Ch 17 Surgery

The next morning, Phineas lay on a stretcher in the Medical Center, feeling incredibly uncomfortable and out of place. He was supposed to be the one in control, always. Here and now, he was totally out of control and he didn't like the feeling. Jeff stood beside him and it was strange to be looking at him from this angle, like an invalid would.

Suddenly they were alone in the waiting area, and Bogg knew he would be taken into the operating room soon. He was already feeling strange from the medication. "Listen," he said suddenly, as he reached up to put his hand on Jeff's shoulder, "I love you, okay?"

Jeff leaned down and hugged him, "me too," he said.

As they held each other, Phineas thought with much surprise how naturally those words had come out. Then he suddenly felt more effects from the pre-operative medications and lost his train of thought.

Jeffrey sensed the change and straightened up so he could look at Bogg. He looked tired, not his usual self.

Two nurses walked into the room, "we need to get going," one of them said.

Jeff glanced at them and nodded, then backed away from the only family he had left. He stood in the middle of the room and watched them push the stretcher through the double doors to the operating room, feeling very much alone.

ooOoo

Jeff turned and walked back out into the sitting area to wait. Tom was there. He had promised Phineas he would wait with Jeff until the operation was over.

"Why don't we go down to the barn? I hear you're working with one of the horses," Tom said as Jeff sat down.

"Huh?"

"We can do some training with that filly and it'll help the time go by faster," Tom explained.

"You can go," Jeff whispered and settled back onto the hard chair.

"I just meant it would be a distraction for you, we'll be back before they're done."

"Thanks, but I'd rather hang around here."

"Two hours is a long time."

"If it was me in there, he'd be here."

"He's your guardian, he's supposed to look out for you. Kids' don't have to look after their guardians though."

"Well, for right now, we're friends, and friends do," Jeff said quietly. Then he closed his eyes and prayed a short prayer for Bogg to be okay. It was strange that he hadn't thought to pray back in 1929. Things had happened so fast then, that it had never even occurred to him. This seemed different somehow, there was a lot more time to think.

ooOoo

Dr. Gillespie pushed the door open and entered the waiting room. "I thought I'd find you here," he began, but Jeff wasn't interested in small talk.

"How was the operation? Is Bogg okay? When can I see him?" he asked in rapid succession.

"He's fine, I fixed the problem and he should recover completely," the doctor answered immediately, and Tom could see Jeff visibly relax. "You can see him, but he's not awake enough to really talk to you. The anesthesia hasn't worn off yet."

"Can I just go in and sit with him?" Jeff asked.

He smiled, "I left a chair right next to the bed for you."

So Jeffrey left Tom and walked into the recovery room by himself without looking back. As he moved over next to the bed, he could finally see his friend and felt a rush of relief. He looked asleep, like his normal self. Jeff reached out and put his hand on top of Bogg's. Almost immediately, Phineas opened his eyes.

He looked at Jeff and smiled weakly, "Hey," he said.

Jeff smiled, "How do you feel?" he whispered, but Bogg didn't answer, he just stared at him for a few seconds until he shut his eyes again.

ooOoo

Tom leaned against an observation window in the hall and watched as Jeffrey pulled the chair closer to the bed. He sat down and reached for Bogg's hand and Tom looked away, suddenly aware of a lump in his throat and a strange feeling stirring in his chest. He was startled as Dr. Gillespie suddenly appeared at his side.

"Sid Bradshaw over in Intake told me a little about them," Gillespie said.

"Yeah, they've been together for almost 2 years now."

"Voyager Bogg must be doing a good job raising him, the kid obviously loves him."

Tom looked back through the window, "I guess," he said as the doctor left.

Ten minutes later, another voice startled Tom.

"How is he?" Olivia's voice was a total surprise.

Tom jerked his head around toward her. "You could've warned me, he's fine."

"Sorry, how's Jeff doing?" Olivia asked.

"Okay I guess, I haven't talked to him in awhile."

"What?"

"See for yourself," Tom said, moving aside so Olivia could watch the scene. "For the past half hour he's just been sitting there."

She looked at them and then shifted her gaze to Tom. His expression was strange.

"What's wrong?"

Tom looked back through the window, "nothing."

ooOoo

Phineas groaned and shifted position and Jeff leaned over him, "Bogg? You awake?" he asked.

"Yeah," Phineas finally said in a tired voice.

"How do you feel?" Jeff asked.

"Glad it's over," then, as if realizing Jeff was worried, he smiled, "I'm fine."

Jeff smiled back in relief. Bogg's right arm was strapped to his side and his shoulder covered with a huge bandage, but his voice was strong and Jeff suddenly felt that he was okay, or would be anyway. He'd just need someone to help with a few things until he could move his arm better, and Jeff would stay close by for that.

An hour later, an orderly helped Phineas sit up and shortly afterward walk a few steps in the room before sitting in a chair.

The day was long and boring. Phineas napped off and on and walked around when he was awake. After supper, he seemed to be a lot better and began asking if he could leave.

"Tomorrow, after the doctor changes the bandage, then you can leave, and not before," was the answer he got so often that he finally stopped asking.

"Well, I guess I'll be back to normal pretty soon, I feel fine right now," he told Jeff, who smiled to hear him sounding so much like himself.

Finally, at 10 PM, the nurses told Jeff he had to leave. "I'll see you in the morning," he whispered to Bogg as he hugged him before he left.

As he walked out, he realized he probably couldn't find his way back to Tom's apartment in the dark, so he sat down on a bench in the hall thinking he'd have to spend the night there.

"Ready to leave?" Tom asked as he walked up.

"What're you still doing here?" Jeff asked in surprise.

"You didn't think I'd leave you here, did you? Come on, I'll walk you back to my place. It's not good to be wandering around in the dark, even here. Especially when you might not know exactly where to go.

Jeff stood up and Tom put his hand on his shoulder as they started walking. "You hungry?"

"Yeah," he answered, suddenly realizing that he hadn't eaten very much.

Tom smiled, "the cafeteria's open for another hour, we can stop there."

Jeff stopped and turned to him.

"What's wrong?" Tom asked.

Jeff hesitated, then gave him a hug, "thanks for everything."

Tom slowly put his arms around him. This display of affection was such a surprise, and it was so heart felt and genuine. He wasn't used to this sort of thing. "No problem," Tom replied.