The rusted nail sticking up from the ground was so long it went straight through Mai's foot when she stepped on it. At first the pain didn't register and she stared blankly at the blood beginning to seep through her white sock.
She could only watch, horrified, as an unknown force grabbed the inch of nail sticking from the top of her foot and bent it.
Her only thought was for the camera she had been setting up. I hope I didn't damage it, even if it is insured.
It was Lin racing into the room that snapped her out of it. She screamed, clawing at her chest with her hands as the pain finally began to consume her.
"Don't move!" Lin snapped, a bead of sweat slipping down his forehead as he took the knife in his hand and carefully-carefully-cut away the carpet. He pulled her foot up, blood dripping slowly from the nail still stuck in it.
Mai was breathing quickly, panic keeping the tears at bay. Cursing in Chinese under his breath, the tall man picked her up bridal style in his arms. There was blood everywhere.
They went outside, the sound of her moaning alerting the others to the fact that something was wrong. Even Naru turned around, his eyes still narrowed with irritation.
Even in her foggy state, Mai could tell he must have been arguing with someone. There was a man standing beside him, though she couldn't see his face. Her vision was getting…blurry…
Lin was talking to Naru about a hospital, and the stranger walked up to her, a cool hand pressing to her cheek-
"Mai-chan?"
"Simon…" She groaned, turning away from his touch. She buried her face in Lin's chest, her body sagging against him.
It was Lin who drove her to the emergency clinic, per Naru's insistence. They were now sitting in the waiting room, Mai's foot propped up on Lin's knees per his insistence.
He was letting her watch videos on his Smartphone (a gift from Naru's parents) to pass the time until a doctor was ready.
His recommended page on YouTube was filled with practical things (cooking tutorials, how to speak various languages, how to make various voodoo dolls…) but one video stood out to her.
"You were watching, 'How to deal with people who annoy you', Lin-san?" Mai giggled, pressing a hand to her mouth when a snort escaped her lips. How embarrassing.
His cheeks reddened a little. "I...What was it you wanted to watch?"
They ended up watching a video of a baby giggling at a butterfly until the nurse came up to take them back.
"Would you like a wheelchair?"
Lin shook his head and picked his injured co-worker up yet again. It was actually comforting to be held when she was in so much pain, so Mai was thankful that he hadn't said yes.
Since the nail was in so deep ("I don't know what you guys were doing, but it really is fascinating that it went through so cleanly!") and since it was bent ("Did you guys do this on purpose?") Mai had to go under anesthesia so they could do a small operation.
She met dream Naru, but unlike usual he wasn't smiling. When she woke up, she found herself lying down in a bed.
Lin was sitting in a chair by the window. When he heard her sit up, her glanced over at her briefly before looking back out at the sky. "You had an allergic reaction to one of the medications they used while treating you at the clinic, so they had to send us to a hospital."
There wasn't anything unkind about his words, but both his face and voice were twisted with barely concealed rage.
Blinking slowly, Mai asked in a small, confused voice, "what's wrong, Lin-san?"
He sighed deeply and bowed his head, those long bangs falling to cover both of his eyes. "Why didn't you tell us?"
"Tell you what?"
He dug his fingers into his arms, knuckles going white. "Why didn't you tell us you were pregnant?"
A/N: I do love when people theorize about my fics, so feel free to do so! You'll have to wait to see if you're right, though...