His Territory

14

Los groaned, his body trembling as I emptied another bag of ice onto his torso. Gian hovered over him, his hands pressing down hard on the towel covering Los's wound.

"Stop yelling. You're going to strain yourself." I tried to sound calm, but his pain was evident in every wince.

Los grumbled something unintelligible, then settled deeper into the ice, letting his eyes flutter shut.

"Keep your eyes open, or I'm going to assume you're dead." Gian leaned harder into the wound, earning a growl from Los.

"I might as well be dead. I look like a market fish right now," Los groaned, his voice hoarse.

"It'll keep the swelling down. Stop bitching," I shot back, walking out of the bathroom to give myself a moment to breathe.

As I stepped into the kitchen, I found Cristian coming in with grocery bags, the early morning light filtering through the window behind him. He dumped the bags on the table with a sigh, pulling out a chair before collapsing into it with a heavy huff.

"They didn't have rubbing alcohol, just peroxide," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I grabbed two of everything, like you asked. Plus, extra cotton."

I rifled through the bags, finding the medical supplies along with a few candy bars and a mini bottle of vodka. I raised the bottle, arching a brow at him.

"For the pain, you know?" Cristian shrugged, pulling out another mini bottle and tossing it back with a quick gulp.

"It's seven in the morning, Cristian."

"Baby, please." His eyes softened, an unspoken plea etched into his expression.

I sighed, walking around the table and settling onto his lap. His arms instinctively wrapped around my waist, and I leaned into the warmth of his neck, pressing soft kisses against his skin. He let out a breathy moan, his tension melting under my touch.

"Go lie down and get some rest, mi amor. Los will be fine." My lips trailed to the spot just below his ear, making him shiver slightly. His hand traveled up my thigh, squeezing gently as he closed his eyes for a moment.

"You are so..." His voice cracked, the exhaustion evident. "...amazing." When our eyes met, I saw the tears gathering, ready to spill over. I brushed a thumb under his eye, gently wiping away the moisture before it could fall.

"You've done enough for now," I whispered. "Let me handle this. I'll come get you when we're done, yeah?"

He nodded slowly, resting his head on the table as I rose from his lap, gathering the grocery bags. I turned back at the doorway, watching him as he sat there, defeated. "Thank you for everything, Cristian," I said softly. "Consider this one of the ways I can pay you back."

His head barely lifted from the table, but I caught his words. "I'm not him. You're not our maid."

"I know," I said, pausing in the doorway. "But I don't mind cleaning up a mess... when it's for someone I care about."

♛♛♛

Los screamed into the towel stuffed in his mouth as I dabbed peroxide onto his wound, his body twitching with every touch. He spat out the towel, gasping for air. "I'm going to fucking kill all of them, I swear it. Jesus fuck, Lu, that hurts! Stop!"

Gian pinned Los's wrist to the side of the tub, holding him down. "Carlos, calm the hell down."

I lowered my voice, trying to control the tension. "If you don't let me clean this now, you'll die from an infection. Does that sound like a badass way to go?"