You're The Only Hope For Me

Chapter 33

He wasn't normally a shy person, but having to strip back down to his boxers in front of a stranger made him weary. Greta must have sensed this because after she closed the bedroom door softly, she spoke.

"Don't worry, Frank. I'm a nurse so there is no need for you to be nervous" she smiled politely. Frank nodded once and slowly untied the blue bathroom before slipping it off his shoulders. Greta sat down on a small stool in the room, her eyes raking over the thick bandages on his chest as Frank waited for instructions.

"How is your pain today, Frank?" She asked as she turned away and opened a bag he hadn't notice she was carrying. She slowly laid out several rolls of white bandages, gauze, medical tape and scissors.

"It's very sore" Frank breathed out. He felt like he could be real with Greta, needed to be real with her because essentially she was the one that would help him heal.

"That sounds about right" she agreed as she patted the bed next to her, signaling Frank to sit. It took a moment and the pain was searing across his chest but he got into position. Greta grabbed the scissors and began cutting away the bandages until Frank was left with thick squares of gauze taped to his chest. "This may hurt" she said softly as she started peeling back each piece. Under it was four long gashes that had been carefully stitched closed. Frank winced when part of the gauze tugged on one of the gashes but held his breath. Greta studied the injuries closely for a few moments before pulling away.

"Well they're healing nicely. Slowly, but nicely. I'm going to get some warm soapy water so we can clean it and I'll wrap you back up" she said as she stood up and walked out of the room. There was no bathroom attached to this room so he assumed she had gone to one down the hall. She wasn't gone long before she returned with a large ceramic white bowl and a few towels. After instructing Frank to lay flat, she moved the stool next to him and gently dipped the soft white cotton rag into the water.

Frank winced loudly in pain as she began gently cleaning the wounds, but she didn't stop which ultimately Frank was thankful for. The faster she cleaned it the faster she would stop.

"How bad were Gerard's injuries?" he blurted out before he could stop himself.

"Gerard was very lucky. A few gashes here and a few bite punctures there. Nothing that even required stitches. Not that he would have wanted them anyway, alphas and their scars for bragging rights and all" she smiled as she looked at Frank.

"What about anyone else? Was anyone else hurt because of ... well me?" Frank asked barely above a whisper. Greta could sense what he was asking and she pulled away, being sure to wring the cloth into the water thoroughly.

"Obviously you had the most serious injuries," she started, "and many wolves had injuries similar to Gerard, but no one died and no one was crucially injured." Frank breathed a very large sigh of relief knowing nobody died for him. He didn't think he could live with it if someone did.

The pair continued small talk while Greta cleaned and bandaged his chest before turning and repeating the entire process towards his foot. His foot didn't have large cuts like his stomach but there were some deep puncture wounds.

"You're lucky you can still walk" Greta noted, "the foot has many small bones and tendons that could have easily been destroyed." After wrapping up his foot and cleaning up her supplies, Greta left Frank with the promise of seeing him after dinner to do it all again.

Frank laid in silence for a while before deciding he needed a bathroom. Slipping back out into the hall, the bathroom was easy to find because of the door Greta left open. After doing his business and washing his hands, Frank looked at himself in the mirror. He looked like hell. His eyes held dark rings and he had lost a bit of weight, enough to have his ribs beginning to poke out. His face was pale, his hair disheveled and the light behind his eyes substantially dimmed. Sighing heavily, Frank left the bathroom before remembering what Jamia told him about Sweet Pea. His stomach clenched as he peered up and down the hall trying to figure which room belonged to Gerard.

Hobbling back to the study to ask Mrs Way, he was disappointed to find the large room empty. Walking back up the hallway, he whistled softly, trying to listen to any sound of his dog behind any door.

Frank had been pacing back and forth whistling and calling for his dog softly for almost ten minutes before his strength started to diminish and he slowly retreated to his room. As he was closing the door, voices could be heard from the steps. Frank kept his eyes trained on the wooden double doors as the steps and voices grew closer. Even though Frank knew people were coming, he still jumped slightly when it was pushed open, revealing Mrs Way, Mr Way and the most beautiful sight, Gerard.

He looked tired and worn out as he kept his gaze to the ground, Mr and Mrs Way talking amongst themselves behind him. That was until he lifted his head and met eyes with Frank. Gerard was wearing dark jeans and a black tee shirt, haunting red lines that were littered across his arms, no doubt from the full moon fight. His hair was disheveled but he was alive.

"Frank" Gerard breathed out as he picked up his pace, practically jogging to where his boyfriend stood.

"Gee-" Frank started before he was cut off by Gerard's soft pliable lips attacking his. It felt like Frank was a starving man finally having a drink of water and he couldn't find it in himself to detach from Gerard. In fact, he laced his arms around his neck while Gerard gingerly  wrapped his around the small of Frank's back. The two lovers were so enamored in their reunion that they didn't even notice Mrs Way pulling her husband back out the double doors and down the stairs to give the two mates some privacy.