as fragile as a dandelion

a promise

Two's POV

I woke to Monica lightly shaking my shoulder, "Two, honey, you're burning up. I want to give you something for the fever."

I grumbled, trying to roll away from her. She put her hands under my arms, propping me up. "You're not getting out of this one little missy. Just take the damn pills."

I rolled my eyes at her and the two bright red ibuprofen cupped in her soft, slightly callused palms. She grabbed my hand, forcing the pills into it. I sighed, throwing the pills down my throat and following with water.

Monica gave me one of her signature looks, and left. I immediately felt guilty, she's done so much for me, I should stop being an ungrateful ass. But I'm so tired and frustrated with being useless and having everyone else do things for me. I rolled back over to go to sleep.

•••

I woke up again, this time being jostled around in the back of a van.

Huh? What the hell?

"She's awake!" An unfamiliar voice shouted from my feet.

I looked down and saw Julian. I had never heard him speak before but I knew who he was.

"What?" I croaked, my voice cracked and my throat felt as if it was on fire.

That's when I felt another fire, in my right leg. It felt like it was alive, pain pulsating throughout it. I was sweating but shivering at the same time. My teeth chattered.

"Hey. Hey. It's okay, you're okay." Julian comforted me as I looked around frantically. "We're going to the hospital, Monica thinks your leg is infected and you might have internal bleeding in your lungs."

My eyes widened.

Infection? Internal bleeding? I was fine yesterday though?

My breathing quickened as realization hit me. "The hospital?! No. No! NO! Julian that's on Scorpion territory. We have to go back. Now! If they catch us, we're dead."

"Two. It's okay. That's why Monica is driving this plumbing van. We've got it figured out. Calm down."

I bit my lip, about to bring up 100 reasons why this was a bad idea, when suddenly the van jolted to a stop.

"Who are you and where are you going?" A voice demanded.

Julian and I held our breath while Monica formed a believable lie. As we felt the van start forward again, we let out a collective sigh of relief.

"Get some sleep alright? It's gonna be a long ride." Julian said.

I rolled my eyes at him but laid back down, realizing how tired I was.

•••

I squinted, waking up in an unfamiliar room. Then everything flooded back to me. I was in the hospital. But what had happened to me?

I glanced around, looking for someone, anyone, that I knew. The room was empty, apart from me and the machines beeping constantly next to me. That's when I noticed it. I gasped.

This must be a nightmare. I'll wake up. Come on. Wake up! This isn't happening. Nope. No way.

Where there should've been my right leg, under the thin hospital blanket, there was just a nub. It stopped about six inches above where my kneecap should've been. My leg was gone.

"NO NO NO NO!" I shouted, my breathing becoming faster and faster as panic rose in my throat.

"Please... please wake up..." I sobbed, into my hands. "Please..."

My breathing quickened even more and my chest constricted. I felt myself shaking. The machines behind me started blaring and beeping wildly. Doctors and nurses ran into the room. I tried to get out of bed but they held me down.

"Let me go! You have to let me go! Wake up! Wake up!" I shouted.

"Honey you're having an anxiety attack. I need you to take deep breaths with me, okay? In... Out... In... Out..." A nurse tried to comfort me.

They were strapping my wrists to the bed rails, trying to get me to stop trying to take out the IV drip on my arm. I thrashed again and again, kicking my foot at them. They just kept holding me down.

All of a sudden a voice shouted over the sound of the chaos and my own screaming. A familiar voice. A voice that I loved. A voice that was saving me. "GET OFF OF HER! CAN'T YOU SEE YOU'RE JUST MAKING THINGS WORSE!?"

All at once, the weight lifted off of me. I stopped struggling and fighting, since there was no one to fight. The crowd parted and filed out as he walked over to the bed. August gathered me up in his arms, holding me tight. I breathed in the scent of him. The faint cologne, oil from working on cars, rain, and beer. I felt safe with him. I wrapped my hands around the compass tattoo on his forearm, squeezing it, my breaths becoming more even.

He stroked my hair, rocking me back and forth as I sobbed. "Shhh, it's okay. Let it all out. Let it all go."

I looked up into his eyes. He wiped the tears from my cheeks with the side of his thumb. I leaned into his touch.

"August, my leg... Do you still..." I trailed off as new tears slid down my cheeks, "Love me...?"

Tears filled his eyes and he bit his lip as he knitted his brows together. "Two... I will always love you. Your leg certainly couldn't change that, nothing could. How could you even think..."

It was his turn to trail off as he winced, "Always, Two. Always."

A tear slid off his nose and onto my cheek. His eyes were closed and I could see the pain on his face. I had hurt him. I didn't mean to hurt him.

Oh god August. I'm so sorry I'm so screwed up.

His eyes were still closed as I lifted my head up, extending my neck. Still closed as I laid my hand on his cheek. Still closed as I placed my lips lightly on his. I closed my own eyes.

I felt him lean in, hesitantly. His lips parted and our tongues explored each other's mouths. He tasted salty from tears and bitter from beer. There was a small swollen spot on his lip from constantly being bitten. He cupped my face in his rough, callused hands. I put my hands on the back of his neck, running my fingers through the soft, curly hairs at the base of his skull.

Our lips parted and we breathed hard, our foreheads together. He lifted my chin up, forcing me to look into his black eyes. "I love you, Two Vanelli. I have since I first saw you, and nothing will ever change that. I promise you."

"I love you too, August James Wyatt." I whispered into his parted lips.

"Wait how did you know- Oh. Monica." He sighed.

I giggled, pressing a finger against his lips, "Shhhh."

I turned my face serious. "August?" He nodded quizzically. "Promise that whatever happens next, whatever we go through after this, we go through it together?"

He hooked his pinky around mine. "I promise."