Chapter Text
Ruben whips his head around as he suddenly hears a soft groan behind him.
His eyes widen when he realises it’s coming from…
“Shark?!” he yells and runs up to the other man still laying prone on the arena's floor.
He’s immediately on his knees checking up on the other man. Thank god, he’s breathing and there’s a pulse. He’s bleeding heavily from his chest wound, however, so he’s far from being out of the woods.
“Holy shit! Guys, he’s alive!” Ruben yells to the others, elated, heart hammering in his chest.
For a moment he’s just stupidly happy and almost forgets to do the most important thing. A quiet moan gets him out of his reverie and he realises they need to call an ambulance.
“Wait here, I’m going to find a phone!” he promises Shark.
“Well… I’m not exactly… going anywhere,” Shark cracks a weak smile at that.
Ruben just groans. It had been a pretty stupid thing to say, he’d realised belatedly, but no reason to rub it in.
Shark seems to be reading his thoughts and just whispers “You’re as silly, as you are pretty, water boy.”
Ruben feels like he should be offended, heck yesterday he would have been, but there is no sting to Shark’s words. And after what he’d done for Ruben, it would be childish to get offended at something this minor…
That and…
... he somehow minded being called a “pretty boy” less and less every time Shark did it. Which was alarmingly often. Not that Ruben was counting…
He can feel his face heat up…
Jesus, he just needs to focus on the task at hand already.
“Uh, as I said, I’m going to find a phone and call an ambulance”. Ruben says firmly and starts lifting from his knees and turning away.
Suddenly there’s a strong grip on his forearm.
“Stay with me, please,” Shark says quietly, sounding almost delirious.
The blood loss must be getting to him…
“Okay, okay…” Ruben extricates his arm from the other man’s hold and grabs his hand instead.
He looks around and realises Nick, Shingo and the detective have gathered around them, looking equally shocked by Shark’s survival. They’d all thought he was a goner.
“Uh, Nick, can you…” Ruben starts.
“On it,” Nick runs in the direction of the office, hoping to find a phone.
Shingo kneels next to Shark, examines him quickly and puts pressure on the wound to reduce the bleeding.
Ruben mentally thanks whatever god there is above that his teacher is with them and he’s not handling this alone. He’d been more terrified than he’d let himself admit throughout this whole ordeal. Relief washes over him and he starts… sobbing?!
He can feel the tears threatening to spill to his great shame. He’s not the one who’d been shot. It was Shark and it’s all Ruben’s fault!
He feels his hand being squeezed gently, but decisively, and he remembers that he’d been holding Shark’s hand the whole time.
Suddenly their eyes meet and there’s a quiet reassurance in Shark’s.
“Shh… I’m gonna be alright…” he trails off and then…
… passes out.
“Shark!” Ruben yells at the top of his lungs and starts shaking him.
“Calm down, Ruben,” Shingo brings him back to reality “he’s lost blood and is in a lot of pain but he’s still alive,” he speaks measuredly while still putting pressure on the wound.
“Thank you, Shingo…” Ruben replies weakly. This whole situation makes him feel light-headed, almost like he’s going to pass out.
Suddenly he hears the sound of running feet, coming from the direction of the office.
“Guys! The ambulance is coming. How… is he?” Nick motions at Shark, eyes widening in terror when he realises Shark’s own are closed.
“He passed out, but he’s alive,” Shingo calms Nick down.
Nick exhales heavily the breath he’d been holding.
“You’re going to make it, Shark!” Ruben says more to reassure himself than the passed out man. “You’re going to make it…” he pleads.