Hatchetfield Stories

For Your Own Safety

HAPPY ENDING! HAPPY ENDING! HAPPY ENDING!

TRIGGER WARNINGS:
-Injury
-Blood
-Hospitals
-Needles

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An unbearable pain shot through Emma's body with every breath she took.

Paul had been gone for a while now. She regretted sending him away. Because she'd want him here, telling stories and jokes to keep her calm, but also because there was a huge chance he wouldn't survive the explosion.

She had sent him to his death, hadn't she? And if he didn't come back, she wouldn't survive the blood loss either.

Before he had left, he had tied her bow around her thigh in an attempt to slow the bleeding, but it wasn't working as well as they had hoped because the fabric would stretch a bit, but it was better than nothing. The fabric of Paul's tie was torn, so that wouldn't work either.

"Emma? Are you still here?" someone asked. Emma's head perked up. It sounded like Paul, but she didn't want to get her hopes up.

"I am," she said, her voice hoarse and weak. She coughed up some more blood.

Paul walked around the wreckage towards her. "Oh, Emma," he said, looking at the puddle of blood that had formed under her leg.

He kneeled next to her. His clothes were covered in blood, though most of it didn't seem like it was his own. He had some deep cuts on his chest though, where the fabric was torn, but nothing that would cause him to bleed out, at least, not if they'd get out of here soon.

"Emma, we have to get out of here. There's another helicopter down the street. They're waiting for us."

Emma tensed up when he mentioned another helicopter. "I don't want-"

"I know. But it's the only way." Emma thought about it for a few seconds, but then nodded. "I found something to make a better tourniquet with," Paul said, holding up Ted's tie. "It's a bit bloody, his body landed on the other side of the theater after the explosion, I managed to get his tie off his neck, but it was so gross."

He started wrapping the tie around her leg after taking off the first one. The pain made the world spin. Emma bit on her lip. "I'm almost done, Em. You're doing great." Paul assured her.

"I'm tired," Emma mumbled, closing her eyes.

Paul finished the tourniquet and cupped her face with both hands to make her look at him. "No, Emma, look at me. Stay with me, okay?"

Emma opened her eyes, though her vision was blurry. "It's fine, Paul. You'll get us out of here."

Paul said something, but it was too hard to focus on his words. She allowed herself to go limp in his arms, and soon she was embraced by darkness.

*** *** ***

When Emma woke up, the pain in her leg was the first thing she noticed. Next came the beeping of the heart monitor. She slowly opened her eyes, squinting at the bright lights.

"She's waking up," a voice said.

"Thank God," someone else said.

Neither of them sounded like Paul. She just wanted Paul to be here.

When her eyes finally adjusted to the brightness of the room, she saw a woman talking to another man, probably a doctor. The doctor turned to face her. "Hello Kelly, how are you feeling?"

"Kelly? Who the fuck is Kelly?"

"We'll get into that later," the woman said.

"How are you feeling?" the doctor repeated.

"Where's Paul?" Emma asked, attempting to sit up. Her face scrunched up in pain when she moved her leg.

"Don't worry, he's alive," the woman said. "We're just making sure he's human."

"What the fuck? He is human, why else would he save my life?"

"It's our protocol, Kelly."

"WHO THE FUCK IS KELLY?"

"Colonel, may I please talk to my patient?" the doctor asked. The woman nodded and left the room.

He sighed and turned back to Emma. "Sorry 'bout that."

"Where's Paul? I wanna see him."

"He's in the room next door. Now, how are you feeling? Are you in a lot of pain?"

"I'm going to Paul," Emma said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

"No, Kelly, you can't walk."

"Try me."

A sharp pain shot through her leg and before she knew it she was on the floor.

The doctor sighed. "I told you so."

"It's fine, I'm fine," Emma argued when he tried to help her up. "I'm going to see Paul." She pulled her arm from his grip.

"You're not allowed to."

"Fuck you," Emma spat, hopping on her good leg.

She barely had the time to register the needle before everything went black.

*** *** ***

Emma opened her eyes, once again slowly adjusting them to the bright room.

"Kelly!" the woman from earlier exclaimed. "Sorry 'bout that. We had to make sure you don't fuck up your leg even more so you can out of here as soon as possible."

Emma tried to put a strand of hair behind her ear, but her hands were cuffed to the bed.

"What the fuck?"

"As I said, we can't have you walking around just yet. It's for your own safety."

"Where's Paul?"

"I'll get him for you. Stay here." The woman walked away.

"As if I have a choice," Emma mumbled.

Footsteps approached the door. The door opened to reveal Paul. Paul. He was right there. He was safe. They made it.

"Paul!" Emma exclaimed.

The colonel closed the door behind him and the footsteps faded away.

Paul sat down on the side of her bed. Emma winced at the movements, but Paul didn't seem to notice.

"Hey Em," he said, smiling at her. "How's your leg?"

"Fine. It hurts like a bitch though."

"I'm not surprised. I am surprised that you pulled through, to be honest. You lost a lot of blood back there."

Emma laughed. "I survived a shit ton of injuries back in Guatemala. I'm not letting something dumb like an apocalypse kill me."

Paul chuckled awkwardly. "I'm glad you survived."

"I'm glad you survived the explosion."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Emma couldn't sit up because of the restraints around her wrists, but that didn't keep them from sharing their first kiss right there on Emma's hospital bed.