Desires of Men ~SEQUEL TO THE LIFE I LIVE~

All In Your Head

Normally, Law would be furious that entire crew was jammed up against the infirmary door, trying to peak through the small glass window. There was a lot of rustling; men shoved each other out of the way to look inside and small fights almost broke out, but they quieted down quickly when Law shot a deadly glare in their direction.

"Are they alright?" Reid whispered, glancing towards the boisterous crew quizzically. Turning back towards the charts and reports on Reid's condition, he grinned with a low chuckle.

"They're just...mother-henning." And Reid went back to picking at the very simple meal Casper had made for him.

"How long have I been...asleep?" He sipped quietly at his glass of water. Law sighed, the humor slowly fading away.

"A few months." The machines around them beeped steadily, marking the uneasy silence as Reid absorbed this information. Liam, who was sitting on a stool next to the bed, sighed deeply.

"Do you remember anything?" He asked, and Reid frowned in thought.

"Yeah, I think so." He looked back over to his friend. "We went looking for Kat's mom, right? We were ambushed?"

"Right." Liam smiled, despite everything. At least his friend didn't have amnesia or memory loss. His captain seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"It's surprising that you don't have any memory loss at all. That injury to your head was critical." Law finished checking off things on Reid's medical record and placed it back into the filing space where the rest of the crew's documents were. Walking back over to the bed, he surveyed his reawakened crewmate.

"No headaches?" He asked. Reid shook his head.

"Nope."

"Nausea? Dizziness? Vision changes?"

"Nah, nothing like that." Reid ate the last of his simple meal, and Liam took the tray away, placing it on the counter for him to take back to the kitchen later.

"No symptoms of discomfort or pain?"

Reid shook his head. "Right as rain, Captain." He said with a smile.

Law nodded in approval. "Tell either me or Liam if you start to feel pain or discomfort." With that, Law gestured for Liam to follow him. "Casper should be making the rest of the crew's lunch soon."

Liam stayed next to the bed, eyes downcast. "I'd like to stay here with Reid, Captain."

The captain looked to Reid for his approval, after all it was ultimately his decision. With a small smile, he nodded and Law returned the gesture.

"Thank you, Captain." Liam watched as he pushed through the infirmary doors, scolding those who still tried to go inside.

"So, what's happened in the past few months? What have I missed?" Reid asked, resting his head back against the pillow. Liam shook his head with a humored sigh.

"A lot more than I think you'll believe."

"Try me." Reid raised an eyebrow, a smile slowly spreading across his face.

"Alright, but you don't know what you're in for." The two laughed, and Liam felt as though one of the many chains surrounding his heart broke away, letting him feel good things again. He'd feared that his best friend would never wake up again, and like an answer to one of his thousands of prayers, here he was talking and laughing with him once again.

Maybe things were looking up. For once.

~~~

Doctor Mundy surveyed the newly-constructed experimentation room with approval, hands grasped behind his back as his careful eye took in every small detail. The man he'd hired certainly did a wondrous job meeting his expectations, and that was quite an accomplishment in itself.