[kb] Type: Clean
[Set in Save Tonight. feel_theburn, 1mountain_aday and likedollclothes are used with permission. Frank Tripp and Calleigh Duquesne are NPCs.]
They had heard the gunfire while they were on their lunch break.
She didn’t even make the connection in her mind that that was what it could possibly be. She had spent her entire morning trying not to think about the fact that Michael had developed this habit of walking into potentially dangerous situations without a care as to how things were going to turn out. She never thought that she would actually wind up anywhere near said dangerous situation, but even she didn’t realize that fully until she got there.
More to the point, she didn’t even really get there.
They had called for back-up before they left the diner, and were heading in the direction of the sounds, sirens blazing and trying to move as fast as they could. Tripp was driving, and Jess nearly got them killed when she reached over, grabbed his arm tightly, and yelled at him to start the car. She wasn’t trying to get them killed, and she wasn’t trying to give him a heart attack, but when she saw the overturned SUV and the person stretched out beneath it, she had nearly had one herself.
“Call a bus,” she said as she started to unbuckle her seatbelt and scramble out of the car.
“Jess-wait!”
“Call the bus, Tripp,” she snapped at him, and after that she was gone, down the side of the roadway and dropping to her knees next to the body as her worst fears were confirmed. One hand automatically went to the shoulder where the bullet wound was, while the other moved to the side of his neck, searching for some kind of pulse. “Michael? Michael, can you hear me?”
Nothing.
“Michael? Baby, please.”
Again, nothing.
She found his pulse-it was faint, but it was there-and then leaned over, placing her ear to his lips, trying to see if she could feel his breath against her face, and that was there too, but barely. He was just holding on, and she didn’t know if she would be able to handle it if she didn’t. For all her talk of leaving, for all her mentioning of wanting to end things because of his secrets, she didn’t mean for it to be like this. Half the time is was just bullshit anyway, trying to get him to wake up and pay attention. She wanted him, but she wanted him safe, whole and in one piece, and she couldn’t have that if he kept running towards the barrel of a gun.
She knew why he loved his job. She knew why he did the things he did. But she also knew that sometimes, he didn’t know when to stop. He didn’t know when to have enough be enough.
She felt Tripp’s hand on her shoulder, handing her something to help apply to the bleeding. “The bus is on its way. There’s a DOA on the driver’s side, so the lab is on its way as well.” There was a pause as he looked over at her. “You know this guy?”
“Jess!” Sam was running her way. He looked down and caught a look at who she was leaning over, and in all the time she’s known him, she’s never seen Sam look that white. “Oh, Jesus.”
“Sir, I need you to stay back-this is a crime scene.”
The words ‘crime scene’ made her sick to her stomach, along with the smell of blood, but her fingers were still on that pulse point. She could still feel his heart beating, as faint as it was, and that was what kept her focused. She kept adding pressure to try and stop the bleeding. Anything she could do to assure that he wasn’t going to die on her.
Eventually the paramedics came and took over, loading him into the back of the bus. She couldn’t come with, she knew that much already, but just watching the van pull away, and standing there with the blood all over her hands was enough to make her stomach flip. Sam came up behind her, his hand landing on her shoulder and rubbing it gently.
“You okay, kiddo?”
“I think I’m gonna be sick.”
***
Jess had been in hospitals before. She had been there to interview victims. She had been there to support her friends as patients. She had been there when she was bleeding out and trying so desperately to hold on to those last vestiges of consciousness so that she didn’t slip away completely. Hospitals had taken a bit of a different color to them after she had nearly died, and while she wouldn’t say she avoided them, they certainly felt a little bit different. The smell crawled under her skin and itched, almost the way Michael’s dried blood did on her fingers, but not enough to make her run. She needed to know more than anything that Michael was going to be okay, and it was that need that won out more than anything else.
She spent the entire time that Michael was in surgery trying to get rid of any evidence that she had ever been there. Calleigh came down from the lab to take samples, as well as her clothes, needing to examine anything that they might have picked up off his body. One of the doctors was nice enough to loan her a pair of scrubs and point her in the direction of the nearest employee shower, where she scrubbed until she was clean. Any and all evidence of Michael’s blood on her was washed down the drain, and even though it was gone, she could still feel it under her skin the way she felt the hospital’s smell-the slow itch that wouldn’t go away, but wasn’t strong enough to scratch either.
Sam stayed long enough to give his statement to the police before leaving to round up Maddie and Fiona, and in the meantime, Jess just waited. She sat in her chair and waited for the doctors to come out and tell her anything at all. And when they did, it wasn’t what she was hoping to hear. He lost a lot of blood. They wouldn’t know anything until he woke up. All that was left to do now was more waiting, but she could see him if she wanted to.
The room was quiet aside from the beeping of the heart machine. They had him hooked up to all different kinds of tubes and wires, mostly being used to keep him alive-she knew that-but it was still frightening to see. She made her way to the head of the bed, one hand coming up to brush against his forehead before leaning in and pressing a kiss there. “Don’t leave me,” she whispered against his skin. “Don’t you dare leave me. Not like this.”
She stayed there for a moment longer before she heard a voice behind her. “Jessica?” She turned and saw Maddie standing behind her, looking worse off than she did. “Mind giving me a minute alone with my son?”
“Sure,” Jess nodded, making her way out of the room, and into the hallway. Sam was standing outside, looking at her worriedly.
“How’s he doing?”
“How does it look like he’s doing?” she snapped, not having enough energy to try and be positive anymore. “Who did this?”
“Jess, I don’t think it-”
“Sam. Who?”
Sam swallowed hard, and looked away a bit as he did. “Jesse.”
“You tell the cops?”
“Now, c’mon Jessie-”
“No, Sam. No. I’m not playing with this spy bullshit.” She started to walk past him, and Sam caught her wrist to pull her back towards him again, but all it got him was the side of her free hand colliding with his chest. “He could have killed him!”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t know,” she said as her fist continued to pound, letting out the litany of fear and pain that she had been bottling up since she found that overturned car, until there was nothing left but tears, and she was sobbing into his chest. She let Sam wrap his arms around her, pulling her close and holding her until the tears stopped.
All she knew was that he better be coming back, because she didn’t want to find out if there was a feeling worse than this.
1393 words
They had heard the gunfire while they were on their lunch break.
She didn’t even make the connection in her mind that that was what it could possibly be. She had spent her entire morning trying not to think about the fact that Michael had developed this habit of walking into potentially dangerous situations without a care as to how things were going to turn out. She never thought that she would actually wind up anywhere near said dangerous situation, but even she didn’t realize that fully until she got there.
More to the point, she didn’t even really get there.
They had called for back-up before they left the diner, and were heading in the direction of the sounds, sirens blazing and trying to move as fast as they could. Tripp was driving, and Jess nearly got them killed when she reached over, grabbed his arm tightly, and yelled at him to start the car. She wasn’t trying to get them killed, and she wasn’t trying to give him a heart attack, but when she saw the overturned SUV and the person stretched out beneath it, she had nearly had one herself.
“Call a bus,” she said as she started to unbuckle her seatbelt and scramble out of the car.
“Jess-wait!”
“Call the bus, Tripp,” she snapped at him, and after that she was gone, down the side of the roadway and dropping to her knees next to the body as her worst fears were confirmed. One hand automatically went to the shoulder where the bullet wound was, while the other moved to the side of his neck, searching for some kind of pulse. “Michael? Michael, can you hear me?”
Nothing.
“Michael? Baby, please.”
Again, nothing.
She found his pulse-it was faint, but it was there-and then leaned over, placing her ear to his lips, trying to see if she could feel his breath against her face, and that was there too, but barely. He was just holding on, and she didn’t know if she would be able to handle it if she didn’t. For all her talk of leaving, for all her mentioning of wanting to end things because of his secrets, she didn’t mean for it to be like this. Half the time is was just bullshit anyway, trying to get him to wake up and pay attention. She wanted him, but she wanted him safe, whole and in one piece, and she couldn’t have that if he kept running towards the barrel of a gun.
She knew why he loved his job. She knew why he did the things he did. But she also knew that sometimes, he didn’t know when to stop. He didn’t know when to have enough be enough.
She felt Tripp’s hand on her shoulder, handing her something to help apply to the bleeding. “The bus is on its way. There’s a DOA on the driver’s side, so the lab is on its way as well.” There was a pause as he looked over at her. “You know this guy?”
“Jess!” Sam was running her way. He looked down and caught a look at who she was leaning over, and in all the time she’s known him, she’s never seen Sam look that white. “Oh, Jesus.”
“Sir, I need you to stay back-this is a crime scene.”
The words ‘crime scene’ made her sick to her stomach, along with the smell of blood, but her fingers were still on that pulse point. She could still feel his heart beating, as faint as it was, and that was what kept her focused. She kept adding pressure to try and stop the bleeding. Anything she could do to assure that he wasn’t going to die on her.
Eventually the paramedics came and took over, loading him into the back of the bus. She couldn’t come with, she knew that much already, but just watching the van pull away, and standing there with the blood all over her hands was enough to make her stomach flip. Sam came up behind her, his hand landing on her shoulder and rubbing it gently.
“You okay, kiddo?”
“I think I’m gonna be sick.”
***
Jess had been in hospitals before. She had been there to interview victims. She had been there to support her friends as patients. She had been there when she was bleeding out and trying so desperately to hold on to those last vestiges of consciousness so that she didn’t slip away completely. Hospitals had taken a bit of a different color to them after she had nearly died, and while she wouldn’t say she avoided them, they certainly felt a little bit different. The smell crawled under her skin and itched, almost the way Michael’s dried blood did on her fingers, but not enough to make her run. She needed to know more than anything that Michael was going to be okay, and it was that need that won out more than anything else.
She spent the entire time that Michael was in surgery trying to get rid of any evidence that she had ever been there. Calleigh came down from the lab to take samples, as well as her clothes, needing to examine anything that they might have picked up off his body. One of the doctors was nice enough to loan her a pair of scrubs and point her in the direction of the nearest employee shower, where she scrubbed until she was clean. Any and all evidence of Michael’s blood on her was washed down the drain, and even though it was gone, she could still feel it under her skin the way she felt the hospital’s smell-the slow itch that wouldn’t go away, but wasn’t strong enough to scratch either.
Sam stayed long enough to give his statement to the police before leaving to round up Maddie and Fiona, and in the meantime, Jess just waited. She sat in her chair and waited for the doctors to come out and tell her anything at all. And when they did, it wasn’t what she was hoping to hear. He lost a lot of blood. They wouldn’t know anything until he woke up. All that was left to do now was more waiting, but she could see him if she wanted to.
The room was quiet aside from the beeping of the heart machine. They had him hooked up to all different kinds of tubes and wires, mostly being used to keep him alive-she knew that-but it was still frightening to see. She made her way to the head of the bed, one hand coming up to brush against his forehead before leaning in and pressing a kiss there. “Don’t leave me,” she whispered against his skin. “Don’t you dare leave me. Not like this.”
She stayed there for a moment longer before she heard a voice behind her. “Jessica?” She turned and saw Maddie standing behind her, looking worse off than she did. “Mind giving me a minute alone with my son?”
“Sure,” Jess nodded, making her way out of the room, and into the hallway. Sam was standing outside, looking at her worriedly.
“How’s he doing?”
“How does it look like he’s doing?” she snapped, not having enough energy to try and be positive anymore. “Who did this?”
“Jess, I don’t think it-”
“Sam. Who?”
Sam swallowed hard, and looked away a bit as he did. “Jesse.”
“You tell the cops?”
“Now, c’mon Jessie-”
“No, Sam. No. I’m not playing with this spy bullshit.” She started to walk past him, and Sam caught her wrist to pull her back towards him again, but all it got him was the side of her free hand colliding with his chest. “He could have killed him!”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t know,” she said as her fist continued to pound, letting out the litany of fear and pain that she had been bottling up since she found that overturned car, until there was nothing left but tears, and she was sobbing into his chest. She let Sam wrap his arms around her, pulling her close and holding her until the tears stopped.
All she knew was that he better be coming back, because she didn’t want to find out if there was a feeling worse than this.
1393 words