Soulbound (Final Space. Jackspeed fic)

Ch 11: The Best Happens

"I've had Gary over at my place all week, John. Avocato loves having him over, but your boy misses you dreadfully. It isn't easy for a child his age to be without his parent figure during a difficult time like this," Zavocato said, shooting a glance at the children across the room. Gary had managed to climb up onto the bed to snuggle next to the Greytrexian, careful not to touch any of the cords.

"Jack is his parent, too," John argued, following the other man's gaze. It broke his heart to see Gary curling close to the unconscious man. Neither one of them deserved this.

"I know, John," the Ventrexian captain sighed, "but staying at the hospital every day isn't helping your son or Jack. I want you go home tonight and take a shower. Spend some time with the boys. Then you can bring them both back to the hospital for a short visit tomorrow. Oh, and Trishika, Jack's pilot friend, has offered to stay overnight on Saturday. You NEED more rest."

***

Jack was still unconscious, and the doctor had recently informed him that the Greytrexian's left eye might be permanently blind from the collision. No one knew when... or if he'd wake up.

John groaned and stretched as he got up from the rather uncomfortable hospital chair he'd dragged over to the bed, his mind drifting to the hot shower that was awaiting him at home. Zavocato would be back with the boys from their little trip to the cafeteria soon, and then the other captain would be taking the night shift at the hospital.

A groan from the bed cut through his thoughts. "J-J-John?" The man's voice was dry and raspy from disuse.

The captain sat down quickly, immediately reaching out to grab the little alien's hand. "Jaxxtrixxriiandraneek... you're awake."

"That... that's my full name. You never call me by my full name," Jack whispered, his single golden eye focused on the human sitting in the chair next to him.

"Trishika's has been teaching me," the captain admitted, chuckling nervously.

"Trishika?" His voice trailed off into a sudden fit of coughing, and John rushed to find him a glass of water. The Greytrexian chugged it down.

"What happened? I feel... sore. My head hurts, and I can't see well," the little man whispered, his free hand reaching for his face.

"You were in a collision, Jack. You've been unconscious for nearly a month," John informed him, refusing to let go of the other man's hand. He needed to touch him to be sure that this was really happening.

"Unconscious? I don't remember..." The alien's gaze landed on him again, this time appraising him. "John, you look horrible. When was the last time you slept?"

John's lip quirked up into a smile as he said, "Off and on for the last few days. Zavocato and Trishika have been ganging up on me. They make me go home at least twice a week to sleep in a real bed."

"Are they both here?" Jack asked, glancing around the room.

"Zavocato took the boys to the cafeteria for a snack. They're supposed to be back soon. By the way, do you know how hard it is to sleep when your soulmate is injured?" John stated, throwing a half-hearted glare at the man on the bed.

Jack sucked in a trembling breath, his gaze dropping to their entwined hands. "You know about that?" he whispered, clearly uncertain about the news.

"Your full name is on your hospital forms. Why didn't you just tell me?" the captain asked, hurt evident in his voice. Silence stretched between them, thick enough to cut with a knife.