sunday morning, yellow sky

[handandahalf]

Jon came back to consciousness feeling two things; dull throbbing pain, and an infuriating itch. That the two feelings were located in the same part of his body did not occur to his bleary mind, and so he absently shifted his hand to scratch the itch

Comments

[dojustfine]

Jennifer picked up the glass and put it in his hand; reaching was probably not going to be easy for him right now. "Good morning, Mr. Snow," she said. "It's good to see you awake. I'm Jennifer Keller, and I've been taking care of most of your treatment. How are you feeling this morning?"

[handandahalf]

Jon drank until the glass was dry, passing it back to her with a nod of thanks. "I'm fine, unless I try to move," he said with a shrug of one shoulder, suppressing a wince at the twinge it sent through his arm. He glanced down at his legs again, then up to Dr. Keller's face, radiating tension though his face was calm. "I want you to tell me right now if you're going to have to-- if I'm going to lose my leg," he said, then added almost as an afterthought, "please."

[dojustfine]

Jennifer pulled up a chair and sat by the bed. She had expected this question, and was glad that he had asked it when his wife was not present. "I can't give you an answer right now," she said honestly. "I think we've set it properly, but the break was so complicated I can't be completely sure without access to advanced scanning equimpent." She would have given her right arm for just x-ray capability. "So far there are no signs of infection, but we're going to be cautious. Right now, it doesn't look like you'll lose it--I want you to understand that would be the absolute worst case scenario, and we'll do everything we can to prevent that from happening--but you might have greatly reduced function in it for some time. I can't promise it'll be good as new in the end."

[handandahalf]

Jon nodded, trying to suppress the wild hope and relief that had flooded him at her words. "I understand," he said, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves. "The world I come from-- I was glad to wake up and find it was still attached," he said with a shake of his head. He wanted to have her explain all of this, a hundred questions jostling together in his mind, but he forced himself to take one thing at a time. "You must forgive my ignorance of your medicine-- I know next to nothing, only how to treat wounds in battle, and what Dr. Montgomery explained when my wife was pregnant. Infection-- you mean putrefaction, when your blood goes black?"