As soon as she’d asked the question and right before he confessed, Kaylee had figured it out. Judging on the angle of the staples and their placement, it had been as far as he could reach without having anyone to assist him.
“I understand,” she assured him with a gentle smile. “Given the location of your wound and the depth, you weren’t at immediate risk of bleeding out, but you are very lucky you didn’t end up with a massive infection from anything that might have entered the wound.”
Gathering what she needed, she paused and held his gaze. “I’m going to check for shrapnel and any foreign debris before I clean everything up and close your wound. I will also give you a broad spectrum antibiotic just to be certain everything is all taken care of for you. However, I would prefer it if you come to me right away if anything like this happens again.”
He nodded, even though it was a lie. He’d do the same again if he had to, and had many times in the past. “I took the antibiotic on the way here,” he revealed. “Shuttle had a medkit.”
She gave him a look, arching a brow. Kaylee knew how his type operated. It was a matter of practicality, location, and getting the job done. He would be back, but not before he patched himself up again in the field first. “Good. I’m glad to hear that.”
Stepping behind him, she went to work. Thankfully, there was only one tiny piece of shrapnel and it had been lodged in muscle, away from any blood vessels. It was easy enough to remove. It only took a few minutes to cleanse and close the wound properly.
“Do you ever watch old action movies?” she asked in a conversational tone, taking a few extra moments to remove all traces of blood from his skin.
He knew better than to move when someone was cleaning out a wound and stared across sickbay. A nurse was dealing with what looked like a twisted ankle. “Not really? I mostly read. Why?”
“There’s an old action movie I watched a long time ago where a team of special forces are in the jungle and one of the biggest guys in the unit had been shot. He looked at one of the other guys and said he hadn’t had time to bleed,” Kaylee said, lowering her voice and making it raspier to pull off the impersonation of the character’s voice.
He snorted. “Sounds like a sensible guy to me.”
She nodded. “It’s the job. You do what you have to do to get it done. People are counting on it.” With one final gentle wipe, she finished.
“I’m sorry, you won’t have a scar from this one. I did too good of a job,” she confessed, moving to stand in front of him as she removed her gloves and tossed them into the bin.
“No worries, I got enough of them anyway.” He brushed a hand over a couple on his stomach. Then he rolled his shoulder and sighed a little in relief. “Thanks, that feels a lot better.”
“You’re welcome. I’m happy to hear that.” It always made her feel good to know someone felt better and had less or no pain once she’d finished treating them.
“So… I’m sure I’ll see you again. Hopefully for nothing too serious, but know that I’m here if you need me.”
He smiled as he slid off the bed, reaching for his shirt and jacket. They were still bloody but there was no way he could walk around the ship barechested. “You know science, always something blowing up in there, so I’ll probably be back soon.”
“Right. Lots of chemicals and such.” Feeling foolish for not realizing sooner he couldn’t put the bloodied clothes back on, she smiled. “You know, I could give you a scrub top to put on for now. Though I’m sure there would be plenty of ladies who would appreciate the show if you were to stroll out of here without a shirt on.”
Going to the supply cabinet that stored the extra surgical scrubs and exam gowns, she found one that should fit. It even had a bit of stretch to the fabric for comfort.
“Here,” she murmured, offering the top to him.
He caught her gaze and held it for a moment, then reached out for the scrub shirt. “Thank you. And even if some ladies would appreciate the show…” He wondered for a moment if she was one of them. “The XO on this tub is a ballbreaker. I wouldn’t want to run into him like that.”
Kaylee nodded. “You make a valid point. I can’t have you leaving here after being in my care, only to get in trouble because I didn’t have the foresight to make sure you didn’t get in hot water with the XO.”
He chuckled as he pulled the shirt on, then looked down at himself. It was like it was spray painted on. “Okay, not sure this is actually much better, but at least I’m covered.” The corner of his lips quirked as he looked at her. “Fish and I are always in hot water with that particular XO.”
“I noticed he spotted the two of you immediately upon your arrival. I would be interested in hearing more about that, if it isn’t going to cause more problems for you.” She didn’t reveal the full extent of the temperature drop to Commander Savage’s mood when he saw them. Making things worse was not something she wanted to do.
He looked at her levelly. “I’ll be in the lounge this evening. New to the ship, would be nice to see a friendly face.”
Kaylee smiled. “I’m new to the Tycho as well, so I’ll see you there.” She glanced at the snug fit of the borrowed scrub top. “And since I think this won’t be the last time you’re in here, I will be sure to have some scrubs in your size on hand for future use. You know, if needed.”
He grinned and nodded. “You can count on it, doc,” he said, slinging his jacket and shirt over his shoulder and waltzing out of the room.
