Charlotte gave Link a sour look, and Rhett could see Link flinch in fear. He wanted to rub his back or just hold his hands and say it's alright, but he had to resort to just speech, for Link's sake.
"You're okay," Rhett smiled and Link subtly smiled back.
"Well, I'll go drop off your blood at the pharmacy Link, and fetch some bandages. You need to stop scratching yourself so much," she sighed. "You don't want to loose even more blood."
"I- i try. It's hard," Link answered, looking at Rhett for support. Link wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his sweater and stayed quiet. Charlotte left the room, leaving the two in a temporary silence.
The traffic outside was building up and they could hear horns being beeped and engines being revved up. One of Link's common pastimes was watching the traffic below him, with his fan blowing cold air to his right, but he just didn't feel like getting up now.
"Hey, Link," Rhett said, breaking the silence.
"y-yeah," he answered.
"It really upsets me when you hurt yourself like that," Rhett frowned, gesturing towards Link's bloody right hand and his scarred wrists.
"I'm sorry."
"Why do you do it to yourself?"
"I don't know."
"Are you sure?"
"Mhm."
Rhett shuffled back into his chair and tears rolled slowly down his face.
"I hope you don't think it's my fault you grabbed my hand just then."
Link blankly stared at his bloody hands, and then back at Rhett.
"It just came over me," Link sighed.
The two men sat in silence for a few minutes.
"I heard your old favourite song on the radio on the way here," Rhett said, avoiding the toxic conversation they just had.
Link looked confused. "What was it again?"
"Trees," Rhett answered. "Do you want to hear it?"
Link hadn't listened to music in what seemed like forever. Well, music he was fond of. He occasionally heard some from the lobby outside, but it was usually just modern chart stuff that Link didn't classify as 'proper music'.
Rhett scrolled down his music list and arrived at a playlist he named 'Link's favourites'. He found trees, by twenty one pilots, and after the first second passed, Link immediately remembered the first verse.
"I know where you stand," Link quietly sung along.
"Silent, in the trees."
"And that's where I am."
"Silent in the trees."
Rhett stayed silent as he watched Link's head sway as he sung with Tyler. His voice was raspy, but Rhett was in love; with the song, and the singer in front of him.
Link was in his own world. The lyrics he had previously forgotten brought back so many memories he had since tried to avoid remembering.
"I want to know you."
"I want to see."
"I want to say..."
"Hello."
Rhett and Link both sung in unison.
Link's head fell back on his pillow, and he shut his eyes.
"Hello."
"Hello."
"Hello."
Link ran around the tall, majestic trees, dodging in between bushes and rocks.
"You'll never get me!" he squeaked, looking behind his shoulder. He expected to see his best friend chasing behind him, but there was nobody there.
"R-Rhett?" he called, and his voice echoed from branch to branch. He spun around in a 360 circle looking to see if he could find him, but he had no luck.
"Rhett!" he yelled, stumbling and falling backwards on some logs beneath his feet. He looked up to see the trees towering over him and the sky slowly turning a dark sapphire blue.
"R- Rhett.." he choked out, and his eyesight went fuzzy. Link reached his hand to the back of his head and then brought it close to his eyes, and he could just see two blurry fingers covered in a red substance; which was obviously his blood. He then quickly fell out of consciousness, and lay in the middle of the forest, alone. Silent, in the trees.
"Hello."
Link slowly opened his eyes, and the song came to an end.
Rhett switched it off and pushed his phone back in his pocket, and the door swung open, making Link shudder.
"You're okay," Link thought.
"Right. Let's sort you out Link," Charlotte panted, as she had ran up at least seven flights of stairs in the last ten minutes. She went back to the desk, where she would prepare all of Link's different medications and needles and other things, and cut open a new set of hand-size bandages.
Link rolled his head across his pillow to face Rhett on his right, and they smiled at each other.
"I'm sorry about snatching my hand like that, you did nothing wrong," Link apologised, fiddling with his sweater strings and holding back his sadness.
"No Link, it's fine. I know you don't like touching me, it's alright."
"Rhett."
"Yes?"
"Can I tell you something please."
Rhett nodded. "Yes, anything Link."
Link reached his bloody, scratched up hand towards Rhett's, and tried to hold it. He was too weak to hold the weight, but Rhett caught on and let Link's tiny pale hand rest in his.
"I do like it."
-
I worked super hard on this chapter so I hoped you liked it. Pls comment what you think <3 also we got 100 reads which is amazing! Thanks xx
