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this isn't the first time you've been in a situation like this. in fact, the two of you seem to get into life-threatening situations every single day as temporal agents, and this particular one is no different. the bomb could have been planted in any one of the museum's many artifacts, and though it pains you to see a piece of history vanish before your eyes, you've had no luck finding it yet and you know that time is running out. the museum has been evacuated, the local police are on their way, and the best you can do now is contain the blast and see that it does as little damage as possible. but valerian isn't giving up. he never does. you don't know if it's ego or madness or a combination of the two that drives him to do such risky things, but there he is, still methodically scanning each object for radiation with a handheld sensor. you wouldn't be so worried if he weren't in civilian clothes right now. your mission had been an undercover one until you were alerted of the suspected presence of an explosive and had to jump into action. and though valerian is by no means
helpless,
no amount of push-ups can protect you from burning debris. he’s not invincible as he seems to think, he's
exposed
in thin fabric and short sleeves, and your heart clenches within you each time he comes to a stop near an object, fearing it will explode in his stupid, pretty face and melt it right off his grinning skull. your worry for him is not a weakness. you know that, if the situation was reversed, he would be urging you to get out of there before any harm came to you. if only he valued his own life as much as yours.
"valerian!" you call to him from your spot near the edge of the room as yet another scan turns up negative and he shakes his head in frustration. "it's time to go. let's freeze the area -- if we're quick we may still be able to save the rest of the artifacts!"
"i want to save
all
of the artifacts," valerian mutters stubbornly, turning to the next one with no intention of listening to your reasoning.
your eyes roll but your teeth dig into your bottom lip. he's so
infuriating
sometimes, but you know that his persistence is what makes him so good. you just wish he knew when to stop.
"valerian --"
a sudden shrill beeping interrupts your speech and you look down at your sensor. the data from his has automatically synced to yours and on its screen you see that he has found the bomb -- and more importantly, that its half-life is mere
seconds
from ending.
"VALERIAN!"
he takes off running just a moment too late and the force of the explosion hurls him off his feet and sends him rolling and skidding across the floor. as soon as he's out of the blast zone you freeze it in time, staring wide-eyed at the static plume of smoke and fire that's much bigger than you ever anticipated would be possible of such a small bomb. but before any analysis of the explosion can be made, your gaze flies to valerian, who's curled up on the ground a few yards away. you drop your sensor and run to him, all else forgotten in your urgency to ensure your partner’s safety. falling to your knees beside him just as he manages to sit upright, you roam your hands all over him, grasping his hunched shoulders and heaving chest before cupping his face in both your palms. he's hyperventilating and there's a blankness to his slack expression and empty blue-eyed stare that tells you he's in shock but he's still all
there,
no missing limbs or open wounds, and in your overwhelming relief you curl toward him and press your forehead against his. his skin is warm with the lingering heat of the blast and the blood running wild in the veins underneath, throbbing with adrenaline in the arteries your fingers press into as they stroke the edge of his jaw to soothe him.
it takes a minute for him to register that you're touching him, but as soon as he becomes aware of your presence he grabs tightly onto you, head ducking forward to tuck beneath your chin and wide hands clutching at your waist as if you were the only solid thing in the universe. the desperate curling of his fingers strikes you with the realization of how
close
he had just come to
dying,
and suddenly the way he's clinging to you makes all too much sense. touched by this raw,
human
display of vulnerability from someone who usually pretends he has none, you pull all of his living body closer and fold your own around it, face buried in his hair and arms wrapped around his back to cradle his ribs as they swell and shudder. you breathe into him and he breathes into you, together building a sanctuary in your shared embrace.
in this moment it doesn't even matter that this disaster occurred because of his unwillingness to follow your advice; you know you'll tease him about it later, but right now you're just glad he'll still be there for you to tease.