It's my first time trying out these characters, so hopefully I do them justice. The title is from the song by Iron and Wine. I think that's all I got.
Disclaimer: The characters don't belong to me.
Jack Habib looked over at the man slumped in the chair, his head resting in his hands. They had been sitting there for a few minutes already in silence, and Will didn't seem in any hurry to start talking.
"Will," he spoke and the other man wearily lifted his head. "Is she okay?" Will snorted, and finally lifted his head up.
"You know, it's my fault. You're going to tell me that it's not, because that's what you do, but you're wrong," Will's voice was firm.
"It's not your fault."
"Yes it is," Will shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. "It is. It's my fault and my damn mission to civilize."
"Tell me what happened," Dr. Habib said gently.
They're arguing when it happens. That's not unusual, and they've been gradually replacing the anger that tinged almost all of their arguments when she first returned with an underlying affection. It's almost like it was when they were dating, back before he knew about Brian Brenner (except usually when Will thinks of him, he adds a colorful adjective before his name. Because if sleeping with the woman Will loved, okay loves, wasn't enough, Brian then had to write that stupid, destructive article. But Will blames himself for that article. He brought Brian there to hurt Mac, to prove some point, he's still not sure what, and so he probably deserved what he got in the end).
He's trying to drive his point home, holding the door open for Mac to slip through first, and he's not sure what happened next. One minute, she's turning her head back towards him, smirking, and then her mouth rounds and she lets out a little gasp. And he hears shouting, but he can't focus on any of it; he can't focus on anything but Mac and the way that she's holding onto her side, and when she brings her hand away, it's covered in blood. And the blood is pounding in his ears, and he's vaguely aware of Lonny running away from them, towards something or someone, and he hears his name and Mac's name.
"Billy," she meets his eye, and he rushes forward just in time to catch her as she tumbles down, her hand still pressed against her side. He pulls her hand back, and there's, God, there's just so much blood. He moves her hands away gently and presses his own hands down, and she moans slightly when he increases the pressure, and her eyes start fluttering shut.
"Hey," he says to her, hooking a finger under her chin so that she has to look up at him. "Stay with me, Mac."
"So tired," she mumbles, and he shakes his head vehemently. "Hurts."
"No, Mac, no, stay awake. You have to stay awake," he's aware that he's pleading. Jim is there, suddenly, dropping to his knees.
"We called 911," he tells Will. He gets a good look at where the blood is rushing through Will's fingers, and he rocks back on his heels. "Oh, Mac, oh." And then Maggie pulls Jim away, and it's just the two of them again.
"I'm sorry, Billy," Mac whispers.
"Don't," his voice is sharp. "You're going to be fine, Kenz. You're going to be just fine. Don't apologize. Not for this, not for anything."
"Billy, I have to tell you," she starts, and he shushes her.
"Tell me later," his voice is firm.
The paramedics finally arrive and he's pulled away from her, but her hand reaches out and grabs his, and he stays there, by her side as they shout words that he only vaguely understands and start to rush her off into an ambulance.
"I'm going with you," he insists.
"Will," it's Lonny, appearing by his side suddenly and laying a hand on his arm. "You can't do that, it's not safe."
"Like hell I can't," Will tugs his arm away. "I don't care if it's safe or not. I'm going with her." He catches up to the gurney, and Mac's eyes open and she finds him and there's a look of relief on her face and he knows that Lonny is a big guy, but he knows he'd win this fight if it came to that.
"Are you family?" The paramedic asks as they start to load her in.
"Yes," Will doesn't hesitate, and they allow him to climb in and get settled next to her head and he brushes her hair from off her face and presses a soft kiss to her hairline. Her eyes are closed, and he leans so that he's right next to her ear and he whispers that she's going to be okay, that everything is okay, that he's here and he's not going anywhere, and that he loves her. Oh, God, does he love her.
"You told her that you loved her?" Dr. Habib interrupted.
"Yes," Will isn't ashamed of that part of the story. Him telling Mackenzie that he loved her as she bled all over the sidewalk was not something he regretted. His regrets were many, and varied, but that wasn't one of them. That could never be one of them. "I told her that I loved her. She was bleeding…there was so much blood. I didn't know one person could have that much blood and I couldn't do anything else. I couldn't do anything else, but I could hold her and I could tell her that I loved her, and that's what I did." Will clenched his fists by his side and closed his eyes for a moment. "There was so much blood."
"Tell me what happened next. Tell me what happened when you got to the hospital," Dr. Habib prompted gently.
"They took her away. They immediately took her away, and I just…I stood there, like an idiot. Like a lost idiot in the middle of the waiting room, covered in her blood," Will sighed and leaned back against the chair.
He didn't know what to do, or where to go. She's gone, swept away by nurses and doctors all rushing and shouting and he's lost.
Lonny arrives minutes later, hurrying towards him, with Charlie on his heels, and a crowd not too far behind him. Maggie's eyes are red, and she's gripping Jim's hand, not Don's, and Will can't focus on that right now, he can't focus on anything but Mac and how much she was bleeding.
Charlie takes control of the situation, because Will is in no shape to, and corrals everyone to a private waiting room where they all collapse into chairs.
"You should go get cleaned up," Charlie says, and Will shakes his head. He doesn't want to go anywhere until he knows whether or not Mac's okay. "It could be awhile, Will. You don't have to go home, just go to the bathroom and wash your hands and I can try to find something for you to wear."
"I'm fine," Will snaps.
"Will," Charlie tries again.
"Seriously, Charlie, I just…I'm fine," Will waves off the concern, and Charlie's not convinced, not by a long shot, but he lets it drop and lets Will fall back against the seat back and settle in for what's going to be a long wait.
