Blue Book 18

"Hold still now…. Just a little bit more…okay, now turn to the left…up…there. Nice and smooth. Are you sure you don't want me to remove all of it? I'll bet you have a nice strong chin under there." A slight headshake indicated to the negative. "What, no chin?" I'Lee was rewarded with a small grin.

"Funny stuff there, super nurse. I suppose you do hair too?"

"Sure thing. I have a brother, you know. A little off the top?" She opened and closed the scissors while giving an evil little laugh. "Let's get you adjusted a bit here in the chair. Okay, I'll just give you a trim in the basic shape you already have. Sound good?"

Wreck shrugged. "S'fine with me."

She started to gently comb out his hair and realized that it wasn't going to work. "Hun, let's move over to the sink so I can do a quick shampoo. You'll feel better."

She stood in front of him and waited for him to rise. She was slightly shocked that he was a good foot taller than she was. "My goodness, are all you lads in this unit so tall?"

"No. There are a couple just under 5'10" and Rat is 5'4"." The statement was matter of fact.

"Oh. I guess I'm just not used to seeing you standing…" The nurse cringed as the words slipped out before she thought about them. "I mean…"

He placed a hand on her shoulder with surprising accuracy. "Lead on, McDuff."

The trip to the sink was short. Once there she removed his eye coverings. "Okay. Take off the blue shirt—" she didn't fail to notice how he froze up "—and leave on your tee shirt. Don't want to get them both wet, now, do we?"

Slowly he shrugged out of the chambray overshirt. She had him put both hands at the edge of the sink and lean his head down to rest on his hands. Taking care not to directly touch his back, she draped a towel around his neck and shoulders. I'Lee grabbed the little bottle of shampoo and a cup to help with rinsing. She sat on the vanity next to the sink, letting the water warm up a bit. Carefully, she poured water over the back of his head and he tensed up. She continued with a gentle rinse until she was sure all the dried blood was loose and the water ran clear.

"This may sting a wee bit, now," she warned as she started the washing part. "My Mum always loved having her hair washed when she had it done." She could see his knuckles turn white as she eased her fingers across his scalp. "It was always my favorite part too. Very relaxing." His shoulders hunched as if he was going to bolt. "Of course, this way of washing lets all the water run down your face so you can hide what you are thinking about." There. A slight tremor in his back and she knew tears would come. She began to chat aimlessly about any and everything and took her time rinsing the soap out of his hair. When he took a big breath, she cut off the water and handed him a dry towel for his face.

Hopping off the counter, she led him back to the chair and settled him in. I'Lee continued her aimless chatter as the sailor sat silently. He didn't even flinch when she cut the hair next to his ears. When she was done, she combed his hair back and let it fall naturally. Standing back, she gave him a critical look.

"I let her cut my hair once."

The nurse swallowed and decided to keep quiet.

"Good thing I wear a hat on the job."

He snickered and she followed suit. Removing the towel from about his shoulders, she handed him his overshirt.

"I'd wait to put this back on. Doc will be in shortly to check your bandages and your eyes."

He held out a hand and she grasped it. "Thanks."

dvdv

Green Book 18

The day was long. It seemed as if everything was blurry. Sue rubbed her eyes as she watched the tape for the twelfth time. She shook her head. "I'm sorry, D. I just can't make out anything right now." She put a hand to her temple. "I've got a bit of a headache from the tapes today."

The agent nodded. He could understand. He'd done his fair share of bad guy lowlight reels. Sometimes you had to step back and take a fresh look later. "All right then. Let's wrap up here."

They walked down to the bullpen to find it almost empty. Tara was finishing up a report and looked over her computer as they entered. "Hey, you guys are still here?"

"No, as a matter of fact, we are now gone." He winked at the tech who grinned back.

"See you tomorrow."

"Night, Tara."

"Good night, Tara." Sue grabbed Levi's lead and followed D to the parking garage. "Tell Donna and the kids I said 'Hi.'"

Lucy had a simple stir-fry made when Sue arrived at the apartment. She could barely keep awake to eat it. Her head was pounding pretty badly. When the raven-haired woman signed 'Okay?', Sue touched her head and eyes.

"Tired. I think I'll go to bed early."

Luce nodded. "Scream me if you need me." She got a pillow as a response and just grinned.

dvdv

It was one-thirty when Sue woke up. Now. Now was the time. She picked up her phone and hesitated for a moment. The phone was just awkward in this situation. Quickly, she got dressed and grabbed her coat and keys. Even Levi grabbed his lead. The house was dark as they slipped out the door. When they exited the building at street level, Sue was surprised to see Bobby leaning against his car waiting for her.

"What took you so long?" He grinned at her but it faded when he saw how tired she was. He opened the car door and ushered her and the dog in. Slipping in the other side, he started the car and turned on the dome light. "I'm going to drive. When you feel ready…I'm here." The car faded back into darkness.

She nodded and settled back. It took a while before they left the city limits. When Sue could see the stars clearly, she reached for his hand. Bobby pulled the car off the road and out of sight to regular traffic. No sense inviting trouble.

He took her hand and watched her reflection in the window as she looked up at the stars.

"Do you think if a star loses some of its brightness that it makes it any less a star?" She wasn't expecting an answer and he didn't give one.

"I had a dream. I woke up and there was this terrible pounding. I could hear the vibrations. Heavy pounding. No one was at the door. It took me a minute to realize I was feeling my own pulse pound in my ears. I sat up and my heart was racing, just out of control. I turned on the light and put my hand up to stop it."

Unconsciously, she did the same thing. "My hand was wet and sticky, like I was hurt. I pulled it away covered with blood. I went to the mirror to see what was wrong but I wasn't looking at myself. It was someone else. All torn up."

She looked at him, tears brimming. "I wasn't looking at myself. I recognized the injuries. I was seeing Hector through his own eyes. And he's scared. Scared that he'll never be the same. Scared that he won't be able to re-connect. Scared that no one will want him."

She turned to look out the window again. "Somebody does," she whispered.