So here we are at long last...Lance's surgery. I kinda kept the X-Men out of it for the most part so that the boys can be 'wusses around each other' lol. I'm really sorry if I screwed it up big time...It's kinda fluffly actually o.O But anyway...I promise next chapter will confuse the heck out of u...but then things get rolling with Mags and stuff...
Review Responses-
KS-Fan- First, this chapter could not have been written w/o u my dear lol. Second, It's blue :) I'd be kinda surprised if a lot of ppl didn't figure out what it was... but ya lol. Anyway, thanks tons for all your help...I always go write like right after I read ur reviews for some reason lol
RogueFanKC- Yep... Magneto shows up very, very soon.
Storm Pietro- Ya I know, I love break down scenes too...weird huh?
Yma- I'm a bit frustrated with Pietro at the moment, cuz I know what I *want* to do with him...it's just getting him there that is causing problems lol. He's just all angry and explosive...so it's hard to just like explain him all in one scene ya know? Like Todd, it's easy...memory blocks cuz of something bad– and even tho u don't know the bad yet, it's just a lot simpler. I'll find a way tho...
Incrediblecuznz- Hehe, Actually... I've never played a gamecube. It was just the first thing that came to me. I miss Super Nintendo. Anyway...thanks for reminding me...I do *NOT* take credit for the X-Box joke...but I can't for the life of me remember who does...I read it somewhere and ya. Also, I figured if I wasn't gonna make Pietro lose his head completely...I may as well make him a little frantic :)
MiracleChick- Pietro strikes me as the hissy fit type lol. I'm glad you liked the Hank dialogue...I like that scene actually hehe. Also, a few ppl have told me I write a great proff X...and the strange thing is, I think he's one of the easiest characters to write. The boys... wow they're hard lol. But thank u :) I appreciate it
JKJ- I was wondering where u were! Yep, when Magneto gets here I intend to milk the Pietro angst for all it's worth lol. I think that's how I'm going to develop what it is that makes him so...sad/messed up.
IceBlueRose- Aww it's ok...don't cry hehe. Thanks for the compliment about the humor mixing up the tenseness... I find it really hard to do.
Lunacat- Yay, the slow character developments arent annoying! That's encouraging...cuz personally I think its too un realistic to just instantly have them develop over night. Thanks :)
Chapter 14- Surgery
Lance stared up at the X-Jet's loading platform with disdain. Not only was he about to go through brain surgery, but he had to use the one form of travel he absolutely despised to get there. 'Maybe I'll just black out on the plane and I won't have to deal with watching them use all those needles.'
The professor wheeled behind him and reached a hand up to pat him comfortingly on the back. "Don't worry. We'll be driving you home. It's just more convenient to take the jet with the other kids being toted back and forth. Besides," he added with a slight grin, "Logan is a slightly more experienced pilot than Bobby."
Lance nodded, his jaw firmly set. He would rather just get the whole trip over with. He knew that the second he walked on the plane all the kids that insisted on accompanying him to the clinic where his surgery would be performed would be attempting everything in their power to lighten the mood and pretend things weren't tense. He appreciated the sentiment, but all the same, it had the potential to be a very obnoxious ride.
"Hey Lance! Get your butt up here vould you? We've got somesing for you," Kurt's voice traveled down the Jet's loading ramp.
Lance gave the professor a quizzical look and the old man tilted his head toward the plane with a knowing smile. Taking a deep breath, Lance shifted his bag to his other shoulder and trudged up the ramp. He froze the instant his feet entered the hull and his bag slipped off his now sagging shoulders. He caught it before it hit the ground by mere reflexes.
Sitting in the center aisle of the plane's passenger seats was a small amp, complete with a stunningly blue guitar propped up next to it. The six strings were already strung tightly above the frets, waiting for someone to pick up the sparkling instrument and let loose. [1]
Lance forced himself to close his mouth when he realized how ridiculous he must look ogling over a guitar. He raised his free hand numbly and pointed at the objects in front of him.
"Is that..."
"Yours?" Kitty interrupted, "Yes."
Lance continued to stare while keeping his mouth closed with great effort, "How..."
"Us," Rogue answered simply, "We'll get ya a bigger amp for Christmas."
Evan suddenly burst into laughter and nudged Pietro. "Ok you win, the crazy thing *did* make him speechless."
Lance's face broke into a crooked grin and he shook his head in defeat, snapping out of his daze. "Alright, so I'm slightly guitar obsessed, sue me."
He stashed his bag at the back of the jet and gingerly picked up the guitar and began to examine every square inch of it.
"We figured you'd need something ta occupy yourself with while ya recover," Rogue explained, "So we all pitched in."
Lance looked up from his intense study of his new instrument and smiled. "Seriously, thanks. This the second time you X-Geeks have shocked me into speechlessness."
The surrounding students groaned and all at once stated, "X-*Men!*"
Lance shrugged and flopped into the back seat, pulling the guitar strap over his head, "Same difference."
For a split second, Lance almost forgot that he was on the jet that was taking him to some underground mutant clinic on the other side of the city to have his head sliced opened. He flinched mentally and took a good look at the other passengers for the first time.
Kurt and Kitty were seated next to each other, Kurt gently wrapping his tail around Kitty's wrist while talking softly into her ear. Lance looked away quickly but then realized that Kurt's whispering was because Kitty looked absolutely petrified and the teleporting teenager was just trying to put her at ease. His eyes drifted to Evan and Rogue, both of whom had headphones on with the volume up way too loud. Rogue's heavy metal was not mixing well with Evan's Red Hot Chili Peppers cd, and Lance decided that the sooner he started playing and drowning the two out, the better. In the seat across the aisle from him, Pietro was fidgeting worse than usual. He kept alternating between drumming his fingers, tapping his foot, adjusting his sitting position, and rubbing the back of his neck. Todd was at the window in front of Lance, his green skin tone more noticeable than usual. Sam had come too, for Todd's benefit Lance assumed, considering he hadn't talked to Sam much since his whole X-Men trail run a year ago.
In his head, he began to make a list of things to say to keep Todd and Pietro at ease before he was wheeled into the OR. He knew the two of them would throw an outright fit if they weren't aloud to stay with him throughout the prepping and waiting. 'Let's see, I can make cracks about my stupid chicken legs in the dumb hospital gown...make fun of my needle phobia, or maybe not because then they won't realize I'm serious when I'm freaking out about the ridiculous things. Who am I kidding? There's no way I'm gonna be able to fool those two into thinking I'm not scared out of my mind.'
Deciding that the guitar still gripped firmly in his hands was far too tempting, and that thinking about his nerves was probably not the best idea when his stomach didn't like planes in the first place, Lance flipped the amp on and relished in the faint humming noise it made. 'Hope Logan can fly with music.'
~*~*~*~*~*~
Lance groaned in protest at whatever was trying to wake him from his peaceful sleep. He had grown quite accustomed to a good night's rest since Hank had been giving him sleeping pills, and he was keenly aware that it was much too early to be waking up. Sleep sounded far more enjoyable then the previous day; it had been incredibly boring. He'd been forced to endure hours of listening to medical jargon while trying to overcome his ever present airsickness. He'd held himself together on the flight but the instant they arrived at the clinic he'd expelled everything he'd eaten in the past few hours. He knew however, that yesterday was going to be a picnic compared to today.
He cracked open an eyelid and then blinked a few times when he realized there were several sets of eyes staring down at him.
"Yeesh," he mumbled, pulling the sheet up over his head, blocking his friends' view, "Back off will ya?"
"Come along now Mr. Alvers, rise and shine!" came an overly cheerful voice.
"Eh?" Lance groggily pulled the covers away from his face and glanced around to find the source of the obnoxious sound.
A nurse beamed down at him and shoved a thermometer under his tongue somewhat forcefully.
"Alright you kids, this is as far as you go; family only from here on out. I know you flew out here early to see him but we really need to get started," the nurse explained, still with the same tone usually related to a kindergarten teacher on the first day of school.
The X-Men sighed and gave Lance a few weak smiles. The professor had warned them that there wouldn't be much they could do once the nurses began getting Lance ready for surgery, but it was still rather annoying to make the trip up here only to be told to leave a few hours later by a nurse who sounded like she was on a permanent sugar high.
The nurse began to shoo the group of mutant teens out of the small room but stopped short at the sight of Todd and Pietro standing defiantly next to Lance, completely ignoring her orders to clear out.
"Um, I'm sorry boys, but that includes you too."
Pietro arched an eyebrow at the nurse and didn't move. "We're family," he said simply.
The nurse frowned and started to shake her head. "Now, I know you may be close, but the rules are..."
"The- rules- are- family- can- stay- with- him- and- so- we're- staying," Pietro said stubbornly, "You don't seriously expect us to let him stay back here alone do you?"
Clearly exasperated, the nurse blinked at Pietro's hyper speech for a moment and struggled to keep her voice cheerful, "Listen young man, maybe an adult could be permitted to stay with him, but as for two extra teenage bodies..."
"It's alright Marissa," came Hank's voice as he appeared in the doorway. Although he would not be the one performing the surgery, he had offered to assist Elenore.
"Dr. McCoy?" she asked timidly.
Hank put a hand on the young nurse's shoulder and smiled down at her. "This isn't like the hospital. Some exceptions can be made here. You won't lose your job over it, I promise."
Lance made a mental note to send Hank the biggest thank you letter of his life when all this was over. Actually, it would probably be the first thank you letter of his life, but all the same. He had literally felt his blood freeze when the nurse told Pietro and Todd they couldn't remain with him. He knew there wasn't much they would be able to do, but the company would make things a lot less nerve racking.
The nurse sighed and turned back to the remaining students, "Come on now, there's no way all of you are staying, go on."
Kitty sniffled slightly and gripped Kurt's hand as she waved a goodbye at Lance.
"Aww come on Kihy, don' do dat," He groaned, still pressing his tongue over the thermometer.
Kitty hastily wiped at her eyes while Kurt gently steered the brunette out the door, sending Lance a nod as he did.
When the door finally clicked shut behind Rogue and Sam, Lance sank back into his pillow and rolled his eyes.
"What the heck was she crying for?" Lance asked as the nurse removed the thermometer and wrote something down on a note pad.
Todd shrugged while Pietro twisted his torso in an attempt to crack his back.
Lance raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously. "You guys didn't go back with the others for the night like I told you to?" he surmised, annoyed.
Pietro shrugged, "Course not. I slept in that chair and Todd took the counter. It wasn't covered in all that stuff at the time though so don't panic. We weren't just gonna leave you here."
Lance turned his head toward the small counter top a few feet from the rolling hospital bed. 'Don't look, don't look, don't look...damn. Needles.' Cringing, Lance forced himself to turn his head away from the counter.
"Ok Mr. Alvers, you'll need to change into this and then Dr McCoy over here is going to play tic-tac-toe on your scalp," the nurse said.
Lance smirked as Pietro gave the overly excited nurse his 'are you for real?' look, behind her back. He had to admit, the lady's tone was really getting irritating.
"May I ask what the heck you mean by 'tic-tac-toe?'" Lance asked curiously.
"We've got to shave your head again," Hank explained for the nurse, having also witnessed Pietro's mockery of the young woman, "and then Elenore and I need to draw out a bunch of incision marks and..."
"Uh, that's enough information thanks," Lance interrupted. He didn't want to hear any more about incisions. "You guys are gonna have the greatest time making fun of me in this crazy gown aren't you," he asked Todd and Pietro lightly.
Pietro sighed and rolled his eyes, "Lance, shut up and stop before you start ok? We're scared, you're scared– don't try to fake anything."
"Seriously yo, It's bad enough you gotta do this at all. Let us be the strong ones for once and stop trying to play the hero."
Lance smirked and lowered his head, "Force of habit."
"Well stop it would ya. It's making me more nervous. Pietro and I will take care of lightening the mood. Be normal and admit you're stressed out for once yo."
Lance snorted and swung his legs over the side of his bed. "Stressed? More like terrified."
"Now that's more like it." Todd said, satisfied.
Lance sighed mentally and gave up on the nerves of steel act and concentrated on ignoring the fact that his stomach was ready to scream in protest of the worrying. He hadn't eaten anything in hours, so it would do him little good to throw up at this point anyway.
As soon as the two doctors had finished using Lance's scalp as a coloring book, a significantly larger coloring book than before, Lance noted when he ran a hand over the bald spot, the nurse returned and began to tape Lance's arm to a board.
"Uh, can I ask what the purpose in this is?" Lance asked curiously.
The nurse grinned broadly at the brunette and continued to secure his arm in place, "It's so you don't move your arm around when we insert the IV sweety."
Lance paled and forced himself to swallow. "You mean IV as in the big long needle that has to stay in my arm?"
"That's the one," she answered brightly, turning to face him with the IV needle in hand.
Todd and Pietro looked up in surprise as Lance actually whimpered at the sight of the narrow instrument. He instinctively jerked his arm away, board and all, as the nurse approached him.
"Wow, you really *are* afraid of those yo," Todd breathed, somewhat amazed.
"I *told* you I was," Lance whined, "I was already creeped out by 'em when I was little, but living on the streets for awhile, you really learn to fear the things. Weirdos always trying to do strange things with 'em and stuff. It's really disturbing," he shuddered involuntarily and eyed the IV leerily.
"Pish posh, pish posh. You have nothing to fear sweetheart," the nurse chirped.
Pietro made yet another disgusted face at the nurse's back. "Can't you do something about her?" he mouthed silently to Hank, who had glanced up from his clipboard to see what Lance was whining about.
Hank tried to hide his smirk as he rose an eyebrow at Pietro. "Marissa, why don't you take your break early? I'll take care of Lance."
A nervous expression crossed the young woman's face. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No, no, nothing like that. I know these boys, that's all."
"Well...ok then. Just let me know the instant you need me," she placed the IV equipment next to the tiny sink and exited the room timidly.
"*Jeez!* What is that woman's problem?" Pietro gasped, "I thought I was gonna go nuts if I had to endure two more seconds of her happiness!"
Hank shook his head and grinned. "She's new here and slightly... over eager. She used to work in a children's hospital," Hank explained, "So you're afraid of needles, Lance 'Avalanche' Alvers?" Lance scowled at Hank who put his arms up defensively, "Hey, trust me, it's a common thing. A few of the kids back at the mansion feel the same way. Now, you are going to need to keep your arm very still alright?" Hank instructed, preparing the IV needle.
"Guys, don't let me watch, I don't trust myself not to freak out," Lance asked, unsuccessfully trying to act casual.
Pietro and Todd immediately went to the other side of Lance's bed so that he could face them rather than Hank.
"It's just like a shot, right yo? How bad could it be?" Todd said shrugging.
Hank bit his tongue. Now was probably not the best time to mention that IV insertions were not as friendly as your average shot. He glanced up at the three boys and furrowed his brow. He wasn't sure who looked worse, the one about to go into surgery, or the two that had to wait it out.
Lance swallowed hard. "Don't tell me when you're gonna do it ok man? Maybe it won't be so bad if...$*#%...!!!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
Pietro sank into his chair as though every bone in his body has suddenly melted into goo as the door clicked shut behind Drs. Elenore and Hank, and Lance's cot. Todd stood numbly in the center of the room, shaking.
"Pietro, I'm gonna be sick yo."
Pietro stared blankly at his feet and nodded. "Go ahead."
Todd continued to stand in the center of the room for a few moments before abruptly turning towards the sink and vomiting what little he had consumed in the last few hours into the steel basin.
Needing to feel somewhat useful, Pietro zipped down the hall and returned with a glass of water. He handed it to Todd who thankfully drank it in slow sips.
"Sorry, I don't really know what to do when someone pukes," Pietro said, trying to lift some of the heavy atmosphere in the room.
Todd shook his head and sat down on the bland tile floor. "I think you're supposed to hold the person's hair back or something weird like that," he joked, "Actually," he added after a pause, his face twisting with concentration, "I think maybe my...heh, yeah right."
"What?" Pietro pressed.
"Nuthin yo, I was just going all delusional again."
Pietro tilted his head and looked over at Todd in confusion, "Uh, how would you know if you were delusional? I don't get."
Todd sighed and dropped his shoulders. "Me neither. Weird stuff triggers a memory, and somehow I can tell when it's a fake one now. I don't know why I suddenly know the difference yo. That part don't make any sense but I'm assuming it has something to do with how the prof sorted out what was real and what was fake. Anyway, if I fight it enough, then I can just ignore it and not deal with it."
"And that's what you just did; came across a memory you knew was fake and ignored it?"
"Yep, pretty much," Todd said shrugging.
Pietro frowned and took a seat on the floor next to Todd, "Well you might as well just remember it and get it over with. You're all worked up about Lance as it is, so you may as well do it all at once," he paused and studied Todd's face carefully for a second, "They're really that bad huh?"
Todd closed his eyes and nodded, "They just keep getting worse. It's like this huge build up to something really, really, bad; I just know it. The stuff that I've remembered so far isn't exactly life altering, so if those ones are so bad, I really don't want to know what set off the whole thing in the first place. I never tell you and Lance about 'em 'cuz it's hard enough reliving it all to baldy yo. You know he makes me say everything out loud even though he already knows what I'm thinking? I mean, I guess his reasoning makes sense, but yeesh."
Pietro sighed and pulled his knees up to his chest, trying not to become fidgety. "Well if you want, you can just relive this one to me instead of the proff."
Figuring that it had to happen eventually, Todd let himself slip back inside his own memory. It was another one of the odd and unclear ones. Todd was guessing that he had been about eight years old at the time and to his horror, he realized he was back at his old house.
"Todd! Get your ass out of the bathroom and get me some cash! You lazy boy, go!"
Flinching, Todd snapped his eyes open again.
"Todd?"
The younger boy remained mute, scowling at the wall. Suddenly, he pulled his fist back and pounded it against the cabinet door.
Pietro raised his eyebrows in surprise and grabbed hold of Todd's elbow before he could pull back and strike the wood again.
"What is it?" Pietro asked nervously. He had actually been preparing himself for a tear-fest not an 'I'm mad at the world' moment.
Todd shook his head and shifted his position in frustration. "Why do I have to want her to love me!"
Pietro blinked a few times. "I hope you plan to elaborate on that."
"My mom yo. She's a freakin...freakin...uhg, I don't even know! You really wanna know what I just remembered?" Todd's eyes were blazing with hurt and anger as he turned to face Pietro directly.
"Hey trust me, if anyone can relate to screwed up parents, it's me."
"I'm eight years old yo, EIGHT! And she's screaming at me to get out of the house and go steal some cash," he paused and closed his eyes.
Pietro waited, unsure wether telling Todd to go ahead and let himself remember this was a good idea or not.
"She wanted the money for drugs yo, but I was sick. Real sick; some kind of stomach virus or something. So she comes into the bathroom, grabs a handful of my hair, and tells me to get out and get her some money," a cold and bitter laugh escaped him as he put his head in his hands, "Wanna know the worst part yo? I replaced that crappy memory with one of her holding my hair back for me while I was puking," his voice became weaker with every word and he clamped his hands tighter around his head.
Pietro sat in silence and wondered what on earth he was supposed to say. He had already established that he was the world's worst comforter so he just started spouting the first thing that came to his mind.
"So uh, one time, Mr. Maximoff made me go to basketball practice when I had the flu. See he had this thing for over achieving. Lucky for me, Evan's mom dropped him off late and so she saw me on the court with the rest of the guys, ready to pass out, and insisted on taking me home and that the Maximoff's must not have realized how sick I was. So I'm too sick to really care, plus my fever is so bad I can't really think straight, and she takes me home. Sounds like an ok ending doesn't it?"
Todd looked up at Pietro with curiosity, the searing look of anger ebbing away slowly from his face, "But it didn't end there?"
Pietro shook his head, "Course not. They acted all understanding when I came back, cuz they didn't want to look bad in front the neighbors now did they? But at two in the morning, while I still had a fever, Mr. Maximoff woke me up and forced me to practice with him for two hours without any water breaks. He told me I had to toughen up, learn to deal with pain."
Todd opened his mouth slightly but no words came out.
"And the conclusion of this happy tale– I passed out and then went to school the next morning. Passed out a few times there too, but Evan kept any of the teachers from noticing so that they wouldn't try and send me home. I went to his house after school and slept the rest of the day."
"Yeesh."
"Yup," Pietro kept his tone indifferent, but every word pained him. The Maximoff's hadn't been *that* bad *all* the time, but the moments that they had been were terrifying.
"So, is that why you're obsessed with perfection?"
Pietro pulled back slightly. The thought had never occurred to him before, "Uh, maybe. I figured out from Hank that my perfection act is a defensive thing I do. I'm all insecure ya know?" He laughed and rolled his eyes. "Man listen to us. Lance would be so proud of us for working on our 'issues' while he was in surgery instead of worrying about him."
Todd laughed too, although neither one of the boys was really sure what was so funny. It was a release of nervousness and stress more than anything else. Weeks, months even, of built up anxiety just came pouring out and before they knew it, they were both roaring with laughter and unable to stop.
"Pietro, what the hell are we laughing at yo?"
Pietro sucked in some air and shrugged, "No idea," he responded, still laughing.
"I think we're losing it," he cut his laughter short and frowned, "Never mind, we already lost it."
"Yeah," Pietro said sighing, "We can just blame it on our psycho parents though. Heck, one of mine is even bent on ruling the world."
Todd snorted again. "Come on yo, the X-Men are probably wondering why we've been in here so long. Time to be tough."
Pietro sighed and dramatically sprawled himself across the floor, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead. "Oh, must we?!" he moaned.
Todd seemed to consider the idea for a minute then shrugged. "Actually, no. They can wait."
Pietro laughed again and dropped his little act. "Wanna know something crazy? I..." he trailed off and hesitated slightly.
"Go ahead and say it... Cuz I do too."
"I uh, I actually *like* living with the X-Men. Well, most of them."
Todd nodded. "Yeah, it's strange yo. I mean, it's not like the boarding house back in the good old days, but still."
Pietro tilted his head in thought, "I miss those days though. There's something oddly satisfying about repairing a roof yourself."
Todd cringed, but smiled all the same, "I really don't think it should have taken all day to patch one little spot though, especially with three of us working on it!"
Pietro sighed. "Yeah but it was still kind of fun...sorta."
Todd rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah, Fred trying to call out instructions from the ground, you constantly running from one end of the roof to another to show off– ruining more shingles in the process, Lance getting frustrated and almost shaking us all off, and Wanda trying to hex me from the lawn for patching the holes with slime. It was a blast yo," he said sarcastically.
Pietro grinned. He knew that Todd missed those days, no matter how stressful, as much as he did. That time period had been one of the best for all of them.
"So you ready?" Pietro asked.
"Yeah, I'll bet Sam's bored out of his mind yo. He really doesn't know the older X-Men that well."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Todd and Pietro stood rooted in the doorway of the recovery room, terrified expressions across both of their faces.
"Relax," Hank said, almost laughing, "Didn't you hear Elenore? Everything went great, he's going to be fine."
"Yeah but, then why does he look so, so terrible," Pietro managed, leaning on the door frame for support.
"He just came out of surgery yo, I don't think you'd look too healthy either."
Hank nodded and smiled at Pietro as the color drained from the speedster's face. He let out a heavy sigh and shook his head.
"If- I- have- to- endure- another- wait- like- that- as- long- as- I- live- I- may- seriously- die.- I- already- don't- do- the- whole-waiting- thing- well- and- add- stress- to- the- mix- and- it's- almost- unbearable.- I- think..." Pietro stopped abruptly as Lance moved slightly.
The brunette's head was heavily bandaged and there was an odd assortment of wires and tubing surrounding him. It was a wonder the nurses and doctors could tell where one began and another one started.
"The reason I didn't have all of the kids who were waiting come back to see him yet is because I have a feeling he may not want them to see him like this. He's going to be incredibly out of it, and in a lot of pain. It wouldn't surprise me if he gets sick either," Hank explained.
"He's ok though... right yo?" Todd asked for the hundredth time, "He's gonna recover and be totally fine?"
Hank nodded, "As long as he takes things slow, he'll make a full recovery. Mind you, it will probably be a long process."
"And the process bites," Todd said under his breath.
"What?"
"Nuthin."
Todd and Pietro looked up suddenly as a faint moan came from the cot. The two walked carefully to the side of the bed and looked down at Lance.
"Jeez, he's whiter than me," Pietro muttered.
Lance slowly cracked one eyelid open and promptly closed it again, "Wh-where..." Unable to get a sentence out, Lance opted to moan instead.
"Hey you're up," Pietro stated lamely.
"Yeah, how ya feeling yo?"
Lance responded with yet another groan and continued to keep his eyes closed.
"That good huh? Well listen, McCoy said everything went really good," Pietro said quietly. "I'm telling you Lance, this whole thing has been up to scale with Wanda on the warpath as far as scary goes."
Lance slowly and painfully opened his eyes, wishing that someone would turn the lights out. He ached everywhere, which he didn't think made much sense considering the surgery had been done to his head, but he still felt like a truck had hit him. His neck and shoulders, he decided, were the worst.
His tongue lolled around in his mouth uselessly, making talking even more difficult, but he made an attempt none the less, "The oth- others?" he choked out.
"In the waiting room yo."
"Good," he mumbled, then winced as a wave of nausea washed over him.
"Lance?"
Lance twisted himself around slightly, gasping in pain as he did, and propped himself up on his elbow. Hank seemed to be the only one aware of what was going on, and set a steel basin next to Lance. Lance waited as another wave of nausea hit him and he retched, rather unsuccessfully from the lack of food and liquid in his system.
He shook slightly as he wiped his mouth and attempted to catch his breath, "Ow, ow, ow, ow," he half whimpered half moaned.
Feeling extremely antsy and awkward just standing there watching, Pietro came around to the other side of Lance and began to massage his shoulders as he got his breathing under control again. Thankful for the comfort, Lance closed his eyes and let Pietro attempt to ease the ache along his shoulders.
"Am I shupposed to fe-el thissick?" he slurred.
"Don't worry, it won't last too long," Hank assured him.
Todd stood awkwardly with his hands shoved in his pockets, wishing he could think of something helpful to do other than just gawk at Lance. As Lance began to heave into the basin once again, Todd timidly came over to him, pulled the strands of hair that weren't caught up in the bandage off of Lance's neck, and held his hair back for him.
[1] I know, I know, a sparkly blue guitar sounds kinda dumb, but I saw one once...and I'm telling you, it was the most gorgeous guitar I've ever seen...actually it was a bass, but same concept lol ..and it didn't look at all girly either if that's what you're thinking.
AN: Ok, I'm so sorry if I disappointed anyone who was expecting Lance to like keel over or something...cuz I did think about that lol, but I love him too much. Also, it may seem rather odd that someone can have a brain tumor removed and it be all la dee da now he'll recover. But I did a little (um, very little, but still) research and I found out that with a benign brain tumor, it *can* be as simple as removing the mass. It's still a lot more dangerous than ur average surgery, and they can be fatal depending on where they are. The point is, Lance is gonna be stuck in the mansion and in bed for a loooong time...and considering the action is going to pick up a bit...it's going to be cause for some major frustration. Oh yeah...sorry if it was a bit *too* fluffy...but I couldn't resisit.
Review Responses-
KS-Fan- First, this chapter could not have been written w/o u my dear lol. Second, It's blue :) I'd be kinda surprised if a lot of ppl didn't figure out what it was... but ya lol. Anyway, thanks tons for all your help...I always go write like right after I read ur reviews for some reason lol
RogueFanKC- Yep... Magneto shows up very, very soon.
Storm Pietro- Ya I know, I love break down scenes too...weird huh?
Yma- I'm a bit frustrated with Pietro at the moment, cuz I know what I *want* to do with him...it's just getting him there that is causing problems lol. He's just all angry and explosive...so it's hard to just like explain him all in one scene ya know? Like Todd, it's easy...memory blocks cuz of something bad– and even tho u don't know the bad yet, it's just a lot simpler. I'll find a way tho...
Incrediblecuznz- Hehe, Actually... I've never played a gamecube. It was just the first thing that came to me. I miss Super Nintendo. Anyway...thanks for reminding me...I do *NOT* take credit for the X-Box joke...but I can't for the life of me remember who does...I read it somewhere and ya. Also, I figured if I wasn't gonna make Pietro lose his head completely...I may as well make him a little frantic :)
MiracleChick- Pietro strikes me as the hissy fit type lol. I'm glad you liked the Hank dialogue...I like that scene actually hehe. Also, a few ppl have told me I write a great proff X...and the strange thing is, I think he's one of the easiest characters to write. The boys... wow they're hard lol. But thank u :) I appreciate it
JKJ- I was wondering where u were! Yep, when Magneto gets here I intend to milk the Pietro angst for all it's worth lol. I think that's how I'm going to develop what it is that makes him so...sad/messed up.
IceBlueRose- Aww it's ok...don't cry hehe. Thanks for the compliment about the humor mixing up the tenseness... I find it really hard to do.
Lunacat- Yay, the slow character developments arent annoying! That's encouraging...cuz personally I think its too un realistic to just instantly have them develop over night. Thanks :)
Chapter 14- Surgery
Lance stared up at the X-Jet's loading platform with disdain. Not only was he about to go through brain surgery, but he had to use the one form of travel he absolutely despised to get there. 'Maybe I'll just black out on the plane and I won't have to deal with watching them use all those needles.'
The professor wheeled behind him and reached a hand up to pat him comfortingly on the back. "Don't worry. We'll be driving you home. It's just more convenient to take the jet with the other kids being toted back and forth. Besides," he added with a slight grin, "Logan is a slightly more experienced pilot than Bobby."
Lance nodded, his jaw firmly set. He would rather just get the whole trip over with. He knew that the second he walked on the plane all the kids that insisted on accompanying him to the clinic where his surgery would be performed would be attempting everything in their power to lighten the mood and pretend things weren't tense. He appreciated the sentiment, but all the same, it had the potential to be a very obnoxious ride.
"Hey Lance! Get your butt up here vould you? We've got somesing for you," Kurt's voice traveled down the Jet's loading ramp.
Lance gave the professor a quizzical look and the old man tilted his head toward the plane with a knowing smile. Taking a deep breath, Lance shifted his bag to his other shoulder and trudged up the ramp. He froze the instant his feet entered the hull and his bag slipped off his now sagging shoulders. He caught it before it hit the ground by mere reflexes.
Sitting in the center aisle of the plane's passenger seats was a small amp, complete with a stunningly blue guitar propped up next to it. The six strings were already strung tightly above the frets, waiting for someone to pick up the sparkling instrument and let loose. [1]
Lance forced himself to close his mouth when he realized how ridiculous he must look ogling over a guitar. He raised his free hand numbly and pointed at the objects in front of him.
"Is that..."
"Yours?" Kitty interrupted, "Yes."
Lance continued to stare while keeping his mouth closed with great effort, "How..."
"Us," Rogue answered simply, "We'll get ya a bigger amp for Christmas."
Evan suddenly burst into laughter and nudged Pietro. "Ok you win, the crazy thing *did* make him speechless."
Lance's face broke into a crooked grin and he shook his head in defeat, snapping out of his daze. "Alright, so I'm slightly guitar obsessed, sue me."
He stashed his bag at the back of the jet and gingerly picked up the guitar and began to examine every square inch of it.
"We figured you'd need something ta occupy yourself with while ya recover," Rogue explained, "So we all pitched in."
Lance looked up from his intense study of his new instrument and smiled. "Seriously, thanks. This the second time you X-Geeks have shocked me into speechlessness."
The surrounding students groaned and all at once stated, "X-*Men!*"
Lance shrugged and flopped into the back seat, pulling the guitar strap over his head, "Same difference."
For a split second, Lance almost forgot that he was on the jet that was taking him to some underground mutant clinic on the other side of the city to have his head sliced opened. He flinched mentally and took a good look at the other passengers for the first time.
Kurt and Kitty were seated next to each other, Kurt gently wrapping his tail around Kitty's wrist while talking softly into her ear. Lance looked away quickly but then realized that Kurt's whispering was because Kitty looked absolutely petrified and the teleporting teenager was just trying to put her at ease. His eyes drifted to Evan and Rogue, both of whom had headphones on with the volume up way too loud. Rogue's heavy metal was not mixing well with Evan's Red Hot Chili Peppers cd, and Lance decided that the sooner he started playing and drowning the two out, the better. In the seat across the aisle from him, Pietro was fidgeting worse than usual. He kept alternating between drumming his fingers, tapping his foot, adjusting his sitting position, and rubbing the back of his neck. Todd was at the window in front of Lance, his green skin tone more noticeable than usual. Sam had come too, for Todd's benefit Lance assumed, considering he hadn't talked to Sam much since his whole X-Men trail run a year ago.
In his head, he began to make a list of things to say to keep Todd and Pietro at ease before he was wheeled into the OR. He knew the two of them would throw an outright fit if they weren't aloud to stay with him throughout the prepping and waiting. 'Let's see, I can make cracks about my stupid chicken legs in the dumb hospital gown...make fun of my needle phobia, or maybe not because then they won't realize I'm serious when I'm freaking out about the ridiculous things. Who am I kidding? There's no way I'm gonna be able to fool those two into thinking I'm not scared out of my mind.'
Deciding that the guitar still gripped firmly in his hands was far too tempting, and that thinking about his nerves was probably not the best idea when his stomach didn't like planes in the first place, Lance flipped the amp on and relished in the faint humming noise it made. 'Hope Logan can fly with music.'
~*~*~*~*~*~
Lance groaned in protest at whatever was trying to wake him from his peaceful sleep. He had grown quite accustomed to a good night's rest since Hank had been giving him sleeping pills, and he was keenly aware that it was much too early to be waking up. Sleep sounded far more enjoyable then the previous day; it had been incredibly boring. He'd been forced to endure hours of listening to medical jargon while trying to overcome his ever present airsickness. He'd held himself together on the flight but the instant they arrived at the clinic he'd expelled everything he'd eaten in the past few hours. He knew however, that yesterday was going to be a picnic compared to today.
He cracked open an eyelid and then blinked a few times when he realized there were several sets of eyes staring down at him.
"Yeesh," he mumbled, pulling the sheet up over his head, blocking his friends' view, "Back off will ya?"
"Come along now Mr. Alvers, rise and shine!" came an overly cheerful voice.
"Eh?" Lance groggily pulled the covers away from his face and glanced around to find the source of the obnoxious sound.
A nurse beamed down at him and shoved a thermometer under his tongue somewhat forcefully.
"Alright you kids, this is as far as you go; family only from here on out. I know you flew out here early to see him but we really need to get started," the nurse explained, still with the same tone usually related to a kindergarten teacher on the first day of school.
The X-Men sighed and gave Lance a few weak smiles. The professor had warned them that there wouldn't be much they could do once the nurses began getting Lance ready for surgery, but it was still rather annoying to make the trip up here only to be told to leave a few hours later by a nurse who sounded like she was on a permanent sugar high.
The nurse began to shoo the group of mutant teens out of the small room but stopped short at the sight of Todd and Pietro standing defiantly next to Lance, completely ignoring her orders to clear out.
"Um, I'm sorry boys, but that includes you too."
Pietro arched an eyebrow at the nurse and didn't move. "We're family," he said simply.
The nurse frowned and started to shake her head. "Now, I know you may be close, but the rules are..."
"The- rules- are- family- can- stay- with- him- and- so- we're- staying," Pietro said stubbornly, "You don't seriously expect us to let him stay back here alone do you?"
Clearly exasperated, the nurse blinked at Pietro's hyper speech for a moment and struggled to keep her voice cheerful, "Listen young man, maybe an adult could be permitted to stay with him, but as for two extra teenage bodies..."
"It's alright Marissa," came Hank's voice as he appeared in the doorway. Although he would not be the one performing the surgery, he had offered to assist Elenore.
"Dr. McCoy?" she asked timidly.
Hank put a hand on the young nurse's shoulder and smiled down at her. "This isn't like the hospital. Some exceptions can be made here. You won't lose your job over it, I promise."
Lance made a mental note to send Hank the biggest thank you letter of his life when all this was over. Actually, it would probably be the first thank you letter of his life, but all the same. He had literally felt his blood freeze when the nurse told Pietro and Todd they couldn't remain with him. He knew there wasn't much they would be able to do, but the company would make things a lot less nerve racking.
The nurse sighed and turned back to the remaining students, "Come on now, there's no way all of you are staying, go on."
Kitty sniffled slightly and gripped Kurt's hand as she waved a goodbye at Lance.
"Aww come on Kihy, don' do dat," He groaned, still pressing his tongue over the thermometer.
Kitty hastily wiped at her eyes while Kurt gently steered the brunette out the door, sending Lance a nod as he did.
When the door finally clicked shut behind Rogue and Sam, Lance sank back into his pillow and rolled his eyes.
"What the heck was she crying for?" Lance asked as the nurse removed the thermometer and wrote something down on a note pad.
Todd shrugged while Pietro twisted his torso in an attempt to crack his back.
Lance raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously. "You guys didn't go back with the others for the night like I told you to?" he surmised, annoyed.
Pietro shrugged, "Course not. I slept in that chair and Todd took the counter. It wasn't covered in all that stuff at the time though so don't panic. We weren't just gonna leave you here."
Lance turned his head toward the small counter top a few feet from the rolling hospital bed. 'Don't look, don't look, don't look...damn. Needles.' Cringing, Lance forced himself to turn his head away from the counter.
"Ok Mr. Alvers, you'll need to change into this and then Dr McCoy over here is going to play tic-tac-toe on your scalp," the nurse said.
Lance smirked as Pietro gave the overly excited nurse his 'are you for real?' look, behind her back. He had to admit, the lady's tone was really getting irritating.
"May I ask what the heck you mean by 'tic-tac-toe?'" Lance asked curiously.
"We've got to shave your head again," Hank explained for the nurse, having also witnessed Pietro's mockery of the young woman, "and then Elenore and I need to draw out a bunch of incision marks and..."
"Uh, that's enough information thanks," Lance interrupted. He didn't want to hear any more about incisions. "You guys are gonna have the greatest time making fun of me in this crazy gown aren't you," he asked Todd and Pietro lightly.
Pietro sighed and rolled his eyes, "Lance, shut up and stop before you start ok? We're scared, you're scared– don't try to fake anything."
"Seriously yo, It's bad enough you gotta do this at all. Let us be the strong ones for once and stop trying to play the hero."
Lance smirked and lowered his head, "Force of habit."
"Well stop it would ya. It's making me more nervous. Pietro and I will take care of lightening the mood. Be normal and admit you're stressed out for once yo."
Lance snorted and swung his legs over the side of his bed. "Stressed? More like terrified."
"Now that's more like it." Todd said, satisfied.
Lance sighed mentally and gave up on the nerves of steel act and concentrated on ignoring the fact that his stomach was ready to scream in protest of the worrying. He hadn't eaten anything in hours, so it would do him little good to throw up at this point anyway.
As soon as the two doctors had finished using Lance's scalp as a coloring book, a significantly larger coloring book than before, Lance noted when he ran a hand over the bald spot, the nurse returned and began to tape Lance's arm to a board.
"Uh, can I ask what the purpose in this is?" Lance asked curiously.
The nurse grinned broadly at the brunette and continued to secure his arm in place, "It's so you don't move your arm around when we insert the IV sweety."
Lance paled and forced himself to swallow. "You mean IV as in the big long needle that has to stay in my arm?"
"That's the one," she answered brightly, turning to face him with the IV needle in hand.
Todd and Pietro looked up in surprise as Lance actually whimpered at the sight of the narrow instrument. He instinctively jerked his arm away, board and all, as the nurse approached him.
"Wow, you really *are* afraid of those yo," Todd breathed, somewhat amazed.
"I *told* you I was," Lance whined, "I was already creeped out by 'em when I was little, but living on the streets for awhile, you really learn to fear the things. Weirdos always trying to do strange things with 'em and stuff. It's really disturbing," he shuddered involuntarily and eyed the IV leerily.
"Pish posh, pish posh. You have nothing to fear sweetheart," the nurse chirped.
Pietro made yet another disgusted face at the nurse's back. "Can't you do something about her?" he mouthed silently to Hank, who had glanced up from his clipboard to see what Lance was whining about.
Hank tried to hide his smirk as he rose an eyebrow at Pietro. "Marissa, why don't you take your break early? I'll take care of Lance."
A nervous expression crossed the young woman's face. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No, no, nothing like that. I know these boys, that's all."
"Well...ok then. Just let me know the instant you need me," she placed the IV equipment next to the tiny sink and exited the room timidly.
"*Jeez!* What is that woman's problem?" Pietro gasped, "I thought I was gonna go nuts if I had to endure two more seconds of her happiness!"
Hank shook his head and grinned. "She's new here and slightly... over eager. She used to work in a children's hospital," Hank explained, "So you're afraid of needles, Lance 'Avalanche' Alvers?" Lance scowled at Hank who put his arms up defensively, "Hey, trust me, it's a common thing. A few of the kids back at the mansion feel the same way. Now, you are going to need to keep your arm very still alright?" Hank instructed, preparing the IV needle.
"Guys, don't let me watch, I don't trust myself not to freak out," Lance asked, unsuccessfully trying to act casual.
Pietro and Todd immediately went to the other side of Lance's bed so that he could face them rather than Hank.
"It's just like a shot, right yo? How bad could it be?" Todd said shrugging.
Hank bit his tongue. Now was probably not the best time to mention that IV insertions were not as friendly as your average shot. He glanced up at the three boys and furrowed his brow. He wasn't sure who looked worse, the one about to go into surgery, or the two that had to wait it out.
Lance swallowed hard. "Don't tell me when you're gonna do it ok man? Maybe it won't be so bad if...$*#%...!!!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
Pietro sank into his chair as though every bone in his body has suddenly melted into goo as the door clicked shut behind Drs. Elenore and Hank, and Lance's cot. Todd stood numbly in the center of the room, shaking.
"Pietro, I'm gonna be sick yo."
Pietro stared blankly at his feet and nodded. "Go ahead."
Todd continued to stand in the center of the room for a few moments before abruptly turning towards the sink and vomiting what little he had consumed in the last few hours into the steel basin.
Needing to feel somewhat useful, Pietro zipped down the hall and returned with a glass of water. He handed it to Todd who thankfully drank it in slow sips.
"Sorry, I don't really know what to do when someone pukes," Pietro said, trying to lift some of the heavy atmosphere in the room.
Todd shook his head and sat down on the bland tile floor. "I think you're supposed to hold the person's hair back or something weird like that," he joked, "Actually," he added after a pause, his face twisting with concentration, "I think maybe my...heh, yeah right."
"What?" Pietro pressed.
"Nuthin yo, I was just going all delusional again."
Pietro tilted his head and looked over at Todd in confusion, "Uh, how would you know if you were delusional? I don't get."
Todd sighed and dropped his shoulders. "Me neither. Weird stuff triggers a memory, and somehow I can tell when it's a fake one now. I don't know why I suddenly know the difference yo. That part don't make any sense but I'm assuming it has something to do with how the prof sorted out what was real and what was fake. Anyway, if I fight it enough, then I can just ignore it and not deal with it."
"And that's what you just did; came across a memory you knew was fake and ignored it?"
"Yep, pretty much," Todd said shrugging.
Pietro frowned and took a seat on the floor next to Todd, "Well you might as well just remember it and get it over with. You're all worked up about Lance as it is, so you may as well do it all at once," he paused and studied Todd's face carefully for a second, "They're really that bad huh?"
Todd closed his eyes and nodded, "They just keep getting worse. It's like this huge build up to something really, really, bad; I just know it. The stuff that I've remembered so far isn't exactly life altering, so if those ones are so bad, I really don't want to know what set off the whole thing in the first place. I never tell you and Lance about 'em 'cuz it's hard enough reliving it all to baldy yo. You know he makes me say everything out loud even though he already knows what I'm thinking? I mean, I guess his reasoning makes sense, but yeesh."
Pietro sighed and pulled his knees up to his chest, trying not to become fidgety. "Well if you want, you can just relive this one to me instead of the proff."
Figuring that it had to happen eventually, Todd let himself slip back inside his own memory. It was another one of the odd and unclear ones. Todd was guessing that he had been about eight years old at the time and to his horror, he realized he was back at his old house.
"Todd! Get your ass out of the bathroom and get me some cash! You lazy boy, go!"
Flinching, Todd snapped his eyes open again.
"Todd?"
The younger boy remained mute, scowling at the wall. Suddenly, he pulled his fist back and pounded it against the cabinet door.
Pietro raised his eyebrows in surprise and grabbed hold of Todd's elbow before he could pull back and strike the wood again.
"What is it?" Pietro asked nervously. He had actually been preparing himself for a tear-fest not an 'I'm mad at the world' moment.
Todd shook his head and shifted his position in frustration. "Why do I have to want her to love me!"
Pietro blinked a few times. "I hope you plan to elaborate on that."
"My mom yo. She's a freakin...freakin...uhg, I don't even know! You really wanna know what I just remembered?" Todd's eyes were blazing with hurt and anger as he turned to face Pietro directly.
"Hey trust me, if anyone can relate to screwed up parents, it's me."
"I'm eight years old yo, EIGHT! And she's screaming at me to get out of the house and go steal some cash," he paused and closed his eyes.
Pietro waited, unsure wether telling Todd to go ahead and let himself remember this was a good idea or not.
"She wanted the money for drugs yo, but I was sick. Real sick; some kind of stomach virus or something. So she comes into the bathroom, grabs a handful of my hair, and tells me to get out and get her some money," a cold and bitter laugh escaped him as he put his head in his hands, "Wanna know the worst part yo? I replaced that crappy memory with one of her holding my hair back for me while I was puking," his voice became weaker with every word and he clamped his hands tighter around his head.
Pietro sat in silence and wondered what on earth he was supposed to say. He had already established that he was the world's worst comforter so he just started spouting the first thing that came to his mind.
"So uh, one time, Mr. Maximoff made me go to basketball practice when I had the flu. See he had this thing for over achieving. Lucky for me, Evan's mom dropped him off late and so she saw me on the court with the rest of the guys, ready to pass out, and insisted on taking me home and that the Maximoff's must not have realized how sick I was. So I'm too sick to really care, plus my fever is so bad I can't really think straight, and she takes me home. Sounds like an ok ending doesn't it?"
Todd looked up at Pietro with curiosity, the searing look of anger ebbing away slowly from his face, "But it didn't end there?"
Pietro shook his head, "Course not. They acted all understanding when I came back, cuz they didn't want to look bad in front the neighbors now did they? But at two in the morning, while I still had a fever, Mr. Maximoff woke me up and forced me to practice with him for two hours without any water breaks. He told me I had to toughen up, learn to deal with pain."
Todd opened his mouth slightly but no words came out.
"And the conclusion of this happy tale– I passed out and then went to school the next morning. Passed out a few times there too, but Evan kept any of the teachers from noticing so that they wouldn't try and send me home. I went to his house after school and slept the rest of the day."
"Yeesh."
"Yup," Pietro kept his tone indifferent, but every word pained him. The Maximoff's hadn't been *that* bad *all* the time, but the moments that they had been were terrifying.
"So, is that why you're obsessed with perfection?"
Pietro pulled back slightly. The thought had never occurred to him before, "Uh, maybe. I figured out from Hank that my perfection act is a defensive thing I do. I'm all insecure ya know?" He laughed and rolled his eyes. "Man listen to us. Lance would be so proud of us for working on our 'issues' while he was in surgery instead of worrying about him."
Todd laughed too, although neither one of the boys was really sure what was so funny. It was a release of nervousness and stress more than anything else. Weeks, months even, of built up anxiety just came pouring out and before they knew it, they were both roaring with laughter and unable to stop.
"Pietro, what the hell are we laughing at yo?"
Pietro sucked in some air and shrugged, "No idea," he responded, still laughing.
"I think we're losing it," he cut his laughter short and frowned, "Never mind, we already lost it."
"Yeah," Pietro said sighing, "We can just blame it on our psycho parents though. Heck, one of mine is even bent on ruling the world."
Todd snorted again. "Come on yo, the X-Men are probably wondering why we've been in here so long. Time to be tough."
Pietro sighed and dramatically sprawled himself across the floor, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead. "Oh, must we?!" he moaned.
Todd seemed to consider the idea for a minute then shrugged. "Actually, no. They can wait."
Pietro laughed again and dropped his little act. "Wanna know something crazy? I..." he trailed off and hesitated slightly.
"Go ahead and say it... Cuz I do too."
"I uh, I actually *like* living with the X-Men. Well, most of them."
Todd nodded. "Yeah, it's strange yo. I mean, it's not like the boarding house back in the good old days, but still."
Pietro tilted his head in thought, "I miss those days though. There's something oddly satisfying about repairing a roof yourself."
Todd cringed, but smiled all the same, "I really don't think it should have taken all day to patch one little spot though, especially with three of us working on it!"
Pietro sighed. "Yeah but it was still kind of fun...sorta."
Todd rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah, Fred trying to call out instructions from the ground, you constantly running from one end of the roof to another to show off– ruining more shingles in the process, Lance getting frustrated and almost shaking us all off, and Wanda trying to hex me from the lawn for patching the holes with slime. It was a blast yo," he said sarcastically.
Pietro grinned. He knew that Todd missed those days, no matter how stressful, as much as he did. That time period had been one of the best for all of them.
"So you ready?" Pietro asked.
"Yeah, I'll bet Sam's bored out of his mind yo. He really doesn't know the older X-Men that well."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Todd and Pietro stood rooted in the doorway of the recovery room, terrified expressions across both of their faces.
"Relax," Hank said, almost laughing, "Didn't you hear Elenore? Everything went great, he's going to be fine."
"Yeah but, then why does he look so, so terrible," Pietro managed, leaning on the door frame for support.
"He just came out of surgery yo, I don't think you'd look too healthy either."
Hank nodded and smiled at Pietro as the color drained from the speedster's face. He let out a heavy sigh and shook his head.
"If- I- have- to- endure- another- wait- like- that- as- long- as- I- live- I- may- seriously- die.- I- already- don't- do- the- whole-waiting- thing- well- and- add- stress- to- the- mix- and- it's- almost- unbearable.- I- think..." Pietro stopped abruptly as Lance moved slightly.
The brunette's head was heavily bandaged and there was an odd assortment of wires and tubing surrounding him. It was a wonder the nurses and doctors could tell where one began and another one started.
"The reason I didn't have all of the kids who were waiting come back to see him yet is because I have a feeling he may not want them to see him like this. He's going to be incredibly out of it, and in a lot of pain. It wouldn't surprise me if he gets sick either," Hank explained.
"He's ok though... right yo?" Todd asked for the hundredth time, "He's gonna recover and be totally fine?"
Hank nodded, "As long as he takes things slow, he'll make a full recovery. Mind you, it will probably be a long process."
"And the process bites," Todd said under his breath.
"What?"
"Nuthin."
Todd and Pietro looked up suddenly as a faint moan came from the cot. The two walked carefully to the side of the bed and looked down at Lance.
"Jeez, he's whiter than me," Pietro muttered.
Lance slowly cracked one eyelid open and promptly closed it again, "Wh-where..." Unable to get a sentence out, Lance opted to moan instead.
"Hey you're up," Pietro stated lamely.
"Yeah, how ya feeling yo?"
Lance responded with yet another groan and continued to keep his eyes closed.
"That good huh? Well listen, McCoy said everything went really good," Pietro said quietly. "I'm telling you Lance, this whole thing has been up to scale with Wanda on the warpath as far as scary goes."
Lance slowly and painfully opened his eyes, wishing that someone would turn the lights out. He ached everywhere, which he didn't think made much sense considering the surgery had been done to his head, but he still felt like a truck had hit him. His neck and shoulders, he decided, were the worst.
His tongue lolled around in his mouth uselessly, making talking even more difficult, but he made an attempt none the less, "The oth- others?" he choked out.
"In the waiting room yo."
"Good," he mumbled, then winced as a wave of nausea washed over him.
"Lance?"
Lance twisted himself around slightly, gasping in pain as he did, and propped himself up on his elbow. Hank seemed to be the only one aware of what was going on, and set a steel basin next to Lance. Lance waited as another wave of nausea hit him and he retched, rather unsuccessfully from the lack of food and liquid in his system.
He shook slightly as he wiped his mouth and attempted to catch his breath, "Ow, ow, ow, ow," he half whimpered half moaned.
Feeling extremely antsy and awkward just standing there watching, Pietro came around to the other side of Lance and began to massage his shoulders as he got his breathing under control again. Thankful for the comfort, Lance closed his eyes and let Pietro attempt to ease the ache along his shoulders.
"Am I shupposed to fe-el thissick?" he slurred.
"Don't worry, it won't last too long," Hank assured him.
Todd stood awkwardly with his hands shoved in his pockets, wishing he could think of something helpful to do other than just gawk at Lance. As Lance began to heave into the basin once again, Todd timidly came over to him, pulled the strands of hair that weren't caught up in the bandage off of Lance's neck, and held his hair back for him.
[1] I know, I know, a sparkly blue guitar sounds kinda dumb, but I saw one once...and I'm telling you, it was the most gorgeous guitar I've ever seen...actually it was a bass, but same concept lol ..and it didn't look at all girly either if that's what you're thinking.
AN: Ok, I'm so sorry if I disappointed anyone who was expecting Lance to like keel over or something...cuz I did think about that lol, but I love him too much. Also, it may seem rather odd that someone can have a brain tumor removed and it be all la dee da now he'll recover. But I did a little (um, very little, but still) research and I found out that with a benign brain tumor, it *can* be as simple as removing the mass. It's still a lot more dangerous than ur average surgery, and they can be fatal depending on where they are. The point is, Lance is gonna be stuck in the mansion and in bed for a loooong time...and considering the action is going to pick up a bit...it's going to be cause for some major frustration. Oh yeah...sorry if it was a bit *too* fluffy...but I couldn't resisit.