An Unexpected Connection

Bonus - injured

Raihan was on the couch, flipping through channels on the TV when he heard the front door open. He looked up and saw Alejandro stumbling in, bloodied and clutching his side.

"Hey, hey, what happened?" Raihan rushed over, helping to support him.
"It's nothing, just a scratch," Alejandro said through gritted teeth.

Raihan didn't believe him for a second. He guided Alejandro to the couch and started inspecting the wound. It was deep and definitely needed medical attention.

"We need to get you to the hospital," Raihan said, but Alejandro shook his head.
"No hospitals, Raihan. You know that," he said, wincing in pain.

Raihan sighed, but he knew better than to argue. Instead, he grabbed the first aid kit and began cleaning the wound. Alejandro winced as Raihan's fingers brushed against his skin, but he didn't complain.

"Thank you," Alejandro said, looking up at Raihan with gratitude in his eyes.

Raihan just smiled, continuing to work on the wound. He didn't realize how much blood there was until he finished bandaging it up. He looked up at Alejandro, concern etched on his face.

"You sure you don't want to go to the hospital? You lost a lot of blood," Raihan said.
"I'm fine, Raihan. Just a flesh wound," Alejandro said, but the pain was evident on his face.

Raihan didn't know what to do. He was used to dealing with minor injuries, but not those ones. He had no idea how to make Alejandro feel better, but he knew he had to try.
He sat down next to Alejandro and wrapped an arm around him, pulling him into a tight embrace. Alejandro stiffened at first, not used to being comforted like this, but then he relaxed into the embrace, his head resting on Raihan's shoulder.
For the first time in a long time, Alejandro let himself cry. He cried for the pain he was feeling, for the fear of what might happen next, but mostly, he cried because he was grateful. Grateful that he had someone like Raihan in his life, someone who cared enough to try to comfort him.

Raihan didn't say anything, he just held Alejandro close, rubbing soothing circles on his back. He knew that sometimes, the best thing you could do for someone was just to be there for them.
They sat like that for what felt like hours, until Alejandro's breathing evened out and Raihan knew he had fallen asleep. Raihan gently lifted him up and carried him to the bedroom, tucking him in and watching over him as he slept.
He knew that Alejandro's wounds would heal, but he hoped that this experience would help heal the emotional wounds that he knew ran deep within him.