Chapter 16 #2
It took what seemed like forever to get to the athlete’s entrance and, of course, security stopped him, and even his press pass did no good. So he pulled out his phone and texted Caleb on the off chance he was back with his gear.
Are you ok?
Three dots swam on the phone for an agonizing long moment, then Caleb answered.
In medical. where R U?
At the athlete entrance
I’ll see if I can get you here
I just want to see you and make sure you’re ok
KK
Hawk just hung around, knowing that security was either going to escort him off the premises, or he was going to get let in.
Finally, he was approached by somebody in a Team USA uniform with a badge around their neck. “Mr. Montineau?”
“That’s me.” He flashed his own official press pass.
“Come this way. Mr. Lancaster has cleared you to see him. I do need to make sure you understand that even though you are a member of the press, you are not allowed to take photos or discuss with anyone what you see while you’re here.”
“Understood.” Hawk would never do that. He wasn’t the kind of story hound who would invade somebody’s privacy for a couple bucks selling a story to a jock blog.
“Thank you. Follow me.” They trudged up to the medical tent, where Caleb was sitting on an ER-style gurney, one leg dangling and the other one laid out in front of him with an air boot on it.
Hawk pushed past the guy who was leading him in and went to Caleb’s side, clenching his hands into fists so he didn’t reach out and touch. “Hey. What’s going on, man?”
Caleb rolled his eyes. “Dude. They’re using an abundance of caution. I think it’s just a little tweak, you know? I landed wonky on that last pass, but they want to make sure it’s nothing, so they’re going to take me for X-rays and shit.”
“Want me to hang out with you? Can I do that?”
“I think you can, yeah. Would you mind?” Caleb was putting on a confident front, but Hawk was learning to read Caleb pretty well, and the expression in his eyes was worried.
“I’ll stick around as long as I can, yeah.
Totally.” Hawk moved a little closer, sort of checking out the area to make sure nobody was watching before he put a hand over Caleb’s, where it rested on the gurney.
He didn’t want to do anything that would mess with Caleb for right now; all they had discussed was what would happen after the medal round, so he wanted to be careful.
“Thanks, babe.” Caleb turned his hand over Hawk’s and squeezed.
“Hey, no problem. It freaked me out when I could tell you were hurt at the end of your run.” Whatever it was wouldn’t keep Caleb out of medal contention, he would bet.
“Did you hear what my score was for my last run?” Caleb grinned, although it kind of looked like a grimace. “It was like a ninety-one.”
“It was. It was better than your first run by far.” He figured it was true, so why not give credit where it was due. Caleb was stunning to watch. He made Hawk feel like he was soaring right along with him.
Caleb grunted, sitting back a little on his elbows. “Yeah, it felt good.”
Hawk kept Caleb distracted as much as he could until finally someone he thought must be a team doctor came over to chat with Caleb.
“Hi, Caleb. We’re going to take you out to get an X-ray.
We have a mobile machine here, but I think it’s probably going to be better if we get you someplace where you can be better taken care of. ”
Caleb sighed. “Yeah, okay. I was done with my runs, anyway.”
“You are in second place for the prelim final.” The doc glanced curiously at Hawk, but his smile never wavered. “So just give us a minute, sit tight, and we’ll get you prepped for transport, okay?”
“Sure, I’ll just sit here and hang out with Hawk.”
Now the doc’s eyebrows flew up. “Hawk Montineau? I thought you looked familiar. I saw you play in PyeongChang. Let me get you a chair or something, okay?”
“I appreciate it, Dr.—”
“Fowler.”
“That would be great, Dr. Fowler.”
Somebody brought him a chair, and Hawk settled in with a blanket on his lap, which helped his knee.
The tent was one of those massive deals with heaters, plenty of light, and all sorts of machines and gurneys.
He didn’t think anybody was going to be freezing to death in it, but he was glad to know that they were going to get Caleb moving back down where he could rest some.
It was a slow-moving machine. But they finally got Caleb loaded up and moved him out of the area in an ambulance, and Hawk was allowed to ride along with him.
He knew it wasn’t how he or Caleb had intended to spend their evening together after Caleb’s run, but it didn’t matter.
He wanted to make sure Caleb had somebody there with him while this all happened.
“Sorry,” Caleb told him about two hours later after the ride to the medical center, X-rays, and some blood tests. “Not the way we wanted to spend time together.”
“I had that exact thought. I don’t mind, though, as long as you’re going to be okay.” Hawk hated that Caleb was in pain, dammit. It made him hurt, as well, right under his breastbone, and he rubbed the spot absently.
“Caleb. Sorry to see you under these circumstances.” A middle-aged doctor with wire-rimmed glasses walked over eventually, smiling a tired smile. The clinic at the Livigno village was pretty busy.
“No problem, doc. It always sucks to have to come see you this way and not like at the bar or something. What’s the deal?” Caleb sounded casual, but Hawk could feel the tension in his body.
“It’s cracked.”
Hawk frowned, and Caleb drew in a deep breath and then let it out. “What’s cracked exactly?”
The doctor smiled faintly. “Well, not to put too fine a point on it, your foot, but it’s not your ankle or your heel.
It’s the navicular bone, which is at the top of your foot, actually, and there’s a hairline fracture.
But with your chart showing the RA and the subsequent bone loss from that, it’s not particularly unusual. ”
“RA?” Hawk asked. He knew what it was, of course. He had osteoarthritis in his knee, not anything autoimmune, but he had no idea Caleb had been diagnosed with RA.
Caleb gave him a little bit of a sideways look and shook his head. So Hawk sat there with his mouth shut, but he wanted to know everything.
“So, what does this mean for the medal round?” Caleb didn’t seem surprised or even particularly worried.
“You can compete. I would prefer you were careful, but it’s not like it’s going to get any better in time for you to do your medal run. It’s, what, two days away?”
“Yeah, if I can make it through the medal round, then we can talk treatment after that.” Caleb shrugged. “It’s not like I’m not hurting all the damn time anyway.”
Hawk opened his mouth but then closed it again as soon as Caleb touched his arm. He got the signal; they would talk about this after the doctor was gone.
“Okay, well, I can give you a shot that’ll help things for the time being. And I’ve cleared it already. So if you get tested, they’ll know why it’s in your system. You stay off the practice runs tomorrow and just do what you need to do on medal day.”
“Got it.” Caleb made the sort of “hang ten” motion with his hand. “What are you going to do as far as me leaving today? You going to boot me up or what?”
“Yeah. I’m going to put you in a short air boot, and I want you to keep it on unless you’re in bed.” The doc scribbled a bunch of stuff on his tablet using a stylus. “Right, hang tight, we’ll get you hooked up.”
He was off without another look.
Hawk raised an eyebrow at Caleb, just waiting for him to explain.
Caleb shrugged. “So that wasn’t as bad as I worried it was.”
Hawk pursed his lips for a second before he answered, trying to figure out why he was so furious with Caleb because he was. “RA?” It was what finally popped out of his mouth.
Caleb glanced down, not quite meeting his gaze. “Yeah, I was diagnosed a while ago. I know it mostly affects the joints, but also since it’s an autoimmune thing, it leeches some of the bone.”
“You’re still competing?” His voice rose a little bit, and Hawk knew it wasn’t reasonable. People competed with that kind of stuff all the time. Hell, he’d known guys in the NHL who played through injuries, illnesses, autoimmune disorders, everything known to man.
But this was Caleb, and he didn’t want Caleb to get hurt, so he was pissed off.
“To be honest, I’ve competed with worse, so yeah, I’m gonna do it.”
“Jesus, Caleb.” It burst out of him and he couldn’t help himself. “You can’t just go out there and jump with a broken foot.”
Caleb stared at him. “You mean a cracked foot? And yeah, actually, I can.”
“God damn it—”
Caleb, cut him off. “Why are you so mad at me? I’ve seen footage of you competing with injuries. I’ve also seen the tape of how you were after your game where you won the Cup.”
Hawk snapped his mouth shut, breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth. “Okay, yeah, sure, I did some stupid stuff in my time, but…”
“But this is my last chance at a gold, babe, and I’m not going to screw it up.” They glared at each other for a long moment, and Caleb finally shook his head. “If that’s a deal-breaker, then I’m sorry, but it is what it is.”
“Hi, Caleb.” A young woman in scrubs came over carrying a boot and opening the Velcro straps. “Let’s get you fitted up for this, okay? And I’ll take it off again, and the doc will come give you your shot, and then we’ll put it back on you.”
“Sure, cool. Thanks.”
Hawk sat through all the medical bullshit, and as soon as Caleb was released, they headed for the transport that could take Caleb back to his dorm.
“You don’t have to go back with me if you need to get back down to the city,” Caleb told him.
His jaw tightened again, and Hawk rolled his head on his neck. “I’ll make sure you get back safe.”
“Gee, thanks, Dad,” Caleb snapped.
“You think I’m out of line.”
Caleb nodded, his shoulders up tight. “I mean, yeah, it’s my career, it’s my body. I get it. I think I’m being stupid, but it’s my choice.”
“You’re totally right.” Hawk knew it was probably hypocritical for him to be so angry, but his heart was still thudding from Caleb getting hurt. This was hours later, and he didn’t think he could cope with this right now, as much as he wanted to support Caleb’s run at the gold.
They rode the little off-cart shuttle to Caleb’s dorm. When Caleb stepped out, he held up a hand. “Look, why don’t you head back down, and we’ll talk about this after okay? I need to be in a decent head space for the medal round, and you’re clearly having issues.”
Hawk opens his mouth to argue, then shut it again because he was having issues. “Okay. You’ll rest, keep your foot up?” His hands in his pocket so he wouldn’t grab Caleb and shake him or kiss him or something equally stupid.
“I will. I’ll also take some Tylenol and hydrate because those shots give me a fucking headache.” Caleb wouldn’t look at him, but Hawk got it. He genuinely did. And Hawk had some thinking to do.
“Sure. I’ll text you when I get back down to the city.” Hawk needed Caleb to know he wasn’t disappearing for good, and he thought this was the best way to get it across.
That did give him a flash of those bright green eyes. “Okay, I’ll probably be asleep.”
“Of course.” He wanted to kiss Caleb all of a sudden, and that would be out of line considering where they were standing. So Hawk just reached out and touched Caleb’s wrist, and he was grateful that Caleb didn’t flinch away. “We’ll talk soon, yeah?
“Totally.” Caleb gave him a strained smile before spinning around to limp inside the dorm.
Turning away, Hawk headed off to find a ride to the train station. He could walk, but it was pretty damn cold at this point, and he didn’t really want to worry about getting lost either. He needed to buy a ticket, validate it, make sure he got on the damn train, and get back to work.
Like when he was playing hockey, he needed to get his head in the game, and he would have plenty of time, he hoped, to fix things with Caleb after the gold medal round.