A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing. Have a nice time doing it!
Chapter 18: Exposed.
The motion of the bed moving to allow him to lie completely flat brought Danny back from his dozing state. This position didn´t help anything to ease his anxiety, but instead made his feeling of vulnerability grow exponentially. Danny could hear his heart pounding loudly in his ears, while his eyes betrayed him by letting the doctor know he was scared.
"There you are champ" Doctor Kalama´s strong voice had to come in Danny´s rescue, again, as many times before. The doctor recognized the dread on his patient´s eyes every time they had to go deep on his treatment. So the experienced physician took advantage of his natural easy going behavior and used it because it seemed to function very well with his traumatized patient. Smiling, he sat casually on Danny´s bed and tapped lightly his tight on a friendly manner.
"So, I´ve been told you´re causing trouble again, uh champ?" Reaching forward, he took the thermometer the nurse was handing to him. Nodding his thanks, Doctor Kalama used his outstretched hand to casually feel the temperature for himself by placing the back of his hand on Danny´s forehead and cheeks. "Ok". The doctor´s voice changed to professional mode. Reading the temperature on the device, he didn´t like what he saw. As an excellent detective that he was, Danny was an expert reading body language. He followed the doctor´s moves as the physician got up from his side and went a few feet away to speak privately with the nurse. His attention was interrupted and vanished as a massive figure silently appeared at his side and removed the cloth placed on his forehead to rewet it and apply it again.
"What are they talking about…?".
"I don´t know, you just relax here and let them do their job." Lou´s low and soothing voice tried to calm his friend down. Danny´s anxiety level was on the roof and it was expelled through his eyes.
"Are they going to do the cures…? Everything Danny said ended in a very low voice barely audible and understandable.
"What?"
"´Cause I don´t want that. It hurts…" The anxiety was reaching a panic level.
"Shhh shh shh shh". Lou didn´t quite get his friend´s current request. He choose not to dig too much and try instead to calm him down.
In fact, Danny has come to endure very well the daily baths and other humiliating procedures a grown man should never have to be put through, but the cures of his wrists, hands and ankle was another matter. They were very painful. Having to make sure that infections didn´t get hold of Danny, the medical staff have been curing and treating, washing and disinfecting them, and each time it was torture. Sometimes they applied some pain reliever, but not in great amount so the pain was never completely gone. Danny hated that moment of the day, and dreaded it, every day. This nurse was particularly delicate on her treatment. Sometimes the doctor did it and it hurt more, like when the male nurse did it. If they had to do it now, he hopped the woman would do it. But, every time, no matter who conducted it, he couldn´t help beg round and salty tears from running down his cheeks, the only personal pain reliever he got, along with some strangled and unintended moans.
"Lou?"
"I´m here buddy"
"Where did she go?" The nurse has just left the room after talking with the doctor. Danny´s only hope was gone.
"Don´t know. Don´t you worry". Lou turned the cloth around so the fresh side of it was now placed on Danny´s hot forehead. He moved lightly as the doctor reached his side, to allow him more room and attempted to leave.
"It´s fine. Stay if you want". The doctor knew how important were and have been Danny´s friends to help him through anxiety and rough moments. "Danny, we have to find the source of your fever, to bring it down, ok champ?" Danny´s breathing subconsciously quickened, betraying his desire to seem calm. The doctor rushed to placate him. "But before we go to check your wounds let me ask you something. I was talking with Nurse Iolana and she gave me some info I´ll like to check with you. Are you having trouble or difficulties when you urinate? Some discomfort?"
"Yeah" As his patient didn´t elaborate more, he continued.
"Ok, what kind of discomfort?" The doctor ran both his experienced hands palpating from Danny´s abdomen towards his sides and the kidney areas beneath, eliciting painful groans when applying a bit of pressure on each place he touched and tested. "Ok, ok". He retrieved his hands and stopped the torturing prodding.
Eyes closed and breathing heavily, Danny seemed to finally remember what he have been asked.
"Burns"
"Mm it burns, what else?" The doctor coaxed as he again ran his hands prodding the hurtful area, thins time on Danny´s lower belly. As he pressed lightly, Danny hissed a painful complaint.
"Sometimes I can´t go..."
"Ok good, very good. Look like we found a source for the fever". Danny had had his daily cures of his wounds this morning, and the nurse has not seen anything out of the ordinary or signs of infection, but, while bathing him, she checked discomfort on that area and a different and lower level of urine output. Asking Danny, he had denied any problem. She now shared that information with the doctor and he resolved the steps that are now taking place. Sometimes it was really common that, while wearing a Foley, bacteria finds it easier to entry and cause infections, such in this case.
"Alright, this is what we´re going to do". The doctor addressed both Danny and Lou, although his look was fixed on his patient. "You have what is called a urinal tract infection, ok? It´s treatable with antibiotics, so I´m going to prescribe some again right away, to beat the infection and, therefore, lower your fever. Also, as you still have the Foley inserted, I´ll want it to be removed, but with the oncoming surgeries and due to your still delicate state, we´ll put an inguinal one. It means that, basically, the Foley won´t reach the bladder through the urethra but instead we´ll insert it puncturing your inguinal area. That way the burning sensation will be gone and meanwhile the infected tract could be treated properly".
Danny wasn´t sure if he was content with what he was hearing, about not having to open and check his wounds again, but this alternative procedure was not at all appealing. But, what choice did he have? What he really knew was that something had to be done because he was really hurting now and it was becoming very uncomfortable. Maybe he should have said something sooner about his initial discomfort, but he wasn´t sure anymore about what was normal and what wasn´t.
Subconsciously, Danny moved his good leg restlessly and nervously. A wave of hot fever ran through his body from his toes to the top of his head and was followed by a brutal shiver. The doctor went to pick up a blanket from the placard near the bathroom. Returning at his patient´s side, he used it to cover Danny from the shoulders to the belly button, leaving his legs and hips uncovered. The detective felt relieved at first as the soft tissue caressed his miserable body, but was then perplex about the cold still taking control of his lower half.
"We are going to do the procedure now, the sooner we fight this the sooner you´ll feel better, ok? Nurse Iolana went to gather the elements for the procedure and the antibiotics and will be back soon". Danny couldn´t hide his nervousness. With searching eyes, he looked for his friend´s support. Lou approached him from his silent spot and lightly placed his big hand on Danny´s covered chest, intending to transfer him strength and support.
"You may stay, if you want". The doctor stated as he moved away to wash his hands and put on his latex gloves while the nurse arrived and started to place the medical elements on the try prepared above the little table, and then joined the doctor on the sink next to him, to also wash her hands.
"You heard that? I can stay. If you want me to stay I will buddy. Just say so".
"Don´t know…" Danny´s indecision was written all over his face.
Lou waited, not wanting to pressure him. After a moment of silence and when the medical professionals were almost ready, Lou tried one more time to find out what his friend wanted him to do. "If you want me to stay I promise I won´t look. I´ll sit here and will be facing you all the time, alright?"
Indecision was still paralyzing Danny. It was easy to tell that his mind was going a thousand mile per hour. The doctor approached the bed rolling the table beside him, making the try and the medical instruments to clatter and make a metallic annoying noise. The nurse went to close the privacy curtain. That movement usually made Danny more agitated. This wasn´t an exception. As the doctor went to uncover him, at the lack of response, Lou took the moment to make a decision himself.
"Ok buddy, I´ll be right outside the door, ok?"
Although the fever, Danny was very aware of everything. The principles of every grown human being were independency and strength, and not needing someone holding his hand while at the doctor´s. But reality was different for Danny at his current state. His feeling of vulnerability was out of his control and his damaged soul demanded not to be left alone. As Lou made his attempt to leave, the movement spiked his dreads considerable, almost deafening him with his rushing blood.
"No…stay…" The barely audible plea made Danny hate himself so much that, ashamed, he closed his eyes and turned away his head on the pillow. Wordlessly, Lou reached for the chair and placed it near Danny´s head, facing him and not looking what the doctor was doing, as he´s promised.
"Alright, I´m going to expose you now champ. We´re going to clean you up first, so you may feel a little bit cold. Now I´ve warned you" The doctor´s voice was kind but fully professional. He explained his next moves to try to reduce his patient´s anxiety. As his gown was pulled up, Danny begged for the time to pass as fast as it could and this to be over as quickly as possible. He flinched when cold antiseptic covered cotton started to delicately clean his raw and delicate skin from this much more delicate area.
Danny kept his head to the side and his eyes tightly closed and wanted to disappear as he felt his buttocks being lifted to allow a towel to be placed below him and his legs being spread open a bit further to allow them easier access to the working space.
"Now you are going to feel a little bit of pulling, as we take off the catheter. Just relax and remain quiet, ok?" Doctor Kalama said as he finished emptying the Foley balloon with the syringe. He waited for the nurse to finish draining the contents of urine from the container bag. After washing her hands, she returned to the bed with a thin sheet and placed it over Danny´s legs and thighs.
"Don´t worry if you have to urinate when the Foley comes out, ok?" As he was said so, a thick towel was placed between his legs. Danny flinched and automatically tensed as cold gloved hands held him and started to delicately pull the catheter out. It was a very uncomfortable and burning sensation, a little bit painful, and when the last of the tubing finally was out, Danny couldn´t control the small warm urine flow, which was retained with the towel by his highly experienced nurse. After being cleaned up again, they placed a small surgical sheet over his pubic area, leaving an opening to work.
"Ok champ, now you´re going to feel a cool swab as I prepare the area with antiseptic and then a little prick. It might be a bit uncomfortable, but bearable".
Working together, doctor and nurse efficiently placed the new inguinal urinal catheter. After hanging the new bag to the bedside, the nurse discarded the surgical sheet, her gloves and other used elements and washed her hands. After applying the usual and known soothing and antibiotic cream over Danny´s parts and inner thighs, she pulled back down his gown and, taking off the blanket from his torso, she covered him up with the sheet and light bedcover. She delicately smoothed the bedding and elevated the head of the bed.
"Are you feeling comfortable?" She asked, while discretely wiping his tear covered cheeks with the soft tissues. As the evidence of the humiliation he felt was erased from his face, Danny took courage to move his head. Doing so, he found the straw inches away from his mouth, inviting him to drink precious cool and crystal clean water. He allowed it to reach his lips and took various sips, almost emptying the glass, never realizing before he was so thirsty.
"You need anything else sweetie?" Danny shook his head. "Ok then, take some rest". She smiled and, gathering the discarded elements used on the procedure, she joined the doctor by the sinks, received her instructions for the next steps and left the room.
Doctor Kalama finished drying his hands and approached the bed. Lou, who has remained silent and seated the whole time, got up and stood at the other side of the bed. The doctor took the opportunity to take Danny´s temperature and listen to his heart rate. Both were a little high.
"Everything went well champ, you may relax now and rest". Danny wasn´t paying too much attention, but when he heard the word ´rest´ his eyes closed and he blocked everything and everyone out. Lifting his sight towards Lou, the physician added. "I estimate that his fever will break soon and tomorrow we´ll be able to conduct the programed surgeries".
Lou nodded his understanding. "That's great".
"Ok then, I´ll let him rest now. Anything you need call me".
"Thank you doc" Lou greeted the physician as the coated man walked past him towards the door.
Lou completely understood that his coworker was not in the mood of talking or even making eye contact. Danny´s eyes were closed and he was almost completely still, if not for the barely perceptive movement of his good leg, in an apparent intent to try to ease the discomfort the new placed tubing was causing him. Apart from that, it was obvious that he desired to be invisible and to be not bothered, so Lou chose to respect that wish. The ex-swat seated again on the chair after retrieving it a bit further away from where it was placed near the bed. He waited until Danny seemed truly asleep before he began taking care of his next task: notify Steve of what has happened. He hated interrupting the commander´s much needed free time, but he knew that if he didn´t, his head will be cut off tomorrow. Taking his cellphone from his pocket, he smirked. He should have known. Three messages from Steve where impatiently waiting for a response. "Hey, how is he?" Ten minutes later, as the impatient man hasn´t got an answer, he asked again. Lou could sense the impatience through the short message, and shook his head amused. "Lou?" Five minutes later, another one. "Everything ok?" Followed by two lost calls. ´Better call him right away to keep him from coming, if he hasn´t yet´, the big man thought. Getting up he made sure Danny was ok and asleep and exited the room while pressing the call button from Steve´s last lost call.