Bright white light filled Arthur's vision when he opened his eyes.
He blinked. As his eyes focused, he made out a halogen light in a white ceiling. There was a fuzziness in his brain that dimmed the pain, but made it hard to think. He closed his eyes. As much as he wanted to go back to sleep, a prickling sense of unease kept him awake. There was something he needed to remember, something terrible and frightening.
The monster!
Arthur's eyes popped open and he sat bolt upright. Breathing hard, he glanced around and saw that the room was completely empty. It smelled sterile and medicinal. Ah, he was in a hospital. That would explain the fog in his mind and the brace on his leg.
Still on alert, Arthur examined the empty hospital room. The door stood slightly ajar, allowing him to hear the sounds of footsteps in the hallway. The sound of shoes clicking against linoleum unnerved him in a way it never had before.
Had the monster escaped from the concrete? Was it coming after him? Where was Alfred?
Ignoring the throb of pain from his leg, Arthur swung his legs over the side of the bed. Holding on to the bed with one hand, he stepped onto the cold linoleum.
"Alfred?" he called as he awkwardly walked forward two steps and pulled back the curtain that separated his bed from the other half of the room. The other bed was empty.
Looking around again, he spotted a bag lying on a chair and moved closer. With any luck, there was a mobile he could use to call Alfred. Perhaps his soulmate had just wandered off to find food. Arthur rifled through the pockets and then tensed as he heard the sound of footsteps draw closer.
He spun around, heart pounding as he watched the door swing open to reveal a short policewoman with long brown hair, tanned skin, and serious eyes. She looked at the bed and then looked at him, a frown on her face as she walked closer. Could she be…?
Arthur instinctively backed away. "You're not a nurse," he said. His leg caught on the back of the chair and he winced in pain.
"No, I'm here to ask you some questions."
"Oh." Not it. Arthur took a deep breath and moved the bag off the chair. He sat down. It felt good to take the weight off his leg. He looked her up and down, regarding her cautiously now that she was close enough for him to make out the name on her badge. Lieutenant Chells. Screw her questions, he had some own of his to ask, starting with the most important. "Where's Alfred?"
"In custody," she replied curtly. She flipped open a notepad. "Why did he shoot you?"
"What?" Arthur couldn't believe that Alfred was in jail again. It took him a moment to process the second part of her question. He blinked at her, genuinely perplexed. He hadn't been shot… had he? Arthur frowned as he tried to piece together his memories of the fight with the creature. He remembered the monster gripping his leg, the second gunshot, and the pain. Oh. Alfred's gunshot must have grazed his leg. "He didn't shoot me!"
The policewoman gave him a sad, sympathetic look. "You can tell me what happened. We'll offer you whatever protection you need."
Good lord. She thought his own soulmate had attacked him. Arthur shook his head insistently. "Alfred wasn't shooting at me," he protested. "He was aiming for a man who was trying to kill me. He saved my life."
"…I see," she replied in disbelief. "And what did the man who attacked you look like?"
"Well…" Arthur frowned slightly, trying to come up with some explanation other than 'invisible demon.' It was hard to think with the painkillers fogging his wits. It didn't help that the disbelief on the policewoman's face increased the longer he paused. "I didn't see him very well. He came up behind me. All I remember is that… he was strong." Arthur shuddered as he remembered the monster's vicious grip on his leg.
She leaned forward. "I know it can be hard to admit that a loved one hurt you—"
"What are you fucking on about?" Arthur snapped, furious at her presumption. "Alfred is my soulmate. He wouldn't hurt me."
"—but lying to yourself won't make it go away." She shook her head sadly. "Trust me, I've seen it enough times to know that not every soulmate finds a fairy tale ending."
"I'm not an abused soulmate."
She sighed and handed him a business card. "We won't make you press charges, but here's a number in case you ever change your mind."
"I won't!" Arthur snapped, glaring as she briskly left the room. This whole situation was absurd and infuriating. He returned his attention to the bag next to the chair and found Alfred's mobile inside. He punched in the security code (1-7-7-6) and saw that Alfred had a million missed calls from his mother, plus a few more recent texts from Toris and Natalia.
He opened the last one (from Natalia) and bit back a scream when he saw the attached photo of the monster's concrete-encrusted hand. The phone fell from Arthur's hands and clattered to the floor. After a moment of terror, he picked it up again and read the message.
Still there, she had written fifteen minutes ago.
Arthur grimaced. The image was both reassuring and unsettling. At least he could be grateful that the screen hadn't cracked when he dropped it on the linoleum. He gathered Alfred's belongings and decided it was time to figure out what he would need to do this time to bail out his soulmate. By the time he reached the door, shuffling on his injured leg, he could hear the sound of footsteps running toward him. That probably wasn't good, but at least it wasn't the monster.
Peeking his head out the door, Arthur had no time to react as a broad chest filled his vision and he was lifted off the ground in a tight hug. Recognizing Alfred's muscular arms immediately, he relaxed into the comforting warmth. He gave Alfred a gentle smile. "I thought the police arrested you?"
"They were asking a lot of questions, but they let me go when you woke up."
"I'm glad." Alfred rested his head against Arthur's chest and breathed deeply. "At least I don't have to bail you out this time."
Alfred smiled back. "You know, I didn't have so much trouble with the law 'til I met you."
"We should start over," Arthur proposed. "Pretend we met for the first time today. Pretend this other stuff never happened."
"Yeah, I like that idea." Alfred took some of Arthur's weight onto his shoulder and helped him down the hospital corridor. Arthur was surprised that their first stop was the men's restroom. He briefly wondered if Alfred wanted their first time to be in a handicap stall, but his question was quickly answered when Alfred handed him a set of clothes. "Let's start by pretending you were never here."
"Trying to escape the medical bills?" Arthur asked as he pulled on the dark red hoodie and the too-large pair of jeans that covered the brace on his leg. It sounded like a good idea to him, given that he'd likely lost his job due to his long absence and he was going to be evicted from his apartment if he didn't send in his rent soon. "Think it'll work?"
Alfred flushed and nodded. "Yeah, the hospital thinks your name is Davie Jones."
With Alfred acting as a human crutch, they left the hospital with none the wiser. By the time they reached the car, Arthur felt giddy and free. The monster was trapped and now their relationship could really begin. He leaned across the center console and kissed Alfred breathlessly. As their lips and tongues began an entrancing dance, he felt a pleasant warmth pool at the base of his spine. This was what he had always dreamed about when he imagined his soulmate.
Alfred gave him a dazed smile as they pulled apart. "So… wanna be proper soulmates and go to a nice restaurant before we… y'know." He blushed.
"I'm quite alright with skipping the restaurant."
"Yeah? Hold that thought!" Alfred replied with a grin. Treating the speed limits as guidelines, he drove up into a hilly area called Mulholland Drive. It was a leafy road with a beautiful view of Hollywood and downtown LA under the noonday sun. Given the seclusion and lovely views, Arthur quickly gathered that this was the local Lover's Lane.
They found a barren spot at the end of the cliff and parked the car. The view of the ocean and city below them was splendid, though Arthur spared it barely a glance. He swept papers and old junk food bags off faux leather seats and climbed into the back. Alfred followed a moment later, shutting the door loudly behind him. Within seconds they were ripping off each other's clothes like it was the end of the world and they only had a few minutes left to fuck. Young and burning with desire, they fogged the windows of the car in record time. Arthur's skin tingled with warmth and fire and passion. Lost in a blissful haze, he didn't even notice the pain from his leg. He moaned as Alfred gently pushed him down onto the seat and swallowed his cock.
"Nngh," Arthur breathed, burying his fingers into Alfred's golden locks.
Alfred glanced up flirtatiously, his eyes dark and shouldering behind his smeared lenses. It was almost too much for Arthur to take.
"Al…" he warned, breath hitching at the back of his throat. "Fuck me."
Arthur watched impatiently with half-lidded eyes as Alfred coated his fingers and his own cock in lube. In the cramped confines of the car's backseat, Arthur gently lifted his legs and wrapped them around Alfred's waist. The one in the brace twinged, but Arthur was too far gone to care. He no longer had a moist warmth around his cock and he desperately wanted something more. He arched back and his moans intensified when he felt the slick finger circling his sphincter. Although Arthur had fingered himself many times before, nothing could compare to the unexpected sensation of another's touch.
Two fingers then three left him seeing stars. Alfred panted above him as he pressed into Arthur, his chest glistening in sweaty, naked glory. His gasping mouth and flushed cheeks were enough to make Arthur dizzy and weak-kneed. "More, more!" Arthur begged.
"Oh god, yes!" Alfred cried as he thrust deep. Warmth spilled into Arthur's body at the same time it splattered across his chest. His orgasm crested over him like a tidal wave, pulling all conscious thought into the undertow. So this was what being with his soulmate felt like. As if two halves were being made whole.
Far too soon, Alfred climbed off him and started pulling on his clothes. With his shirt back on his chest, he leaned over and gave Arthur a gentle kiss on the lips. "You're gorgeous."
Arthur blushed. "That's just the orgasm talking."
"Nope. It is a 100% scientifically proven fact."
"Done a lot of studies have you?" Arthur asked as he pulled on his oversized hoodie.
"Well, I'm continuing to gather data, but I feel pretty confident about this."
"God, you're such a dork." Arthur smiled affectionately. After two weeks of basically living on the run, he liked seeing Alfred able to relax and just be himself. This was the sort of care-free, light-hearted lovable idiot he could easily imagine spending the rest of his life with.
They returned to the front seats and took a leisurely drive back to Alfred's house. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and Arthur felt more hopeful than ever about his future. His cheerful attitude lasted until they pulled into the driveway at the Jones residence.
The golden retriever ran out to the car, barking and growling the entire time. With his ears laid flat against his head, Dug bared his teeth and snarled at the car.
"Dug?" Alfred looked shocked. "What's wrong?"
"Uh oh," Arthur said as he glanced over at the front porch.
Amelia stood in the doorway, her arms crossed and a glare on her face. "Alfred Fitzgerald Jones! You are in so much trouble, young man."
[A/N: This is the closest this story will come to a happy ending. If you don't want to read the sad ending, I suggest you stop reading now!]