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You were unconscious.
Knocked out cold.
Mando was standing watch while you were assessed by a medical droid and he was glad his helmet hid his face from the world. He didn’t want everyone to know just how nervous and…guilty he felt. He was beating himself up a bit.
Nearby, fiddling with some instrument on a table, was Cara Dune and sitting in the lone chair in the room and trying not to look concerned was Greef Karga who held Grogu. Said kid’s attention was glued to your unconscious form, a small whine sometimes escaping him to which Karga would try his best to comfort him.
The droid finished its assessment and turned to the organics in the room. “She has several crush injuries including several fractured ribs, a fractured collar bone, some heavy bruising on multiple internal organs, and a concussion from blunt force trauma. However, none of the injuries are severe–the bacta will heal most of them completely though she will be sore for a little while.”
Cara’s eyebrows raised a bit. “She looks like she was beaten. Did a bounty go wrong?”
The question was directed to the Mandalorian who hesitated to answer.
“…No.”
Karga spoke next, “Did she get knocked around the Crest in a firefight?”
“Not…exactly.”
“What happened, Mando?” Cara asked somewhat demandingly.
Mando hesitated before sighing heavily. “I…fell on top of her.”
Silence.
“What the kriff?!” the shocktrooper exclaimed.
Mando shifted uncomfortably. “Ship fell out of hyperspace unexpectedly just before Nevarro and we were trying to head up to the cockpit. I was at the top of the ladder and she was behind me and when the ship jolted I lost my grip and fell. She got caught underneath.”
He glanced at his friends and straightened. “I didn’t do it on purpose. Beskar is heavy and hard and she’s…well…”
He gestured to you–his massive frame dwarfed yours in a lot of respects so him falling several feet on to you while wearing full beskar was not something anyone would walk away unscathed from. Plus with the ship dropping so violently out of hyperspace didn’t exactly make it so he just fell straight down–you’d both lost your grips on the ladder and went tumbling to the hull floor. He’d landed on you then pretty much crushed you against the hull wall as the ship pitched sharply to port.
Hell of a way to start the week.
“So you just fell on top of her…” said Karga, waiting for further explanation, if there was one.
There was.
“Initially then as the ship pitched, we rolled into the hull and she got crushed between me and the bulkhead,” the Mandalorian admitted, guilt tingeing his voice.
“Kriff, Mando. Maybe next time just take her to the cantina if you want to show her a good time,” Cara said dryly.
Mando’s shoulders slumped a bit and then he glanced back at you where the droid was methodically treating each of your injuries.
He felt very guilty about the whole situation–he was usually incredibly surefooted but…not today and you paid the price. And just after you’d healed from the blaster wound a couple weeks before–dank farrik. That was twice now you’d been hurt under his watch and it left him with a feeling he didn’t like.
Maybe you were better off leaving the Crest…and him. He’d not yet had the chance to breach the idea of you staying on a permanent basis since he’d initially had the idea on that nameless green planet. He wanted you to stay…for the kid. For Grogu.
He kept trying to tell himself it was for the kid’s sake…
Not his.
Not because he wanted you to stay. Not because he enjoyed the banter between the two of you. Not because he valued your knack for fixing the finicky parts of his ship or the way you interacted with the kid even though you’d mentioned you weren’t partial to kids nor they to you. Not because he was…fond of you.
His heart felt heavy and he glanced at Karga and Cara. “Could you watch the kid while I wait for her to wake up?”
“Sure, Mando. He can help me at my office,” said Karga, seeming pleased at the idea. He was pretty fond of Grogu.
Cara rolled her eyes a bit. “I’ll make sure they don’t get into trouble.”
The Mandalorian nodded a bit. “Thank you.”
He turned his attention back to you as they left with the kid and he stepped over to the medical bed after the droid finished.
“She should wake up in an hour or two,” the droid said.
“I’ll stay with her.”
“Please hit the comm when she wakes.”
Mando just nodded and the droid took its leave, shutting the door behind it and leaving the Mandalorian alone with you. The lights were dimmed so as to allow you to rest more comfortably and the bounty hunter took the seat next to the bed and just…watched you.
Waiting.
Thinking.
Deciding.
He wanted you to stay…but…
It wasn’t his decision to make…it was yours.
When you woke, he would ask you to stay but give you the option to leave since it was twice now that you’d been injured while in his employ. It was a hazard of the job to a degree but…he was pretty sure getting crushed by your beskar clad boss wasn’t an expected hazard.
Or maybe it was if one worked for a Mandalorian…but more like a…possible hazard. Potentially.
But still…he was overthinking things a bit. He couldn’t help it around you. He didn’t know how to act with the…feelings you incited in him.
He debated only a moment before he slowly removed one of his gloves and reached for your hand closest to him with his now bare hand. He hesitated only a moment before resting his on top of yours gently, carefully…
He swallowed thickly at the feeling of your skin against his…warm and soft…though his hand was so much bigger than yours. But he liked that–he’d always liked that about you. You were so much smaller than him, spitfire though you were.
He wanted to protect you. Keep you safe.
Even if that meant seeing you leave…
His hand tightened a little as it held yours.
“I’m so sorry, cyar’ika,” he whispered, pained.
He hadn’t even asked you yet and still…his heart silently pleaded with you…
Stay…
Please.
