Daniel lowered himself on to the sofa with a sigh. They'd successfully closed yet another case, but the day had involved far too much walking. His thigh was burning with pain, and he didn't even need to look at the skin under his pants to know that there were several sores and welts where his prosthetic leg was attached to the rest of his body. The only thing that made his situation better was the fact that Peggy was there with him. They'd been dating for three months now, and Daniel had promised her a glass of a very special whiskey he had at home several weeks ago. Given that he really hadn't wanted to separate from Peggy yet after they'd gotten off work, he had happily used the promised whiskey as an excuse to invite her to his place.
Careful not to touch or move his throbbing thigh, Daniel leant forward to the small table in front of the sofa to pour them their drinks. Peggy turned on the phonograph with some lively music, and then moved to sit next to him. Her radiant smile as they clinked their glasses made his heart flutter, and he couldn't stop a grin spreading across his face as he took a sip.
Peggy lowered her glass and looked at his prosthetic leg neatly hidden underneath his trousers.
"Don't you want to take it off?" she asked in her typical, matter-of-fact fashion, which caught Daniel completely by surprise. He hadn't said anything about the pain all day, even as it had gotten excruciating in the last few hours. He and Peggy had hardly ever talked about his bad leg before, either, and she'd never even seen his prosthetic. Once, when they were still working under Chief Dooley, he'd mentioned to her that he sometimes experienced phantom pain, and that his prosthetic could on occasion be painful, too, but that was it. Peggy knew, of course, how he'd lost his lower leg in the first place, but even as he'd told her, Daniel had only relayed the most essential details. He didn't like to talk about his bad leg; even though it had been three years by now, he was still struggling with the fact that half of it was just gone. And there wasn't really a point in talking about it, anyway. It just made him feel bad while his partners in conversation got that queasy, pitiful look on their face that betrayed the discomfort they experienced. Daniel didn't want others to pity him. He didn't want any special treatment. He just wanted people to see him as a regular person.
"What? Why?" he replied cautiously.
"Because it looks like you were in a lot of pain throughout the day," Peggy continued in the same practical tone as earlier. "Don't worry, I don't think anyone else noticed. Not everyone is watching you as closely as I am." At that, she shot him a mischievous smile, but quickly got serious again as her voice turned softer.
"Look, I know you don't like to talk about your leg, and I respect that. So I did some research on my own, and I read that walking a lot, amongst other things, can make wearing the prosthetic very painful. And we walked a lot today. Based on how badly my feet are hurting this evening, I can only imagine what your leg must feel like." Peggy looked him straight in the eye and covered his hand with hers.
"This isn't pity. I care about you, Daniel. Very much. And right now I can tell that you are in pain, and I just want to make it stop."
Daniel didn't know what to say. While it didn't quite surprise him that Peggy had acquired the knowledge he hadn't provided her on her own, he was touched that she had done so to understand what he was going through. On top of that, she'd been able to tell just by watching him that his leg was causing him trouble. Daniel couldn't help but feel flattered at that, and his heart jumped a little. He gave her hand a squeeze.
"Thank you," he said. "It does hurt a lot, yes, and I would love to take it off. It'll take a few minutes, though. I'll have to treat the skin on my thigh after I've removed the prosthetic."
He moved to sit up, but Peggy pushed him back against the sofa.
"You don't have to get up, I can bring you whatever you need," she said brightly.
Daniel blushed a little.
"I, erm, I'll have to take my pants off," he said sheepishly, which didn't seem to faze Peggy in the least.
"Well, are you wearing underwear?" she shot back.
"Yes, of course," Daniel replied as his cheeks started to feel flushed.
"Then it shouldn't be a problem. Honestly, Daniel, don't look at me like that. I'm not trying to seduce you. It's just a medical treatment, for Heaven's sake," Peggy said resolutely as she stood up.
Daniel relented but his insides were turning into jelly.
"There, ah, there is a green box on the sideboard in the bathroom. It contains everything I'll need. I'll also need a towel," he said nervously.
"Alright," Peggy said and turned towards the bathroom door. Daniel watched as she strode across the room. She looked very much at ease, and he liked it a lot. As soon as they'd entered his apartment, she'd shed her shoes, leaving her feet only covered by sheer stockings, while her hair was still a bit unkempt from the day's activities. He could definitely get used to Peggy feeling at home in his apartment.
A few seconds later, Peggy was back with the box and towel. Daniel stood and fumbled to open his belt and trousers. When his pants dropped to the floor, leaving him only in his lose boxer shorts, Daniel felt an immediate sense of relief at the cool air touching his irritated skin.
"Could you spread the towel across my seat?" he asked Peggy to distract himself from the fact that he was standing in front of her only in his underwear.
Peggy immediately did as he asked, and Daniel opened the buckles of the prosthetic before lowering himself back down on to the sofa.
Peggy sat next to him, calmly observing every move of his hands as he removed the prosthetic and placed it on to the ground. Just as he had supposed, his thigh looked bad. There were open sores and welts where the prosthetic had rubbed against the skin, resulting in a large part of his thigh being tinged in an angry red.
As he reached for the box, he quickly glanced at Peggy, who was staring at his thigh with a mixture of shock and compassion. Even though he knew that she only meant well and that she cared for him, he suddenly felt completely vulnerable and exposed. This definitely wasn't what he had imagined for their romantic evening. Maybe he could salvage at least some romance if he cut the treatment short.
His train of thought was interrupted by Peggy reaching for the box in his hand.
"May I?" she asked, her eyes slightly glazed.
Her simple request suddenly made Daniel feel incredibly raw. No one besides doctors and nurses had ever touched his stump before, and for some reason, the thought of Peggy doing so scared him. He knew that deep down, most people found his stump not only pitiful but also disgusting, and even though Peggy was not like most people, the idea of her being repulsed by him was unbearable.
"That's alright, you don't have to…" Daniel replied quickly, averting his eyes.
"But I want to. If you let me," Peggy replied calmly.
Daniel didn't think there was a single thing he could deny Peggy if she asked for it. His mind seemed to be screaming in anxiety, frustration, and desperation when he hesitantly nodded and handed her the metal box.
"Thank you," Peggy said sincerely, and Daniel tried to anchor himself in her calm, determined voice and the small smile that had accompanied her last words.
Peggy pulled a cushion from the sofa, placed it on the floor in front of Daniel, and knelt on top of it. Then she expertly disinfected her hands, as Daniel gave her instructions with a shaky voice.
"The cream in the round jar is for the whole skin, and especially for the red patches. The powder is for the sores," he said and set his jaw to stop it from shaking.
Peggy nodded, all-business as ever.
"Do you also cover the sores with gauze?" she asked, holding up a packet of bandages.
Daniel nodded, and Peggy got to work.
He didn't know what to do or where to look. The music was still playing, but it had gotten slower, and Peggy seemed completely focused on the task at hand. Daniel watched as she dabbed iodine and the powder on to his sores, and almost shuddered at the gentleness of her hands. Her touches felt incredibly intimate, but not in an erotic way, despite the fact that his lower body was only covered in boxer shorts. Somehow he felt like he had just handed Peggy his heart made of glass, and she handled it with the outmost care and devotion. Every one of Peggy's contacts with his skin seemed to travel right down to his core, to a part of his soul that he hardly knew himself. It was almost painful, and gave him the feeling that she could destroy him with just a tiny gesture.
But of course she didn't. Peggy only continued to work meticulously and gently, not once glancing up at him. Her features reflected an affectionate determination, and with each ministration, Daniel's heart and mind seemed to calm further. By the time Peggy had taken care of the open sores and began spreading the cream across his thighs, Daniel's breathing had become deep and regular, and the nervousness and fear he'd felt earlier gave way to a warm and fuzzy feeling that spread from his chest to every inch of his body. Peggy's strokes were tender and deliberate, and she paid particular attention to the worst red welts, massaging them gently. When her hands reached the apex of his stump, Daniel's breath hitched ever so slightly, but quickly returned to normal when Peggy just shot him a smile and continued.
Combined with the slow music in the background, the whole situation almost made Daniel sleepy. Fortunately, Peggy was soon done. She wiped her hands on the towel underneath Daniel's legs, and moved back up to the sofa to sit next to him. She was so close that Daniel could feel the heat radiating from her body, and he wrapped his arm around her and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.
"Thank you," he said earnestly and still a bit shaken from the intimacy of the previous moments.
"No, thank you," Peggy replied as she placed another kiss on to his lips. "Thank you for letting me in. I know this isn't easy for you," she said, her eyes bright.
Daniel didn't try to deny it, so he bowed his head.
"No, it isn't. But your skills as a nurse make it much easier," he joked with a glint in his eye.
Peggy just smiled and settled her head against his shoulder.
"Just don't call me Betty Carver," she retorted.
Later, when Peggy had gone home and Daniel was getting ready for bed, he stared at his stump pensively. Maybe special treatment from some people wasn't that bad at all.
