Giving 'till It Hurts
By Rackuhn
Summary: Bo gets tricked into giving more than he wants to.
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em, just havin' fun messin' with 'em.
Bo and Luke Duke had just finished up their morning chores when they entered the house to the smells of breakfast cooking. Both of their stomachs rumbled at the tantalizing smells floating in the air.
"Boy, something sure smells good," Bo said as he tried to peak over Daisy's shoulder to see what was frying the pan. "What's the occasion?"
"No occasion, Bo," Daisy answered as she pushed him back slightly. "Just figured ya two needed a good, hearty breakfast this morning."
"And why would we need such a good, hearty breakfast?" Luke asked suspiciously.
"'Cause I'm gonna need your help later on this morning at down at the high school."
"What kind of help?" Luke questioned as he finished washing his hands at the sink.
"I told ya that I'm doin' that drive today, don't ya remember?" she asked as she gave him a desperate, pleading look.
Quickly catching her signal he nodded in understanding. "Oh yeah, ya did mention that. I forgot that was today."
"Ya didn't tell me. What kind of drive are ya doing, Daisy?" Bo questioned, curiosity eating at him.
"I'm collectin' donations for people in need," she replied without looking at him. "And I need you and Luke to help me out. I'd really appreciate it if you could, Bo."
"Well sure, I'll help out," Bo grinned back. He missed the look of relief on her face when he turned to go and wash up. "Just what is it ya need us to do?"
Daisy's back stiffened as she thought of an answer. "Uh actually, there's a lot of things that will be goin' on so I'll have to let ya know when ya get there."
Bo just shrugged his shoulders as he wiped his hands on the towel. "Okay, no problem."
"Good," Daisy smiled back. "Now you two sit down. Breakfast is ready."
"Where's Uncle Jesse?" Luke asked as he pulled out his chair.
"He volunteered to pick up some supplies for the drive. He's gonna meet us at the high school later on."
"Boy, ya got everyone working this thing don't ya?" Bo laughed as he shoveled in another forkful of eggs.
"I sure do, sugar," Daisy smiled back.
After quickly finishing their breakfast, Bo and Luke went to change into some clean clothes while Daisy finished the dishes. They then hopped into the General and took off for the school. The three of them were laughing and joking around as they entered the school's gym and Bo suddenly stopped in his tracks when he saw what was going on. Across the back wall of the gym was a banner thanking everyone for their blood donation while several lounge type chairs were scattered about filled with people lying in them, all in the process of donating blood. Luke and Daisy quickly realized that Bo was no longer beside them. Turning, they saw that he was standing there with his mouth hanging open, eyes wide with fear, and shaking his head as he started backing up towards the door.
"Bo, please," Daisy called out as she saw the fear on her cousin's face.
"Oh no, no, no," Bo said still retreating to the door.
"Now Bo, wait a minute," Luke cried out as he lunged and grabbed the younger man's arm.
"Oh no, ya didn't tell me this was a blood drive," Bo said as he tried to pull away from Luke's grasp.
"I'm sorry, Bo," Daisy replied as she grab his other arm. "I knew that if I told ya, ya would never have come."
"You're darn right I wouldn't have come," Bo squeaked out, still trying to get away, fear clearly written all over his face.
"But we need your help," Daisy pleaded, tugging him back into the room.
"Ya know I don't like needles!"
"We know that, but really, there's nothing to this," Luke encouraged.
"No, I'm not doing it."
"Daisy, is something wrong?" The three of them stopped when they heard someone call out to them and turned to see a very pretty blood drive worker coming in their direction. The two men immediately took notice of her green eyes, her auburn hair, and her shapely figure as she came towards them.
"Hi Penny," Daisy smiled as her friend came over. "Oh, let me introduce ya to my cousins Bo and Luke." Both men smiled as they were introduced. "Boys, this is Penny. She's the one that organizes the blood drives."
"Nice to meet ya. Are ya sure there isn't anything wrong?" she asked again.
"Nothing's wrong really, it's just my cousin Bo here is slightly nervous about donating."
"He is?" Penny asked as she turned her attention to the younger man. "I can assure ya, Bo that there is nothing to donating blood. It's very simple and it doesn't hurt."
"That's what the doctor always tells ya before he sticks ya. Never found one that told the truth about that yet," Bo said as he started backing away again.
"Oh, please Bo, wait!" Bo stopped when he heard the desperation in Penny's voice. "I take it ya don't like needles very much?"
"No ma'am I don't," Bo answered.
"Bo had asthma when he was little and he ended up in the hospital a lot," Luke clarified for her.
"But you're all better now, right?" Penny asked, concern clearly in her voice.
"Yes ma'am I am but I'm still not lettin' ya stick me with no needle."
"That's a shame. From the way Daisy described ya, I guess I figured you'd be the first in line, but if you're too afraid…" Penny turned away as a look of disappointment showed on her face.
"Who's afraid?" Bo demanded as he took a step forward. Daisy and Luke did their best to hide the smiles on their faces.
"Well, I guess you are since ya don't like needles."
"Just because I don't like needles doesn't mean that I'm afraid," Bo answered back hotly.
"Then prove it," Penny dared.
"All right, I will," Bo said as he followed her to an empty chair.
"She's good," whispered Luke as he watched his cousin follow behind Penny. He tried hard to control his laughter.
"She sure is. Good thing that I warned her about Bo yesterday. She told me she would be ready for him."
"Come on, I gotta see this," Luke replied while grabbing Daisy's hand and following his baby cousin.
As Bo got closer to the chair, he suddenly found himself very nervous and stopped just before he got to the one Penny was pointing to. "Bo, I promise ya it won't hurt," Penny said encouragingly. "Come on and sit down, please?" Once again, Bo heard the pleading in her voice and reluctantly sat down. "Tell ya what, how about if I'm the one who takes charge of your donation?"
Bo looked back at her, fear filling his eyes. "Uh, okay."
Penny smiled. "Okay, the first thing we need to do is make sure that you're healthy. I need to take your blood pressure, pulse, and temperature." Bo nodded as she started checking his vitals, watching her every move. "Well, your blood pressure is slightly elevated and your pulse is a little fast, but both are within normal limits. I guess that's just because you're a little nervous." Bo swallowed hard and nodded again. "Now the next thing ya need to do is answer some questions for me. Can ya do that?" Bo nodded again.
Penny grabbed a clipboard and started filling out Bo's name, address, and date of birth. Bo's face became red with embarrassment when some of the questions she asked seemed a bit too personal for his taste, but quite necessary, or so he was told.
"Okay Bo, I'm gonna get the stuff we need so that we can begin the donation."
"O…okay," Bo squeaked out as he closed his eyes and laid his head back against the chair. Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes once again and looked around and saw that Daisy and Luke were also answering the necessary questions. Looking around some more, he saw others who were in the process of donating blood and how calm and relaxed they were. "I can do this, I can do this," he kept repeating over and over, trying not to show how afraid he was. He practically jumped out of the chair when he felt a hand land on his shoulder.
"Take it easy there, Bo," Uncle Jesse chuckled, pushing Bo back into the chair. "How ya doin'?"
"I…I'm okay," Bo said as he tried to calm down once again.
"Ya sure? Ya look a might nervous to me."
"I guess I kinda am," Bo smiled back, his lips twitching slightly.
"Ya know, what you're doin' is a really good thing, even as scared as ya are," Jesse said as he patted the young man's shoulders.
"W…who says I'm scared?"
Jesse couldn't help but smile more. "Well, I can tell only because I know how much ya hate needles and because I've known ya since ya were a baby. There's not much ya can get past me, Bo Duke." Bo nodded his head in understanding. "But ya got nothing to be afraid of here. I can see that ya are in good hands," Jesse grinned as he saw Penny coming back over with the supplies she needed.
"Mr. Duke, so glad ta could help out today," Penny smiled as she saw the older man.
"Well, I figured since I was too old to donate, that I could at least help out in other ways," Jesse grinned back. "Besides, us Dukes never turn down a chance to help out, right Bo?"
"Oh yeah, sure," Bo agreed uneasily. "Always willin' to help out."
"I can tell," Penny said as she looked at younger Duke. "I knew Bo wouldn't let us down the moment I saw him."
"Uh y…yeah," Bo stammered out. "Can we get this over with?"
"Sure, let's do it," Penny whole heartily agreed.
"Well, I'll check on ya in a little bit, Bo," Jesse said, turning to find where Luke and Daisy were. "I'm gonna check on your cousins."
"Okay, Uncle Jesse," Bo called out as he watched his uncle walk over to where Daisy was.
"Alright Bo, the first thing we need to do is test your iron level."
"How do ya do that?"
"Oh I just need to prick one of your fingers with this little gadget. I then take a drop of blood and put it in this solution here. If it drops to the bottom, your iron level is fine. Ya ready?"
"No, but let's get it over with."
Bo looked away when Penny held onto one of his fingers, swabbed it down with alcohol, and placed the "gadget" on it. He winced and flinched when he felt the small needle prick his finger and opened his eyes enough to see her squeeze his finger and take a small amount of blood with a little tube. He watched as she dropped it in the solution and it fell to the bottom of the solution.
"Looks good, Bo," Penny said as she bandaged his finger. "Now I want ya to just relax while I get ya ready." Bo nodded again, too scared to say anything. "Bo, this ball is for ya to squeeze while ya donate. You'll squeeze once every five seconds or so to help fill the bag." Bo looked down at the item in his hand and suddenly had it in a death grip. "Relax Bo, not yet," Penny soothed while patting his arm.
Bo watched as Penny placed the pressure cuff around his arm again and checked for a vein. Finding one, she deflated the cuff, swabbed down his arm to sterilize the area and placed a four by four cloth bandage over the area. Penny then got the needle ready and inflated the cuff. "Okay, I need ya to squeeze the ball a couple of times." Bo obeyed by tightly gripping the ball. "Easy Bo, ya don't need to pop that thing. Now I need ta to hold a squeeze." Bo obeyed again as he looked away. He could feel her lifting the bandage and the point of the needle on his arm. "A little pinch…" she said as she inserted the needle into his vein.
Bo's yelp of pain surprised everyone in the room as they all turned to look at him. Luke could see that his baby cousin's face was scrunched up tight and that he was trying to squirm his way over the head of the chair. "Bo, relax," Penny yelled out as she saw her patient struggling to get away. She had managed to get a good stick and didn't want to interrupt the donation or most importantly, have Bo hurt himself.
Jesse, seeing the trouble his youngest was causing, quickly headed back over and held him down until Bo was calm enough to let go. "It's okay, Bo, you're doin' great," Jesse said in a calming voice. "Take nice, deep breaths and relax your hand a bit." As Jesse was talking, he was running his hand through Bo's hair, the same trick that he used when his nephew was little. Penny could see the calming effect it was having on the young man. Looking over at Jesse, she smiled and mouthed the words "thank you". Jesse just nodded as he continued to keep Bo calm.
Seven minutes later, Bo was done and Penny removed the needle from his arm. As Bo held pressure on the puncture sight, Jesse felt his nephew's shoulders relax and watched as Bo leaned heavily against the back of the chair. "Ya okay there, youngin'?" Jesse asked, concern clearly heard in his voice.
"Yeah, I'm okay now, Uncle Jesse," Bo said in relief. "Just glad that it's over with."
"Well ya did great, Bo," Penny said in praise as she handed off the freshly donated bag of blood.
"If ya call almost running out of here as the needle came near me great," Bo said embarrassed about what he did.
"Now Bo, don't ya go frettin' none about that," Jesse scolded lightly. "There's a lot of folks out there that won't even get near a place like this 'cause they're so afraid of donatin'."
"And next time that's gonna be me," Bo said adamantly.
"But you did so well," Penny said trying to encourage him to continue.
"If it's all the same to you, ma'am, I'd rather not have to go through this again."
"Well, I'll give ya credit at least for trying to do it this time," Penny conceded. "Not many people even make it this far. So tell me, how are ya feeling?" she asked as she placed a real bandage on his arm.
"Like I just lost a fight with a vampire."
"Tell ya what, if you're feeling good enough to get up, why don't ya go over to that table over there and get yourself some cookies and juice."
"Cookies?" Bo asked, his eyes lighting up in excitement.
"Yeah, cookies," Penny laughed. "After all, ya deserve it for being such a good sport about all of this. Just make sure ya rest there for about ten minutes. If ya start to feel sick or lightheaded, ya let someone know."
"Yes, ma'am," Bo said as Jesse helped him up and headed over to the table.
Bo sat at the table munching on his cookies when Luke finally came over, rolling his sleeve back down his arm. "Hey, cousin, how'd ya do?"
"Wonderful," Bo answered sarcastically. "Can't wait to do this again."
"Really?" Luke asked suspiciously.
"No, not really!" Bo answered. "You and Daisy may have tricked me this time but count me out the next time. I feel like I went ten rounds with a gorilla."
"Yeah, but just think about all the people you'll be helping," Luke suggested.
"Not gonna work, Luke. Me and needles don't mix," Bo replied as he got up to get himself more juice. The young man had taken only two steps when he suddenly stopped in his tracks and just stood there. Luke, who had been watching him, stopped eating his own cookie when his cousin just seemed to freeze into place.
"Bo? You okay?"
When Bo just stood there not saying or doing anything, Luke stood up and went over to him. Just as he got there, Bo's knees suddenly gave out and he crumbled to the ground, Luke catching him just in time before he hit the floor. "Bo? Come on Bo, wake up!" Luke called out as he held onto his cousin and slapped his face. Soon, several of the nurses were over there trying their best to revive the downed man, having Luke place Bo flat on his back as they placed a box under the younger man's feet.
Several minutes later, Bo's eyes finally flickered open and he looked around at all the unfamiliar faces that were hovering over him. "Bo, ya with us now?"
"What happened?" he asked, still feeling very groggy.
"Ya forgot to call for help," he heard a familiar voice say.
"Huh?" Bo asked as Penny's face finally came into focus.
"Ya fainted, Bo," Penny smiled back. "Were ya trying to scare everyone here? "'Cause if ya were, ya succeeded."
Bo continued to lie there as his mind began to function once again. "I…I fainted?" he asked at last.
"Yep, and thanks to Luke here, he saved ya from falling flat onto your face. Caught ya just in time," Penny smiled.
"And believe me, it's not easy catching a big oaf like you," Luke joke when he saw Bo's eyes landing on him. Bo could see the worry that was written all over his cousin's face.
"Uh, thanks," Bo said still trying to get his bearings.
"No problem, Cuz. Think ya can sit up now?"
Bo nodded and with the help of Luke and Penny was finally sitting on the floor instead of lying on it. They noticed his face was still pale and he felt like the room was still swimming a bit, but he was definitely feeling better than he was a few minutes ago. "Uh, sorry about all the excitement," he apologized, embarrassed once again at what he did.
"No apology necessary, Bo," Penny said in a soothing voice. "You're not the first one this has happened to. Here, drink some of this juice. It will help."
Bo gratefully took a couple of swallows and smiled back his thanks. "Why'd I pass out?"
"Oh, there are several reasons someone would pass out after giving blood, but I'm thinking in your case it was all the stress of the situation and the actual donating that caused ya to faint. But ya should be just fine after drinking some more juice to get your blood sugar back up and I suggest that ya continue to drink lots of fluids today and take it easy the rest of the day also. No strenuous activities."
"Don't ya worry about that, Penny," Uncle Jesse said as he stood over the small group. "I'll make sure that he rests even if I have ta tie him down."
"Well that's one way of doing it," Penny laughed. "Come on, let's get ya back on your feet." Once again with Luke and Penny's help, Bo was standing, albeit a bit shakily.
"Bo honey, ya all right?" Daisy asked as she came up beside him.
"Yeah, I'm fine now, Daisy," he smiled back and gave her a quick hug.
"Good. I'm sorry this happened to ya. I didn't mean for ya to go through all of this."
"It's all right. I'm fine now, but like I was tellin' Luke before I passed out, that I am not doin' this again."
"I don't blame ya and I won't asked ya to anymore," Daisy said. "Duke's honor." Bo couldn't' help but smile back at her.
"Come on, let's get ya home and restin'," Jesse ordered as he grabbed Bo by his arm. "Penny, ya take care of yourself and thank ya for helpin' Bo here."
"My pleasure, Jesse, and thank all of you for your help today."
The four of them quickly exited the building, with Bo getting into the truck, since Jesse felt it would be better not to have Bo climbing through car windows at the moment, while Luke and Daisy both got into the General. Jesse kept one eye on the road and the other on Bo as the young man leaned his head against the doorframe with his eyes closed. "Ya did good today, Sport, even if ya did end up on the floor."
"Just wished it would have turned out better. Nothing like embarrassing yourself in front of a room full of people."
"Don't worry about it, Bo," Jesse said as he placed his hand on Bo's shoulder. "Everyone understands. Not everyone is cut out to give blood, but I do agree with ya on one thing, next time there's a blood drive, you're stayin' home."
"No argument here, Uncle Jesse," Bo smiled. "I'll be more than willin' to stay home and do any kind of chore ya can think of."
Jesse sat there for a moment, deep in thought. With a twinkle in his eye, he turned to look at his nephew. "Well now, I might just be able to come up with something good," he said with a smile.
"Oh no," Bo groaned out knowing that he may have just made a big mistake. "Oh well, as long as it doesn't involved needles, I'll be just fine."
"I guess mending the clothes is out of the question then."
Bo turned and looked back at his uncle and broke out laughing. "Oh yeah, most definitely."
Jesse grinned backed at his nephew and noticed something sticking out of his shirt pocket. "What's that there in your shirt?"
"Huh?" Bo asked as he looked down and pulled out a piece of paper. "It's a note."
"Well, what does it say?"
Bo quickly unfolded it and read it out loud.
Dear Bo,
Thanks for coming in and donating. I just wish it hadn't been so rough on you though. But once you are feeling better, give me a call. My number is below.
Sincerely,
Penny.
"Yeehaw! Maybe things didn't turn out so badly after all," Bo said excitedly.
"Boy, you're the only one I know who can wrangle a date with a pretty girl while lying unconscious on the floor," Jesse said with a smirk on his face.
"I must have evoked the sympathy ploy without realizing it," Bo said with a smile.
"I'll say," Jesse answered while shaking his head in disbelief.
"Wait 'til Luke hears about this. I think I'll call her tonight."
"Oh no ya won't."
"What do ya mean?"
"Penny said that ya are not suppose to do anything strenuous for the rest of the day."
"But all I was gonna do was give her a call."
"And make a date with her for tonight…right?"
"Uh, well yeah," Bo smiled back sheepishly.
"And ya bein' a Duke, I know you'll want to go out jukin' and who knows what else."
Bo couldn't help but sigh. "Yeah. But how'd ya know?"
"I already done told ya that I've known ya since ya were a baby and that there's not much that ya can get past me. Besides, you're just like your Uncle Jesse," Jesse said with a sly grin. Bo smiled back. "That's why ya ain't callin' her today."
"Aww, but Uncle Jesse…"
"Don't you "but Uncle Jesse" me," he answered back gruffly. "You're stayin' in tonight and that's final."
The two men continued to argue as they headed back to the farm, Bo pleading to be able to call Penny and Jesse telling him no. Jesse smiled to himself knowing that his nephew was definitely feeling better.
The End
A/N: This one popped into my head after I gave blood and then I remembered how everyone writes about how much Bo hates needles. Sorry, couldn't resist.