he found himself almost telling her that yes, it was pretty awful, but kenny stayed silent. he was stuck now, knowing that at this point, he probably did have to show her - and maybe, a part of him wanted to. it could be a relief, finally sharing this secret with someone, as horrible and messy as it was. this thought was soon pushed away, though, feeling horribly selfish.
“a-alright. just… please, don’t touch anything. it’s bad. i don’t blame you if you want to leave… or be sick,” words were quiet, biting his lip as he looked down at their hands. he placed the coat beside him, almost wanting to buy time by folding it up, but he knew that wouldn’t do anything to help him. he pulled off his sweater next, trying to avoid the sight of the blood, but it was near impossible.
the sight of the blood on his shirt made him feel ill, something that was rather strange, in his mind. he was used to it, he thought… but he certainly wasn’t used to someone else being around during this moments.
his shirt was almost stuck to him due to the blood, making him even more hesitant to pull it away, teeth sinking into his lip as he pulled it up a little, only enough to catch a glimpse of the mangled, bloody skin. he wouldn’t cry - he refused. it was his fault he’d ended up like this, he was sure. “i… i’m sorry. but… it’s alright. this is normal now.”
breath was held in antecipation. all that suspense was starting to make her nervous, especially given the way he talked about it, but layla did give an understanding, resolute nod as he specifically asked her not to touch anything. a patient's autonomy and dignity always came first, even if kenny wasn't really one in that case; it still applied in her book.
layla's natural first response was to feel more concerned than sick, honestly, concerned for his health and safety. jaw clenched and narrowing eyes neared the gruesome visual that unfolded in front of them. the young woman gathered every last bit of strength not to draw a hand to her mouth. there was worry but also shock. so it was worse than she thought, but the strangest part was that he was still standing and not spitting even more blood.
making a point to let him know she wasn't repulsed, her expression remained impassive as she casually mentioned, voice calmer than ever, “ kenny, we should go to the hospital. it's amazing how you're still... here. ” she didn't understand that completely yet, of course, she didn't know. never could layla imagine what the real reason behind that was. “ what happened here? how did this happen? was it today? you need to talk to me, kenny. ”
layla looked away from all that sticky blood, the puncture wounds and mangled torso, searching for his eyes. god, he should be dead. it was horrific. horrific. but he didn't need to know she thought that - she'd made him a promise after all. because of all those factors combined, layla's mind was a swirl of exclamation and interrogation points. and everything he was saying before, about how that was normal, was completely disregarded then. bullshit. layla wanted to help him so bad, but he needed to want to be helped in the first place.
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