Hospital Visits:

Ch 7- Worry

Buffy sat on the edge of a hospital bed, holding the hand of the figure lying upon it. As he stirred, she gave a comforting squeeze.

"Hey, Buffy. Guess I lived, huh? It hurts too much to be anything else."

"You're going to be fine now, Riley. The doctors say that the heart attack was mild and they were able to get those chips out of you. The doctors have just been waiting for you to wake up before they start the I.V. treatment. They say a few hours and you'll be back to good."

She leaned down and kissed him softly and gently. "That guy, Graham, is waiting in the hallway. I told him I wanted to be here alone when you woke up."

"So," he said, not meeting her gaze, "a few hours and I'll be Joe Normal, huh? I guess I can live with that."

"It won't be so bad. You still have all your military training. It's just the little extra that's gone."

"The last week has felt like a living nightmare. I-I still can't believe the things I did to you…the things that I said."

"It doesn't matter," Buffy told him, "it's over now. You and I are going to be okay and I'm not leaving till you're ready to leave too."

At just that moment, Buffy's cell phone began to vibrate from her pocket interrupting the moment. Answering, Riley saw her face cloud over. He could barely hear the sounds of a woman speaking from the other end. She glanced at him, almost guiltily, and then told whoever it was that she'd be right there.

"I'm sorry, Riley. It's mom. She's here; in the hospital, I mean. I think she's got her results and, I know its terrible timing…"

"It's okay, Buffy. I'm going to be here for hours, and your mom needs you. Go."

She bent down and gave him another far too brief kiss and then she was gone.

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In the hallway, Graham stood painfully from the chair when Buffy came out of Finn's room. She saw him and crossed over to meet him. Next to him, Privates Banks and Washington also stood.

"Riley's awake, now. I-uh-I have to go. There's something with my mom. I know he wants to see you though."

"I'm glad we got to him in time," Graham said coolly to her.

"Listen," Buffy said, crossing her arms in front of her. She looked so small and vulnerable to Graham Miller, but he knew better. "I know we haven't gotten along so well. The whole Initiative way didn't really mesh well with the Slayer way, but I'm glad you guys came. I appreciate you being here to help him."

With that, Buffy turned away from them and rushed down to the fourth floor. The guys entered Riley's room.

As Riley exchanged pleasantries with the men, Doctor Grossman entered the room as well. As he started the I.V. necessary to counteract the last traces of the chemicals used in the Initiative soldier's conditioning, Graham dismissed the two grunts.

"Report back to the base, fellas. Tell the Colonel we're done here and you guys are ready to depart."

"What about you, sir?" Washington asked, but Banks also looked like he was going to.

"I'm sitting for at least a week." Graham gave Riley a deadpanned look, "Tell the Colonel my ribs are cracked. Ask Colonel Jacobs to arrange a cot for me on the base. I'm pretty sure Buffy isn't going to want to see me strolling around town for the next week."

The doctor had just finished starting the I.V. and addressed Riley. "This cocktail is going to make you feel a little woozy. Just stay lying down until the treatment is over."

"Can you give us a few minutes, doctor," Graham asked.

When the two old friends were alone, Riley spoke first. "I'm sorry Graham. Not just the ribs, but what I said. I was out of line with that crack about…"

"…forget it," Graham interrupted. "It's not even an issue. You were under the influence and, if I can be so bold, out of your frickin' mind."

They shared a quick laugh. "Yeah, well, I need you to know that your sex life has never bothered me one way or the other. We're friends. We always will be, so…I'm just sorry."

"Accepted. Let's forget it." Graham looked behind him at the door, a look of concentration on his face. When he turned back to Riley, he wore a grin.

"That Buffy? I can see why you fell so hard for her. I might be tempted to steal her away if she wasn't so much a girl."

"Yeah," Riley laughed with him, "yeah, she is amazing, isn't she?"

"But, Riley, and I'm only saying this because we are friends…you don't belong here. You're not happy. I can see it. I can hear it in your voice."

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In another room of the hospital on a lower floor, Buffy held Joyce. She stared across the room at a tiny smudge on a picture of Joyce's brain. It was so insubstantial it could almost be imaginary. Almost, except for the grave look on the doctor's face.

Both Buffy and Joyce had tears in their eyes and they held on tightly to each other. They had so wanted it to be migraines or stress, but it wasn't. And there was no more denying the ugly truth.

"As I've explained to your mother," Dr. Baines tried to sound comforting and confident, "this by no means suggests cancer on its own. It could be a simple blockage, or a benign tumor. And even if it is the worse, it's still relatively small. Surgery and chemotherapy could be very effective in that scenario. We shouldn't give up hope, here."

Buffy wiped at her eyes. She didn't want to think about how Dawnie was going to take this, but it was her face that kept flashing in her mind. She nodded at the doctor and thought about the gang. She didn't know how she was going to tell everyone without turning into a basket case.

"Okay," she directed at Doctor Baines, "What do we do next?"

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End Ch 7