As long as we both shall live [Tom Hiddleston]{EBT book 3 of 4}

Stronger

By the time Dr Porter returned late in the afternoon Tom was able to walk to the door without getting dizzy, although he occasionally needed Kate's help to get back. His balance was slowly returning, he could at least feel when he was falling now. The next challenge was to go to the bathroom by himself without getting out of breath. He hadn't thought that would be a problem, until the first time he tried and realised shortness of breath meant coughing, and lots of it. According to Kate he had turned a pretty shade of blue, and black spots had threatened to completely cloud his vision. Lesson learned, this was going to take some time.

After dinner Kate could see he was exhausted and was surprised when he turned on the television. Until now the changing light had been too painful, not that there was much to watch anyway. He grinned like a loon when he found Sherlock and lay back so he could see it, making room for Kate and patting the empty space. "Just until you go to sleep," she said, sliding under the blanket next to him.
"I'm not tired yet, I just wanted a cuddle."
"OK," she said as he pulled her closer.
Five minutes later Kate was engrossed in Sherlock and Tom was snoring softly. Of course he wasn't tired. When it had finished and he was sound asleep she switched the television off and moved to the recliner, hoping for more sleep than the night before.

Kate woke up with a start and sat straight up.
"Sorry hon, it's Amy. Just thought I'd do his obs before I went home. I'm giving him some more pain relief as well, he's due now and that way he should sleep better."
"That's OK. Everything good?"
"Looks good to me. His breathing is a bit rattly but that's expected the first couple of days. They warned you his coughing would get worse?"
"Yeah. Thanks, hon. See you tomorrow?"
"You sure will. Get some sleep."
She left, closing the door quietly, and Kate went back to sleep easily. Just before dawn, Tom stirred a little for the first time and she looked over to check on him. And then the hacking cough they had warned her about began. He was just able to draw a quick breath in between coughing fits, and she could see he was starting to panic and not getting enough oxygen. She remembered something Jackson had said about sitting upright being best, and moved swiftly around the bed to sit him up, giving him a pillow to lean over so it didn't hurt as much. After a few seconds he got in a few breaths, and after what felt like hours he was able to speak again. "Thank you, Kate."
"Are you OK?"
"I think so. They said it would get like this and before it can get better I have to clear all the crap out of my lungs. I'm sorry you had to see it though, and that I woke you."
"Baby the coughing didn't wake me, I wake up every time you move. And that's why I'm here. If I wanted a good sleep I'd go home. That's a lie, I probably wouldn't get one there either." She climbed in to the bed next to him, snuggling in to his warm body and rubbing his back.
The coughing would continue that way through the day, and by the time Luke arrived in the afternoon Amy had been insisting Kate go get a drink, go for a walk, or fetch something every hour to give her a break. Jackson had been back and give them some tips to relieve the pain and get his breath in between, but there was nothing else anyone could do. Amy and Jackson were with Tom when Luke arrived, and Kate took Luke for a walk before he saw Tom.
"Fuck, Kate, I thought he was getting better?"
"He is, today and tomorrow will be the worst of this and then he should get better pretty quickly. A lot of mucus built up while he was sedated and he has to get it out, this is the only way."
"Are you holding up?"
"No," she admitted, her eyes filling with tears and voice shaking. "I don't want to leave him. But I think I need a break. It's so hard to watch him like this, he's been like it since early this morning."
"Go home. Have a shower, a nap, glass of wine, whatever you need. I'll stay. Stay at home overnight if you like."
Kate nodded. "Just for a little while."

They returned to Tom's room, Luke giving him a quick hug. He was starting to look ragged and exhausted, his eyes red and watery. Kate took his hand and rubbed his back. She couldn't leave, not when he really needed her. Jackson had put the bed up as far as he could and propped him up with pillows, trying to support him as upright as possible. Kate could see from the way he slumped that his muscles were weak and couldn't hold him up much longer, but his body just wasn't giving him a break. She asked him to move forward and climbed in behind him, sitting behind his back so he could lean back in to her. Earlier Jackson had shown her where she could massage on his back and she used her thumbs, alternating sides across the middle of his back. Initially it made it worse but after a few minutes he was able to catch his breath. Kate put her hands around to his chest and pulled him back in to her so he could rest his muscles without slumping over.
"Luke, could you get Amy please?"
"Why?" Tom wheezed.
"Because you need a break," Amy walked in and looked at the monitor.
"Remember we talked about a fine line between clearing your lungs and oxygen deprivation?" Kate nodded. "Your body needs a break, Tom. I'm going to give you some steroids to stop the coughing for a while and some pain relief so you can sleep. OK?" He nodded his head and let Kate put the oxygen mask on his face.
"I love you, baby. You've been so brave." Kate whispered in his ear and kissed the back of his neck. She climbed out from behind him so he could lay down.
"That was really good thinking, Kate," Amy praised. "The worst should be done hopefully. He at least should sleep for a few hours. You should go home and rest while you can."
"I think I will when he calms down a bit. I couldn't have left him like he was, but it's been a really tough day."