A true friend is someone who will always love you - the imperfect, the confused, the wrong you. - Anonymous
"If you'll wait here, Mr. Peck, I'll have the nurse help you get dressed. I'll be back in a few minutes. Alright?"
"Sure, Doc. No problem."
Dr Ferguson hurried down the hall to the private waiting room. Glancing at the five men inside, he looked directly at his 'boss'. He got right to the point.
"Well, unfortunately there are currently no tests to verify this conclusively, but he's exhibiting all the signs of what's called 'vestibular deficit'. In layman's terms, there's a problem with his sense of balance, and in his case, it's a fairly serious problem. All things considered, I can confidently state that the cause is trauma. He's simply gotten hit in the head too many times."
There was complete silence for a moment, then Stockwell quietly asked, "How serious is 'fairly serious', Doctor?"
"Yeah, like how long before he's okay again?" This from the man in the baseball cap. He seemed a little more anxious than the rest, who just looked dazed.
"To answer both questions, it's serious enough that he's not going to be 'okay'. It's not life-threatening, but there's no way he can return to his usual... occupation. Just watching traffic go by on the highway could trigger extreme dizziness or vertigo. And as you've observed, even walking across a room can be... problematic at times. Now, there are coping mechanisms he can learn, but that's all they are - coping mechanisms. This won't go away."
*****
"He stays with us. I don't care if he's not 'useful' to you any more - he's not going anywhere unless we go as well. As to Murdock - he's also moving in with us. Not only because he plays as big a part in our missions as any other member of the team, but because Face needs all of us. So you decide, General. All - or none."
BA helped Murdock move his things in that afternoon.
*****
Needless to say, Face was not adjusting very well to his new status. Hannibal had lost count of all the times he'd had to explain why they couldn't chance his coming on jobs with them. He tried to couch it in terms of his own safety, but Face wasn't buying it. His feeling of being excess baggage intensified. He hated having to have some flunky stay at the compound when the guys were gone. Even when the guys were home, he felt like they were watching him constantly, ready to catch him if he even tilted a bit. So many days he felt like there wasn't a damn thing he could do that didn't set it off, and he moved deeper and deeper into depression.
Hannibal started pushing harder and harder for their pardons. He knew what Face needed, and he couldn't get it in Langley. Not with Stockwell making the decisions.
*****
Face took a few steadying breaths before getting out of the van. BA was waiting, watching but trying to be casual about it. They were both getting used to the routine now. BA drove wherever Face needed to go, making his stops and starts as smooth as possible. Standing close, but not too close, in case his friend needed an arm to grab.
They'd tried to use the Vette for Face's trips to the therapist, but it hadn't worked. His depth perception was off now, and there was no way he could ease his way in or out of the low-riding car. Hell, sometimes he couldn't manage the van. BA had come back to the house one day and saw the car hauled away.
No one mentioned it.
*****
"Check it?"
Face handed the folder to Hannibal. The colonel would take it to their accountant to verify everything, but rarely did it need corrections. It took Face a lot longer to handle the books now, but Hannibal never even considered having anyone else do the 'real work'. Face would have to stop frequently, when the numbers and words started jumping around too much, but after relaxing for a bit he'd go right back to it. And yes, Hannibal would see him re-doing his math until he knew he had it right. Just another issue to work through.
And they were both okay with that.
*****
Murdock always took Face to see Richter. With the pardons, Face was free to see the man the team felt the most confidence in. And he was doing wonders, frankly. Face still fought the depression, but between visits to the VA, Murdock was there to just let him talk. No matter how down he got, Murdock understood, and made no judgements, didn't panic. And if Face sometimes got a little too optimistic about his future, a little too far from reality, that was okay with Murdock.
He just let him talk.
*****
When the guys had jobs, Face stayed with Maggie. It was almost perfect for him. He could sit in the backyard and read his large-size print books without embarrassment. No one had to worry about him with Maggie right there. Sometimes Hank would stop over and the three of them would talk about what the team was up to, what was happening around town. Damn near anything.
And little by little, week by week, month by month, Face got used to the way things were. And how they always would be.