Fit For Duty
a Numb3rs story
by Tina
Don Eppes arrived at the scene of the murder just ahead of his team. He received a briefing from the narcotics detective in charge of the case, it was looking like a drug murder, but they were thinking that the victim had ties higher up in the organization and they were looking for the FBI's help. Don finished with the detective and noticed Megan Reeves and David Sinclair entering the apartment. He briefed them on the details of the case. He delegated assignments to his agents instructing Megan to fill Colby Granger in when he arrived and have him start interviewing the neighbors.
"Where is Colby?' David asked with surprise that his partner wasn't already on scene.
"Must have had a hot date." Megan answered.
Don looked up distractedly as he made his way out of the room, "No, he'll be along in a few minutes. He was in bed when I called. I`m gonna start in the bedroom."
"At 9:00 on a Saturday night? That doesn't sound like Colby." Megan turned to David with a surprised expression.
David shrugged and grinned, "Maybe he was "in bed" but not "asleep".
As if on cue Colby Granger arrived at the apartment. His usually neat appearance was somewhat disheveled. His hair was messy instead of neatly combed and the shirt he was wearing under his suit appeared wrinkled. His color was pale, other than his red chapped nose "Hey guys." The congestion was obvious in his voice.
"You all right Granger?" Megan examined him critically.
"You're not looking too well man." David added , eyeing Colby.
Colby was about to reply but was stopped by the urge to sneeze, he raised his hand for them to wait and then turned away suddenly , sneezing into his cupped hands, "Etschoooooo!!!! Hehhhshhhhh!!! ETCHOOOO!!!!" He sniffled wetly. "You guys probably don't want to get too close, I think I've got the plague or something." He reached into his jacket pocket to grab a wad of tissues. He blew his nose with a long gurgling blow and stuffed the tissues back into the pocket. "Sorry about that." He added with embarrassment.
"You're not sounding too well either." David continued.
Don leaned out of the bedroom, "Colby here yet?" He called and then noticing the agent continued. "Colby can you go and pick up Charlie at home? There's a computer program running hat looks like it's encoded. The killer must have gotten interrupted before he got to it. I want Charlie to look at it before we do anything."
"Sure thing Don." He turned to the other agents on the way out. "See you guys."
"You think he's all right?" Megan asked David.
"I dunno, he looks like hell." David added as the two agents started processing the scene.
Colby sped over to the Eppes house to pick up Charlie, who was waiting for him when he arrived. "Hey Colby, thanks for the lift." Charlie got into the car.
Colby offered a fast greeting, and then turned quickly away from Charlie, sneezing into the crook of his arm. "Hehhhh CHOOOO!!! Ishoooo!!!!! Excuse me." he offered self consciously.
"Bless you." Charlie looked over at Colby and noted his appearance. "Are you sick Colby?"
"I've definitely got something," Colby admitted., sniffling wetly. "I'll try not to infect you Charlie."
"I wasn't worried about that." Charlie explained. "Why are you working?"
"Don called, there was a case. You can't tell me you call out sick from work whenever you have a cold …"
Charlie smiled, "I guess you're right. Does Don know you're sick?"
"I don't think so, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention it." The last thing that Colby wanted was for Don to think he wasn't up to doing his job. After his recent disappointment in Don's eyes, the last thing he wanted to do was put himself in any more of a negative light.
"Don't you think he'll notice?" Charlie asked.
"It's Don," Colby smiled, "In the middle of a case. There's a good chance he won't."
"I guess you're right." Charlie conceded. "But you really do look like you could use the night off."
"Maybe tomorrow night." Colby sighed as they pulled up to the crime scene. `Here we are."
Colby led Charlie up to the apartment. He was glad for Charlie's sake that the body had been covered by a sheet before they arrived. He sensed that it was Megan's doing, as normally the body would still be in full view and he knew that Don wouldn't have thought to do it. Don hustled Charlie into the bedroom to look at the computer which was still running the same program. "Charlie, I need you to check this out. Colby can you start canvassing the neighborhood?"
"I'm on it." He headed out of the apartment, avoiding the questioning looks form Megan and David. He spent the next several hours questioning the neighbors while Megan and David processed the apartment with the narcotics detectives and Charlie and Don worked on the computer. He finished up and met up with the rest of the team back in the parking lot. Don dropped Charlie off at home and then the agents met back at the bureau to compile their evidence.
Colby was distracted by his worsening symptoms on the drive in. He had merely had a sore throat the previous day, but had awoken that morning with a monster of a cold, or maybe even the flu he thought, shivering slightly. His head was full of congestion, his whole body ached and he had been sneezing all day. His throat had become the least of his worries. He arrived at the office, cursing himself for not thinking to stop for coffee. He had just gotten out of his car when he was overcome, once again by a fit of sneezing. He leaned back on the car door, bracing himself, fumbling in his pockets for some tissues. He brought them to his face just in time. "HEHCHOOOOO!!! Etchooooo!!!! EhhhhCHOOOOO!!!!" He blew his nose quickly but the sneezes continued. "Etchhhhhhh!!!!! ETCHOOOOOO!!! Ehhhhh …. Ehhhh… Heh CHOOOOO!!!!!"
He felt a hand on his shoulder and opened his eyes. David was standing beside him, holding a Styrofoam cup. "Bless you! Colby, you should be home in bed."
Colby blew his nose wetly, cringing in embarrassment. "Sorry. I'm all right."
David shook his head, "You should talk to Don man…."
"No! I'm fine to work." Colby insisted as they walked towards the building.
David shook his head, "Whatever you say. Oh here, I stopped and got you some coffee. You look like you needed it." He offered the cup.
"You are a lifesaver," Colby smiled gratefully. "Thanks David."
They joined the team in the conference room, pooled their data and planned their strategy. It was well after midnight by the time they finished. Colby managed to contain his sneezing and nose blowing for the most part until Don was out of the room. Don tended to get tunnel vision while working on a case, so Colby wasn't that worried that he'd be noticing him. David and Megan on the other hand were becoming more and more concerned.
"Charlie's going to keep working on the computer data tomorrow. Keep me posted on what's going on, I'll be meeting with the DEA agent at 8:00." Don finished after they all had their assignments for the next morning. Colby sighed inwardly, this was to have been a weekend off, and he had planned to spend it in bed, however with a case like this, time was of the essence so they would work straight through until it was solved or until the leads dried up.
David came up beside Colby as they were walking back to the parking lot. "If you want to sleep in tomorrow, I can get started on the follow up without you." he offered .
Colby refused, "No thanks David. I appreciate it, but I'll meet you at 8:00."
"I'll pick you up?" David asked and Colby accepted. At that point he was trying to minimize conversation and just make it to his car before the next round of sneezing overwhelmed him. The last thing he wanted was for David, or Megan or Don for that matter who were walking about behind them to witness another fit.
He almost made it, but then Megan called for them to wait up for a minute as Don drove off. He rubbed his nose, trying to dissuade the tickle, but to no avail. "Etschhhhhhh!!!!! Ishooooooo!!!!" He pulled out some tissues from his pocket and blew his nose harshly, hoping in vain to quell the sneezes. "Etchoooo!!! Ehhhhh CHOOOOOO!!!! ISHOOOOOO!!!" The sneezes were harsh and wet, and totally exhausting to him. After he finished he leaned back against the car with his eyes closed, catching his breath. For a few seconds he almost forgot that David and Megan were there.
David's voice startled him, "Are you okay Colby?" He placed his hand on Colby's arm.
He opened his eyes as Megan placed her hand on his forehead. "You don't have a fever, but I have to tell you Granger, you look like crap."
Colby smiled faintly, "Stop trying to flatter me Reeves. I'm all right, just wiped."
"Maybe you should take tomorrow off……" She began but Colby interrupted.
"No. Thanks guys, but I'll be good to go in the morning. See you guys tomorrow." He climbed quickly into his car before there could be any more discussion about his health, or he started sneezing again. The two agents watched him leave with concern, planning to keep a close watch on him the next morning.
Colby was ready to go when David picked him up the next morning but he was definitely looking somewhat worse for wear than the night before. His suit and shirt were neat, and his hair was combed, but his pallor was now highlighted by the dark circles beneath his eyes and his nose was even more red and chapped.
David took one look at him as he got into the care and asked, "Did you get any sleep last night?"
"Not much ," he admitted in a voice thick with congestion. "I was up most of the night coughing and sneezing. I was afraid if I took any NyQuil I wouldn't wake up in time this morning."
"You look really rough man, I know Don would give you the day off.." David began.
Colby shook his head. "I'm not doing anything to give Don the impression that I'm not doing my job and pulling my weight."
"Colby, this is a totally different situation,"
"I know David, but I still feel like I need to be working right now. Besides, it's just a cold," He was interrupted by a sudden sneeze. "Etchooooooo!!" Which was followed by several more harsh sneezes which then deteriorated into a fit of coughing.
David reached back into a paper bag in the back seat and produced a bottle of spring water which he handed to Colby. Colby gratefully accepted the bottle, and took small sips of water until the coughing subsided.
David waited in silence until Colby caught his breath. "Was that supposed to convince me that it's ` just a cold' ?"
"I'm fine David, please. This is what I need to do." He looked at David pleadingly until his partner nodded. Colby relaxed and smiled. "Thanks for the water. You saved me again."
"I figured you probably weren't up for shopping, so I stopped at the store and got you a few things." He reached back over the seat to grab the paper bag that had produced the water and handed it to Colby.
Colby looked inside the bag and was pleasantly surprised to find it stocked with anything and everything he might need for hid cold; a large box of tissues, more water bottles, cough drops, DayQuil capsules, NyQuil, and orange juice. He was momentarily overwhelmed by David's concern and efforts for him. He smiled over at his partner, his best friend really. "Thanks man, you really are the best." He popped open the DayQuil and downed two of the capsules with the orange juice.
"Well," David offered, "I really don't think you should be working, but since you're going to anyway, I want you to feel better." Colby remained silent, knowing David knew how he felt without him continuing to thank him. "Besides, the sooner you get better, the less likely I am to get sick." David grinned, but noting Colby's guilty expression, he quickly added. "I'm just kidding! "
It was a long day for both agents, they spent most of the day tracking down and interviewing potential witnesses before meeting up with Megan and Don at the office. By that time Colby's voice was hoarse and fading fast. During the teams meeting Colby was happy that David did all the talking and updated Don on their progress. His focus was on trying to contain his coughing and sneezing. He cursed himself for forgetting to take another dose of DayQuil before heading back to the office.
He made almost through the entire meeting, but failed an attempt to stifle a sneeze as Don wrapped up. "Eshhhhct."
"Bless you," Don offered, glancing at Colby. He paused then, taking a good look at his agent. "Are you okay Colby?"
"Yeah, Thanks Don," Colby sniffed, rubbing his fist under his nose. "I'm fine, I think I'm just coming down with a cold."
"He thinks he's coming down with a cold?" David mumbled to Megan, rolling his eyes. She grinned, shrugging her shoulders in response.
"Well, get some rest tonight man. You look like crap." Don smiled clapping him on the shoulder and Colby grinned back.
"I'll work on it Don, thanks." Colby's voice was going , and he wanted nothing more than to get out of the room before he started really sneezing. He quickly gathered his things, and motioned to David that he would meet him outside. "See you tomorrow." he croaked to the others as he made a hasty exit.
Don glanced after him and then turned to David and Megan, "Is he alright?"
David hesitated a moment and Megan replied, "He says he's okay, but he seems pretty sick to me…"
"He doesn't want to let you down Don," David added and Don looked surprised.
"But he's sick..."
"I know, but I think he's really worried about it."
"I think so too Don." Megan nodded in agreement.
Don pulled on his jacket to leave, a pensive expression on his face. "Keep an eye on him , will you guys?"
They nodded and said their goodbyes as Don left. On the drive to Charlie's house, his mind kept returning to Colby. He was torn about how to deal with the situation. On one hand they were in the middle of a case and he needed every agent possible working it. They had all worked sick at one time or another, but there was a fine line between being sick and still up for working and being sick enough that you could put yourself and your team at risk. Normally he trusted his agents to make the call but he was worried that Colby's guilt might cloud his judgment.
He arrived at Charlie's and found his brother and Amita working in the garage. Charlie looked up as he entered. "We're getting close to breaking the code."
"Really?" Don asked hopefully.
"Yes, it's a pretty sophisticated encoding program, but we've been able to isolate most of it's components."
"We really only need to isolate one more factor, " Amita added, "And we've narrowed it down to a few possibilities. The computer is running simulations now."
Don looked excited, "How much longer do you think?"
"Another hour or two," Charlie was already engrossed in the math once again, pointing out some figures to Amita.
"Great, thanks guys. Call me as soon as you get anything." He was pretty sure that they hadn't heard him, had probably even forgotten he was there, but he knew they'd call once they cracked the code..
He made his way to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of coke from the refrigerator. He looked for his father, having seen his car in the driveway, but he didn't seem to be home. He found his mind straying back to Colby as he sat at the table sipping his soda. The door opened and his father entered carrying a pizza.
"Hey Donny, you staying for dinner? Those two have been out there all day, I figured they must need to eat by now."
"Actually Dad, I've got to run out for a few minutes, but I'll be back, save me some pizza."
"Can't you eat first? Where are you going?"
"I need to stop over Colby's for a minute….."
"How is Colby?" Charlie asked entering the kitchen with Amita. "Thanks for picking up the pizza Dad."
Don looked surprised, "You knew Colby was sick?"
Charlie nodded, "He was sick when he picked me up last night."
"You should've said something to me….."
Charlie shook his head, grabbing plates from the cabinet, "He asked me not to…." He continued quickly after noticing Don's expression. " He didn't want to distract you from the case….. And I think he's afraid of disappointing you."
Don shook his head, standing to leave. "I need to go check on him."
"Wait a minute Don." His father opened the refrigerator and grabbed a Tupperware container. "Take this."
"What's this?" Don asked taking the container.
"Chicken soup." Alan answered. "I made it from the leftover chicken we had on Friday. I figured if we didn`t eat we could just freeze it for later. Flu season is coming you know."
"Thanks Dad. This is great. I'll be back." He called heading out the door.
He made the drive to Colby's feeling guilty that he hadn't noticed that his agent was sick. A shocked Colby answered the door wearing sweatpants and a bathrobe.
"Don," Colby croaked hoarsely, "What are you doing here?" He turned quickly away from Don coughing harshly into his fist.
"I came to see how you were doing. Not too well from the look of things."
"I'm all right." He paused, sneezing wetly into his sleeve. "ETCHOOOOOO!!!! ISHOOOOOOOOO!!!"
"Bless you." Don looked at Colby with sympathy.
"Thanks. I really appreciate you stopping by Don, but I'm sure I'm contagious……"
"Don't worry about me. " He stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind him. "Have you eaten?"
"Nah," Colby shook his head " `M not really hungry, and I can't be bothered to fix anything." Realizing that Don wasn't going anywhere, at least not at the moment he returned to the couch where he had been laying and sat down.
"My father sent this over," He held up the container. "It's chicken soup, the traditional Eppes family recipe."
"That was really nice of him," Colby smiled faintly remembering his grandmother's chicken soup. "Tell him I really appreciate it."
Colby started to get up to take the soup from Don but he motioned him to stay where he was. "Stay put Colby, I'll heat it up for you."
"You don't need to do that, I can heat it up…"
"I know you can, but you relax, it'll only take a few minutes." Don made his way to the kitchen. After the soup was on the stove he returned to the living room and sat down in the armchair across from the couch. Colby, feeling more sick than embarrassed had curled up on the couch and covered himself with a fleece blanket."
"Have you gotten any sleep?" Don asked sympathetically.
Colby shook his head. "I can't breathe and all I'm doing is coughing and sneezing." He decided that there was no longer any point in keeping up the pretense that he was fine."
"Have you taken any NyQuil or anything?"
Colby shook his head, "Not while we're on a case. I wouldn't even hear the phone if you called." He paused again, turning his head to the side. "Etschhhhhhh!!!! Hehhhhchoooooooo!!!!!" His breathing hitched as he grabbed a handful of tissues from the box beside him.
Don, sensing Colby's embarrassment, got up and walked to the kitchen. "I'll check on the soup." Colby, grateful for the privacy blew his nose harshly and then deposited the tissues into the trash basket beside him.
Don returned with a large bowl of soup, and placed it on the coffee table in front of Colby. "Thanks, Don." He picked up the bowl and spoon. "This is perfect."
"Your welcome. Now anyway, back to the NyQuil, you can take it. You're going to be off for a couple of days."
Colby looked up in surprise. "I don't need to take any time off."
"I want you to take a couple of days Colby and get better."
"But, I'm fine to work Don. I…"
"I know you're willing to work Colby, and you'd probably be fine but I want you to take the time." Don interrupted. "Charlie is getting close to breaking the encryption code . So, we'll either get lucky and get this guy soon, or we'll still be muddling along once you're better and we'll need someone with a fresh perspective."
"Are you sure, I don't want to let the team down."
"You're not Colby, really we'll be fine. Now, where's that NyQuil?"
Colby relented, his guilt being tempered with gratitude and relief. "It's in the bag on the kitchen table, thanks." He finished the soup and leaned back on the couch.
Don returned with the NyQuil and a bottle of spring water. Colby gratefully accepted both. "I really appreciate everything Don."
"No problem. Now, I'm going to let you get some rest." His phone rang and he paused to answer it. "Eppes" He spoke briefly and then replaced the phone on his belt. "That was Charlie, he's got some names for us. Feel better, man."
"I will, thanks." Colby realized as Don quickly left that he probably wouldn't have been much help to the team in his current state so after eating the soup, he curled back up on the couch and fell asleep almost instantly.
Colby slept straight through until late the next morning. He awoke to bright sunlight streaming through the living room and stumbled sleepily into the kitchen in search of something to drink. His cold hadn't improved at all, but he felt better for a full night's sleep. He had just made his way back to the couch with a bottle of water, when he was startled by a knock at the door. "Come in," he called out but his voice was so hoarse it was inaudible through the door.
He slowly made his way to the door and opened it to find David standing before him. "How you feeling man?" He asked.
" `Bout the same." Colby croaked, clearing his throat. "But at least I slept last night."
"You still sound like crap."
Colby smiled, flopping back down on the couch. "Did you just stop by to insult me?"
David smiled back, and sat on the opposite end of the couch. "It's so hard not to, but actually I came by to see how you were doing. And to let you know that we got our killer."
Colby sat up, his interest piqued. "Charlie's names panned out?"
David nodded, "They did, we were able to get quite a few names, and we found one who was willing to talk. We just took down one of the upper level players an hour ago."
"Everything went okay?"
"It did, totally by the book."
"That's good. So you didn't even miss me, not even a little?" Colby grinned.
"Well, maybe just a little. But, I'm glad you got some time off."
"Yeah, me too. I don't think I would've made it another day. Hey, what time is it? You got the guy already?"
"Yeah," David yawned, "It's around noon. We were out all night, I'm actually headed home to crash now."
Colby noticed how tired David looked and realized that he had come completely out of his way and in the opposite direction from home to stop in and check on him. "You should get some sleep, man."
David smiled at Colby's concern. "I will be, very soon. Do you need anything?"
"No, I'm all set. I'm going back to sleep myself. But thanks a lot for checking in man."
"Any time partner." David stood to leave, "Feel better."
"Thanks, I'll work on it."
"Let me know if you need anything, I'll give you a call tomorrow."
"I may be in tomorrow," Colby began.
"I don't think so, I was instructed to inform you not to show your ugly face before Wednesday, and only then if you're actually better."
"But…"
"No buts, orders from the boss. I'll call you ."
Colby relented, knowing the chances of him actually being better in the next day were pretty slim. "OK, Wednesday then."
"We'll see," David called, pulling the door closed behind him as Colby pulled the blanket snugly around him and closed his eyes.
Epilogue
It was Friday before Colby felt well enough to return to work. He slipped into the conference room and took a seat across from Megan for morning briefing.
"Welcome back Granger. How are you feeling?"
"Much better thanks." his voice was still heavy with residual congestion.
"Still a little stuffy huh?" She asked sympathetically.
"A bit," he admitted, "But still I still feel so much better. Where's David?"
Don entered the conference room, a pile of folders in hand. "He's in court this morning, then I told him to take the afternoon off. He said to thank you for spreading the plague." Don smiled sympathetically at Colby who cringed.
"Oh, I so didn't want that to happen. Is he really miserable?"
"He sounded about like you did 4 or 5 days ago."
"Should I be sitting at the other end of the table?" Megan grinned picking up her coffee and notebook.
"No, you're probably safe now. But man, I feel really bad about David." Colby felt overwhelmed with guilt.
By the end of the day, Colby was wiped. It had mainly been day of tying up loose ends and finishing paperwork, but he felt like he had put in a full day in the field. He wanted nothing more than to go home to bed, but he definitely had to check on David first.
He made a quick stop at the small market around the corner from David's apartment to stock up on supplies. David was fresh from the shower when he answered the door.
"Hey, it's Typhoid Mary," He joked, his voice hoarse . "How are you?"
"I am so sorry David. I feel so bad…."
David waved off his concern, "Don't worry about it man, I'm all right. You look much better."
"Yeah, I am. I got you some stuff at the store.." Colby entered the apartment and set the bag on the kitchen table.
"Oh great, I was gonna stop on the way home, but I was too tired." He turned quickly away from Colby. "Etchoooooo!!! Ishooooooo!!!!!"
"Bless you." Colby cringed as he pulled items out of the grocery bag. "You just got out of court?"
David nodded, "It was a long day. Plus the fact that I was sneezing and coughing all day and getting the evil eye from the other witnesses didn't help."
Colby cringed, "I `m really sorry…"
"Stop Colby, no more apologizing! No what did you bring me?"
"Chicken soup, tissues, NyQuil, water, orange juice, cough drops, and ice cream."
"You are my hero man. Hand me the soup,"
"No way, hit the couch . I'll heat it up and bring it to you when it's ready."
"If you say so. Thanks." David pulled his bathrobe tighter around him and sat in the corner of the couch.
He could hear Colby sneezing in the kitchen. "You sure you're better?"
"Yeah," Colby sniffled, opening the box of tissues. "The worst of it is past." He carried a steaming bowl of chicken soup to David. "You only have another 5 or 6 days to go."
"Thanks, I can hardly wait." He accepted the soup gratefully. "Why don't you have some."
"No, it's for you, I'm gonna head home."
"Have some soup Colby. You still looked wiped, you're not going to want to make yourself anything at home."
"Are you sure?" Colby was tempted, but still feeling incredibly guilty.
"We might as well be sick together, you know what they say, misery loves company."
"All right, you've convinced me." Colby helped himself to a bowl of soup, grabbed bottles of water for each of them and sat at the opposite end of the couch.
When David awoke in the dark several hours later, his throat dry and nose tickling he was somewhat disoriented. After a moment he realized he was on the couch and the noise beside him was Colby snoring. He turned on the lamp and smiled at the sight of his friend and partner sprawled across the couch beside him. He quickly grabbed a handful of tissues, trying unsuccessfully to smother his powerful sneezes. "ETCHOOOOOOOO!!!! Hehhh CHOOOO!!!!! ISHOOOOO!!!!"
Colby stirred beside him,, "What? Oh, sorry David I must have fallen asleep." His voice was barely more than a whisper. "I gotta get going." Colby yawned widely.
"Why don't you just stay and crash on the couch man." David asked before blowing his nose forcefully. "Ughhh, sorry about that."
"God knows you don't need to apologize to me David. Thanks for the offer, but I can just head home." He stood up, stretching.
David stood and collected the soup bowls and brought them into the kitchen. "It's late Colby and you must be exhausted. Just stay here, I'm headed to bed, you're more than welcome to the couch." He returned from the kitchen carrying the bottle of NyQuil. "I'll even share my drugs with you."
"You're sure you don't mind…."
"Of course not. Once I take the NyQuil not even your snoring will bother me." David grinned, plopping back down on the couch.
"Did I really snore?" Colby asked self consciously.
"Oh yeah, though I'm sure I must have been too, I'm so congested." David poured himself a dose of NyQuil and drank it down. He offered the bottle to Colby. "You want me to go and wash the cup? I don`t think I can get up…."
"Nah, those are my germs anyway." Colby took a dose and settled back on the couch.
I'm gonna head to the bedroom in a minute….." David picked up the blanket that had fallen to the floor, and pulled one of it across him as Colby sleepily did the same to the other end.
"Ok man, night." Colby yawned.
"Night Colby……" The sound of snoring filled the room within minutes and continued until well into the next morning.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters(sadly) Written in reponse to Weekly Hatching #139 (General) Plot Bunny Idea: Write a story where a sick character tells (or admits to) another that he/she has a cold using a phrase you've never written before and never read before in a sneezefic. I loved this bunny. I came up with the line first and then Colby was the one saying it in my head.