Could you continue with ‘Mistake’ please? I really love that one! And thank you! For continuing it if you do, and for writing the first one
(This ask is from August and I’m so sorry it’s taken so long! I hope you enjoy it all the same!)
Continuation from here
CW: imprisonment, bargaining, mentions of torture, blood, thoughts of loved one dying
Macxè’s breath was short and unsteady for a long time as Alekoran listened to his pain. It was still dark, no light glowing from the outside vents or low light turned on above them. He wasn’t sure if Macxè even knew that Alekoran was here in the cell with him, or if he just couldn’t respond. Alekoran stayed close by his side, but was still afraid to touch him after it hurt him the first time. Instead, he fiddled with a couple of links in his chain, the metal clinking together softly as he tried to keep his hands occupied.
“Macxè?” Alekoran grew alert when he heard him stir again. A quiet moan through pained breath pushed past his lips, and Alekoran heard soft shuffling on the floor before Macxè’s hand found his. He froze for a moment, but pushed passed the fear and opened his hand to him.
“Alek… Alekoran…?” Macxè’s voice was still weak and raspy, but he seemed to be present unlike before. Alekoran squeezed his hand gently and gave him a smile in the dark.
“It’s okay, I’m here,” Alekoran said as he tried to hold tears back. “I’m here, I’m here…”
He reached a shaky hand and rested it on top of Macxè’s head. There was a slight flinch from the touch, but Macxè soon sighed in relief. His hair was stiff and course from dried sweat. Whatever happened had completely drained him of energy. Even holding hands was a feat in strength for him.
“Al… mmh… How—How long has it been…?”
“Not sure, a couple hours at least.” Alekoran brushed his hair back out of his face. “Are you feeling any better?”
He felt a small nod under his hand.
“What happened?” He remembered his hand coming away with blood earlier after trying to help him.
Macxè’s lips parted as he tried to form the words through the dry rawness of his throat. “I… They… They cut me, cut m-my back with a knife, but… they gave me something, before… It made it worse, so much worse…”
Gave him something? A drug? Alekoran wasn’t sure, but was more concerned at present with the pain it left him in. Macxè still trembled, trying his best to breathe through the pain as he spoke.
“I… I d-didn’t… I didn’t say a-anything…” Macxè reached his hand forward to clench Alekoran’s wrist. “I couldn’t do it…”
“I don’t care about that, Macxè,” Alekoran shushed him as he continued stroking his hair. “It… It doesn’t matter to me anymore…”
“B-But don’t you think we should… t-talk about it?” Macxè’s head turned to face Alekoran as he spoke. “W-we’ve never actually… talked about it before. And I… I don’t think we should give in…”
Alekoran pursed his lips together tightly as tears ran down his cheeks. He remembered the promise they all made back when they first received the intel, how they swore to safeguard it no matter what. It was different now. Maybe it was easier to keep their promise before they were brought to this place, before the guards suddenly started keeping both of them in this cell. But being here now, seeing Macxè’s suffering and being unable to help him, he just couldn’t bear it.
“Alekoran…?”
“I’m—I’m here,” Alekoran choked out as he squeezed his hand. “Macxè, I don’t know if I can keep it now… not if I have to watch you get hurt. I c—I could never forgive myself if I let them hurt you, or worse…”
He sniffled and pulled his hand away from Macxè’s hair to wipe away his falling tears. The very thought of it, leaving Macxè to be tortured or even killed in front of him, made him sick to his stomach. He hated every part of himself that had to watch Macxè come back bloodied and broken when he could do nothing to stop it. They had taken everything else from him. He couldn’t bear to lose Macxè too.
“Maybe…” Alekoran gasped as he looked towards the cell door. “Maybe I can… maybe if… if I try and—and negotiate or something, I could get you help…”
“Alekoran…” Macxè winced as he turned to look up at him. He gripped his wrist firmly, but Alekoran didn’t seem to notice.
“I—I could try and make them promise to help you if I… if I told them the access code they wanted… Maybe they’d stop hurting you…”
“Alekoran, you can’t…”
“I can’t let them hurt you anymore, I just can’t—”
“No, please don’t—”
“Well, what am I supposed to do?! Just watch you die?!”
“ALEKORAN, YOU CAN’T!” Macxè’s voice rose to a shriek and Alekoran flinched. He’d never seen Macxè talk to anyone like that before, and in some ways didn’t think it was even possible. Macxè whimpered in pain, the shouting alone causing discomfort and exacerbating his wounds. His legs curled in and he reached to grip Alekoran’s shirt, looking up at him with pleading eyes as his chain rattled around his neck.
“Please… I can’t lose you…” His voice broke through tears. “They’re… they won’t help me if you tell them. They won’t… They’ll kill you, they’ll—they’ll just kill you and I can’t—I can’t—”
Words escaped him and he descended into tears once again. Alekoran’s heart broke for him and he bent his head down against Macxè’s. His tears ran into the messy knots in Macxè’s hair as he curled in closer to him.
“I can’t lose you… please…” Macxè whimpered into Alekoran’s arms. “I can’t, I—I couldn’t go on… I…”
The energy in him to form words was gone now. Alekoran knew what he meant all the same. He bit down on his lip as he brushed a hand through Macxè’s hair, hoping it would help him calm down. He knew Macxè’s fear, he understood better than anyone else alive. It was so tempting, knowing there was a chance to get the help he needed no matter how small. But Macxè was right. Once they got what they wanted, they didn’t have a use for him anymore. Maybe it wasn’t… no. It wasn’t fair to make Macxè go through that. Not if he could help it. He took a deep breath in and planted a kiss in Macxè’s hair.
“Okay… I won’t, I promise…”
