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Hannibal has broken a bone before, when he was in medical school he'd broken three of the bones in his left foot. It had been a nightmare, he'd been nearly late to more classes than he'd like to admit, but when you're non weight bearing and have to go up and down stairs and all the way across campus between classes, it's a struggle for sure.
But that's the one and only time he's broken anything, until now.
Hannibal has never left evidence at a crime scene, he's meticulous when it comes to his kills. He hadn't expected this pig to fight so much. She'd head-butted him in the nose. He caught her quickly, blood dripping from his nose and smearing onto his plastic suit.
He knocks her out before tending to his nose - it takes far too long for the bleeding to stop. He goes through an entire box of Kleenex. Blood dries onto the skin around his nose and mouth. He tastes the metallic tang as it drips down the back of his throat. Large clots form and are expelled with the torrent of blood.
Finally it slows and stops.
Hannibal feels almost dizzy from the blood loss and spike in his blood pressure. He feels his nose carefully, trying not to agitate it and cause more bleeding. Judging by the pressure, immediate swelling and pain radiating throughout his face, it's broken; he confirms it's broken when he hears a crackling sound when touching it and feels where the bone has been pushed back and cracked.
How is he going to explain this to his colleagues? Let alone explain it to Will? He knows that Will is going to ask the next time they meet to have a conversation, that is if they don't end up meeting for dinner before.
He ties his dinner up, puts her into the trunk of his car and grabs the bottle of enzyme cleaner he carries with him for blood stains and heads back inside to clean up. He first cleans his own plastic suit off, wiping away all traces of blood and then gets to work scrubbing the floors where blood may have dripped. He's grateful that the woman didn't have carpeting in any of the rooms he'd been in. Hannibal puts all of the soiled paper towels, wash cloths Kleenex and empty Kleenex box into a black garbage bag from under the woman's sink and throws it into the trunk with her before leaving.
--
Hannibal wakes up the next morning with deep purple almost black bruises under both eyes and across the bridge of his nose. He'd set the break last night after dealing with the woman in his trunk; she's now happily in his fridge and freezer waiting for him.
He changes the dressing inside of his nose, thankfully the gauze is relatively clean. Medically he knows he should leave the same dressing in place for a few days but he doesn't like the idea of using the same soiled gauze for such a long period of time. Besides that, he doesn't want to accidentally get it wet when showering, shaving, washing his face and brushing his teeth.
There's really no hiding the bruises, he'll come up with an excuse later, now it's time to prepare breakfast and get to work within the next two hours.
Midway through his meal Hannibal's cell phone begins to ring. He typically doesn't get calls so early in the morning.
Will's name lights up across his screen, he swipes his finger across the screen and brings the phone to his ear.
"Good morning Will, you realize it's awfully rude for one to answer their phone during a meal."
"I didn't know you were eating, and good morning to you too, darlin'." He can hear the sarcasm in Will's tone.
"No need to be sarcastic. How are you this morning?"
"To be honest, not great, which is why I called."
"Oh? What's wrong?" He asks, genuinely curious.
"Couldn't sleep last night and I.. Imissyou." He words are rushed at the end of his sentence, to the point Hannibal almost doesn't catch them.
"What was that, Will? I couldn't quite understand you."
"I couldn't sleep."
"No, I heard that, the other thing."
"I miss you." He mumbles.
"You could've called." He regrettably wouldn't have been able to answer depending on the time.
"Didn't wanna bother you."
"You're never a bother to me."
"You always say that, but how can I not be? On paper you're my psychiatrist-"
Hannibal cuts him off, "I am not your psychiatrist, that would be a conflict of interest and unethical seeing as I am your partner."
"Yeah, you are and you could've invited me to stay over."
"It's a weekday, Will, you know I have patients in the morning."
"I wouldn't have stopped you from going, I just want to be able to wake up next to you."
"And you will, but not during the week."
"Whatever, are you at least going to let me come over for dinner tonight after work?"
He should say no, he should make up an excuse but he too misses Will, "Of course, my last appointment ends at five thirty, I'll come home and start dinner and see you by say six thirty?"
"Unless Jack drags me off to another crime scene, I'll be there by six."
"I look forward to it. I'll see you this evening."
"I'll see you then, goodbye darlin'."
"Goodbye." He hangs up the phone, finishes his meal and sighs. He's more than happy to be seeing Will this evening, but there is no way to hide his obviously broken nose and all the swelling and bruises that come with it.
--
Throughout the day none of his patient's say anything, they don't ask what happened nor if he's okay. They stare a lot and look as if they want to ask but thankfully don't. Luckily Franklyn isn't one of his patient's for today, Hannibal is certain he would ask.
Hannibal ends up taking pain medication midway through his day, when his entire face is throbbing.
When he arrives home from work he pulls an ice pack from the freezer and applies it to his face with one hand while using the other to pull ingredients from the fridge, freezer and pantry.
The doorbell rings just as he's putting the steaks into the pan, he glances to the clock, five fifty-seven. Hannibal smiles, he puts the ice pack back into the freezer, wipes his hands on his apron and heads for the front door.
"How many times have I told you, my door is always open to you, and that you should use your key if it's locked." He says as he opens the door.
"You shouldn't leave your door unlocked. What if I was a kill - oh my God, Hannibal what happened?" Will lifts his hand to Hannibal's face but doesn't touch.
"I'm alright, just a broken nose."
"I can see that it's broken, what happened? Who hit you?"
"No one hit me. And I'd rather not have this conversation on my front steps, please come inside."
Will steps inside but doesn't leave the foyer, too focused on looking at Hannibal's face and asking questions. "Then how the hell did this happen? We're you in an accident and not tell me?" Will's voice raises with concern.
"No, Will, I was not in an accident and I didn't tell you because it was a mistake of my own doing."
"Just tell me." Will urges.
"I tripped."
"Tripped?" Will says, incredulous.
"Yes, Will, I tripped, balance and gravity are two things I must deal with daily."
"Don't be a smartass. I've never see you trip before and even so if you tripped how did you end up with a broken nose?"
"I became intimately aquatinted with my bathroom counter top, when I tripped I fell forward. I tried to stop myself but ending up hitting my nose off the edge of the counter."
"When did this happen?"
"Last night, but I'm alright, Will. It will heal within a few weeks."
"What did you even trip on?"
"The bathroom mat."
The expression on Will's face shows concern, but also disbelief. "Does it hurt terribly?"
"It's not so unbearable."
"I've broken my nose, I know it hurts."
"Yes, it does, but I've felt much worse. I'll be alright, I promise. Now please, let's head to the kitchen so I can finish preparing our meal."
Will nods but before Hannibal can turn towards the kitchen, he leans in and presses a soft kiss against Hannibal's lips. "You should've told me."
"Apologies, I didn't think it would upset you so." He lies, he knew just how upset Will would be.
"I don't like seeing you hurt, of course it's upsetting."
Hannibal doesn't say another word, instead he does turn and head for the kitchen, confident Will won't be far behind.