Page 86 of Tumbling Hearts

“Fuck, are you insane?!” the Kilotone yells. “You could’ve killed me!” He stands as well, the other Kilotones helping him up.

“Gene!” Maurice says, approaching him. The whole room is spinning, his eyes barely focusing. He hasn’t let go of the glass shard. “I leave you guys for a few minutes, and look what happens.”

“Wait, what…?” Gene scrunches his brows. Ray’s hands are so warm, heating up his arm underneath his blazer.

Dennis approaches next. “Gene, what the hell is going on?”

Santiago approaches too, from where? Gene can’t tell. His head feels so fucking heavy. “Gene, are you okay? What happened?”

Pat comes up next. “Chill out, man. What’s gotten into you?”

Even Stefan is here. Someway, somehow. “That was interesting.”

“Gene, what’s going on?”

“What were you thinking?”

“That’s enough, boys, that’s enough.”

“Motherfucking crazy, man!” yells the Kilotone. “I’m sorry. Fuck, man. I’m fucking sorry!”

“Let’s just clean up and be done for now…”

“Gene, what’s wrong?”

“Aauugh!”

Gene yells, holding his head with one hand. The voices are all too much. His pulse throbs in his ears.

“C’mon, let’s get out of here,” Ray says, his voice so soothing amongst the others.

“Yeah, sure, Ray,” Gene replies.

Ray grabs Gene’s hand, linking their fingers together. He pulls him away from the crowd, away from the lobby, everybody’s figures moving past him in an otherworldly blur. He doesn’t know where he’s going. His feet are moving on their own, he’s walking somewhere, but he’s lost his sense of direction. Next thing he knows, Ray is pulling him up the stairs. Somehow Gene keeps up with him, never letting go of Ray’s hand. He breathes harder as his body exerts energy, in and out, in and out. They’re walking down the hall next, passing door after door. Another door. Another door. How many doors down until they get to their rooms? What was Gene’s room number again?

“Do you got your key on you? I hope so,” Ray says, finally stopping in front of one of the doors.

“Yeah, it’s in my pocket…” But as he tries to reach for it with the hand not holding Ray’s—something drops.

Oh shit. He’s been hanging onto that piece of glass this entire time. It sparkles as it hits his shoe, bloody and glistening. His palm aches, and he lifts his hand to look at it⁠—

“Gene, are you okay?” Ray says, letting go of Gene’s good hand to focus on his injured one. “Shit, this is from that glass. That looks like it hurts. I’m no nurse, but I can still try my best to patch you up. I know they’ve got first-aid kits in these rooms. I can just grab your key for you, if you want. What pocket is it in?”

“This front one…” Gene says, motioning toward his pants.

“Alright.”

Ray doesn’t hesitate, pushing Gene’s blazer out of the way to reach into his pants pocket. It’s a little ticklish, making his mind spin even more—but soon enough Ray pulls the key out with a little diamond-shaped keychain attached to it. Ray then kneels; he’s grabbing the loose piece of glass.

“Good thing these floors aren’t carpeted,” Ray says. “I’ll wipe this up in a sec, once I get you inside.”

Gene stands idly by, his injured hand throbbing, as Ray opens the door. He pulls Gene inside by his good hand, then turns on the lights. This is Gene’s hotel room, right? Yeah, I mean, he just used my key. His head is still spinning, and all of a sudden Ray isn’t at his side—but he quickly realizes that’s because he ran into the bathroom. In the blink of an eye, Ray is already out, holding a first-aid box.

“Sit on the bed, and I’ll wrap your hand up,” Ray orders, but with a kind tone to his voice. Gene complies, plopping down on the soft sheets, bouncing a little from the force. His hand stings again—he grabs it with his good one, groaning at the pain.

“What did you do with the piece of glass?” Gene asks.

“I just set it on the counter in the bathroom. Here, I’ve got a wet rag. I’ll wash your hand real quick,” Ray says. He takes Gene’s hand, wiping off the blood. After wiping it dry, it all happens so fast—Ray wraps Gene’s palm with gauze, then he also wraps his fingers, closing them all together so he can’t spread them.