Summary: Ellis is usually a resilient, albeit annoying, but cute kid. But an encounter with an unexpected Tank leaves him struggling to breathe, and brings out the side he never lets show. The darker side. The side with a fear of dying. Oneshot, no chapters this time. A very depressing fic, it made me sad.
Pairing: Nellis bromance cause it's my BroTP!
Rated: T for language and mild graphic injuries
Disclaimer: Valve owns ALL!
Extra Info: Pretty obvious character death!
Music: Dear Darlin' by Olly Murs, mainly My Immortal by Evanescence
Nick cradled the kid's head. He winced every time he heard a rasping, pained breath. The death rattle hurt his ears, and the sight of the beads of blood at the kid's mouth made his heart ache with worry.
"We're gonna make it, kid," he soothed, gently placing Ellis' cap back on. The blue eyes open, once full of foolish mirth and childlike happiness. Now they were brimming over with terror and sadness.
"Nick, am ... am ah dyin'?" he stammered quietly. The conman hushed the trembling Savannahite, trying to smile reassuringly. The gesture only made himself feel even worse, and his eyes stung. Nick willed himself to not let the tears fall, the tears he'd locked away, the tears he'd never shown anyone.
The lack of compassion was what had made his ex-wife nag so much, which had broken their relationship.
"Shh, kid, you're gonna pull through," Nick murmured, but he could still see the heaving chest on the edges of his peripheral vision, where no doubt broken, shattered ribs lay over a labouring heart.
He knew the kid was dying.
"Nick?" The small voice made Nick almost break, the innocence and fear spilling over. "Is it bad, dyin'? Does it- does it hurt?"
"I don't know, Ellis," Nick whispered. "And neither will you, not for a long time."
"It's nice ... to hear tha'." The kid was struggling to draw breath now, and Nick's eyes were watering.
"You aren't dying," he said, voice cracking. Nick was straining to hard to not let the tears fall that he gave a choked sob. Ellis closed his eyes and pressed it against the older man's shirt, smothering his frightened tears. Nick bit his lip; it drew blood but he was numb to the pain.
He carefully stroked the nape of the kid's neck in an unloving way, more of a sad way a friend would give another in their time of need. Like now.
Ellis pulled away and his large blue eyes glistened with tears. The sight was so pitying that Nick felt a tear roll down his cheek. He let loose an anguished murmur and Ellis reached up, but his arm was shaking so much he gave up.
Ellis gave a stuttering, broken breath and Nick covered his face with his hands. The kid gazed with open fear at the hands covering the conman's face, at the shiny rings on his fingers. Ellis made sure he would memorise them so he could remember Nick fully after he passed.
Then his eyes closed and didn't open again.
Nick shook Ellis slightly.
"Hey, kid. Kid?" Desperately not wanting to believe it, Nick checked for a pulse. Negative. He snatched up some defibrillators and rubbed them together, his breaths quick and tight. One jolt. Two jolts. The kid didn't surface.
Nick had to accept the inevitable. Ellis was gone and wasn't coming back. He placed a gentle kiss upon the brow of the young Savannahite, the gesture indicating the end of the road.
And the tears fell free.
[A/N.: Sorry for the shortness. ;n; Poor Ellis ...]