Title: Stronger Together, Chapter 1/?

Spoilers: Up to 1x08 ~ Save Me; AU afterward

Warning1: This story involves a character with a leg amputation.

Warning2: This story is male/male fiction. Don't read if you don't like!

Disclaimer: I don't own The Night Shift, so I'm just borrowing the characters and ideas for the fun of writing, *but* I do own the original characters, original plot and other original ideas.

A/N1: I edited this, so all mistakes are mine.

A/N2: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D

...

Please read - A/N3: In March of 2013, my dad lost his left leg, just below the knee, due to an infection that antibiotics couldn't heal in his foot and lower leg. It was not something my mom, my dad and I were really ready for, but we didn't have a choice. It was either lose his foot and a little of his leg or take a chance on the infection spreading to other parts of his body and doing more damage... or worse. His recovery still is rocky, but he's alive. It's not the same life he had before, but he's here (he has other medical issues, too). Just after his amputation, my mom's cancer returned and she began treatments again, so I have become both my dad's caregiver and my mom's. With that said, I have seen all of the emotions that an amputee goes through, before, during and after the amputation. After watching 'Coming Home' and learning that Rick would only be in this episode of season 1, I wanted to write something that really showed his recovery, because I imagine season 2 will pick up at least a few months after season 1 ends, so they may not focus much on Rick's immediate recovery and I hope with my experience I'm able to show that in this story. I commend Luke Macfarlane for the way he portrayed Rick and showed all the emotions one could go through being faced with such a major life change; my dad went through them all and I deal with them on a daily basis.

Underlined text: quotes from the show - I don't own. Just borrowing for this work of fiction.

...

Wednesday

"Hold it!" Drew called out, moving through the sea of soldiers following their captain to the elevator to go for surgery.

Rick held back a gasp when he heard his boyfriend's voice. They'd had some problems that night, their anger getting the best of them a few times and from Drew's actions earlier, he was the last person Rick expected to appear. The moment Rick and Drew locked gazes, all their issues from that night washed away and Rick bit his tongue to keep from breaking down in front of everyone.

Drew swallowed his fear and after a quick calming breath, he stepped forward, putting all his focus on the only person in the world he truly loved. Pausing right next to the gurney, he reached out and took Rick's hand, "I'm gonna be there for you," he started, stepping closer, "I promise," Drew leaned in and rested his free hand on Rick's neck, so he could look his boyfriend in the eyes. Trying to stay strong and fighting the urge to start crying, Drew smiled weakly, "I love you."

The two men leaned in at the same time, their lips meeting in a much needed kiss, even though it wasn't how they pictured their reunion kiss. Rick's eyes fell closed briefly and he reached up to grab on to Drew's neck, both fighting their emotions. After a moment, their lips parted and they pressed their foreheads together, "me, too," Rick murmured, the two soaking up as much of each other as they could in the short connection.

Reluctantly, the two men let go as Drew nervously looked around, swallowing his emotions while the surgical staff began to move Rick's gurney into the waiting elevator. Drew stepped closer, keeping his gaze on his boyfriend, who silently nodded at him. Weakly smiling in response, Drew felt a weight lift off his shoulders at being free around those he knew, but as the soldiers crowded around the elevator just before the doors closed, Drew's stomach twisted in knots, fear building quickly.

Feeling eyes on him didn't make Drew feel any better, and before he could really think, his stomach told him what to do - run to the nearest bathroom. Almost knocking down Paul in the process, he made it to the closest stall before he lost everything in his stomach.

As if throwing up in the bathroom and kneeling on the cold tile floor wasn't the worst thing, the door opened moments later and he immediately wished he could be alone. Hearing the door shut, Drew hoped whoever was there left him alone, because the last thing he wanted to do was talk or deal with what had just happened.

"You know, you don't have to do this alone," the woman's voice filtered through the room and Drew recognized it as Landry.

"Seems like that's going around a lot tonight," Drew muttered, reaching for some tissue to wipe his mouth.

"I'm serious," she commented, remaining in her place, blocking the door so no one else could come in, "everyone's here for you. You're not alone."

Drew gathered the strength to stand up and moved over to the sinks, getting the first glimpse of himself all night. His face was red, his eyes were dark and he looked and felt exhausted, "I never thought I'd do that."

"Do what?" She wondered, "because from what I could tell tonight was the first time you've been honest with yourself in a long time. What you did took a lot of courage and I'm sure Captain Lincoln really appreciated it," she admitted softly.

"I don't want to be 'the gay doctor'," he told her, turning the water on and waiting a moment to let it cool off.

"Who said you will be?"

Throwing some cold water on his face, Drew shook his head, "no one specifically, but I just want to be me. I don't want to be labeled anything. I just want to love Rick and not care who knows and have people be my friend because they want to be."

"Drew," Landry stepped closer to him, her heels clicking on the tiled floor, "you will be you, if that's what you want. Your sexuality does not make you who you are. It is a part of you, yes, but that doesn't define you and if you lose friends because you came out, then I don't think they were the right friends in the first place. I know we've only known each other a short time, but I don't have a problem with your sexuality and I'm pretty sure no one else here does, either."

"Thanks," Drew cracked a weak smile as he reached for a paper towel to dry his face, "look, Landry, I know what you're trying to do, and I'm sorry you had to see us bickering, but our lives were turned upside down. Today was supposed to be a happy day, but I almost lost the love of my life. I'm really not in the mood to talk right now."

Landry had seen the kiss from a distance, and she knew he wouldn't be interested in talking, but she wanted to try; she cared about her coworkers and she wanted them to know even though she's the psych attending doctor, didn't mean they couldn't talk to her, "I understand, but on the bright side, you didn't lose him. He's alive, so you can be with him. It's not going to be an easy recovery, but you guys can get through it together."

"I want to be positive and say we can, but that doesn't mean I'm not worried," Drew replied, taking a deep breath. He still had fears and worries, but he agreed with what she said, Rick was still alive, he didn't lose his boyfriend, so it made everything a little easier to deal with and those thoughts helped him calm down a little.

"I'm here if you ever want to talk. Same with Rick," she told him, moving back to the door, "okay?"

"Okay, thanks," Drew nodded, watching her leave the bathroom.

Taking a deep breath, he followed Landry towards the door and stepped out, freezing in his tracks at what he saw. Many of his coworkers and all the soldiers who'd been there that night stood near the door, waiting for him.

"ATTENTION!" TC snapped out, the large group stiffened up and looked towards Drew, "Hand, SALUTE!" The group snapped a salute to the reserve officer, before lowering it as TC called, "Parade, REST!" He called out, everyone relaxing as they faced Drew.

Lifting his hand, Drew responded with his own salute, confused at what was going on, but went along with it and added the last commands, "at ease. Rest."

"Oh behalf of everyone here, we'd like to offer our complete support to you and Captain Rick," Sergeant Logan said, stepping forward to Drew, holding out his hand to him. He was one of the few men who wasn't injured in the bus accident, but he'd been there all night with his fellow soldiers, "it's been a pleasure to serve with Captain Rick and we all would proudly serve with him again. We also have much respect for you and if it's okay, we'd like to stay with you while he's in surgery."

Drew saw TC and Krista nodding and with Kenny, Topher, Paul and all the soldiers supporting him, he stepped forward and shook the man's hand, "thank you, Sergeant Logan. That really means a lot to us," Drew smiled, the first time he really ever talked about him and Rick as an 'us' without backpedaling from the slip of his name, "and I'd be happy if you stayed, but the surgery could be a few hours and," Drew took a deep breath, letting some of his medical training kick in, "he'll be in a lot of pain and probably not up for company for a while. You're welcome to stay, but you all should go home. You just got back and you don't need stay here any longer than necessary. I'd be happy to contact you if you'd like me to keep you posted on Rick's progress and when it's a good time to see him," Drew explained, looking at all of them as he stepped back.

"I'm staying," Kenny commented, stepping forward and resting his hand on Drew's shoulder.

Krista walked towards him and slid her arm around his waist, "I'm not going anywhere."

...

Though Rick's unit wanted to stick around, they realized Drew was right and the sergeant gave him his number, so Drew could keep him posted on Rick's progress and he would pass on the information to the rest of the unit.

By now it was already the beginning of the day shift, so after the soldiers began to thin out, Drew was off work. As if he was on autopilot, he moved into the locker room to change and it was there he got a chance to see that TC, Krista and Landry had been right. Everyone shared their support for him and wished him and Rick well, saying if he needed anything, not to hesitate to call. Drew thanked them and was glad to have friends and coworkers so supportive. He knew it'd make working a lot easier, now that he didn't have to hide who he truly was anymore.

It wasn't long before he was sitting in a chair in the OR waiting area. Krista, TC, Topher, Kenny, Landry, Paul and Jordan were staying for moral support and even Michael Ragosa was wandering around to keep updated.

"I appreciate you all staying, but you don't have to," Drew commented softly as he looked around to see some of them were stretched out half asleep, while others were busy on their phones.

"I'm not going anywhere," Krista commented, resting her hand on his knee as she sat next to him.

Drew glanced at Krista and smiled, "thanks."

"Have you thought about taking some time off?" Landry asked, "I'm sure you'd like to spend time with Rick."

"Yes, I want to, but I don't want to make any decisions right now," Drew replied, "when I know more, I might take some time off."

...

The group chatted lightly for a short time, but Topher was the first one to leave, his wife needing him home and Paul followed, needing to get some sleep. As much as TC and Jordan wanted to stay, both were tired after a long night and since TC had come to work with Jordan, he caught a ride with her. Kenny, Landry and Michael caved shortly after, leaving Krista and Drew in the waiting area.

"I'm going to go get something to eat in the cafeteria. Would you like something?" Krista asked.

"Yeah, if you don't mind," Drew replied, realizing he was hungry.

"I'll be back," Krista nodded, rubbing his shoulder.

Drew watched her walk away and took a deep breath. His stomach was in knots. He couldn't help worrying and feeling helpless. There was nothing he could do to help save Rick's leg and that hurt worse than anything. Rick's words earlier in the ER about having gone on four different deployments and got nothing more than a sunburn and a sliver really pulled at his emotions, too, but he tried to push away his thoughts and focus on Rick.

Krista wasn't gone long, having gotten some coffee and muffins to eat. She hadn't pushed Drew to talk much while they were waiting for word on Rick, but when she returned, she couldn't wait any longer, "how are you doing?" She knew it wasn't the best question to ask, but she hoped it would start a conversation.

Nodding his thanks at the food she'd gotten, he shrugged, "I don't know."

Resting her hand on his shoulder, she rubbed it gently, "I'm here for you."

"I know. Thanks," he smiled lightly, taking a sip of the not-so-good hospital coffee.

"I'm sorry about what I said earlier," Krista said softly, "I should never have snapped at you like that."

"Don't apologize," Drew replied, looking at her, "you were right. What you said is was what I needed to hear. I feel like the World's Worst Boyfriend because of how I pulled away from him earlier, but I'll do just about anything to make it up to him."

"You're not the worst boyfriend, Drew, and I'm sure Rick understands. What you did probably meant more than a missed chance to be close in the ER," she admitted, "you came out in front of everyone for him. That took guts."

"That I immediately lost after he went upstairs," Drew shook his head, eating his muffin.

"It was a rough night, Drew. Trust me, I know," Krista admitted, "we all need to just put it past us."

"Yeah, I'd love to," Drew agreed, sipping his coffee and getting up to stretch a little, "I feel like this is a nightmare."

Before Krista had a chance to respond, someone walking through the doors nearby startled them and both turned to see Dr. Scott Clemmens coming from the OR.

"Drew," Scott greeted, glancing to see Krista nearby.

"How is he? Is he okay?" Drew asked quickly, moving towards the surgeon.

"His surgery went well," Scott smiled, giving them a moment to relax at the news, "I was able to save his knee, so his recovery should be a lot easier than an above-the-knee amputation," he explained, "I know it's a lot harder to learn how to use a prosthetic with a knee, so thankfully we don't have to deal with that."

Being thankful for small miracles, Drew nodded, "thanks," he replied, taking a deep breath.

"No problem. I spoke with him prior to surgery and he filled me in and I'm so sorry you guys have to go through this," Scott added, reaching out to pat Drew on the shoulder, "now he's going to be in a lot of pain, so once he wakes up, he'll be on a morphine drip. You know the drugs are probably going to keep him out of it for a while until some of the pain subsides and he can come off the drip, so you should go home. Get some sleep and come back later."

"No. I'm not leaving," Drew replied, trying not to sound too harsh, but there was no way he was leaving, "I want to see him."

Scott expected the answer, so the surgeon nodded, "okay, I'll show you where he is."

Krista had let the guys talk and was glad to hear the surgery went well. She also didn't want to intrude on any private moments, so she stood up when he came to get his bag near her, "would you like me to go with you or leave?" She asked, "I can do either. It's up to you."

Shouldering his bag, Drew looked at her, "I'm open for either," he admitted, his mind only focused on Rick at the moment.

"I'll go with," Krista smiled.

...

Scott led Drew and Krista into the surgical recovery area, where Rick would stay until he came out of anesthesia and the staff made sure that he was stable enough to be moved into a regular room.

"He's only been out of surgery a short time, so it will be a little while before he comes out of it," Scott told him, pausing next to Rick's recovery room, "and I'll be here until he's moved to a regular room, so if you need anything, just call me or have me paged, okay?"

Drew nodded at Scott, "okay. Thanks," he replied, stepping into the doorway and pausing a moment to focus on his boyfriend.

Rick was back on oxygen, so he had a nasal cannula in his nose, his eyes were closed, he was covered with a sheet, and his arms were resting on the the covers, one having an IV line trailing out of it to a stand nearby. An oxygen sensor was attached to one of his fingers and cords came out from under his hospital gown, where a heart monitor was attached to his skin and a screen behind him. A morphine drip button was in one of his hands and around his upper arm, a blood pressure cuff was wrapped and attached to the same monitor, every few minutes rechecking his pressure.

As Drew's eyes moved down his boyfriend's bed, just past his knee, the absence of his leg was easy to see, the end portion of his leg wrapped heavily with pressure dressings and propped up so it wasn't pressing against the bed.

Scott and Krista remained in the hallway, giving Drew a moment of privacy with his boyfriend.

Moving forward, Drew ran a nervous hand over his face as he walked to the edge of Rick's bed. Dropping his bag on the floor out of the way, Drew took Rick's hand in his and leaned over, pressing a kiss to Rick's forehead and begging himself to remain calm, "I'm here, Rick," he whispered, brushing his free hand over his boyfriend's cheek.

Krista quietly moved into the room and slid a chair up to Drew, "sit," she whispered.

Glancing back, Drew took a seat and kept his hand in Rick's. He knew soon Rick would be waking up and they couldn't start the pain meds until after he'd woken up, so Drew dreaded that moment, hating to know he's be in pain, but would be right there for him.

Scott had moved off to write up notes on his chart and a nurse soon joined them, checking Rick's vitals and setting everything up for the pain meds to start soon.

Time ticked by, only the monitors and the blood pressure cuff inflating breaking the silence in the room. Drew wasn't sure how long he was in there, but soon Rick's breathing quickened and he recognized the signs of him coming out of the anesthesia haze.

Drew stood up, his hand still holding on to Rick's and rested his other hand on Rick's forehead, hoping to give him as much comfort as possible as he woke up.

Slowly Rick began to stir and his eyes fluttered open briefly, enough to see Drew, before drifting closed again. His hand clamped down on Drew's tighter as pain radiated from his leg, "oh God," he gasped, his eyes snapping open and darting around the room to figure out exactly where he was, "hurts," he choked out.

"I know," Drew replied softly, gently brushing his hand across Rick's forehead, "if you press the button in your other hand, it'll control your pain meds," he explained, glancing at the nurse who nodded at him.

Rick blinked his eyes and flinched as the pain washed over him again, "shit!" He hissed, his thumb pressing the button quickly, before turning to Drew, "don't go."

"I'm not going anywhere," Drew promised, pressing his forehead against Rick's, "I'm right here."

With a nod, Rick's eyes drifted closed and his hand loosened a little on Drew's, the meds kicking in.

Drew sat back down and rubbed his free hand over his face, not sure how much longer he could hold himself together. He was physically and emotionally drained and knew he'd need sleep soon, but he refused to leave Rick; not until he was more awake and out of the intense pain.

Krista had taken a seat in another chair in the corner of the room. She felt horrible that there was nothing she could really do to make Drew or Rick feel better. She'd only known Drew a short time, but they'd already become friends. Sure, it started out a little awkward when she didn't know about Drew's personal life, but since then, they'd gotten to be good friends.

Scott returned and walked into the room, looking at Drew, "I don't know if you know, but bone pain can be excruciating, especially from an amputation. When I do them, after I'm done, I numb the residual limb, so hopefully the pain won't be as severe as it could be. The bone pain will subside as the body adjusts and hopefully the numbness will wear off at the same time, so the pain he'll be feeling is an ache over anything else. That's my hope. Everyone is different, so we won't know for a few hours," he explained.

Silently Drew nodded, contemplating questions that had been swirling around in his mind, "can I... do you know what happens next?"

"That all depends on him," Scott motioned to Rick, "I'm keeping him in the hospital for a few days. I'll have him in IV antibiotics and the morphine drip for as long as he needs. The antibiotics are to make sure the limb doesn't get infected, so it's just a precaution. From there, we'll see. Therapy will be in to evaluate him, to see what he can and can't do. Some amputees go into a rehab center for a short time to build some upper body strength, to help with transferring, before returning home, but some can go right home," Scott paused and glanced at Rick's vitals, "right now, he's doing great. His vitals are normal, there's no sign of bleeding from the limb, so I'm confident he'll make a full recovery and have almost the same abilities he had before this happened and I can tell he'll have a good support system around him," he glanced at Drew and then Krista.

"Definitely," Drew nodded, looking at Rick.

"Everything will come together, and forgive me for this cliché, but just take things one step at at time," Scott added, turning to the nurse next to him, "right now, I hate to do this, but I'm going to take him off the drip for a moment, because I need to do a neurological exam. If he passes, I'll put him back on it and he can be moved upstairs to a regular room."

Drew took a deep breath, "okay."

The nurse took the hint and turned off the IV and flushed the line to clear any meds out.

Krista got up and moved to stand next to Drew, unsure just what would happen when Rick woke up this time.

As the morphine slowly began to wear off, Rick became a little restless and he clamped down on Drew's hand more than he had been. His eyes clenched closed for a moment as he began to feel some of the pain from his leg. Taking a gasping breath, Rick opened his eyes and looked around, "Drew..." He trailed off as he shifted, "damn it that hurts!"

"I'm sorry, Rick," Scott leaned over, "I had to take you off the morphine briefly to ask you a few questions."

Taking a deep breath, Rick turned his head to Scott, "what are they?"

"Where are you?" Scott asked.

"San Antonio Memorial Hospital," Rick replied through clenched teeth.

"What year is it?" Scott continued.

"Twenty-fourteen," Rick answered, blinking his eyes.

"Who's next to you?" Scott motioned to Drew.

"My boyfriend Doctor and Lieutenant Andrew Alister," Rick looked at Drew and tried to smile, but he was in too much pain.

"What's your name?" Scott looked at him.

"Lincoln, Richard S. Captain US Army. 555-12-3456," Rick replied.

Scott raised a curious eyebrow at him, surprised at the answer.

"Name, rank and social security number," Drew explained, "military training."

"I see. I admit, I've never had anyone answer that question that way before," Scott smiled, nodding at the nurse to start the morphine again, "neurologically you're doing okay, so I'm going to send you up to a regular room. You can also come off the oxygen and all the monitors, so you should be more comfortable with only the one IV. Order something to eat when you feel like it, I'm not putting any restrictions on your diet," he admitted, signing some papers on his clipboard. "I'll be leaving the hospital for a few hours, but I'll check back in with you guys this evening before my shift. Drew has my number, so if either of you need anything or have questions, feel free to text or call," Scott told them.

"Thanks," Rick murmured, the morphine slowly kicking in, but not as quickly as it had previously.

Scott nodded and moved out of the room, the nurse beginning the task of removing the various monitors from Rick that were unnecessary now. Once she was finished, she stepped out to make some calls to find out where he'd be going for his stay in the hospital and Krista retook her seat.

Rick hadn't fallen asleep yet, and he hadn't pressed the button for the drip yet. He was in pain, but he was trying to fight to see how long he could hold out before he actually used the medicine, so he turned to look at his leg, shaking his head and sighing, his eyes on Drew, "God, I can't believe this happened."

Drew still had one hand in his, so he rested his other hand on Rick's shoulder and looked at him, "I'm sorry, sweetheart," he bit his lip, "but I'm here. You're not in this alone."

For a moment, Rick was silent, gathering his thoughts in the fog of the drugs he was on and nodded, "I know and thank you," he reached up carefully to Drew, "did you really kiss me in front of your coworkers?"

"I did," Drew nodded, leaning in so Rick could reach him.

"But all night you'd pulled away from me. What changed?" Rick asked.

"Let's just say someone made me see some things I hadn't thought of before," he admitted, glancing at Krista, before looking back at Rick, "I'm sorry I was an asshole earlier."

Rick shook his head, "don't be. I had my moments, too."

"You had every right to be upset and pissed," Drew told him, his thumb brushing over Rick's forehead, "we both had a horrible night."

"And this is not how I figured today would go at all," Rick sighed, "I had it all planned out."

"Oh yeah? Were you ever going to tell me those plans?" Drew smirked.

Rick's eyes drifted closed for a moment, "yeah, when you got to my place after your shift," he admitted, then opened his eyes and glanced at Krista, "you don't have to sit all the way over there, you know."

Krista stood up and moved to stand at the end of his bed, "I was just giving you guys some time. I wish there was something I could do to make this easier," she motioned between them.

"I appreciate the support," Drew commented.

"So do I and I appreciate what you did for Wilson. He was a good kid," Rick admitted, flinching a little as a twinge of pain shot through his body, "God, I hate this!" He hissed, "and where's my bag?"

"What bag?" Drew asked.

"My backpack. I don't care about my duffel. It just is my uniforms, but there's documents and important things in my backpack that I need," Rick explained.

"It didn't come with you on the ambulance," Drew told him, "so it's probably with the bus or still out on the highway."

"I could make some calls and see if I could find it," Krista offered.

"You don't have to, but I'm gonna need to find it somehow," Rick commented.

Krista moved to stand on the opposite side of the bed from Drew, "I'll find it," she promised, "I need to get some sleep before my shift tonight, too, so if you guys are okay, I'm gonna go."

"I think we'll be okay," Drew replied, getting a tired nod from Rick in agreement.

"What does your bag look like? Just like Drew's but with your name on it?" She asked, motioning to Drew's.

"Yeah, with 'Lincoln' on the name patch," Rick explained, "thank you... Krista, right?"

Krista nodded and smiled, "yeah and you're welcome. Besides, I kinda," she blushed, "well, I owe you guys for um, well, Drew can tell you how I found out about you two," she admitted, "I'm so sorry. I wouldn't have done that if I had known."

"What?" Rick asked, shaking his head in confusion and looking between her and Drew.

"I'll tell you later," Drew replied and turned to Krista, "I'll text you what room he's in when I know."

With a nod, Krista grabbed her bag, "take it easy guys, Drew try to get some sleep. Are you working tonight?"

"I don't know," Drew looked at Rick, "am I?"

Rick took a deep breath and tried to think straight, "you'll be in the ER, right?" He asked and when Drew nodded, he shrugged, "if you want to. I'll probably sleep a lot and I know where you'll be if I need you. Did my phone at least make it here?"

Drew nodded, "yeah, your phone is in my bag," he motioned to his backpack with his hand that wasn't still holding Rick's, "I inventoried the stuff that came with you when I put them in the bag," he motioned to a plastic belongings bag on a counter nearby, "and when I found your phone I put it in my pocket. I didn't want it to get lost in the shuffle."

"Thanks," Rick smiled.

"So, I'm gonna go. Rick, nice meeting you, I just wish it was under better circumstances," Krista nodded at him.

"Same to you," Rick waved as she moved out of the room, and once she was gone, he turned to look at Drew, "she seems nice."

"Yeah, she's cool," Drew agreed, "and a good friend."

Rick flinched again, this time his eyes watering as if he was going to cry because he was in such pain. Finally giving in, he pressed the morphine button, "this will get easier, right?"

Drew leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his boyfriend's lips, "that's my hope. I wish I knew for sure, but we'll deal with whatever it is together, okay?"

Rick nodded and smiled, squeezing his hand gently, "okay."

...

The surgery had taken place towards the end of the night shift and by the time Rick was moved up to a regular hospital room, it was after noon and Drew was getting tired. He had to work that night at seven, so once Rick got settled in bed, still groggy and in and out of it from the pain meds, Drew settled into the small recliner in the room to get some sleep after setting an alarm for five, hoping for at least a few hours of sleep.

Rick loved that his boyfriend was there. It meant the world to him that he'd been by his side since waking up from surgery and after their kiss, he knew he would be, but he couldn't really enjoy being close to him, because he had to keep taking the pain medication and it kept him in a fog. He wished he didn't need the strong medication, but his leg hurt and when it did, the pain shot through his whole body at times, which is why the morphine was necessary. He just hoped the pain would subside soon, because he hated feeling like he was in a drug haze.

Nurses and aides were in and out, checking on him and a few recognized Drew from the ER or could tell he was asleep and tried to keep quiet so they didn't wake him up.

Rick woke up from one of his drug induced naps while Drew was still sleeping. He had a private room, which he was thankful for and reaching for his phone, he began scrolling through his messages. Drew had been the first person he'd talked to since arriving home, but he had a family back in Washington state who he'd promised to call. He'd grown up in Seattle, where most of his family still lived, so that's why he knew the stuff the Army tried to pass off as coffee and apples were no where near close.

Glancing over to his boyfriend, and seeing he was sound asleep, Rick dialed the familiar Washington number and waited for someone to pick up. After two rings, a female voice picked up and Rick smiled lightly, "hey mom."

"Rick! I'm so glad to hear your voice!" The older woman exclaimed, immediately recognizing her youngest son's voice.

"Me, too," he agreed.

"How are you? Are you home in San Antonio now or are you still on your way?" She asked, knowing he was coming home, but didn't know how long it would exactly take.

"You could say that," he agreed, his eyes looking towards where his right foot and lower leg used to be, now the absence hurting more than the pain he felt throughout his body, "I haven't made it home yet and I don't know when I'll be able to get there."

"What do you mean? Sweetheart, you don't sound good. What's wrong?" She asked quickly, able to tell by the tone of his voice that something was going on.

"The bus the guys and I were in on our way home was in an accident," he started, taking a deep breath, "I don't remember the actual crash. One minute I'm talking to Drew on the phone and the next thing I know I'm waking up in his ER with a bunch of my men, Drew and a doctor, looking over me and talking about my leg."

"Oh my God!" The woman gasped, "your leg? What happened to your leg? Are you okay? Drew never called me!"

"I lost it mom, it's gone," he commented softly, fighting his emotions as he admitted the truth, "they tried to save it, but it was too damaged in the crash. I had to have emergency surgery this morning." A sob echoed over the phone and Rick immediately hated to share the news over the phone, but he knew he wouldn't be making it to Washington anytime soon and didn't want her or any of his family to find out from anyone but him, "mom, I'm sorry. This is the last thing I wanted to do, but I didn't want you to hear from anyone else."

"My baby boy," she cried, "why didn't Drew call me? He should have!"

"Mom, don't get mad at Drew. He was working in the ER all night. They were trying to save my leg," Rick replied, glancing at his boyfriend who was still asleep, "I'm sure the last thing on his mind was who he needed to call. That's why I'm calling."

"What hospital are you at? I'm booking the next flight to San Antonio!" She retorted.

"Don't rush down here, mom," Rick sighed, having not thought much about what his mom might do after hearing the news.

"Well, I'm not just going to sit here while my youngest son is laying in a hospital bed without a leg!" She snapped.

Being the youngest boy of the family, but having a sister a few years younger, had it's moments. He was one of four kids, he also had two older siblings, a brother and a sister, so his mom always babied him and his younger sister. He hated it, especially being an officer in the US Army, but he knew there was no talking his mom out of anything, "just promise me you're not going to be mad at Drew."

The woman was silent a long moment, "fine," she sighed, "but he better have a good explanation."

"Mom, he came out in front of my men and his coworkers. Leave him alone," Rick replied firmly.

Rick had never been as private with his sexuality as Drew had been. Rick's family all knew he was gay, even before he and Drew had gotten together. The Lincolns all supported Rick's choice and easily welcomed Drew to the family, but understood their reasons for keeping their relationship a secret from everyone else. There were too many gray areas when it came to their careers to take a chance on the information getting to the wrong person. Now it wasn't as problematic, but Drew still held issues with coming out... Something he'd pushed aside earlier to show his boyfriend how much he cared and that meant more to Rick than he could truly admit.

"Oh my word! He did?" The woman gasped.

A twinge of pain shot through his body again and he hissed, "yeah," he choked out.

"What's wrong?" She asked quickly.

"Just in pain. I don't wanna keep taking the morphine. It knocks me out," he admitted.

"Richard Scott Lincoln! You take those pain killers if you need them! Don't go playing the tough soldier act!" The woman snapped.

Rolling his eyes at the harsh tone she was using, he clarified, "I don't want to take the morphine. Every time I take it, it knocks me out."

"So ask for something else," she suggested, her tone calming down just slightly.

"I know, mom. My surgeon is gonna be around before his shift tonight, so I'm going to ask," he promised, looking at the clock.

"What hospital are you in?" She asked.

"San Antonio Memorial Hospital," he replied, "room 418."

...

Rick ended his conversation with his mom after a few moments. He needed to take the pain medicine and he didn't want to fall asleep while he was on the phone with her. He saw it was around four and hoped he'd wake up when Drew's alarm went off, so he could warn his boyfriend about his mom. As he drifted off from the meds, questions and things began to swirl in the fog from the drugs, but he couldn't focus on any one of them.

...

Waking up to his alarm, Drew shifted and for a moment looked around to figure out where he was as he turned off the beeping. Immediately recognizing the hospital room, the memories from the last day came back to him. Surprised he'd slept for four hours, he was glad for the time to recharge his batteries and sat the chair up, looking over at Rick, who was awake and looking back at him.

"Hey," Rick smiled lightly, just waking up again himself.

Drew stood up, stretching a little, before walking over to him, "hey back," he replied, leaning in to press a kiss to his lips. They hadn't been much for PDAs, but at the moment, he didn't care, "how are you doing? You need anything?"

Rick shrugged, his eyes heavy, "I don't know. Do I have to stay in this gown?" He wondered, tugging at the stiff material.

"No," Drew shook his head, "I've got a clean Army t-shirt in my locker downstairs, if you want me to get it."

"Yeah, that'd be cool," Rick nodded, "so, um," he took a deep breath, "I called my mom."

The moment Rick said that, Drew's stomach sunk. He knew he'd forgotten to do something. He'd messaged Sergeant Logan earlier to let him know Rick had gotten through surgery, but he hadn't thought to call Rick's family, "how'd she take it?"

"She freaked out. Was pissed at you for not calling, but I talked her out of that and said she was booking the next flight in. I don't know if she was serious, but I think she was," Rick admitted.

Drew took a deep breath, "she's coming here?"

"Maybe," Rick replied, "sorry. I didn't even think that she might want to come here."

"Don't be sorry. I'm glad you called. I feel bad I didn't, but I had other things on my mind," Drew admitted.

"Oh yeah, like what? That new girlfriend of yours?" Rick winked, trying to tease his boyfriend.

"She's not my girlfriend," Drew retorted quickly, "she's just a friend. You know I've only got eyes for you."

"I never doubted that," Rick assured him, "though now I'm even more curious how she found out you were gay."

...

Drew quickly explained how their relationship had started and about the kiss while she was trying to fix his hand after his Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight. Rick was glad Drew had told her the truth, because that would have been awkward later on, if he hadn't. Drew continued to explain the awkward kiss they'd shared during the storm, to throw off the radiologist and Molly, who was trying to set Drew up with her niece.

"I can just see that happening," Rick laughed, "thanks! I needed to laugh!"

"I wasn't funny! Molly later threatened me!" Drew replied, trying to be serious, but he couldn't help cracking his own smile, glad to hear Rick's laugh again, even if he didn't think the story was too funny.

"I totally want to hear what she has to say now!" Rick smirked.

"Oh God," Drew groaned, taking a seat on the edge of Rick's bed, "now I don't want to go down there."

"Well, you have to. I wanna get out of this gown," Rick replied simply, tugging at the neckline a little.

Taking a deep breath, Drew nodded, "alright. I'll go shower and change into my scrubs, then come back before my shift, okay?"

Rick nodded, "yeah, okay," he sat up a little and reached out to rest his hand on Drew's neck, rubbing it gently.

Drew smiled and welcomed the warm touch of the familiar hand on his body, "I've missed you," he admitted, shifting to hug him tightly.

"You're not the only one," Rick agreed, soaking in the moment as he returned his hug, having missed being so close to Drew, "we're gonna be okay, right?"

"Of course we are," Drew promised, pulling back to look into the blue eyes of his boyfriend, "I'm not letting you go through this alone. You're everything to me and that will never change. I love you."

"I love you, too," Rick smiled, resting his hand on Drew's cheek, "I'm so lucky to have you in my life."

...

A/N4: Hope you all enjoyed! This is my first time writing a same-sex couple (as main characters), so please be gentle! I'd love to hear what you think, too, so please review and let me know! I really love these characters and am really excited to write this (I already have another 60 pages written!), so I hope to see you back for more! Thanks for reading!

A/N5: You can catch me a lot on Twitter and sometimes on Tumblr. I'm EJ8302 on both of them... I've been known to get my tweets favorited by actors of The Night Shift and even responses, which is so cool!

A/N6: As I stated earlier, I'm caregiver to both my parents, which leaves me limited free time. I know I have many Puckleberry WIPs... I'm not neglecting any of them, but this fic has taken hold of my brain and I'm going with it. It's the first real time I've had major inspiration for solo writing in over a year. I hope I'm able to get back to my other WIPs (most have not been updated for some time), so please know I haven't left the Puckleberry fandom! I'm also a co-writer on a Blue Bloods (TV show) fan fic with my BH sis Annic, which we started a few months ago. That's when my writing began again, so I'm thankful to my BH sis for helping me get back to doing any kind of writing and I'm hoping I can soon continue all of my WIPs... I promise I'm still here and thank you to all of you for your support, love and sticking with me! It truly means the world to me!

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