Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side-sim: The Reckoning

Posted by Ensign Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) in side-sim: The Reckoning

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side-sim: The Reckoning
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Roman frowned at the stick. “Might as well bring it down to the labs later. It is from Kelmao.” He for once, did not resist Randy’s help getting to the shower. Once Randy had left, he showered, taking longer than he normally would to scrub the mud off his skin and out of his hair. About twenty minutes later, he exited the bathroom in clean clothes, limping on his right leg. He stopped at the doorway to the bathroom and leaned on the door way, making no effort to hide the limp or the pain. He looked like he was walking to his own beheading or something.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Rand had given Shrine problems. She was dragging it out, on purpose. She had oh so many things she had to take with her. She had to get someone to come get that stick and take it to the ecology lab. Then she was trying to strip the beds. They weren’t horrible and she knew Randy’s jab about the mud was just to distract Roman a little. But she was doing it anyway. Shrine finally had enough and hauled Rand out of her quarter and into the waiting chair. It was safer then letting Rand hobble around. In the chair she couldn’t find something to distract her.

Randy was waiting as he came out. He slid a chair over next to him so he wouldn’t have to stand the whole time. Randy was in counselor mode. He didn’t want to drag this out, Roman would get more stubborn, but…”Is here anything you want to talk about or questions I can answer before we leave?”

Randy

Rand was gone before Roman left the bathroom. Sitting in the chair Randy put next to him, he shook his head. “I want to get this over with before I change my mind.” He was pretty sure Randy already knew anything he might say. That he was scared? Randy knew that. That sickbay, especially with these symptoms so similar to three years ago, was going to be hard for him? Randy already knew that, too. And Roman could think of nothing Randy could say to help. He couldn’t think of anything to ask that would be helpful to him, and the longer it took the more he wanted to change his mind. Roman would get more stubborn no matter what happened. His belligerent noncompliance was one of his ways of both dealing with and hiding his fears. The more stubborn he was acting, the more worried he was.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Randy nodded. “You have a choice then. You can let me help you or you can use the crutches.” He pointed to them leaned up against the wall. “No weight on the leg.” Randy could have insisted on a chair, but he didn’t. It was a small choice. To allow Roman to decide how he arrived in sickbay. Randy could not in good conscious allow him to walk on the damaged leg, but he could let Roman decide how much help he wanted.

Roman glanced between the two options - Randy would be more help. Nearly as tall as Roman and not that much smaller, he was an effective support. Roman would be unbalanced on the crutches, he’d never used them before. When he’d originally been injured, he’d been just as stubborn as he was now. He had refused using crutches and limped around until it healed instead. Much to the doctors’ irritation but back then there had been no Rands or Randys to talk sense into him. The idea of walking all the way to Deck 9 leaned on Randy like he couldn’t walk himself was unappealing, however. He could try the crutches, and if he needed help, Randy would be there anyway. He nodded towards them. “The crutches.”

Randy brought them over and made a few quick adjustments. And then helped Alden position them correctly. It was obvious immediately he didn’t know how to use them.

Getting balanced on the crutches proved difficult, and they hadn’t even left the room before he lost his balance, catching himself on the wall. Randy’s orders of no weight on the leg were going to be harder to follow than he thought. Losing his balance this quickly made the walk to deck 9 seem a lot longer. And if he hadn’t managed to catch himself with the wall, catching himself with the injured leg would not have been pleasant. Leaving the crutches against the wall he reluctantly changed his mind. “This is not going to work.”

“No it’s not. We’ll work on those after the risk is gone. The sooner you can use crutches the faster you go back to work.” Randy ducked under his arm and sipped the other around Alden to take his weight and off they went. “Come on, if you and my sister were stubborn enough to make it 100 feet on a bum leg and busted ankle in the middle of a hurricane, you and I can make it 80 feet to the turbolift. I swear you and her were made for each other.”

Roman grinned. If any of his comments were a successful distraction, it was that one. “Honestly, on that one, we were hypothermic. Had we stayed, we’d have frozen to death.” He hadn’t specifically forbidden Franks to go looking for them if they took too long, but he was sure Franks knew him well enough Franks would’ve known that’s what he would have meant. The point in splitting the group had been to keep too many officers from being out in the storm, especially for too long.

As they moved down the empty corridor, Randy spoke low and casually. Certain to pay attention that no one could hear him. “I know you are opposed to medication, but if you feel it’s too much, you can tell them you want to see me and we can discuss options, privately. There are medications that will take the edge off without putting your to sleep.” He held up his hands, “It’s your choice.”

Randy

Roman glanced around the hall himself, then nodded slightly. “Only if I can’t tolerate it on my own.” Roman was stubborn, and had a fairly high natural pain tolerance. But like his original injury, this was likely to push what he could handle on his own. The doctors had thought he must be out of his mind the first time for wanting a lower dose with a break in the femur. This time, to go without any, he was sure the sentiment would be the same. He was stubborn enough he hated to prove them right by asking for the pain meds later.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Randy was more thinking anti-anxiety meds, but he didn’t correct Alden. His grip on Alden was similar to a side ways one arm hug, and he had to laugh, in his head so as not to offend Alden, that Rand would be ‘so happy they were getting along.’ He also knew that Alden had not received the kind of affection that he and Rand got from their families, growing up. He also knew that Jay’s loss had made the whole situation worse. If Randy knew anything though, Rand would go out of her way to make this time better, maybe not good, but better.

They exited the turbolift right outside of sickbay. Randy let Roman slow down, but not stop. If he did, he knew Alden would turn and march straight down to the science labs. In side they could already hear Rand giving the medical staff all kinds of trouble.

Randy

Roman would have never assumed he meant anti-anxiety meds. The ability of a mind to not see the problems with oneself could be a powerful force. But if Randy suggested it outright, when Roman was in Sickbay? Especially if Rand had to go, to do her job, then Roman would probably consider it. Most of the ship knew how well Roman and Randy got along, and especially as they passed the labs, Roman accepting help from Randy definitely earned a few looks. The fact that their grip was sort of like an awkward hug only made it worse. Roman wished he’d known how to use the crutches.

Roman was slowing, partially because the exertion caused pain and partially because he wanted to change his mind and turn around. But Randy marched him on, not letting go or stopping. Keeping weight off the leg helped with keeping the pain down but the movement was still enough to make it hurt more. From the moment the sickbay doors opened, they could hear Rand giving the medical staff trouble. It made him smile. Randy must’ve been right. They were made for each other.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Shrine looked at them as they entered. “Where’s the crutches?” Randy led Roman toward the back. “Bolt was stripped and it fell apart. I had take haul him down meself.” Rand paused for half a breathe as she watched them come in. She was half afraid Roman was giving Randy problems.

Randy was laying it on thick: accent, charm, long suffering nurse. “Sure Randy. Next you’ll be complaining you have to go back for the crutches because people don’t clean up after themselves. Leaving vital equipment unaccounted for,” Shrine quoted him. She was too old for his antics. “Ah, Shrine, ya wound me, girl. I hurt my back carrying him down ‘ere.” One of the other nurses giggled, “I can help you with that Randy.” Randy winked at the girl.

Rand seeing what Randy was up to. “See! I told you someone needed medical help sooner than I did. Randy has thrown out his back. Back or ankle? Obviously his back is more important than my ankle.” She swatted at Shrine. “I can wait, really. Just let me get this computer and I can catch up on my work....” Shrine yanked the console arm away. “En. Far-qwuh,. Yeah…”

Rand huffed, “Oh heaven’s sakes. Farquharson. Really Rand is fine, don’t butcher it.” The whole medical bay was so busy keeping track of Rand and Randy’s antics, no one really paid attention to Roman. Roman being the only person who knew them well would finally get what it might have been like to deal with them as kids. As soon as Randy and Roman disappeared, Rand fell back on the biobed. “It hurts, I want meds and fix it.” Yeah she didn’t want to be there in sickbay alone. She could already feel her anxiety racing, but it hurt. The pain meds would help her relax until her brother could come check on her. She would not ask for him. He needed to stay with Roman.

Ran and Randy