𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐑, coffinshipping

𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒓, killing you is not an option

death was the last thing hoffman remembered. being at peace with the world and all that he'd done it in. the regret of dragging his fellow agent into his mess and the blinding lights that seeped through the filthy windows. so you could imagine his surprise when he awoke, eyes drowsy and linked to a variety of machines. he pulled the oxygen mask from his face before sitting up.

the heart monitors beeping in its eerie arrhythmic beats. his mind was still fuzzy as he took a glance around the hospital room. his eyes settled on the patient lying in the bed next to his.

it was strahm, still unconscious with tubes and other medical devices linked to his body. all the memories came flooding back in waves, everything down to the tiniest details. strahm knew everything. he knew who he was, not as a detective but as an apprentice of jigsaw. if that got out this operation he worked his ass off for would crumble under his feet. he couldn't risk them finding out.

he unhooked the rest of the medical equipment, not caring much at the moment. his throat and lungs still stung with the familiar pain, but he chose to ignore that for now. hoffman staggered over to the unconscious man's bedside, his body still weak from the toxic fumes invading his system.

carefully he sat down on the edge of the mattress and turned his attention to strahm. peacefully asleep with the hiss of the breathing tube sounding every couple seconds. all he had to do was remove the mask and push a pillow over his face. do that and his secret would in turn stay a secret. he knew what needed to be done, but as much as strahm pissed him off his priorities faltered.

even though hoffman wanted strahm dead he couldn't bring himself to suffocate him. he grasped the tube hooked around his face, trying to find to willpower to yank the oxygen away. before he had a chance to steal the things keeping him breathing, there was a sudden gasp.

the heartbeat motor beeped faster as the dead man's eyes fluttered open. it only took a second before his eyes were drawn to the detective at his bedside. a moment of shock fell over the room, not expecting hoffman's face to be the first one he saw when he awoke.

he cleared his burning throat, "what.. happened back there?" he asked in a raspy tone, the mask muffling his speech. neither of them actually knew how they were saved after the poison rendered them unconscious.

"i'm not sure.." hoffman answered with a small sigh. strahm unstrapped the mask from his face, taking in the smells of the hospital room. he then sat up, his throat still painfully swollen.

"i'm glad to see you're alright." those were the last words hoffman was expecting to hear. after what he did to him, he expected a punch to the face or handcuffs strapped around his wrists. hoffman rarely felt regret for his actions, but this was the exception. he was supposed to be carrying on jigsaw's legacy, not ruining it. strahm was never meant to be tested.

he watched as the agent rubbed his sore throat, noticing his prolonged gaze. the moment their eyes met hoffman turned away, overwhelming guilt taking hold. "again i-"

"don't apologize, it's not like you." strahm interrupted, he wasn't easy to forgive but he didn't care for this new side of hoffman. he shouldn't be sorry, not after everything they went through. a sudden knock at the door caught them both off guard. in walked agent erickson accompanied by two fit policemen by his side. hoffman lowered his gaze, life spent behind bars was inevitable.

"gentlemen, it's good to see you both awake." he spoke, "mind telling me exactly what happened back there?" this was it, his last moments of freedom before getting stuffed behind some metal bars. there is still so much he needs to do.

he figured it was better to own up to his own shortcomings than have someone else say it for him. before he could get the first word out, strahm spoke in his shaken voice. "after reading the case file, i believed there was more that we missed, so i dragged him back and it turned out to be another jigsaw trap. it's my fault, i put us both at risk and i apologize." he cleared his throat.

strahm took the fall for him, but hoffman didn't understand why. their eyes locked in the heat of confusion. why would he take the fault for him? their gaze broke with a sudden pat on hoffman's shoulder causing him to flinch.

"well, i'm sorry you had to go through that." hoffman gave an unresponsive head nod. unanswered questions flooding through his mind like an out-of-control river. "hoffman, since you're up and moving we will take your statement first. anything that might help us catch the bastard behind this." he stood from the mattress, complying with the officers.

"yes sir," he answered, taking one last look at strahm as he was excoriated from the hospital room.