David rolled his eyes in mild annoyance at the other’s stubbornness, his right eye giving a bit of a twinge. Oh, how he hoped it looked as boring an grey as it usually did.
“Suit yourself,” he muttered, prepping what he needed. If the older man chose to complain of any tugging later on, it would be no concern of his. Leaning in, the only announcement he gave the other was a quiet “tch” as he removed the remaining bandages and began cleaning the ragged wound. Not too ragged, thankfully, but still not a pretty sight. Depending…
He applied the saline solution to a clean swatch of gauze and went to work as steadily as he could in his current position before, getting it ready to stitch. If Greg had any complaints, now would be the time to voice them.
He didn’t need much of a warning to prepare himself for upcoming discomfort. The quiet little noise was all he could ever ask for as his fingers dug into the dirty sheets, gripping them tightly as if squeezing with all his might would soothe the stinging sensation in his side. It wasn’t as bad as he’d expected, so, he loosened his grip, exhaling in relief that he wouldn’t have to thrash around, unwillingly, in his pain.
That was the last thing he wanted right now.
Relaxing fully, he never once let his gaze drift from David’s hands, as if judging his work every bit of the way. Whether he actually was being judgemental or just curious would be a bit of a mystery for only himself to know, but he remained silent throughout the entire process with only a few soft grunts or hisses.
Not much noise coming from a man who just pummeled the shit out of some nurse not too long ago. Though, his patience had already began to reach the end of it’s string, and breaking past discomfort, he’d spoke in his usual tone. “You almost finished?” His eyes flickered as he viewed David’s face. “You have to be faster than this should we get into any more trouble in the future…”
[Greg, what am I going to do with you :\ ]
Squints.
“Yeah..” He could feel Greg’s eyes on him; hear his doubt. When Dave was sure the other wasn’t watching, he made sure to let himself relax. This part would be tricky; risky. It had been a long time since he’s taken the sauce (not like he could control it when he was using well anyway), but more and more he had been able to…say tab into it.
Or something inside of him.
Something was changing.
It didn’t take very long for the gears to start turning and the information presented itself to him like an open book. He’d done crap jobs with John before, but without the assurance of a working hospital, he wanted to be sure…even if it may be a risk to himself.
He gathered everything he needed, bringing them over the the supply table next to his companion and laid them out. Normally, he would most likely be nervous in a situation like this, but an odd calm had overcome him. He could almost feel the blue leak into his eye.
Giving something of a smile, he looked over the other. “Don’t worry about it. Just lay back.”
Watching as David approached him, he leaned back, using his hands which rested against the mattress for support. All he wanted was to get this over with and carry on. The quicker they moved the faster they’d get out of here, and the sooner Gregory would be away from this guy. He grumbled something under his breath and almost flinched at the words David spoke.
“Lay back?!” He almost spat out those words with his slight annoyance. “You can do this while I am sitting up, it isn’t that hard. I don’t need to ‘lay back’ for this.”
Stubborn mule. His fingers dug into the bed, and the dark haired man released a heavy sigh as he finally decided to give in.
That’s when he gazed at David’s eyes, and even squinted a little. Perhaps it was his mind playing games, but… his eyes did not look that way before, right? His lips tugged into a heavy frown as he decided to brush away the thought, and with a angry scowl, he began to rest on his back, hands laying over his chest and his eyes focused on the ceiling.
“Hurry up.”
Watching as Greg brushed past him to get a better look, he nodded, walking over to one of the dirty tables in the room, wiping the machete’s blade off on an already soiled sheet. “Yeah…there’s room.” He scanned the shelves for the things they would need. Dave unslung his bag, setting it on the table and fishing around through the contents. Maybe he could lose some of the cans…
“We’ll, uh, get you patched up, and then we can figure out what to take with us. Hopefully there’s another exit on this floor that isn’t…y’know.” He moved to a row of cabinets, feeling a slight shift in his eyes as he read the labels, finding sterile needles and peroxide and anything else one might need.
“Whenever you’re ready…”
“Hmm, I’m ready as long as you’re not shaken up like a lamb.” Once more, his smile fades away as he started unbuttoning his dress shirt, shrugging it off his shoulders with his coat as well. Both articles of clothing were folded up neatly, and once he’d taken a seat on one of the— well…. less dirty beds, he rested them on his lap and waited patiently.
Hopefully David knew what he was doing, he could only trust so much before paranoia settled in. Once again he found himself staring at David, watching his hands closely to see what exactly he was getting. Should he grab something wrong and Gregory would have to rip that stupid head of his off… or at least try.
“I do hope you know what you are doing.” He stated, glancing quickly at his wound with trailing fingers just barely running over it. That would probably scar up, but then again where didn’t he have a scar on his body? He scoffed at that previous thought and let his hand rest back on his lap.
Dave had been checking doors as they’d passed, the pharmacy, storage room, and visiting rooms all locked or sealed shut in some way or another. Each contact gave him unpleasant ideas and he couldn’t help a quiet sigh as he glanced back at his traveling companion, grabbing the knob of the first room marked “examination”.
“Here, hopefully.” Finally able to turn the handle, he shouldered the door open and came face to face with something that may or may not have been human at one point.
Now, face to face isn’t exactly accurate, as this thing only had a smear of twisted flesh where the face would be, its upper body wrapped tightly in what looked like a straitjacket of its own rotting skin.
Oh yeah, and there was that gaping, dripping maw aimed directly at him.
Stepping out of the way just in time for a spray of black fluid to come rushing out at him and onto the wall and floor behind him. Watching the black bile hiss and eat away at the affected surfaces he was glad Greg was still lagging behind for the moment.
The thing gurgled and prepared to hurl once more, and an expression of something like annoyance replaced the surprise on David’s face. He stepped forward, stabbed the thing in its mouth hole and twisted, causing it to shriek and recoil. Watching it for just a moment, he pulled back, lifted the blade to his side and swung.
The thing’s head hit the floor with a wet thump and the body followed soon after, collapsing into a twitching mess. Watching down on the thing for a moment longer, David glanced at his blade to make sure the black substance hadn’t damaged it in any way, and then glanced around the well stocked room. He gave the man behind him a tired smirk.
“See? This should do it.”
Lagging behind was a good thing afterall, he supposed, coming to a slow stop a few steps away as David seemed to be fighting off something inside the room. Curiously, he watched each and every moment possible from his companion, studying to gain some form of knowledge should the two ever converse in some battle. It was better to know how David ticked than not at all, and besides, he already spent up most of his anger at that mangled mess they’d left behind. The thump was what ceased his staring, and he’d adverted his gaze towards the black substance which now stained the wall just behind David. A brow quirked up, at best Gregory was confused— maybe even a tad startled that such a substance existed. Then again, he wasn’t a man to be easily surprised.
David’s words caught him Gregory’s attention once more. Taking note of the tired smirk, Gregory returned it with a warming smile, though it was probably obvious that none of these welcoming gestures meant anything, or were even truthful. Regardless, he changed his tone to a rather cheerful one.
“Ah, thank you. I was wondering if we would ever find anything in this dump.”
Staggering closer, he peered in the room, smile fading as he stared at the dead creature on the floor. It only drew more curiosity, and soon enough Gregory felt upset at himself for lagging behind. He so deeply wanted to see how the creature worked. Perhaps if they had spare time, or if David didn’t feel like moving about he could just…?
No. No, it’d be a waste of time. They’d be out of there soon enough. No need to examine a creature he’d probably never meet again… but still……
His eyes flickered towards the amount of supplies in the room. It was well stocked, thankfully, and seemed like there would be enough to fix his little problem and carry around should further issues arise.
Smiling once more, he gently nudged David aside, stepping in the room and over the monster on the floor and cleared his throat. “Do you have enough room in that bag of yours to carry supplies, or is it all stocked with just weaponry?” He turned on his heels slowly to meet David’s gaze, still keeping that fake smile. “I do hope you have room. Weaponry won’t get us very far, especially since we have no real idea how long we will be in this situation.”
David watched the other man as he spoke, feeling his own internal conflicts being reflected…but it wasn’t the time to think about things like that. He glanced over at a dirty map on the wall, looking over the hallways and labeled rooms.
“Our best bet would be a surgical room, but any of the normal examination rooms should have the supplies we’re looking for.” He paused, reading over a few things. “And you’re right. No point in using our fists. We don’t know what else could be in here.” David paused once more, a wave of thoughts coming through as he stared off down the hall, figuring out which way to go. He pulled out a sheathed machete, glancing at the other man.
“No sense in putting yourself in further danger with open wounds like that.” He pulled off the cover and replaced it in his bag, slinging it over his shoulder. “I have a…gun, too, but I don’t think we should use that until we NEED it. Also, it might attract things in such close quarters…”
He cleared his throat. “C’mon. It’s this way.” David shuffled forward, hoping his internal doubts wouldn’t come out to play.
“I can take care of myself just fine, boy.” He scoffed, lightly, rolling his eyes as David took the lead with machete in hand. Putting effort into not speeding past him, Gregory placed his full attention on every little thing surrounding them. The walls, the piss-poor decor, even the ground they walked on wasn’t safe from his angry glare. He wasn’t sure what he was seeking out, but… an odd feeling just dwelled that if he hadn’t focused carefully, they’d miss something important.
Odd.
Biting his lip, gripping the wound tighter and tighter, he breathed heavily through his nose and squinted as his pacing slowed more and more. Soon he was too enveloped looking around to notice how far behind he had gotten, not that it was too much an issue, and yet just a quick glance made him tense as he’d finally seen how far David had strayed off to. Hissing in frustration, he sped back up nearly tripping over himself. “How much farther.” He muttered, no longer focused on the surrounding area, more so gazing at David, curiously.
He was so intent on watching the other’s movements that David was almost started by the mention of his name. Tilting his head ever so slightly as he listened to the man’s question, he gave a slow nod.
“I hope you’re not looking for a certificate, but I’ve been in plenty of situations where I’ve…needed to know certain things.” David glanced in the direction of Greg’s apparent wound, blood coming through the protective fabric. Funny how you don’t need the sauce much anymore, huh, David? ”John, a uh, friend of mine, had a wound similar to that once.”
Dave shook his head, averting his gaze from the wound and the other man entirely, glancing down the hall. “Personnel or not, there’s probably usable supplies in this place.” He paused, glancing down at the bloody mass on the floor. “Also maybe more of those.” He pondered for a moment and took something out of his bag, wondering if arming the other man was going to be a bad idea in the end.
He paused, taking his each and every word into account and began to muse over the same thought of trust. Over the course of such a short time, it was growing more and more obvious that David intended on sticking around and aiding him, not out of compassion of course, but for the mere fact that he too wanted to survive. Though… David seemed like a man who could manage himself well, as like himself— despite his current situation, of course. So, why? Why was David glued to his side when he’d threatened him before? Why?
There had to be some other reason— no… was he over thinking things? Perhaps…
“John, hmm?” Typical name, though, he found no such reason to question such a person’s existence. “Fascinating. I am glad such a similar wound has occurred - well… You do get my meaning towards this.” Not that he could care any less about this man or his friend. “So, if we are to carry on, I suppose you should arm yourself. No point in both of us using fists to beat down everything that moves. It would wear us both out, now wouldn’t it?” He faked a chuckle, even flashing a crooked smirk before turning his gaze towards the bloody mess on the floor. He hummed, thinking something over, but then turned against the idea altogether. ‘It would be stupid to throw corpses around,’ He thought.
Clenching his wound tighter, he stepped slowly towards David, chewing the inside of his cheek as more and more discomfort grew on his expression. Stopping just a few steps before him, the old man managed up yet another smile, idly waiting for his current companion to make a move…
“Shall we get going, acquaintance?”