Knocking On Death's Door (J. Ortiz) (au)

Chapter Eight

     Persephone had almost been excited the day that Juan Carlos's scans came back, and he was cleared for eating solid food, like chicken, instead of semi-solid, like pudding. She knew he was going to be happy to finally have food that wasn't something a baby would eat. She knew he wanted to be treated like an adult, and that meant eating food that adults could eat.

     Percy carried a tray towards Juan Carlos's room that was full of solid foods. She had gotten him a mix of food from the cafeteria. He still had to eat hospital food, but at least he'd be able to eat what he wanted from the tray. She had gotten a cheeseburger, fried chicken, grilled chicken, turkey with gravy, and a piece of meatloaf. She also got a couple of fruits, and a thing of potato wedges, so he'd have more than just meat.

"Goodmorning," She greeted Juan Carlos when she entered the room,"I've got you a tray full of real solid food that you can eat."

"Thank you," He murmured, and his eyes widened when the tray was placed in front of him,"That's a lot."

"You don't have to eat it all, I just figured you'd like to choose what you ate, since today is your first day of solid food in a while." She replied, and he nodded.

     Juan Carlos chose the cheeseburger first. Hospital food wasn't amazing, but it was definitely better than prison food, and a lot better than an all liquid diet. He couldn't deny that the cheeseburger tasted amazing though. He also really liked the fruit, but he always secretly snacked on fruit when he lived in Charming. He then chose the turkey and gravy. He couldn't force himself to eat the meatloaf, which reminded him of prison, and he wasn't real big on fried chicken.

     He didn't admit it out loud, but he really liked the amount of care and kindness Percy was giving him. She was nicer than any person he had ever really met, considering everyone else had turned their backs on him. Simply thinking about it made him want to puke. He hated them and wanted them to feel the pain that he had felt.

     At the same time though, he knew that he had betrayed Jax. He hadn't meant to, but he did, according to Jax, and he'd torture himself for it forever. He knew they'd never forgive him, even if he had managed to live through the amount of torture that had set on him. It was their fault he had gone through all of the pain in prison, but he felt that it was his fault they put him in that position in the first place.

     Just thinking about it all again made him feel nauseous. He kept eating, knowing that the more he ate, the better he would feel sooner. He was still terrified that he was going back to prison, even after everything that happened to him. He wondered why there wasn't an officer posted outside of his room at all times, or why an officer hadn't looked in on him every couple of hours — or when a doctor or nurse was in the room.

     Percy had given Juan Carlos time alone to eat. She knew some people became nervous when eating solid food in front of people after so long of not eating any. She didn't want him to feel nervous while eating, or accidentally choke because she had been in the room watching him to see if he'd eat.

     After Juan Carlos ate a little more food, he pushed the table away from himself and laid flat on his back once more. He couldn't stop thinking about everything that had happened to him. He closed his eyes, and because of the pain medication, he fell asleep. He hadn't meant to fall asleep, but most of the time the pain medication would force him to sleep if he was even slightly tired.

     After only a little bit of time being asleep, Juan Carlos began to dream about all of his pain. It was like he was watching everything from a different point of view other than his own. He was watching himself be hurt, and he couldn't stop it. He could feel the pain, as if it was happening in that moment. He screamed and cried for himself as he watched what happened, but it was as if nobody could hear him. He was trapped in his own mind, and the nightmare was becoming more and more debilitating.

     Percy had been at the nurse's desk talking to Fran, when she heard cries coming from Juan Carlos's hospital room. She and Fran were quick to jump up and run to the room. For all they knew, the solid food was causing him severe pain as he was digesting it. When they entered the room, both women could tell that the man was asleep.

"Decrease the pain meds a bit, I think they might be causing him to have nightmares." Percy told Fran, and the older woman nodded.

     Percy then went to the bedside of Juan Carlos, and carefully shook him. When that didn't work, she began to call his name. It seemed as though nothing was working, as she and Fran both worked to wake him up from whatever dream he was having. Neither woman wanted to scare him, so they didn't dare yell to wake him up.

     Against the best judgment, Fran grabbed a paper cup and filled it with water. She then splashed the cold water in his face, successfully waking him up. He jumped, causing pain and making him wince, but he was awake. The fear in his eyes scared the women, since they had no idea what he was dreaming about that made him so terrified. Percy really needed answers, otherwise she'd have no idea how to help him. Both women just hoped that this nightmare was a one time thing, otherwise they'd have more issues on their hands...