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 Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2020 1:08 pm
August had certainly bitten off more than he could chew. He didn’t want to risk the knight finding him by powering up again, but he really needed to get back to his apartment as quickly as possible. He’d hidden a starseed there for emergencies, and if he could just get his hands on it, things would be infinitely better in terms of being able to heal.
He couldn’t risk going to the hospital either. Not after the knight practically threatened to find him that way.
Keeping his breathing as steady as he could, August closed one eye against the pain as he pressed his fingers along his left shin, trying to determine if the wolf’s teeth had made contact with bone, and if he needed to sneak an x-ray of his own leg at some point.
Probably, from the feel of it. But the pain was almost too overwhelming for him to be able to properly diagnose himself. He gave up and let his arms slump down by his side, and went back to fighting off unconsciousness.
Then again… maybe if he were to die in an alleyway, it would be better for everyone. He couldn’t imagine many people being upset. Maybe Celeste, but only because she wouldn’t have him to b***h to about things with.
Everyone else…? Not so much.
So August closed his eyes to rest, figuring if he woke up he would try to keep going. If not… well, he wouldn’t know either way.
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Posted: Wed Sep 02, 2020 10:37 am
Jonah was on his way home after another night of feeling sorry for himself at the piano bar.
Well, he was on his way somewhere. He didn’t have a destination in mind yet, he just knew he wasn’t ready to go home. One would think his grandfather being so old meant he would go to sleep early and leave Jonah alone, but that assumption had been proven wrong many times over. At this point, Jonah thought of it like a game: How long could he stay out before his grandfather finally gave up? Was midnight late enough? One o’clock? Two?
He didn’t know what time it was now, having avoided his phone for the last few hours, just in case his grandfather left him a message. All he knew was that it was late and he was once again walking the streets of Destiny City without a clear head. He should be careful. What if he ran into another one of those monsters? But sometimes the thought of getting mauled by a youma seemed like it would be a better experience than facing his grandfather. At least a youma wouldn’t berate him or call him names.
So it was that Jonah ended up making his way down an alley, taking a shortcut from one street to another as he considered dropping into a late night diner for some hot food and a cup of coffee.
He almost tripped over the figure slumped by the dumpster. Jonah saw the body at the last second, skidded to a halt, and flinched back in alarm, concerned at first that whoever it was might be dead. That frightening thought was put to rest as soon as he heard shallow breathing, and he crouched down to peer closer in case the person needed help.
Only to set his eyes on a familiar face.
“Dr. August…?”
That wasn’t quite right, but Jonah’s thoughts were fuzzy from alcohol. It’d been years since he’d been given that business card, and even though he’d kept it, he’d never built up the courage to call.
But he remembered the name August.
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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2020 8:45 am
As it turned out, August was called back from the edge of unconsciousness by a voice he almost didn’t recognize, seeing as it has been years since he’d cornered the young man in that coffee shop. But sure enough, as he opened one eye to look up, he recognized Jonah even in the darkness.
“Jonah,” he grunted in response, and pushed himself to sit straighter against the wall. Part of him knew he should probably ask for help, but another part thought it was best if Jonah continued on his way and left him there.
Another attempt was made to push himself up from the ground, and August bit back against the pain in his leg as he finally stood. It was bad enough that anyone found him like this, but especially someone who knew his name. What if Jonah posted on some social media site that he’d found August in an alley with his leg torn up, and the knight found it?
“I would appreciate you keeping this to yourself,” he said in a way that didn’t sound much like a request. With one hand against the wall, August made an attempt to limp towards the opening of the alley, but the pain was too much to allow his leg to support him now that the adrenaline wore off. He leaned heavily against the wall to keep himself upright.
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Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2020 2:58 pm
Jonah flushed in embarrassment, and maybe just a little bit of pleasure. He’d never expected August to remember him. Granted, he’d never expected August to confront him or give him one of his business cards to begin with, but seeing as Jonah hadn’t actually put it to use, he’d thought August would forget about him eventually.
He wasn’t exactly the most memorable person. He didn’t have an important job like August did. He wasn’t nearly as good looking, either. He was just quiet, awkward Jonah, the kid with no friends who always thought of himself as a kid despite the fact that he’d long since become an adult.
“I… of course,” he agreed.
It wasn’t like he had anyone in his life to talk to. Maybe he’d mention it to his sister if she wasn’t busy with her own life. Somehow he doubted she’d care that he’d found an injured man in an alley. That sort of thing happened all the time in Destiny City.
Cautiously, Jonah followed after August, fidgeting from nerves. Instinct told him to reach out to steady August, but they were still practically strangers to one another and he had no idea if August would even appreciate being touched, so Jonah was left wringing his hands for lack of something else to do.
“Are you okay?” he asked, then visibly winced as he thought about what a stupid question that was. Of course August wasn’t okay. “I could… help,” he suggested — haltingly, because there wasn’t much he could realistically do besides make sure August found his way to the hospital. “Is that blood? Did someone hurt you? Was it a youma?”Guine Lol you tagged this the day my water broke.
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Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2020 1:42 pm
It was a stupid question, but it was also pretty obvious that Jonah realized how stupid of a question it was. At least he was capable of figuring things like that out. Not that August would have responded to such a stupid question either way.
Still, it seemed as though Jonah wasn’t easily deterred by the sight of blood, which could prove useful. Some people tended to be too squeamish. Those people tended to be a waste of space.
For a moment, August was trying to decide if he should take advantage of being helped. He would at least get out of range of the Knight faster with help, but there was the risk of this fidgety young man being somehow involved with the White Moon.
Which meant he came to a complete halt when Jonah asked if a youma had attacked him.
“Youma?” he repeated, making sure to arrange his expression into something akin to confusion. “A giant dog attacked me. Like a monster. Is that what they’re called?” he asked, watching Jonah for any hint that he knew more than he was letting on. It would be unfortunate if he was White Moon. August had heard that memory wipes meant getting back into society was often more difficult than it was worth.
“You can help me get to my apartment,” he decided, stumbling again as he tried to take another step. “It’s about sixteen blocks away. I have medical supplies there.”
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Posted: Mon Nov 23, 2020 8:28 pm
Normally, Jonah avoided anything violent and bloody. He was nervous by nature and that tended to result in squeamishness. But when it came to helping others, he could overlook the blood and gore until a more opportune moment. Later, when he was by himself again, he’d think back over tonight and freak out about such a gruesome injury.
Jonah tipped his head to the side and blinked as August described the attack. It certainly sounded like one of the weird monsters that roamed the streets of Destiny City.
Poor August. It was a shame that someone who helped sick and injured people was caught out at night like this. His leg looked uncomfortable at best.
“I’ve seen one of those monsters once,” Jonah explained. “Or more than once. But last time a boy in bright robes saved me. I don’t really know how. One second the monster was there, and the next we were somewhere else. I guess I must have blacked out.”
Jonah flushed again. He was weak and foolish, and here he was admitting to being weak and foolish to someone who seemed to be anything but. August was going to regret giving him his number at this rate.
After clearing his throat, Jonah rushed forward and motioned for August to sling an arm over his shoulders. Jonah wasn’t nearly strong enough to carry him, but he could at least keep him steady.
“Umm… are you sure you have enough supplies?” he asked. “I could… help you to the hospital instead. I… I have my phone. Why don’t I call an uber? Sixteen blocks is a long way.”
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 5:26 am
Jonah's description of the last time he crossed paths with a youma was suspicious and didn't quite match up. Typically anyone in bright colors would be White Moon, but the way Jonah said he was in one place and then suddenly somewhere else seemed like it could have been a teleport.
While he wasn't particularly fond of the idea of Jonah meeting his demise at the hand of a fellow agent or youma for that matter, August had to wonder how this mousey, fidgety young man managed to keep himself from death, or serious harm at the very least.
"It's good someone was there to help you," August said as he still fished for information, but finding himself distracted by the increasing pain in his leg. "I've only heard rumors… of people with magic that can…"
He paused to try and catch his breath, but a glare at Jonah's suggestion to bring him to a hospital instead hopefully quashed it from being mentioned again.
Still, he put his arm around Jonah's offered shoulders before he had a chance to run away, August's internal Celeste reminding him that people didn't take kindly to being glared at. And that his face was particularly mean looking.
"I have enough supplies. I just need an extra set of hands," he insisted with a grunt and hobbled forward with Jonah's help. It went without saying that Jonah was being volunteered to be that extra set of hands whether he wanted to or not.
While he didn't exactly like the idea of anyone else seeing his face while he was trying to get away from that Knight and his wolf, he nodded in agreement to Jonah's offer to call an uber.
As close as he had been to passing out just a short time ago, August was realistic enough to know he would probably lose enough blood in sixteen blocks that he wouldn't be able to refuse being taken to the hospital.
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 1:24 pm
This mousey, fidgety young man often wondered the same thing — how someone as weak and useless as he was could survive twenty-seven years in the type of place Destiny City had become. With how often he wandered the streets alone at night, someone might assume he had a death wish.
Maybe he did. Scared as he was, he didn’t think anyone would miss him much if he happened to meet his end within the jaws of a monster.
Jonah fished his phone out of his pocket as soon as August gave his consent, opening the relevant app to order them an uber. He paused their conversation long enough to acquire August’s address, avoiding eye contact all the while. The thought of seeing August’s wound up close almost made him cringe, but Jonah was nothing if not helpful. He couldn’t just leave August to suffer.
“I… I never knew if it was true or not…” Jonah finally continued. “The rumors, I mean. I’ve seen things, but… I always wondered if… maybe I was making it up.”
It was hard to convince himself of it when he considered the extent of his encounters with the oddities of Destiny City, but he had so much to worry about already that supernatural things often seemed like too much for him to handle. It was easier to ignore it all until he had no choice but to acknowledge it. What was he supposed to do about any of it anyway? Magic and monsters were beyond the capabilities of one timid young man to take care of.
“Sorry, I’m—…” Stupid? Crazy? Worthless? All of the above? Jonah shook his head to try dispelling those thoughts, but they just sunk deeper into his brain. “You’re in pain. You don’t need to listen to me ramble. I… I don’t know how much good I can do, but I’ll try my best, and if you decide you need to go to the hospital later… I can help. Unless you want me to leave you alone. In which case I can… call someone else for you… or something…”
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Posted: Tue Nov 24, 2020 6:33 pm
August knew he wasn’t the best company. Celeste told him many times. Sometimes he wondered why she bothered sticking around him after so many years, but then again, she didn’t have that friendly of a personality either.
But the entire time they waited for the uber Jonah ordered, and the entire time they were in transport, and the entire time it took for August to unlock the door to the building and hobble to the elevator to take them to the top floor, August didn’t bother saying much.
Instead, he let Jonah ramble as he felt fit. August did and said nothing to discourage him. He was attentive enough that Jonah would know he wasn’t being ignored, but other than a couple words here and there to keep him from feeling too awkward to shut up, August let him talk.
In fact, if August had been in less pain, he might have found the whole thing rather amusing. Poor Jonah seemed to be a nervous talker, although he seemed to have a problem with his confidence, so he often repeated words, on the verge of stuttering. He also smelled like alcohol, and was probably tipsy at the very least. That didn’t bother August. He just needed someone else to pass him the supplies he needed while he fixed his leg. It also meant the more Jonah talked, the less August had to come up with something to say.
The electronic keypad clicked the door unlocked when August held his watch up to it, and he pushed the door open, arm still around Jonah’s shoulders for support.
Inside they were greeted with two doors that went off on either side. If Jonah ever had the chance to explore, he would find that one went to a guest suite and laundry room, and the other side was to August’s office and small library, accompanied by its own bathroom.
Straight ahead were floor to ceiling windows, and in front of that an elegant spiral staircase with what looked like a large glass tube nestled in the center. Everything was clean, straight lines, and almost all clinically white, or very muted colors and grays.
“The supplies are in my bathroom. Upstairs,” he finally said, sounding more tired than he had before. It didn’t help that he was still losing blood, although he managed to soak up most of it so there wasn’t a trail behind them.
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Posted: Sun Nov 29, 2020 12:16 pm
Tense and uncomfortable was typically Jonah’s usual state, but it had still been a while since he’d felt this awkward. Despite the occasional encouraging sound or one-word reply offered by August, Jonah could not help but worry that he was talking to much. August had a handsome face, but his expressions were reserved bordering on harsh. It put most other resting b***h faces to shame.
Jonah spoke to fill the silence, though nothing he said was anything of importance. He mostly rambled about youma and the worsening state of Destiny City, but had nothing much to say about either, except to repeat things he’d heard other people say. “My grandfather said” or “Once I heard someone talk about” frequently began his sentences. Jonah worried he’d only make it obvious that he didn’t have much of a life, but he also figured August might be a bit too focused on his leg to care much about the useless dolt helping him.
The building they came to was impressive, to say the least. Coming from a wealthy family, Jonah was used to seeing what money could buy even if he wasn’t always allowed access to that money himself, yet August’s apartment still surprised him. He knew doctors often had good salaries, especially those who were particularly skilled in their craft and in high demand, but the apartment spoke of a level of money he’d not expected.
It was, however, just as clean as he’d imagined a doctor’s home would be.
“Can you… I mean… A-Are you sure you can make it up the stairs?”
Jonah glanced down at August’s leg and winced. It was difficult to see how much blood soaked his pant leg without any lights on, but they’d been inside less than a minute and there was already blood on the floor. Hopefully they hadn’t left their driver’s car a complete mess.
Carefully, Jonah eased them toward the staircase, but he stopped before reaching it, staring worriedly into August’s face, which could not completely disguise his pain.
“If… If you tell me what you need… I can go upstairs and get it, and you can sit down here and rest…”
Not that there seemed to be a good place for him to sit. Jonah looked around and saw a lot of white. Blood might ruin some of August’s nice things.
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Posted: Sun Nov 29, 2020 7:55 pm
Okay, so maybe his pant leg wasn’t soaking up all the blood from his wound and there was indeed a trail behind them. He hoped that the trip in the car would throw off anyone trying to track him down.
He shook his head when asked if he could make it up the stairs, and instead pointed to the cylindrical tube structure in the center of the spiral staircase.
“I’ll take the lift,” he grunted, straightening himself with what was left of his dignity to remove his arm from around Jonah’s shoulders so he could make his way over to the two floor elevator, and tried very hard not to slump down on the ground once inside, as it would be difficult for Jonah to help him back to his feet.
Since the elevator was really only big enough for one, he kept his eye on his volunteer house guest as he made his way up the staircase to meet him at the top.
Upstairs was a sleek looking living room with a fireplace and kitchen, and a wall of windows looking out onto a large patio, but it was too dark to see much more than the lights of the city. Everything was white or muted in color and looked comfortable enough, but not necessarily lived in.
August held his arm out for Jonah’s assistance once more, and directed him away from the wall of windows to the master suite, again all white, and into the attached bathroom.
The bathroom hosted a large walk in shower, tub, and large vanity.
“The shower is big enough. You can help me there,” August directed Jonah. “The supplies are under the sink,” he added.
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Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2020 2:02 pm
Jonah kept gaping at every room they crossed through. It wasn’t as if he was unfamiliar with such fine things, it was just that he hadn’t known what to expect from August. He gaped at the elevator, the windows, the master bedroom. He gaped at the shower, the tub, and the vanity, then the shower again, suddenly nervous about being in there with August.
Not that it wasn’t large; he definitely wouldn’t feel claustrophobic in it.
And not that he wasn’t nervous all the time anyway.
He helped August sit down on the shower bench seat, turning to rummage around in the cabinet under the sink. Jonah wasn’t entirely sure what he was looking for, but he found an impressive looking first aid kit that he thought might help — definitely more than the bandaids and antibiotic ointment he had in his kit at home. He grabbed a washcloth from another cabinet while he was at it. One of the black ones. Wiping up the blood would probably look pretty gruesome on white.
“I… umm…” he began when he returned to the shower.
His hands were shaking. On its own, the blood didn’t bother him so much. Once the wound was visible, he wasn’t sure how much he would actually be able to handle. Add the fact that he was in a new place with a man who was basically a stranger and Jonah’s anxiety was going haywire.
“Are you sure I can—… I mean, wouldn’t it be better if you had s-someone else look at it?” he asked. “Like… another doctor? Not that—… I mean, I’m sure you know what you’re doing, but… if your leg is… bad. That’s… that’s not just a scratch.”
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Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2020 2:56 pm
August rested uncomfortably on the shower bench, trying to decide how he wanted to do this. He could either get scissors and cut the leg off his pants, or just take the whole damned thing off.
He went with the latter, because he liked these dark jeans and figured a good wash might get the blood out. If not, it was hardly noticeable anyway. Maybe.
"You can and you will," August decided for Jonah, apparently not bothered or put off by the stammered words and broken sentences. If Jonah hadn't showed up to help him, August had been pretty set to just accept whatever fate had for him if he passed out in that alley.
"Set that over here," he directed when Jonah came with the medical kit. He didn't need to see that inside one of the pill bottles was a crystal, and one that would help make things so much easier. But he still needed to get the wound patched up before infection could set in.
"You need to grab the bottom of my pants. One leg at a time," he said after he'd unbuckled his belt and was in the process of pushing the pants off his hips. He wore dark grey briefs, because they didn't bunch up like boxers did, and it was hardly any different from a gym locker room.
"Good leg, first," he added, knowing it would be a b***h to peel the fabric off the wounds. He waited until Jonah helped him pull off his shoes and inadvertently glared at him until he removed his socks as well, then prepared to carefully unstick the denim from his blood covered leg.
"The… shower… thing," he eloquently described and pointed to the removable showerhead as he grit his teeth, finding it difficult to think after losing as much blood as he had and being in pain. He needed to wash the blood off, and that was the easiest way. There were definite fang marks along his leg, and if the starseed didn't do its job, he would probably need some kind of physical therapy.
But he was hoping the starseed would work.
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Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2020 4:01 pm
Jonah fumbled around the shower, a mess of shaking hands and stumbling feet and a heart that felt as if it would beat right out of his chest. As much as he wanted to help, he could only think that he’d just end up getting in August’s way. He’d do something wrong and accidentally hurt him worse, and August would know how useless he really was, would hate him forever and never want to see him again.
As if August planned on seeing him again after this anyway. Jonah hadn’t texted or called him after August gave him his card. If anything, Jonah had done everything he could to avoid running into August for a while, not because he didn’t want to see August, but because he did.
Which probably didn’t make much sense to someone without Jonah’s issues, but it made sense to Jonah.
He flushed pink while helping August out of his pants, then flushed bright red over the fact that he was flushed in the first place. This was hardly the time or place to be embarrassed about removing someone’s pants. Jonah was helping. There was nothing more to it.
After setting August’s pants aside, Jonah continued to follow directions, rising from the crouch he’d been in so that he could retrieve the detachable shower head. He turned the water on and waited for it to warm up a bit. Cold water probably wouldn’t feel very good. Warm water was better at disinfecting, too, wasn’t it? It was going to hurt regardless.
Jonah cringed as he returned to his crouch, trying to be as gentle as possible with the water, testing out the different settings on the showerhead to see which had the most comfortable pressure. The wound did not look pleasant up close. Jonah tried not to think about it, but his stomach turned uncomfortably and he was a little worried that he might throw up if he stared at it directly for too long.
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Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2020 5:18 pm
While Jonah was helping to rinse away the fresh blood from his leg, August went to work using the black washcloth Jonah found to clean the dried blood away from the wound. At least it didn't seem as though the wolf's fangs were venomous. He had no idea what these magical creatures were capable of, so they could very well have been.
"You were out drinking?" August asked as he continued to work, not really knowing what to say to distract Jonah who looked like he was not having a great time. "You smell like alcohol," he added, in case Jonah wondered why he would think that. And his cheeks were red. Had they always been that red?
"You didn't have anyone to leave with?"
Okay that wasn't exactly what he meant, but he realized how it sounded. Instead of trying to determine if Jonah had been out with friends or a significant other or at least a romantic interest, it sounded like he was suggesting he didn't have any of those.
In August's defense, he had a s**t bedside manner, especially for a doctor. He knew because Celeste would tell him so all the time. He wasn't exactly sure how to turn that around to having a good bedside manner. He thought actually talking was good enough. At least for him.
"You shouldn't go back out there. Stay here tonight."
Okay, now it sounded like he was suggesting more than what he meant. He just didn't think it was a great idea to go back out when that knight was still prowling around.
"I have a guest room," August added, hoping that might make things more reasonable. He had to thank Jonah somehow.
With the blood mostly gone, he gestured to what he needed from the medical kit. Most of the puncture wounds were surprisingly okay to treat with just a bandage, but there were a few that required a couple sutures.
"You might want to turn away for this," he suggested as he prepared the curved needle and medical thread.
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