Arthur anxiously paces back and forth the hallway. He keeps on glancing at the clock above the main desk every time he reaches the lobby, hearing the slow, agonizing tick tock sound it emits. Alfred and Madeline have tried everything to make Arthur sit down or get some rest, but the man wouldn't oblige.
"I'm not going to rest until I hear what happened to Neculai," Arthur would retort. The two interns gave up and watched the man intently walk back and forth.
He looks up at the clock again. It's four in the morning and still no news. The two men have been out there for four hours and just an about two hours ago Neculai was reported as missing. Arthur wonders if Børre is still out there, searching for him.
His eyes burn yet he refuses to rest. Feeling light-headed, he rubs his temples, groaning.
"Mr. Kirkland, please at least sit down," Madeline says with concern. Arthur has been counting the amount of times the two interns have demanded this.
Arthur again retorts, "For the umpteenth time, I'm not-"
"Standing up isn't going to make anything better," Alfred argues, his head resting on his head. The boy was blearily looking down at his textbook, trying to study a diagram. Arthur stares at them, frustration rising within him. Sensing this, Madeline shoots up off her chair.
"I'm going to make some tea, is that okay, Mr. Kirkland?" Arthur makes a sound of affirmation. Madeline leaves the lobby.
Arthur doesn't even want to argue with Alfred at this point, the boy already causes so much stress. Nothing can make Arthur sit down because if he were to do that he would become weary and fall asleep in the chair.
"Your eyes are red, Mr. Kirkland. For the love of god, just sit-"
Arthur just rubs his eyes for a moment and then stares at Alfred. "There."
"You just-…never mind." Alfred heaves a sigh, his attention now focusing on his textbook. Arthur hears Alfred mutter profanity under his breath but at this point Arthur doesn't even care about what the interns do. He anxiously waits for Børre, or a phone call, he even accepts this as all a prank by Neculai. He just wants them to be safe and sound.
Madeline returns with a cup of hot tea, presenting it to Arthur. "You can have this tea if you sit down."
Arthur scowls, "Then I don't want it. It will make me tired."
"Oh my god," Arthur hears Alfred groan loudly, his hand slapping the desk. "Just accept the god damn tea!"
Arthur shoots a glare at the intern, "Are you talking back to me? Do you have any single idea of what I'm going through right now?"
"No, but it's just a hot drink that will keep you awake. All we want you to do is to sit down and calm down. Christ." Alfred raises his voice and makes hand motions as he says this. "We're not asking for you to stop being worried, holy shit."
Arthur's eyes twitch, not liking the profanity Alfred is saying. Madeline stops him from saying anything else, guiding him to a chair near the main desk. He slowly sits down, the pain in his legs instantly being released; the comfort of the chair relieving the pain in him. Madeline hands him the small cup of tea and smiles when he accepts it. His hands shake, his whole body feels heavy just with the burden of not knowing what's happening out there.
"Mr. Kirkland?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't worry about me."
It feels as if hours have passed when they received a phone call. Instantly, Arthur rises out of the chair and stares at Alfred. Alfred glances at Arthur, handing the phone to him. Arthur knows exactly who it is. He takes the phone, his hands fumbling for a short moment trying to control himself.
"Børre?"
"Arthur, get here right now."
Arthur almost shouts, "Where?"
"The lab. Short story short, I found him and his life is on the life right now. Get here right now."
Arthur almost drops the phone. Even though he's relieved that Neculai is found, the thought of him dying now is horrifying. "I'll be there in a minute."
"Please hurry."
He hangs up, grabs his coat off the coat rack and opens the front door. He doesn't leave any word for the interns as he leaves.
"Arthur!"
He sees Børre immediately head towards him, his attire and hands reduced to blotches of blood stains. Arthur jumps at the sight of him.
"Oh my god, Børre. What the hell happened?"
Børre is in shambles, appearing as if he had no time to explain anything. His hands make a few motions which in return made Arthur frustrated.
"Out with it!"
"Neculai was bitten ten times."
Arthur is taken aback. No, he must have heard it wrong. "What?"
Børre grabs Arthur's shoulders, neither of them caring anymore that there was blood on them, "Neculai was bitten ten times, all of them containing venom."
Appalled, Arthur escapes Børre's hold and feels his surroundings wither away. Everything is moving; he doesn't believe this is real.
"Oh god, Børre, please tell me he's going to live." His voice shakes in fear.
Børre looks down, shaking his head. Arthur backs away a few steps, almost losing his balance. Everything is moving and turning blurry. Børre's voice is a mere echo. He doesn't feel himself fall to the ground. The last thing he sees is a worried nurse, stopping besides Børre.
A/N: I have spring break right now so hopefully there will be faster updates. Thank you for all the favorites/alerts/reviews though! Sorry it took so long.