The Reason We Fight

Chapter 46. The Doctor

Leorio followed Kurapika's directions, and drove to the Hunter Memorial Monument. He indicated that from the girl's perspective, the monument was at 10 o'clock from her location, maybe 200 meters from her, and that she was resting against a tombstone with the name Henry Salk, Treasure Hunter written on it. He didn't know how he could have possibly known that, but he kept on going, his first aid kit in hand.

When Leorio found her, he didn't like the sight before him. The girl was pale, very pale, with dry, cracked lips and a pool of blood beneath her. She looked up at him with sunken eyes.

"Are you here to finish me off?", she asked in a soft, raspy voice.

Leorio couldn't believe his ears, and laughed despite him. "As if anyone would need to do that. You're hanging by a thread". He crouched to her level and removed her hand from her wound to inspect it. Not looking good, to be fair. The gash was very deep, and had probably damaged some internal organ, maybe her stomach or spleen. Immediately, the moment she removed the pressure it had started gushing bright red blood in regular pulses again. Arterial blood. He placed a dozen gauze dressings on top and wrapped a compression bandage tightly around her waist to keep the pressure on it. Her injuries were way beyond his ken.

"My name is Leorio, I'm a friend of Kurapika", he explained to her. "I'm here to help you".

She cackled bitterly. "It's no use... I am going to die here".

Leorio took her in his arms to carry her away. "Not if I can help it. I'm bringing you to a hospital".

"Wait, no! You can't!", the girl exclaimed. She started squirming. "That's where he'll be looking... You bring me to a hospital, and that's where he'll finish me off".

Ah, good grief... this is getting more and more complicated. Why does Kurapika always make things so damn complicated? he pondered.

He sighed. "Alright, alright! But I still need to go there to grab some supplies. Your injuries are very extensive, and I'm not sure I can do much as it is, but... well, I'll try". He placed her gently in the back seat of her car. He mused the situation as he drove to the hospital where he was doing his internship. I need to make it quick; she doesn't have a long time left. She lost copious amounts of blood, who knows how much. I managed to slow the bleed, but it needs to be stitched and cauterized. Furthermore, her blood needs replenishing and I need a way to monitor her vitals.

"T-Thank you... Leorio", she heard her say in a faint voice. Kurapika seemed very panicked on the phone, who exactly is this girl to him? Is she the other Kurta survivor?

They arrived to their destination. "Try not to worry too much, I'll take care of it. I'll be back fast". Leorio ran to the hospital and was greeted by a few nurses and doctors he knew. I know this is going to affect my career, but what other choice do I have? He started grabbing fistfuls of equipment, IV catheters, saline solutions, a few blood bags, antibiotics, syringes of various medications, stitches, a defibrillator and a portable cardiac monitor. As he ran to the exit, he noticed a man talking to the clerk at the reception, asking for a young woman, possibly recently admitted, in her early twenties... and his Ren was truly frightening. He himself was bleeding from a wound on his head, and looked pretty ruffled. Was this the man that the girl feared so much? Their eyes locked as he exited the building, and he felt all the hair in the back of his neck rise at once.

-

Kurapika kept trying to call Leorio, but it was his turn to ignore his calls. He told him his address already, and had his hands full with trying to keep the girl alive. He will fill him in once he gets here, but in the meantime, he had a lot to do. Earlier, when he arrived back to his car from his hospital run, he found the girl unconscious in the back of his car. He slapped her around and gave her a dose of adrenaline to keep her awake, at least until they got to his apartment. Once he did, he placed her in his bed and opened up her shirt with a pair of scissors.

Leorio took a deep breath. How did I get into this situation? I'm only a student! I can't be expected to keep a critical care patient alive all by myself!

He looked around in his apartment for a lighter. That's all he could use with his current means to stop the bleed, being short of actual surgical equipment. The bandages he had put on her wound earlier were completely soaked in blood by now. He needed to act, now. Leorio ignited the lighter where her wound was, to make the bleeding stop. The girl came back from unconsciousness, howled like a banshee, and kicked him to the wall. Normally we would use anesthetic but... He sighed, annoyed. Stupid girl, it's your fault for insisting not to be hospitalized.

However, she quickly passed out from the pain. He placed the electrodes on her chest and monitored her heart. The wound being cauterized, it will not bleed as heavily. But she had lost so much blood...

He installed the IV catheter and began a blood transfusion. Unfortunately, not knowing her blood type, he only requested O type blood bags. Or threatened, rather. Oh god, how will I ever show my face in that place again? he thought, uneasy. The girl's pulse was faint. Leorio only had one pair of hands, so he had to let the blood flow through gravity, which unfortunately wasn't very fast, while he stitched her wound.

Abruptly, and making him jump, Kurapika entered the room, followed by Senritsu. He looked at his watch, surprised. Has it really been three hours since he called? Kurapika was crowding him, worried about the Kurta girl. Once emotion took a hold of that guy, it was slow to lose its grip...

"Hey, Kurapika! You help me, or you get the hell out of my face!"

The cardiac monitor was starting to show erratic spikes. Damn it! She had no pulse. "Ventricular fib... Curses, we're losing her!" He pushed Kurapika to the side. "Kurapika, put pressure on the wound. Senritsu, press on that blood bag, she's in hypovolemia and needs blood asap!" He got the defibrillator out and shocked her a few times. He got a new blood bag from the cooler and threw it to Senritsu so she can replace it. Kurapika was looking on with shock in his face, barely holding it together. The girl looked like death.

But suddenly, her heart went back to its normal sinus rhythm. He finished stitching her up. At least she was stabilized... Leorio, Kurapika and Senritsu simultaneously exhaled in relief.

Nevertheless, she had lost more than just a liter of blood, and would need more of it. He was out of blood bags... the blood bank at the hospital only had three at hand. "Kurapika, do you know what her blood type is? What about yours?"

"No, I don't know hers...", he admitted. "But I'm AB".

Senritsu made a fretful expression. "I'm B", she said.

Leorio groaned, rolled his sleeve up and turned his head to the side. "Useless. Okay, just take this needle and pierce the vein right here" he pointed to the one in the crease of his elbow. He wouldn't glance at it.

Kurapika gave him a puzzled look. "You're afraid of needles? Really? Aren't you a student of medicine?"

"Shut up and just do it!", he retorted, irritated. Kurapika did so, and placed some medical tape on it to hold it in place. "I'm the only one who can do this. My blood type is O... universal donor, you see".

He linked his needle to the girl's IV catheter and waited.

Kurapika's mouth tightened. "Is there nothing I can do?", he asked.

Leorio gave him a comforting smile. "We managed to stabilize her. We got through the worse of it. Didn't think I could do it. She's probably going to survive. All I can do now if pump her full of antibiotics to make sure her wound doesn't get infected, and wait".

Senritsu put a hand on Kurapika's shoulder and smiled.

"Leorio... I don't know what to say", Kurapika started. "You were really amazing, just now. I've never seen you so focused. I'm... I'm..."

"You can thank me once she's awake".