"There's, uh—there's chairs in the other room he can sit on," the kid says to him, voice wavering as he glances once again over to the far corner of the therapy gym.
Mac shakes his head, not sure when he suddenly became old enough to think of other people askid, or if Matty is right and he and Jack are actually spending way too much time together.
"Not that I'm kicking him out… not at all," Mac's physical therapist, Theo, adds quickly from his spotting position beside him. His words practically trip over each other as he tries to get them all out. "He can stay. It's just, standing there—just… standing there every day must be uncomfortable for his back. Not—not that I think he has a bad back at his age…"
Theo's mouth drops open, his eyes wide and unblinking as he stares like a fish out of water across the room at Jack.
Who stares right back with a raised eyebrow.
Mac feels for the guy. He doesn't think he's taken a breath since inadvertently calling his partner old, but Mac can't quite stifle his snort of laughter anyway.
That earns him a glare from the man in question himself, the likes of which have had terrorists quaking in their boots and rethinking their plans to take over the world.
Mac simply smirks and shrugs his good shoulder. Jack's glowers haven't had an effect on him since, well, never.
If the sharp intake of breath from beside him is anything to go by, the newest addition to the Phoenix physical therapy team doesn't feel the same way.
"He's not—I mean, I'm—I'm bad with ages, real bad," Theo stumbles out, his eyes darting from Jack back over to Mac's. "It's just, I thought maybe he'd be more, uh, comfortable in the waiting room. Or he can leave… O—only if he wants that is, instead of always…just, standing there. He can get some, ah, coffee. Or not. Maybe some juice or just some water… Martha, uhm… Martha, she's our, ah, receptionist, she can call him when you're all done."
They both know Martha quite well with how much time they've both had to spend here. One of the highlights, Mac'sonlyhighlight of having to suffer through physical therapy as often as he does, is watching the older woman make his tough-as-nails partner fluster and blush with her own deep south southern charm.
Mac knows that Jack is just actually standing there. He even knows it's not because Jack thinks Mac's new therapist doesn't know what he's doing—Pheonix has an intense vetting process, after all—or that Jack wants to make sure that Mac not only attends PT but participates and pays attention, as well.
Okay, maybe Jack does have a tiny bit to worry about on those last two points.
It's just, sometimes, being the one injured is much easier than the one left to hold vigil.
As much as Mac needs to heal physically, he knows Jack hasn't even begun to heal mentally from being the one left standing. The one left to not only get them both to safety and find new Exfil out of a foreign hostile country after their mission went to hell, but the one left holding Mac's very life in hands as he did it.
Even though Jack denies it, Mac still hears the shouts of his name from nightmares Jack doesn't admit to having.
So, no, Jack doesn't mean to intimidate Theo. But worry and concern ride a fine line to anger. And standing there, silent and still, dressed in all black, Jack makes an impressive sight.
"Jack…"
Mac simply says his best friend's name, their years together enough for Jack to hear and understand his unsaid words by the look on his face and his tone of voice alone.
"M'just standing here," Jack defends.
"I was beginning to think he couldn't speak," Theo mumbles softly.
"No such luck," Mac quips.
"I heard that," Jack grouses.
"You were meant to," Mac responds cheerfully.
The exercise bike glides to a stop as Mac stops pedaling. He removes his still healing left leg from the pedal, bending and straightening it experimentally to judge the pain level before resting it on the floor, pleased that the discomfort he was expecting is minimal.
He feels Jack's gaze on him, and he knows his best friend's eagle eyes are watching him for the very same reason. Mac looks back, his mood turning serious and expression full of understanding as he holds Jack's gaze.
"I'm not going to be less than honest with what I'm able to do or sneak away and avoid this all together," Mac says.
Jack snorts. "If I had a dollar for every time I've heard that, hoss."
"That's fair," Mac agrees. And it is. Mac has improvised incidents and small disasters on more than a few occasions that not only led to the shutdown of the therapy wing, but in a couple of, overzealous, instances the entire building as well, to avoid having to attend physical therapy. But he has also grown and learned life lessons from the man standing in front of him.
"We're partners," Mac asserts. "You watch my back, I watch yours. I can't do that if I'm not 100%."
"No fair usin' my own wisdom against me, man," Jack grumbles.
"I'll leave the validity of thewisdomuntouched… For now," Mac laughs. "Seriously, Jack… I'm going to be here for another couple hours at least. Go visit Riley. She's in the computer lab programming drones. You can help her with the targeting."
Riley really doesn't need any assistance, and Mac is sure he's going to have to grovel and apologize with her favorite ice cream or a build of whatever new piece of tech she wants for sending Jack to the computer lab of all places. But Jack needs a distraction, and more importantly care and support of his own and Mac can't think of anyone better to provide that than his daughter.
Jack nods his head. "Yeah, alright. You don't go goin' full tilt tryin' to jump start your recovery," he tells Mac with a pointed look. "We're not doin' theone step forward, three steps backwardsdance this time. You hearin' me, slick?"
"Loud and clear," Mac promises.
"And you…" Jack jabs a finger in the air in Theo's direction, who immediately stands up straighter, almost snapping to military attention. It leaves Mac wondering if the young therapist has some sort of military background of his own or if it's just a reaction to Jack's natural air of authority, and he makes a mental note to ask. A good place to start to get to know the new guy Mac has no doubt he's going to be seeing often.
"Don't you go goin' alltherapist-anatorand pushin' him. We don't play theno pain, no gain danceeither," Jack informs Theo.
"Therapist-anator?"Theo repeats, his brow furrowed in confusion as he looks back and forth between him and Jack.
"Don't ask," Mac just about begs. "Please don't ask. It'll only encourage him."
Thankfully, Theo doesn't pursue an explanation for his partner's colorful word choice. Instead, he stands even straighter and squares his shoulders. Gone is the nervousness of a few moments ago, in its place is an air of confidence.
"I don't play that game either, sir," Theo tells Jack. "It goes against my beliefs. I will encourage him; I will urge and press him if I feel he is holding back or not giving it his all."
Theo glances over at him, giving him a studying look before turning his attention once more to Jack. "Though in Agent MacGyver's case, I feel I will be doing the opposite of that."
"I may just have to recommend ole Theo here for Agent training. Didn't take him long at all to get the read on you, bud," Jack points out with a grin and Mac has the good sense to remain silent, knowing he doesn't have any convincing counter to defend himself with.
"He will be sore, yes, Agent Dalton," Theo continues, "but Agent MacGyver ending up in pain will only set him back and is counter-productive to my goal of ensuring that he heal and return at, or as close to 100% as I can get him."
"Ohhh… I like you." Jack grins wide and pushes himself off the wall and closes the distance between them. "Think you and I are gonna get along just dandy."
Jack extends his hand and Theo grasps it. "And it's Jack, or Dalton, don't matter to me, I don't insult easily. With as much as you're gonna be—unfortunately—seein' the two us—and that ain't no reflection on you, mind you, just the nature of the beast—we might as well be on a first name basis. 'Sides, I don't stand on ceremony unless I absolutely have to."
Mac rolls his eyes. "And even then, he has to be reminded to behave himself."
"If you're gonna be tellin' tales outta school, boy, I have an entire bookcase I can share with my new BFF Theo here when it's my turn on the table."
Mac's mouth curls up in a smile and he mimes zipping his lips.
"So, drones, huh?", Jack asks.
"Yup… Brand new, right off the assembly line from the DOD. They wanted her to go fullArtemison them," Mac tells him.
"Think she'll let me fly 'em through the corridors? Or… we can put a bunch of 'em all together and make like, one of those dragons you see at festivals performing in the sky."
Jack's eyes light up as he speaks, the excitement in his voice filling the air as he spins around, still talking and planning as he heads out the door and down the hallway towards the computer labs.
"Oh…Oh, I got it! Our movie! Gotta get Boze, drones is what it's missin'! Equip 'em with lasers… And Sparky…"
Jack's voice fades off as he turns a corner so Mac doesn't get to hear what it is exactly that Jack needs Sparky for. Mac knows that he should. He knows he should distract his partner, talk sense, and redirect before his excited mischief lands him in hot water with Riley or back in Matty's doghouse. Or worse, end up on Oversights radar.
But there's a light in Jack eyes that Mac hasn't seen in far too long, and Mac just can't bring himself to quash that.
Oh yeah, Mac thinks,I'm definitely going to have to make this up to Riley in a big way.
"Now where were we?" Mac asks Theo.
"Let's up the speed a notch, see how you feel," Theo instructs him as he turns the dial up a step.
Mac resets his legs carefully on the bike's pedals and slowly starts along the computer-generated path laid out in front of him on the monitor, easily keeping stride as the program ticks up the pace a little faster after each lap he completes.
He's ready to get back to work.
Back to himself.
Back to his partner's side.