Broken

[Laurens' POV]

In which an angel leaps to the rescue

"What were his intentions? His ghastly, detestable intentions?" The wonders floated around my rattled skull. Apart from the already imposed injuries, the blood in my veins flowed like a tranquil river and my breath lingered in the air, a puff of condensation in its wake. There was a vent above me, leaking frigid winds at every turn. It was only natural for me to revert to my pleasant childhood memories, seeing as the present ones decided to haunt me. Oh! Like that one time, I had tripped over a log in a field of snow, face planting into the white cushion and bouncing straight back up, friends laughing gleefully beside me.

In all honesty, I was down for the count. All I could muster was to lie there, in solitary. All alone...

A distant creaking sound reached my ears, and my eyes widened. My clogged mind prepared itself for the worst. Fight. Flight. Freeze. The last one didn't really exist, but its presence was there. I could just freeze in the current conditions anyway... Back to it, fight or flight. If I picked flight, well, I'd push myself to limit, but I reckon the pace would catch up to me. If fighting was my option, I'd realise the deja vu at once, make some mistakes and probably collapse. All's well that ends well, I suppose! His spontaneous evil nature had corrupted me. I know it was just a step to the hand, but it was forceful. And what about the pain? And the struggle? Well, we all know what happens to fish out of water...

"Hey, Alex, are you there?"

Obviously, no response. He'd gone off to do some other seemingly malicious activities. "Why is he always the first one to be called on?" I will never know.

"N-no. Just me!" I croaked. Surely this figure would recognise me? Their identity remained unknown, fatigue succumbing me.

"John!" They cried, following the sound of my parched voice. "What happened to you?" The sight of me clearly shocked them, eyes dilating at first sight. Why didn't I notice the high pitched voice they carried? Or the innocence that swelled in their eyes? One word to describe them. Eliza.

There were no real details needed, "Quarrel."

"Oh, that explains it," she muttered, eyes darting from the floor to my wounds. The grotesque colour emitted from them was enough to set me on edge.

"They're bleeding..." I whispered to her, attempting to sit upright.

"Lie down, lie down!" she chorused as the crimson streaks seeped further down my chest and into my shirt.

"But--" I interrupted.

"No." she subtly nodded. Being in such a drained, malfunctioning state, I complied. "Take your shirt off." she knelt by my side, "I need a closer look."

"What?"

"I said, take it off."

"Eliza..." I started, "You're no doctor." I lightly chuckled.

"I can when I need to be!" She stripped my shirt clean from my body, throwing it on the floor and circling the desolate bathroom. My eyes flickered as she proceeded to grab various utensils and ointments hidden away in the camouflaged black cabinets.

"It's gonna sting..." she hesitated, pouring a particular ointment onto a cotton bud, "A lot."

"Oh, come on! It's not gonna be that ba--" Eliza pressed the ointment against my chest, a feeling of searing heat pulsing through the area. "God!" I exclaimed.

"She's definitely a doctor," I observed, falling oblivious to the contradiction.

"Told ya." she jokingly smirked, "Now for the water..." she paused, picking up a wet flannel, which absorbed the blood almost immediately.

"Great. Can I get up now?" I asked.

"Your hand. I have to tend to that as well." She acknowledged, placing another damp towel on those wounds. The blood didn't soak up as easily, a mask of worry concealed under Eliza's composure. "Try moving it."

I successfully turned my wrist from side to side without damaging anything, thank goodness, but as I bent my hand upwards, something clicked. A bone or a ligament... or something! I had to cover my mouth from screeching, my entire body quivering from the pain.

"Come on!" Eliza exclaimed, heaving me up by the shoulder and slapping my shirt back on, "Hospital!"

Time blitzed by from here, as the pair of us made a mad dash for the college's hospital sector. At one interval, I screamed,

"You said you're a doctor! Why can't you fix this?!"

"God, John!" she yelled back, "Use some common sense!"

"Alright, when I gain the majority of it back..." I reasoned.

"Fine..." she pouted, almost stumbling over me. It was clear my agility hadn't deteriorated, even though the rest of me practically had.

When we finally reached our destination, Eliza fiercely took hold of my injured hand and shook it in front of the nurse, small droplets of red dripping on the countertop.

"A little bit of blood never hurt anyone!" she smiled cordially, proceeding to wipe the mess clean.

"He's broken a literal bone!" Eliza screeched, furrowing a brow in concern.

"Ok, then. Take a seat, and I'll see you in an hour!" she beamed, racing over to another patient that looked as if they were possessed by the common cold.

"What's up with that? Colds over broken bones? Unprecedented times we're in, eh?" My mind wandered off. "Of course, colds are much more concerning than broken bones!"

"Eliza. Don't explode." I sheepishly smiled, placing my functioning hand at her shoulder.

"Ah! What kind of person is this, John?!" she muttered, pacing in circles. I couldn't control myself, removing my hand from her shoulder, trying to plug the other, dysfunctional one of my own. With this unnecessary action, my eyes caught sight of something coming from the distance. A shadowy figure of sorts. Tall, but wide. Dark and menacing. Ever-changing.

"That's great! I can suddenly see and comprehend for the first time this morning!" My brain exclaimed.

But, little did I know that this ever-changing figure was nothing new. Nothing more than what had already ambushed me. Nothing. Every nerve in my body unconsciously shut down, my now limp self collapsing into Eliza's arms.

"At least I was there to catch you." Were the last words I heard her utter, as she gently stroked my hair and placed me on what could be described as a cushioned surface, my mind falling into a dark abyss once again.

A/N - Sorry. This chapter was short, and... not that great. Thanks a lot, writer's block!