AN: Thanks for the review, favorites, and follows. I hope you enjoy! Please keep reading and review!
Chapter 3: Examining the Wounds
Pietro's eyelids were heavy when he next awoke. Whatever pain medicine Dr. Short had given him must have been really strong. He felt like he had been asleep for days and he felt like he could still sleep for days. He managed to pry his eyelids open and blink sleepily as he looked around the room. He couldn't find a clock to tell him what time it was. And even if he had a clock, he had no idea what time it was when he fell asleep so it wouldn't be much use to him anyway. Pietro pushed himself into a sitting position. There was a dull ache along his back muscles but otherwise he felt fine. He knew this feeling wouldn't last though; the pain meds would wear off and he'd feel the sharp, searing pain down his back and into his shoulders and thighs again.
Blindly, Pietro tried to feel his back underneath his shirt. He wanted to know what was going on with his body. Pietro didn't remember being shot. But he remembered the pain. A blinding, agonizing pain. And then the blackness.
The 'whoosh' of the door to his hospital room distracted him from his exploration of his wounds. Pietro looked up to see Dr. Short entering the room with another individual dressed in white scrubs. Dr. Short had her long white coat on again, but the clothes underneath had changed. Instead of the black dress skirt, she wore pressed khaki pants, and instead of the purple blouse, a light pink sweater. So if she changed clothes, Pietro must have slept into the next day at least.
When she saw he was up, Dr. Short smiled. "Good! You're awake. How are you feeling?"
"Sleepy," Pietro said, his voice thick. "And thirsty."
Dr. Short gave a short, quiet laugh. "Well that's an easy enough fix, at least." She nodded to her scrub-clad companion; a younger woman who, at Dr. Short's nod, turned and hurried back out of the room, no doubt to fetch Pietro some fresh water.
Dr. Short, meanwhile, crossed the rest of the length of the room and sat at the foot of Pietro's bed.
"Dr. Short, how long," he said, "have I been asleep?"
"A little over 14 hours," she answered. "And I told you, call me Dr. Alexa."
Pietro nodded, just now remember the doctor's request before he had fallen asleep.
"My nurse, Holly, and I would like to change your bandages today. Check on how you're wounds are healing." Dr. Short, no Dr. Alexa, continued. "You feel up to it."
Pietro nodded again. He wanted to see for himself why he was such a medical marvel. What kind of death bringing wounds had he survived?
By now, Holly, Dr. Alexa's nurse had returned. She set a fresh pitcher of water on Pietro's table and wheeled it over to his bed. He clumsily poured himself a glass and took a drink. He was still a little unstable from waking up from his coma just two days ago. When he was finished, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"I want to see my back," he said.
Dr. Alexa bit her lip and Holly shot her a glance.
"Pietro," the doctor said slowly, "your back, your wounds. It's not pretty."
Pietro swallowed. "I know."
"Are you sure?"
Pietro took a breath. "Yes."
Dr. Alexa nodded slowly. "Alright. Very well. Let's… let's go to the restroom then. We'll change your bandages in there.
Pietro was a little nervous by how Dr. Alexa and her nurse were acting. How bad were his wounds, really, if they were so reluctant to let him look at them. But Pietro wanted to know what Ultron had done to him. He wanted to know what he saved Hawkeye from. He wanted to know what he had sacrificed himself for. He pulled aside his blankets and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He was still anxious to try and stand on his own.
Holly had begun to head over, her arms reaching out as if to help him, but Dr. Alexa interrupted her.
"That's okay, Holly. I'll help Pietro. You take the fresh bandages and get the sink ready."
Holly paused and glanced from Pietro to Dr. Short. But she didn't argue. She gave a nod, grabbed an armful of supplies Pietro hadn't realized she brought in initially, and scurried off into the bathroom.
Dr. Alexa had come over to his bedside and held out an arm to help him into a standing position. Pietro put his feet on the floor, bracing himself against the doctor. He wobbled for a moment, but not as long as yesterday. Still, he was weak and he could only shuffle along a little bit at a time. He was still supported mostly by Dr. Alexa rather than by his own legs. He had to stop for a moment halfway across the room. Dr. Alexa said nothing the entire time and remained patient, holding on to one of Pietro's arms, her shoulder pressed against his own. Pietro grit his teeth and sighed, more so in frustration than in pain, but he could tell the pain meds were definitely starting to wear off now.
By the time they reached the bathroom, he had broken out in a sweat and his leg muscles were spasming. Holly had set out a sterile drape kit over the sink. Fresh bandages were laid out along with thin, metal medical scissors, antiseptic wash, gauze, a scalpel, and an empty vial who's Pietro wasn't sure of. When Dr. Short guided Pietro into the bathroom, Holly grabbed him by the other arm and helped him sit on the closed toilet. It was a tight fit with the three of them in the small room.
"Well," Dr. Alexa said, "Holly and I will remove your bandages and clean your wounds. I'll take a couple samples of the healing tissue to study in the lab. Then we'll stand you up and you can have a look in the mirror, yeah?"
Pietro nodded.
"Alright, let's get started then."
Pietro watched as Holly cleaned the scissors with an alcohol swab. When she was finished, she gestured with her hands, indicating Pietro should turn around. Twisting on the toilet, Pietro faced away from Holly and Dr. Alexa. From the corner of his eye, he could see Holly hand Dr. Alexa the scissors. The doctor vanished from his sight and he felt her thin cool fingers lift up his shirt.
"You know, it'll be easier if we take this off. Is that okay?"
Pietro nodded. Holly shuffled around to his front side in the cramped bathroom and helped him remove his shirt. The next thing he felt was Dr. Alexa's hands on his back, at the edge of his bandages. He let out a hiss of a breath when she slid the cold metal of the scissors between the thin space between his skin and the wrappings. She began to cut. She cut close to his side where he wasn't wounded.
Once she was finished cutting, Pietro heard a 'clank' as she set the scissors in a tray to be sanitized.
"Okay," she said, "this next part might hurt a little bit. Are you ready?"
Another nod.
Pietro felt two sets of hands at his back. Holly had grabbed the top portion of his bandages, Dr. Alexa the bottom. The two women began to gently tug the wrappings and the gauze underneath free. At first, it felt fine. But as they tugged towards the middle of his back, Pietro felt the skin pull. He felt wetness running down his skin as new blood trickled down his spine. He winced when they pulled directly over one of the bullet holes. And again when they passed another. And again. And again. When the bandages were pulled over the fifth wound, Pietro let out a gasp. At the sixth he grit his teeth and hissed in pain. After than he lost count.
Eventually, after what felt like agonizing hours but was only a few minutes, the bandages were free from his back. They wrapped around his chest too, but Dr. Alexa pulled that part free in one quick swipe. She balled up the used, bloody bandages, and handed them to Holly. Pietro was in too much pain to fully realize how bloody the back side of his bandages were. He sat on the toilet, breathing heavily. He was sweating again, this time cold sweat pouring down his forehead onto his face. He raised a shaky hand to his head and wiped what he could. His back was in searing pain and he felt like if he tried to move even an inch he'd collapse in a puddle on the floor.
Dr. Alexa brought her face in front of his. "I know you must be in pain. I would've given you some meds prior but I didn't want you to fall asleep. It's easier to change bandages with your cooperation.
Pietro nodded once again. His teeth were still clenched together. But he managed, "It's okay."
Dr. Alexa smiled sadly. "I know it's not."
He looked up and met her eyes. "I've… felt worse." He remembered the pain before the blackness. He remembered the day the shell hit his family's apartment building. He remembered the experimentation from the HYDRA scientists. It was true, he had felt worse. Many times. But still. This was bad. He took a deep breath and steadied himself. "I'm okay."
Dr. Alexa nodded. "Okay." She placed a hand on his knee and gave a reassuring squeeze. "Holly and I will try and finish quickly."
She stood and vanished from his line of sight again. Pietro closed his eyes while Dr. Alexa explained that they were going to clean his wounds next. He heard the bottle of antiseptic being poured onto gauze. Gently, a hand, he assumed Dr. Alexa's, place the wetted gauze against one of his wounds. He hissed through his teeth again. Why was something that was supposed to heal you so painful? Another hissed escaped his teeth when she moved to the next one. Pietro clenched his teeth tighter, sure he was cracking a molar. He squeezed his eyes shut and forced his breath out in long even breaths as Dr. Short continued, moving from one wound to the next, and the next, and the next.
This didn't seem to take as long as when she and Holly removed the bandages. Before he knew it, she said "All done."
Pietro relaxed and opened his eyes. He unclenched his jaw, and let out a long, slow breath of relief.
"Unfortunately," Dr. Alexa continued, "this next part will be the worst."
Pietro groaned.
"I'm going to take a sample from one of the wounds. The antiseptic will have numbed it a little, but I have to cut directly from the healing edge of the wound. The most sensitive area as your nerve endings are exposed. I'll be as quick as I can."
Pietro swallowed and took a breath. "Okay." He really didn't want Dr. Alexa to do it, but he knew she was studying his body's healing mechanisms. Seeing what was different about him. Why he survived. "Just, tell me before you do it."
"I will."
Pietro turned his head to watch while Dr. Alexa cleaned her scalpel. Meanwhile, Holly was reading the vial.
Dr. Alexa turned to Pietro and knelt down so she was level with one of the wounds on his back. He couldn't see what she was doing anymore, but her face was still in view. He felt her pull the skin taut at the edge of his wound. He winced.
She looked up at him, her face concerned. "I'm about to do it. Are you ready?"
"Yeah." Pietro closed his eyes and held his breath.
He felt the sharp pierce of the scalpel on his skin and it felt more like a thousand hot knives stabbing into his skin. His breath came out in a cry of agony. "Argh!" His eyes flashed open, the cold sweat running down his face again.
But just like that it was over. Less than a second. The pain was ebbing and he heard the snap of the vial closing.
"It's okay," Dr. Alexa said in a hurried voice. "It's okay. It's over. You're alright."
Pietro turned to face her. She had a worried expression on her face and was absentmindedly removing her gloves as she spoke, her eyes locked on his.
He panted and nodded. He saw Holly labeling the vial with a black Sharpie.
Dr. Alexa swallowed, seeming to need to calm herself. "Okay, we're finished. We just need to wrap you back up again. Are you sure you want to see your back still?"
Pietro was calming down now. His breathing was evening out, the sweat no long falling down his face. His back was still in pain and at the very center there was an even sharper twinge, where Dr. Alexa had taken her sample. He wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep. Let his mind numb to the effects of the pain meds and wake up feeling better in another 14 hours. Or longer. He didn't mind. He was exhausted.
But he nodded as he said, "Yes. I am sure."
Dr. Alexa nodded as well. "Okay." She held out an arm and helped Pietro into a standing position. Holly moved out of the small bathroom to give them room to shuffle over to the mirror above the sink. Dr. Short was in the doorway, facing Pietro who's back was to the mirror. He was gripping onto her forearms again and she held him firmly by the elbows.
"Okay," Dr. Alexa said again. "Turn your head around but don't twist too far. You'll pull your torn back muscles and stretch your wounds."
Pietro gave a single nod in understanding. He was careful to twist only at the neck as he turned his head around. His eyes found the mirror and the reflected image of his back. And he let out a gasp in shock. He was glad Dr. Short was holding him because if he had been holding himself up, he was sure his knees would have given out.
His back was a mess raw skin and bleeding open wounds. A few wounds were deep enough to expose muscle and tendon. There were at least a dozen bullet holes along his back. All were below his shoulders and above the line of his hips. He couldn't imagine how someone could be hit so many times, lose so much blood, and survive. But here he was. Standing. Looking at himself in the mirror and looking at the wounds that should have killed him. He stared, open-mouthed for a good minute before finally turning back around.
The doctor's eyes were on his face.
"Are you… alright?" She asked. He knew she wasn't asking about the physical pain this time.
He nodded numbly, not sure if he truly was alright.
Dr. Alexa studied his face, looked into his eyes for a moment. But he stared ahead blankly, not really seeing her face.
"Let's get you back in bed. We'll bandage you up there."
Another numb nod.
Pietro felt Dr. Alexa begin to pull him forward as she guided him back to his bed. The pain was now overwhelming but he hardly felt it; his mind so numb from the image of his back. Before he knew it, Dr. Alexa and Holly were practically lifting him into his bed. He felt sharp twinges of pain among the numbness as they began to reapply his bandages.
Pietro looked down at his chest while they did so. It was then that he noticed that there were no wounds on his chest. Only some areas of rough, pink scar tissue that corresponded with the gaping wounds on the other side of his body. This realization shocked him back to alertness and the pain washed over him again. He winced as the doctor's hands passed over a wound.
"Why," he said, "why aren't there wounds on my chest?" Surely, shots bad enough to cause his back to look like that had to have passed straight through his body and exited his chest. And he vaguely remembered Dr. Alexa saying something about punctured lungs when he had first awoke.
"That's one of the interesting things about you injuries and your healing," Dr. Alexa answered. "You're exit wounds healed first, and much more quickly. The entry wounds were more grievous and are healing at a slower rate, but still remarkably fast compared to the average human."
Pietro nodded. He winced again as Holly finished tightening the bandages at his side.
Dr. Alexa pulled another syringe from her pocket while Holly began cleaning up. "We're still studying your healing process. When we have it all figured out, we'll tell you."
She held out her hand for Pietro's arm. He turned his palm up and placed his hand in hers. Holly came over and quickly cleaned his inner elbow before Dr. Short slipped the needle into a vein.
"We'll talk more tomorrow. Maybe if you're up to it, we'll do some blood work and go over your vitals." Dr. Alexa pulled the needle out of Pietro's arm and Holly placed a simple Band-Aid over the injection site.
Pietro nodded and felt the comforting heaviness of the pain meds wash over him. His eyelids drooped and his arms and legs felt weak. The pain wracking his body was already easing. Dr. Short and Holly rolled him onto his stomach to sleep, to keep him from laying on his painful back.
"For now, rest." Dr. Alexa smiled at him before she turned and headed out of the room with Holly.