He was secretly glad that Dr. Cottle had insisted on reducing his work schedule. Gaeta felt like hell. He couldn't remember feeling worse. The very idea of walking anywhere, let alone to the CIC to work for eight hours was daunting. He buttoned his uniform, fumbling over it and then took a deep breath. Everyone is going to stare, he told himself, that's just what happens when you go to work with half of your face swelled up and turning dark purple.

There was a knock on the door. He stepped over and opened it. It was Dee, and she wasn't quite able to cover her surprised expression. " Oh my… I'm sorry… you didn't look this bad yesterday."

He chuckled even though it hurt. "I don't remember seeing you." A lot of people had wandered in and out to see him while he was in sick bay, but he'd been so miserable it had been a blur.

" You were unconscious," Dualla added helpfully.

" Did you need something? I was just going to head up to the CIC for my shift." He pinned on his insignia. " Dee?"

" I just thought I'd walk with you." There was an edge to her voice, worry, and he didn't like it.

" Look, I know I look really bad, but I can make it to the CIC, Dee." He thought he could make it, anyway. As long as he didn't have to run. Running was definitely going to set his already cringing stomach off.

"Have you really looked at yourself?" Dualla asked quietly. " Because you don't look like you should be on duty. You look awful."

" That's you look awful, sir," he said, smiling. Dee was a friend, and calling him sir had been a joke between them for almost as long as they had been assigned together. " I'm all right."

Dualla did smile, but she still seemed worried. She stepped into his cramped room and closed the door. " This isn't about rank right now. You're my friend and I'm worried about you. People have been talking. Smash has been making some threats. Nothing that you could take to the commander, but he's made it pretty clear that he wants a rematch. And not at cards."

" Why?" He gestured to his face. " I didn't exactly win that fight." In fact he was pretty certain that he had gone down like a flaming Viper into the deck. From what Dr. Cottle had told him, he was lucky to escape with just a concussion.

Dualla smiled. She took a seat on his bed and gestured for him to sit down beside her. "Yeah, that's pretty evident when we all look at you. But you made him look like a fool, in public, and worse, everyone thinks he's a frakking asshole for hitting you in the head with a chair over losing a game. Why didn't you want a court martial? He'd be in the brig for months."

" Commander Adama requested that I not press charges," he said after a moment. It was something he was starting to regret. Dee wasn't the sort to panic. If she was worried, then there was reason to be concerned. " Because of the pilot shortage." A court martial for striking a superior officer, especially in such flagrant circumstances, would have meant that after a lengthy stay in the brig that Smash would have lost his commission and been kicked out of the military. " I had to do what's best for the fleet. We need every pilot we can get."

" And it's hard to say no to the Old Man," Dee added softly. " Look, I know we're all supposed to be soldiers, and put the fleet above ourselves, but I have seen so many people die in the last few months, so many friends…." She looked at him intently, and took his hand. " You're my friend, and a good one, and I will be damned if I lose one more friend, especially to something as stupid as petty revenge. You're totally blind on your right side and you will be until the swelling goes down, and don't try to tell me that this is all cosmetic and you feel great, because it's obvious you can barely stand. That means that I am walking with you to the CIC today, and someone is walking with you back to your quarters when your shift is done. We've already gotten the schedule arranged. You will go along with this. At least until you recover."

He squeezed her hand reassuringly. " I think you're worrying too much. Nothing bad is going to happen. Smash would be an idiot to try anything, especially now, when everyone knows he's getting off light."

"He called you a Cylon. We all know its ridiculous, but there are a lot of new people on the ship. Someone might overreact and do something. We've both seen it happen." Dualla said it firmly. He saw her point. There had been a number of ugly incidents. People had gotten hurt. " Besides, Smash is an idiot, and you're not, and we need you a lot more than we need him, even if he is a Viper pilot." She paused. " I need you. I want you to promise me that you're going to be careful, and that you're not going to walk around the ship alone. At least until this blows over."

" All right, I give up. I promise." He smiled again to reassure her. Dee was a friend, and he could tell by her eyes that she was more than slightly worried. It was a little scary, he had to admit, but he was more concerned that the Cylon accusation would be a trigger for violence than Smash having a vendetta. At the same time, he couldn't help but feel real warmth. He didn't know about the civilian ships, but on the Galactica, people didn't talk about how much they worried about each other. He certainly didn't, and that was why his stomach was always upset, even when he wasn't concussed. It was why Dee's fingernails were bitten down to the quick. He could feel the roughness as he held her hand. " Thank you, it means a lot. Especially coming from you, Dee."

She pulled him into a hug. " I was scared yesterday," she said softly, " that I was going to lose another person I cared about. You mean a lot to me." She broke away from him and stood up, wiping her eyes. " We'd better get going. You know how the colonel is." Her voice dropped into a passable imitation of Colonel Tigh. " You're the last line of defense the fleet has."

He grinned as he carefully stood up. " You're the defenders, the guardians at the gate. Never forget that."

" You hold the fleet in your hands," Dualla chimed. They both laughed. She opened the door. " You know, you look bad enough, the colonel might share some of his stash with you."

" It can't be that bad. I mean, he doesn't even share with his wife. I would need to look much worse than this for that."

" Well, you do look pretty bad… sir."