“Don’t strain yourself.” Marcus murmured after Pollux coughed. He looked up at Cyrus as the other explained for him.
“That’s awful… I don’t think I’d be able to go through that. I panic when I can’t breath.” He looked to Pollux and tilted his head. Marcus couldn’t help but to admire Pollux. He was strong, and taking all of this rather well.
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“Well, if I panic, I could die,” Pollux sighed, “It’s been stuck with it my whole life, so… a lot of time to get used to it.”
“Still, couldn’t have happened to a calmer person,” Cyrus remarked.
It was true. Pollux’s affect at the moment was rather flat, as it often was in the face of danger and fear.
The same nurse came back in and have Pollux a couple of pills, then set up the oxygen mask.
“How’s everything feeling?”
Pollux bit his lip. “No better than a bit ago, honestly… but you just gave me more drugs for the chest tightness, yeah?”
“Yes. It’s not clearing up as much as it should, so we decided some prednisone might better reduce the swelling.”
Pollux nodded in understanding. The two talked quietly for another moment, and the nurse left again.
Cyrus had a hand on Marcus’ arm, and he squeezed it lightly in an attempt to comfort himself.
“You’re doing really well with it all…” he added. Marcus leaned more into Cyrus as the nurse returned. He leaned up to kiss his boyfriend’s cheek in an attempt to help comfort him.
“It’ll be alright, Cy.” He whispered, patting the others hand on his arm. “Pollux is strong, and we can help him. It’s going to be okay.”
Cyrus leaned into Marcus.
“I-I know… It’s just hard to see another person in pain. He hides it well, but…”
Pollux adjusted his posture in the meantime, so he could get the most oxygen possible from the treatment.
Cyrus continued to use Marcus to comfort himself.
“Thanks for coming with me, love.”
“It is hard, especially when it’s someone you care about.” He wrapped his arms around Cyrus, hoping the hug would help him.
“Anything for you. But are you feeling okay? You seem anxious, which would make sense.” He laughed nervously, shaking his head.
“Well, yeah. Of course,” Cyrus said, leaning into Marcus’ embrace more, “Not to mention I’m still coming off that weird adrenaline high from earlier.”
Pollux tilted his head.
“So um… how exactly are you going to get this whole target off my back? Especially in a few days’ time?”
“How are you taking it? Are you anxious?” Marcus asked quietly. He didn’t get time to ask anything else as Pollux spoke up.
“Well, uh…” Marcus glanced up at Cyrus and laughed nervously. “I’m getting Marx - the leader of the gang - completely out of the picture. If he’s still around you won’t be safe. I don’t know what you did to piss him off but he’s really upset.”
“Poking my nose where it doesn’t belong,” Pollux mused, “I’m alright though, like… emotionally and whatever.”
He was so oddly nonchalant about it, that it almost seemed like he didn’t care.
“And… and my dad,” Cyrus whispered, “Him too….”
"Makes sense, he hates it when people meddle in his business." Marcus ran his fingers along his boyfriend's arm in reassurance, offering a smile. "Just be careful, we don't want you dead,"
He nodded along with Cyrus's words. "And Cyrus's dad… he's a big problem too… so we have two people that need to uhm… disappear."
“Oh, I’ve already been well-aware of that bastard,” Pollux said, “Do what you need to do, and I’ll try to stay out of it.”
Cyrus shifted uncomfortably.
“Yeah… hopefully nothing else bad happens. How long do you think you’ll have to stay here?”
“Shit, I dunno. They don’t really… tell you that right away.”
Marcus relaxed a little, feeling grateful for the others promise to stay out of it for the time being. It would make it all a lot easier.
When Cyrus shifted Marcus took his hands and gave them both a gentle squeeze. “I hate hospitals for that. Don’t you?” Marcus added, hoping to lighten the mood a little. Cyrus was stressed and worried and Pollux looked tired enough as was.
“It’d be nice to know,” Pollux agreed, “But I think in my case, I’m nowhere near well enough to go home.”
He laughed softly.
“So, this is where I work, Marcus. It’s kinda weird how often I just… end up a patient at my own job.”
“But since they don’t know, it’ll have to be at least a couple of days,” Cyrus said, “so that’s good for us. Not good as far as medical bills go though. So I’m sorry for that.”
“I’d rather be in debt that be dead,” Pollux said, “I still got shit to do here.”
“You work here?” He asked, blinking in surprise and looking around. “I didn’t know that. I knew you were a doctor but I didn’t know it was this hospital.”
He turned to look at Cyrus as he spoke, nodding in agreement. “Medical bills suck.” Marcus nervously scratched at the back of his head, laughing nervously. He’d much rather be dead at this point but he wouldn’t say that. Cyrus was worried enough.
“There is a lot to do here…”
“Yeah, in the emergency department mostly, at that,” Pollux said with a laugh that turned over into a slight cough.
He stopped for a few moments to catch his breath again.
“I dunno, I enjoy the work, and I’m good under pressure. But… I’m also hoping it’ll help give me a platform to help… help those marginalized in healthcare.”
Cyrus squeezed Marcus’ hand a little tighter. It took a lot of self-control for him not to tell the other to shut up and focus on breathing instead of talking. But it wasn’t really his place.
"Take a break for a moment, Pollux." Marcus warned, squeezing Cyrus's hand back. "Don't over do it. You need to breath. But it does sound like it'd be a good opportunity to help." He tilted his head and looked up at Cyrus, an idea popping up into his head.
"Speaking of which… The Silence would be mine once Marx is gone… I could use it to help people…"
Pollux nodded.
“At least I can cough now…”
Cyrus glanced back to Marcus.
“How do you intend to do that, exactly? Like… how do you repurpose a gang? I wish I could do the same for Nightshade, but it’s not mine for the taking.”
"That is true, but it's still a good idea to rest." Marcus offered a gentle smile to Pollux and sighed softly. He swayed side to side, trying to figure out his words.
"Repurposing a gang isn't easy… there's going to be more than one person who'll try to kill me for the top spot… and there's going to be a lot who leave into their own gangs or into rival ones. The allies will either stick around, or leave me in the dust. The Silence is big, though, we've got ties with the mafias around here and that sort of thing, breaking away from that will be difficult… But if I succeed then I'll have a small following. I could help those who go through abuse and trauma like I did… give them a place to have better opportunities, you know?"
“A noble cause,” Cyrus said, “And it’s likely I’ll join you, because part of the deal I want to cut with Nina is that I’ll leave Nightshade. With my history, I’ll never fit in in the ‘real’ world, so I might as well help you make a difference within our own.”
Pollux silently listened to the two talk, taking deep breaths of the oxygen. It made him feel lightheaded, as this was the most air he’d been able to get since early this morning. He noticed his own hands were shaking, likely from all the steroids. Carefully, he stilled them in his lap.
Marcus beamed when Cyrus mentioned joining him. He pressed a quick kiss to Cyrus's cheek and hummed happily. "I'd like that, you could help me and I'd help you. And Pollux," he turned back to the other, grinning. "We could offer you protection too, incase you need it after this. It'd all be quiet, no one would know you'd be working with a gang. I know it ruins reputations and I wouldn't wish that on you."
“I’ll think about it,” Pollux said, “Of course, once this is all over.”
Cyrus smiled softly. Maybe things would be okay after all. They had a plan.
His phone buzzed and he reached for it, then opened up a new text message.
“Nina says she’ll meet me tonight. I get to choose the place.”
“Is… Nina really a good one to be negotiating with?”
“She’s all I’ve got.”
"That's alright. Think it over. It's best that way." Marcus replied, he glanced at Cyrus and tilted his head as he spoke. "Nina is your sister right? And she'll let you go for sure? She won't snitch on you to your dad?" He asked cautiously, biting his lip at the thought.
"I don't want to lose you."
“Look, she may be a vicious little bitch, but she’s clever, too. She doesn’t want me around the gang because I’m worthless. She thinks the old man does a sloppy job of running the place, and she knows she’s next in line. We also get inheritance. Our wants have some overlap. I’ll help her gain leadership and carry out the dirty work, and she’ll let me go, which she’s wanted to do anyway. I’m under threat anyhow if I snitch to authorities about Nightshade, so she knows that’s not an issue. It’s not worth it.”
Cyrus stopped to think for a moment.
“I’ll be sure to do it quickly enough so she doesn’t have time to tell him, but I doubt that’s a risk, just because of what she stands to gain if he dies.”
"So it'll be somewhat safe in that way?" He asked, only to reassure his own anxieties. "If she wants collateral, she can take some of the Silence's resources. Of course it'll be after Marx is gone." He leaned more into Cyrus, seeking a little more warmth as a chill swept down his spine.
"She'll take the gains over the losses… she sounds smart, in the way I don't like. Too cunning."
“That’d be wise, as a backup, if things don’t go as planned. Thanks for the offer,” Cyrus replied.
Pollux laughed softly. “Cy is cunning too. He’s more than capable of matching his sister.”
Cyrus almost protested, but he didn’t want to make Marcus even more nervous about the situation.
Marcus tilted his head, a little confused about what Pollux meant but he didn't pry. His anxiety couldn't handle it.
"Cyrus is pretty strong, I believe in him." He hummed in response instead, beaming up at his boyfriend and laughing softly. "Both of you are admirable, I'm impressed by everything you've both done." Marcus fiddled with the sleeves of his sweatshirt, looking down at the ground shyly.
He wouldn't say it outloud but he thought of himself as just a weak victim in all of this. Just a harassed and traumatized idiot. At least he had Cyrus to help guide him.
“I-I don’t know about that,” Cyrus sighed, “I’ve done some not-so-great stuff without flinching. I’m not proud of that. I really am often just a victim of circumstance.”
Pollux shifted his sitting position forward. “I’m impressed with the strength you two are showing, finally standing up against all of this.”
Marcus gave Cyrus's hand a squeeze. "I think you're strong and amazing, you know. I look up to you, you're so caring even after all of that. You haven't turned into… something bad." He noted.
He glanced over at Pollux and smiled weakly. "Thank you, but I wouldn't call it strength… I'm just a cornered rat looking for a way out."
“God, I feel that,” Cyrus said, “I just want a way out. I’m not any stronger than the next guy for that.”
Pollux leaned back in the bed, seeming to be uncomfortable and unable to find the right way to lie down.
He was about to add more to the conversation, but then he started coughing again. Cyrus glanced over nervously.
Marcus nodded along with Cyrus, groaning softly at the thought. They really were just rats trying to find a way out.
Marcus turned to look at Pollux when he began coughing; a worried expression crossing his face.
“Don’t strain yourself, relax, rest.”
Cyrus’ muscles tensed as he fought the urge to go help Pollux set himself in more comfortably. Not my place. Not my place.
As the coughing fit subsided, Pollux carefully moved his mask so he could fit the straw to his water through. He took deep, slow breaths, trying to get himself better in control.
“You okay? If you need me to grab someone or anything, I can.”
Pollux nodded and gave a shaking thumbs-up.