Work Text:
Langa has performed an ollie hundreds of times. He could do it with his eyes closed. And yet… he doesn’t always succeed.
Too distracted watching Reki skate beside him, Langa screws up an ollie, toppling backwards as his arms windmill frantically. Which isn’t unusual either. He bails a lot.
But this time, as Langa tumbles to the ground, the back of his head smacks the road so hard that pain explodes through his skull and his vision fades to black.
The last thing he hears is Reki screaming his name and then he passes out.
---
He wakes up to a pounding headache and double vision, staring up at the blurry shape of his boyfriend’s face, which looms over him upside down. Hands clasp either side of his head, fingers fanned over his ears, and Langa quickly realises why Reki’s face is upside down: Reki kneels by the top of his head, holding it steady with his hands. He remembers their class doing a first aid session at school, and clearly Reki remembers too, because they were taught to stabilise someone’s head after a head injury in case they’ve hurt their neck. And considering how freaking hard his head hit the deck, he understands Reki’s caution.
“Oh my god, you’re awake!” Reki gasps. “Just stay still for me, Langa. An ambulance is on its way.”
“Ambulance…?” Langa mumbles, shocked by how slurred his voice sounds. “Who for?”
“For you, you dumbass,” Reki says, his voice cracking. “You’ve been out for five minutes, and I couldn’t wake you up, and the blood. I was so scared, Langa…”
Something wet drips onto Langa’s forehead. When he squints through the double vision, he spies tears sparkling in Reki’s eyes. He longs to give his boyfriend a hug, but he stays lying on his back, his headache excruciating and bruises throbbing up and down his back.
“Are you crying?” Langa says.
Reki shakes his head, but the tears keep falling. Langa doesn’t argue, just staring up at his boyfriend and wishing he could do something to help. Although this is technically his fault, he supposes, because Reki is only crying because Langa fell and knocked himself out.
“I’m sorry,” Langa mumbles.
A sob bursting out of him, Reki says, “Don’t say that! It’s not your fault. I’m just scared. But you’re gonna be okay. I promise.”
In the distance, a siren blares. Langa stares up at Reki, managing to smile through the pain. And despite his own fear and pain, his boyfriend’s words make Langa feel a little better. Reki smiles weakly, another tear dripping onto Langa’s face.
“You’ll be okay,” Reki says again. And Langa believes him.