summertime sadness

Chapter 2

"I think my.. stomach.. something like that.. I don't know.. I can't-" Stockton stuttered out.

Stockton was feeling nauseous, like he could throw up blood. He tasted copper in his airway. And in his mouth, from outside factors.

He was also dazed, probably sustaining a concussion, if not multiple.

"Calm down. Just breathe." Paul-Henri replied.

Paul-Henri unzipped Stockton's suit and pulled it down to his waist. His shirt underneath was white, and covered in blood. Paul-Henri lifted up the shirt, and felt around to find the source of blood. It was too dark to see clearly.

He found that the bullet was still in the wound. No wonder the sub didn't implode, it didn't leave his body.

Luckily Paul-Henri knew what to do in this situation. Taking the bullet out would cause him to bleed out faster, so the best thing to do is wrap his shirt sleeve, that he had ripped off earlier, around the wound.

The hospital will extract the bullet out later, as it's probably affecting some major organs.

Stockton winced at the pain and closed his eyes.

"It'll be okay. The team will find us, ami." Paul-Henri reassured him.

Both Paul-Henri and Stockton knew there was a slim chance of being found. Even if they made it to the surface, the ocean is huge. And with no communication devices anymore, there's no way to tell where they are. They only have 4 days of air. That's if it doesn't spoil from the corpses before then.

Paul-Henri wished he could check to see if Stockton had a concussion. He knew he did, but he wanted to be sure. He just couldn't see into Stockton's eyes. It was too dark in the sub. The control panel had been broken into pieces, so they couldn't turn the lights on.

He just had to wait until they reached the surface. Then they'd have to hope the light from the porthole would be enough to see clearly.

Stockton laid back against the wall. Paul-Henri did the same, next to Stockton. They were both mentally and physically exhausted.

The silence gave Stockton enough time to process stuff. His head was aching, so he couldn't think much. But as soon as he looked at the body of Suleman, he burst into tears.

The smell of copper filled his nose and he became aware of the pool of blood that he was sitting in. Everything was overwhelming to the point where all he could do was cry.

Paul-Henri looked over at Stockton.

He put his arm around Stockton and lightly pushed the younger man into his chest. He brushed his hand through Stockton's silver locks. His other hand was cradling the younger man.

Tears continued to fall from Stockton's eyes, even after he held them tightly shut. He felt so vulnerable. He hated it. But he was thankful to receive some physical contact.

Paul-Henri could feel the man shaking in his arms, and his grip tightened.

"PH.." Stockton began.

"Yeah?"

"I.. don't- I." Stockton paused, angry.

His head was so loud, he couldn't focus enough to get his words out.

"Don't kill me-"

"I won't."

"No, I meant- Don't kill me please, if I ask. If I ask because I'm in pain- Don't kill me please. I think we'll make it through this and I want to survive. So even if I beg, don't do it." Stockton said, adding a "please" after a pause.