One That Got Away

Chapter 23

The clock on the wall wasn't helping. The waiting room was silent and tense and no one could even begin to talk. Fili was in surgery, having the damn bullet removed. Mara was in another room, having her leg fixed. And Thorin was pacing again. Kili sat very still on the bench, and David had been staring into the vending machine for half an hour, the little lights saying he put in a dollar blinking as he stared unseeing at the bags of snacks. Pythia was the only one who seemed at ease, which should have comforted the rest of them, but it didn't. She sat beside Kili, rubbing his shoulder gently and humming a soothing tune.

The doors burst open and Andy rushed in, covered in snowflakes and panting. The Twins were on her heels, scarves half on half off. David came out of his daze and embraced his fiance, pressing a kiss to her head. The Twins ran to their mother and held onto her as she hushed them, and the two young men looked suddenly like children. Kili glanced at Thorin who was still pacing and worried over his uncle. The door to the surgery room opened up suddenly and a woman rushed out. She tugged a mask down from her face.

"Is he alright?" Kili said, first to speak, first to stand.

"There's a complication. He's losing blood and he needs more, but we can't match his to any we have. We need your authorization to use false blood on him," the woman said seriously. Thorin blinked? Blood type? False blood?

"That's dangerous and untested," David said and Pythia nodded.

"It's his only option unless one of you know his blood type," she said with a helpless shrug.

"Kyle has the same blood type!" Ben said at once, pointing at Kili..

"And their brothers!" Tom added and the nurse turned to Kili.

"What? Oh yes, Kyle, me. I do-we have the same blood. I can give him some of mine," Kili said nodding vigorously. The woman led him away and Thorin started pacing again. This was madness and he was losing it.

"Mr. Thomas? Thomas Oak?" Thorin looked up and another woman walked towards him. "Miss Rymtec wants to see you." Thorin followed her into a room where Mara was in a bed, with her leg levered up and wrapped in white.

"Thanks," she said to the nurse, who left and she held out a hand to Thorin.

"Mara," he said in pain taking her hand kissing her knuckles. "I'm so sorry, for everything, my love I'm-"

"No it was me, it's alright. Hey." She tugged him down into the seat beside the bed and looked seriously at him. "Thorin, if anything this was my fault. Running off, getting Fili into trouble with a gang, and everything, it's on me."

"No, Mara," Thorin said, kissing her hand again. "I was terrible, I spat painful words at you I didn't mean. I never meant to hurt you, amralime. My natuathane, please, forgive me. I was a fool and angry and-" He choked on his words and bowed his head. "Can you ever forgive me?" he murmured. Mara didn't speak but leaned forward and kissed his brow and then cupped a hand under his chin, turning his face up. She kissed him again, this time more firmly, on his trembling lips and he sighed into her.

"I forgive you."

-

Thorin jerked awake and blinked blurrily. What? Why did his neck hurt so much? Why was still dressed and in his shoes? What-oh. His eyes landed on Fili on the bed, all sorts of tubes and wires sticking out of him and covered in a sheen of sweat. Kili was half on the bed, half in his chair, passed out and holding his big brother's hand. Thorin and Kili had been up most of the night worrying as nurses rushed in and out, taking Fili's temperature and inserting liquids into his tubes. He had a fever, a bad sign since he had just come out of surgery, and everyone was anxious.