Senseless

What You Need

(Quick chapter for Tommy and Chris :3)

Tommy-

For once, waking up with Christopher as the first thing he saw wasn't the biggest surprise to Tommy's blurry mind. No, that award went to waking up at all. Not that he didn't believe in the man's abilities, he knew that he was an amazing doctor, but it had taken so many tries to bring himself back around to semi-consciousness that he never thought he could manage to return fully. 

Exhaustion still clung to his mind like an unwavering fog, but as he followed Christopher's movements as he typed away on his laptop and transferred some information to the papers spread out beside it, he knew that he had to stay awake. His love looked like he was about to fall over. Black circled his half-lidded gaze and it was abundantly clear by the way his hair fell haphazardly that he hadn't showered, or at least washed it, in a few days. If he slipped away again, who knew what would become of the man.

He'll keep deteriorating. 

Tommy wanted to get his attention somehow, but he couldn't move his limbs and it felt like he had gauze shoved in his mouth. He turned his attention the room he was in. It was clear that it was Christopher's room in his home, but where it used to be quite bare and, well, bland, now there were computer stands and while Tommy couldn't move his head, he could see that another dresser had been added, along with a small table. Different folders littered every surface and he could see little flashing lights on the wall from machines that were out of his line of sight. Tommy had no doubt that most of them were monitoring him. 

A curious yip from his left had Tommy glancing sideways. He was just barely able to see Skipper's flaring nose as he sniffed at his immobile arm. Ah, I'm so glad to see you, little guy. Tommy thought as a smile tried to grace his numb lips. 

The pup gave another, louder yip, then scrambled up onto the bed right as Christopher turned in his office chair. "I told you a million times to stop climbing up th-..." 

The tears that began running from Christopher's eyes spurred Tommy to keep his focus through the fog in his mind. "Hey there, baby." Chris whispered as he reached out to place a shaking hand against Tommy's cheek. 

Just the simple touch had Tommy's eyes closing with contentment, but Christopher snatched his hand away before his eyelids could even finish shutting. "Please, you have to stay awake. Please, Tommy." Christopher pleaded. The deep pain in his voice had Tommy forcing his tired eyes back open as quickly as he could manage. 

His love let out a huge sigh of relief as he sat down on the edge of the bed and just looked at him with the most excited expression on his exhausted face. I love you. Tommy thought, trying to push the message toward the other man with his gaze. 

When Christopher's lips tilted up and he reached back over to run his fingers gently through his hair, Tommy allowed himself to relax. "I'm so glad that you're back. I've missed you, baby." Christopher cooed. His words were very unlike him, as well as the tone of his voice, but Tommy loved the rare side of the man he was seeing. 

He tried to talk after a few minutes of silence, but his lips refused to move and his jaw began to ache. 

"I'm sorry, I had to keep the feeding tube in when we put you back under. You... had some problems come up." He whispered as his eyes lowered to the blankets before returning back to his a moment later. "We had trouble waking you up again, then we discovered that you weren't healing correctly. If you had woken up and started moving around or your heart rate got too high, it could have caused irreparable damage."  

While Tommy should have been worried about how long he had been out and what had happened with his life since then, he really couldn't focus on anything besides the fact that he was, in fact, still alive and that Christopher was still watching over him like a sleep-deprived guardian angel.  

Fighting his heavy eyelids, Tommy looked up at the man before him with as much love as he possibly could. He was a hero to Tommy, and even though he couldn't speak, he wanted to make sure that Christopher knew exactly that. 

"I don't deserve that look." Christopher whispered as he knelt beside the low bed and grasped Tommy's hand in his own shaking ones. "I'm so glad that you're back, though. I've missed you so much, you frustratingly stubborn man." 

I'm glad to be back, especially since you're here beside me still. 

"Do you want me to try and take that tube out again? Third time may be the charm...?" He said, trying to joke a little even if his forced smile didn't reach his tired eyes. 

Tommy looked up at the ceiling, then down toward the blanket, trying to make it look like was nodding. Christopher seemed to understand, because he turned toward the small nightstand to his right and grabbed a pair of gloves. 

"It's going to hurt bad, baby, but I'll try to be as gentle as I can." Christopher said quietly as he pulled on the gloves and leaned onto the bed to reach for the tube. 

If that isn't an innuendo, I don't know what is. 

As he felt the tube begin to shift once unfastened from around his head, Tommy steeled himself. He remembered how badly it had hurt being removed the first two times. He wasn't looking forward to the third. It was as painful as he thought it would be, and when Christopher finally managed to remove it completely, Tommy was left sputtering and wincing as his raw throat wracked with painful coughs. 

Tears ran down his cheeks but they were gently wiped away as Christopher leaned in and pressed his lips to his nose while his big hands, suddenly glove free, held Tommy's head as still as possible. "It's okay. Deep breaths, Tommy. Focus, for me."

He wanted to be able to respond. To tell Christopher that he was doing his best, but at the same time, he knew that he could do better. His love had taken so much time and lost so much sleep over him, he could dig deep and fight a little harder. For him. 

After another minute or so of coughing so badly that he felt like he might lose a lung, Tommy settled back into the pillows, panting heavily as he tried to calm himself down the rest of the way. 

"Listen to my voice, Tommy. You need to calm down." Christopher said. Tommy had noticed that the man had scooted himself onto the bed right next to him. Chris had also pulled him up into his lap so that his body was leaning back against his chest. The steady breathing he felt through Christopher's shirt helped him calm his own erratic panting. 

When he finally heaved an exhausted sigh and dropped his head back onto Christopher's shoulder, he was rewarded with a soft kiss against his damp forehead. "There we go." Chris whispered as he pressed another kiss to Tommy's forehead, a smile lit up his face and brushed away some of the fatigue that had previously outlined his features.  

"Hey..." Tommy finally managed to say, the word crackling as it was forced past his parched, damaged throat. 

Hearing a stifled sniffle, Tommy forced his head to turn just enough to see Christopher wiping at his face with his arm. "Fucking, dammit." Christopher cursed, drawing a faint grin from Tommy. 

"Maybe later," Tommy rasped, wincing from the pain it incited in his throat. 

A warm mug pressed against his chapped lips a moment later and he needed no encouragement to start drinking. The water was slightly heated and it smelled like honey had been added. It soothed his aching throat and allowed him to finish relaxing as he sipped away at the contents. 

"Good boy," Chris whispered against his hair as his right arm wrapped snugly around his waist. 

The praise hummed in his tired mind like a balm against all of his worry. His submissive side preened quietly while his dominant one allowed the words to sooth him. There would be no conflicting emotions for a while. He was just glad to have the attention of the man he loved and to finally be back in the real world. 

"I love you." He whispered against the edge of the mug before taking another tentative sip. The arm around his waist tightened as he felt Christopher nuzzle into the crook of his neck and withdraw the empty cup. He wasn't surprised in the least when he heard a quiet snoring start up a few moments later. 

"I owe you my life, again. It's my turn to do something for you, now. Get as much rest as you need, master. I'll be right here to protect you from the demons that keep you awake far too often." Tommy mumbled as he turned his head into Chris's soft hair and allowed his eyes to finally close.