Sorry it took so frickin' long, but, well, things have been... complicated
lately. But anyhow... here it is- part three.
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Sands was sitting on the couch when Estrella reached the living room. His whole body was hunched over, and his face was in his hands.
At the sound of her footsteps he straightened up slightly and raised his head, but he did not acknowledge her at first.
At last she asked, "Are you alright?"
"Fine."
A pause, then, "No you're not."
"I'm fine!"
Estrella took a deep, steadying breath, and said calmly, "Ramirez has turned in for the night. If you like, I can help you clean up a bit, and have a look at today's batch of injuries."
He nodded and got slowly to his feet, following her down the dimly lit hallway to their room.
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Sands sat on the edge of the bed as Estrella cleaned and bandaged the shallow bullet graze on his arm.
She had expected him to object when she offered to treat his injuries, expected him to insist that he could do it himself. But he did not, and stayed silent as she soaked the cloth she was using in a basin of water, ready to wash the blood off his face and re-bandage his eyes.
She reached out and carefully took off his sunglasses, revealing the two gaping, still sluggishly bleeding holes that had once been his eyes. He flinched as she touched the cloth to his face, but made no sound.
The water in the basin was scarlet by the time she finished.
Turning away from him to tear a strip of bandage off the roll she had found in a cabinet in the bathroom, she broke the silence by asking, "What did you and El fight about?"
"What, couldn't you hear us?" Sands raised his eyebrows.
Estrella turned back to look at him, started to shrug, caught herself, and said, "No, I was talking to Ramirez."
"What did he want?"
He asked me about you, actually," she answered, watching his expression out of the corner of her eye as she bent down to wrap the bandage carefully around his head, hiding what was left of his eyes once more. "He wanted to know why I saved your life."
"Seems to be a popular question lately," Sands observed solemnly, but the faintest of sardonic smiles touched his lips. "One would almost think the ones asking it wish you hadn't."
Estrella laughed and argued, "The cartels at least would have been most disappointed if you had died, except maybe the Barillos. Most disappointed."
"Somehow I don't think El would have been too broken-hearted if I had died after the coup," Sands mused, his smile becoming more pronounced. He rubbed a hand across the ugly bruise that was spreading over his cheekbone. "Though I'm sure I don't know what gave me that impression."
Estrella sighed. "You insulted Carolina again, didn't you." It was not a question.
"Her name might have come up once or twice," he acknowledged. "But mostly, we just had a nice, friendly chat about you. Buddy to buddy, you know?"
Estrella kept her tone carefully neutral. "Oh?"
"Yeah." Sands grinned maliciously. "Turns out he's a wee bit touchy about his relationship with you."
"And you are not?" she asked curiously. "It doesn't bother you that he and I were once... together?"
"Nope," he said easily.
"Por que no?"
"Because," he said unconcernedly, "In, oh, four days, you'll take me to the Guerros, they'll talk to me or whatever, you'll get your money, and then- adios amigo. No messy long-term relationship, no commitment, no problemo."
Estrella frowned. "Doesn't that worry you?"
"Doesn't what worry me?" He toyed idly with a leftover scrap of bandage, deftly winding and unwinding it around his fingers.
"The 'or whatever'."
He smiled, still playing with the bandage. "Not really. I mean, c'mon, what's the worst they can do to me? Kill me?"
"Yes," she said softly. "They could kill you."
His smile turned bitter. "I'm already dead. I just haven't gotten around to lying down yet."
"You're still standing?"
"Still," he said quietly. "For now, at least."
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A/N: Call the Guinness Book offices; it's a new record- Sands didn't get any new injuries in this chapter! He needed a break, poor baby. So abused... *sniff*
Anyway...
He and some of my other 'voices' had a funny moment that I thought I'd share with you all. (If you wanna hear it, read on, otherwise... go write me a nice long review)
You see, he got in a fight with somebody or other and came staggering back into my mind covered with blood, mostly not his own.
So one of my female voices, Elly, nicely offers him a change of clothes, as he's such a mess. He accepts the offer.
So she picks out a T-shirt and jeans and whatever for him, and a few minutes later he joins the rest of the voices for a nice cozy chat about destroying the universe. He can't imagine why everyone keeps breaking out into laughter when they look at him.
The problem was, the T-shirt Elly loaned him was one of hers, and read "Girl scout Dropout" in big sparkly pink letters on the front.
I believe she's still hiding from him.
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Sands was sitting on the couch when Estrella reached the living room. His whole body was hunched over, and his face was in his hands.
At the sound of her footsteps he straightened up slightly and raised his head, but he did not acknowledge her at first.
At last she asked, "Are you alright?"
"Fine."
A pause, then, "No you're not."
"I'm fine!"
Estrella took a deep, steadying breath, and said calmly, "Ramirez has turned in for the night. If you like, I can help you clean up a bit, and have a look at today's batch of injuries."
He nodded and got slowly to his feet, following her down the dimly lit hallway to their room.
************************************************************************
Sands sat on the edge of the bed as Estrella cleaned and bandaged the shallow bullet graze on his arm.
She had expected him to object when she offered to treat his injuries, expected him to insist that he could do it himself. But he did not, and stayed silent as she soaked the cloth she was using in a basin of water, ready to wash the blood off his face and re-bandage his eyes.
She reached out and carefully took off his sunglasses, revealing the two gaping, still sluggishly bleeding holes that had once been his eyes. He flinched as she touched the cloth to his face, but made no sound.
The water in the basin was scarlet by the time she finished.
Turning away from him to tear a strip of bandage off the roll she had found in a cabinet in the bathroom, she broke the silence by asking, "What did you and El fight about?"
"What, couldn't you hear us?" Sands raised his eyebrows.
Estrella turned back to look at him, started to shrug, caught herself, and said, "No, I was talking to Ramirez."
"What did he want?"
He asked me about you, actually," she answered, watching his expression out of the corner of her eye as she bent down to wrap the bandage carefully around his head, hiding what was left of his eyes once more. "He wanted to know why I saved your life."
"Seems to be a popular question lately," Sands observed solemnly, but the faintest of sardonic smiles touched his lips. "One would almost think the ones asking it wish you hadn't."
Estrella laughed and argued, "The cartels at least would have been most disappointed if you had died, except maybe the Barillos. Most disappointed."
"Somehow I don't think El would have been too broken-hearted if I had died after the coup," Sands mused, his smile becoming more pronounced. He rubbed a hand across the ugly bruise that was spreading over his cheekbone. "Though I'm sure I don't know what gave me that impression."
Estrella sighed. "You insulted Carolina again, didn't you." It was not a question.
"Her name might have come up once or twice," he acknowledged. "But mostly, we just had a nice, friendly chat about you. Buddy to buddy, you know?"
Estrella kept her tone carefully neutral. "Oh?"
"Yeah." Sands grinned maliciously. "Turns out he's a wee bit touchy about his relationship with you."
"And you are not?" she asked curiously. "It doesn't bother you that he and I were once... together?"
"Nope," he said easily.
"Por que no?"
"Because," he said unconcernedly, "In, oh, four days, you'll take me to the Guerros, they'll talk to me or whatever, you'll get your money, and then- adios amigo. No messy long-term relationship, no commitment, no problemo."
Estrella frowned. "Doesn't that worry you?"
"Doesn't what worry me?" He toyed idly with a leftover scrap of bandage, deftly winding and unwinding it around his fingers.
"The 'or whatever'."
He smiled, still playing with the bandage. "Not really. I mean, c'mon, what's the worst they can do to me? Kill me?"
"Yes," she said softly. "They could kill you."
His smile turned bitter. "I'm already dead. I just haven't gotten around to lying down yet."
"You're still standing?"
"Still," he said quietly. "For now, at least."
************************************************************************
A/N: Call the Guinness Book offices; it's a new record- Sands didn't get any new injuries in this chapter! He needed a break, poor baby. So abused... *sniff*
Anyway...
He and some of my other 'voices' had a funny moment that I thought I'd share with you all. (If you wanna hear it, read on, otherwise... go write me a nice long review)
You see, he got in a fight with somebody or other and came staggering back into my mind covered with blood, mostly not his own.
So one of my female voices, Elly, nicely offers him a change of clothes, as he's such a mess. He accepts the offer.
So she picks out a T-shirt and jeans and whatever for him, and a few minutes later he joins the rest of the voices for a nice cozy chat about destroying the universe. He can't imagine why everyone keeps breaking out into laughter when they look at him.
The problem was, the T-shirt Elly loaned him was one of hers, and read "Girl scout Dropout" in big sparkly pink letters on the front.
I believe she's still hiding from him.