I DO NOT OWN DEATH NOTE!

Sorry it took so long...again...to update. Ive been swamped with school work and the non-profit organization I volunteer with. Fairly long chapter. Just a filler bit to let everyone know whats going on with Near and Mello at this point. I'm working on the next chapter and hoping to have it up soon. Enjoy! And as always...please comment!


Chapter 19 - Recovery

"Mello?" The boy groaned and shifted slightly. He wanted to sleep longer. "Mello?"

Mello's eyes shot open when he heard his name for the second time. He knew that voice. He looked down into Near's eyes and smiled. He slowly ran his fingers over the smaller boys jaw, earning him a small smile in return. "You're awake."

"Where are we?" Near's voice was quiet and laced with pain as he spoke.

"We're in the PICU." He looked around and saw Nurse Amy down at the other end of the ward. She had her back to him so he watched her, waiting for her to turn around so he could call her over.

"Why are we here?" Near looked around the room and carefully tucked his body as close to Mello's as he could.

"We should probably wait until Dr. Smith comes to talk to you. He knows more then I do." The nurse finally turned and Mello waved his arm until she looked over at him. He pointed at Near and the nurse smiled and nodded to him before turning to the nurses deck and lifting the phone.

"Please tell me." Near pulled at the front of Mello's shirt until he looked down at him. "Please."

Mello sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "They had to take you back to surgery. I don't know it all, Near. I was pretty messed up about seeing you hurt again. The doctor said I was in shock. Just wait until he gets here okay? You'll be fine. Just relax a little."

Near nodded and settled his head back onto his pillow. He looked over as the nurse approached the bed and smiled down at them. "Nice to see you awake, Near. My name is Amy. I'm a nurse on the ward."

"Is Dr. Smith coming up?" Mello took Near's hand when he reached for him and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"He is. He stayed in the hospital in the on call room last night so he could be here when Near woke up. I will let him explain what is going on when he gets here."

"What time is it?"

"Almost 5am. Are you hungry?"

"I could eat." Mello looked down at Near. His eyes were fixed on Mello's chest. "Are you hungry, Near?" When the boy nodded he looked back up at the nurse. "Can he eat?"

"Sure. I will call down to have some food brought up for the two of you. I'm sure Dr. Smith will want to be here to see how Near reacts to the food. He should be here soon."

Near turned to watch the nurse walk away before looking back up at Mello. "How bad was it this time?"

Mello sighed again. "You really should wait for Dr. Smith. Just relax okay? Are you in pain?"

"My stomach hurts a little. My arm hurts a lot. I'm not very comfortable, but I'm warm."

"Do you want me to move?"

"I don't know. I feel weird."

Mello sat up and looked down at Near. "Weird how?"

"Just weird. Like…itchy all over and my head is spiny."

"Spiny? First tingly now spiny. Keep talking like that and I will actually believe you are a 12 year old boy."

Near frowned up at Mello. "How else am I supposed to describe it?"

Mello shook his head and looked across the ward, watching for the doctor. "I don't know. Never mind. I'm just worried about you is all."

Mello saw Dr. Smith walk into the ward and move toward them. Near saw him coming too and turned his face into Mello's chest. "Good morning, Mello. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. Headaches gone."

The doctor nodded and turned his eyes to Near. "How are you feeling, Near?"

"Terrible." Near voice was muffled against Mello's body.

"I'm sorry it hear that. I'm going to need to check your wounds again before your breakfast gets here. I will need you to move away from Mello a little. He can stay where he is though, I only need to check your abdomen."

Near sighed and rolled away from Mello but kept his face hidden. "What happened to me?"

"What do you remember?" The doctor pulled up Near's gown and carefully peeled the bandages away form his skin.

"You were sitting me up so I could eat. My stomach started to hurt. I don't remember everything after that."

The doctor spent the next 10 minutes explaining to Near what had happened while he carefully cleaned his incisions. "We had planned on keeping you in the coma for at least 24 hours. But you have improved a great deal over the 18 hours since you came out of surgery that we decided to bring you out early. Do you have any questions?"

"Why do I feel itchy?" Near had turned his face away from Mello so he could watch the doctor while he talked when he got half way through his explanation. He was now watching the man with wary eyes.

"It is likely a reaction to one of the medications you are receiving. How bad is the itching?" He opened Near's chart to look over the boys dosing while he waited for an answer.

"It's hard to describe. It isn't bad enough for me to scratch myself. But it is annoying."

"Let's give it a couple hours. If it is still bothering you then it means it is one of the new meds we have you on. But I am thinking it might be a lingering effect from the medication we gave you to put you into the coma. Just let a nurse know if it gets worse. I'll come back and check on you in a couple hours. I need to go make rounds now. But if you need me just have someone page me."

"You aren't going to stay and make sure he can eat okay?" Mello put his hand on Near's head when he turned his face into him again.

"I'm sure he will do fine. The nurses will call me if anything happens. But it is the later digestion process we need to watch, not the eating itself. Make sure you let someone know about any change, Near."

When the boy nodded, the doctor smiled down at him and shook his head. The boy confused him more and more every time he talked to him. "Mello, can I speak with you in private for a moment?"

Mello looked up at the man, confused. "Why?"

"I just want to talk to you for a moment. I wont keep you long." He moved away from the bed and went to the nurses desk to wait.

Mello looked down at Near to see panic in his eyes. He touched the boys face softly as he moved to get out of the bed. "I'll be right back. I'll be right over there. You will be able to see me the whole time." He squeezed Near's fingers and gently extracted his hand when he tried to hold onto him. He walked quickly to the doctor and turned so he could watch Near. "What is it?"

"How are you really feeling?"

Mello blinked up at the man. "Is it that obvious?"

"Yes. Now tell me."

Mello pushed his hair back from his face in a frustrated gesture. "My head still hurts a little. Not as bad as it did last night. And my knees are killing me for some reason."

"Amy tells me that when she did your wound check it appears that you have torn the skin some around the stitches. Do you know how that happened?"

Mello paled. He knew how it happened. His knees has been bleeding when he had gotten back to Roger's room after punishing Matt. But he wasn't about to tell that to the doctor. "The night you put them in and drugged me so Roger could get me home I woke up disoriented because Roger had put me in his room instead of my own. When I stood up from the bed I got dizzy and fell on my knees. I think I crawled to the wall to stand up but I'm not completely sure. My head was spinning pretty bad."

"I see. I'll have Amy give you something for the pain. When I come back up after rounds I will look at your knees. If the skin is as badly torn as Amy said, I may need to redo your stitches."

The doctor watched as Mello's face completely drained of all color. "Not in front of Near. I don't want him to know I was hurt. It would make him feel worse and he doesn't need that right now."

The doctor nodded and looked up as Amy stepped up behind Mello and put her hand on his shoulder. "Sorry to interrupt doctor, but Near's stats are rising again. I think you should let Mello go back to him now."

"Okay. I'll see you in a couple hours, Mello. We will figure something out."

Mello nodded and went back to Near. Amy and Derrick watched as he sat on the side of the bed and took the smaller boys hand, pressing it against his cheek. "They look good together. A little young, yes. But they make a sweet couple."

Derrick looked down at Amy and raised his eyebrows. "Has Mello been behaving himself?"

"Of course he has. He was asleep the whole time. It was nice watching them. Anytime Mello moved in his sleep, it was like he was always aware of where Near was and was careful not to touch him anywhere it could hurt him."

"No inappropriate touching?"

Amy frowned up at Derrick. "He gave Near a quick kiss when he first settled onto the bed. Nothing overly inappropriate. More brotherly then anything."

"I see. Keep me informed on Near's progress. If he continues to improve at the rate he has been I will likely move him to a private room tonight. Get Mello some pain meds for the headache and the ache in his knees. And call down to records and have his file brought up. I should probably be charting his treatment but I've been distracted." He handed Near's chart back to the nurse and left the ward.

Amy shook her head at his back and gathered up the food that had been delivered for the boys from the cart left by the desk. She carried them over and set them onto the table by the bed. "Ready to eat, boys?"

Mello sat up from where he had had his head resting on Near's chest and gave the nurse a small smile. "Do you have to sit him up?"

"Yes. We will go slow though." She moved to the side of the bed and tucked the blankets carefully around Near. "Ready?" When Near nodded she hit the button to raise the head of the bed. Other then wincing a few times, Near did fine and was left sitting up for the first time since before being admitted to the hospital. "Any pain?"

"A little. But I'm okay." He shifted and winced and settled back against the bed. "How am I going to eat? I'm right handed." He lifted his arm and waved the cast before setting it back on his lap.

"I can help you eat, or Mello can, if you cant feed yourself with your left hand. I would like you to try and feed yourself first though." She pushed the rolling table over the bed and over the boys laps. Taking the lips off the plates, she set them aside and lowered the table enough so Near could reach the food. "Dr. Smith has you on a liquid diet right now. So you have some beef broth, applesauce, jell-o, and juice. You don't have to finish it all, just eat as much as you can."

Near nodded and picked up his spoon. He tried to eat some of the broth but his hand shook so badly he spilled it into his lap. Near sighed in frustration and threw the spoon back onto the try. He bit his lip as tears formed in his eyes. "I'm not hungry."

Mello looked up at the nurse, his sorrow clear in his eyes. "Can you give us a moment?"

Amy smiled and nodded. "Sure." She pulled the curtain around the bed to give the boys a little privacy and went to check on another patient.

Mello put his arm around Near and pulled his face against his neck. "It's okay, Near. I'll help you eat. I know your hungry."

"I cant even feed myself." Near hiccupped once and buried his face against Mello.

"Shh. You'll get better, Near. Just relax. Let me help you." He pushed Near back gently and picked up the bowl of broth from the tray. "Open."

Near frowned at Mello. "I don't want to eat if I cant feed myself."

Mello sighed and put the spoon back in the bowl. "Near. You need to eat. If you don't, you will only get sick and it will slow your healing. The faster you heal, the sooner we can go home." Mello tilted Near's face up when he turned his head away. "Near. I love you. Please let me help you."

Near looked over at Mello and chewed on his lip again. "You love me?"

"Yes. I do. If I didn't, do you think I would be at your side 24 hours a day in a hospital. I hate hospitals." He spooned up some more of the broth and held it up. "Please."

Near sighed and opened his mouth so Mello could feed him. He ate a quarter of the bowl of broth and shook his head when offered more. "I cant eat anymore of that. It tastes awful."

Mello's mouth twitched into a smile. "What next? Apple sauce or jell-o?"

Near made a face. "I don't like either of them."

"It doesn't matter if you like it, Near. You need to eat. And I thought you liked apples."

"I like apples. I don't like apple sauce. They put stuff besides apples in it."

Mello examined the container of apple sauce and then held it so Near could read it. "Not this one. It says 100% apples."

"Fine. I'll try it."

"You're being stubborn. That's usually my area."

Near sighed and closed his eyes. "I apologize. I don't feel like myself. And my arm really hurts."

"Eat some of this and I'll go find the nurse and see if she can give you anything more for the pain." When Near nodded he continued with the feeding.

Near was almost finished with the apple sauce then the curtain was pulled aside and the nurse stepped back in. She closed the curtain again and moved to where she could see the food trays. "You haven't eaten yet, Mello."

"I'll eat when Near is done." He fed Near another spoon full of apple sauce.

Near shook his head and pushed away Mello's hand when he tried to feed him the last spoonful. "I cant eat anymore."

"You did good, Near. You ate quite a bit for your first meal after surgery. How are you feeling?" Amy took Near's wrist and felt his pulse while she talked.

"Okay. Except for my arm. It really hurts."

"No pain anywhere else?"

"My stomach aches. But it doesn't hurt as bad as my arm."

"I'll give you something for the pain in a moment. Dr. Smith wants you to try and stay sitting up for another hour or so before you lay down again. If you get uncomfortable or if you want to sleep, let me know and I will help you lay down again. You will sleep quite a bit for the next few days because of the medication. But sleeping will help speed the healing. So if you are tired, don't fight going to sleep. Okay?"

Near nodded and winced as he tried to move his arm into a more comfortable position. "Why is it that my arm hurts the worse?"

"Sometimes when someone has more then one serious injury, one will seem to hurt worse then the other. But it may be your minds way to trying to focus through the drugs and the pain. You did sustain a fairly serious head injury. I wouldn't worry about it, Near." Amy pulled a table to her and opened Near's chart. She began checking his vitals and writing things in the chart. When she was finished, she opened a panel on the front of the box that was hooked up to Near's IV. She entered a code in and took out a push button and put it in Near's hand. "If you push this button, it will give you an extra dose of morphine if the steady dose isn't helping. When you push it, it will lock the system for an hour before you can push it again. If you are still in pain after the extra dose, call me over and I will talk to Dr. Smith about what we can do to help."

Near nodded and pushed the button. The machine beeped softly and a few seconds later Mello felt him relax and watched his eyes close. "Arm feel better now?"

Near opened his eyes again to look up at Mello. "Yes. It still aches a little, but it doesn't hurt as bad as it did."

Amy smiled at Mello when Near closed his eyes again and the blonde haired boy looked over at her. "The morphine will likely make him fall asleep. When he does, call me over and I will help you lay him down again. Sitting up isn't safe right now if he is asleep." When Mello nodded, she gathered up the things on the table and left the boys alone, pulling the curtain closed behind her.

Mello shifted until he was in a position that he would be able to support Near and eat at the same time. Near groaned in annoyance as he moved and he looked down to watch his eyelids flutter before his head fell against his shoulder. Mello sighed in relief at seeing Near relaxed and picked up his fork. The eggs were cold, and he wasn't really hungry, but he knew he had to eat.

When he finished his food, he called Amy over and he laid the bed down. Mello didn't want to lay down anymore so he sat in the chair next to the bed and held Near's hand. An hour later he was still in the same position, his elbows on the bed and Near's hand pressed to his cheek, when Dr. Smith pulled the curtain aside and closed it behind him again. He had a tray in one hand and a chart under his arm. Setting the tray on a table, he pulled a stool up to sit next to Mello.

"Ready for me to check your knees?" He glanced up at Near's monitors while he waited for the boy to answer.

"If you want. As long as he is asleep." Mello continued to look at Near, one hand rubbing his arm. "When do you think he can go home?"

"There is no way to tell right now. It could be in about 3 or 4 days, it could be 2 weeks. It all depends on how well he heals."

"And the brain injury? How bad is it?"

"As of now, it looks as if there has been no permanent damage. But we will not know for sure until he is well enough to be awake long enough for us to assess his mental well being. I have him scheduled for a CT scan tomorrow so we can see if there was any structural damage. I would like to take him for a scan of his belly as well, but I think the more time he spends away from you the more agitated he will be. So we will do that the day after. But for right now, I need to see your knees, Mello." Derrick took Mello's hands and pulled him up from the chair. "Sit on the bed." Mello did as he was told and picked Near's hand back up as soon as he was sitting down.

Derrick work in silence as he took the stitches out of the boys knees and replaced them. He also noticed that Mello had friction burns on his knees. It could have been the result of crawling across carpet, but he had seen the look on the boys face when he told him about the tearing around the stitches. He doubted that the story was true, but he wasn't going to force the issue.

Twenty minutes after he began, he finished bandaging Mello's knees and pulled the legs of his borrowed scrubs back down. "Your knees didn't look to bad, but you need to be careful. Put some ointment on them twice a day until the stitches come out. That way you wont get an infection." He handed the boy a small tube of the ointment he had put on his knees and gave him a cup with two white pills in it. "Some aspirin for the pain. If the headache is still bothering you later, you make sure to tell me. It could mean there is something more going on then the lingering effects of the shock."

"I'm fine now. It's almost gone. Eating helped."

Derrick nodded and stood up. "Good. I'll be back the next time Near wakes up to look him over. Try to rest. If you get bored, I'm sure one of the nurses can bring you some magazines or a book or something. Unfortunately we don't allow TVs in the PICU. This is a quiet environment. But if Near continues to do this well, we will move him to a private room tomorrow. There will be a TV in there to keep you occupied."

"I'm fine. I just want to sit here." Mello slid off the bed and sat in the chair again, putting Near's hand back against his face.

Derrick sighed and shook his head. Near wasn't the only one suffering. But unlike what was going on with Near, he had no idea what to do to help Mello. The only thing he could think to do was to leave him alone to hold near while he healed. Seeing Near heal would go a long way to helping Mello heal. All it would take was a little time.