Chapter Text
When Amanda went to get him, Adam was about three-quarters of the way dead and ninety percent of the way towards accepting it. His bullet wound was infected on both ends, likely all the way through, his eyes were red and weeping, and his ankle was swollen so badly he cried out in pain when the shackle came off. He fought her with what little energy he had until it came off, although whether it was from sheer exhaustion or a recognition that she was there to help, Amanda didn’t know.
He doesn’t actually recognize her until they’re in her shitty car, almost across their first set of state lines. He jolts awake, breathing harsh and jagged in his chest, and starts staring at her from where he’s draped across the back seats.
Amanda twists around to look at Adam where he’s draped across the back seat to ask, “You okay, Adam?”
Adam blinks hazily at her before smiling in dopey recognition. He garbles something halfway between a hum and an acknowledgement, and then falls back asleep. The blood loss makes him so pale he looks dead. It’s the first of many times Amanda considers just finding the nearest hospital and pulling over, but she keeps driving. If her vision gets a little blurry and she slides between lanes for a few miles, there’s no one on the road to see.
By the time Amanda’s comfortable pulling over, it’s starting to get light outside. She pulls off at the first marked hospital, slowing carefully in front of the intake doors. She leaves Adam in the car and runs in, not needing to fake tears or exhaustion. Her friend was kidnapped and shot, please someone help her, she’s not strong enough to get him out of the car without hurting him. The receptionist comes to comfort her while Adam’s being collected, but she shakes him off to make sure Adam’s gotten loaded properly.
Adam is pulled away to be patched up, while a nurse tries to bully Amanda into a checkup. She’s fine, but it makes her acutely aware of the amount of Adam’s blood she has on her.
The verdict is worse and better than expected. His infections had turned into sepsis, which is somehow still treatable but will make Amanda’s job much harder. He has severe infections in both eyes and in every open wound on his body. By some miracle his ankle was only sprained, not broken, but they can’t wrap it until the infection goes away. There isn’t a single part of his shoulder that didn’t get fucked up somehow, but the arm itself can be salvaged. He’ll never have the same range of motion, but with intense physical therapy he may be able to regain some of what he lost.
When Adam wakes up he’s hopped up on about every drug imaginable. Amanda, who had been sleeping curled in on herself with her forehead resting on his bed, startles awake with him.
The first thing Amanda notices is that he has color in his face. He looks alive again, not like the slowly decaying thing that had been in her car for so many hours. What she notices next is that he’s smiling at her. He tries to pick up his hand, but it gets caught in his sling. He uses his left hand instead, and pets it clumsily through her hair. He starts to say something, but Amanda grabs his hand to cut him off. He gets stuck trying to hold her hand for a moment, so she shakes it to get his attention.
“Adam.”
His eyes track back to her face, “Hm?”
“My name is Mandy Radford. You’re my friend Steven Faulkner. There are police waiting to talk to you; you don’t remember anything that happened. I know what meds you’re supposed to be on, and I’ll get them for you, just don’t tell them anything, okay?”
Adam screws up his face, “Radford’s my mom’s maiden name.”
Amanda puts his hand back in her hair; I know that. “Adam, I need you to focus.”
His fingers push up and through, “My name’s Steven. You’re Mandy.”
“Yeah. I’ll be right back.”
“Don’t go.”
“You’ll be okay. Remember, you don’t know what happened.”
“I- okay.”
In an attempt at comfort, Amanda smiles at Adam. It comes out more panicked than reassuring. Adam’s throat ties into knots watching her leave.
As Amanda slipped out, a police officer came in, asking for a statement. She looks back to see Adam roll his eyes, and her nerves ease slightly.
A bagful of stolen medical supplies and shitty vending machine snacks later, and the cop is waiting outside the room again.
“He’s being belligerent, says he doesn’t remember anything. I’m going to chalk it up to the infection for now, but I’m going to be back in a few days for an actual statement. It would be for the best if you two were willing to talk to us then.”
Amanda does her best impression of someone without a deeply ingrained hatred of the police and grimaces at him, not caring that it doesn’t look like a smile. “Sorry, he’s been like that all day. I didn’t get anything from him either.”
The cop just nods and turns to leave. She watches him leave for a minute before dipping back into Adam’s room. He unwinds when she walks in and drops his head back on his pillow.
“Time to go.”
As it turns out, leaving a hospital with a bunch of stolen shit in your bag is a lot easier than you’d expect. Amanda makes a trip out to the car and tucks away everything she’d stolen in her duffle, exchanging it for a change of clothes for Adam. Luckily, he favors baggy clothes. She’ll be able to get him into everything easily. She snags a bag of saline on her way in, and closes the door behind her when she gets back to the room.
Amanda starts by checking his bandages and removing his IV. It’s a series of familiar motions, but Adam feels more precious than most of the patients she’s handled before. She gets him into some boxers, and then undoes his hospital gown. Getting him into his shirt and then back into his sling takes a bit of trial and error, but his pants, socks, and slippers are quick.
Hauling him up and out of bed is a chore, but again, it’s familiar. She’s used to helping John get around, and before that, hauling around patients as a CNA. Even in John’s current condition, Adam is a good bit smaller than him, so Amanda settles into supporting him easily. They get some concerned looks, but the staff has changed over from when they arrived, and nobody stops them.