One Helluva Ride

Chapter 38: Hospital Visit

        Since the incident, Splice refused to leave their apartment. They sat on the corner of their bed, leg bouncing endlessly. Their fight with Striker replayed in their head over and over. What could they have done differently? How could they let Striker get away again?

        They slowly stood up, wandering to their bathroom. They frowned at the sight of their reflection in the mirror. Their hair was messy. Their hair was unkempt. The gash on their arm looked just as bad as the day they got it. They winced as their fingertips graced over the wound.

        Splice yelped at the sound of a knock at their door. They peeked out from the doorway cautiously as they heard the door unlock. It swung open. On the other side of the door was Blitzø. His lips were pressed together and the lines on his forehead deepened. "Splice?" He asked. Splice pulled themself back into the bathroom. They couldn't bring themself to face him right now.

        "Splice, I know you're in the bathroom. I saw you." Blitzø said with a tinge of annoyance. Splice sighed. They shuffled out of the bathroom. "Look, uh- the team and I thought we should check up on you, so... Here I am." Blitzø said. Splice's gaze flicked up to meet his for a brief moment.

        Blitzø looked at the imp in front of him. "... you look tired." He said, offering a weak smile. Splice laughed. "You could say that." They replied. Blitzø shook his head, taking a few steps toward Splice. He took their hand. Splice jumped back as pain shot up through their arm. Blitzø's eyes landed on the gash.

        "You haven't gotten that fixed?" He asked. Guilt pooled inside of Splice as they averted their gaze. "Oh, fuck's sake, Splice." Blitzø said annoyedly. He took their other hand and started to drag them out of the apartment. "Wha- Where are we going?" They asked, trying to plant themself to the ground. Blitzø gave them a knowing glance. "The hospital." He answered.

        "It'll heal on its own." Splice said. Blitzø dragged them out of the building and toward the I.M.P. van. "Yeah, right. That needs stitches." He replied. Splice continued to resist until Blitzø pushed them into the back of the company car. They couldn't bring themself to go to the hospital. They didn't want to risk seeing Stolas–not after they'd been too late to save him.

       The ride to St. An's Hospital was quiet and awkward. Blitzø flipped through a few radio channels, his brows furrowing. With a huff, he turned the radio off. Splice sat silently, staring out the window. They did their best to look past their reflection in the glass. Blitzø adjusted the rearview mirror. His frown deepened at the sight of his disgruntled employee.

       Blitzø hoisted Splice over his shoulder and dragged them into the hospital. "Hey, fuckshit. My employee needs medical attention." He said, slamming his hand on the desk. The baphomet nurse–who was clearly very high–blinked slowly. ".. okay. What's the issue?" She asked. Blitzø was visibly annoyed. "They got slashed by an angelic blade. They need stitches." He answered.

       Muffy looked down at the clipboard on her desk. "You're not on the list, Mr. O." She slurred. Blitzø groaned. "I know. I'm telling you, this is an emergency." His tail flicked behind him in frustration. The nurse stared at Blitzø blankly for a moment. "Oh. Yeah, okay.. emergency." She muttered, almost like she was trying to remember what the word meant. "Emergency!" The definition suddenly came to her as she pressed a button beneath her desk. A few doctors came rushing out from the back, pulling Splice onto a stretcher and carrying them deeper into the hospital.

       "This.. really isn't necessary." Splice said, trying to sit up. One of the doctors pushed them back down. "Quick! Get them to intensive care." They said. Splice huffed, but stopped protesting. They let the doctors take them into one of the rooms of the hospital.

       "Looks like this is the only intensive room we have left." A different doctor said, frowning. The first waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. As long as the press doesn't find out about this, we won't get in any trouble." They replied.

       Splice's brows furrowed in confusion as they tried to get a better look at the room around them. The doctors blocked their vision. "Alright, where does it hurt?" A third doctor asked. Splice lifted their injured arm. "Uh.. here." They answered. The doctor's eyes widened in horror. "My Satan... what did this?" She questioned. All of this questioning felt unnecessary. "Angelic steel. And before you ask; no, not Carmine steel. Pure angelic steel." They said.

       After this revelation, the doctors got to work patching up the gash on Splice's arm. Once they finished, they all left the room, claiming they had other business to attend to. "Wow. What great bedside manner." Splice muttered, rolling their eyes. They sat up, hopping off of the hospital bed to leave the room.

       They paused once they passed the divider that separated the two halves of the room. Flowers covered almost every surface. Splice recognized the sleeping form in the hospital bed. Tears stung their eyes and threatened to spill out. "Fuck..." They muttered, taking a step toward the bedridden prince.

       Splice found themself at Stolas' bedside, carefully taking his hand in theirs. "Stolas. I'm so sorry. I should've been faster. I should've killed that slippery piece of shit when I had the chance." Their voice came out small, cracking as they forced back tears. Tension shot through their body as they felt his hand grasp theirs. "It's okay, Splice. You did your best. Thank you for saving me." Stolas' voice was weak and his eyes were half-lidded. They pulled his hand toward their chest, hugging his arm. Tears rolled down their cheeks.

       They stayed like that for a while. Eventually, Stolas drifted back to sleep. Splice slowly backed away, returning to the lobby. Blitzø sat in one of the chairs, bouncing his leg impatiently. "Shit, Splice! There you are. I thought those jackasses messed something up." He said, getting up and rushing over to his employee. Splice chuckled. "Nope. All good, see?" They showed Blitzø their stitches. He let out a deep sigh. "Thank fuck." He said, wrapping an arm around Splice's shoulder. "Alright, let's get you home."