Dated April 15th

[leftwithmybones]

He has to stop putting this off.

There's a line he's been straddling where he wants to deliver a good product to Auggie, but he's not going to perfect it until he gets a few prototypes in testing and the best person to try them out is Auggie. He's managed to create an organism that supports the contacts and has matched it to Auggie's vitals so that it won't bother him. They're not permanent and they're definitely finnicky, but the big part of this is the brain implant.

"Once I put the implant in, it's basically a receiver," he explains, showing off the chip in a petri-dish. "Which means that on the off chance we ever get cable television here, you might flicker," he jokes in a deadpan. "Once it's in, you slip in the contacts and then you can turn them on and off. Black and white," he reminds him. "And yeah, for a while they might be a little fuzzy. There's some tweaks I might need to make and there's a solution you'll need to keep the contacts in to keep them healthy," he says. "I'll write it all down," he promises, eyeing Auggie and giving him some space to talk or ask questions. "You still want to move forward with this?"

Comments

[leftwithmybones]

"Easy now," McCoy warns, his gaze constantly flickering between the readout and Auggie's person. The last thing he needs is for the contacts or the receiver to overload. He taps away and monitors the vitals, trying to get everything down so he knows what to watch for the next little while. "When you feel like you've acclimatized, close the one eye and open the other. Slowly," he adds again, feeling like he needs the extra reminder.

[theblindguy]

It still was all disorienting. Still, the moment he realized who he had been looking at - he'd suspected, but wasn't entirely sure - made it all worth it. McCoy's warning was enough to focus him on looking around a little more again (and not just at her), closing the eye a minute or so after. He didn't open the other again immediately (he did say slowly, after all), instead giving himself a minute to rest his brain.

"I thought that was you. Didn't think the Doctor had such a nice figure, No offense," he joked, letting out a quiet chuckle. It was a big deal - more than any words he could put together - but that kind of reaction could come later. When they were alone. For now, he slowly opened his other eye when he felt ready.

He knew what to expect more this time. It made it easier to take it slow, since his initial instinct to dart his gaze around wasn't there now. Instead, he tried to see if things were getting better or worse in terms of the blurriness - he figured that would be important for McCoy to know.

"It's a lot of the same," he said. He paused to keep looking around, then amended, "A little better actually."

[farmgrown]

"Is that good?" Annie asks, not wanting to distract from the task at hand but unable to stop herself from blurting out the question in her excitement, the anticipation growing too much for her to ignore it. She immediately moves to quiet herself afterward, biting down on her lower lip and steeling herself for the answer where she's being a little too nosy.

Still, the fact that he's making jokes is a good sign, a sign that things haven't gotten screwed up somehow. He's prone to making them during a moment of tension too, so maybe she can't trust that. But she knows him well enough now to recognize when he's teasing just to tease or quipping in a crisis. It's always in the smile he shoots afterward - this one in her direction now that he knows where she's standing.

[leftwithmybones]

"I'll have you know I've got a waist to die for," McCoy jokes dryly, but the arch of his brow proves he's not even close to serious. The vitals are tracking well and it looks like they won't have too much information assaulting the brain. So he's got to give thanks for that. "Your brain's got a lot of ground to make up for. What I'd like for you to do is wear these about six hours a day to start. We'll ramp up," he promises. "We don't want to run before we can walk."

[theblindguy]

Auggie closed his eyes again as McCoy explained how things were going to work. It seemed like an uphill battle, but he hadn't expected anything else to be honest.

"I'm fine with starting slow," he replied, honestly. He wasn't about to complain or do anything that might jeopardize what he made for him. If he had to take it slow, he could take it slow. Honestly, it was probably better he took it slow. Too long of what he was seeing right now would give him a headache. "Is there places I shouldn't use them right now, like outside, since it's bright?"

They had just been sitting in the dark, so maybe too much light right now wasn't a good idea. He just didn't want to do something he shouldn't, so getting the rules out of the way seemed like a good idea.

[farmgrown]

Annie does crack a smile at the joke, though manages to keep a relatively straight face as she listens to the doc's instructions. Six hours a day doesn't sound like it'd be pushing it, and considering there'd been what resembled minor brain surgery involved, she doesn't want Auggie to overexert himself in this area either. There's too much at risk, more than just his ability to see. She doesn't want to know what else they could be putting at stake by rushing into anything.

She takes a few steps closer, reaching out just enough to place a hand on Auggie's arm as he continues asking questions. She knows he might be able to see her approaching now, but the habit of wanting him to feel her close by is still a hard one to break.

[leftwithmybones]

"Don't stare at the sun," McCoy deadpans, his voice completely even. "And you'll want to stay away from flourescents for a while. Neutral, warm lights," he advises. "We're going to start from the bottom and work our way up. I don't have another set of tech to make a back-up pair of contacts," he warns. "This is all we've got."

[theblindguy]

Auggie let out a quiet snort, unable to resist rolling his eyes at the comment. He was pretty sure that was the last thing he was planning on doing.

"Well, there goes my first idea," he said, sarcastically. The reminder of it being the only of its' kind was enough to make him a little serious again, though. If something were to ever happen to them, it would mean he'd be right back where he started. He nodded his head to show he understood. "I'll take good care of them."

He had a chance he never thought he had. He wasn't going to blow it.