snowblindrpg | [log] Don't worry! [closed]

Characters: John Watson, Sherlock Holmes, Mycroft Holmes, Franken Stein, Marie Mjolner, Death the Kid
Location: Building 235, and building 34...with stops in between
Date: Evening of 233; evening of 240. Potentially there will be some intermingling between as there is some travel time
Summary: Stein and Kid meet up with Marie at the aquarium. They then will double back and return to the hot water house to meet up with John, Sherlock and Mycroft for Kid's blood transfusion.
Warnings: Blood, sickness, general Norfinbury nonsense. Will change if needed.

235: A small aquarium. It has the feel of a small-town tourist attraction, the sort built to give people just stopping to get gas a reason to stay for an hour or two. There are various aquariums inside that, according to plaques beside them, once showcased various Alaskan fish, but they're all empty of fish now. Various fish names are carved into the plaques: catfish, dogfish, mousefish, and birdfish. A piece of paper stuck on the lip of the catfish-labeled tank reads, in childish text and red pen, as follows: "You have to put your own fish in the tanks. DO NOT put Birdfish, Mousefish, or Dogfish in the tank with the Catfish!" The water still runs here, and even runs hot in the sinks, though there aren't any showers or bathtubs to use. The whole atmosphere is kind of eerie, with the water casting rippling patterns on the walls, ceilings, and floors.

34: Most of this house is in ruins--to get to the door requires walking over some rubble of the ruined house, although it seems like someone has moved the worst of it, allowing easier access to the house. The intact door leads to two intact rooms, and therefore it can be used as an overnight shelter. The door opens to a master bedroom with a large mattress and a thick comforter--too thick to carry without trouble, but nice for staying overnight here. The master bedroom is attached to a functioning master bathroom; the most important thing to note here is that it has a working shower with about ten minutes of hot water every day. Some of the tiles in the shower have been shattered and broken away, revealing a metal wall beneath. One nightstand has been broken apart and burned.

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[It takes several counts for Kid to finally settle (six, actually). Then he realizes that he's not quite where he started and John isn't working. That he's gripping John's hand tightly, as if he were going to try and pull the doctor away from his face. That there is blood on his cheek from what was presumably one removed stitch--it isn't too difficult for the teen to put together the pieces.

He lets go of John's hand, coughing, his entire demeanor shifting. The fear hasn't vanished, but there's an awareness that had been missing moments before. He scrubs his sleeve over his good eye, attempting to hide nearly-shed tears but mostly smearing the drips of blood.]

I-- [His voice cracks, and he ducks his head.] --I'm sorry, Dr. Watson. [He's every bit as small as he looks, and sounds it when he murmurs:] I do not think I can do this.

[John sighs heavily.]

I think you can, Kid. It's gonna take us a while, but I can be patient if you're willing to keep trying. One stitch at a time. We can pause in between each and count. It really needs to come out. I know this is hard. I know how hard it is, but you're brave, Kid. I know how brave you are with everything you've been here. You've helped me in so many ways. I know this is frightening, but please, let me help you. It's the least I can do. I don't want you to be hurt. I won't hold you. I won't force you, but this needs to be done.

[And John is pretty sure that if they don't do it here, Kid is going to have to deal with Stein holding him down to do it later.]

I know they do. I know. [John's presumption that the next action would be Kid enduring Stein removing the stitches himself, forcefully, isn't wrong. The teen has been quiet, but he'd already endured a very uncomfortable physical exam. An exam that included looking at his eye, which had gone exponentially worse than this.

Kid shudders, taking a shaking breath. He's not willing to admit that physical comfort would be helpful--it's in times like these that he misses his weapon partners the most, the way Patti would settle against one side and Liz against his other and tangle themselves around him until he was finally still.

Head bowed, he nods slowly. The sniffle he attempts to hide by clearing his throat.] I want to try. What sort of...what sort of grim reaper am I, if I cannot tolerate this? [He scrubs his hands through his hair.] There is no excuse. Please, forgive my earlier behavior.

You're the kind of grim reaper who's still a teenager and still learning, Kid. [John's not overly physically affectionate, but he does pull his wrist loose from Kid's grip if the lad will allow it and shift his scissors to his other hand with the tweezers so that he can reach up and squeeze Kid's shoulder.]

You're trying your best. That's all I can ask for, Kid. I wouldn't want anyone near my eyes, either. We'll just take it slow. One stitch at a time. There're four more. You can do this. Try counting again for me, okay? Out loud. As loud as you need to be. [It might bother the others, but they can go hang for the moment. If Kid wants to scream counts of eight, that's fine.

One last squeeze and then his scissors are back in the left hand and John pinches the next knot with the tweezers.] Just count, Kid.

Right. Counting. [His hands wrap in the blanket tightly, gripping the fabric till his knuckles turn white and his arms shake with the effort.]

One, two, three, four-- [When the tweezers grip the knot of the stitch, Kid stiffens.] J-Just Dr. Watson, t-taking out the stitches. It-- [Kid squeezes his left eye shut, takes a shaking breath of air.] It's all r-right. Just the stitches.

Edited 2017-06-04 14:44 (UTC)

That's right. It's just me, Kid. You're doing great. Just me and you. Five, six, seven, eight. One, two, three...

[He continues counting as he slips the scissors through the loop and snips quickly before tugging out the stitch and dropping his hands down a moment to let Kid recover and finish the latest count to eight.]

Three more stitches. Just three more, right? How many counts of eight d'you think that is?

Four-five-six-seven-eight. [Rushing through the counting defeats the purpose, but considering he's been holding his breath it wasn't so bad. As soon as the stitch slips through, he lets out the breath he was holding. Erratic breathing leaves him coughing, the deep cough bringing up blood. Warily, he opens his eye and glances up at Watson.]

...I do not know. [Taking a shaking breath in and out, the teen looks away.] Too many.

But you're going to make it through. [John really doesn't like the sight of that blood.] And then we'll get you sorted to help with that problem, too, all right? It won't be permanent, but you'll have a little relief. You're still really pulling together here, Kid. Deep breaths and a few counts of eight, and then we'll do another. It'll just be two more after that. D'you need some water to clear your throat?

Edited 2017-06-05 01:33 (UTC)

[Kid swallows, shaking his head. The movement sends the room spinning, but Kid stays still where he's seated with his hands balled tightly beside him. He's careful to keep his breathing controlled.] No thank you.

[Fidgeting, Kid glances up at John before quickly looking away.] ...I would just like to finish.

We'll be finished soon. [He offers Kid his most reassuring smile.] Could you start counting for me again? [John raises the tweezers and scissors again. He'll keep at this method, reassuring Kid and giving him time between each time. When it comes to the last stitch, John's just about ready to shake out of his own skin. Kid's nerves are getting to him, but his hand is steady as ever. With one final snip and tug, the last stitch is free.]

That's it. You're done. You were great, Kid. Here. Let's get some fluids into you. Really, thank you for letting me do that. I know that was one of the hardest things you've ever done. I'm bloody impressed. Not many people would be able to make it through that without flinching. You were amazing, Kid.

[Kid counts, meticulous, though much of the time he holds his breath with his lip between his teeth and hands balled into fists. When John states that they're finished, Kid exhales weakly, leaning against his knees, lightheaded and exhausted.]

I flinched plenty. [But he doesn't go on, fighting to let the vertigo pass, breathing slowly and carefully.] Do you think we might take a break, before we go on?

Edited (Trying to get to a wrap point here ;;) 2017-07-03 00:05 (UTC)

Sure. [John offers Kid another bracing smile.] I'll go fill up your water bottle and you can rest for an hour or so. I do mean it. You did really well, Kid. Thanks.

[With that, John will go off to fetch the water for Kid and leave him be for the next while to recover before the next procedure.]

[log] Don't worry! [closed]

cw: blood/medical stuff/etc

cw: blood/medical stuff/etc

cw: blood/medical stuff/self deprecation/etc

cw: blood/medical stuff/self deprecation/etc

cw: blood/medical stuff

cw: blood/medical stuff

cw: blood/medical stuff

cw: blood/medical stuff

cw: blood/medical stuff

cw: blood/medical stuff

cw: blood/medical stuff

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