Chapter Text
The fluorescent lights made an annoying humming sound in the examination room, where you sat anxiously on the examination table. Your hands were folded in your lap as your gaze flickered between the floor and Zayne's impassive expression while he meticulously reviewed your chart.
“The vitals the nurse took look stable,” he began, his tone clinical and detached, flipping between pages. “But I want to make sure there aren't any lingering effects from your encounter with that Wanderer.”
You nodded, chewing nervously on your bottom lip as Zayne moved around the room where you were seated. You winced slightly as he prodded at the bandage covering your thigh, his touch firm but gentle.
“How's the pain?” Zayne inquired, his voice softening ever so slightly.
You shrugged, trying to downplay the discomfort coursing through your body. “I've had worse,” you muttered, forcing a weak smile. The whole encounter had been stupid really. You were overworked, thus losing more and more sleep. You should’ve seen the second Wanderer coming. But your reflexes were just too slow and you took a harsh fall to the ground.
It was nothing serious but it had left you limping and with a nasty abrasion.
Zayne raised an eyebrow, his gaze piercing as he studied you carefully. “You don't have to be tough all the time,” he remarked, his voice tinged with discontent. “It's okay to admit when you're hurting.”
A flush creeped up your cheeks as you averted your gaze, feeling exposed under Zayne's scrutiny. “I know,” you murmured, your voice barely above a whisper. “I just... I don't want to be a burden.”
Zayne sighed softly, his expression softening as he reached for his stethoscope, quietly listening for anything out of the ordinary.
Your eyes met, a silent understanding passing between you. His touch was gentle as he placed the stethoscope against your chest, his eyes focused intently on his task. Your heart raced in your chest as he stood near you, the fact he could hear exactly how fast your heart was beating made it all the more embarrassing.
Finally, Zayne pulled away, his expression unreadable as he removed the stethoscope from your chest.
He walked back to his desk, his movements deliberate as he gathered clean materials to tend to your wound.
“Stay still” he said calmly and you did as you’re told. Soon the old bandages were removed and his eyes roamed over your red skin, taking in the damage.
The skin was red and tender but not deep, thankfully, but as he began to clean it, you couldn't help but grab his wrist and hiss in pain as the disinfectant burned.
"I'm sorry," you muttered apologetically, quickly releasing his wrist as you tried to endure the stinging sensation.
Zayne's gaze softened, a flicker of concern crossing his features as he continued to clean your wound with careful precision. His voice soothing despite the discomfort, "Just try to relax, I’ll be done quickly."
You nodded, gritting your teeth as he applied a fresh bandage, securing it in place with practised ease. When he finished, he stepped back, his expression thoughtful as he surveyed his handiwork.
“Alright, lower your pants a little below your hip. Your tetanus shot is out of date.”
He turns around to grab the injection from his prepared tray and you give the back of his head a ridiculous look.
“You’re going to inject my butt?”
This day could not get any worse. He had the audacity to give you an amused look. “Considering you might already be sore from your fall, you might not even notice the injection site tomorrow.”
You sighed dramatically and slid off the examination table. Eyeing the needle in his hand sceptically before turning around. You had started to spend more time with Zayne recently and you had started to mend your previous bond as childhood friends, that’s what made it all the more embarrassing.
You could feel the heat in your cheeks as you lowered both your uniform and underwear to where you figured would be appropriate. The pinch itself was not that bad. The embarrassment of having the man you probably had feelings for give you a tetanus shot in the right buttock was considerably worse. You redressed yourself and turned around to find the amused smile was still on his face. Prick.
“Anything else I need to know?” He asked. You shook your head with a sigh. "Then you're free to go," he declared, his tone firm but gentle. “Make sure to rest and avoid any missions for the next few days. Expect soreness but do not restrict your movement entirely.” A slight pause and a gentler tone, “I’ll cancel our museum visit tomorrow."
You nodded, grateful for his care but disappointed your…. could you call it a date? You were disappointed you were not going to spend time with him tomorrow.
Honestly whatever you two had going was confusing and within a very grey area of friendship. Especially considering you had a feeling he still saw you as something like a younger sibling. But you enjoyed spending time with him from the bottom of your heart.
You slowly gathered your belongings and prepared to leave, slightly wincing as you tried to grab your backpack. He was submitting your chart info, glasses pressed high on his nose.
“We could still hang out tomorrow?” you asked, “finish the last few episodes?”
You had no idea if Zayne even liked the show you religiously watched whenever you invited yourself over at his apartment. At first he had claimed he was not watching. You teased him as his eyes kept wandering from his work laptop to the tv. In the end he had given up and you would watch together during the weekends whenever the weather was bad or when you were too tired for anything else.
You looked at him as he gave you a gentle nod. “I’ll bring dinner.”
-
You heard the door to your apartment close softly and the rustle of someone taking their shoes off. “I brought snacks as well.” Zayne's voice broke through your cosy apartment.
You walked to meet him in the hall, limp slightly better already. You give him a soft greeting as you take the bag from him, excitedly peering inside. He halts and gives you a once over before placing his shoes by the door. You immediately wonder if you had dressed too casual. You were wearing a loose oversized sweatshirt and shorts, although the shirt was long enough to cover your thighs. He was dressed casually himself though, so maybe not. It was a nice sight to see him dress comfortably and you could not wait to sink down on the couch with him.
You huddle to the kitchen with the bag and move to set the table, humming as you move to get cutlery and plates. Zayne enters the kitchen and watches you silently before looking at your bandaged leg. You catch his gaze and smile at him.
“It’s been feeling a lot better, I redressed it an hour ago. Would you like to take a look?”
His shoulders looked to sag a little in relief at your observation, glad you knew him well enough “Yes please.”
You awkwardly stood in front of him as he knelt before you, peeling the bandage off so he could take a peek. His fingers were cool against your thigh and you couldn’t help the warmth that rushed to your face.
“See?” you murmured, trying to ignore the fluttering in your stomach as his closeness sent heat coursing through your veins.
He examined the wound with his general stoic expression and seemed to approve as he reapplied the dressing. “Looks like it's healing nicely,” he said before standing back up.
You averted your gaze. The sight of him kneeling before you was not helping the increasing heat underneath your skin. "I think the hospital mints you gave me sped up the healing," you joked just for the sake of saying something.
Zayne's expression was amused as stood back up, but he was back to his stoic self before you knew it. Your heart sank a little. You only realised Zayne was asking you about the upcoming Hunter Association event when after he had to repeat himself.
“Sorry,” you said awkwardly and told him about your role for that day, walking him through whatever Jenna had told you earlier this week.
The rest of dinner was nice and easy, just like when you were kids again, comfortable. It was a peaceful quiet as you cleaned the table and moved over to the couch. Zayne made sure you had some pillows you could prop your leg on and you turned on the tv.
But your mind was not on the screen. You were up in your head, trying to figure out if Zayne would let you cuddle up to him or if that was a boundary crossed. From the corner of your vision, Zayne was in a comfortable position against the cushions, but suddenly leaning over would be way too obvious. So you gave up and sank into the couch, eyes back on the screen.
Your apartment was warm and you could smell Zayne’s body wash. You had been up quite early to clean your apartment. So your eyes became heavier with the second until you could feel yourself drift off.
Warmth. God Zayne smelled nice.
Soft strokes through your hair woke you up.
You felt rather mortified when you realised you had actually nuzzled into his shoulder while complementing his scent out loud. And you groggily sat up trying to rub the sleep out of your eyes as Zayne looked at you curiously. A slight upward tug of his lips implying he had no issues with you leaning into him.