A Fainting Spell
Authors Note: So I fainted for the second time in my life, but this time it started out slowly enough i knew it was coming. I’m alright! It’s not likely to happen again! But it was still scary so I wanted to write something both to cope with how it felt, but also what an opportunity to know first hand how that feels lol. The first time doesn’t count because it happened so fast and also was my own damn fault – I (18 or 19 at the time) donated blood to get free movie tickets for my sister and I, forgetting I hadn’t eaten anything yet that day….my poor sister got to watch me floppy fish for a few seconds before I came around. I don’t even really remember much. I was talking to the blood donation ladies and then I was waking up to someone calling my name softly. I was fine but I did get a hell of a lecture lol!
CW: blood, some gore(?), description of fainting.
Jason Todd x Reader
Reader has no specific gender mentioned but it's based on me getting my birth control implant out if that matters?
Anyway! Onto the fic!
Blood, normally, doesn’t phase me. It’s a fact of life and I can move on. It makes me effective at first aid in emergencies, and unphase-able during more bloody movie nights.
I think that’s what makes this moment so surprising to me. Two days past a very simple, nearly painless out-patient surgery that left a shallow hole in my arm. The pressure bandage came off the morning before and now here I was, removing the gauze covering the minor wound. It’s not the blood that phases me, but the little flap of something hanging outside the relatively little wound. Stuck to the gauze from dried blood, it pulls away painlessly before snapping back against my skin.
It’s not a piece of the gauze, which is the only thing I’m sure of. It’s a part of me…a part of me from below the skin. That’s not supposed to be outside…
I take a deep breath, already feeling my heartrate pick up a beat or two faster.
I’m calm, this is fine, it’s basic first aid and wound care. I’ve done it before for boo-boos I get and for others. It’s fine! I think to myself, pulling off the rest of the medical tape holding the gauze to my arm.
There is a bead of blood welling up but not spilling over, an opened scab expected when pulling off the gauze after 48 hours. The little flap, though, is throwing me off. I take another deep breath and smile, opening the bathroom door to call out, “Jay? Could you come here?”
From the other side of the apartment I hear, “You ok?” then shuffling coming my way.
“Yeah, I just need some emotional support really quick!”
Despite my flippant tone, he’s hastily in the bathroom with me, brows bent inwards in worry.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing! Nothing, just…look, there’s a flap hanging out and I’m a bit freaked out by it. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do about it.” I gesture to my arm, clean fingers framing the wound where I was about to clean it before putting a colorful bandaid on it.
He looked closely, unphased as he was by wounds of nearly any type from his night life. “Yuck. I’m sure it’s fine though. Does it hurt?”
“No, so I don’t think it’s a nerve or like, muscle fiber or anything,” I say with more confidence than is probably warranted.
He shook his head, “Nah, definitely not either of those.”
Hear that gave me the confidence to move back to the sink, wetting my fingers and gathering some gentle, scentless soap and cleaning the incision area. Wiping at the area, touching the flap – that shouldn’t be outside my body – cleaning it was brief and painless. Just like the sensation that came over my head.
My head became heavy, and my eyesight narrowed. Like a TV flashback, the outer edges of my view started to go gray then black. I felt heavy, dizzy, but at the same time strangely light headed. Like when I hold my breath a bit too long.
I grip the sink edges, saying out loud, “I need to sit.”
Carefully as possible, feeling my knees weaken, I sat on the bathmat. Jason leans in close to me, watching carefully as I focus on breathing.
“You ok?”
“Yeah, just pass me the towel, I need to make sure this is dry before I put something on it.”
He did just that, well aware of basic first aid care, eyes never leaving my frame. I dab at the skin around the wound before pressing against the wound, carefully, itself. It has to be dry.
….
I forgot to take out my earbud before falling asleep? My side is cold. Why am I sweaty? My gums hurt.
“Hey, you’re ok, keep breathing, come on.” My name said firmly, demanding a response.
I gasp, pushing myself up to sitting. I’m waking up? But I shouldn’t be waking up, I was awake. I take steady, controlled breaths, my heartrate spiking strangely, as if I’m catching my breath.
“Whoa, you’re ok. Babe? Babe, look at me,” Jason had a hand on my shoulder, steadying me as I sat there confused.
“What happened?” I ask, tongue pressing at the back of my front teeth, the ones that are sore. Why are my teeth sore?
“You fainted. Deep breathes, ok?” His hand was warm on my skin, which was strange when I was so sweaty, so I should be hot?
“I did? Geez, what?”
“Yeah, come on, lets get you on the bed and we can finish taking care of that. Come on. Talk me through what you remember, where are you at right now?” With barely a flinch he pulls me up, guiding me slowly to the bedroom and the bed right outside the bathroom. I sit there, shaking and catching up on the moment.
“I sat down because I felt dizzy. And…I was drying my skin off….and I woke up?” I look up at him, shaken from the experience.
“Woke up? Alright, yeah you fainted but your eyes were open the entire time. You kept breathing and were only out for like 10 seconds but it probably wasn’t very fun.” He kept his voice soft, moving away briefly to get a clean shirt for you to put on. “I’m going to finish cleaning and bandaging you, is that ok? Anything hurt?”
I shook my head, taking stock. “It doesn’t hurt, I think I just…I panicked. That’s not supposed to be outside, you know?”
He nodded, though I’m sure he’s been through and seen much worse. “I got you, it’s ok. Just don’t look while I’m taking care of it, ok? If you feel faint, let me know. You’ll lay down and I’ll lift your legs, ok?"
I nod, turning my head away as he moves to the bathroom to grab what he’ll need. Washed hands and fresh bandage, he comes back to quickly clean the site again, drying it gently.
“Ok?” He asks, noting my shaking fingers.
“Yeah, I don’t feel like I’m going down again.” I reassure him.
“Good, you’re taking it easy today.”
I nod again, a blessing of a nonverbal response. Not even a second later I feel the adhesive of the bandage stick to my skin.
“There we go. All done. Let’s get you to the couch and some water in that system.” Jason said, fingers that gently pressed the bandage to my skin, tilting my head to look at him. He search my face, for what I’m not sure, before pressing the softest kiss to my forehead. “You’re ok. It happens.”
I sigh, relaxing some, ignoring the soreness from the bruised skin around the incision site, the ache in my gums, the shaking of my hands still, and the stuttering of my breath.
“Yeah, I’m ok. Thanks, handsome. Think you can handle that bit for me until it heals?” I stand slowly, paranoid now of weak knees.
“Hell yeah, we’re not doing this again if I can help it. And I can,” His hands held mine, giving me space to move at my own pace.
It was after I’d caught my breath on the couch, shaking subsided, that he spoke, “Kinda funny huh? You handle blood and guts on the regular, no problem. Who knew one little cut would knock you out?"
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End Notes: Same said sister from above is a nurse now and I called to ask her about that tiny flap: she told me what she thinks (not concerned) and reminded me to just upkeep basic wound care (my husband, not me to prevent another fainting episode) and she gave us a good reminder with additional info about how to handle if I do faint again. She's awesome, seriously. <3
Jason in here is really just a place holder for my husband who handled this like a fucking champ too.
