TW: blood & slight gore. Obviously. She got shot loL
The funny thing about being shot is that sometimes, you don't even feel the full extent of it.
Sure, there's the initial sting. And then there's a deep ache of ripped muscle and torn sinew. And then, in my case, there was the shock-induced lightheadedness that had my weight staggering in the alleyway I had tried to hide in.
I was so bad at hiding. This was not a successful game of hide and seek for me.
"Y/n!" Lloyd yelled my name for the second time, quickly stepping out of his stunned state to bolt and catch my body before I could fall. My blinking was sluggish as my unfocused sight held the small, golden diamond on the chest of his gi. It swam. I didn't think we were underwater, though.
"Hold on," he said shakily, voice muffled through his mask. "You're gonna be okay." But it seemed like he was saying it more so to reassure himself.
The green ninja gave a quick glance of our surroundings before sweeping me up into his arms. The movement sharpened my senses and suddenly I was too aware of the small, metal object in my body where it shouldn't be. I wasn't sure if my gasp was of shock or pain at the intruding feeling of the bullet but Lloyd still murmured soothing whispers into my ear as he lithely scrambled to somewhere safe.
"Y/n's injured," Lloyd said into the comms, voice cracking as he silently and swiftly carried us up a fire escape. My nose was too keen. All I could smell was the ocean's salt. "I'm taking her home."
There was a reply that I couldn't hear as Lloyd set me down on top of a roof and frantically undid the belt of his gi. It fell open, revealing his undershirt. I watched in bleary existence as he pulled up the long skirt of the ruined dress to tie his belt tightly around my thigh, high above the wound. I'd lost my shoes in the chaos. My feet were bleeding. I think I stepped in glass.
"Ow," I whispered when he tied the knot, only because it felt like I should. Lloyd faltered, red eyes catching my dilated gaze with a scared expression. But he's dealt with worse, right? He'd never looked this scared before about some injury. So why was this time so different?
"Come on," Lloyd whispered, lifting me back up in his arms as Bentley burst to life. The dragon coed a whine and despite everything, I managed to crack a weak smile at him.
I blinked and we were halfway to the monastery.
"Stop falling asleep," Lloyd ordered over the wind, voice wavering. "Please. Don't fall asleep."
"I'm so tired," I whined breathlessly.
"I know," he said, squeezing my shoulder. "Just a little longer."
I could do a little longer. I made myself focus on something, like the way his untied gi fluttered behind him like a cape in the cold night. I forced myself to notice new things, like how he wasn't even holding the reins as we flew. The stars behind his head, the crease between his brows, the short, anxious breaths from behind his mask, the silver moon lighting the bridge of his nose. His red eyes.
I pressed my head against his chest and turned my gaze to his hands. Fingers curled around my knee, bunching the material of the dress. The other was wrapped around my back. He was warm. He was always so warm.
"Lloyd..." I whispered, struggling to lift an arm and grab a fistful of the front of his black undershirt. The ache had grown angry. It felt like it was sucking me into nothing but agony.
"Yeah?"
"It- it hurts," I sniffled, feeling emotionally brittle. One push and I would shatter. Fragile like a child.
Lloyd's red eyes dropped to me and they twitched in sorrow and frustration. A gloved thumb stroked my cheek and I found myself craving the gentle touch, chasing it with a turn of my head.
"It won't hurt for long," he reassured in a murmur, linking his arm back under my legs. I finally felt the chill, shock slowly edging to a disappearance. His warmth was intoxicating in comparison to the cold, so I curled into him closer. My breath hitched at a twinge of agony.
"Why?" I asked quietly, lips brushing against the material of his turtleneck. "Y'gonna chop it off?"
"Not funny."
I giggled weakly, the hand clutching his shirt trailing back down to my stomach. My eyes slowly slid shut once more.
"I th- thought it was funny."
"Hey," Lloyd said softly, gently shaking my shoulder. "Don't fall asleep."
"Mmmmyessir," I slurred, peeling my eyelids back open. They caught his worried gaze. "M' wide awake. Fresh 's a daisy."
His brow crease deepened before he tapped on the side of his mask. I counted the threads of his shirt while he talked to his dad, getting lost after five as my attention span wavered and then repeating. I realised that I could hear his heartbeat, so I decided to turn my attention to that. It was reassuring.
