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Evie was normally at the hideout by now.
Mal didn’t care. So what if the other girl was late? She probably got caught up with her homework or her mother was busy trying to make sure she was extra perfect or something.
Okay, so Mal cared a little bit. The Isle is a dangerous place, everyone knew that. What if Evie was being catcalled by that group of boys again, or what if one of Uma’s crew wanted revenge for Mal and Jay ‘accidentally’ stealing from them last week? Hell, what if Evie had just been dumb and worn her stupid heels and twisted her ankle or something?
Mal shook her head, unaware of her leg’s subconscious bouncing. She was over thinking things. Evie was just a little behind schedule, nothing more and nothing less. Falling into the battered couch and switching their crappy TV on to some Auradon propaganda bullshit, Mal tried to ignore the little pangs of worry in the back of her head as she picked up her sketchbook.
Mal flinched at the sound of rocks hitting metal outside. She’d fallen into such a transe while drawing that she didn’t notice how much time had passed. She clicked the remote for the TV to display that it was just after midnight. Evie was meant to be here four hours ago. Sitting her sketchbook down on their broken coffee table, she stood and turned around just as whoever was throwing the rocks opened the door.
”Holy shit” Mal breathed out as Evie stumbled into the hideout.
Her normally bright blue jacket was almost a shade of black due to the fresh blood it was covered in, along with numerous slashes and tears that Mal knew Evie would never make herself. There was blood smeared on the left side of the girl’s face and, by the way she kept her head at a certain angle so that Mal was unable to see most of her face, there was presumably some form of cut or gash on her right side.
Mal could just about see in the dull light that Evie’s mascara was smudged due to her tears. She could see the way Evie was gripping the right side of her waist like her life depended on it. She could hear Evie’s shallow and shaking breaths.
“Fuck… Eves?” Mal whispered, slowly approaching her friend, almost afraid to make sudden movements in case it scared her off. Evie didn’t respond, her gaze focused on the ratty table in front of her.
”E, what happened? Who did this to you?” Mal willed her voice not to shake as she stood next to the girl. Evie, again, didn’t respond. Mal sighed to herself.
”Okay, let’s… let’s get you patched up, okay? I just need to know where you’re hurt” She spoke softly, a tone that was reserved specifically for Evie. Evie numbly nodded and slowly prided her hand from her side, only for Mal to see that it was covered in blood. She winced. Whoever did this wasn’t about to see the sun rise again.
”E, I need you to take off your jacket and sit in the chair. I’ll go get our first aid stuff” She muttered, already going to their bathroom before even finishing her sentence. As she fumbled through their cupboards, she heard Evie hiss, presumably as the material of her jacket was pulled away from the wound. Mal gritted her teeth at the thought of someone hurting her most important person this badly, grabbing the first aid stuff and making her way back to the main room.
Evie was slumped in the rickety chair, her eyes screwed closed tightly. Mal saw the fresh blood still spilling through the side of Evie’s tattered t-shirt and had to literally bite her tongue to stop herself from gasping. She could now see the gash that ran from Evie’s ear all the way to the corner of her lips too, blood dripping down her cheek and jaw to soak into her shirt collar.
Mal didn’t say anything, simply kneeling at her friend’s side and setting the first aid supplies beside her.
”You okay for me to lift your shirt?” She whispered. It’s not like Mal hadn’t seen Evie shirtless before, but it felt much more tender and intimate this time, compared to them both just changing with the other nearby. Evie just nodded and clenched her jaw. She already knew, even in her dazed state, that this would hurt, no matter how gentle Mal was going to be.
Mal pried the wet material from the wound, whispering soft apologises as Evie whimpered at the sensation.
“Oh fuck” Mal gasped, her free hand coming to cover her mouth. The wound was some type of knife or sword gash that spread across the length of Evie’s waist. At least several inches deep, Mal swallowed the bile rising in her throat at the loose flesh and muscle that was exposed.
“E, what the fuck happened” She glanced up to her friend’s face as Evie’s slightly unfocused gaze met hers. Evie’s bottom lip trembled and Mal wasn’t sure if it was from pain or fear.
”Captain Hook had a deal with Mamá. She didn’t follow through with her side. So, he came after me instead” Her voice quivered as she blinked slowly. Mal quickly realised that, if she left Evie to bleed instead of patching her up the best she could right now, then she might not be able to save her.
“I have to clean it. With the acid. A-And then stitch it” Mal spoke, rummaging through the first aid supplies and gently pinning Evie’s shirt up so that it wouldn’t fall as she worked. Evie tensed at the mention of the acid. That stuff was painful enough on small cuts, let alone on something like this.
“Acid…?” She mumbled, not having the energy to try and keep the fear out of her voice. Mal stilled, looking back up to the girl.
”I mean, yeah, I need to clean it?” She whispered, slightly confused. She knew the acid wasn’t nice, but it wasn’t too bad, not for her at least.
”I’ll probably go into shock with that M” Evie said, the smallest of smirks falling onto her lips. A little part of her brain was telling her that she was definitely already in shock, but she ignored that for the time being.
”Oh… okay, do I just stitch it then?” Mal asked, suddenly very unsure of herself. Yeah, they all know how to patch themselves up, but it was normally Evie who patched up their bigger injuries. Like when Jay managed to impale his hand on a railing, or when Carlos’s mom’s ring cut his chin open. She always knew how to fix them up, despite never getting too beaten up herself. But now she was, and it was up to Mal to make sure that she was okay
”Try and stop some of the bleeding. Clean up around it with the acid, but not in it. Then stitch it” Evie mumbled, slumping her head into her hand and leaning on their table. Mal willed her hands to stop shaking as she followed the girl's guide.
Trying to stop the bleeding from a sword wound wasn’t exactly an easy task. Mal had absolutely no idea what she was doing, but she places some old cotton rags to the wound as gently as she could, in hopes that they would help. Despite her tender care, Evie still yelped in pain, squeezing her eyes closed tightly to try and stop herself from crying. Mal only frowned at her friend’s distress and willed for the rest of the procedure to be as painless as possible.
After cleaning around the wound with the acid, it was time to stitch the wound closed. Mal felt the bile rise in her throat again, but did her best to ignore the sensation. She had found a mostly-clean rag for Evie to bite down on, because they both knew that this was going to suck. A lot.
“You ready?” Mal whispered after she threaded the needle that she had vigorously scrubbed at with a rag, in hopes of sterilising it. At this point, she wasn’t sure who was more nervous: her or Evie. Evie didn’t say anything, but just slightly nodded her head. Not only did she have a rag to bite down on, which she had also used to wipe the blood from her face, but she has one pressed to her cheek, in hopes to stop that gash from bleeding too. Mal was still unsure if that one would need stitches too or not, but it was definitely going to leave one hell of a scar.
Mal bit down on her tongue as she pierced Evie’s skin to make the first stitch and prayed to every entity she could think of that this wouldn’t go horribly wrong. She did her best to block out Evie’s groan of pain and to steady her hands. The last thing Evie needed right now was faulty stitching.
It took seventeen stitches to close the wound. Mal was honestly surprised that Evie hadn’t passed out at some point. She may be tough, but still, seventeen stitches.
Mal gently wiped the area with the acid, which Evie had mumbled for her to do, in a very choked voice, and applied bandages over the stitches. She wiped the blood from her hands with another rag before pulling another chair over so she could examine the gash on Evie’s face.
The gash wasn’t as bad as Mal had first thought and she was fairly certain that it wouldn’t need stitches. She knew better than to put acid near somebody’s face, so she gently began to wipe the gash to bandage it, cupping Evie’s cheek tenderly.
”My knight in shining armour” Evie whispered, her distant gaze focusing for the first time since she’d arrived, and directly on Mal’s face. Mal felt her cheeks flush and hoped that the dull lighting in the hideout hid it.
“Yeah, well, I’ve got to take care of my princess, don’t I?” She whispered back, looking away from the gash and looking into Evie’s eyes. She heard the soft gasp of the other girl and saw a tiny bit of the shimmer return to her eyes. Mal felt her heart, that she caged up so tightly to protect, melt at the adoring look Evie was giving her.
“Your princess” Evie mumbled, and it wasn’t a question. She leaned further into Mal’s hand before taking her own and placing it against the older girl’s. Mal felt the cage around her heart crumble into dust, and a surge of feelings she had tried to keep down for years suddenly rise to the surface. A small, almost shy smile creeped onto her face as she gave Evie what can only be described as a loving gaze.
“Mal…” Evie breathed her name, before carefully moving forward and pressing their lips together. Her eyes fluttered closed, Mal’s own following seconds later as years of denied feelings and longing affection were shared by the connection. Their lips separated after a moment, but they pressed their foreheads together, not wanting to lose the intimate touch.
“I love you, Eves. It’s always been you. I don’t want to lose you” Mal whispered, her voice cracking slightly due to the raw emotions of her statement. Because, it would always be Evie. Evie, who was always by her side. Evie, who held her hand when either of them were scared. Evie, who wasn’t afraid to defend Mal to anyone, even their own mothers. Evie, who had so much love to give, but had never received it herself. Evie, who deserved so much more than to be trapped in the Isle. Evie, who had just nearly died because of an argument between two adults. Evie, who-
“I love you too, Mal. You won’t lose me, I promise”
Evie, who loved her too.