Kyle Van Allen (arty_kyle) wrote in rrinitiative, @ 2012-11-02 18:51:00 |
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Entry tags: | cal, cal and kyle, day seven, kyle |
Testing Patience
Characters: Cal and Kyle
Setting: Clinic, evening
With Caroline’s remains put away in one of the patient rooms and the clinic itself cleaned after tending to her, Cal was wishing there was more to do. Granted, there was plenty if he wanted; notes on the others, details of the schematics for Leandro’s breathing devices, even just the general update of his inventory list, to track what had been used. But really, Cal didn’t want any of that.
It was all too silent, too intent and isolated. He hadn’t needed to deal with a corpse in some time now, and returning to such work had left him somewhat restless. If he could’ve, he would’ve left the clinic with Violet or Becka and walked the rest of the facility, but at some point Cal knew he’d get what he wanted. He’d have company if he waited, someone he could try to directly help. Sooner or later, an appointment with Kyle was due.
Kyle entered the clinic nervously. He had been mostly avoiding all day, but as evening had drawn in, he couldn’t any longer. Still, there was part of him that would have preferred to pretend that reality didn’t exist. He knew he couldn’t do that though, and he had never been that kind of coward, so he tried to hide his emotions as best he could behind a blank mask. “Hi - are you the doctor?” he asked, coming to a stop in the middle of the room, posture poised and impeccable.
Turning at the sound of Kyle’s voice, Cal had a welcoming grin at the ready that felt relieving to him. Perfect timing, he thought with a nod and a little wave to one of the chairs near the two terminals. “Yeah, Cal Royce,” he greeted easily, “Gonna guess you’re Kyle. Grab a seat, man, we can take care of things for you. I’m gonna wager it’s a touch hectic upstairs.” It had to be if word had spread and everyone knew about the body being kept back in one of the patient-care rooms.
Kyle sat, his posture stiff and upright, back not even touching the chair and his hands rested lightly on his knees. "Yes, I'm Kyle," he confirmed. "I'm not sure exactly how things are. I've mostly been keeping myself to myself today,"he admitted. He had a tendency of locking himself away when he was stressed.
“That’s entirely understandable,” Cal said as he settled into the other chair, giving a slight nod. “I’m betting no one here knows exactly what to do next, a lot of us are probably doin’ the same.” He knew he was; this place was safe and cut off from the tumult, even if there was a body down here. “I figure we’ll end up havin’ some kind of group sit-down to talk about what to do,” he went on, “But that’s neither here or now. So in the here and now? I’d like to get a few questions out of the way, we’ll take your blood sample, and I’ll have the results in a couple days. Sound good?”
Kyle nodded, only half concentrating on what Cal was saying about organisation. His attention was firmly fixed on the blood test and questions part. "Sure," he agreed, sounding very determined, as though he was forcing it to be so.
“Okay, I’d like to start with some idea of when your last test was,” Cal said first, “And since that test, have you been sexually active at all? Been usin’ protection or engaging in any narcotic use? If not with either of those, your risk factor’s pretty low.” He tried to project some air of reassurance with that, though Cal knew that just being in this situation tended to put people on edge. He’d seen it with Leandro and Susanna, it’d only make sense for Kyle to worry too.
Kyle took a breath and told himself to deal with this maturely. Still, it was hard to keep a brave face against the possible enormity of consequence for his decisions. "He last test was two years ago, just shy of anyhow. And I was clean. No narcotic use since then, but yes, I have been sexually active. And no, protection was not always used," he said, his voice calmer than he felt inside as he looked Cal in the eyes as he spoke.
With a slight nod, Cal reached to his desk, claiming a pen and jotting down a few notes of what Kyle was sharing. “Good to know,” he said as he set the pen aside, “And we can skip some of the finer questions related to that, since I’m doubtin’ that any of your former partners are here with the rest of us.” And it wasn’t like he could get their medical records, even if he had details on whoever they were. This was a good reminder of the fact that, despite the trappings of the clinic? Cal wasn’t a doctor in the ways that could get him those answers.
“Now two years is a while,” he continued, grabbing a fresh pair of gloves from off his desk, “Has there been any reason in that time that you might think you’ve contracted anything? Been gettin’ sick real easy, feelin’ listless for long periods of time, or noticing any physical abnormalities?” It was vague, sure, and you could never tell if you were genuinely ill without tests being run, but Cal also tended to trust peoples’ own instinctive concerns. If Kyle had opted to come down here, there was a chance that he’d noticed something.
Kyle arched an eyebrow. "Yes, two years is a while, but time passes so very fast when you're on trial and then sent to prison," he said, an edge to his tone which died down almost as soon as it appeared. "No," he continued in a far more reasonable tone. "I've not been sick. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing's to set me worried. Just made some less than impressive choices, and I'd prefer to find out the consequences of those sooner rather than later."
There was an easy bob to Cal’s head, a continuous nod of understanding as he listened to Kyle and pulled on his gloves. Whatever that note in his voice had been, ire or surprise or just distaste with Cal’s wording? Cal let it pass. You never put someone in the corner when they came to see you on these terms. “That’s a good attitude, and you did the right thing comin’ down here,” Cal agreed, leaving his chair to fetch the supplies he’d need for Kyle’s blood test. “And trust me, I know plenty ‘bout losin’ time courtesy of the system,” he went on with another faint grin of understanding, stopping at Kyle’s side with a latex strip to tie off his arm.
“Sleeve up,” Cal instructed, “This won’t hurt a bit, trust me. A quick swab an’ poke and you’ll be on your way.”
Kyle rolled up his shirt sleeve as instructed and held his arm out to Cal. "I wouldn't go leaping to praise me for my attitude," he said with a shake of his head. "I'm somewhat ashamed to say that I hadn't even thought about it until the possibility was mentioned and I realised that I was a damned fool." Kyle's tone in regards to himself was cutting and harsh.
“And I wouldn’t go leapin’ to damn yourself, neither,” Cal countered with a shake of his head, “My momma always used to say that a true fool was the sort who couldn’t see himself as one, no matter what.” Tearing open the pack for his swab, Cal was quick but gentle as he cleaned the crook of Kyle’s arm and tossed the wipe into the trash. “If those two years were spent in processing and lock-up, it’s not like the option to have this test was readily available to you, right? Medical care for inmates has always been piss-poor in this country, and when you spend enough time without the option, you forget it’s there when you’ve got it again.”
Withdrawing to set up the syringe and collection vial, Cal was more intent on Kyle than on the tiny bit of setup he’d done a thousand times. He could do this in his sleep, most likely. “Doesn’t matter if you needed a reminder or not, man. You came down, you want the answers, that counts for somethin’,” he stressed, moving back over and lining up the needle. “And here comes the pinch,” Cal warned just before pushing the needle past Kyle’s skin, “Make a fist.”
Kyle did just that, balling his fingers so tightly his knuckles turned white. "I came down because I don't want to hurt anybody." He paused, then quietly added, "Else. I don't want to hurt anybody else."
Cal was intent for a moment, watching blood pump from the needle into the vial before he twisted it shut and slid the needle free. He was quick to press a bit of gauze over the injection site, nodding to Kyle. “Hold this, I’ll tie it down,” he instructed before releasing the younger man’s arm. Moving to cap the vial and dispose of the needle, Cal wasn’t sure just how much to even try broaching with Kyle. It was the first real encounter they’d had, and no one wanted a stranger trying to analyze them. Still, the regret was plain to see in him. “I’d say that’s what matters,” he eventually offered, “You bein’ mindful enough of how you might affect someone else? That’s a good start towards what they keep sayin’ this place is supposed to be about.”
Kyle rolled his eyes at that. He doubted that he really needed what they were trying to be about. Then again, he doubted that they'd really looked into him all that hard. And if they had, they had probably only seen what he intended to be seen. "Thanks for this, Doctor Royce. I really appreciate you seeing me today, especially with everything else that's been going on."
Between the rolled eyes and Kyle’s thanks, Cal felt like he was getting a blow-off for his attempts to offer some positivity. It wasn’t hugely shocking, and he didn’t take it personally, but still he couldn’t shake the idea that it was there. “Just Cal, f’real,” he insisted with a grin, “Don’t get to call myself a doc until I’m outta here and licensed again, if that ever happens. And no thanks needed, either. With everything else goin’ on, it’s twice as crucial to see to anything you and the others might be sweatin’. So if there’s anything else? Even if you just need a stranger to talk at? Room six or down here, I’ll be in one of ‘em.”
"As far as I'm concerned, you don't need a fancy bit of paper in a frame to be a doctor. As long as you know what you're doing, then you have my vote," Kyle told him. "And thanks for the offer. I have a feeling if those results come back the way I'm really hoping they won't, I might just have to take you up on that." Which was something that he hated to think about, but he was finding it increasingly difficult to think positively as worry began to take over.
“I wish it actually helped to tell you not to dwell on that until the results come in,” Cal offered, “But I know it doesn’t. The words ‘what if’ are a bitch, you know?” He couldn’t imagine it to be easy, just waiting and waiting for news that would turn your entire life around or limit its’ scope dramatically. “I think the best thing to do for now is remember that your risk factors aren’t unreasonably high, that there’s been no glaring changes to your health as you’re aware of it, and that even in a worst-case scenario, there’s options,” he stressed, “When your results come in, do you want me to send them over the journals? Or should we plan on a follow-up down here?”
Kyle thought on that for a moment. Part of him screamed that he just wanted to know and the sooner the better and that anyway, if it was the worst news, then he really didn't want anyone to see him break down. A more rational part of him figured that if it was bad news, he would need the support.
The screaming side of him won. "Just send me the results. The sooner the better, right?"
Cal nodded again, a slight gesture that said that he might’ve guessed at Kyle’s internal turmoil. “I can do that, man. I’ll make it top priority when it comes in, same as I’m doin’ for anyone else,” he said, hoping that that vague insight might make Kyle rest easier. He wasn’t the only one getting this test done, and even if Leandro’s was the only one to come back yet? At least it was clear, and that was something Cal hoped would be a trend. “Anything else I can do for you? Name it and if I can do it, I’m game,” Cal offered.
Kyle shook his head. “Thank you, but no. I won’t take up any more of your time. Thank you again,” he said. Not for the first time, Kyle realised that he had lapsed back into being overly formal: something he had a tendency to do in times of stress. It wasn’t who he usually was, but it was easier, somehow. Not having to share himself. He stood, rolling his shirt sleeve back down.
That wasn’t lost on Cal, either. He’d seen it enough to recognize the overly-formal mannerisms as a coping technique, but once again? He couldn’t just launch into observations about that, especially not with Kyle on the verge of leaving. The best plan in Cal’s mind was to wait, to hope that the test came back clear, and try for another shot at insight with the younger man in two days time. “It’s all good, Kyle,” Cal assured him with a curt nod and another easy grin, “And you’re welcome. I’ll be here if you need me.”
Kyle stood and smoothed his hands down his arms. “Okay.” He looked at the other man, then nodded once. “Okay,” he repeated. It was done. Now all he had to do was wait.
God. He hated waiting.