Hodgins maneuvered his wheelchair into the large hobby room of his home, followed closely by Wendell, who was carrying the palatial rodent house, complete with its three wiggly occupants.
"Just put the habitat on the table over there, Wendell. Hey, thanks for helping me out, man. I was having a hard time balancing that big cage on my chair." Hodgins wheeled over to watch the rats busily running through their tunnels as they tried to inspect the new area outside their house. "They should be happy there, and that spot isn't drafty. Right, guys?" He tapped lightly on the side of the cage. "It was a huge colony of lab rats at the university, Wendell, and these three are all that are left: Copernicus, Kepler, and Herschel." Seeing Wendell's confusion, Hodgins explained. "The killer was an astronomy student, so I decided to remember some of the world's more famous astronomers...kind of a way to make up for things, you know?" Reaching in to gently pick up a rat, Hodgins smiled. "Copernicus and me...we're special buddies, aren't we?" Hodgins hummed to himself as he stroked his new pet.
Wendell grimaced with disgust as Copernicus snuggled under the collar of Hodgins' shirt. "Well, I'm glad you were able to give them a home...I guess...I'm not real fond of rats, Hodgins…" Wendell backed away from the rat in Hodgins' outstretched hand.
"Rats are natural wonders when it comes to surviving disasters, Wendell. As a species, they can take almost anything nature can throw at them, and they seem to come back stronger. I think we can learn a lot from them...resiliency, you know?" Hodgins put Copernicus back in his house and glanced over at his friend. "Besides, it wasn't their fault someone tried to use them as a way to hide a murder. Someone's gotta look after the defenseless animals in the world."
Wendell fidgeted nervously as he tried to change the subject. "Listen, Hodgins...about that nerve regeneration study you applied for...from what I've read about it, I'm not sure it's a good idea. The results aren't very good statistically…it's invasive surgery, and neurosurgery can be dangerous even in the best circumstances. The chances of regrowth are small when compared to the amount of pain that would occur, and the possibility of permanent damage is considerable..."
"Did Angie ask you to talk to me about this, Wendell? Because it's none of your goddamn business what I do with my own body, you know? And this could be it...the breakthrough I've been looking for so that I can walk again. I could regain my freedom. Do you think we would have joint replacement operations or heart transplants today if people waited to have the surgeries when they were 100 percent sure they would work? Somebody has to volunteer to be first. So what if the outcome isn't good? The people running the study would still learn something from what happened to me. And even if an outcome is usually good, percentage wise, there are still no guarantees. If anyone should know that, Wendell, it should be you. You were a part of an experimental trial for a cancer treatment…"
"Yeah, and one of the guys in the group got sick and died sooner than he might've done otherwise." Wendell sighed as he watched the rats playing in their cage. "There's one big difference between me and you, though...other than what was wrong with me compared to you. I didn't have a wife and a child depending on me…"
Hodgins was livid. "Okay, now I know Angie put you up to this...playing the guilt card. It's my body, so it's my decision. That's final!" Hodgins turned his chair away from Wendell. "Thanks for the help, Wendell, but I think it's time for you to leave."
"Not yet...not until you hear what I have to say." Wendell moved to stand in front of Hodgins, glaring at him as he crossed his arms across his chest. "I was gonna die with Ewing's Sarcoma if I didn't get treatment, and I might've died from the treatment I was going to get. Either way, I was screwed, man. I was lucky that the treatment worked, so I'm in remission now, but who knows? When I have my next scan, they could find out that all sorts of stuff has come back."
"Nice story, Wendell. Now, get out of my house. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out." Hodgins clenched his jaw as he turned away from Wendell again.
Wendell exhaled slowly, hoping that his friend would consider the advice he was going to offer. "Listen, Hodgins...enough with the self-pity. You're not dying from being paralyzed. You have a beautiful family that loves you and needs you alive. You can't enter a risky study without thinking about them. This isn't about you anymore. This is about how you push on through this while considering the feelings of the people who love you. Go ahead and apply to be a part of some experimental paralysis reversal study. As a scientist, that's exactly what you should do. But as a family man, pick one that's less risky, and make sure Angela's on board with it. She's a wonderful woman, and you should be thankful she's on your side." Wendell paused suddenly, embarrassed by his outburst. "Sorry. I guess I overstayed my welcome. I'll see myself out." Wendell turned to leave. "Oh, hi, Angela! And look at this big guy. Howya doing, Bruiser?"
Michael-Vincent gave Wendell a high five. "I'm great! Did you bring the rats? I wanna see'em."
"The cage is on the table over there." Wendell turned back to wave at his friend. "See ya tomorrow, Hodgins."
"Yeah." Hodgins nodded back to Wendell. "Tomorrow."
"Daddy...the rats all look alike. How can we tell them apart?" Michael-Vincent watched as the rodents chased each other around the palace.
"They have different personalities. C'mere." Hodgins lifted his son onto his lap. "See how nosy that one is? That's Kepler, and the one who runs around the cage is Copernicus. Herschel likes to sit in that corner and just observe what's going on."
Michael-Vincent leaned his head back against his father's chest and yawned drowsily. "Are the rats gonna get to stay at our house with us forever?"
"I don't think it's gonna be forever, but for a while. I think they'll be fun to watch, don't you?" Hodgins stroked his son's hair as the boy began to snore softly. Looking up at Angela, he smiled. "I guess he's had a hard day at school. So I suppose you heard Wendell's tirade." Glancing down at his son again, he continued. "Wendell's right. I have to think about what might happen to you and Michael-Vincent if I wasn't around. I'm not alone in this, am I?"
"No, Jack. You're never going to have this problem alone. We're gonna be together all the way, and together, we'll look for a safe clinical trial for you to be a part of, okay?"
Hodgins reached out to take Angela's hand and smiled. "Yeah...okay."