A few hours passed. Matt fell asleep again, woke up, fell asleep, woke up and repeated this a couple of times until he started to actually be awake. Everyone in the room noticed right away when he opened his eyes. They talked to him, they had the tv on, the door was open and people were walking by, quite loudly. Matt didn't seem to care. He he faced the person who was talking to him, but he didn't hear it. Whatever was going on, it was taking most of his hearing and no one knew if his other senses were affected as well.
"Mr. Murdock? How well can you hear me?" Jameson asked.
"I can't hear," he simply replied. "I hear you but I don't know what you're saying."
He didn't sound panicked, which made Foggy nervous. He wants to talk to Matt. He missed his friend, this wasn't fair.
"Nurse, do we own a braille reader?" Jameson needed to tell Matt what he knew so far. While the nurse was away, finding the braille reader they should have in a storage room, Foggy took his time to gather his thoughts and keep a hand on Matt's shoulder. Matt didn't seem scared, which was the scariest part to Foggy.
Karen was mostly there to keep Foggy company. Foggy was there for Matt all the time and honestly, it was like watching a married couple. Matt and Foggy had been so… together, for the past couple of weeks. It was almost as if they actually got married. Karen knew that it wasn't that, though. She knew that Matt meant everything to Foggy, it was his best friend and they have gone through so much together. If something were to actually happen with Matt, if this was permanent, they'd figure out a way to deal with it but that doesn't mean that he can't be sad right now.
The nurse returned and told them that it was broken, that they could order a new one but it would take days to arrive. Karen offered to go to Matt's apartment and bring his laptop and screen reader. Foggy had to think for a moment, what did Matt's apartment look like at the moment? Was the suit locked away somewhere? Was the furniture okay? He decided that he thinks the apartment looks reasonable and he let Karen go with Foggy's key to Matt's apartment.
While Karen was gone, Foggy didn't leave Matt's side. They reduced the dose of whatever painkilling drug he was on on Foggy's request because he knew Matt wouldn't want it. He was already numbed and he would need whatever sense he has left to just be.
Matt didn't seem to feel any panic or discomfort. He was just half-sitting on the bed, squeezing Foggy's hand a little. His breathing was steady. It scared Foggy a little, how calm Matt was. They had gone to hospitals before, it drove Matt insane. Foggy didn't know about his heightened senses back then so he thought he was just having a hard time emotionally, since Matt told him he hadn't been at a hospital since the accident. Now that Foggy actually knew how much Matt could sense, he understood that this place would overwhelm him. But not today. Today, he was calm and breathing and he seemed to be more support to Foggy than Foggy was to Matt, as he was the one who was kind of nervous.
Karen returned with the braille reader and Matt's laptop. Foggy turned it on, being the only one knowing Matt's password and also being the one who installed the braille reader when Matt first got it. He placed the reader on Matt's lap which startled Matt a little. No one commented on it.
They called in Jameson, they let him type.
Hello mr. Murdock, this is dr. Jameson.
Matt didn't respond, he just read the line very slowly. It took him a second try to understand and then nodded.
We have examined your ears, there seems to be nothing wrong. You either know very well how to mask a concussion or it is something psychological.
They wait for him to respond. By the time he's reached the end of the message, he frowns a little. He doesn't say anything but clearly doesn't agree with "something psychological".
You seem to be responding well to the drugs. We lowered your dose on mr. Nelson's request and you will be completely off the drugs by tomorrow morning.
He smiles a little at that. Good, Foggy thinks. He now knows he did the right thing.
We will give you three options. We strongly advise you not to go home alone tomorrow, so we're gonna have to ask you to either stay at the hospital, go home with one of your friends or let someone go home with you. That someone can either be a private nurse or ms Page or mr Nelson or anyone else you trust and is willing to come with you.
I don't have money for a private nurse, he thinks. I don't have money for a longer hospital stay, he thinks. I don't want to be taken care of.
He wants to say that he's going to be fine on his own, in his own apartment, but he doesn't think that that's true. He doesn't want to go back to his own apartment, where there is nothing for him to do and no one around. The memories he has of his apartment aren't good and they won't help him recover. They set him off. He knows that.
As much as he loves Karen, he won't let her take care of him. He would feel like he's obligating her to do so. He knows she'll do it because she loves him, but he doesn't want it. He knows he'll feel guilty.
With Foggy knowing about his senses and having lived together in college, he knows he'll be in good hands. He won't treat him like an invalid and he'll be there when Matt needs him.
I'll give you some time to think about it.
Matt nods. He just wants to go back to sleep. He appreciates the effort they have gone through to communicate with him, but he's tired.
A couple of hours have passed. They have taken him off the drugs completely and he's starting to notice. Karen has gone home, it's night, he thinks. Foggy is still here even though visiting hours are already over.
Foggy notices the drugs wearing off as well. Matt is now circling his index finger over his thumb, creating an imaginary "8" over and over. His breathing is a bit faster and he's wide awake.
Foggy puts the braille reader on Matt's lap and Matt already starts to feel for words. He wants/needs something to do.
I can go home with you if you let me.
Matt feels some slight joy inside him and smiles at Foggy, then realizes that he offered to go to Matt's apartment and his smile fades.
"I don't want to go home," is all he gets out before choking on his breath.
You don't want to leave the hospital?
This must be way too surprising for Foggy. Matt finishes his unfinished sentence.
"I don't want to go to my home. Can we go to your place? If you'll have me."
It takes Foggy about .3 seconds before he answers. He types fast.
Of course! I'll send Karen over to clean up before we leave. It's gonna be just like college!
Matt laughs at that. They have pointless conversations for a while, ignoring the obvious situation and Foggy doesn't ask questions about why he doesn't want to go home. Matt falls asleep after a while. Foggy does the same in the chair next to Matt's bed.