Chapter Text
There was no way he was alive. No one could have survived that fall, you thought to yourself as you ran over to the man’s body. He was half curled in on himself on his side as you reached to feel his neck for a pulse. Just as your hand touched his neck, the man took a deep breath and groaned, and pushed himself to his back.
Oh thank God you took a steadying breath before putting your hand on his shoulder firmly. “Don’t move,” you instructed looking up and over your shoulder. It was still the quiet hours of early morning and there weren’t many others out and about. You wouldn’t have been out except for the double shift you were asked to pull the previous night. “I’m calling 911, can you tell me your name?” You asked looking down at his face for the first time. Initially, you gave him a cursory once over and the any bones sticking out or a giant pool of blood coupled with his strong pulse made you comfortable enough to look away to find your phone.
“That’s… that’s really not necessary.” The man groaned as he straightened out on his back. “I’ve had much worse I assure you.” He chucked, wincing at the movement.
“Umm, you just fell what… 6? 7 stories?” you stared down at the man, mouth half open. “Yes, it’s necessary,” you said as you placed your phone on the ground on speaker phone and grabbed your stethoscope from your bag. As your phone started ringing the man grabbed the phone and pushed end call just as a voice began to speak up from the other end. “Sir, you need to go to the hospital,” you protested as the man sat up.
He looked amused as you leaned forward tilting his chin to inspect a deep cut on his cheek. “This needs stitches,” you said absently before turning his face the other direction, looking at the bruise forming below his eye. “Do you know your name? Where you are?” you started asked, deciding that while he may refuse an ambulance you’d be damned before you let him go before deciding how badly his head was injured.
“You don’t know my name?” he raised his eyebrows. Apparently your assessment amused him. Was he flirting? Trying some strange pick up technique? You rolled your eyes and shook your head.
“No, I don’t.” You put your stethoscope ear pieces in before putting the bell on his side. “You wouldn’t be trying a line on me hm?” you smirked leaning closer to listen to his lungs. For the first time you noticed his blue eyes and smile. “You’re lucky you don’t have a collapsed lung from that fall.” You sighed placing the instrument around your neck.
“Nah,” he wrapped an arm around his side, “Just some nasty bruising I’m sure,” he said and started to get up. “You a doc?” He raised his eyebrows. You immediately put a restraining hand on his shoulder.
“Whoa there mister, you stand up and fall there’s no way I’m going to be able to catch you without hurting myself. Just… stay down? Please?” he was getting impatient with you. “No, nurse.” You watched him carefully. “You never answered my questions. There’s no way I’m letting you leave until you do.” He could refuse to be seen, that was his right. But you couldn’t just let someone take a fall like that and not be sure they at least knew who they were, he must have hit his head hard landing on the concrete.
“Steve. Now look, ma’am, I need to go.” Before you knew what was happening he was standing and offered you a hand up. You brushed off your scrubs and stood with his help. Just as you reached your feet you saw Steve’s eyes go wide and he yanked your arm hard, pulling you to the side. At the same time you heard a loud shout and a felt a horrible burning in your arm. “Damnit! I thought I lost them!” the man, Steve, growled as you lost your balance from his harsh pull.
Before you knew it, Steve was surrounded by three men. You held a hand over your left upper arm against the burn of a deep cut, warm blood trickled down and dripped off your fingertips. What did I walk into… you thought as you backed away, your phone was still on the pavement where you had set it before. Adrenaline pumping through you, you didn’t think through the consequences of grabbing for it. Just before you reached it, you were grabbed and thrown backwards into the side of the building. You felt sick as the back of your head hit the brick with a sickening thud and your vision blurred.
“Heeeel—“ you started to scream hoping some passerby might hear but one of the men clamped a hand over your mouth and slammed you hard against the building once more. You wouldn’t pass out, you told yourself. Passing out meant death. You needed to run but your legs felt like rubber. You had no weapons and your hands were clawing at the giant hand that held your throat, pressing you against the building. The man holding you had a dark grin on his face and you looked directly into his eyes. If he was going to kill you, he had to look at you.
“This little mouse has some spunk,” he laughed as you tried to kick at his legs. “Such a waste.” He sighed as he squeezed your neck, cutting off your airway. Eyes bulging you grasped desperately at his arm, then at the wall. Weapon… no weapon… you thought to yourself as your hands reached your pocket. You felt the metal loops and without thinking grabbed them and slashed the pointed end of the clamps at your attackers face. The first time you connected the metal jammed deep down in the man’s ear and he screamed, jerking his head back. His grip faltered allowing you to take a deep breath of air that you desperately needed. Your second wild swing grazed his soft eye, earning you a shove as the man pushed away from you screaming and cursing wildly. Getting to your knees, you crawled to get towards an open area, desperate for help. You were sure by now that the mystery man Steve was dead and unless someone intervened, you were certain you would follow shortly. A booted foot made devastating contact with your side and you, gasping for air, lay down curled protectively around yourself. Muffled voices and a car door vaguely registered with you but you were so tired, so suddenly tired.
“Help me get her to the car,” you heard a voice over you and felt strong arms behind your back and under your legs.
“We don’t take in stray civilians, Steve.” Someone protested. The voices were far away at this point.
“Well, she was trying to help me when they came back for me.”
“Did you tell her that really wasn’t necessary?” Annoyance was thick in the man’s voice. A chuckle rumbled in the chest you were held against.
“Well, I tried…”
You promised yourself you would never play the role of Good Samaritan ever again as you finally passed out.