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Hal was amazed that they had come out of their mission unharmed.
As they were discussing a few articles of the peace treaty between Nemoria, Earth and Fmok in the chambers of Nemoria's main leaders, anti-peace militants had walked into the room and started assaulting the treaty's signatories.
A few guards and militants had died during the fight. Many people had been hurt.
Thanks to Nemorians' practical sense, the treaty had been signed nonetheless before the blood on the floor and walls could be wiped or get a chance to dry.
Fmok's signatories had looked like they were going to get sick but hadn't expressed any objection to the signing.
Hal had sighed in relief when he and Bruce had left the room. Nemorians and Fmokans had issued pretty serious threats towards Earth but peace treaties were taken quite seriously on both words.
"It wasn't too bad," Hal commented as they walked out of the Palace where the treaty had been signed.
Bruce had stayed strangely silent, which Hal imputed to not wanting to be heard by other parties - Fmokans had fine hearing.
Bruce grunted something, Hal shrugged and they kept walking to their ship.
When they had been far away from the crowd and the houses, Hal had stopped walking and spoken up again.
“I should be glad that it's all over but I can't help thinking there's something strange about the attack. The intruders were just too good at fighting. The Commandant Alris said they were just angry local farmers but what farmers fight like this ? They've taken down a few guards easily and we took quite a few hits. For a second, I even thought the one in command had hit you badly."
Bruce had stopped walking at the same time as Hal. The way he was standing seemed a bit off, as he favored one side more than the other.
It reminded Hal that they were getting older and not absorbing blows as easily as when they were younger.
"Hal," Bruce said between his teeth.
"Um ?" Hal asked, still trying to figure out what was wrong with the anti-peace fighters aside from the obvious.
"She had," Bruce said, moving his cape and arm away from his left size as Hal turned fully toward him to ask what he was talking about.
There was a gash in his chest plate. Nemorians were known to produce the sharpest tools -and subsequently, blades- of the Milky Way. The dagger had cut Bruce's suit and skin like a hot knife through butter.
Hal had barely registered what Bruce had said as his eyes had focused on Bruce's exposed skin.
"You're bleeding. Shit," he said, closing the space between them to have a better look.
It looked quite bad. Now that Hal knew about the injury and that Bruce had stopped hiding it from him -they'd have to have a conversation about that later-, he could easily notice Bruce's extreme paleness and weariness.
Bruce pressed his hand against his side again, grimacing, before Hal composed himself and wrapped a construct around his lover's torso. He flinched as Bruce couldn't help a whimper.
Hal took a deep breath. Bruce had already lost quite some blood and there was no telling what organs the Nemorian blade could have inflicted damage upon as it cut through his skin.
He had to find a way to get Bruce some medical help, quickly.
It couldn't be on Nemoria. They didn't know enough about human biology and Hal's knowledge wouldn't be enough to help Bruce.
No. Hal knew where they needed to go.
"Okay. I'm taking you to the hospital. It's gonna be fine," Hal said, wrapping his arms around Bruce before he took off.
"The Javelin…" Bruce protested a bit weakly.
"Isn't worth your life. I'll get it back when you will have seen a doctor."
Probably more than one. Hal tried not to think too much about it as he took the direction of the closest intergalactic civilian hospital for all species, guided by his ring.
He was so focused on getting his directions right that he almost didn't notice Bruce's silence.
"Hey, keep your eyes open for me, okay ?" he said quietly. "It's not that far."
Truth is, it kind of was.
"Shit, we'll never make it on time. Unless… right, let's do that," Hal muttered when he realized Bruce may not afford three hours and a half of flying. "Baby, talk to me. You have to stay conscious," he told his teammate.
"I don't know what to say," Bruce said.
His words felt a bit flat, without much inflection. He was masking his pain. Hal tried to focus on his new route and not on that.
He took another deep breath. Time to convince Bruce his idea was a good one and that he had thought it through.
"Bruce, it was probably not in your immediate projects, but we're going to have to get married. The closest hospital is a Lantern one and it's the only way for you to get admitted. We can divorce when you get better but please don't be difficult and just say yes when you're asked if you want to marry me."
There were a few seconds of dreaded silence. As Hal was about to ask if Bruce was still conscious, he spoke up.
"I don't know if I can stay awake long enough for that."
"You have to. I don't know, we could play 20 questions or something."
Bruce snorted before wincing. Hal's arms involuntarily closed on him tighter, inducing more wincing.
"Sorry. And we need to keep you conscious, you have to talk to me."
"Sorry."
"Remember that time when you attempted to make breakfast in my apartment ?"
"I made breakfast," Bruce remembered.
He had been quite proud of it even if Hal had prevented him from repeating the experiment.
"You burnt the eggs and that was hands down the worst coffee I've ever had," Hal reminded him.
Bruce would have shrugged if he could. As it was, Hal was holding him too tight for it and he was in too much pain to try anyway.
"You drank it."
"I did," Hal said softly. "I started realizing how much you meant to me as I drank that dishwater down as if it tasted remotely okay."
Bruce had looked at him expectantly back then and Hal had smiled and pulled him into a kiss to escape the rest of breakfast.
"Bruce ? Talk to me," Hal said after a few seconds.
They weren't far from their target.
"Just thinking. The meteor shower on Oa," Bruce said.
"What about it ?" Hal asked in puzzlement.
He hadn't thought about it for a while and Bruce had brought it up quite out of the blue.
"That's when I figured out I was deep into it."
"How long have we been together back then ? Six months ?" Hal blurted out in surprise.
He was certain it had been quite early into their couple relationship.
"Something like that. We hadn't been together for long but you insisted on taking me to see the night sky after we completed our joint mission," Bruce said.
He was a bit out of breath by the end of his sentence.
"Our last date had been interrupted by aliens. I wanted to give you something normal, for once," Hal pointed out.
His heart was beating too fast, he had to forget about his partner's state for a bit if he wanted to focus on their destination.
"It may have skipped your attention but… but most people… don't go on dates on other planets," Bruce said.
Hal tried to ignore how disjointed his speech was. The pain, surely.
"Right. Well, we were already in space for our mission, I thought we could as well enjoy the view."
"I did. Hal…"
"We're almost there. Hold on. Bruce, please hold on," Hal said. "ETA five minutes, okay ?"
"I'm sorry," Bruce said so quietly as Hal almost didn't catch it.
"What for ?"
For dying on you, Bruce's eyes said, but his mouth formed other words.
It was probably for the best that Hal couldn't land and look at Bruce at the same time.
"For making you afraid," Bruce said right before the hospital came into view.
It was huge.
"You've been there before ?"
"No," Hal said, landing right before the front door and taking Bruce inside.
Hal helped Bruce to sit down in the waiting era and went to the front desk. Bruce could hear his heated conversation with the secretary from his seat but had no idea what the foreign sounds meant.
Hal came back with a bunch of papers and a frown.
"What's… wrong ?" Bruce asked with some difficulty.
"Shhh," Hal said, sitting next to him and allowing Bruce to lean against him. "It's okay, I just tried to skip the marriage case so the doctors could have a look at you sooner but the policy here is very strict."
Bruce nodded.
"Can you…" he said, showing Hal the area he was applying pressure to.
He was getting tired. Hal's hands replace his. You could hardly see the blood on Bruce's gauntlets but it tainted Hal's gloves in red.
Hal looked around him frantically. There was an elderly alien sitting right next to them. He had a compassionate look about him. Hal decided to try his luck.
"I'm Hal Jordan, Green Lantern and this is Bruce, my partner. We have to save him," he asked in a slightly English accented Oan.
Hal's tone was a bit too sharp for native Oans but the other Lantern wasn't from there either and his vowels were a bit too long.
"I'm only a patient," the other Lantern said, showing Hal his discolored second pair of arms.
The first and third pairs looked a healthy green but the second one was slightly grey at the fingers and seemed less responsive.
"I know. But you're a Lantern," Hal said, gesturing to the alien's ring on the first right hand. "Marry us."
"Need… sleep," Bruce uttered at the same moment.
He could imagine how the conversation was going but didn't understand much of it.
"Shh. Please," Hal asked, grabbing the other Lantern's wrist.
It wasn't an easy maneuver, with Bruce in his arms, his back to Hal's front, but the Lantern seemed touched by it.
"I won't let a Lantern's companion die. Let's start then. Give me your dominant hands."
Hal extended his and offered Bruce's, keeping pressure on Bruce's wound with another construct.
"Only one ?" the Lantern checked with Hal.
"Most humans only have two hands," Hal said, showing him.
"Funny," the Lantern said before making a sneezing noise that Hal chose to interpret as laughter. "What are your full names ?"
Hal gave his.
"Please hurry. Bruce, you have a middle name ?"
Bruce shook his head. He was dizzy.
"Bruce Wayne of Earth," he articulated.
The Lantern closed his eyes -the equivalent of a nod ? Bruce would have to ask Hal if he made it- for half a second.
"Repeat after me," the Lantern instructed.
Hal translated the order for Bruce and started repeating the Lantern litany. Bruce did too, when Hal informed him it was his turn.
Bruce stumbled over the foreign consonants and vowels but the six-armed Lantern didn't seem bothered by it.
However Hal seemed quite at ease with the language, the words falling effortlessly from his tempting lips. It must be Oan, then, Bruce's tired brain deduced. Lots of sibilants, but Hal's have a rough edge to them.
Hal's voice was soothing. Bruce felt like he was lulled to sleep as Hal pronounced his last Oan sentence but kept his eyes open. He had to stay awake until the end, he knew that.
"Thank you," Hal eventually said to the Lantern with too many arms as Sazzy -it was the Lantern's name- signed two of the papers the secretary had given to Hal.
Apparently getting married in waiting rooms wasn't out of the ordinary for Lanterns. Bruce wondered briefly if Hal had ever married before to save someone else's life, but Hal's acquaintances from space were mostly Lanterns.
The other Lantern looked like he wanted to say something to Hal but had to excuse himself as a nurse approached him.
Hal went back to the front desk and gave the paper to the secretary. This time their conversation seemed to take a better turn.
"She's calling the doctor. They're going to take care of you," Hal said, sitting back next to Bruce.
"What did we say ?" Bruce murmured.
He wasn't strong enough to talk normally.
'Shh, keep your energy. They're going to take good care of you, now. We promised to always love and protect each other as long as we breathe, in brightest day, in blackest night," Hal said as nurses put Bruce on a stretcher.
Bruce took Hal's hand into his for a brief second.
"Can't wait for the brightest day, then," Bruce murmured, his words echoing Hal's thoughts.
They were already going through the blackest night part of their union.
"Me too," Hal said, choking a bit on the words.
The nurses were saying Bruce needed to be moved urgently and that Hal had to let go of his hand.
"Hal. Don't be afraid," Bruce said just before his eyes rolled over and his bloodied hand slipped from Hal's.
Hal leaned against the wall for a whole minute. He went back to the front desk and saw the secretary braces himself for his arrival. Hal cringed. He could have treated the poor guy better.
"If my partner needs blood, you can give him mine, we're compatible. Take as much as you need," he said.
Not long after, a nurse had drawn some of his blood.
Hal had wondered if Bruce had lost too much blood, made some mental math.
They had asked him to lie down on a bed because they had taken more blood from him than recommended so Bruce probably needed it desperately. That or they were using Hal's blood to help other human patients too. Or they gave it to those alien drinkers of human blood vampire stories were based on. Hal sincerely hoped it wasn't the case.
However he didn't get much time to reflect on it. Indeed, he blacked out a few seconds after the idea crossed his mind.
The following week would become a bit blurry in Hal's memories.
Bruce wasn't allowed visitors, not that it stopped Hal. Hal slept a lot during those days. At first, he thought it was because of the blood he had given. After a while, he started wondering if he was sedated. And promptly fell asleep before reaching a satisfying conclusion.
Bruce was put in a coma and stabilized quite quickly as the doctors tried to figure out the best next step.
A step that would either kill Bruce or save him.
Hal stayed at his side at all times. The staff eventually relented and gave Bruce a bigger bed so Hal could sleep next to him. The Lantern was quite certain the doctor had seen right through his tale of human touch having healing properties for other humans but she had yet to separate them.
In the dead of the night, after the doctors had told him that Bruce might react too strongly to his meds, Hal had started talking to him.
"This can't be all we get. We need more time. We've just got married. I want - there are things… You have no idea how much I care. I mean, I hope you know. It's not like I haven't said anything about it," he said, leaning against Bruce's right side.
And then Hal waited. Two days, the doctors had said. Two days and they'll know if the dosage was wrong.
For two days, Hal barely slept, reacting to Bruce's every move.
At the end of the two days, Bruce was still breathing. The doctors checked on him regularly and told Hal Bruce was going to make it. He just needed a bit more time to heal.
That night, Hal had curled up against Bruce.
"I know commitment to a… we're married, so I guess I can say it like that… romantic partner is not really your thing. Breaking news, I didn't think it was mine either but… maybe we could try it, you know ? Just to see what the fuss is all about ?"
Bruce had stayed asleep. Hal had closed his eyes.
Bruce had grown agitated in the morning.
"Shhh," Hal had murmured, a hand on his arm.
Bruce's breathing had eased.
"It's a bit off putting to be married to you, you know ? I kinda want to rub it in the face of every pretty Gotham socialite you've ever pretended to date," Hal pointed out later.
Bruce hadn't woken up yet. He was starting to get worried. The doctors had said he would be fine, but it had been quite evident that none of them had taken human biology as a speciality back when they studied medicine in Oa's lecture halls.
Bruce did look better, though.
When Hal came back from his shower, his companion had been in the process of waking up. He squinted at Hal and let his head fall back against his pillow, exhausted and already back in Morpheus' arms.
"Rest. I'll be there when you wake up," Hal promised, kissing his forehead.
It would take six more hours for Bruce to open his eyes again.
Hal woke up to Bruce running his fingers through his hair.
"Bruce," Hal said, rubbing his eyes. "You're awake," he mumbled, letting his head fall on his companion's shoulder.
Bruce carefully wrapped his arms around his lover.
"What happened ?" Bruce asked, but Hal's start of an explanation was cut short by Bruce's doctors.
They examined him carefully, took another blood sample and declared that he needed to rest here for a few days before attempting any form of space travel and that they'd keep monitoring him until he left but that he should be fine.
Then they were left alone.
"We both slept for the first few days. Might be because I've given you some of my blood but I suspect they've sedated me.
It was probably for the best since once I was informed of how bad things were for you, I couldn't sleep anymore," Hal started saying.
He paused, looking at Bruce.
"They had managed to stabilize you. They kept you in a coma for a while, trying to figure out the best course of action," Hal continued.
"And then… that was quite bad, Bruce. They told me about what was happening. They couldn't keep you into a coma for much longer. For a time, the doctors weren't sure you'd make it. They don't have many occasions to treat human patients and they were afraid you'd react too strongly. Before they administered you the last treatment, they told me… they… they wanted me to say my goodbyes, just in case," Hal said.
Bruce's hold on him tightened.
"I'm okay."
"I didn't sleep for two days as we waited for the meds to do their work hoping the dosage wasn't off. If they hadn't given you enough, it wouldn't have saved you. If they had given you too much…"
"It would have killed me," Bruce finished for him softly.
"Yes," Hal admitted. "We still have rations if you're hungry. Lesson number 1 in alien hospitals is to always, always refuse any food they intend to serve you if there's no human on staff. I got food poisoning that way once."
Bruce shook his head.
"I sympathized with the Mom of the comatose Lantern patient in the next room when the doctors asked me to leave your room. She's been making me lunch for three days. I've yet to tell her that eating her people's food, no matter how good it smells, would send me to an early grave."
Bruce smiled slightly at that. Only Hal could make friends in a hospital in a week.
"Oh and Sazzi went home. They had to remove his second pair of arms but they should regrow just fine. He's asked me to keep him updated on you."
"That's the Lantern who married us," Bruce said, finally breaching the topic Hal had prudently stayed away from.
"Yes."
"So, we're married now."
"Um, yes. We could always divorce, though," Hal observed.
"Is that what you want ?"
Hal stayed silent for a few seconds. Bruce took his hand into his.
"I think that since we've already gone through the ceremony, we could as well try it," Bruce suggested. "If you don't hate the idea, of course."
"You know I don't hate it," Hal said softly.
"That's not the same that liking it. Do you want to make our relationship that official between us ? Would you consider moving in with me ? Would you think about making my family yours ?"
"I'd say that's a lot to take in if I hadn't been thinking about this for the last few days. Actually, if you want to give marriage a try, I'd love to do that with you."
"Thank God. I thought you were going to rob us of our wedding night," Bruce murmured, his hand sneaking under Hal's shirt.
Hal laughed and kissed Bruce.
"No way."