Bleeding Out

"You tell me to hold on
Oh you tell me to hold on"

My knees gave out after seeing Jamie crumple to the ground. Seeing Melanie and Jared have to leave him there was worse. I know Ian would be faster if he wasn't carrying me, but I wouldn't be able to keep up with him anyways.

We all knew something was off, the quietness and the way the shadows moved. The first gunshots of the Seekers found themselves in Jeb and Kyle's bodies; they were the one's with weapons, after all. It would be easier to take us if our strongest were eliminated.

Jared's "Shit, shit" has grown farther away, Melanie's loud sobs distant. I can only hope they've made it out alive.

"Ian," I breathe. "Put me down. I can run." I struggled out of his grasp and sprinted towards the nearest tunnel.

"Wanda, where are you going?" He whispered.

"Hide" is all I can get out through my breathless pants. We slowed to a walk, careful to be quiet in case any Seekers were near by. It was dark, but our echoes would have them coming.

"Are you okay?" Ian dared to ask me, his voice barely above a whisper. I fumbled around for his hand in the darkness, still making our way down the tunnel, and squeezed his hand two times- letting him know I was okay without speaking.

"Don't move." The voice was hard and distinctly male. "Don't move or I'll shoot." Ian stopped dead in his tracks, my blood turned to ice.

"Wanda, I want you to go-" He whispered. "Get out of here and go, run, for as long as you can."

"No. I'm not leaving you." I sounded panicked.

"Don't move," he stressed. Knowing that the Seeker could not see us, Ian kissed me hard on the mouth and shoved me in the opposite direction.

"Go, Wanda. I'll hold him off. I love you, okay?" Ian said, his voice strained.

Two seconds after the gun went off, I heard nothing but ringing in my ears. I searched blindlessly for Ian and found his leg, my hand coming back soaked in warm liquid. My stomach dropped and my heart starting beating rapidly. The Seeker was gone, but was definitely coming back with more.

It took all of my strength to drag Ian down the last bit of the tunnel, stopping at what once was my cell. I tried to block Ian's moans, telling myself this would help him, that it would be worse if I left him there.

"Shh, Ian, you'll be okay." I shifted his head into my lap and brushed back his hair with my clean hand. "We'll get you out of here, you'll be safe soon."

"Wanda," he says, somewhat slurred. "Wanda, down the tunnel a ways, take a right. After you stumble over a ledge, at the next fork, take a left. It will lead you to the out-"

"I'm not leaving you here." My voice is hard and stubborn, tinged with despair and longing. "I'm not leaving you here," I repeat, softer.

"You can't just stay, they're coming back, and with more Seekers. At least if you get caught they won't kill you," he whispers, "But you have a chance to get to Burns, to go with the others and Mel." Ian sounded urgent, his words rushed.

"No." A sob breaks through me. "I can't leave, Ian, I can't. We'll get you out, I'll go and get some supplies, some Clean and Heal. I won't leave you here, Ian."

"Shh." This was backwards, he was calming me when he was the one who was-

No. Ian will not die. Ian cannot die he cannot die he cannot die.

"Wanda, I won't make it out of here alive, you can. You can go and live and they won't discard you and you can live, Wanda." He pushed.

"No, you'll be fine, you will make it out of here. You will," I said, my voice thick with tears.

"Wanda, I know the inevitable. I can't even walk. We're trapped. I'm trapped, but you can still get out," he whispered. "Please, Wanda."

"I'm staying here," I repeated. I know there's nothing he wants more than for me to be here with him. No matter what he says, I won't leave him. I won't.

We sat for two days in almost darkness. The inevitable had come. With the little light we were able to get through the cracks, I could make out red lines crawling up his leg. Blood poisoning, and I can't even try to help it, because leaving Ian means getting found by Seekers. We are trapped.

The light was gone at the end of the day, and we were stuck in fearful darkness. The Seekers had became louder, taking over our caves and using it as a hideout. Maybe they think some of us will come back.

We have to sit, counting down the seconds until they find us, in complete silence. Ian tries not to show his pain, but I can hear the muffled moans. I melt into his shoulder, my body curving perfectly to fit his.

"I love you," he whispers to me through clenched teeth.

"Sleeping would help with the pain, Ian. You should sleep," I whisper back.

"No, you'll be... all alone," Ian mumbles. Every second my mind is active I'm wishing and hoping for some Heal, or some pain medication, or something. Anything to help Ian.

"I'll be fine, Ian. Sleep." I kiss him with my eyes open. If this was the last shred of light I'll share with Ian, I want to see the deep sapphire that help me to this planet.

I hold my breath so I could hear Ian's shallow breathing. When they stop, I still didn't breathe. I hope my heart stops beating.

I sit with Ian for as long as I can, tears spilling over my face. When my throat becomes sore from sobbing, I start to stand up, not wanting to feel the cold stiffness of his body.

It didn't take that long for me to find my way back to the Game Room in the dark, I followed the voices. I don't know how they didn't come running for me, sobs racked my body and echoed down the tunnel.

I'll be fine, Ian. Sleep. That was the last thing I said to him. The last thing I'll ever say to him.

I don't know when I stopped moving. I don't know when the Seekers found me lying in the middle of the tunnel. They tripped over me and started shooting at random. The bullet sank into my chest and stopped my heart immediately.

And now I wander around in this vivid blue looking for my Ian. He could be anywhere.

If you have any comments, please review or pm me or message me on my tumblr :) I hope you liked it!