"Just try to keep your grip on my hands strong, okay? Keep your arms straight-"
Kate pursed her lips in frustration as her hands dropped into her lap once more.
"You're getting better," Rick told her lightly, but Kate was discernibly frustrated with herself.
It had only been five days since she had awoken from the coma and she was still having trouble moving her own body without assistance. And she wasn't happy about it.
"I used to go for six mile runs on my days off," she muttered, crossing her trembling arms over her chest, clutching at the sleeves of her hospital gown to keep them in place. "I had a pull up bar in my living room, I could chase down suspects in heels. Now I can't even lift my damn arms."
"You'll be able to exercise normally again, it's just going to take some time," Rick said, squeezing her shoulder encouragingly, but she shrugged him off.
"I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not a patient person," she retorted dryly.
As if he didn't know that all too well by now.
It was the middle of the day and his session with Kate was taking a little longer than he had intended - he was going to be late to perform surgery on another patient - but he refused to rush her.
"Let's try your legs one more time."
Kate grit her teeth but nodded as she curled her fingers around the edge of the mattress and forced the limb upwards. When her muscles began to quiver after a few seconds, he touched her knee and eased her leg back down, repeating the action with the other.
"This sucks," she muttered, glaring down at her bare knees as the useless legs dangled off the side of the hospital bed.
"Do they hurt?" he asked, just to be sure, but she shook her head.
"No, they just ache a bit."
He slid his palm along her calf and she grimaced.
"Pain?"
She ducked her head to hide what appeared to be a blush.
"No, I haven't been able to shave for a while."
Rick chuckled, amused to see her concerned over something other than her physical weaknesses, something normal.
"Leg hair won't change my opinion of you," he assured her with a smile while he tenderly kneaded the skin of her calf muscle. He performed the same action on her other leg and squeezed both of her socked feet before asking her to flex her toes.
"This is only temporary, you know that. Your body's been in hibernation for close to two years, Kate. Did you expect to just hop out of bed?"
She glared at him, one of her legs twitching, undoubtedly indicating that she wished to kick him.
"At least you're awake and sharing those beautiful eyes of yours with the world," he added, straightening up and plucking the white lab coat from the chair he'd laid it across when he had come in an hour earlier.
She quirked her eyebrows at the compliment, flattered but teasing like he knew she would be. He wanted to flatter her. After all she had been through, he wanted to do anything he could to make her feel better about herself.
"You like my eyes?" she questioned with a grin.
"Among other things."
A startled laugh tumbled from her lips.
As she regained full use of her voice again and lost the raspy soreness that had accompanied her speaking in the first few days, their day-to-day chats had effortlessly developed into flirty banter. Seeing her had unintentionally become the highlight of his days and making her smile had become a daily mission.
"Wow, Rodgers. That was terrible."
"But it made you laugh," He pointed his pen at her upturned lips. "And feel free to call me Rick. Just not in front of the nurses."
She frowned suddenly, and he instantly feared he'd already managed to cross a line with her. He should have known he eventually would, he was always skirting along the edge of it and he could be such an idiot sometimes-
"Rick," she echoed his name and lifted narrowed eyes to examine him suspiciously. "I knew you."
Oh…oh no. He needed to go before-
"Listen, Kate, I have a patient I have to see-"
"The subway," she whispered with clarity bringing out the gold in her eyes. "That's where I know you from. You were always on my train."
He nodded, keeping his eyes down and on his clipboard.
"Yes, now that we have that settled-"
"No, no," she shushed him with an unsteady finger lifting in the air. "There was more. We…we went out?"
"No, we didn't," he huffed, giving up on any chance he had at avoiding this conversation and setting the clipboard down on her bed. "We shared a drink at a bar one night by happenstance. Yes, I knew you from the subway, so when you came into The Old Haunt over two years ago, looking upset, I bought you a drink and we talked. That was it."
She arched a skeptical eyebrow at him and tilted her head questioningly.
"Why can't I remember that as clearly?" she mumbled, eyebrows drawing together in thought as she chewed on her lower lip. "I can only recall talking to you in a booth and then the cab ride home…"
"You drank a lot that night, Kate."
"Mmm, must have been a bad case if I went to the bar."
"You mentioned something about being trapped in a freezer…?"
The mere mention of the old case made an involuntarily shiver travel down her spine and she rubbed at her temple as the memory seemed to return with sharpening clarity.
"Yeah, that was a bad one. We just talked?"
He nodded, the memory of sharing a booth and beer with her in the dim lighting of his favorite bar still crystal clear in his mind.
"I recognized you when you walked in, sent you a drink, and then you came over from the bar and sat with me for about an hour. Called you a cab when you started to actually laugh at my jokes."
She lowered her gaze, biting her lip to subdue the embarrassed twist of her mouth.
He had been writing, working on what would be the second to last Derrick Storm novel when he saw her come in, shivering from the bite of the winter winds outside, and going straight for the bar. She had seemed unsatisfied with the cheap glass of vodka placed in front of her, so he had ordered her a shot of his favorite whiskey. She must have asked who sent the drink, because the bartender pointed him out and next thing he knew, she was striding over to him, standing in front of his table and stating bluntly that she had a boyfriend. He'd nodded his understanding, even mentioning how they rode the same subway route and he had noticed her with another man before. Apparently, he had shown her his intentions were pure, or she had finally decided to give in to the need to actually talk to someone, because had she plopped down across from him.
They'd started talking, he'd ordered them both two more rounds of beers, and then he'd called her a cab. She hadn't been drunk, not necessarily. She had still been aware, just buzzed, but she had looked exhausted and he hadn't felt comfortable leaving her there to drink away her problems. He'd walked her out to the yellow cab idling on the street for her, and she had kissed his cheek, lingered there too long with her lips to his skin, like she had wanted to do more but caught herself before she could, and when she jerked back, he could see the shuttering restraint in her eyes, suppressing everything else, and she had slid into the cab, throwing a mumbled 'thank you' to him before she shut the door. And that was the last he had seen of Kate Beckett. That is, until she had been wheeled into his hospital seven days ago.
He still wondered what would have happened if he had seen her again, maybe on the subway. Maybe he would have approached her for once, flirted with her like he did so regularly now. Maybe she would have become his.
Kate hummed thoughtfully before looking back to him in askance.
"But if that's all that happened between us, why were you so flustered and trying to change the subject?"
"Because if it was revealed that I previously knew you, I would not be allowed to treat you. Of course, if you don't feel comfortable with me as your physician for that reason, you're free to say so and I'll assign someone new."
He drew his eyes down to the floor after that, not wanting to watch if she chose to reject him.
"Don't be so melodramatic," she chuckled. "From what I can remember, I like you."
"I appreciate that," he replied, glancing back up to her with a soft smile despite how she quickly looked away. "Well, I have a surgery to perform. I'll be back to check on you before I leave tonight."
She nodded and murmured her thanks when he helped her ease her legs back onto the cot and draped the blanket across her waist.
"Until tonight, Detective."
"Don't think calling me that is going to get you the story," she retorted as he walked backwards towards the door with a smug grin on his face.
"Oh, I'll get your story. You'll notice I'm a very persistent person."
"I've already taken notice of that, Rick," she smirked, dismissively waving her hand at the door. "Now hurry up and go save more lives."