hex

[pixiesweat]

Manuel’s first ever ambulance ride wasn’t one he was going to remember very well; most of it had already faded into a blur. He vaguely remembered sitting in an alleyway listening to the sound of sirens getting closer and thinking he should move before they reached him. He remembered lights. It seemed like it was only a few seconds later when they arrived at the hospital.

By the time they got there he was already more alert. He was actually focusing on what was going on around him, watching the world with wide, frightened eyes. He was finally able to keep a train of thought going long enough to realise how big this mess had the potential to get. He was sure he remembered the woman who’d been with him mentioning a “possible mugging” to the emergency services – were they going to send the police? He really didn’t want to try to explain a vampire bite to the human police force. Or the human medical staff. And he didn’t have the first clue what he was going to say if somebody asked to call his parents.

He wished he’d managed to disappear into the night when he’d had the chance.

He was still pale and sweaty. There were red, already swollen marks on his upper arms and left wrist from being manhandled by the vampire. They weren’t serious injuries, but he was going to have some impressive bruises. His neck had already stopped bleeding, but whoever looked underneath the blood-soaked gauze was in for a bit of a surprise.

((Relevant thread is here, btw c:))

Comments

[pixiesweat]

"Just in the street," he said, less restrained about giving away information now. He was too sleepy to think about it or care.

[just_hex]

"I thought you said you have a home. Why have you been in the street?" he asked gently.

[pixiesweat]

"I was out." Out loitering in the streets. Like he did practically every night.

[just_hex]

"Just out?" he pressed. "With mates? Or on your own?"

[pixiesweat]

"On my own." He barely had any friends.

[just_hex]

"What do you do when you're on your own, Manuel?" Hex asked, taking hold of the boy's hand to caress the back of it with a strong, gentle touch.

[pixiesweat]

Hex rubbing the back of his hand was making him even more relaxed. "There isn't anything to do."

[just_hex]

"Do you just wander, then? Do you eat? Do you sleep?" he asked, genuinely growing more concerned. It didn't seem to him as if Manuel was being evasive, but he did begin to wonder if he ought to call for a psych eval.

[pixiesweat]

"Yeah," Manuel said, sleepily. He meant that he ate and slept, but it might not have been clear which question he was answering.

[just_hex]

"Tell me more, Manuel. Tell me the most important thing I need to know," he said, his voice a low, soft purr to coax the truth from him.

[pixiesweat]

Manuel was so sleepy he couldn't work out what Hex meant. "What do you need to know?"

[just_hex]

"Your most important secret. Can you tell me that?" he asked softly.

[pixiesweat]

"I don't have any secrets." It wasn't really an intentional lie; he just said the first thing that came into his very groggy mind.

[just_hex]

"Everyone has secrets, mate. I have some whoppers," Hex smiled. "Come on, if you tell me one, I'll tell you one."

[pixiesweat]

"You're not supposed to tell people secrets." Especially secrets like his.

[just_hex]

"Aww, give it a try. Tell me a little one, yeah?" he replied with a smile, turning this into a jovial game instead of an inquisition.

[pixiesweat]

"I don't have any good ones." None of his secrets were the kind you told someone during a game.

[just_hex]

"Hmm, that's too bad. Sometimes secrets can be fun," he said.

[pixiesweat]

"They're not fun." His secrets definitely weren't fun, at least.

[just_hex]

"How can I know that unless you tell me?" he pressed.

[pixiesweat]

"I'm not supposed to tell anyone."

[just_hex]

"You can tell me," he replied. "I'll believe you and I won't tell anyone. You won't be in trouble..."

[pixiesweat]

"But I'm not... I shouldn't even be here. I need to go." As if he was in any state to leave the hospital.

[just_hex]

"Oh, you can rest a bit," Hex said, giving him a pat and gently holding him in the bed.

[pixiesweat]

"I don't need to," he said. Very sleepily.