Chapter 31: Cold
With the Physical Therapist, Tech, and Nurse now gone, Kensi sat quietly on the couch, right next to the chair Callen was sitting in. She watched him nod off a couple of times, but mostly he just sat silently, staring straight ahead. Kensi wondered what was behind that vacant stare: Was he trying to remember something? Was he thinking about something in his past? Or was this the look of G Callen planning his escape from the hospital? Kensi smiled to herself. She really hoped the escape scenario was not actually an option. Sam would not be happy.
After a while, G finally spoke. "What day are we on?"
"Monday."
Another minute passed.
"Where's Sam?"
"He and Deeks are working a case."
Callen thought for a few moments. Worry suddenly filled his eyes. "Zamora," he thought aloud.
"This is a just fact-finding op. They're checking out some guys to see if there's a connection to Zamora's organization."
Kensi could see that G was still troubled. She leaned to her left and placed her hand on the back of his splinted hand. "Callen. Our partners are both very good at undercover work. They're going to be fine."
The tension finally left G's eyes. He resumed his state of silence, staring straight ahead.
At 9:45, the Physical Therapist and Tech returned. Using the therapist for support, Callen was able to make it to the bed in five slow, but painful steps. Because of the height of the bed, getting up onto the mattress didn't go quite as smoothly as getting out of bed. More assistance was required and there were a few grunts and hisses in the process.
When Monica came to reconnect the IV, Kensi walked down to the waiting area, stretching her legs and giving the nurse some time to tend to Callen.
Eleven o'clock rolled around and Callen was even less interested in his lunch than he had been in his breakfast. But Kensi coaxed him into eating all of his Jell-O and two bites of broth.
After the lunch tray had been removed, Kensi noticed G was becoming increasingly restless. It wasn't clear if he was in pain, or just couldn't find a comfortable position. Every few minutes, he would bend his left knee, and then immediately slide his heel back down to the foot of the bed.
"Are you hurting?" Kensi finally asked.
"I need out of this bed," he answered through clenched teeth.
Kensi immediately notified the nurse.
The fidgeting, and the bending and straightening of the left leg continued until the therapy team and Nurse Monica showed up at 12:20.
H, the Physical Therapist, approached the bed. "So… I hear you're already wanting to get up again. Are you sure?"
Callen didn't have to answer. The desperate look in his eyes spoke volumes.
"Then let's do this."
The nurse stationed herself on the far side of the bed, next to the window and the therapist and aide assisted him to a sitting position on the side of the bed.
Carefully lifting up the IV tubing leading to her patient's left arm, Monica began rolling the IV machine around the food of the bed, carefully holding the tubing up so as to not snag on anything. "I'm not going to disconnect the IV this time. "Since it appears you're going to be out of the bed more often than originally anticipated, I'd rather you not go that much time without the benefits of the fluids," she explained while parking the machine between the bed and the chair Callen would be transferred to.
It took Callen a few unsteady steps, and the help of the young therapist (mostly to slow the patient down), to make it to the chair.
When the P.T. was sure the patient was settled in the chair, he looked at his watch. "We'll be back around 1:15."
Callen was still in the chair when Monica brought his 1:00 meds. Just as the time before, she apologetically told him that he couldn't pick up the medicine; she had to put the capsules into his mouth herself and make sure he swallowed them.
Twenty minutes later, H and the therapy aide returned. While helping the patient back to bed, the therapist noted that there was much more hesitation before each step, and that "Mr. Carter" seemed to be having difficulty judging where the side of the bed began.
After getting Callen situated in bed, the P.T. came closer to where Kensi and Monica were standing. "He seems to be having some depth perception issues this afternoon," he said, keeping his voice low.
"That's one of the side-effects of his new medication," Monica said softly.
"Same thing happened this morning when he was trying to feed himself," Kensi reported. "He kept misjudging with his fork and knocked his juice over."
"How long did it last?" Monica inquired.
"Maybe less than an hour?"
"Thanks. I'll make a note of it in his chart. Anything else you've noticed?"
Kensi thought for a few seconds. "Not really. Other than he gets pretty groggy right after he takes the pills."
All heads turned in the direction of the hospital bed when Callen hissed. He slowly bent and straightened his left leg several times and then clumsily turned over onto his left side, facing the window.
Only a minute after the medical staff had cleared the hospital room, Kensi could hear soft, steady breathing coming from Callen's bed. The medicine had definitely kicked in.
G was still sleeping with his back to the door when Deeks showed up at ten after two.
"Hey, partner," Kensi greeted softly. "How'd it go?"
"Don't know yet," he said, plopping down beside her on the vinyl couch. "Nell and Eric are sorting through everything."
Kensi reached up and playfully tousled Deeks' wet hair. "I'm guessing by your freshly shampooed mop that you went undercover as a sanitation worker?"
"Nope." He batted her hand away and then shielded his head with both arms. "Pest control. And they were definitely in need of an exterminator." Marty shuddered. "Even Sam took an extra-long shower when we got back to the office. And he doesn't have these glorious golden locks to wash."
"It was really that bad?"
"Yeah. That apartment was beyond nasty. It was worse than your place."
"Hey!" Kensi protested a little too forcefully, causing G to stir.
"Shhhh." Deeks held his index finger up to Kensi's lips. "Inside voice, Kensalina," he whispered, now having his hand batted away.
Kensi got up from the couch and tiptoed around to the side of the bed Callen was facing. She watched him for a moment. "Sorry," she said when his tired eye squinted up at her.
Kensi glanced up briefly when Sam silently slipped through the door that Deeks had left partially open. She looked back down at Callen and noticed how dry his lips had become while he was sleeping. "Do you need anything? Are you thirsty?"
"I'm good," G answered hoarsely. Still looking at Kensi, he opened his eyes a little wider and asked, "Did you bring me some clothes, Sam?"
Sam's mouth dropped open in surprise. "How'd you know I was here? I haven't made a sound."
"Baby powder."
Sam scowled. He lifted his arm and sniffed the sleeve of his shirt. "I don't smell like baby powder," he said gruffly.
"Yes, you do," Deeks and Kensi sounded simultaneously.
Ignoring the comments concerning his choice of hygiene fragrance, Sam began carefully studying Callen. After a moment, the ex-SEAL's eyes narrowed. "You cold, G?"
"Little bit," came a soft response.
Still staring at his partner's back from across the room, Sam frowned. "Little bit? I can see you shivering from here."
A confused expression appeared on Kensi's face. "Why didn't you say something, Callen? I'll get you another blanket."
Deeks appeared equally as confused. "What?...Wait. How did Sam see that from…" he trailed off when he got a 'just leave it alone' look from his partner.
Kensi went to the closet and Sam came around to the other side of the bed to check on G.
Sam touched the outside of Callen's arm. Then he reached down to the foot of the bed, pushed the covers to the side, and touched G's left foot. "Your feet feel like ice. Kensi, does he have any socks in the closet?"
Kensi carried a pale coral blanket over the bed and peered down at the bare foot that had been uncovered. "He's supposed to have on socks. The therapy people put them on him earlier."
Sam raised up the edge of the covers and found G was still wearing a white ankle-high sock on his right foot. He pulled the covers completely down to the foot of the bed and located the sock that had come off earlier when Callen was restlessly moving his leg up and down. "Here it is," Sam said, and then slipped the sock back on G's foot.
With the covers out of the way, Callen took this opportunity to turn onto his back.
It was only then that Kensi and Marty saw what Sam had noticed earlier; Callen's ever so slight trembling.
Together, Kensi and Sam pulled up and straightened the sheet and light-weight blanket, and then unfolded and spread the thicker, coral blanket over Callen.
Sam looked down at his partner. "Have you been drinking a lot of liquids?"
"Yes, mom," Callen responded sarcastically. Then his expression turned more serious. "D'you bring my clothes?"
"Nope."
"I told you to bring me back some clothes."
"And have Hetty to answer to when you try to bust out of here? I'm not stupid."
One side of G's mouth turned up into a slight grin. "You're a big guy, Sam. I think you can take her."
"Oh, I seriously doubt that, Mr. Callen," came an authoritative female voice from the door way.
It was Sam's turn to smirk when Callen flinched.
After placing her handbag in the closet, Hetty went to the side of the bed.
Callen looked up bashfully, and then lowered his eyes while being visually scanned from head to toe by his tiny boss.
"Are you cold, Mr. Callen?"
Deeks let out a quick breath. "How do they do that?"
Without looking up, Callen signaled 'yes' with a single nod.
Hetty made her way back to the closet, opened the door, and peered up onto the empty shelf that had contained the coral blanket.
"We just now put an extra blanket on him," Kensi explained.
"Well then, we'll just have to get another." Hetty closed the closet door and excited the room like a woman on a mission.
Deeks, still staring at the door, clicked his tongue three times. "I pity the fool…"
In the next few moments of silence, everyone in the room mentally finished Deeks' sentence: …who gets in the way of Hetty taking care of Callen.
