@warlockhope asked: why didn't you pick up the phone?
he has an arm around his ribs, teeth gritted against the pain as he moves slowly into the room. he'd hoped that he could slip in without any issues, but should have known better when he noticed his door slightly ajar. very few people knew how to get past the spells that he had on that thing without serious injury. now he was wishing that he'd spent a little more time patching himself up instead of rushing through it. maybe even found a way to stitch the wound that he could feel currently causing blood to seep through the thin bandages.
"you called?" he's unable to hide the guilt that settles onto his face as he reaches into his pocket to pull out his phone, only to pull out a mangled metal mess. "oh. um, guess that explains why i didn't hear it ring."
he quietly drops it onto the side table before slowly sinking into an armchair, letting out a slightly pained hiss from between clenched teeth. he needs a drink, but ignores it as he looks up at louis. the other man wasn't even supposed to be here, let alone seeing the absolute horrible sight of the normally put together john henry. he knows he looks like hell with his bruised and bleeding face and busted lip, not to mention the traces of the nosebleed that had been caused when he'd been hit in the face. should have taken more time to clean the blood off his features, he supposes.
he sighs, knowing that he can't escape this one. lying would also be futile because lou would know. lou always knows. "i was helping a couple of the witches from cordelia's school investigate an issue. something went horribly wrong. we weren't as properly prepared as we should have been. i put myself in between them and the spirit and..." he trails off, motioning to himself with the hand that wasn't pressed against his side. "not gonna lie to you. i'm not feelin' too hot. i think i'm starting to get a bit too old for this shit."
there was a moment before something suddenly occurred to him and his brows knitted. "why are you here, louis? what's wrong?"