RATED PG
Alliance owns these characters, and I make no legal claim to them by writing this story. This story is written for entertainment purposes only, and no profit will be made.
ISN'T IT ROMANTIC?
Ben put the last file in the filing cabinet and closed the drawer firmly. He glanced at his watch and smiled. 5:00 on the dot. The last of his work was done, and he was free for the evening.
It was an evening that promised to be filled with romance- it was Valentine's Day, and Ray was waiting for him downstairs, ready to take him on the romantic date they had been planning and looking forward to for weeks.
They were going to a restaurant that, along with excellent food and a romantic atmosphere, featured a large dance floor and live music. Best of all, the restaurant catered to a gay clientele. Benny was looking forward to a night with Ray where he didn't have to be careful of every move he made, or have to worry about who might be watching them.
Benny slipped on his jacket, took the heart-shaped box of chocolates from his desk and headed out of his office. Ray had had the chocolates delivered to him today, just as he had done last year on Valentine's Day.
Ben didn't usually indulge his sweet tooth, but he was willing to make an exception for special occasions. Last year, he and Ray had wound up feeding the box of chocolates to each other as they lay in bed, which probably had a lot to do with Ben receiving candy again this year.
Ben grinned as he walked down the stairs. That was one tradition he didn't mind repeating. He smiled as he saw the Riv waiting for him at the curb. Hurrying over to the car, he opened the door and slipped inside.
"Hey, Benny," Ray said, leaning over to give him a kiss.
"Good Evening, Ray." Ben placed his Stetson on the dashboard, then fastened his seatbelt and placed the box of candy in the front seat between himself and Ray.
Ray smiled. "I see we're all set for dessert."
"That we are," Ben answered.
Ray laughed. "So, is Dief all set at Maggie's?"
"Yes," Benny nodded. "I took him over on my lunch hour."
"Good. I want to have you all to myself tonight."
"My thoughts exactly," Ben said, and settled comfortably in the seat for the drive to his apartment.
They had gone about three blocks when Ben heard the faint sound of a scream from outside the car. Looking in the direction from which the scream had come, he saw a young woman had been knocked to the ground, and a boy who appeared to be in his late teens running down the street, a purse tucked under his arm. "Ray, stop the car!"
"What?" Ray looked over and saw the situation. "Oh, come on, Benny! We're both off duty, and we've got a dinner reservation in less than an hour. Just let me call it in."
"Ray, please. Stop the car!" Ben repeated.
Ray swore, but pulled the Riv to the curb and cut the engine. Benny was out of the car before it had completely stopped moving. He ran over to the young woman, who was just climbing to her feet. "Are you all right, Miss?" He asked.
The woman nodded.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm fine." The woman sounded more angry than hurt or frightened, and Ben nodded.
"Okay." Ben turned and took off at a run in the direction the purse-snatcher had fled.
"Benny, dammit," Ray called as Ben raced past him, then Ray took off after his lover.
The thief had a lead on him, but by running all-out, Benny was able to start closing the distance between them after just a few blocks. The purse-snatcher threw a quick glance over his shoulder and noticed that Benny was still chasing him; and he turned and ducked down an alley.
As Ben rounded the corner after him, he hit a patch of ice and his feet flew out from under him. As he fell, he hit his head against a lamp post. He landed hard on the pavement and lay there, stunned.
He dimly heard Ray call his name, then the sound of pounding feet drew near, and Ray dropped down next to him. "Benny! Are you all right?"
Benny looked up at Ray and blinked a couple of times, trying to clear away the gray haze that had settled over his vision.
"Benny?" Ray repeated anxiously.
"I'm all right," Ben answered, struggling to sit up.
Ray helped Benny to a sitting position, and kept his hands on his shoulders. "Just sit still for a minute, okay?"
Ben nodded, then glanced down the alley. "Ray! He'll get away!"
"Let him," Ray snapped.
"Ray..."
"Seriously, Benny, who cares about that right now? He's just some two-bit purse-snatcher. Another cop will catch him, or they'll catch him the next time he does it, or the time after that."
Ben didn't look happy, but he subsided.
Ray looked at him and frowned. "Benny, I think we should take you to a doctor, have him check you out."
"That's not necessary, Ray."
Ray gave an exasperated sigh. "Benny, you hit your head really hard." He reached out and gently touched the side of Ben's face. "You're already starting to get a bruise."
Ben gasped slightly and flinched away from Ray's touch. "It's okay, Ray. I'll put some ice on it when we get to my apartment."
Ray looked skeptical, and started to argue again, but Benny cut him off. "We don't want to miss our reservation," he smiled.
"Benny, I don't think we should worry about that now. I really think we need to get you to a doctor."
"Ray," Ben said, struggling to his feet and starting back up the street towards the Riv. "I really just need to-"
Ben opened his eyes slowly, confused. He looked around, trying to get his bearings. He was on a sidewalk, he could tell that much, but he was looking at things from an odd angle. He seemed to be- lying down?
"Benny?" Ray's voice, sounding very scared.
Ben turned his head and looked up into the face of his lover, which looked just as scared as his voice had sounded. "Benny?" Ray repeated, more insistently.
"Ray? What..." Ben closed his eyes, suddenly aware that he felt very dizzy and more than a little bit nauseous.
"Sssh, it's okay, love. I called for an ambulance."
"Ambulance." Benny repeated dumbly.
"Yeah, you passed out, sweetheart."
Ben looked back up at him, and he must have looked as lost and confused as he felt, because the worried frown on Ray's face deepened. "Do you remember?"
Ben closed his eyes, trying to think. "I fell.. hit my head?"
"Yeah, you did."
"Hurts," Benny said quietly.
"I know it does, baby," Ray said, stroking the side of Ben's face with a feather-light touch. "But the paramedics will be here soon, and they'll get you to the hospital and we'll get you taken care of."
Ben nodded and sighed and let his eyes drift closed again. He noticed that something heavy was draped over him and opened his eyes to see that Ray's jacket was covering him like a blanket.
He looked up and frowned at the sight of Ray dressed in just his suit. "Ray, you should take your jacket back," he said starting to lift it off himself.
"Don't be silly, Benny. You keep it."
"You're going to freeze, it's only about 20 degrees out here."
"Benny, I'm fine."
Ben pushed himself to a sitting position, and another strong wave of dizziness and nausea washed over him. Ray pulled Benny against his chest and held him there, wrapping the jacket more tightly around him. "Just relax and take it easy, Benny, okay?"
Benny sighed and laid his head on Ray's shoulder.
"Benny?"
Ben wanted to say something to Ray, to reassure him, but it was hard to make the effort. He felt so tired, and it was so comfortable leaning against Ray's shoulder, with Ray's arms wrapped around him. With another sigh, Benny let himself slip back into the welcoming darkness.
"Mr. Fraser? Can you hear me? Mr. Fraser?"
Ben winced slightly, but didn't answer the strange voice as he tried to figure out where he was and what was happening to him.
It felt like he was on a bed of some kind, except the bed was moving and shaking slightly, and there was a muffled noise of a siren. Ben remembered falling, and hitting his head, and he realized that he must be in an ambulance.
"Mr. Fraser?"
Ben didn't answer the voice. He didn't feel very well at all, and he just wanted to be left alone. The movement of the stretcher was not helping his dizziness or nausea any, and he now had a splitting headache as well.
"Mr. Fraser? Can you hear me?"
Maybe if he just ignored the voice, it would leave him alone. Then he heard another voice.
"Benny. Benny, please, can you hear me?"
Ray sounded scared again. Ben didn't want to cause Ray any more worry, so he opened his eyes. He blinked as he stared up into a face that wasn't Ray's. Unless Ray had suddenly turned into a Hispanic man in his 20s, and Benny was pretty sure he hadn't hit his head that hard.
The man smiled down at him. "Hello Mr. Fraser, my name's Alex. We're taking you to the hospital; do you remember what happened to you?"
"I fell," Ben answered. "I hit my head."
"That's right. Don't worry, we're going to take very good care of you."
Ben smiled, then winced and gasped as Alex shone a small flashlight into his eyes.
"Sorry," Alex smiled sympathetically. "But we need to check you out. Can you follow my finger, please?"
He held his index finger in front of Benny's face and moved it back and forth and up and down, and Ben followed it as best he could.
"All right. Are you having any nausea?"
"Yes," Ben said.
"Do you feel dizzy at all?"
"Yes, very."
"Okay," Alex gave him a reassuring smile. "Just hang in there, we're almost to the hospital."
Ben closed his eyes and tried to relax. Why was Ray being so quiet? He hadn't just imagined he was there, had he? "Ray?"
"I'm right here, Benny." Ray's voice came from over to his left.
Ben held his hand out towards the sound of Ray's voice, and felt it taken between Ray's hands and squeezed gently. Ben smiled and relaxed slightly. A few seconds later, he tensed up, unconsciously tightening his grip on Ray's hand.
"Benny?" Ray said worriedly.
"I'm going to be sick." He tried to fight back the nausea, to no avail.
"Okay," Alex said, "here you go." He held a small plastic basin under Ben's mouth, and Benny vomited into it, then sank back against the pillow.
"I'm sorry," he said, embarrassed.
"Hey, don't worry about it," Alex said easily. "Happens all the time on this job. You're one of the few who actually made it into the basin."
Ben smiled weakly, then relaxed slightly as he felt Ray gently stroking his arm. He looked over, and Ray smiled at him.
"It's gonna be okay, Benny. You just hang in there, okay?"
Before he could answer, the ambulance came to a stop and the doors were opened. Ben closed his eyes and fought back another wave of nausea as the stretcher was lifted from the ambulance and wheeled into the hospital.
As his stretcher was moved through the halls of the hospital, Ben could hear Alex talking with someone; giving them his vital signs and other details of his injury.
His stretcher was brought to a stop, and Ben heard an unfamiliar voice say "I'm sorry, but you can't go any further."
He opened his eyes and looked over at the nurse who had spoken in confusion, then he realized that she was talking to Ray. Ray gave Benny's hand a gentle squeeze, then sighed and nodded.
"Ray?" Benny said, tightening his grip on Ray's hand. He didn't want Ray to go.
"It'll be okay, Benny," Ray said with a reassuring smile. "You just let the nurses and doctors check you out, and I'll hang out in the waiting room for a little while. I'll be in to see you as soon as I can."
Ben wasn't at all happy about it, but he nodded his consent.
"Okay," Ray smiled. He placed a kiss on the back of Benny's hand before letting it go, then Benny was wheeled through a set of swinging doors and Ray disappeared from his sight.
Ray sat in the waiting room, nervously drumming his fingers against the arms of his chair. There were only four other people in the waiting room with him, and Ray smiled cynically. It was still early in the evening, the real Valentine's fun hadn't started yet. At least with this small a patient load, the medical staff should be able to get to Benny quickly.
Ray sighed and shifted in his chair and tried not to be too nervous. After all, Benny had been awake and fairly coherent when they had reached the hospital, and that was a very good sign. Still, it sometimes felt like Benny lived under a magic star, and that luck was bound to run out sometime.
"Mr. Vecchio?"
Ray started as the voice interrupted his thoughts. "Yeah?" He said, jumping to his feet. He recognized the nurse as the one who had sent him to the waiting room earlier.
"The doctor has finished her preliminary exam, and you can see Mr. Fraser now."
Ray nodded and followed the nurse from the waiting room and down the hall. She stopped outside a curtained cubicle. "He's right in there," she smiled.
"Thank you," Ray said. He slipped between the curtains and into the cubicle, and stood for a moment just looking at Benny. Ben was laying back against the bed, dressed in a hospital gown, a sheet and blanket pulled up to his waist.
There was an IV in place in his left arm, and he was holding an ice pack against the bruise on his face. He looked up and smiled happily as Ray entered the cubicle. "Hi."
"Hey Benny." Ray gave him a quick kiss. "How are you doing?"
"I'm okay, I suppose," Ben said with a little shrug.
The 'I suppose' told Ray just how poorly his lover was really feeling. "What did the doctor say?"
"I have a concussion, and she doesn't think there's any more serious damage than that; but because I lost consciousness, she wants to run a CT scan." Benny saw the worried look on Ray's face and hastened to reassure him. "It's merely a precaution, Ray. Dr. Hodges just wants to be 100% certain there is no serious damage."
"All right," Ray nodded, somewhat calmed down. "When will they do the test?"
"She said it will take about an hour to an hour and a half to get it set up. The good news is that you can stay with me until then."
"You bet I'm staying with you," Ray said, sitting on the stool next to the bed.
Ben smiled at him, and relaxed back against the pillow, shifting the ice pack slightly.
Ray took the ice pack from his hand and shook it lightly, re-arranging the ice inside. He then placed it gently against Benny's face. Ben smiled up at him, and Ray started stroking Benny's hair. "Just try to rest now Benny, okay?"
Ben nodded. "Mmmmm," he sighed, and Ray smiled.
Ben sighed and shifted on the hard hospital bed, trying without much success to find a comfortable position. He had returned from his CT scan a few minutes ago, and was now in a new cubicle. It must be just his imagination that this one was much worse the one he had been in earlier.
He didn't want to be a baby, but he wasn't feeling very comfortable at all. His head was still pounding, and the side of his face was aching from where it had hit the lamp post. And though the dizziness and nausea had faded a great deal, they were still bothering him slightly.
He sighed again. Ray should be here any second, and he always made things better. Just at that moment, Ray stepped through the curtains and over to his bed, and Ben grinned.
"How are you feeling?" Ray asked.
"Much better now," Ben said.
"Good." Ray had his left hand behind his back, and he now brought it around, and held out a long-stemmed red rose. "Happy Valentine's Day, Benny."
Ben took the rose, surprised and touched. "Ray, where..."
Ray shrugged. "I had to do something to kill time while you were in X-Ray, and the hospital gift shop seemed like a good choice."
"Thank you," Benny said, admiring the rose. After a minute he looked back at Ray. "Ray, I'm sorry."
"Sorry?" Ray said, confused. "Sorry about what?"
"I ruined Valentine's Day."
"Benny, you did not!"
"Not on purpose, of course. But if I had only listened to you back in the car, had let you call in the purse-snatching..."
"Benny," Ray said, shaking his head and smiling, "that would never happen. And I wouldn't want it to."
Ben looked at him suspiciously, and Ray grinned. "Can you imagine any circumstances under which you would let a crime go by without trying to stop it or solve it? I can't. And yes, it does annoy the hell out of me sometimes, but it's also one of the things I most admire about you.
"Being a cop isn't just what you do, Benny; it's who you are. You always try to help the other guy, always fight for the underdog. I really love that about you."
"Thank you, Ray," Benny said, blushing slightly. He rubbed a rose petal between two fingers and sighed. "But our plans for the evening were still ruined."
"I know," Ray said. "And I'm disappointed about that, too. But we don't need a stupid calendar to tell us when we can have a night of romance. We'll go out next weekend or the weekend after that, when you're feeling better.
"In a way, it will be better. Less crowds, less hype and pressure to have the perfect night of romance.
"And if you want to find a positive in all of this, there's a couple out there right now who were very happy to get our table in the restaurant tonight."
"I suppose that's true," Ben said with a small smile. Ben sniffed his rose, then looked at Ray regretfully. "I'm afraid I didn't get you anything, Ray. Well, I did, but it's back in my apartment."
"That's okay, you can give it to me when we have our belated Valentine's Day celebration."
Ben nodded.
"If it will make you fell better, you can tell me what it is."
"Nice try," Ben said.
Ray laughed and started to answer, but just then Dr. Hodges stepped back into the cubicle.
"Are you ready for some good news?" She asked.
"Yes," Ray said before Benny could answer, and Dr. Hodges smiled.
"The results of your CT scan were what I was expecting."
"So Benny's okay?" Ray asked.
"He's going to be fine," she said. "But he will need to be watched carefully for the next few days, take it easy and get lots of rest."
"All right," Ray agreed.
Benny wanted to be annoyed that his doctor and his lover were talking about him as if he wasn't there, but he couldn't summon the energy. He listened as Dr. Hodges talked with Ray, going over a list of instructions and precautions.
"Can he go home now?" Ray asked.
"Yes," Dr. Hodges said with a nod. She turned to Benny. "But I meant what I said about taking it easy."
"I will," Ben said.
"Good," Dr. Hodge said with a smile. "If you'll excuse me, I have some other patients I need to attend to. A nurse will be in soon with your release forms, and then you will be free to go."
"Thank you kindly, doctor," Benny said.
Dr. Hodges left, and Ray helped Benny change back into his street clothes. "Will you be okay alone for a minute, Benny?" He asked.
Ben looked at him in surprise. "Yes, Ray."
"Okay. I have to make a couple of phone calls."
"All right."
Ray hurried down the corridor to the pay phones and made his calls. He walked back into the cubicle just as Benny was signing the last of the forms. "Ready to go?" He asked.
"More than ready," Ben said.
Ray smiled and helped the nurse get Benny into the wheelchair and headed towards the exit. They got to the doors just as a cab pulled up, and Ray wheeled Benny outside and over to the cab.
"A cab?" Benny said in confusion. "What happened to the Riv?"
"Nothing happened to it," Ray assured him. "But it's back over by the Consulate. I left it there, remember?"
"Oh, right." Benny looked slightly embarrassed. "Do you think it's okay there?"
"It'll be fine Benny, don't worry about it. I'll have Frannie take me to pick it up tomorrow." He got Benny settled in the cab and slid in next to him.
"Where to?" Asked the cabbie, and Ray gave him the address of his mother's home.
Ben looked slightly surprised but said nothing, leaning his head against the back of the seat and closing his eyes. He sat in the back of the cab half-dozing until they reached the Vecchio house.
The cab pulled to a stop in front of his house, and Ray paid the driver, then gently shook Benny awake. "Benny, we're here."
"Oh, okay." Ben blinked sleepily and allowed Ray to help him from the cab.
Ray noticed that Benny was a little unsteady on his feet, and kept a firm arm wrapped around his waist as they walked up the driveway. As they reached the porch the front door opened to reveal a worried-looking Rosa.
Ray was glad that he had called his mother to let her know he was bringing Benny home, and tell her what had happened. That didn't lessen the look of shock and concern on her face as Benny stepped into the light and she got a good look at him.
"Oh, Caro," she said, gently caressing his cheek.
"Hello, Rosa," Ben said, trying to summon up a reassuring smile.
"Come inside," she said, drawing him into the house and closing the door behind him and Ray. She helped Benny off with his jacket and hung it up, clucking and fussing the whole time.
"Raimondo Caro, you get Benton upstairs and settled, and I'll bring him up some dinner."
"Oh, Rosa, I'm really not hungry at all," Ben protested.
"You need to eat, Benton. Just a little bit of soup, to get something in your stomach, okay?"
Ben nodded, and Rosa smiled. "Have you had any dinner?" She asked, turning to Ray.
"Not yet," he said, shaking his head.
"Okay, I'll bring something up for you, too."
"Thanks Ma."
Rosa hurried off towards the kitchen, and Ray and Benny headed upstairs.
They were about halfway up the staircase when Benny suddenly swayed on his feet.
"Whoa!" Ray said, grabbing Benny and steadying him. He looked at him for minute. "Maybe I should carry you the rest of the way," he said, only half-teasing.
"You are not going to carry me."
"Yeah? I've done it before you know. As I reacall, you had a head injury that time, too."
Ben sighed. "Honestly, Ray, I don't.."
"All right," Ray smiled. "Just take it easy though, okay?"
He wrapped his arm more firmly around Benny and helped him the rest of the way upstairs and into his room. Once there he helped Benny get changed into a pair of his pajamas and tucked him into bed.
Benny had just gotten settled when a soft knock sounded on the door. "Come in," Ray called.
Rosa entered the room carrying a bed tray holding two bowls of soup, a sandwich and two glasses of milk. "I thought you might want something more than just soup," she smiled at Ray.
"This is great Ma, thanks."
She set the tray on the bed with a smile. "Do you need anything else, Caro?" She asked Ben.
"No, thank you. I'm fine."
"All right, but if you need anything, you just call me. Your Mama is here to help you."
"Thank you," Ben smiled.
Rosa left the room, shutting the door behind her, and Ray sat down on the bed across from Benny. "Well, this isn't such a bad place," he said. "Great food, nice atmosphere."
Ben laughed, and Ray smiled at him. "I love you, Benny," he said suddenly.
"I love you, too, Ray."
They continued eating in a comfortable silence. Ray quickly finished his meal, but he noticed that Benny had only finished about half of his soup. "Don't you want any more, Benny?" He asked quietly.
"I'm sorry Ray, I just don't feel that well."
"That's all right, love." He placed the tray on the floor next to the bed, and Benny lay back against the pillows. Ray covered him with the blankets, and sat looking down at him. "Benny, I think you should take a couple of Tylenol."
"No, Ray, I don't need to."
"Benny, come on, I think it will help with the pain, and it sure as hell couldn't hurt."
Ben paused, then sighed and nodded.
"All right, I'll be right back." Ray jumped up from the bed and hurried into the bathroom, where he filled a glass with cold water and got two Tylenol caplets from the medicine cabinet.
He walked back into the bedroom to find Benny fast asleep. He set the pills and the water on his dresser; then sat down on the mattress next to Ben. He sat watching Benny for a few minutes, then he set the alarm on his watch to go off in two hour's time.
Ray shook his head and gave a long sigh. He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a small blue velvet box. Opening the lid, he looked at the gleaming gold band inside.
"Not exactly the Valentine's Day I had in mind, Benny," he whispered. "But like I said, we'll celebrate it some other time. Soon."
Closing the lid, Ray slipped the box back into his pocket.
THE END
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