Untouchable face

15.

This whole thing was bullshit. It was complete and total bullshit. Derek was damn careful on the job, the two of them made sure everyone that worked for them was damn careful about safety because this was never supposed to happen. Derek wasn't supposed to be stuck in a hospital bed with a damn broken back. Every one of their job sites had very strict rules about safety, and everyone was expected to follow those rules. But somehow, it had all come back to bite them in the ass and his brother was in a hospital bed, struggling to just function on a daily business. And it was all Stacey's fault. That demanding bitch was so stupid and selfish, and now Derek wouldn't be able to work for months. He never would have been up on that roof if Stacey hadn't been so god damn demanding. No one would think it was a good idea to work on a roof in heavy rain, it screamed stupid idea but Stacey didn't know how to take no for an answer so Derek had tried. Now everything was upside down.

It had been a week since the injury, a very long injury, and Mark still couldn't sleep. He was working his ass off at the office, trying to pull together their work and trying to figure out what the hell their next move needed to be. He felt like he hadn't been able to see his brother since he had gotten buried under the paperwork, but he was going to change that now. He just wanted to see him. Derek would probably have some ideas about what to do with this mess. He was always the one who dealt with the paperwork more anyway, he had the patience for that kind of shit, Mark was kind of just along for the ride. And Mark figured he'd just feel better if he could see how his little brother was doing.

Mom swore Derek was starting to do better, that his doctors were starting to wean him off the big drugs. He was hoping it wasn't going to be hard day, that Derek's head was reasonably clear and he wasn't being an asshole. Maggie had told them all that Derek had a bit of an attitude right now, but Mark also knew Mags just didn't know how to tell Derek to shut the hell up. He liked Maggie, he did but he hoped if this relationship was going to last, she'd get to the point where she wasn't so worried about being a little rough on Derek. He didn't need kids gloves, he needed people to tell him he was an idiot and a baby.

or now though, he wasn't going to think about that. He was just going to worry about seeing his brother and talking to him through a haze of drugs and pain. Mom kept reminding them all that Derek was actually lucky, that he would be able to walk and live a completely normal life, but there was nothing normal about being in a hospital bed with a broken back and leg. "Who let your ugly mug in here?"

"I'm going to assume the drugs are making you hallucinate," Mark smirked as he smiled at his brother.

"I don't think I could hallucinate that ugly," Derek laughed slightly.

"I look better than you," Mark shrugged as he sat down next to Derek's bed. His brother was covered in wires, his eyes slightly out of focus, and his skin pale.

"That's impossible."

"That's a fact of life."

"No. I fell off a roof and I still look better."

"You are stoned," Mark laughed.

"Not as badly as I have been," he sighed.

"Well, that's a plus," Mark nodded. "How you feeling, buddy?"

"Like I fell off a roof."

"I bet."

"It...hurts."

"I know, man," Mark sighed, squeezing his arm. "It shouldn't have happened."

"Hmmm..." Derek sighed.

"The job's done. I told Stacey exactly where she could shove her fake boobs and bad dye job."

"You did?"