donutsweeper (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
donutsweeper) wrote2007-07-20 07:13 pm
donutsweeper) wrote2007-07-20 07:13 pm
Lessons Learned
Title: Lessons Learned
Pairing/Rating/Warning: none, rated G
Summary: The team tries to avoid Jack as he recovers from an injury
Word count: 1345
Author's Notes: Although a stand alone fic, it is technically a sequel to Painful Lessons as requested bydeepsea_dreamer (whom will hopefully approve)
Pairing/Rating/Warning: none, rated G
Summary: The team tries to avoid Jack as he recovers from an injury
Word count: 1345
Author's Notes: Although a stand alone fic, it is technically a sequel to Painful Lessons as requested by
deepsea_dreamer (whom will hopefully approve)"Owen said to stay off that leg, sir," Ianto said disapprovingly from the doorway.
"I don't care. If I have to lie still for another minute I'll go insane." Jack swung his legs over the side of the autopsy table that had been functioning as a makeshift hospital bed. "It's fine. I'll be fine. Owen worries too much." He eased himself off the table, gingerly putting his weight on his good leg before trying to have his wounded leg support him.
"It's been less than 24 hours, sir." Suddenly Ianto was there, preventing Jack from pitching forward when the dizziness almost overwhelmed him. "You need time to recover, you nearly died."
"No, if I'd died...I'd been feeling a lot better by now." He slipped a look at Ianto as they struggled to get up the stairs without Jack having to put any weight on his left leg. He felt, rather than saw, how Ianto had stiffened in response to his comment. "It was a joke..."
"It wasn't funny," Ianto said quietly. "You don't know..."
"Know what?" He waited, but got no answer. "No one will talk to me. I need to know. Tell me," Jack prodded, "please."
They trudged in silence for a few moments, Ianto shouldering more and more of Jack's weight with every step.
"I wasn't there."
"When I got hurt?" He paused and tried to catch his breath. "No, but they must...must have told you..." Ianto stumbled as Jack sagged against him.
"Jack! I've got you." He carefully half carried, half dragged Jack the few steps to the couch and lowered him down on it. Jack's face was horribly pale and was covered with a sheen of sweat. "I should call Owen."
"No." Jack leaned back and sighed. "I don't want him...them to see me like this." He gestured with his hand weakly.
"You don't want them to see you or you don't want to see them?"
"What? Why...I don't understand."
"Think about it for a bit. I'll make some coffee."
The couch was deceptively soft, Jack shifted, may as well get comfortable while waiting for the coffee....
He awoke to angry voices. They weren't shouting, but the venom in the barbs was evident as they hissed back and forth.
"What the hell were you thinking?"
"He insisted on getting up."
"I told him to stay off that leg!"
"He wouldn't."
"But that's why you were here! To make sure he followed orders."
Another voice broke in, calmer. "I'm sure Ianto tried, but are you really surprised Jack didn't listen?"
"No." Jack heard Owen sigh. "I just... he's not invulnerable. He needs to realize that. And so do we."
Jack continued to pretend to sleep as he heard Owen walk up to him. It was only when Owen gently took his arm to check his pulse that he hitched his breath to simulate waking up.
"Jack?" The question was so filled with concern that Jack quickly looked up in surprise.
"How'm I doing, Doc?"
"You shouldn't have gotten up. You could have reopened your wound or had another seizure..."
"But I didn't."
"But you could have."
"Owen, I couldn't lie there for another minute. I'm fine."
"No, you’re not."
"Well, on the mend then." He studied Owen, trying to place the look on his face, certain he'd seen it before. He changed the subject, trying to diffuse some of the tension. "Now I believe I was offered some coffee..."
"That was hours ago. I'll make up a fresh pot," Ianto said quietly before slipping out of the room.
Jack fingered the faded blue blanket that someone, probably Ianto, had covered him with while he slept. The bandage on his hand stood out in sharp contrast against it. When did he hurt his hand? He only remembered that thing attacking his leg. Examining it further he realized it hadn’t been clawed, but rather scraped raw. How? He looked up, with the question on his lips when he realized they were all staring at him, with looks of guilt mingled with concern on their faces. Guilt? That didn’t make sense... time for a subject change....
“So, any sign of the creature?”
Relief washed over their faces. Gwen spoke up first, “No, it’s gone, but there are quite a number of weevils in the sewers near there. It wasn’t that fast, they probably caught it.”
Jack laughed at the irony of that, “So, they’re doing our jobs for us now? Pretty soon they’ll be demanding to be put on salary. Hmmm... Just what do you pay a weevil?” His laughter trailed off as he realized no one else had laughed. No one else said anything. In fact they were all doing their best to avoid looking at him. Tosh was pretending to study equations on her computer, Gwen was absentmindedly shuffling papers on her desk and Owen was fiddling with medical supplies. What was going on? Taking a deep breath, Jack heaved himself onto his feet.
“All right! Enough! What the hell is going on?” The others just stared at him with a stunned silence. “Are you all so mad at me that no one is even willing to look at me anymore?”
They were all frozen for a second or two more before suddenly they all started talking at once. “What? No! Oh no...” “Jack how could you...” “Why would you...”
"Wait! Everyone wait," Owen interrupted. "Jack, sit down. Seriously, get off that leg right now or no one's telling you anything." Jack almost didn't comply, but he saw the steel in Owen's eyes and since his leg was beginning to throb anyway he made a big gesture of sitting back down.
Owen, Tosh and Gwen all looked at each other, obviously unsure where to start. Ianto chose that moment to return with the coffee. They all watched as Jack started to reach for the cup with his bandaged hand, before stopping and accepting it in his good one instead. Quietly, Jack commented, “I don’t remember it hurting my hand.”
“You scraped it in the alley when you were trying to find us,” Gwen said, adding, “We, ahh, we weren’t there when you were attacked Jack. We’d run off chasing it. We didn’t realize you’d stayed behind until we got turned around and found you in the alley. You’d been attacked and had dragged yourself quite a ways trying to find us.”
“Oh.” Now things were beginning to make sense, that look on Owen face earlier, it was the same look he’d had after that mess with Abaddon. He realized why Tosh and Gwen were unable to look him in the eye. They blame themselves, again. It wasn’t like last time, when they rose up against him, but the result was nearly the same. They messed up, they hadn’t taken the alien’s threat seriously, and Jack paid the price.
“Look, everyone makes mistakes. There are lessons out there to be learned, and some of them are painful, but that’s all a part of life. No one is perfect, no one can be. The best you can hope for is to be able to look back at where you were and realize how far you’ve come since then. I know I have.” Then he smiled, one of his thousand-watt hero smiles. “Well, that’s the end of that. Now, how about some more coffee?” He knew that the matter hadn’t been resolved, that it would take them some time to come to terms with what had happened, but he hoped that this would be the start, and the team would grow stronger from the experience.
It wasn’t until two days later that Jack knew he’d done the right thing. In an sheepish, almost apologetic manner, they presented him with a cane. It was wooden, with a polished metal handle that fit his grip perfectly. "Doctor's orders," was all Owen said about it as they laid it on his desk. “No using it to pick up anyone in the pub now.” He waggled his finger at Jack, before they all broke out in laughter.
"I don't care. If I have to lie still for another minute I'll go insane." Jack swung his legs over the side of the autopsy table that had been functioning as a makeshift hospital bed. "It's fine. I'll be fine. Owen worries too much." He eased himself off the table, gingerly putting his weight on his good leg before trying to have his wounded leg support him.
"It's been less than 24 hours, sir." Suddenly Ianto was there, preventing Jack from pitching forward when the dizziness almost overwhelmed him. "You need time to recover, you nearly died."
"No, if I'd died...I'd been feeling a lot better by now." He slipped a look at Ianto as they struggled to get up the stairs without Jack having to put any weight on his left leg. He felt, rather than saw, how Ianto had stiffened in response to his comment. "It was a joke..."
"It wasn't funny," Ianto said quietly. "You don't know..."
"Know what?" He waited, but got no answer. "No one will talk to me. I need to know. Tell me," Jack prodded, "please."
They trudged in silence for a few moments, Ianto shouldering more and more of Jack's weight with every step.
"I wasn't there."
"When I got hurt?" He paused and tried to catch his breath. "No, but they must...must have told you..." Ianto stumbled as Jack sagged against him.
"Jack! I've got you." He carefully half carried, half dragged Jack the few steps to the couch and lowered him down on it. Jack's face was horribly pale and was covered with a sheen of sweat. "I should call Owen."
"No." Jack leaned back and sighed. "I don't want him...them to see me like this." He gestured with his hand weakly.
"You don't want them to see you or you don't want to see them?"
"What? Why...I don't understand."
"Think about it for a bit. I'll make some coffee."
The couch was deceptively soft, Jack shifted, may as well get comfortable while waiting for the coffee....
He awoke to angry voices. They weren't shouting, but the venom in the barbs was evident as they hissed back and forth.
"What the hell were you thinking?"
"He insisted on getting up."
"I told him to stay off that leg!"
"He wouldn't."
"But that's why you were here! To make sure he followed orders."
Another voice broke in, calmer. "I'm sure Ianto tried, but are you really surprised Jack didn't listen?"
"No." Jack heard Owen sigh. "I just... he's not invulnerable. He needs to realize that. And so do we."
Jack continued to pretend to sleep as he heard Owen walk up to him. It was only when Owen gently took his arm to check his pulse that he hitched his breath to simulate waking up.
"Jack?" The question was so filled with concern that Jack quickly looked up in surprise.
"How'm I doing, Doc?"
"You shouldn't have gotten up. You could have reopened your wound or had another seizure..."
"But I didn't."
"But you could have."
"Owen, I couldn't lie there for another minute. I'm fine."
"No, you’re not."
"Well, on the mend then." He studied Owen, trying to place the look on his face, certain he'd seen it before. He changed the subject, trying to diffuse some of the tension. "Now I believe I was offered some coffee..."
"That was hours ago. I'll make up a fresh pot," Ianto said quietly before slipping out of the room.
Jack fingered the faded blue blanket that someone, probably Ianto, had covered him with while he slept. The bandage on his hand stood out in sharp contrast against it. When did he hurt his hand? He only remembered that thing attacking his leg. Examining it further he realized it hadn’t been clawed, but rather scraped raw. How? He looked up, with the question on his lips when he realized they were all staring at him, with looks of guilt mingled with concern on their faces. Guilt? That didn’t make sense... time for a subject change....
“So, any sign of the creature?”
Relief washed over their faces. Gwen spoke up first, “No, it’s gone, but there are quite a number of weevils in the sewers near there. It wasn’t that fast, they probably caught it.”
Jack laughed at the irony of that, “So, they’re doing our jobs for us now? Pretty soon they’ll be demanding to be put on salary. Hmmm... Just what do you pay a weevil?” His laughter trailed off as he realized no one else had laughed. No one else said anything. In fact they were all doing their best to avoid looking at him. Tosh was pretending to study equations on her computer, Gwen was absentmindedly shuffling papers on her desk and Owen was fiddling with medical supplies. What was going on? Taking a deep breath, Jack heaved himself onto his feet.
“All right! Enough! What the hell is going on?” The others just stared at him with a stunned silence. “Are you all so mad at me that no one is even willing to look at me anymore?”
They were all frozen for a second or two more before suddenly they all started talking at once. “What? No! Oh no...” “Jack how could you...” “Why would you...”
"Wait! Everyone wait," Owen interrupted. "Jack, sit down. Seriously, get off that leg right now or no one's telling you anything." Jack almost didn't comply, but he saw the steel in Owen's eyes and since his leg was beginning to throb anyway he made a big gesture of sitting back down.
Owen, Tosh and Gwen all looked at each other, obviously unsure where to start. Ianto chose that moment to return with the coffee. They all watched as Jack started to reach for the cup with his bandaged hand, before stopping and accepting it in his good one instead. Quietly, Jack commented, “I don’t remember it hurting my hand.”
“You scraped it in the alley when you were trying to find us,” Gwen said, adding, “We, ahh, we weren’t there when you were attacked Jack. We’d run off chasing it. We didn’t realize you’d stayed behind until we got turned around and found you in the alley. You’d been attacked and had dragged yourself quite a ways trying to find us.”
“Oh.” Now things were beginning to make sense, that look on Owen face earlier, it was the same look he’d had after that mess with Abaddon. He realized why Tosh and Gwen were unable to look him in the eye. They blame themselves, again. It wasn’t like last time, when they rose up against him, but the result was nearly the same. They messed up, they hadn’t taken the alien’s threat seriously, and Jack paid the price.
“Look, everyone makes mistakes. There are lessons out there to be learned, and some of them are painful, but that’s all a part of life. No one is perfect, no one can be. The best you can hope for is to be able to look back at where you were and realize how far you’ve come since then. I know I have.” Then he smiled, one of his thousand-watt hero smiles. “Well, that’s the end of that. Now, how about some more coffee?” He knew that the matter hadn’t been resolved, that it would take them some time to come to terms with what had happened, but he hoped that this would be the start, and the team would grow stronger from the experience.
It wasn’t until two days later that Jack knew he’d done the right thing. In an sheepish, almost apologetic manner, they presented him with a cane. It was wooden, with a polished metal handle that fit his grip perfectly. "Doctor's orders," was all Owen said about it as they laid it on his desk. “No using it to pick up anyone in the pub now.” He waggled his finger at Jack, before they all broke out in laughter.