Bitter Treats (BxB Romance, In Progress)

39: Sweet Perfection

"You can lay down over there," Dr Laura/Lauren/Laurel—Tyler still couldn't remember her name—instructed. She never was much for chit-chat, which Tyler didn't mind. He'd long ago run out of conversation subjects suitable for healthcare workers.

Tyler obeyed the doctor's, leaning back on the padded and rubber-covered table, which squeaked as he moved. After attending approximately a million hospital visits during the last year, he knew the ropes by now. He'd even told his aunt she didn't need to come with him today, instead allowing her a peaceful moment at the hospital's coffee shop with a latte and bagel.

"How are you doing today?" the doctor asked, perhaps feeling like some small talk was appropriate before the poking and prodding began.

"I'm good," Tyler replied, which was a lie. Actually, he was awesome. Because regardless of the outcome of this visit, he would get to see Robin afterward, which was obviously the highlight of his day. Everything else paled in comparison to seeing those blue eyes glitter in response to Tyler's mere presence. It was a thing of beauty to have someone with whom he never needed to perform a role around. Just being Tyler was enough, or rather, it was perfect.

"That's great to hear," the doctor mumbled as her gloved hands started to wander the exposed skin on Tyler's residual leg. Upon entering the room, he'd been asked to remove both his pants and the silicon sleeve that protected the scars and ensured blood circulated properly.

Tyler looked up toward the ceiling during the examination, escaping into sweet dreams of Robin. The touch didn't hurt but he still didn't like the odd sensations caused by frayed nerve ends. Because of how the skin had been folded to cover the end of his leg, a touch below his knee could feel like it came from his non-existing calf. So he'd rather imagine himself elsewhere.

Although... perhaps he shouldn't escape too deeply into those dreams. Realizing he was only in his boxers, Tyler abrupted a train of naughty thoughts before an embarrassing situation occurred.

"Any phantom pains lately?"

"Sometimes," Tyler mumbled, focusing his scattered brain as he tried to remember the last time he felt the zapping pains from below the scar. His new relationship had been such a distraction that everything from the last few weeks became overclouded. "But not too often anymore. I feel it at night sometimes, or when it's cold. Like I accidentally fell in the water when we were at the beach and I felt some jolts afterward."

"But it passed quite quickly?"

"Yeah, I took a warm bath and I guess it was fine afterward." Truth be told, Tyler had completely forgotten about any kind of pain after that bath. He felt blush rising on his cheeks even imagining the post-bath activities. He adjusted his t-shirt in fear of other parts also rising from the memories.

The doctor wrote something in her notes, luckily too focused on her work to notice Tyler's flusteredness. "You can sit up," she instructed, nodding toward Tyler and handing him a cloth to cover his lower body. Hopefully, she thought he needed it because of the temperature in the room rather than for more embarrassing reasons.

"I think you may be ready," the doctor informed him, looking up from her notes with a smile.

"For what?" Tyler wondered as he had checked out mentally while the doctor explained the purpose of the exam when he arrived. And there had been so many exams lately that he'd learned to escape into other realms while his leg was poked and prodded. Usually, they didn't come to any new conclusions anyway.

"To have a prosthetic fitted," Loretta—Tyler realized this was the doctor's name as he looked up and saw it clearly written on her nametag, how had he missed that?—explained. "I'll refer you to the clinic in Halifax and they'll get in touch with you shortly. They would need to make a mold of your leg first and create a socket based on that, then there will be some training sessions where you learn how to use it, so you may need to stay there for a couple of weeks."

This was the moment Tyler had been waiting for for months. He would have a leg again, albeit a mechanical one rather than one made from flesh and blood. He would be able to walk again. He would be normal again.

But yet all he could think about was the fact that he would have to leave Robin behind for several weeks.

***

"I could come with you," Robin offered, having just been told about Tyler's upcoming prosthetic fitting. They'd met up on the university campus after class before attending a very special activity together.

Tyler shook his head. "You can't miss that much of school, Robby. It could hurt your grades. And I need my super smart tutor to help me catch up once I'm back." He snuck in a kiss on a blushing cheek. "I'll have Aunt Donna with me," he assured his boyfriend. "And my cousin Lance will be there as well. He lives close by so we'll stay at his house. He helped me a lot when I got home after the accident, so he knows what's up."

Robin put his arm around Tyler's shoulder and pulled him close. "I'll miss you though." He sighed, making the curls by Tyler's ear dance from the draft.

"I'll miss you too." Tyler nestled his nose close to Robin's neck, reveling in the the peppery tinge that was uniquely Robin. "We can talk every day though. And we still have this Halloween weekend together. Perhaps we should go to that party Des talked about?"

Robin nodded, although Tyler sensed a certain hesitation in his boyfriend's stiff posture. Perhaps Robin had never been to a party before and felt nervous about the prospect. "Halloween Party sounds great!" Robin exclaimed, his voice hitting a falsetto tone that spoke of the excitement perhaps not being quite sincere.

"Awesome! We can always leave if it's not fun though, just tell me if you feel uncomfortable." Tyler pressed a kiss to Robin's cheek to temper his obvious nervousness. " I already know what costumes we should wear. I may even have asked Donna to buy them for me." He'd helped Donna acquire a Glitter Dinosaur Princess costume for Emmie the other day, which had not been an easy feat, and discovered a set of costumes that was perfect for him and Robin. More than perfect even.

Tyler's gaze fell on Robin's watch, which was his main way of telling time since he'd never gotten into a habit of wearing one himself. "Oh shit, we gotta go! Don't want to be late, the snacks might run out!"

A brisk walk through campus and an elevator ride later, they were there. At a place Tyler never quite believed he would be, out and proud among peers. "There you go." Robin held the door—which was adorned with a bright rainbow-patterned flag—so Tyler could enter the classroom.

"There's donuts, chocolate chip cookies, and soda, tea, or coffee for you to drink." Miss Horn stood by a well-filled snack table, showcasing the assortment to the gathered students. Once she saw Robin and Tyler, she turned to wave, looking delighted to welcome them there together."Come on in guys, we're just getting started."

"Sorry we're late," Tyler mumbled toward the group, whose eyes were all directed at him, his crutches, and his missing leg. He couldn't wait until he got his prosthetic fitted. Then every encounter with new people wouldn't start with an inventory of body parts followed by horrified looks anymore. "We kind of forgot about the time."

"I'm just happy you're here, Tyler," Miss Horn assured him. Considering how many times she'd mentioned the LGBTQ group and their regular meetings to him during their counseling appointments, he believed her. She seemed to have made it her mission in life to get him here. He was sure she would be annoyingly smug about it during their next appointment but he supposed he would have to give her that. Because he was elated to be there.

"I would have come sooner if I knew there were so many snacks," Tyler replied, trying to play off his presence as no big deal. He looked longingly toward the table. It would unfortunately be difficult for him to juggle both a snack plate and his crutches.

"I'll get you some snacks, Ty," Robin offered, always sensing what Tyler needed.

Tyler sat down and soon a plate filled with cookies and donuts was placed in front of him. He immediately indulged in a chocolate-chip-filled treat. Everything was sweet and perfect. The cookie. The meeting. His boyfriend next to him.

Once he had his prosthetic fitted, nothing would be able to stop him. It was the last puzzle piece to achieve perfection.