Chapter 226

The Tegan and Sara team arrived back in LA the next day after a very successful promo trip in New York.

"Never thought I'd say I'm happy to be back in LA" said Kate stretching in her first class seat as the plane taxied to the airport building.

"Me too. How are you holding up sugar?" asked Sara and squeezed Kate's thigh.

"Good… getting there" smiled Kate. Her eyes were shadowed with exhaustion. Kate had been pushing it the last two days, insisting on accompanying Tegan and Sara to every interview. Sara knew that the look on Kate's face was more than just fatigue.

"You look really tired babe. You should get some rest when we get home" said Kate.

"I just got a good 5 hours of rest" smiled Kate.

"You didn't! Even if you did sit in one place for a couple of hours… let's use these few days at home to refuel please" said Sara.

"Sure, just need to get those tests done tomorrow" said Kate.

"No, somebody else can do it" said Sara.

"Sara… she's my patient" frowned Kate.

"You're suspended Kate! Anyway, I'm sure it can wait a couple of days?" said Sara.

"That's just… hot air, and convenience for me. I'll talk to the Chief to let me back for a day. It's not a big deal Sar, he'll agree to it. And I really want to get this done as quickly as possible" said Kate.

"I know he will… and that scares me… that he'll lure you back"

"It's just a couple of tests Sar. And I'm not going anywhere. I promise. But Tegan's my patient, I'm in it for the long run. We'll be out of there in no time babe. Everything's cool" said Kate.

"Okay… I trust you" said Sara and unbuckled her seatbelt.

-o-

"See you guys… when we see you. Thanks for the last few days, its been… interesting" said Tegan getting into the parked SUV sent to pick them up.

"Tegan, I just spoke to the team at the hospital. We can run those tests tomorrow. Security will pick me up around 8 and we'll be at your place two minutes after" said Kate.

"Fuck… do we have to. I'm fine now, seriously. Anyway, you're still sick" said Tegan.

"I think it would be wise, yes. Please Tegan. Oh and I'm not going to run a marathon, I'm perfectly fine" said Kate.

"I really have better things to do but okay, whatever makes you happy Doc" said Tegan rolling her eyes.

"Baby, I think it's a good idea too" said Lindsey.

"I said I'll go… just drop it now" said Tegan annoyed.

-0-

"Are you going to run a drug tests while she's there?" asked Sara when they were in their own, separate vehicle.

"I don't think I should take advantage of her trust in me" said Kate.

"She doesn't need to know" said Sara.

"Sar, it's unethical"

"Unethical is letting her slip Kate… please, please do it… just to put our minds at ease"

"I'll think about it" said Kate staring out of the window.

-o-

The next morning Tegan was sitting in Kate's office sipping a cup of tea while she waited for Kate to finish a conversation with the Chief of Staff about her being at the hospital.

"Hey, it will be okay" said Lindsey and kissed Tegan's knuckles.

"I know… I'm not worried" Tegan lied. She was terrified, the way she always was when being scanned, monitored, poked and prodded.

"It's just a routine follow up baby" said Lindsey.

"Yeah… just routine" Tegan said softly.

"Alright guys, everything's clear for us to proceed" said Kate walking into the room wearing jeans and a navy blue button down shirt with her lab coat over it.

"Ah the coat is back" said Tegan.

"Well… have to give them some kind of indication that I still belong here" Kate smiled.

Tegan took a deep breath and got up.

"Let's get you settled in the exam room" said Kate, not looking worried. In fact, she looked thrilled to be back in her domain.

Tegan looked down as she followed Kate down the hall to the exam room.

"Dr Morgan! Good to have you back!" said a nurse.

"Thanks, just for the day though" Kate smiled.

"Pity, we miss you like mad. How's the hand?" the nurse said.

"No problems, should be rid of this cast in a couple of weeks. Not expecting any complications"

"Good news, can't wait to have you back" said the nurse.

-o-

Abby, Kate's trusted right hand was already waiting in the exam room.

"Hi Tegan, Lindsey, good to see you both. Sorry it's in here though" she smiled.

"You too… and tell me about it" Tegan grunted.

"We'll give you a moment to get into the gown" Abby smiled and left the room with Kate.

Lindsey stayed and watched Tegan pull her shirt and bra off. Her eyes skimmed her lover's familiar body and settled for a long moment on the scars on her chest. They were now so part of Tegan that she usually didn't even notice them anymore. Today she did, and it made her breath hitch and her pulse double.

"Linds?" Tegan frowned.

"You're so gorgeous" Lindsey said softly.

Tegan smiled. "Now may not be the time for foreplay hot stuff" she said and climbed out of her jeans.

"I'm free to look, you're all mine after all" said Lindsey.

"I am indeed… every bit of me" said Tegan pulling the gown on.

"Tie me up please" she said and turned her back to Lindsey.

Lindsey tied the gown up and put her hand on Tegan's panty clad bum and gave it a light squeeze.

Tegan giggled, the tension leaving her body a bit.

Kate cleared her throat as she came back into the room. Tegan gave her a cocky wink before plonking down on the bed.

"All yours" she said with her hands behind her head.

Kate could of course see right through Tegan's self-assured façade but she went with it.

"Abs, full blood count, ABG, CBC, coags please and when you're done you can get some baseline vitals for me" said Kate.

"On it" Abby smiled.

Abby took about four vials of blood.

"Jeez don't run me dry here" said Tegan.

"Oh you'll be okay" Abby smiled as she handed the blood samples to another nurse.

Kate was listening to Tegan's heart and lungs. "Oi, quite down for a minute" she said and listened intently again.

"BP's 115 over 75, pulse 80, sats looking good at 99" Abby reported.

"Booya!" Tegan exclaimed and gave Abby a fist pump.

"Abs, what time will radiology be ready for us?" asked Kate hanging her stethoscope around her neck.

"15 minutes" said Abby looking at her watch.

"Great, get a line started with a slow saline drip" said Kate.

"No fucking way… I didn't agree on drips" said Tegan folding her arms stubbornly.

"Tegan relax, its just so we have an open line to inject the contrast material for the MRI" said Kate.

"It comes out straight after" said Tegan.

"Yes… alright" said Kate shaking her head with a bit of a smile.

"Lie back down for me" said Kate and started palpating Tegan's abdomen.

"News flash, my belly's fine" said Tegan dryly.

"Why don't you just leave the doctoring to me" said Kate and continued to pretty much check every inch of her friend, her glands, her back, the muscle tone in her arms and shoulders to her thighs and calves. She checked reflexes, did neuro obs, the works.

"Is this really necessary or are you just bored" asked Tegan.

"Its necessary buddy" said Kate seriously.

Kate pulled the neck of Tegan's gown down and put the gelled up eco cardiogram probe on her chest. She frowned with concentration as she looked at the screen, measuring every valve and muscle in Tegan's heart.

"Structurally your heart is looking good, no enlargement, valves are fine… We'll do a stress test later to check your rhythm" said Kate.

Tegan just sighed and rolled her eyes.

Kate proceeded with the first of the lung function tests. She blew into a variety of tubes and looked smug. She never felt out of breath, no wheezing. All under control.

"Good job. Your resting lung function looks fine. We'll see how you do on the treadmill after the scans" said Kate.

"You didn't say anything about treadmills" Tegan complained.

"Toughen up buttercup" Kate winked.

"Radiology's ready for us" said Abby and put the brakes on the stretcher up.

"Bye baby… I love you. See you soon okay" said Tegan, suddenly looking paled and scared.

"I'll be right here when you get out okay" smiled Lindsey.

Tegan nodded, biting her bottom lip to keep her tears inside.

"I love you so much. Everything is going to be fine" Lindsey whispered into Tegan's ear and softly kissed her.

"Here we go" said Kate and started pushing.

Tegan reluctantly let go of Lindsey's hand and stared at the ceiling lights flashing by one by one.

She turned her gaze to Kate, confidently walking next to the bed, her hand on the side rail.

Tegan put her hand on Kate's and Kate looked down.

"I've got you" Kate mouthed and smiled.

-o-

Tegan spent about 45 minutes in the noisy MRI machine. The classical music coming from the headphones didn't seem to help much. She lay perfectly still, very aware that movement will only make them want to do the scans again.

"Okey dokey" said Kate as Tegan's body slid out of the tube.

"Did you really just use the term okey dokey" said Tegan with a raised eyebrow.

Kate smiled.

"So… what did you see" Tegan asked.

"Everything looks good. I'm happy. Lungs still have some residual damage, which I expected but there's no spots, no masses" said Kate.

"Cool, let's get the exercise out of the way so I can go home" said Tegan.

"Alright, stay put" Kate laughed and pushed Tegan back to the exam room.

"Boo! How'd it go?" asked Lindsey jumping up, looking nervous.

"Good! It was hell of a noisy and uncomfortable though" said Tegan.

"Kate what did you see?" asked Lindsey after kissing Tegan, clutching her hand again.

"Everything looks fine Linds… as I told Tee. A little bit of damage still remains but noting to be concerned about at all. We're going to do the stress test now and we'll discuss all the results in detail when the blood test results are back" said Kate.

Lindsey nodded looking everything but confident.

"You okay baby?" she asked with her forehead against Tegan's.

"I'm great babe… really. Having you here helps of course" said Tegan and kissed Lindsey softly.

"Okay lovers, not the stress test I had in mind" said Kate as she started attaching EKG leads to Tegan's chest.

A few minutes later Tegan was walking on the treadmill at a reasonably fast pace biting onto a mouthpiece to measure her lung function. Kate was studying the EKG screen carefully.

"You okay there Tee?" she asked looking up.

Tegan nodded, sweat now trickling down her face.

"Can we up the speed to a jog for a minute or two?" Kate asked.

Tegan just shrugged and kept concentrating regulating her breathing and on putting one foot in front of the other.

"Okay here we go, let me know if you need to stop" said Kate.

Tegan started jogging, she closed her eyes in concentration. Her mouth was dry with the mouthpiece in and she longed for a drink of water.

"You're doing amazing Tegan. Good job" said Abby.

Kate was pointing at the screen and discussing something with the cardiologist and pulmonologist. Tegan couldn't figure out what they were saying, she wasn't trying, she just focussed on staying upright.

She started to feel out of breath, the mouthpiece seemed to hinder her breathing, Tegan felt as if not enough air was flowing through the tube. She yanked it out and gasped while still running, stumbling to keep up with the treadmill.

"Whoaaa, okay Tee we're turning it down"

The treadmill slowed down fast and Tegan tripped and ended up on her knees, gasping for breath. She pulled the clip off her nose. Tegan sat back on her ankles and put shaky hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath.

"Okay, you're alright" said Kate watching Tegan's vital signs on the monitor. Tegan pulled out her inhaler.

"Hang on with the inhaler for a minute" said Kate. Two nurses helped Tegan up and onto a chair.

"Deep breaths! Your breathing was just fine before this Tee, what happened?" asked Kate.

"I… I just felt as if I was being smothered suddenly… I panicked" said Tegan.

"That's pretty normal too… just relax now, you're okay" said Kate and listened to Tegan's lungs.

"Sounds okay, your pulse is racing though. Sats are in the 80s"

"Just still trying to calm down" said Tegan.

"BPs 130 over 90" said a nurse.

"No problem there. Just take it easy bud. I'm going to have a chat to the docs over there. I'll be back in a minute" said Kate and patted Tegan's shoulder before turning.

"Abby, let's give her 10 liters of 02 by mask until those sats are above 95" said Kate calmly.

Tegan leaned back in the chair and watched Kate interact with her colleagues. She may be the youngest but it was clear that she carried a lot of clout. They were pointing at the EKG screen and images with scans on the wall. Tegan couldn't hear what they were saying. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.

"Well, I guess you've had enough exercise for one day. Why don't you grab a shower and something to eat. All the test results, including bloods will be back around two. I'll be in my office" said Kate.

"Don't you want to have lunch with us?" asked Tegan, still a bit out of breath.

"I'll ask my PA to order me a sandwich, have to fill out the paperwork for all this and complete a report. Oh and I want to be home before dinner or Sara will kill me" Kate smiled.

"Okay, thanks Kate. How are you feeling? You look a bit paler than normal" said Tegan.

"I'm absolutely fine. I can feel that's I've been through the ringer but I'm okay. Promise" said Kate.

"Well go do your paperwork then so you can go home and get some rest already" said Tegan.

"Hey poppet" said Lindsey as Tegan walked back into the room. "How'd it go?"

"Fine, until I panicked and almost fell on my face" Tegan said rolling her eyes.

"Why did you panic?" asked Lindsey.

"That fucking thing in my mouth… my nose pinned… just felt as if I couldn't breathe"

"Oh Boo… you okay?"

"I'm fine, really, I'm good. I'm just very sweaty so I'm going to take a shower before buying you lunch at the cafeteria. Kate said we should be back in her office at two" said Tegan.

"Alright… make it fast, I'm starving" winked Lindsey.

-0-

Tegan stared out in front of her, hardly touching her food.

"Tegan, you okay?" asked Lindsey.

"Huh?"

"You okay?"

"Oh, yeah I'm fine…. Just thinking. You know... I actually did pretty well on that treadmill. I'm going to ask Kate if I can up my training a bit. Maybe she'll train with me when she's healed up from surgery" said Tegan.

"Sounds good. As long as you get Kate's medical clearance"

"Of course, I want to start biking again too. There's some pretty great mountain biking trails around the parts we're touring" said Tegan.

Lindsey smiled from ear to ear.

"What?" asked Tegan.

"Nothing… I'm just so happy to see you excited about getting out there again"

"We just need to be careful" said Tegan.

"We will be. Maybe we can have the bikes serviced and cleaned this week. They're so dusty. We need to get our gear washed too"

"I can't wait… we just need to get Sara on a bike now" said Tegan.

"Well, we haven't been on our bikes for two years Tegan. I'm pretty sure Kate hadn't either so we'll be pretty much back to beginners level anyway"

Tegan, Lindsey, Kate and Erin had become enthusiastic mountain bikers in the two years before Tegan got sick. They all loved doing it and were pretty good at it. They rode early mornings in the various routes around LA. They were all super fit and toned before tragedy struck. Kate still maintained that Tegan's great physical condition helped pull her through the illness.

"I just need my lungs to hold out" said Tegan looking concerned.

"I'm sure they'll appreciate the extra training babe. Anyway, we'll take it very easy at first"

Tegan nodded and swallowed hard. Doubt starting to nibble at her enthusiasm again.

"Your body was so fucking hot back when we were riding" said Lindsey taking Tegan's hand over the table.

"What are you saying it's not hot anymore?" laughed Tegan.

"Oh it's hot, but your biking bod is just something else, boiling hot" laughed Lindsey.

"I can use some endorphins again. I just really don't want to have to use my inhaler a thousand times a ride you know"

"Don't be silly, your inhaler doesn't contain a thousand puffs" smiled Lindsey.

"We'll discuss it with Kate. See what she thinks. Meanwhile, we shouldn't get too excited" said Tegan and took a bite from her sandwich.

"You nervous about the tour?" asked Lindsey.

"Yeah… I guess. I'm always nervous before tour though" said Tegan.

"It's going to be one wild ride that's for sure" Lindsey laughed.

"You think they'll be okay?"

"Who? The twins?"

"Yeah"

"Babe, they're going to have a ball. Kids adjust so fast" said Lindsey.

"I hope so, don't want them unhappy for a minute" said Tegan.

"I love you that" said Lindsey and kissed Tegan's knuckles.

-0-

Kate's PA came out of her office carrying a tray with two empty coffee cups and a half eaten sandwich.

"You can go in, she's expecting you" she smiled at Tegan and Lindsey.

Tegan took a deep breath and entered the office. Kate sat at the desk filling out paperwork. When she looked up and took her glasses off Tegan noticed that she looked tired.

"Sit down please guys. You have a good lunch?" asked Kate smiling and rubbing her eyes.

"As good as a cafeteria sandwich can be thanks" laughed Lindsey.

Tegan looked a shade paler than normal and sat down.

Kate's PA entered again and handed her some papers and had a brief discussion with her. It felt like an eternity before Kate sat down.

"Sorry about that, where were we" Kate smiled.

Tegan let out the breath she didn't realise she was holding.

"Okay… So your tests looked pretty good for the most part. We've already discussed a lot of the results"

Kate put images on her computer screen of Tegan's lungs and heart and pointed out a few things that Tegan didn't really understand.

"The cardiologist, the pulmonologist, everybody agrees with me that your health is very much under control right now. You actually did great on that treadmill. EKG looked absolutely perfect. Lung function looked pretty good. I'm going to adjust your meds a bit, see if we can get the frequency of inhaler use down. Bloods look good too. All in all I'm very happy and seriously impressed" Kate smiled widely.

Tegan swallowed hard and whispered "Thank you"

"Of course, you will probably still expect incidents of respiratory distress but we'll manage it. I also want to try a different inhaler that may offer you faster relief" said Kate.

"That sounds good" said Tegan softly, she was still mentally working through the good test results comment.

"Baby, that's so great" said Lindsey squeezing Tegan's hand.

Tegan nodded.

"Tee… hellooo…. You're allowed to be happy about this" smiled Kate and waved a hand in front of her face.

Tegan suddenly let out a sob and covered her face with her hands. "Thank you… I'm happy, I'm so happy… Thank you…. I'm sorry"

Kate walked around her desk and put her hand on Tegan's shoulder. "Its okay buddy… let it out. Well done… I'm proud of you"

"Thank you" said Tegan again and blew her nose on a tissue Lindsey handed to her.

"I'll continue to monitor you closely on tour. I'll keep an eye on your reaction to the new meds and I'll make sure we keep that immune system in tip-top shape"

"Can I exercise again? I don't mean… walking or fucking water aerobics. Can I bike again… and run?" Tegan asked.

"I don't see why not. Let me go with you the first few times though and take the necessary precautions. I think it's a good idea. I've been itching to get back on the bike myself" Kate smiled.

"Really?" Tegan asked looking shocked.

"Sure" said Kate gathering paperwork.

"Thank you… Thank you Kate" said Lindsey.

"You still have a pretty serious chronic medical condition but it's under control and you're doing great. No reason why go can't go out and just… live your life you know. You're free to perform, free to exercise. But I want you to talk to me Tegan. Open cards bud. If anything feels off at any time you tell me… promise me that. No being a hero" said Kate.

"I promise" Tegan smiled.

"Here's your new script. You can pick up the meds at the pharmacy on your way out. Let me know how you feel on them" said Kate.

"Yes Ma'am. I'll report back soon"

"Okay… that's it then. Again, congratulations Tegan" smiled Kate and got up.

Tegan put her elbows on her knees and her forehead on her palms.

"Just give me a minute… please" said Tegan taking deep breaths. Letting it all sink in.

Lindsey and Kate had their hands on her back a second later. Tegan could feel their warm, calm energy radiating into her.

A minute later Tegan got up and hugged Kate. She pulled away and looked at her friend, her hands on her shoulders. Kate looked tired and pale, dark shadows under her eyes.

"Let's get you home Doc" said Tegan.

"I just need to finish this paperwork. I'll get home fine, you guys go ahead" said Kate.

"No… we're waiting for you in that case. You look terrible Kate, no offense. Our turn to take care of you now" said Tegan.

"I'm okay, I just need to take it easy for a day or two" said Kate and sat back down behind her desk.

"We're going to get some coffee in the coffee shop on the ground floor. Call me when you're ready. And take your time… but not too much time because you need to be on the couch in front of the TV with your feet up, maybe a little pizza…. Maybe a beer" said Tegan winking.

"You make it sound completely irresistible. Get out of here so I can finish this up" laughed Kate.

A/N: Yay! Tegan's okay!