Lex liked his nurse.
"Get some rest, Mr. Mathis. I'll be in to check on you in a couple of hours."
"Thank you," he said once again. He waited until the door closed behind the nurse before closing his eyes. He knew he should get the phone sitting on the side table, but he was just so tired. Maybe he'd call Tony after he had a little nap.
As the pain medication took effect, it pulled Lex under a blanket of darkness where not even his nightmares could reach him.
Chapter Seven
Light was shining through the window by the time he opened his eyes again and had some awareness of the world around him. He vaguely remembered being woken up through the night, but he hadn't really felt awake until now.
"Good morning, Mr. Mathis." The nurse smiled at him as she checked his IV. "How are you feeling?"
"Surprisingly better." He still ached over pretty much all of his body, but he didn't feel as if he was edging close to death. "Do I get to go home today?"
"The doctor will discuss that with you when he comes in to see you."
"And when will that be?"
"He makes his rounds at eight. You have just enough time to eat breakfast before he gets here."
Lex wasn't sure he was ready to eat breakfast until a tray was set on the portable table in front of him. Apple cinnamon oatmeal, a glass of apple juice and milk, and a banana nut muffin. Okay, he could eat.
The first few bites were hard simply because it hurt so much to move his jaw and then chew. After a while, things seemed to loosen up enough for him to chew more easily. He just had to make sure not to take large bites.
He got through half the oatmeal and the muffin before he had to call it good. He was pretty sure if he ate anymore, it would come right back up. His stomach was bruised right along with every other inch of his body.
Lex was smiling at the orderly as he took the tray away when the door burst open and a man with brown hair came barreling in. Lex jerked back from him as the man raced to the side of the bed and practically lunged at him.
"Lexter, love, I was so worried about you."
Lex cringed when the man hugged him. His stomach started to swirl, his breakfast threatening to come back up.
"What did you do to yourself, boy?"
It was the boy that did it.
Lex screamed bloody murder as he struggle to get away, finally throwing himself off the bed, landing hard on the floor. He didn't even let the new pain swamping his body from the fall off the bed stop him from scrambling back until his back hit a wall. He screamed and screamed and screamed until he felt a small prick in his arm that forced the world around him to fade away.
Awareness came back to him in little increments, like a gentle wave along a seashore. The murmur of voices he heard went from a background noise to sounds he could actually understand.
"I'd like to keep him under just a little longer." That was the doctor speaking. Lex recognized that voice. "He caused a fracture to his wrist when he fell out of bed. Between that and his previous injuries, he really needs some healing rest. I'll start to bring him out in the morning."
"What time? I'd really like to be here. I'm so worried about my boy."
Lex tried to suppress his shiver, afraid they would see.
He recognized that voice as well.
"I have rounds at eight, so if you can be here by ten o'clock tomorrow morning, we can bring him out then. Now, I want you to be aware of the fact that it may take a few hours until he's fully out. It's not something that will happen right away."
"No, no, I understand." The man sighed. "I guess I'll see you in the morning then."
"Does Mr. Mathis have any other family we may need to contact?"
"No. It's just my boy and me."
"Well, at least he has you," the doc said. "He's going to need a lot of rest and care when he's released from the hospital."
