#bc i couldn't think of a better way to phrase it asdf

[quietlyblooms]

keep your eyes open, okay? keep looking at me.

patching up wounds | @solivcgant watches over chiyo!

she can't respond. she doesn't think she can, at least. everything feels heavy, even her mouth; even her eyelids, which droop dangerously for a moment before chiyo forces them open.

keep looking at me. she does. eiji is all she can really register, all she can really focus on. his disheveled hair, his panicked eyes, the way his hand firmly grasps her own. the sounds and sights around her are far, far away, but eiji is front and center. he's here. he's right by her side. he needs her to keep looking at him.

she does until she doesn't, eyes screwing shut as pain explodes along her left side, feeling the ground beneath her shift -- or rather, feeling steady hands hoist her onto something flat, softer than the ground. eiji's hand slips away, and chiyo reaches out, eyes fluttering open again and searching for him. don't leave me. the words can't make it out. her tongue feels even heavier than her lips. quiet tears blur her vision. she can't see eiji anymore.

please. don't leave me. don't. please.

someone gently prods at her wounds, assessing the damage as they speak to her, but chiyo lets her eyes fall shut and the tears fall down bloodied cheeks. she's too tired to listen, and she's too scared to look around and only see foreign faces. she doesn't want to be alone right now. she can't remember what's happened, why she's in so much pain. she doesn't want to be alone.

a warm hand slides over hers and squeezes. chiyo lets out a shuddering breath and opens her eyes. eiji. thank god. please don't do that again. don't leave.

he doesn't, and neither does she.