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"Ow!"
"Apologies."
Jay huffs and leans back on his hands. He's sitting on a metal table in the underground lair, one leg curled up close to himself while the other, bent at a slightly unnatural angle just under the knee, is stretched out in front of him. Zane is trying to clean and realign everything before he puts a splint on it, but Jay keeps crying out in pain every time Zane touches anything. It's starting to get annoying. Zane has half a mind to adjust his own audio intake, but he does need to be able to hear in case he actually hurts Jay during this process.
"I gave you a numbing agent already. Is it not working?" Zane asks, sitting back and looking up at him.
Jay apparently has to think about this, which likely means that yes, it's working. "It's... not not working?"
Zane sighs and switches his view program back to the medical screen so he can get back to work. The sooner they finish here, the sooner Jay can heal and they can go up and spend some much-needed down time with the others.
Jay scoffs. "What? It looks like it hurts. It's messing with my brain."
"Then I suggest you don't look."
"What else am I supposed to look at?"
"Would you like me to put a cartoon on the screen for you?" Zane says without looking up. He pulls away another bloodied piece of Jay's gi. It's more red than blue, as are most of what remains of his pant leg. The boulder that had gone flying at him really did some damage, but it could have been much worse. Something far more important than his leg could have been crushed.
Jay is glaring at him, Zane can sense it, which is why he continues without looking up.
"Why are you being like this?" Jay asks.
If Zane were any of the others, he would counter with, Being like what? But Zane is not any of the others, he can't feign ignorance even for the purpose of sarcasm and witty banter. At least, not without switching up a few settings, and he doesn't have access to those right now because his hands are messy from cleaning up Jay's tattered gi and broken leg. Also because he doesn't want to. This doesn't feel like an appropriate moment for witty banter.
He does, at least, look up at Jay when he answers. "Because I am trying to focus, and every time you make a sudden noise like that, it distracts me, which lengthens this process and increases your risk of infection. So I apologize if my patience is short."
As expected, Jay is pouting, complete with big blue puppydog eyes. But those are Cole's weakness, not Zane's.
"Don't look at me like that."
"Like what?"
Yes, that kind of banter, Zane thinks to himself. Every moment is an appropriate banter moment to Jay. It's practically the only way he knows how to communicate.
Zane shakes his head and goes back to the very important task of making sure one of his partners doesn't get infected.
"You're annoyed at me," Jay says.
"Correct."
"Damn, okay, you didn't have to be that honest about it."
"Jay, will you please be quiet and let me focus?"
A groan. "I'm bored."
"I offered you a cartoon."
Jay pauses, first looking at Zane, then up at the giant computer monitor. Then back down to Zane. "I thought you were joking."
Zane looks up at him. "Do I look like I am in the mood for a joke right now?"
At least Jay has the decency to be sheepish, a nervous laugh escaping as he rubs at the back of his neck. "Guess not. Sorry."
It's quiet for a while. Zane manages to pull away the rest of the dirtied fabric, leaving Jay's broken leg out in the open. This is probably something best left to medical professionals, but the ninja are too often wounded to bother with a hospital every time someone breaks a bone, and over the years Zane has downloaded quite a bit of protocol so that he can be of use to the team for medical emergencies. It's been a while since he had to pull it up, though. More often than not, he's the one laying on this table while Nya or Pixal or Jay or any combination of the three are replacing broken parts or rewriting damaged code. This is a bit of an odd reversal to be tending to Jay's injuries. He rarely gets hurt this badly. When was the last time...? Zane can't remember. It's a confusing experience, his memories should be quite easy to recall. Perhaps they need to get a look at Zane's memory drive again and see if there are some locked or corrupted files that he can't access.
"Zane?"
Ah. He had spaced out for a moment. Zane dials back in on the bloody cloth in his hand that he'd been using to clean up around the wound.
It doesn't look like Jay is actively bleeding anymore, so Zane takes a break to look up at him. "Yes?"
"Still with me?" Jay offers a little smile. He asks this as if Zane is the one receiving care.
"Yes, sorry." Zane reels in his focus. He can't even blame Jay for the distraction this time, but at least he's almost done. Then bandages and a splint, and of course he will have to help Jay back up to the main monastery, but then they will be finished, and they can pile together with Kai and Cole on the sofa in the game room because the three of them enjoy that, and because Zane is too in love with them to say no.
(He likes it too.)
"What were you thinking about?" Jay asks.
Zane doesn't like being dishonest. He can be, he just doesn't like to. "I don't remember the last time you were injured this badly."
Jay hums in thought. "Pretty sure this is the first broken bone I've ever had. Unless you count that time on Chen's island, but it wasn't a break, just... I don't know what to call it. Painful."
"You're handling this admirably, then," Zane says. He feels Jay wince when the wet cloth touches his leg, and it seems like genuine pain, so Zane goes a bit easier on the next swipe. "I don't think you cried until we were back on the Bounty."
"Hey, we don't need to talk about whether or not I cried. Anyway, I've handled worse."
See, that's the part that puzzles Zane. Jay is not lying, but Zane can't remember a worse injury on him than this. On Kai and Lloyd, yes, they're injured quite often. Nya and Cole on occasion. But Jay? He's brave, of course, but he doesn't go rushing in like Kai, is not the most common target of all enemies like Lloyd...
"I can hear your computer overheating," Jay says. He sits forward, wincing again when it jostles his leg, and reaches out to tap his finger under Zane's chin. "Don't worry about it. You weren't there when it happened."
That is not comforting. "When was this?"
Jay shrugs and sits back again. "Long time ago. Zane, seriously, don't worry about it. I'm fine now."
Zane wants to press it, but he gets the sense that Jay will not back down on this one. "If you say so," he says, going back to the last bits of dried up blood to wipe away. "Was there at least someone to help you?"
"Yes. Kind of."
"Kind of?"
Apparently Zane's concern is still showing, because Jay reaches out again to pat his head. "Okay, frosty. There were some time travel shenanigans, I'll say that much. That's why no one else knows about it. But I'm fine now, see?"
"Your leg is broken."
"Zane, for the love of—" Jay stops when he sees that Zane is smiling. "Okay, whatever. You know what I mean and now you're bullying me."
"That seems to be a common way of showing affection between the four of us, yes."
Zane realizes that he's set his hand on Jay's thigh. Neither of them have pointed it out, though, so he keeps it there.
"I love that you worry about me, Zane," Jay says. He reaches out once more, silently asking Zane to come closer, which he does. "But it's in the past and I'm trying to leave it there. Alright?"
"Okay."
It's still a little concerning, but the concern is quickly overtaken by something else when Jay leans down to kiss him. It's just a quick one, because he moves his leg too much again and actually yelps in pain. "Shit, sorry. Please tell me I didn't just make it worse."
Zane looks down at Jay's leg. "No, it should still be fine to wrap up. That numbing agent may be wearing off though."
Jay pouts, and it comes through in his voice. "Does that mean it's gonna hurt again?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Zane stands up for just a moment, only long enough to give Jay a kiss in return, before he takes his seat again and moves back down to Jay's leg. "So, no more distractions. I need to focus so I can finish before it fully wears off."
"Fine," Jay says, still pouting.
Despite his earlier complaints, Jay does actually manage to sit still with only a couple more cut-off pained noises while Zane carefully realigns his leg and wraps it tightly to keep it in place.
"How is it feeling now?" Zane asks, looking up at Jay.
Jay has to think about it this time as well. "Could be worse. Could also be better."
"I should have expected you to be vague." Zane finds his rag again and wipes up around the table. "Let me know if—"
"Wanna know what would make it better?"
Zane prepares himself for something cheesy. His thoughts are confirmed when he looks up and sees the sly grin Jay is giving him. "What?"
Jay doesn't say anything, just keeps smiling and taps his finger to his own lips.
"No."
And he immediately returns to pouting. "Why not?"
"Because I'd rather get you back upstairs so that Cole and Kai can join in. More kisses will heal you faster, don't you think?"
Jay is blushing up a storm, which may be literal as well as metaphorical, because Zane can feel a charge building in the air. Jay stumbles over his words. "W-well... You... I mean... I guess."
For all his talk, Jay is surprisingly easy to fluster. Though, if he's being honest, Zane may have fiddled with some of his own code going into this whole operation. The numbing agent was helpful, yes, but certain mannerisms do better to distract Jay than anything else.
Also, his reaction is a joy to experience.
Perhaps they don't need to go back up right this instant. If Jay wants to stay a bit longer, Zane won't say no. Or... he won't say no twice.
Truthfully, Zane wants a few more minutes of Jay all to himself. They don't often get an opportunity like this. It's unfortunate that this particular one came with a major injury.
Jay starts to turn, resigned to his fate of being carried into the elevator, but Zane stops him with a hand on his knee when he's sitting with his legs over the edge of the table.
"Please hold."
Jay raises an eyebrow and tilts his head like a confused puppy, but he doesn't move. "Okay."
Zane opens the panel on the inside of his forearm. It doesn't have access to all of his settings, just some important quick ones. One of them is a romance dial. Usually it sits around 50%, but he sometimes turns it down to stay focused during battles, and back up once they return home.
Moments like this call for it to be turned even higher, so that's what he does. A nice 75% should do. He can't be going overboard and risking Jay irritating that broken leg.
"Was that your romance meter?" Jay asks, peering over Zane's arm as he closes the panel.
"Yes."
He looks up to see Jay making another absolutely devious grin. It's charming that he thinks he's physically capable of whatever he's imagining right now.
"It's not that high," Zane says. "I want to kiss you, not make your injury worse."
Jay sighs, overly dramatic, as Zane steps between his knees, and he throws his arms over Zane's shoulders. "I guess I'd prefer my leg to heal properly. Thanks for patching me up, Dr. Zane."
"Please don't call me that when we are in this kind of proximity."
Without another word, Jay giggles and takes Zane's face in his hands and pulls him in for another kiss, a real one this time that isn't interrupted by a half-finished operation. Jay seems to have been craving this for a while, but truthfully so has Zane. He wouldn't have fiddled with the settings if he hadn't been wanting this, and wanting it bad. He finds his hands on the small of Jay's back, pulling him gently closer. Jay still faintly tastes of the skirmish they just got home from — metal and dirt, the coppery taste of blood on his busted lip. It's strangely intoxicating. Zane tilts his head for a better angle, a deeper one, and he hears a soft happy noise from Jay as he follows suit.
"Not that high, huh?" Jay whispers against his lips.
"Seventy-five percent," Zane says, just stating a fact.
Jay giggles under his breath and goes in for another quick kiss. "You're right. Could be higher."
"That can wait until later, after you've healed and there is less likelihood of my hurting you on accident."
He pauses for a moment, almost imperceptible, then lays his head on Zane's shoulder. "You won't. I trust you."
Then he kisses under Zane's jaw, something soft and sweet, surprisingly not feeling like it was meant to lead anywhere sexual. At least, not until Jay drags his hands down Zane's chest, the tips of his fingers catching slightly on little pieces and grooves on Zane's form that often go unnoticed. Jay knows these things more intimately than most, in the same way that Zane is now very acquainted with Jay's tibia. If the romance meter was any higher, Zane would be very tempted to disrobe to allow Jay to touch him directly, and let whatever happens, happen. But that's exactly why he didn't fill it entirely. Jay would likely forget his own broken leg and accidentally hurt himself, and the metal table in a very open pseudo-lab space is not the ideal intimacy location, especially knowing that anyone else could come down here at any time.
Zane allows himself to get a little lost in the touch, though. The others tend to favor his chest, but Jay knows of one particularly sensitive spot between some metal plates on Zane's side, just under where his rib cage would end if he were human. Not really a logical place for an erogenous zone, but Zane's sensitivity is something they have all long given up on understanding. He had rebuilt himself in a bit of a haste after all. And he quite likes having these small secrets, only known by a few.
Sparks shoot through Zane's body when Jay finds that point on his side.
"There it is."
"Careful," Zane whispers. "Don't get too worked up."
"Oh, I'm not getting worked up," Jay says. He kisses Zane's neck again. "I just like getting you worked up."
"You should not risk—"
Jay shushes him. "I'm fine, Zane. Just enjoy it, I'll be careful. If I get you too worked up, we can let Kai and Cole take care of you later."
Hm. That does sound like an acceptable solution.
"As long as I get to watch," Jay adds.
Zane can't help the urge to roll his eyes. It's a loving gesture, truly. He gently pushes Jay to sit up, and takes his chin to pull them closer again. "I wouldn't dream of leaving you out."
Jay blushes and appears to bite back a smile. "You'd better not." He leans up for another kiss, this one far more passionate, not wasting any time before pressing his tongue to Zane's lips, which Zane is happy to accept. Zane is still careful, holding Jay like a glass sculpture while he feels Jay desperately grasping at his gi. He keeps them from going too far, as much as he wants to raise his meter even further and let Jay have what he wants. They'll have to be patient and wait for him to heal, and then the four of them can get to their semi-usual wind-down stress-relief intimacy.
At some point, Jay has tried to wrap his legs around Zane, but the splint makes that very difficult and it's a sort of half-finished effort. And Zane does get a bit lost in the moment, in the taste of him, and Jay's hands finding the places only the two of them know about. Zane lets his hands slide down Jay's thighs, savoring the small noises Jay makes in response, at least until they come to rest on his knees, and Jay's happy and desperate little noises morph into a sudden yelp of pain.
Zane immediately lifts his hands and backs away, nearly twisting Jay's leg again as he steps back. "I'm sorry."
Jay is sitting back on the table, face flushed, breathing heavy. He would be quite the marvel if he was not also clearly in pain, and starting to reach for his broken leg.
"Ow," he whimpers. "I think that numbing agent is actually wearing off... Shit."
"I should have been more careful," Zane says. "Apologies."
Jay shakes his head. "No, it's okay. You were being plenty careful, I got carried away."
...They both got carried away.
"Perhaps it's time we go back to join the others. I can get you some more pain reliever."
Jay nods, but he pulls Zane closer again, not as excitedly passionate as before. "Only as long as you stop looking like a kicked puppy about it."
"I don't."
"Yes you do." Jay kisses him one more time, soft and sweet. "I'm okay. Much better now after your help. Thank you."
Well... okay. Zane can accept that. "You're welcome." He lets himself be pulled in, buries one hand in Jay's messy hair, and leaves a kiss on the top of his head. "Now... hm, I think I may need to carry you back upstairs."
Jay groans. "We need a wheelchair down here. Aren't there crutches or something?"
"It would be better if I carry you," Zane says, starting to pick him up. They do have crutches but he doesn't want Jay trying to use them just yet, not so soon after he's been patched up. Anyway, that romance meter is still on 75%, and if Zane feels like carrying Jay like a princess then he's going to do exactly that. Zane scoops Jay up, and sneaks in another kiss on the way to the elevator that will take them back up to the monastery.
"Kai and Cole are gonna be so jealous," Jay snickers as the door closes.
"Jealous that you broke your leg?" Zane asks, confused.
Jay doesn't answer. He just breaks into giggles.
"Aw, don't you two look cute."
"What took you guys so long?"
Jay has a very smug look on his face as he clings tighter to Zane. "None of your business, that's what. You're just jealous you didn't get special Zane time."
Kai scoffs. "Not jealous of your broken leg."
"Jealous!" Jay says.
Zane sighs as he sets Jay down between Kai and Cole, but it's a happy sigh. They do show their love by bickering. Annoying as it can be sometimes, he wouldn't trade it for the world.