Impenetrable Heart | The Oneshot Collection

Burning Intuition

     A/N- Request by Archive's @FunnyFox204! It was a pleasure to write, and very well thought out. I hadn't realized until now that this topic wasn't touched upon much in the story, so it was fun to add onto it! This is a chapter in which John is still recovering in the hospital from the fire and discussion ensues about the events surrounding it, and Alex's life-saving intuition.

     ...

     "Are we still at the hospital?"

     "Yes, John, we are still at the hospital."

     Alex sighed tiredly, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Every half hour or so John would fade in and out of consciousness, asking the same question time and time again. Though it was funny at first, it became less so around the sixth time. He leaned back in his chair, watching as Laf and Herc did a puzzle on an open stand next to them. They were keeping John overnight to finish testing on things like his lungs and whatnot, along with pumping him with more medicine than seemed legal. John sighed quietly, though it sounded more like a whine given the state of his throat and lungs.

     He frowned at John, who was laying on his back with the sheets pulled up to his chest, his head lolled over facing away from the three. It felt wrong seeing him connected to IV's and monitors like he was, and any time he wasn't actively awake, it made Alex's chest tie itself in knots. He was terrible at handling other people being sick, considering how a simple illness left his mother. He shook the thoughts off his mind and turned his attention back to the other two's puzzle, which now was taking the form of a horse.

     "Nah, man, there's no way all the pieces are here," Herc grumbled, lightly tossing a piece.

     "You won't know unless you actually help, mon ami."

     "None of the pieces fit though!"

     Alex chuckled but was cut off by more light groaning from John's bed. He frowned, watching John screw his eyes shut with a huff.

     "Can you guys maybe not yell?" He murmured. "My head..."

     Laf and Herc both frowned, looking increasingly guilty.

     "Sorry, John."

     "S'alright," He said, beginning to sit up. Alex subconsciously stood up, just so John didn't accidentally pull out his IV or anything else.

     Again.

     "How are you feeling?" He asked, sinking back down into the chair.

     "Shitty," he replied with a weak smile, opening his eyes. "But I'm kickin'."

     John had been continuously plagued by coughing fits for the past few nights, which sounded painful to even listen to. He could go on for times as long as a half-hour before they finally calmed down, and even then may not be able to catch his breath for another half hour after that. The three had grown somewhat accustomed to it- if you didn't put into account the time John coughed up blood- which in that case they absolutely panicked. The doctor assured them that was a symptom of the smoke inhalation, but they were shaken nonetheless.

     They all spoke for a while until Alex noticed John's voice becoming hoarse, talking less and less. Eventually, they switched on the tv to give John's throat a break. Laf was flipping through the channels mindlessly when they settled on the news channel. At first, Alex thought nothing of it, until he realized something he had completely forgotten about up until that point.

     "Up next, how one man heroically alerted firefighters of an unknown victim in a fire, coming up after the break-"

    Fuck.