made afterward that had everyone anxious: "I will take you rangers down, one by one, beginning with the weakest." What had he meant by that, they all wondered.
'Who's the weakest?'
Tommy had lots of other visitors too. Sam and David had come by for awhile; Tommy's parents, of course, had been there along with Jason's, Zack's, Adam's, and Rocky's parents. Tommy's room was full of cards, flowers, stuffed animals, and balloons from his friends and their families as well as teachers, Ernie, his parents' offices, etc. He could never truly say that he wasn't loved.
In the evening, Jason finally decided to get his butt home and finish his homework for Monday. After his usual promise to see him as soon as possible the next day, Jason left Tommy and made his way home. On the way, his cell phone rang. It was Zack.
"Hey man, what's up?"
"Not much, Jase. I just wanted to ask you something."
"Go ahead."
"Have you told Tommy how you feel about him yet?" Talk about cutting to the chase.
Jason had known this was coming sooner or later. He prepared himself for the lecture that was sure to follow.
"No, not yet."
"Why the hell not?"
"Zack, he's been too sick and weak to even try to talk to him about that."
"He's doing better now."
"Sure, now. Today was the first day he's been like that, though. And there's still the question of how he'll take it. I don't want to run the risk of pushing him away, Zack."
"Jason, please . . . are you blind? You have nothing to worry about, trust me on this."
"What do you mean?"
Zack chuckled. "Well, you know how you were looking at him when you thought no one noticed?"
Jason was busted. "Ummm, yeah. You saw that, huh?"
"Yeah, Jase. You aren't very slick. Well, guess what? Tommy ain't slick either—he was doin' the same thing."
Jason's face erupted into a huge, goofy grin.
"Seriously?! You wouldn't lie to me . . ."
Zack laughed at Jason's excitement. "No, I wouldn't lie to you about this. He's into you, man, I promise. Now do something about it!"
Jason could feel his pulse racing. 'Could it be true? Was Zack right?'
"Zack . . . are you sure you saw what you think you saw?"
"Let's see . . . Tommy sneaking glances at you when you weren't looking—the look in his eyes—the way he touched you every time he got the chance—hmmm . . . yeah, I'd say I saw what I think I saw," Zack said, amused.
Jason thought back to all the times he thought his bro might have been flirting with him. At the time, he had convinced himself that it was too good to be true.
'Was I right? Is Zack right? What if he's wrong . . .'
"Zack, man, I don't know. You, of all people, know how I feel about him, but . . ." he paused and sighed. "I just don't know if I can take the chance of telling him yet. I kinda think you might be right, but if we're both wrong . . . it could be well, uncomfortable at best and downright ugly at worst."
"Jase, how long have we known each other?"
"Seems like forever."
"I'll take that as a compliment. Anyway, don't you trust me? If I weren't sure, I would never suggest that you risk telling him. The only thing I'm not sure of is whether he's ready to act on his feelings, but I guarantee that the feelings are there."
"So what do you suggest I do? How should I go about it? If I do this, and that's a big 'if', I have to get it right. This is too important to screw up."
"Elaborate plans never work—use the straightforward approach. Pick a time when you're fairly sure that you won't be interrupted, make sure he's feeling okay and can listen to you, and just do it!"
"Hmmm . . ." Jason murmured. He was considering it, but still wasn't sure. By this time, Jason had reached his house and was sitting on the hood of his car in his driveway. He didn't feel like going in just yet. Zack just kept talking . . .
"Rex, I hate to have to play this card, but . . . to be blunt, you nearly lost him. None of us are promised another day. I know the depth of your feelings, your love, for Tommy and I think it's time you told him."
Jason sighed deeply. He knew Zack was right, but he was still scared—that was the only word for it.
"Remember when you saw him in the Recovery Room? Remember how you felt? You told him then that you loved him and I know nothing's changed, so . . ."
"But he's my best friend. I'm running the risk of alienating him if he doesn't return my feelings."
"Trust your best friend, then. He knows you're bi and it doesn't bother him, right? And it never has, right? So even if I'm wrong--which I'm not by the way--he's not going to push you away, Jase. And if I'm right--which I am--just think how good it will be! I know you wanna get your hands in that hair!"
Jason had to laugh at that comment.
"Okay, you're right about that. Tell you what, I promise to give it a lot of thought, but right now, I have homework to finish and it's getting late. Have you made up your mind about the conference yet?"
Zack hadn't realized how much he missed Angel Grove, his family, the Youth Center, etc. until he came home on this emergency. Unlike Jason, he hadn't come home at every opportunity.
"Yeah, I have. I'm going back, but not until after the New Year. I'm going to finish the Fall semester at AGH. I register tomorrow."
"Really? Cool. Almost like old times."
"Yeah. Well, I'll let you go. See you tomorrow?"
"You know it. And Zack . . . thanks. I need a good kick in the pants every now and then."
"You're welcome. My foot's always available. See ya!"
"Later."
Jason closed his phone and lay back on the still-warm hood of his Mustang. He stared up into the clear night sky and looked at the stars. He wondered how things were going to turn out between him and Tommy. Zack was right—he had to tell him.
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At Angel Grove Memorial, Tommy was disobeying orders. He knew he wasn't supposed to be out of bed without help, but he felt strong enough to walk over to the window and sit in the recliner. The dizziness and nausea came and went—he felt okay at the moment. He just couldn't get to sleep yet. Looking down at the old, worn teddy bear in his arms, he couldn't help but smile. Jason had looked so cute when he walked in carrying it. Tommy stared out into the night sky and wondered what Jason was doing. He absent-mindedly picked at the bandage on his head. The damn thing itched.
Tommy thought about the variety of emotions that had been swirling through his head over the last few days.
'Why is this happening now? I've been around Jase before without this getting so out of hand.'
Then something occurred to him. This was the first time he had been with Jason since he and Kim had broken up. There was also the added dimension of Jason's decision to stay in Angel Grove.
'But so what if he's not going back to Switzerland and I'm single now—that doesn't automatically mean that he'd be interested in me. He's my best friend, that's why he's been so kind to me.'
Tommy thought about the flirting he had been doing with his bro—testing the water, so to speak.
'He seems to return my feelings. He flirts back with me. But am I reading too much into this?'
He wished he had someone he could talk to. Many times since his relationship with Kim ended had he wanted to confide in someone about this thing with Jason, but he never had. Adam seemed the obvious choice since they were close and the green zeo ranger was just so easy to talk to. In fact, he was the group's unofficial psychologist. But he thought that Adam might have expressed an interest in Jason and that just made things awkward.
'Is Adam bi? Am I? Am I ready to put that label on myself?'
Tommy sat alone with his thoughts and apprehensions.
'Can I risk telling Jason what I feel for him? What will it do to our friendship if Jason isn't interested in me like that?'
He just didn't know. Jason's place in his life wasn't in doubt—he was like a brother to him, more even. He was the best friend he'd ever had. Could he risk all of that? Would he be risking it? His head started to hurt. Maybe these life-altering questions and decisions could be left until tomorrow . . . or the day after.
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Author's Notes: Thanks much for all the kind reviews! Now, all you people who are reading and not reviewing . . . come on! It's simple! Just say "Hello" and tell me what you think. I really do appreciate your time. Until next chapter . . .