A/N: Thank you very much for the reviews.
The NG goes in.
Steve reentered the exam room, following the doctor again. This time, with Lou beside him. They had been briefly explained the most immediate steps that will be followed. They were not asked to wait outside. It was implicitly understood they will refuse and nobody wanted to waste any time with it. They were allowed to stay, but respecting the inviolably condition to not interfere and stay out of the way. So they went to the side of the room. Lou sat on an empty exam table, crossed his arms over his chest and with one hand covered his mouth and chin. Steve stood rigidly on the exact edge of the permitted area he was allowed to be without breaking the condition. His face was contorted on a frown, his lips extremely tight and his eyes, which moved uncontrollably to try to catch everything, were the only movement he evidenced.
Danny had been transferred from the rigid exam table to a more comfortable clinical bed. The bright white lights had been lowered and the pace had slowed down, giving the whole situation an apparent sense of calm for the welfare of the patient. Danny´s wrists and ankle had been loosely covered, manacles and all, with a fine sterilized gauze. A nurse was gently rinsing his face with a clean wet cloth, and then dried it with another. It was clearly obvious that, barely conscious, Danny was no longer recording anything that happened around him but was instead just weakly reacting to the touch.
After the first exam, it was determined that, beside the fluids that intravenously were being given to him since found, the priority was that Danny should be given some immediate nourishment. A proper amount of food product will be effectively sent directly to his stomach through a nasogastric tube. The doctor established it to be the best and most efficient option due to the weakened state of his patient, the extremely lack of strength plus all the stress and shock Danny was experiencing.
Picking up a tubing from a tray, the doctor prepared it while he waited for the nurse to finish running an antiseptic covered swab on the inside of Danny´s nostrils to clean them. The total lack of reaction was a certain indication that they will be missing the cooperative part the patient has to make during this particular procedure, such as bend forward or swallow.
"Ok Danny, we are going to insert a tube down your nose to your stomach so you can get some food and medicine. It will be very uncomfortable but you just relax, ok champion?" The physician addressed his patient anyway, although he knew there was no comprehension. After lifting the head of the bed, the nurse gave a mild flexion to Danny´s neck while the doctor inserted gently the lubricated tip of the tube through the selected nostril. As he pushed it with determination with one hand, with the other he palpated the neck and, finding the cricoid cartilage, he started to externally pull it outward and rightward in a controlled way. The gags were a predicted outcome and apparently the only defense the injured body could come up with against the very invasive and extremely painful procedure.
"Ok we are done. Very good Danny, you did very well." The doctor tried to soothe while securing the tube with tape. After wiping away tears and saliva, the nurse left the room only to return a moment later with a syringe and a jar of water. After introducing the food through the tube, the nurse filled the syringe with water and introduced it as well. Then, they prepared a different syringe with something else and also pushed its contents through the tube.
It took a moment to Steve to realize someone was talking to him. The doctor was saying something to him again. His eyes made an effort to leave the figure of his friend as the nurse lowered the head of the bed again and, after bringing an immaculate white blanket, covered his friend´s frail and dirty body with it and smoothed it over his chest with care. Steve´s eyes had seen so much today that his brain was taking it´s time processing. It amazed him how she didn´t seem to mind placing such a clean blanket over such a dirty body, just as he hadn´t mind at all hugging that same dirty and smelly man earlier that day. But it was different. It was his brother… A massive presence approached him on his right and Lou´s hand pressing his shoulder made him snap from his lethargy.
"Sorry doc… What..?
"Apart from the food we also gave him an antipyretic for the fever and something for the pain. I would like to let him rest an hour before we continue. The tube can be very uncomfortable, but given his state I don´t want to sedate him or give him something stronger. You can stay with him meanwhile. Ok?"
"Yeah" Steve´s eyes returned to his partner. "Is he ok?" He didn´t trust his voice right now. A few more words would come out cracked.
"Let´s take step by step Commander. Right now we allow him some rest and try to keep him comfortable while his body processes the nourishment received. If you need anything just contact me or the nurse, ok?"
"Sure thing doc, we will. We´ll stay with him". Lou affirmed, taking up the talking after Steve only nodded his head.
"Ok then, I´ll be back soon." Giving Steve´s bicep a squeeze as he passed by, the doctor left the room.
It took Steve another moment to realize that the term of the condition that prohibited him from approaching Danny to allow treatment had ended. Realizing Lou had already placed two chairs close beside the bed in which Danny was, he approached his friend´s side. But, instead of sitting on his chair, he carefully sat on the edge of the mattress and, not being able to take his hand, he took Danny´s forearm, closed his eyes and wept.