Garnet was just settling in for a relaxing evening with his adoring boyfriend when his phone rang in his pocket. Judging by the customized ringtone he'd assigned for his closest friends and loved ones, he knew immediately who was calling. “Hey Em,” he answered, wondering what his partner's brother wanted. “Are you cuddling with Ingo on the couch?” Emmet asked, giving Garnet pause. A bizarre question. “Um. Yes, I am,” he responded. “How did you know?” “Because you're both predictable and very cute. Anyway, walk away from him for a moment, I have to ask you something.” Garnet raised a brow in confusion but did as Emmet asked, making up an excuse to avoid arousing Ingo's suspicions.
Once he was out of earshot, Garnet inquired about what it was Emmet wanted. “As you know, our birthday is coming up. As easy as I am to buy gifts for, Ingo is equally difficult,” Emmet reported. “Oh my gods, you're so right. He never answers when I ask what he wants, he always just says that anything I get him will be good. I don't think he realizes how unhelpful that is!” Garnet gushed. “Agreed, but I believe I can help you pick out an appropriate gift.” Garnet expressed his appreciation, and the two proceeded to craft a scheme for getting together to buy Ingo his gift.
Days later, the two found themselves at the mall. “This way,” Emmet said, leading Garnet by the arm to a shop. “Build-a-Mon Workshop?” Garnet read the storefront's logo, eyebrow raised. Emmet made a bee-line to the back of the store, his confused friend in tow. “This is where they keep the more obscure, less cuddly 'Mons. With luck, we should be able to fi—YES.” Emmet held up a Litwick plush, waiting to be stuffed. Garnet laughed. “I'm sure he'll appreciate the Litwick part, but is he really a plush lover?” Emmet grabbed Garnet by the shoulders and his signature grin widened. “Trust me, he will love it verrrry much. He loves you verrrry much, too.” Garnet felt his face begin to redden and he began carefully stuffing the Litwick with fluffy fillings, ignoring Emmet's smug face.
The two made their way out of the mall, the gift hidden by wrapping paper in Garnet's bag. As the duo stood and waited for the bus, a metallic crash and the squealing of tires shattered the silence. Out of the corner of his eye, Garnet could see a car careening toward them. He shoved Emmet to the ground behind him and the next things he knew were the shock as he bounced over the car's hood, the dreadful sight of the ground rapidly coming to meet him, the pain of the impact, and then darkness.
Ingo sat quietly at home, catching up on paperwork he'd brought home from the station. Taking a break, he sat back and reflected on the difference between his work style before meeting Garnet and after. Before, he seldom took paperwork home; not out of a lack of a workaholic nature, but because he stayed late enough at the Gear Station to finish it before coming home at late hours. Since dating Garnet, he was asked to return home sooner than his previous habits would allow. He considered himself a courteous lover, and agreed to do so. However, many days required him to bring paperwork home to achieve the same amount of work he was used to accomplishing in a day, even on his days off. He let out a soft sigh and was about to return to his work when his phone rang.
“Yes, Em--” Ingo answered, only to be cut off by Emmet's panicked cries. “Garnet's hurt! He's hurt bad, Ingo! There was a car and he pushed me and--” Emmet broke down into heart-wrenching sobs, losing his composure entirely. Ingo's blood ran cold, fear seizing his heart in a vice grip. “What?! Where are you two?! I'm on my way!” He shouted, leaping to his feet and sprinting out the door.
The ambulance left before Ingo arrived, and the two brothers made their way to the hospital; the older twin attempting to comfort his traumatized brother despite the desperate fear that coursed through his veins. When they arrived, neither brother was allowed to see Garnet; both because he was still in surgery and because neither were officially considered family as Ingo and Garnet were not married. Ingo had been holding back tears up until that point, but not being allowed to see his injured partner was the straw that broke his back. He clung desperately to his younger brother as he wailed out his pain. The two were shooed off to the waiting room, sobs and sniffles in their wake.
Hours passed and tears fell as the twins waited. Ingo felt the course of his future balanced precariously on a knife's edge; on one hand, Garnet may recover and this would become nothing more than a terrifying memory, on the other hand, he may be about to lose his beloved forever.
Ingo's mind, in its ragged state, took off down the latter track unbidden. He saw in his mind's eye Garnet's unmoving form, the bright and vibrant life robbed from him; he saw himself kneeling on the cold ground by Garnet's death-stilled hospital bed, weeping his mourning and begging his love to come back to him, to not leave him behind.
The thought brought new tears to his already red and tired eyes. Just as he bit back yet another sob, he heard approaching footsteps. He snapped to attention, staring at the approaching nurse through watery eyes. The nurse called his name and he jumped to his feet so quickly that Emmet—who had been leaning against him—nearly fell out of his chair. “Y-Yes? Is Garnet okay? Is he--” Ingo cut himself off, not wanting to utter the possibility of him being dead for fear of speaking it into existence. The short yet ever-lasting pause between his question and the nurse's answer held the key to the track the rest of his life would take. Everything depended on this stranger's answer. Ingo swallowed.
The nurse's mouth turned up into a smile. “Yes, Mr. Caves is going to be okay. He's made it through his surgery alright. However, he won't be able to take visitors until tomorrow.” Despite the many tears he'd already shed, Ingo broke down into tears once more; relief sapping the strength from his legs and forcing him to rely on his brother who had stepped to his side. Garnet had pulled through. He wasn't going to leave Ingo alone to suffer.
The two brothers were eventually shooed out of the hospital to make room for the other people who either needed help or were waiting on the fate of their own loved ones. Thoroughly exhausted, Emmet took the couch rather than walk the extra floors to his own apartment while Ingo flopped into his bed and fell asleep immediately.
The twins were up bright and early the next day, rushing once more to the hospital. Elesa, the twins' childhood friend who had introduced Garnet to them, also arrived once she was briefed on the situation. The three of them waited together, comforting one another. Ingo paced back and forth with anxious energy as they awaited confirmation that Garnet was awake and could receive visitors. With the heart-stopping fear that Garnet would lose his life assuaged, Ingo's mind latched on to lesser—but still anxiety-inducing—worries. Would Garnet be paralyzed? Would he be permanently disfigured? Would he blame him for not being there to protect him? Would he not be able to look at him without remembering the accident and want to break up? Ingo bit his lip, his worries coming to a fever pitch by the time a nurse came to inform them that Garnet was awake and asking to see them.
Ingo had just started to run when Elesa and Emmet both grabbed him by a shoulder to remind him that they needed to follow the nurse's pace, as they were the one who actually knew what room they were going to. Ingo muttered in embarrassment and forced himself not to sprint the halls, crying out Garnet's name until he heard an answer. Still, his heart was beating out of his chest from nerves as they walked the long halls.
The sight that met Ingo was neither his deepest fear nor his brightest hope; Garnet was neither miraculously unharmed nor dead. He lay in the hospital bed, deep bruises on his face, his wrist in a sling, and an exhausted and drug-addled look upon his face. Ingo could control himself no longer, rushing to Garnet's side and grasping at his unharmed hand as he sobbed. “I'm s-so sorry I wasn't there for you!” He cried, voice breaking. He pressed Garnet's hand to his forehead, needing to feel his touch. Even if Garnet never forgave him, at least he was alive. Ingo's thoughts were interrupted by Garnet pulling his hand out of Ingo's grip. “Ah,” Ingo thought miserably. “He really doesn't want anything to do with me after all.” No sooner did the thought cross his mind than Garnet began stroking at Ingo's hair. Ingo felt his fears begin to fade away as he looked up into Garnet's eyes, soft with love despite the pain he was in. “Hush. It's okay,” Garnet croaked out. Ingo found the strength to get back on his feet, kissing Garnet's hand over and over. He watched as Garnet glanced over to Emmet and spoke once more. “I lived, bitch.” Laughter from four voices filled the room, and Ingo knew everything was going to be okay.
In the days since the accident, Garnet healed steadily. Soon enough, he was ready to be released home. Ingo insisted on being the one who wheeled his chair to the cab waiting to take him home. When they arrived, he insisted on carrying Garnet into his apartment. Garnet was unsure about the idea at first; he was a little on the heavier side and didn't want Ingo to drop him. However, Ingo proved himself and got him all the way to the couch, even up two flights of stairs. Garnet would be lying if he said he wasn't impressed and somewhat turned on by the feat. Once he settled in, Ingo began absent-mindedly tidying up the place.
“Hey, baby?” Garnet called across the room. “Yes, dear?” Ingo answered, poking his head around the corner. “Can you look in my bag? I know I missed your birthday by a day, but I got you something before the accident.” Ingo opened the bag and saw the wrapped gift. He opened it and saw the Litwick plush. The poor man began to cry once more, having cried more in the last few days than he had in most of the rest of his life. He hugged it close and ran to smother Garnet's face with kisses. “Thank you. I love it.” He murmured between smooches. In that moment, he made a decision. “I have something for you, too. I just have to go get it. I'll be back soon, call Emmet if you need anything.”
With that, Ingo was out the door before he could second-guess himself. His feet took him across town, to the mall where the accident had happened. He paused as he walked past the accursed location, shaking his head free of flash-backs and carrying on. He entered the mall and made a bee-line for the jewelry store.
Garnet was snoozing when Ingo returned. He was nearly entirely healed, but his body still required a lot of sleep to account for the energy it took to heal. He awoke to the sound of his door closing. “Ingo?” He yawned, stretching. A hand caught his as he brought his arms back down. Garnet opened his eyes to see Ingo kneeling before him. “Garnet. My love. You have my sincere apologies for this being so sudden. I had wanted to plan out a more romantic way of doing this, but...Seeing you there, so hurt, so weak, reminded me of how quickly life can change. My life changed for the better when you came into it. And you not only saved my brother that day by pushing him out of the way of that car, you saved me by surviving. You save me every day you draw breath. So will you please...Will you marry me?” Ingo asked, pulling a box out of his pocket and opening it to reveal a ring with a garnet surrounded by onyx.
Garnet wept out his affirming answer, kissing Ingo again and again and again as their two hearts beat as one.
*is weeping* I love me a good “partner gets injured and character has a whole crisis about it” fic and this fic demonstrates all the reasons why! Ahhhh, he proposed!! Ahhh!!! Garnet!! My boy!! You’re getting married!!
I’m weeping at work, omg I love this
