Chapter 3

Hutch frowned as he looked at the reading on the thermometer; Starsky's fever was up to 102 and showed no signs of coming down anytime soon. The brunet's face was covered with sweat but his skin was hot and dry to touch. Hutch gently slipped one arm under the dark curls and lifted Starsky's body up from the bed just enough to hold the glass of water against his parched lips to try and get some badly needed fluids into his friend.

"Come on, babe…" he said in a soft, encouraging voice "You have to drink something for me." Starsky moaned softly and tried to swat Hutch's hand away, refusing to drink. Not to be deterred, Hutch tipped the glass and let some of the water drip into the brunet's mouth. Almost immediately, Starsky began to gag.

Quickly, Hutch grabbed the basin sitting on the nightstand and held it while Starsky's body rejected the fluids. Since his stomach was empty, all he vomited was a little bile before his retching turned into painful dry heaves. When the gut wrenching heaves finally stopped, Starsky flopped back against the pillow, panting heavily. Hutch wet a washcloth and gently bathed the beloved face. He knew that Starsky was on the verge of becoming dangerously dehydrated. If he couldn't get him to keep some liquids down soon, he would have no choice but to take him to the hospital.

It had been almost two days since Starsky had come down with this particularly nasty strain of the flu. His condition had deteriorated too quickly for Hutch's taste and the big blond was beyond worried. The high fever and retched vomiting was quickly depleting Starsky's natural reserve of energy. With a heavy sigh, Hutch made the only decision he could. He reached for the phone and called for an ambulance. Starsky needed more care than Hutch was able to provide at the moment. The brunet could kick his ass later for taking him to the hospital.

Hutch paced the floor impatiently as he waited for help to arrive. Starsky appeared to have fallen back into a deep, restless slumber. His face twitched in his sleep and his breathing had a harsh wheezing sound that bothered Hutch. When the ambulance arrived, Hutch hurried ushered the two paramedics into the bedroom, hovering anxiously in the background as they checked Starsky's vital signs and prepared him for transport.

Fragments of the conversation between the two paramedics as they worked did little to calm Hutch's nerves "Low blood pressure….dehydration…build up of fluid in the lungs…high fever…"

Finally, the two men loaded Starsky on the portable gurney and wheeled him out of the apartment with Hutch close behind. As they loaded the stretcher into the back of the waiting ambulance, one of the paramedics held out a hand when Hutch started to climb on board to join his partner.

"I'm sorry, Hutch." Rick Barnet said gently. "There's not enough room. Dave's in pretty bad shape and we need the room to be able to work on him. You'll have to follow us." The young paramedic and his partner had worked with the two detectives often in the past and were both familiar with their unique bond, especially when one of them was hurt or ill.

In the past, they had often bent the rules where the two friends were concerned but this was one time that he had to tell Hutch no. He saw the disappointed look that crossed the handsome blond's face but Hutch didn't argue. He jogged over to Starsky's car and quickly climbed behind the wheel, the powerful engine roaring to life. Rick pulled shut the rear door to the ambulance as his partner pulled into the street. He heard the Torino's siren echoing the siren on the ambulance as they raced towards the hospital.

The recent flu epidemic had kept them busy. Several people, primarily the elderly or young children had already been hospitalized. Rick paid careful attention to his patient as the ambulance raced through the busy mid day traffic. He didn't like the sound of Starsky's breathing or the pinched, tight look on his ruggedly handsome face. This was by far one of the worst cases of the flu Rick had seen so far and it seemed to have hit the brunet especially hard.

At the hospital, Starsky was rushed into one of the examination rooms while Hutch was left behind to fill out the necessary paperwork. After signing the brunet in, Hutch found a phone to call Captain Dobey and tell him about Starsky's admission to the hospital. Then he waited, pacing the waiting room like a caged tiger, drawing some anxious looks from the medical staff and other visitors.

It wasn't long before Hutch was joined in his vigil by Caption Dobey and a good friend of the two detectives, Huggy Bear, a local bar owner and part time informant. Huggy immediately got Hutch some coffee from one of the vending machines while Captain Dobey coaxed the big blond into sitting down in one of the uncomfortable plastic chairs in the waiting room.

"He's sick, Cap…really sick." Hutch said in a quiet, almost detached voice, as he accepted the offering of coffee from Huggy. He held the cup loosely in his hands without drinking it.

"This flu is a really nasty little bug." Huggy said, sliding into a seat beside Hutch "Anita and Diane are both sick with it. But Curly's gonna be fine. The doctor's will fix him right up. You'll see."

Since Starsky had almost died the year before in an assassination attempt in the police parking garage, Hutch had been even more protective of his best friend and his health. Starsky had gone through hell fighting his way back to the job he loved. Although he had beaten all odds, he had been left with a severely weakened left lung that was especially prone of viral infections. A simple cold could easily turn into pneumonia if Starsky wasn't careful. Hutch was constantly on guard for anything that could jeopardize Starsky's welfare. He felt overwhelmed with guilt, afraid that he had waited too long this time to get Starsky the medical treatment he needed. But, he knew how much Starsky hated being in the hospital.

Since the shooting, the burnet had developed paranoia about being hospitalized for any reason. After all he had gone through after the shooting, he had insisted having his lawyer draw up papers, stating quite clearly his wishes not to be kept alive by artificial means if he were ever in a life threatening situation again. He had also signed a DNR order which stated that he did not wish to be revived if his heart ever stopped again like it did after the shooting. Hutch had objected strenuously but Starsky had pointed out that it was his life and his decision. The brush with death had changed the brunet dramatically. He still embraced life with his usual spontaneity and zest but he also accepted his own mortality. The legal documents were simply Starsky's way of exerting control over his eventual fate in his own way. Eventually, Hutch had come to accept that even though the thought of losing his partner and best friend still terrified him.

Hutch instinctively bounced to his feet whenever a doctor came into the waiting room with news about one of the patients in the treatment area. His shoulders sagged each time someone's name was called besides the one he needed to hear. Finally, a familiar face stepped out from behind the closed doors to the emergency area. It was Doctor Franklin, a doctor who had treated Starsky in the past and was familiar with his medical history. Hutch was on his feet and hurrying towards him before he could ever speak.

"It's all right, Ken." Doctor Franklin said when he saw the anxious, worried look in those pale blue eyes. "We have Dave stabilized and on his way to a room. We've started him on fluids and antibiotics and you can see him as soon as they get him settled in."

"Thank God." Hutch said with a relieved sigh. "So it's just the flu that's been going around?"

"It looks that way but based on David's medical history, I've ordered a full set of tests to make sure we don't miss anything that we should be aware of."

"Thanks, Doc." Hutch said with a grateful grin

"We can't be too careful with our 'miracle patient'." Doctor Franklin said with a chuckle. "Why don't you go get something to eat? It'll probably be at least half an hour before you can see David and he's sedated so he probably won't even know you're there."

"He'll know." Hutch said confidently

Doctor Franklin's eyes twinkled "Yes, I'm sure he will."

During Starsky's previous hospitalizations, the doctor had witnessed the unique bond between the two men. He had seen how Hutch's touch could soothe and comfort the brunet better than any medicine he could prescribe. He had already instructed the medical staff that Hutch was to be allowed unlimited access to the brunet's room. He knew that was the best medicine for Starsky right now. Top of Form

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