A Broken Crew

Chapter 14

Grey nods and tries, ending up touching the tip of his nose.

"Okay. Now touch your nose with your right hand."

Grey accidentally pokes himself in the eye and whines in frustration.

"It's okay... you're fine." Maggie says. "We can't really do any standing tests for balance, but I want you to touch your index finger to mine." She held it out, a fair distance away.

Grey blows out a breath and reaches out- and right past Maggie's finger. He shakes his head and tries- and fails- again.

"Honey, don't get frustrated." she says calmly. "You're not doing anything wrong. It is the way it is. We'll try one more, unless you're willing to try a standing one. Put your hands on your thighs palms down. Then bring them up and turn them facing up." She shows him how to do it. "Now do it repeatedly as fast as you can."

Grey watches then begins the motions. He starts out slow then tries to speed up. He quickly gets confused with it as he tries to speed up and goes back to doing it slow.

"Okay, you can stop now." She looked a little sad. "You're definitely having coordination issues." she said. "Which is a very strong sign of a concussion. Do you want to try a standing test?"

Grey hesitates then nods. "Yeah. I want to try."

"Okay. Dakota, honey, help him to his feet." Dakota leaned over and pulled Grey up." "All I want you to do Grey is put your feet directly together, then close your eyes, okay? That's all you have to do for this balance test."

As soon as Grey is on his feet, he cries out and crumbles, his right leg giving out underneath him. He hissed as falling jars it. "I don't... I don't think standing is an option.." He mutters.

"Oh, honey, I'm sorry..." She pats his hand. "Your leg, is it hurting?" August and Dakota both look at him. "Is it?"

Grey nods. "It's worse now." He pauses as if trying to remember. What comes to mind is hearing and feeling a ~~crunch~~ after his father's stomped..

"Let me look at it sweetheart. What part of your leg is it hurting at? Above the knee or below?"

"I... Below." Grey's answer is simple and short.

"Okay. We can take your pants off and give you some shorts, or I can cut it. Whichever you're more comfortable with honey."

At that Grey shrugs. "You cut. I don't care."

"Okay." She cut the pant leg. "There's a lot of swelling." she said. "I need to touch it. Is that okay?"

Grey nods. He almost feels.. Embarrassment. Because of how kind she's being, how gentle. He's also confused- this is NOT anything at all like any of his previous interactions with adults.

"Alright. If it hurts too much tell me to stop okay honey?" She noticed his look. Gently she hugs him. "I'm only here to help you." she said. "I won't do anything you're uncomfortable with, okay? I'm going to take care of you. Some people might have hurt you, but I'm not one of those people."

Grey's eyes widen at the hug, but then he leans into it, ducking his head to hide his tears. It's the first time he's cried in years- and he doesn't really want August or Dakota to see.

Maggie picks up on the crying. "You're alright." she says. "You're alright." She let's go of him. And begins gently prodding at his leg. "Tell me when it hurts and how badly, okay?" She pressed gently on his shin.

Grey winces, watching her.

"How bad is it, honey?" she asks.

"Bad, but not the worst."

She presses down on the lower part of his knee. "How about here?"

Grey bites his lip. Hard. He lets out a shaky breath. It's clear that it hurt worse, way worse.

"Honey, do you remember being aware when your leg was injured?"

".....yes..." Grey's voice is small.

"I know this is hard, but do you recall hearing any popping or cracking noises when it was injured?"

"Okay... One more thing should confirm it..." She grabs his leg. "I'm going to push on your leg, alright? This is the last thing I need to do to make sure I really know what the injury is, okay?" Gently, she presses on the bottom of his foot, pushing the two parts of the knee together.

Grey nearly screams from the pain, clenching his jaw to fight it. His face goes pale, and he whimpers.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Maggie wraps her arms around him, pressing him up against her in a comforting way. "Breathe." she says softly. "Just breath for a minute. Tell me when it's residing. Breath deep sweetheart."

Grey closes his eyes and leans into her, focusing on her warmth. His breathing calms after a few minutes, and he shakingly sighs. Even with the pain, Grey wishes he could stay right here in this moment. He can't recall the last time he ever felt safe and loved like this. "It's.. Not so bad.." He reluctantly says.

She holds him for a moment longer. "Okay. It seems like you've pulled your knee. I'm very glad it's not broken. It should heal within a couple weeks as long as you take it easy." She wraps it up carefully. "I'm pretty sure you have a concussion as well. I recommend a lot of rest and water. Have your eyes always been sensitive to light?" she asks. "That can be a symptom of a more serious concussion."

"Yeah, they've always been sensitive. Ever since I was a baby. I used to have tinted glasses that helped but uhh.. They broke." Grey isn't *exactly* lying

"I see." She put a blanket over him. "Well, it's time for everyone to rest. You'll all be exhausted tomorrow morning." she says. "Oh, mom, Atlas has a cold." August says. "He's resting right now." His mom looked concerned. "I was afraid he'd stayed out in the rain too long." she said. "I'll have to check on him in the morning." She flicked off the light. "Goodnight Grey." she said. "Sleep tight and I'll wake you up in the morning." She kissed August and Dakota on the cheek. Then she was overcome by maternal love. She kissed Grey as well on the cheek and gave him a soft hug. "Sorry." she said quietly. "I hope I didn't make you uncomfortable."

Grey only smiles and responds tiredly, "Don't worry, you didn't." He yawns and closes his eyes, still smiling as he starts to drift off, exhausted.