Ready Made Relationship

Hospital Visits And Hard Decisions

Buck was in a daze as he drove back to base. His eyes stared straight ahead, but he couldn't really see. He was doing most of it by muscle memory.

His entire body was broken. He wondered if any of it was reparable.

His left shoulder was dislocated. The ball joint seemed to have come to rest half an inch below where it should be, and it was agonising to move it. Which was a disaster, seeing as he needed to use it in order to drive the rig. His left leg was swollen so large at this point that his pant leg was almost see-through around it, and it burned with overuse. His entire body was bruised and bloodied from being assaulted by the wood pile. His face, forearms, and the back of his neck were sunburnt to the point where his skin felt brittle and like it would snap off. His head pounded, and his mouth and throat felt like sandpaper due to intense dehydration. He would have random coughing fits because of the untreated smoke inhalation.

He didn't make it to base, he tried but as soon as he saw it his body relaxed and his exhaustion took over. He barely had time to put the rig in park before he slumped forwards onto the horn with his eyes closed and simply faded away. His job was done, after all.

When Buck woke up, someone was stroking his face gently with a cold washcloth. He didn't open his eyes. He didn't want to face anyone's wrath yet.

"You can open your eyes, sweetheart," a soft feminine voice cooed. A warm hand replacing the cold dampness of the washcloth against his face. Buck's brow furrowed, a surprisingly painless act, as he realised he'd never heard the voice before.

His eyes opened slowly.

The world dropped out from beneath him, leaving him floating.

An angel hovered above him. Her skin was the colour of dark chocolate, her hair as black as ebony and wavy like the ocean when faced with a stiff breeze. A smile inched the corners of her mouth up to reveal perfect white teeth and thick kissable lips. The pink silk shirt she wore was tucked into the belted waistband of her black slouch pants, and she was barefoot as she lay on the bed next to him. Buck was distracted momentarily by the fact that her fingernails and toenails were painted in the same silken pink of her shirt. Then his eyes rose swiftly to meet hers.

His entire being melted, giving its best attempt at disappearing through the bed as he stared into the whirlpools of melted chocolate. His pulse oximeter and the beeping monitor that was attached seemed to bleed out of existence as he continued to look.

Buck splintered once more as he felt the cold band of metal around the finger that she was repetitively tapping against his cheek. Of course, when Buck finally experienced the phenomenon of love at first sight, twice no less, both of them would be taken. That was the patented Buck Luck that everyone liked to make fun of.

He let his eyes fall closed again, not tired and not at all restful, but he needed a reprieve from seeing her face. Her perfect, beautiful face.

"No, no," her slender fingers began to tap with more force, and he peeked one eye back open regretfully. "Keep those eyes open, pretty boy. There's a string of people who want to see you awake, and," the woman looked him over and winced. "I can't exactly say well, but you know what I mean."

"Mm." Buck grunted in agreement. "My name's Buck."

"Mine is Grace, I'm sure you met Judd earlier. He's my husband." Of course he was, Buck thought bitterly. The two people he liked were in love with each other. How did he not see that one coming?

"Judd's tall. Don't usually meet people who are taller than me." Buck's eyes slid closed again, and he forced them open. He didn't understand why his eyes had closed because he wasn't feeling exhausted anymore. A little tired? Sure. Not enough to randomly fall asleep like that, though.