He purred, and his antennae wiggled. The office chair hovered into the air and glided across the room before settling in front of my desk, which was on the opposite side it had been.
I knew better to tell him he should’ve asked first. Fae creatures did what they wanted. He’d been surviving off the honey nectar I’d left out in a bowl for him over break, but that was nearly gone. He hovered by my ear and gave a loud yowl.
“In a minute,” I told him. Ethan’s expression was still hollow and blank. Tygrys observed Ethan’s grieving expression, and stuck out his lip.
Ethan stood there like he didn’t know what to do. He was awaiting instruction.
There were a lot of physical steps we needed to take care of before we dealt with the emotional heaviness.Right. Shower, food, sleep.
“Come on.” I took Ethan’s hands and led him into the bathroom. Tygrys fluttered over to the curtains, and with his tiny teeth, pulled them shut over the windows.
I started stripping off Ethan’s clothes. It was like he couldn’t do it himself. When I pulled his shirt off of him, his head wavered, and he nearly fell over.
I was really starting to worry the events of the day had turned my mate into a zombie. His eyes were similarly dull.
I winced as I looked at the bruises covering Ethan’s skin, barely visible under the filth. Elijah’s guards had done a number on him, and he needed to soak the wounds.
Even so, Ethan had to rinse off before he took a bath. He was caked in dirt.
My mate looked at the shower like it was a hurdle to be conquered. “I need something to sit on,” Ethan said in despair. “I can’t—”
“I have a shower chair.” Miroslava had prescribed me one, just in case my fatigue got too much for me to bathe properly. I’d never used it, but I’d kept it around in case Ethan needed it. I got it out of the cabinet, and unfolded it before I placed it inside the tub and turned on the hot water.
Ethan sat on the toilet and fiddled with his prosthetic. His fingers slipped, and he swore. His hands were shaking.
“I’ve got it.” I wasn’t sure how to take it off, but I figured it couldn’t be too hard. I knelt down and pressed the release button on the top of the prosthetic, before I slowly pulled off the socket and set the prosthetic aside.
When I peeled back the gel liner, I almost yelped, but held it in for Ethan’s sake. What was left of Ethan’s limb was covered in blood. A yellow and green infection had crept over the skin, and the area smelled rotten and festering.
It was days from entering his blood and becoming septic, if that. I would have to call Miroslava and ask for antibiotics, stat.
I didn’t gag. I was used to gross shit from being disabled, and from being a crazy fae running around killing monsters all the time. I helped Ethan into the shower seat, and as the water ran over his form, I didn’t bother to draw the curtain. We got a lot of water on the floor, but I couldn’t give a shit.
I always had antiseptic soap in the shower. I used it to clean off after class before I washed up with a moisturizing body wash afterward. I bustled around moving bottles while Ethan watched dirty water spin down the drain.
I had to be careful. If Ethan’s infection was contagious, I could get it myself. I was very cautious not to touch the wound as I used a sponge to wash the dirt off his skin. I used a separate sponge to clean the infected area. I knew it had to sting and be incredibly painful, but as I washed the wound with antiseptic, Ethan barely blinked.
When he was clean, I helped him out of the tub. I dried him off, then carefully applied ointment to his wound before wrapping it with gauze. One good thing about having an immune deficiency— you always had more medical supplies than the hospital.
Once I’d helped Ethan hop back to my bed, I took a fresh jar of honey out of my bag and poured it into the bowl for Tygrys. He lapped it up greedily, while I threw Ethan’s tattered clothes and boots in the trash. I’d burn them later. He needed something fresh.
Ethan slipped naked under the covers before I tucked him in. “There. All snug and cozy?”
He didn’t answer. Okay, I knew Ethan was the strong and silent type, but he was seriously freaking me out right now.
I took a breath. “You need to eat something.”
“I’m hardly hungry.” His hollow voice caused a shiver to race up my spine.
“It doesn’t matter. If that wound is going to heal, you need to keep your energy up.”
Ethan didn’t respond, and I frowned. “Are you gonna be okay if I dip out for a sec? I’ll be back in a minute.”
Ethan stared at the walls. “Yeah.”
Gods, I didn’t want to leave him alone right now, but he hadn’t eaten since the last time I’d brought him food. He needed to recover, and asking one of our friends to bring us something felt invasive right now. “I won’t be long.”
Tygrys flew across the room and nestled in Ethan’s hair, purring. Ethan closed his eyes.
