#not totally sold on the characterization esp for seifer but yknow what im blaming it on the concussion

[bisoras]

962 words, also on ao3

seiner concussion au rewrite of smth i wrote like 49 years ago w medical/first aid inaccuracies out the wazoo that now i have my first responder licence i felt better abt writing and sharing it

do not be fooled tho this is fluff

maybe like hurt/comfort or angst/fluff but w/e ok it’s sappy at the end

they’re so gay

im gay

it’s a beautiful gay day and to quote @zackfairvevo “do it for pride month”

also “that otp that calls each other by any other name but their first names and then one of them gets hurt” prompt

also also “i want you to picture seifer washing hayners knuckles and bandaging his wounds and kissing him on the forehead and then rubbing his hair happy pride month” prompt from lex tagged above

Hayner never banked on him being the one to hurt Seifer. He always felt like it would be the opposite way -- Seifer would be the one to hit him too hard, to send him flying in the other direction, to give him a concussion and knock him out too long for comfort. Instead, it proved to be the other way around, and while Seifer lied motionless on the ground and his hand went lax around his Struggle bat Hayner felt at least a dozen emotions run through him at once.

First he wanted to laugh at Seifer’s act, impressed by his commitment to the scene to fall so heavily and his head connecting with the pavement. Then he rolled his eyes and waited one, two, three, four agonizing seconds as Seifer continued to lay immobile.

Then he cursed and a trickling sort of fear trailed over his spine, chilling him to the bone as he took one step closer to the blonde before he dropped to his knees next to Seifer.

“Almasy?” he asked, voice heavier than he meant for it to come out, but Seifer never stayed down so long. “Almasy,” he repeated. His hands went to Seifer’s shoulders and he rocked them back and forth. The way Seifer’s body moved with so little resistance did nothing to settle Hayner’s fraying thoughts.

“Come on, Almasy,” he continued, and his hands found the point under Seifer’s jaw, feeling for the heartbeat that thumped evenly underneath his fingertips. “Wake up.”

The silence of the Sandlot around them made every sound that much louder. Hayner floundered at what to do, one hand resting at Seifer’s pulsepoint and the other over his chest, feeling for his heartbeat in both places as if they were his own, ready to act at a moment’s notice if either one stopped.

He cursed and moved both hands up to Seifer’s head, removing the other teen’s hat. His hands felt for any injuries to his skull, because damn it if he was just going to sit there doing nothing while Seifer --

“I swear to God--” he began, but his throat tightened with panic and cut the words short. He didn’t want to finish that sentence. He didn’t want to entertain any idea that Seifer wouldn’t wake back up.

And then, so quietly he nearly didn’t hear it, Seifer groaned, his eyebrows coming together and mouth pinching just enough to make a difference, and Hayner froze, his hands stilling at Seifer’s shoulders.

“Seifer?” he asked, his voice hurried, the words coming to a halt between them.

Seifer cracked open one eye, muttering a quiet, “Fuck,” before he focused his gaze on Hayner, still hovering above Seifer’s body.

“You’re bleeding,” he stated, eye locked on Hayner’s knuckles. He blinked once, twice, a third time before opening both of them up and Hayner felt himself relax at the sight of the man’s shockingly aquamarine eyes.

“It’s nothing,” Hayner assured him, wiping the blood away on his shorts. He watched Seifer cough -- then wince -- and prop himself up on the Sandlot platform. “I’m fine. How are you?”

Seifer chuckled (and winced again) but he met Hayner’s eyes evenly, and answered, “I hurt like hell, Chickenwuss. What’s got you so worked up?”

Hayner turned a glare at Seifer, but it didn’t last long, nor did it hold any true vehemence.

“You went down,” he said instead, careful to keep his eyes locked with Seifer’s. The other teen’s look of concern didn’t help Hayner’s anxiety, though. “You stayed down.”

“You were worried about little ol’ me?” Seifer teased, but his eyes sobered and he reached a hand out, his fingers ghosting over Hayner’s arm, dragging down until he reached the still bleeding knuckle that first caught his eye.

“Contrary to popular belief, I’m not going down that easy,” he said. It was with an infuriating sort of gentleness that his hand enveloped Hayner’s, thumb brushing over the wounds softly, uncharacteristic only in how slow he made sure to move -- perhaps for his own concussed state as much to ease Hayner’s mind.

“Are you gonna help me up and check me out, then, Doctor?” he asked a moment later, effectively ruining the moment, but it brought a grin to Hayner’s face all the same.

“Shut up, okay? At least I know CPR. I was ready to save your life, you know.”

Seifer shrugged as Hayner ran his hands back through his hair and over his scalp, and a smile teased at the corner of his mouth. “Would you have given me mouth-to-mouth?”

“Well, you still had a pulse and could breathe on your own so I wouldn’t have had t--” he stopped, Seifer’s words registering and then he sat back, glaring at his partner. “I should let you fend for yourself after that one.”

But Seifer only grinned and reached back out to pull Hayner close, pressing his lips to Hayner’s neck. “I think I’m having trouble breathing,” he teased. “Mouth to mouth is the only way to save me, Hayner.”

“Oh, for the love of --” Hayner began, but soon he was dissolving into laughter against Seifer’s lips.

When he pulled away, Hayner pressed their foreheads together, and with their eyes locked onto one another’s he said, “You’re more concussed than I thought if you’re this goofy and we’re in the middle of the Sandlot in the middle of the day.”

Seifer shook his head. “It was the near death experience I just went through. I need to stop taking who and what I care about for granted and live life to the fullest.” He leaned forward again, eyes going soft as his mouth found Hayner’s once again.

Hayner only chuckled. “Yeah, definitely concussed. Come on, we should get you home.”

“Only if you come with.”