A/N: As usual, I would recommend putting the video on loop.

The second hand continued to tick away in the veterinary office, and its faint sound echoed down the small hallway. It mixed in with the quiet chatter in the front room, and Ether didn't pay attention to their conversation too much; his ears were more focused on the soft beating of her heart. As long as he heard that, he would remain calm; he wouldn't lash out at the vet again even if the boiling rage in him from Callest's actions urged him to do so. He wanted to release his anger on something, but he knew that it wasn't the time nor place; (f/n)'s life was on the line.

Since his mind was so concentrated on her, he barely registered how much time was passing, but it felt like it was taking too long. Then again, her injuries were severe, and her soft heartbeat wasn't the best of signs. At any moment, it could stop, which scared him immensely. His right hand clenched his left upper arm tightly, and he felt a bone crack. He didn't even wince, but he felt the bone repair itself soon after. If only (f/n) had his healing ability, but then she wouldn't be in such a position in the first place, and they probably wouldn't have formed a partnership since she would've been able to live and not agree to his deals.

A bitter, pained smile touched his lips, and he leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. Even now if he could transfer his healing ability to her, he was reluctant to do so since that might mean that she might leave him behind. She had cried and shown that she had missed him, but he didn't know how long that would last after her recovery. Would she revert back to her old self that didn't acknowledge some of her inner feelings? That uncertainty tortured him because he didn't even know if he could bring himself to save her life with his ability if he could, but if she died because of that failure, that would end him.

Such thoughts tore him apart because he didn't wish for her to leave or die. But, her leaving wasn't a hundred percent, and if she died, then him keeping his ability would be pointless. So ... No, he definitely would. He had dealt with uncertainty before with his pink flower, and he would handle it when the time came for him to help her. His smile became a bit more relieved before he released a sigh. Sadly, none of that mattered, though, since he couldn't transfer his healing capability to her, and the thought of her faint heartbeat vanishing drifted back into his head.

Almost, he thought that he had heard that happen, and his heart nearly froze, but he realized that it only was an illusion of his mind. He still could hear the soft thump of her heart, and he sighed in relief before he forced his mind to think of something else, which led him to something he kept hearing from Nick and his awake teammates. That name that they kept saying, the name that (f/n) had breathed out to him before she had gone unconscious, was that his name? They continued to address him by it, and it felt the same as it did back when (f/n) had spoken it. It was as though he had heard it long ago, but his memory didn't provide him anymore clues than that.

Once (f/n) made it, she definitely would, he would ask her, and he hoped that she would tell him, but he would make sure that she was fine first. He could wait on such a question since it wasn't as important as ensuring that she was alright, and his mind traveled back to the gravity of her wounds. For him, the five stab wounds signaled death of his victim, but Callest hadn't been aiming for her heart. His arm had raced lower, but Chris had changed the course of his nails a little bit. A sinking feeling entered the pit of his stomach. I'll take what you desire most.

It would've connected sooner if he hadn't been so focused on saving (f/n)'s life at the time, but he was glad that the realization had taken longer. Otherwise, (f/n) might've not made it to the vet in time since understanding Ca-Cal-Callest ... Barely, he even could think of the male's name. His left fingers stabbed into his right arm, and a few blood droplets dripped onto his pants. But, he might've lost it even more since he would've stolen two possible lives from him if (f/n) hadn't made it; however, Callest had been wrong. Even though he did wish to have a child with (f/n), that wasn't what he desired most.

Instantly, though, he broke out of his thoughts, and his attention snapped upwards. His ears heard a relieved sigh followed by footsteps. The creature stared heavily at the door, and his heartbeat increased. (F/n)'s heart continued to beat, and the footsteps neared. He pushed himself off of the wall and watched the doorknob turn. Slowly, the door opened, and the vet nearly jumped back when he saw the creature right in front of him.

His very pale blue eyes, however, looked over the vet and to the operation table. A device that he didn't know the name of was attached to her, and he saw the moving line that wasn't flat. There was a little heart on the screen, and he assumed that it had something to do with her heart rate. His hoodie was gone from her form and set on a tray to the side. Bandages wrapped around her midsection, and a thin white sheet was draped over her lower half to give her some privacy from being so exposed prior. "She made it," he whispered as he felt tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

Nick was already up from his chair, having heard the vet leave the operation room. The vet moved out of the way of the creature before he locked his brown eyes with Nick's brown ones, who understood the vet's signal and headed over. Relief covered Nick's expression too since he had managed to hear Ether, and he desperately wanted to check on her even if he doubted that Ether would let him.

Making no comment about Ether's tears, Nick motioned for the vet to speak. With some amount of composure, the vet replied without stuttering, "I need to discuss with both of you some precautions and eating regimes for Ms. (l/n) to help her heal and continue to heal." That caught the creature's attention, and the vet forced himself not to run away and lock himself in his office. "...I-It's i-i-important." That time, he did stutter, and he moved closer to Nick, who didn't blame the veterinary doctor.

"Fine, you can tell us in the room with her. I've waited long enough." The creature didn't accept any arguments and headed in. He pulled up one of the few chairs in the space and moved it right beside the operation table so that he was right by his partner. Nick gave the vet a nod of apology before he walked into the space and leaned against the wall opposite the table and Ether while the vet remained near to Nick. "So, what do we need to do?" the creature asked in a tone that was gruff but also indicated that he was determined to do what was necessary to keep his pink flower healthy.

"Well, her recovery time probably will take one to two months. I would say six to eight weeks would be the better estimate given how bad her wounds were. Luckily, no organs had been hit. I don't know how, but it was a miracle that none of them were cut open. All of the puncture wounds just had missed them," the vet explained with no stutter as he focused on his clipboard, which he had grabbed from the nearby table, and not the creature. The creature felt his heart skip a beat at that news, and his eyes glanced back to (f/n). Mentally, he smiled, but he didn't reach out and give her hand a light squeeze; he didn't want to touch her until he had to. She looked far too fragile at the moment, and he didn't want to hurt her. "Despite this, you both need to make sure that she doesn't put a lot of pressure on her abdomen. She shouldn't lift anything too heavy. Nothing greater than ten pounds, but I would suggest even lighter than that since her body has been injured prior to those wounds."

"Done," the creature replied with no hesitation. "Now, what about her diet?"

"Umm ..." the vet trailed off before the creature gave him an impatient glare. Immediately, the doctor focused more on his clipboard and reported, "I'm going to write it all down here, but you want to make sure that she eats small, frequent meals. About five to six, however, you must make sure that she eats them slowly. She looks malnourished, so you need to make sure that she doesn't try to eat too quickly. Also, she'll need to drink a lot of liquids and eat more protein." The vet took off the sheet of paper and handed it over to Nick. "The specifics are on here. I'll go attend to the other two."

Looking to Ether, Nick locked gazes with him, and it only took him a few seconds to understand Ether's silent message: leave. He didn't need another warning, and Nick left the room with the vet, which probably was for the best since he had to guarantee that the vet didn't try to run off. Nick, though, did leave the operation room door open, much to the creature's annoyance, but the creature didn't stand up and close it. Rather, his eyes drifted down to his partner. He kept his hands on the edge of the table and moved the chair closer to her.

Lightly, her chest rose and fall. He smelled her blood, but he didn't feel hungry; he just was happy that no more of it was being spilled. His eyes scanned over the various bruises and cuts on her; he couldn't distinguish his from Callest's, which made his hands tighten around the metal table. The only ones he really could set apart were the ones around her neck. They remained a dark purplish hue. A droplet of water splashed against his bare left forearm. Another followed shortly after.

Silently, more of them fell onto his skin. "I'm sorry that I hadn't found you sooner," he muttered even though she probably didn't hear him. "I probably would have if I hadn't let myself get lost in my emotions. I had searched so much for you. I feared that I would never see you again, and it ate away at me," he whispered in an even quieter voice.

"This time, though," he reached forward to brush aside some of her (h/c) hair, but he stopped himself, "I'm going to keep you safe. I won't let Callest lay another finger on you." His eyes rested on her face, and an almost peaceful expression encased it. She looked simply stunning, but he wished that she didn't have to suffer to wear that present expression, and he almost felt wrong that it was bringing him that sense of calm that he received from being around her.

"I'm going to keep watching over you even if you return to hating me entirely," he spoke just as softly as before. "I'll be your victim again if you want that." Another tear splashed against his skin. "No matter what, I'll always love you, (f/n)."