Lifeline
Chapter 26
Chikage and Riddick woke at the same time, both looking toward the door as it clicked, opening slowly. She glanced at him as Marie appeared in the hallway, smiling slightly. Riddick roused Jack, who moaned and grunted, squeezing her eyes shut as she tried to stretch, still smashed between two bodies.
"Take her into the other room and let her get cleaned up," Riddick instructed quietly. Chikage nodded, rolling off the side of the cot to land on her feet silently. Marie continued to stand there, just watching the three. "Go get some breakfast or something." Another small nod, and he looked to Marie. "Can you get them some scrubs to wear around the clinic? I didn't think to have them pack any clean clothes."
"Sure," Marie said with a nod, turning and disappearing back into the hallway, the door shutting with another click. Chikage walked Jack into the adjoining room and returned a few seconds after he heard the shower turn on.
"You gonna be okay by yourself?" she asked him, watching him glance up at her with an expression saying he wasn't quite sure if she was joking. She smiled, and he shook his head with a quiet chuckle. "How long do you want us to be gone?" He sighed, leaning back in the bed and staring at the tape holding the IV needle down.
"I don't know," he answered, shrugging. "I don't want her to see me knocked out though." Chikage nodded, taking the seat still positioned next to the bed.
"What about me?" He glanced at her quickly.
"I don't want you to see me that way either," he grumbled. She sighed.
"I guess we're staying in the other room then," she said with a shrug. She took a breath and paused, waiting for him to look up at her curiously. "I think it'd be good for her."
"How's that?"
"She's got this idea that you're invincible," she explained with a small shrug. "I think if she sees that you're not, she won't get the idea in her head that she can be too. She's a teenager, Riddick. She already thinks she's invincible just because of that, but maybe she'll realize no one is." He sighed heavily. "But I also think she'll take it personally if she thinks you don't want to see her." A sharp glance, and Chikage sighed, leaning forward to rest her elbows on the edge of his bed. He reached out, tangling his fingers in her hair. "And I'd kinda like to see you weak and vulnerable." He let out a deep laugh, drawing a satisfied smile. The door clicked again, and they were back to all business faces.
"I put the scrubs on the bed in there, is that okay?" Marie asked timidly, watching Chikage rise to her full height.
"Yeah, thanks," the taller woman said. Riddick watched, fighting back the amusement as Chikage stared Marie down, a clear warning not to pull anything while she was gone and he was at less than 100 percent. She turned toward the door leading to Jack's room and reached for the handle.
"Don't be long," he said quietly, watching Chikage whip back around to face him, the surprise showing on her face. He nodded once, and the tiniest of smiles pulled at the corners of her lips as she nodded and vanished behind the door. He watched Marie pull the cap off a small syringe and reach for the line of his IV, quickly squirting the liquid into the drip. His eyebrow rose.
"It's a sedative," she said quietly, glancing at him as she pulled the needle out of the line. "A mild one. It'll just help calm you down." His eyebrow remained arched, and she gave him a reassuring smile. "I can imagine it's been a while since you've seen a doctor. Protocol for this type of thing." He nodded, but his expression didn't relax. "Just out of curiosity, who gave you the shine?"
"Prison doc," he answered gruffly. She looked at him quickly, blinking several times before looking back to her paperwork, scribbling something down. "Why?"
"Mind if I check them out? See how they're doing?"
"Like I said, you do what you gotta do," he said with a shrug. "Just don't shine a fucking light in my eyes," he warned. She gave him a warm smile.
"Believe it or not, I do know about what you call shine jobs. Several of my patients have had them, and I quickly learned how to examine for any problems."
"Really."
"Yeah," she said with a modest shrug. "Did some reading, and even made an appointment to visit a doctor in prison known to perform the surgeries." Riddick's eyes narrowed. "I wanted to know how it was done so my patients could be better served. Did he give you an anesthetic?"
"Why?"
"Just wondering." She was still scribbling at his chart, and he wanted to know what was so intriguing and/or important to go into a file that would later be destroyed.
"No, I didn't." Her eyes met his quickly, just staring across the room at him. "What, are you gonna ask me to tell you about it too?"
"No," she said, quickly recovering her senses. "You'll have to forgive me, Richard," she finally said after a beat. His eyes remained on her as she slowly sat on a stool, rolling toward him. "First off, I'm quite surprised you agreed to come here. I never thought you'd trust me after what I was involved with before."
"What makes you think I trust you?" Her mouth closed, and she swallowed, finally shaking her head.
"You're an interesting patient, Richard," she continued, ignoring his question. He noticed, unable to stop the smile at her discomfort. "I have to admit I'm very excited you're giving me the chance to follow up." A quick, guilty glance up at him. "And I know you're thinking I'm only doing this because of the Evanis project, but I'm not."
"Why, then?"
"I want to make sure you're okay."
"You didn't give a shit whether or not I was okay until I showed up in your car and started asking questions," he said pointedly.
"Not true," she said with a tiny shake of her head. "I always wondered about you. We watched you for a week after the procedure was completed, just because none of the others survived it." She turned, picking up another syringe. "This is a dye. Won't affect you in the least, but it'll show up on the body scans. See how the blood's flowing." He didn't acknowledge the information. "I thought about you every day, Richard," she said quietly, watching him watch the liquid slowly pool into his IV. His eyelids were starting to droop.
"Question," he said quietly.
"Mm hmm?"
"Is this shit gonna knock me out?"
"Not completely, no. It's not an anesthetic, just a sedative. You'll want to sleep, and it's probably a good idea. But you'll be able to wake up."
"I slept all night," he mumbled, relaxing into the cot's thin mattress.
"You've got a long day ahead of you, Richard," she said soothingly. "I'll take care of you. Don't worry." He nodded, murmuring something to his shoulder. "I'll be by your side the whole time," she continued. "I promise." Soon, he was sound asleep, and Marie heard the adjoining room's door to the hallway click twice. A moment later, she was out the door as well, hurrying down the hall toward the body scan department, letting them know she was ready to start. Two larger men followed her back, glancing at each other as they entered the room behind her.
"Is that…?" one asked quietly. She glared at them.
"I told you. No questions," she snapped. "And if you value your job, you'll remember that oath you took, promising to preserve the physician patient privilege." They both nodded quickly, locking the bed's edge guards in place before wheeling Riddick from the room.
"What the fuck is this shit?" Jack asked, poking at the food on her plate with a plastic spork. Chikage snickered, shaking her head.
"God only knows," she said quietly. "I think we'll go down the street for lunch. What do you say?" Jack nodded vigorously, sighing before braving the first bite. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't really good, either. Just kind of there. Tasteless, really. They trudged through breakfast without another word, both their minds returning to Riddick. After Chikage finished her coffee and got a refill to go, they walked around the clinic, pausing in the assortment of gift shops down each corridor. Finally, Jack cleared her throat, drawing Chikage's attention.
"So I'm guessing he wanted us out for a while so Marie could do her thing." Chikage nodded, her steps slowing slightly as she took a quick sip of coffee in order to avoid pouring it down her front.
"I know she wanted to do the body scans before the blood tests came back, so that's probably what they're doing now. He probably just didn't want you to come back and freak out that he wasn't in his room." Jack nodded absently, picking up a stuffed bear and tossing it in the air a few times before setting it back down.
"Should we get him something?" she asked quietly. Chikage glanced at her quickly.
"Get him something?" A blank expression met Jack's gaze, and she smiled.
"You know. A card or flowers or something," she explained with a shrug. "Just an idea."
"I hadn't really thought about it," Chikage mused. "You think he'd like it?" Jack shrugged. "He doesn't really strike me as the flower type," she said, making a face, which prompted an evil cackle from Jack.
"Just an idea," Jack said quickly. Chikage snickered, nodding toward the gift shop door. Chikage followed her out, and they moseyed back to their hall, slipping into Jack's room.
Riddick pried his eyes open, hearing a soft creak. The room was blurry, and he blinked slowly several times, trying to clear the image. Leather creaked as someone sat on the stool next to him, rolling forward to get a little closer.
"Muhree?" he slurred, opening one eye further than the other. A warm hand pressed to his cheek, the thumb moving back and forth, stroking his skin slowly. "Chi?"
"How you doin', sweetie?" she asked quietly, her voice sweeter than he was used to hearing.
"Where's Jack?" he asked through a grunt as he attempted to stretch.
"She's asleep next door."
"Time is it?"
"It's late. You should go back to sleep," Chikage said, still holding his cheek as she leaned forward to press her lips to his forehead.
"Have I been out all day?" he asked, nuzzling the pillow under his head. She nodded slowly, lowering her head to rest on his pillow. His eyes closed as she continued to stroke his skin lightly. "Keep talkin' to me," he whispered, working to focus on her eyes. She smiled, shaking her head slightly.
"You need to go to sleep." He chuckled, a sound low in his throat.
"I will if you keep talking," he said through a laugh.
"Ouch." He glanced up at her quickly. "You will if I keep talking? Geez. Am I really that boring?"
"I didn't mean it like that, Chi," he groaned, shifting under the sheets. She smiled, kissing his shoulder as she stood. "Where you goin'?" She pointed back toward Jack's door, a puzzled expression on her face. He shook his head, scooting toward the wall. "Stay with me," he said quietly, sticking his bottom lip out for effect. She sighed, glancing back at Jack's door before sitting on the edge of his bed, sliding under the sheet with him.
"As soon as you're asleep I'm gonna go back to Jack's room," she said quietly, pressing closer to him as he wrapped his arms around her, careful not to tangle her up in the IV line running to his hand. She rested her head on his chest, tracing the patterns printed on the hospital gown he'd grudgingly put on. "How did it go today?"
"I slept through most of it, I think." She smiled. "I need to get my hands on whatever Marie gave me." Chikage's eyebrow rose. "Sedative." She nodded, closing her eyes as she relaxed against him. "You know, I never would have believed I would willingly be staying overnight in a hospital," he sighed, shifting next to her. She chuckled quietly.
"Did it last night, too." He made a little noise, and she glanced up at him. "Jack and I walked around the hospital after breakfast this morning," she said.
"Yeah?"
"Stopped in one of the gift stores and she suggested getting you flowers or a card or something." He grinned, his eyes remaining closed.
"Did you?"
"No," Chikage burst, laughing lightly. Suddenly, the laughing stopped and she straightened up, looking up at him quickly. "Why, would you want that?" He shrugged noncommittally. "Would you?"
"I wouldn't complain, but I wouldn't ask for it either," he said, a ghost of a smile tugging at his cheeks. Her mouth fell open and he actually giggled. She was sure it was just the drugs he was on, but she memorized that moment. He fell quiet, and soon his breathing slowed. She slid from his grasp, smiling as she looked over him for a moment before returning to Jack's room.