Devil's House

The Pink Cast

Chester stared down at the bright pink cast that wrapped around part of his hand, wrist and half his forearm. Only the tips of his red and blue flames could be seen flickering out of the top of the cotton candy colored cast.

It had been a long night, and after waking up both from a disturbing dream and pain shooting through his arm, Chester had finally given Ryan his permission to call Forrest.

Everything happened at lightning speed after that, with Chester being taken to the emergency room in the middle of the night, just to be told his wrist was broken. He was now sentenced to at least six weeks in a cast. He'd chosen pink in hopes it would make him smile instead of frown, but at the moment, Chester wasn't feeling anything. He was still in the daze of hospital grade painkillers, his eyes opening and closing as he sat on the edge of a hospital bed, waiting for someone he knew to show up.

Out in the waiting room, Ryan was watching the time. It was seven o'clock in the morning, which meant it was only three o'clock back home in LA. It was too early to call Jay. Too early to let Mike know they were at the hospital.

Ryan sat forward, his elbows on his knees as he dropped his head into his hands. It had been a long night, and by the time the decision was made to take Chester to the E.R., everyone was exhausted.

Now he was ready for Forrest to get back so they could get Chester and go. The look on Forrest Mullan's face when the incident with Petey Sly was retold was burned into Ryan's brain. He'd never seen anyone look so appalled - so offended on behalf of someone else - in his whole life. It was a slice of righteous anger, and Ryan wasn't shocked when Forrest left the hospital to "go have a word" with the hotel security.

Ryan sat up to check the time again just as he heard his name. He looked over to see Forrest headed his way, and Ryan stood up. He was relieved to see their boss in the crowded New York hospital that was both loud and smelly.

"How is he?" Forrest asked the moment he got close enough to be heard over the hustle and bustle of the waiting room.

"Not sure. I'm still waiting to hear."

Forrest gently clapped Ryan's shoulder. "I'm sure everything is fine. I'm glad we brought him in when we did. Have you let Mike know?"

Ryan shook his head. "Not yet. It's three in the morning back home."

Forrest agreed, just as a nurse called out Chester's name. They headed to the desk she was standing behind where they were redirected through two doors and into a room. It was a relief to see Chester sitting up in his newly fitted cast and no longer in tears from pain.

Forrest stood back to give Ryan a chance to hug Chester first, to check him over and make sure he was okay, before he stepped up next to them. "Chester, congratulations on picking out a most attractive colored cast." He was pleased with the smile from his employee before he got down to business. "I talked with the hotel security staff."

Chester wasn't expecting that. Everything over the last few hours felt like a blur from the mix of drugs, pain, jet lag, and lack of sleep. He looked between his boss and Ryan. "Really?"

Forrest recognized the sound of concern in Chester's voice. "I thought it was important to get to the bottom of everything," he told Chester. "We watched the security camera footage. It showed very clearly what happened."

Chester hated that Forrest had seen anything. That his boss had watched him be overpowered by the likes of a scumbag like Petey Sly. It was embarrassing and Chester's eyes dropped to the floor. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

Forrest stepped close to caress Chester's bicep. His employee was still sitting in his nightclothes - a red muscle shirt and joggers. It made him look small as he tried to curl himself away. "There's nothing to be sorry for," Forrest assured him. "It was very clear that you tried to do the right thing and walk away. It's not your fault that brute accosted you."