#MotherHen!Fjord

[pixieposts]

Febuwhump Day 26

AO3

Today’s prompt was “recovery” so this is a little companion piece to yesterday’s prompt.  I got all my medical info from healthline and mayoclinic.  This will be the very last prompt I fill!  I’ve already written 27 and 28, so I’ll have finished with exactly 7 days to spare (it’s the 23rd right now).  I hope you enjoy!

Specific TW’s

Brief descriptions of injuries

MotherHen!Fjord

Beau and Yasha arrived at the hospital around noon to pick them up.  Fjord had called that morning, explaining the situation and worrying that the truck would be too hard for Caleb to get into.  The door flew open, and Caleb winced at the sound.  

“Beau, concussion remember?” Fjord glared  

“Shit- right sorry man”  

She walked over, a sheepish look on her face as she stopped to take in the scene.  Fjord knew what she was seeing, because he saw it too.  Caleb covered in bandages and bruises, Caleb in a cast, in a hospital, with tubes all around him.  Caleb hurt.  He caught her eye and grimaced sympathetically; it would be hard for her.  A large hand landed on his shoulder and he looked up to see Yasha smiling tentatively at him.

“We brought clothes”  

“Danke Yasha, Beauregard, that was very thoughtful of you”  

“No naked ginger butts in the van”  

“Such a wonderful sister, your concern is touching”  

“I don’t want your ass touching the seats is all”  

Fjord rolled his eyes and stood, leaning forward to hit the buzzer for the nurse's station.  

The next hour was a blur of activity while the nurse got Caleb unhooked from his machines, Fjord walked him (probably too slowly) to the bathroom to help him change from the hospital gown to the clothes Beau had brought.  She had made excellent choices, soft worn sweatpants and a loose fitted t-shirt (one of Fjords, if the way it hung off Caleb’s shoulder was an indication) and a zippered hoodie.  Fjord tried not to wince at the sheer amount of bruising that covered Caleb’s skin, but his expression betrayed him.  Caleb reached for him as Fjord went to open the door, tugging lightly to get him close before pressing his forehead to Fjord’s shoulder.  Fjord held him as gently as he could, feeling the way Caleb’s hands shook where they gripped his shirt.  The nurse had given him a rundown off all the necessary caretaking instructions, along with a few printouts with the same information.  Beau took Fjords keys and parking lot ticket, offering to drive the truck back to their apartment so he could sit in the van with Caleb.  

Getting Caleb into the apartment took much longer than usual, mostly because Fjord refused to let him walk faster than absolutely necessary.  Yasha walked in ahead of them, unlocking the door and scooping up a very grumpy Frumpkin.  She went ahead, turning on as few lights as she could.  Fjord got Caleb settled in his favourite armchair before taping the care instructions to the fridge.  

No strenuous activity, limit screens, no driving... Sleep upright at first, icepack for pain, pain meds....

Did they have pain meds?  He couldn’t remember the last time they had bought any.  He checked the bathroom, pulling out a mostly empty bottle and shaking two loose.  Grabbing a glass of water he made his way back to the living room.  Yasha had settled herself on the floor cushion Molly had bought them the year before, and Frumpkin was purring in Caleb’s lap.  Fjord held out the meds and Caleb sighed.

“You heard the nurse, take them every four hours on the dot unless you want the pain to catch up to you”  

Caleb took the meds, swallowing them with the cold water and handed the glass back.  

“Beau’s grabbing meds, she wants to know if you want burgers?”  

Yasha and Beau left around dinner, keeping an eye on Caleb while Fjord made all the necessary phone calls to Caduceus and Vandran.  Caleb wouldn’t be working until his concussion was at least mostly gone, and Fjord knew he wouldn’t work until Caleb could be left alone again.  He was suddenly far more thankful for all the horrible overtime shifts he had been working.  

The first two weeks were the worst.  

Caleb struggled with the effects of the concussion most, the fogginess in his mind was something he wasn't used to.  He was forgetful and unbalanced to the point of Fjord insisting on helping him every time he had to walk more than a few steps.  It didn’t help that he couldn’t watch TV without an instant headache or read without getting nauseous.  Fjord tried to make things as easy as he could, but Caleb was irritable and frustrated by it all.  He couldn’t even take a shower without at least leaving the door open in case he got the spins.  

“I hate this Fjord, I hate it”  

“I know love, it’s got to be frustrating, but-”

“But nothing, this is the worst.  I just want to read or sleep normally!  Is that so much to ask?”

Fjord just sighed, wrapping an arm around his shoulder gently and pressing a kiss to his temple.  The helpless feeling was something he was rapidly getting used to.  

The snappish behaviour continued, only getting worse as time went on.  It got to a point that Fjord just stopped talking, as anything he said seemed to set Caleb off.  He didn’t blame him of course, Caleb was used to being independent, he was used to working and reading and writing... he couldn’t do any of that.  And if he took it out on Fjord well... Fjord was still battling the guilt of leaving him in the hospital by himself all night.  It was worse when the nightmares started, Caleb would wake sweating and shaking and absolutely refuse to let Fjord near him.  Fjords own nightmares he kept to himself.  

Things started to look up as Caleb’s concussion symptoms lessened and he was able to do more on his own, but Fjord still hovered.  He tried to hide it as well as he could, but the image of Caleb in the hospital, of the black and purple bruising that had covered his skin... well, that sort of thing is hard to forget.

Four weeks had passed, and Caleb had been given the okay to sleep lying down again, and they were finally getting the cast off his arm.  The doctor had been very pleased with the progress his ribs were making as well.  They lay in bed the night the cast came off, Caleb lifted his arm up into the air and flexed his fingers.  

“Must feel nice”

“It feels... lighter” he sat up, turning to looked at Fjord and chewing his lip “Fjord...”

Fjord sighed, sitting up and pulling Caleb close, he knew that face.  

“Whatever you’re about to apologize for, don’t”  

“But-”

“Nope” Fjord popped the P before pressing a kiss to Calebs cheek “nothing to apologize for”

“I was awful to you; you were just trying to help”

“You were frustrated and had a literal brain injury Cay.  I can’t imagine how... how shitty that must be, and I’m the one who should be apologizing anyway”  

“If this is about the phone thing again-”

“You were alone in there, after getting in a massive accident”

It was Caleb’s turn to sigh as Fjord settled them back in bed and Caleb pressed in as close as he could to Fjords side.  It was hard not to just roll over and hold him properly, but his ribs still had healing to do and Fjord would be damned before he messed them up.  

The next morning while Fjord was making breakfast, Caleb walked into the kitchen looking excited.  

“What’s up?”

“Turn around”  

Fjord set the pan onto a cool burner and turned, raising an eyebrow curiously as Caleb stepped in close.  Caleb slid his arms around Fjord’s waist, holding tight as Fjord wrapped his around the smaller mans shoulders.  He rested his cheek against the top of Caleb’s head, taking a deep breath as the comfort of having him close washed over him.  

“I realized I didn’t do this yesterday” Calebs voice was muffled against his shirt “I wanted to, because I couldn’t before and... gods it feels so nice”  

“I missed it too”  

They stood like that, just holding each other, until the toasted buzzed and pulled them back to reality.  

The day of Calebs six-week checkup arrived in a buzz of excitement.  If the x-rays came back clean, Caleb could go back to his life.  Fjord knew he was desperate to get back to work.  The concussion was nearly gone from what they could tell, he had been able to read without feeling sick for nearly a week now and the bathroom light was no longer the enemy.  If his ribs were healed to a point that the doctors were no longer concerned...  

Fjord sat in the waiting room while Caleb was in the x-ray, drinking the horrible hospital coffee and wishing for some of Cad’s tea.  The nurse who had been on duty the night of Caleb’s accident came out to get him, smiling encouragingly.  He was led down the hall to one of the small consultation rooms, the nurse opened the door and Fjord stepped in.  He barely had enough to register the X-rays up on the light screen before Caleb had thrown his arms around Fjord's neck, knocking the air out of him.  He caught Caleb instinctively, wrapping his arms around his chest and steadying them both with a laugh.

“Good news I guess?”  

He looked over Calebs head to the doctor, who was smiling indulgently as he nodded.  

“All clear, his ribs look good as new.  Just keep an eye on any lingering concussion symptoms and hopefully we won’t see you any time soon”

“Thanks doc, really”

Fjord managed to steer Caleb out of the room, shuffling them so that he was tucked under Fjord's arm as they walked.  They got to the parking lot and Caleb pulled him to a stop before he could open the truck.  Fjord turned, and Caleb wrapped himself around him again.  Fjord chuckled, burying his nose in the long ginger hair and reveling in the simple pleasure of holding him tight.  

“It feels good to have proper grip on you again”  

Fjord kissed the top of his head, giving him a squeeze.

“Damn right it does”  

[hbirdseyeview-blog]

Was great exploring the fjords with the MotherHen and Father! Never really appreciated the small things in life till I "left" home to have a few years on ship!! Cycling around Norway was great!! #hbctosea