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 Posted: Sat Dec 26, 2020 5:04 pm
Naturally, Jonah had no idea what was going on. He was busy getting the medical kit from August’s bathroom, then he had to pause for a few moments when his stupid brain had to point out that he was in August’s bathroom alone. Was that weird? He barely knew August. Sure, he’d been in here before, and he stayed to help August long enough that he knew where things were, but… he didn’t know, it seemed weird.
By the time he got back to the guest room, Yuuri was lying on the bed, obviously unconscious, and August was standing over him.
“What happened?”
Jonah rushed in with the med kit, setting it down at the foot of the bed before drawing closer to Yuuri. His skin was pale and his breathing was shallow, but otherwise he looked relatively peaceful.
“Did he… did he pass out?” Jonah asked, which he realized was probably a dumb question since the answer seemed obvious. Jonah turned his concerned expression onto August, beseeching.
“You have to help him! I… he was alone and scared, and… he told me it was a monster, so I thought—… You said you’d help him!”
Jonah wasn’t quite yelling, but he wasn’t as quiet and meek as he usually was either. Yuuri might be a stranger, but he needed help. He was hurt and in pain, and what if he didn’t have anyone else? If he couldn’t afford to go to a hospital, he could get sick or hurt even worse or die.
“If you… if you can’t, I… I’m sorry, I just thought… I thought I could help.”
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Posted: Sat Dec 26, 2020 8:11 pm
August stared at Jonah when he returned, watching him as he approached the bed and set the med kit down, and then as he beseeched him to help this apparent Negaverse agent.
If it weren't for the chaos already in the starseed, August would have just sent the comatose body along to the hospital to remain indefinitely with the others.
"I need you to get me hot water and towels. I can't do anything with all this blood," August said after a moment of silence when Jonah finally seemed to calm himself down.
If it had been anyone but Jonah asking him to help, he probably would have turned them away and told them they needed to figure things out at the hospital because he was off duty. But Jonah continued to intrigue him for whatever reason.
"There should be a mop bucket in the laundry room," he added, rolling up the already blood stained sleeves of his button down shirt. "You're going to help me get his arm cleaned up so I can work on him," August explained, turning to the lamp on the table beside him, and removed the lampshade to get more light into the room.
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Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2020 11:10 am
No sooner had August finished giving instructions than Jonah sprang into action. There was still a large part of him that questioned whether it was a good idea for August to be offering any sort of medical treatment after he’d been drinking, but August seemed… sober enough.
Maybe…
Either way, Yuuri had insisted he couldn’t go to the hospital, so unless Jonah wanted to go against his wishes, it didn’t appear they had very many options.
Towels first. Jonah grabbed a few washcloths, too, while he was at it. He took them from the linen cabinet in the guest bathroom. They were white and would show bloodstains vividly, but he could bleach them before running them through the wash and hopefully that would take care of it. After the towels, he got a bucket of hot water, lugging it into the guestroom with his usual dutifulness, pleased to be helping even if he never really knew what to do in these situations.
It didn’t make him any less nervous. He still questioned everything he did — whether he was doing enough; if anything he did was actually correct, or if he was just making a mess of things or getting in the way — but at least he felt useful. It was better than standing around watching while August did all the work.
That didn’t mean it was easy to look at Yuuri’s injuries. Jonah felt his stomach turn while cleaning off Yuuri’s arm; he had to take a deep breath and force the nausea down, reminding himself over and over again that what he was doing was helpful, like a mantra in his head.
“I didn’t—… I mean… I’m sorry to bother you… when you’re not at work,” he said, wincing over the mess on the bed. “I promise I’ll clean up when we’re done.”
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Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2020 11:47 am
Should August be doing this after he'd been drinking? Probably not. But as Jonah said, this guy didn't want to go to the hospital. It wasn't as though he was completely drunk to the point he couldn't do anything. He was just a bit buzzed. The alternative was for Jonah to do the stitching.
"You didn't bother me," August said as he threaded the appropriate curved needle. As for the mess, "There's no need. It's all going to be thrown away. You can repay me by helping out around here again. A week or two should be adequate."
Hey, it was Jonah's fault the bed ended up being ruined anyway. If he hadn't brought this guy over for help, he wouldn't have had to get the bed and sheets ruined.
"You'll be in charge of purchasing the new mattress and sheets. I'll give you my card to use," August said as he used some clean gause and disinfectant to clean the area he would be working on, and a little anesthetic from a thin syringe to prove to Jonah that he wasn't completely heartless. Jonah seemed to favor that.
"Keep pressure here," he instructed, taking one of Jonah's hands to place over the clean gauze now protecting the open wound. "If it starts bleeding again, get some more gauze."
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Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2020 2:17 pm
Was it really necessary for him to stay?
Sure, Jonah planned to stick around until they could get Yuuri home safe and sound, and he certainly meant to clean up, especially since it was his fault August’s things were getting ruined in the first place. But a week or two? Didn’t that seem kind of excessive?
“Isn’t that… wasteful?” Jonah asked, putting pressure against the gauze as August instructed (after flushing a bit when August took his hand). “I… I’m sure I can clean it. The towels, at least. I don’t know about… about the bed.”
Jonah paused and frowned guiltily. Did it sound like he was lecturing August? He didn’t mean to. They were August's things, so August could do whatever he wanted with them, and if that meant throwing it all away… He clearly had the money to replace everything. It just seemed kind of… odd.
August wasn’t like other people Jonah had met. He was cold and distant and didn’t make an effort to put on a friendly face, but he’d still been nice to Jonah. Or nice enough, anyway. He showed more interest in Jonah than some members of Jonah’s family did, at least — which would probably seem pretty pathetic if Jonah bothered to say any of that out loud. And he was helping Yuuri after Jonah had asked, taking time out of his leisure period to do something that basically amounted to work.
“Sorry, I can… if that’s what you want, then I can help and… buy things. And clean and… make sure Yuuri gets home.”
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Posted: Sun Dec 27, 2020 2:52 pm
August frowned as he worked, thinking he might have come across too strongly in this case. Before, Jonah seemed almost enthusiastic to stay with him, although he was well aware that most of that enthusiasm came from not having to go back to his own place. He thought that maybe if Jonah had a good enough excuse, then he would stay. It wasn't as though he wouldn't have his own room and could come and go as he pleased.
"Do what you want," he said a couple moments after Jonah explained his intent to make sure their unconscious guest was taken home, making sure not to cut him off from whatever rambly things that came to Jonah's mind. August had a feeling that Jonah was used to being told to shut up, or was often cut off when he tried talking. It would at least explain why he started and stopped so often in his sentences.
He focused mostly on the task at hand, working on the stitches until he was satisfied with them, before starting to bandage the young man's arm. It would likely leave a scar, but he tried to keep it as neat as possible.
"Can you get a glass of water from the kitchen?" he asked, needing to at least get Jonah out of the room long enough for him to grab the starseed from his subspace pocket. This young man wasn't going to be happy, but at least he was stitched up now and not in danger of dying. Probably. August would still need to do a more thorough examination of course.
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Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2020 2:24 pm
Jonah felt as if he’d done something wrong. It might be all in his head, but August didn’t sound all that pleased.
Then again, he always seemed pretty cold even when he was being nice. Jonah knew that; he simply wasn’t used to it. He would probably never be used to it. Easy as it was for him to misinterpret the things expressive people said, someone as inexpressive as August made him feel as if he were walking on eggshells.
Jonah shuffled out of the room for a glass of water, trotting up the stairs to the second level where the kitchen, living area, and August’s bedroom were. It was as clean as he remembered from the last time he was there. The lack of many personal touches made him wonder what sort of things August was actually interested in. He hadn’t learned much when he stayed last time. August was not much of a conversationalist, and Jonah felt like a bother asking so many questions.
He filled a glass quickly and made his way back down to the lower floor, careful not to slosh any; it was just water, but he’d hate to make another mess when August’s guest room and guest bathroom were already covered in bloodstains.
All of this was probably such a nuisance, but Jonah didn’t know what else he was supposed to have done.
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Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2020 7:06 pm
August waited until Jonah left the room, and then shifted quickly to Bloodstone and back, this time making sure to set the starseed down before doing so. He knew he would probably have his hands full once this kid woke back up, so he waited until he was fairly certain Jonah was on his way back down the stairs before carefully setting it back into Yuuri’s chest.
Had he upset Jonah? Maybe he needed to be careful about not being so curt in his answers or orders. He tended to scare off most people, so he should be flattered that Jonah bothered to ask him for help, instead of someone else.
Maybe he was coming off too strongly? He wasn’t entirely sure how this was supposed to work. As an… acquaintanceship. This is why he only had two friends, probably.
“You should drink that,” August said when Jonah returned to the room. “When did you last eat? Take what you want from the fridge,” he said as he stood up from where he’d been sitting next to the blood soaked bed.
Hmm, maybe that was too much, too. How was he supposed to show he was concerned without being obnoxious? Having a starseed removed was one thing, but the blood loss and fatigue added a whole new level of feeling like s**t. Yuuri could hear voices, but couldn’t move or open his eyes. He felt weak and in pain, and was unable to allow his body to react to the need to run after what just happened to him.
Maybe it would be better to continue pretending like he was unconscious? Once this Dr. August… Negaverse Captain… was gone, and Jonah was no longer watching him, Yuuri would sneak out.
Would he get very far? Probably not, but it was better than being there, right…?
Although… he supposed it might be a good thing that his starseed had been returned. For whatever reason.
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2020 5:51 pm
Jonah looked from August, to Yuuri, to the glass of water in his hand.
He blinked.
“M-Me?” he asked. It wasn’t for Yuuri?
He supposed that made sense, seeing as Yuuri was still (apparently) unconscious. Jonah assumed he would just leave the water on the side table so Yuuri could have it whenever he woke up. He was going to leave it, and find some of the pain reliever he knew was in August’s medicine cabinet to place beside it, and then get to work cleaning up the bathroom.
“I… I ate before we… before coming here,” he said. Coffee and apple pie didn’t make much of a meal, but it was better than some of the stuff Jonah usually ate.
Seconds later, Jonah winced and bit his lower lip. Did refusing make him seem unappreciative? He didn’t want August to think of him as ungrateful. August had already done more for him than most people in his life.
“Thank you.” He struggled not to stammer again, holding his breath until he could get his thoughts in order and knew for sure what he wanted to say. “I’m sorry I bothered you while you’re off the clock. I know you said it’s not a bother, but…”
He stalled out before he could finish, frowning over the failure. “I’m still… sorry. Thank you… for helping. I don’t like seeing people hurt.”
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2020 6:27 pm
As usual, August kept his mouth shut as Jonah spoke. If he felt the need to ramble in order to get his thoughts out, then so be it. August had nothing better to do than to listen anyway. It wasn’t as though anything Jonah said bored him. It was better than being expected to join in a conversation.
“Did you drink yet?” August asked after a few moments, not wanting to inadvertently cut Jonah off. Obviously he hadn’t had the water, since August was making a point to stare at it. What Jonah apparently failed to realize was that August cared very little about this Negaverse boy. If Jonah wanted to get him water, there was nothing stopping him from doing so.
“You didn’t bother me,” he repeated what he’d said before, but someone like Jonah needed to hear it as many times as needed, and a few more to be sure. His tone, although his usual coldness, didn’t sound dismissive or annoyed. He genuinely hadn’t been bothered, and although Jonah seemed to think differently at that moment, he wasn’t bothering him then, either.
“You’re not bothering me,” he said after another moment, because Jonah needed to hear it. “It was no trouble. Luckily my hands are steady whether or not I’m drunk.” Lucky for Yuuri anyway. Who should be awake. His breathing wasn’t as slow as it had been, and his pulse seemed to have picked up as well.
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 4:36 pm
August said he wasn’t a bother, but Jonah still felt like one. That probably wouldn’t change no matter how many times August insisted. Everyone else seemed to think he was a bother, except his sister, but she had her own life and her own friends, so Jonah didn’t like relying on her for company and reassurance.
“O-Okay,” Jonah mumbled, a little bashful.
He sipped at the water so August would know that he appreciated the thoughtfulness. When Yuuri showed signs of waking, Jonah would just go get more water for him.
At the comment regarding the steadiness of August’s hands, Jonah flushed in a mix of shame and disapproval.
“Next time you should… you should just tell me if you’re drinking, so… so I don’t—” bother you was what he was going to say, but August had already denied that, so Jonah swallowed the comment down. “I mean… if there is a next time. What if… what if you accidentally hurt someone? I… I wouldn’t want that.”
He stared down into his water instead of looking August in the eye. “But… thank you. I know… I said that already, but… thanks.”
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 5:22 pm
"If I told you, you wouldn't have come over," August pointed out, which he thought was obvious. If Jonah thought it wasn't a good idea to go over, then why bother texting him in the first place?
"I have nothing better to do, so I drink," he said, although maybe that wasn't a good thing to admit. "Isn't that why you drink?" If he recalled correctly, Jonah had been drinking when he helped him out of that alley.
"I won't accidentally hurt anyone," he reassured his guest, knowing Jonah was having trouble coming to terms with the possibility of someone getting hurt as a result of Jonah's own actions, on account of August's drinking.
But it was true. He wouldn't accidentally hurt anyone. Intentionally hurt someone? Yes. But not by accident.
"You can thank me by keeping an eye on him while I clean up. He could probably do with a shower when he wakes. And you know where my extra clothes are. I think you left a shirt here when you stayed," he added as he got to his feet to collect the medical supplies. He needed to change his own clothes after all that.
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Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 7:01 pm
Jonah almost argued. He should be the one cleaning, since he’d been the one to bring all the blood into the apartment in the first place. But, based on August’s behavior so far, Jonah assumed he would insist. As always seemed to be the case, it was easier to just agree than to try changing someone’s mind.
“Thank you,” Jonah repeated, whispering it this time in case his continued thanks was getting annoying.
He kept his mouth shut about the rest of it — August’s reasons for drinking; his own reasons for drinking; the possibility of August accidentally hurting someone. If August said it was okay, then it probably was. August was older and more intelligent and he had a job that let him help people, so he obviously knew what he was talking about. Jonah was nothing and no one, just a shy, anxious young man doing the best he could, only his best didn’t seem good enough for some people.
Somehow, it was good enough for August.
So far, anyway. What were chances that August wouldn’t get annoyed with him one day? Probably very slim.
For now, Jonah shuffled over to the bed to take August’s place, watching over Yuuri while the other slept, trying to convince himself that he’d done the right thing.
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