painless ➸ larry

one

***chapter one;

"Louis, be careful."

These are the words that Louis has been hearing all his life. Mostly, from his mum.

Louis figures it's logical, for his mother to say this, but it's tedious; annoying, if you will.

Of course he'll be careful. He doesn't want to die. Which, in his case, is a very easy thing to do. Blood loss, internal bleeding, and starvation are just a few ways he could go.

Louis wouldn't feel the cut, the broken bone, or the pang of his stomach calling out for food like anyone else would. Actually, he wouldn't feel it at all.

Maybe someone might think of this - not feeling pain - as a blessing, but Louis swears it's a curse. He can't play football, he can't do anything somewhat risky, for the fear of not getting to the doctor in time.

Oh, Louis is also insensitive to temperature. If it's really hot, he'll still feel the same as if it's below freezing. This is just another problem to add to Louis' long list. Surprise, you have hypothermia!

Anyway, Louis is currently on his daily trip to the clinic, just to make sure while he was sitting at home all day he didn't pop a blood vessel or something random like that.

As he enters the clinic, a nurse immediately recognizes him and ushers him to his usual room, where Dr. Archambault is waiting.

"How are you feeling today, Louis?" he inquires, as if he's interested.

He asks this every day. You'd think, after meeting with Louis all the time, you'd stop asking him how he's feeling. Not painful, obviously. Not much of anything, really.

"Fine," Louis answers. It's usually how he answers, as it's really the only way he can think of how to.

"Okay, well, let's get you under the x-ray, then I need to tell you something important," Dr. Archambault trails.

Various thoughts run through Louis' head, along the lines of thinking that something is wrong with him; something is bad and will not be able to get better. Basically, the doctor made Louis very, very anxious and scared for his well being.

After his x-ray - nothing is wrong with him, thank goodness - Dr. Archambault sits opposite of Louis and clasps his hands together.

"So, Louis, I'm going back to France," he states and Louis' heart falls to the pit of his stomach.

"Oh," Louis replies, deadbeat. He's relieved that he doesn't have some chronic problem - more than what he already has - but he's also distraught that his doctor he's had for years is leaving. "that's... nice."

"Louis," the doctor insists sternly, "this is for my family. I'd love to stay here! But, I must go home."

His slight French accent is really prominent when Louis focuses on it. He's grown used to it, so he doesn't even really realize it's there.

"Okay." Louis' response sounds deflated.

"You are getting a new doctor, Dr. Cox." Louis' eyes widen. He thinks about how suggestive Cox sounds. He wonders how it's spelled. "She's a nice woman, I met her."

"Okay."

Really, Louis is still comprehending his newly gained knowledge. He doesn't really like change too much, and this is a big one. He's become accustomed to the routine of going to the clinic and seeing Dr. Archambault for his daily check-up.

"I'm leaving in a week. She will take my place immediately."

"Does she know of my condition?" Louis asks, slowly.