All's Well That Ends Well

There was nothing worse, Rimmer thought, than the smell of a hospital. It reminded him too much of his father's first stroke. It was only mild, but Mr. Rimmer was so convinced that he would die that he had sat all his sons down and ranted for several hours about how they were to function in his memory. John would be the strong and brave son, Frank was to be clever and logical son, Howard was to be the talented and spiritual one. Mr. Rimmer then fell asleep and forgot all about little Arnold. He decided his function would be to sit by his father's side until he woke up. He never even got a 'thank you'. Rather, his mother scolded him for bothering his father for so long.

If I went in, Rimmer thought, hovering outside Lister's room, would I be scolded again? "I don't care," he said defiantly to the empty corridor. "He is no position to be scolding me. I shall give him a piece of my mind. He shall then kow-tow for my forgiveness." He paused briefly to consider his plan of action. "No, it would be cruel to make him bow after surgery. He can do it when he's better."

"Rimmer?" Mr. Petersen's hand landed on Rimmer's shoulder. "You can go in now. It's been only a few days so he's still a little groggy from the painkillers but he's asked for you several times. You should see him before he has his nap." Lister didn't move when they went in and he looked smaller than ever in the huge white bed. "S'up?" he waved at Rimmer. Rimmer stiffened, not sure what to say. Mr. Petersen, sensing the tension, excused himself. "What happened to your hand, Rimmer?" gasped Lister.

Rimmer sat down in a chair nearby, looking down at his feet as he used to before. "I fell," he mumbled, fiddling with the bandage. "You, er…You lied to me…"

"I know, Rimmer. I'm really sorry. I can't say that enough times I know but-"

Rimmer cut him off, "You made me believe that you were my friend."

"I know, I know. I am really sorry, honestly."

"I should unplug every machine you're hooked up to and you'd deserve it." Rimmer looked at him, his eyes burning. Lister gulped uncertainly. "Yes, yes I would."

"So… why can't I?" Rimmer whispered. "Why am I so glad you're alright?"

Lister grinned, "Coz I'm great."

"You're a smeg," said Rimmer, smiling back.

News had quickly spread about the Parker / Lister / Rimmer fight. Parker lost his top-dog status and everyone impatiently awaited Lister's return so that he could rule the roost. And to Rimmer's surprise, he was deemed hislieutenant due to the one lucky punch that resulted in Parker losing an adult incisor and this automatically made him the temporary Chief of the First Years. He was called Rimmer, sometimes Sir, by everyone and it was difficult for Rimmer not to take advantage of the lunch queue privileges. But he knew Lister would tell him off later so he tried to appear embarrassed and shrug off the gifts and praise. It was all false anyway. He had only one real friend.

He visited Lister as often as possible and accompanied him back to the school once he was well. Lister was confused as the other children scattered in every direction as he walked down the hall. "Looks like I've got a bit of a rep."

"Is that so bad?" said Rimmer. "It means no one, especially Sanjeev, will bother you."

"Yeah but, no one bothering me means no one even speaking to me. I can't make any friends."

"Oh…" Rimmer said. Lister patted his head. "Aww, Rimsy. You'll still be my best friend. Don't be jealous."

"I am not jealous, goit! Anyway, sure it's not my organ music you like?"

"Well it's a bonus," Lister grinned the way he always grinned, and Rimmer believed him. Rimmer finally felt the warm feelings of trust and happiness that being alone had denied him. He could now do something all kids could do.

He could believe.

And that's the end of this story! This story was all about me wanting to write something about the cute and vulnerableside of Rimmer, but I didn't want to go too AU. I got the idea when I was watching Dimension Jump (yet again). Young Rimmer is just too freaking adorable and pathetic for words, but not quite world-weary enough for all the scathing comments. Now for a few author's notes -

1. Appendicitus - I'm pretty sure it can't be caused by a punch, so obviously it started before the fight. There are a few subtle hints.

2. Sanjeev Parker - Mmm, I love making Original Characters, especially non-MarySues. Sanjeev is from Sanjeev Bhaskar, one of the Goodness Gracious Me team, and Parker is just because it's such a boys' school name.

3. Mr Petersen - Obviously from Olaf Petersen, Lister's friend aboard the Red Dwarf.

4. Spotty Cohen - Spotty is a common nickname, and Cohen is from The Meaning of Life.