The Waiting Game
Time seemed to move in slow motion as Azul watched the scene unfold before him in horror.
Sira tumbled backwards, her hands desperately reached out to grab onto something, anything.
He bolted towards her. His legs felt heavy almost as if he were being held back by something.
"SIRA!" He screamed out, his throat scratching with strain as a car approached, its horns and his frantic heartbeat blaring in his ears.
Hearing Azul's voice, Lan whipped his head towards Sira, is eyes widened in shock as he watched her tumbling into the street, right into the path of oncoming traffic.
Without skipping a beat, he jumped into action, reaching his hand out and grabbing onto her wrist.
It was already too late to pull her back onto the sidewalk, she was already too far into the street and gravity was working against them.
He knew there was only one thing he could do now.
Lan quickly pulled her towards him and wrapped one arm tightly around her waist, his other hand grasping the back of her head before spinning them so he would take on the brunt of the force.
The car screeched as the driver desperately slammed on the brakes, but it was too late, the hood of their car made contact with Lan and Sira, propelling them forward onto the asphalt.
They rolled a few feet away as pedestrians and witnesses from nearby stores gathered around, attracted to the scene after hearing the commotion of the accident.
Azul let out a sharp gasp, the air catching in his throat, his lungs almost feeling like they were at a stand still.
His chest felt constricted as he saw the driver of the car frantically jump out of his vehicle, his hands shaking as tears streamed down his face.
Azul's vision was blocked by the crowd, but judging by the driver's reaction, it couldn't be good.
Although his legs had previously felt so heavy, he could no longer feel them now, and part of him wasn't even sure if he was running towards the scene anymore.
"Someone call 911!"
"Is anyone calling 911?!"
Witnesses were crowded around them, some of their mouths covered in horror, some pulled out their cellphones to dial emergency services while others covered the eyes of their children, protecting them from the gruesome scene.
Despite the commotion, all of their words sounded muffled and far away, as if they were underwater as Azul pushed through the crowd, making his way towards Lan and Sira.
His heart dropped as he saw Lan on top of her, her hand visible by his ribcage, trembling and covered in blood, a pool of red liquid beginning to spill out from underneath them.
Suddenly, the world went quiet.
All Azul could hear now was his breath and heartbeat as he approached closer.
Was the blood hers, or was it Lan's?
"Oh my god! Someone call 911!"
"Has anyone called 911?!"
"Oh my god, are they okay?!"
The frantic questions of the public were now starting to flow into his ears as he knelt next to them.
Sira's face was obscured, buried in Lan's chest.
"Hello? Hello? Sira?! SIRA?! Can you hear me?!"
Azul places his hands on them, shaking them gently to avoid aggravating any potential injuries.
He was staring so hard, he could've probably stared a hole right through them, but finally, Sira's eyes fluttered open.
They didn't look at him, but instead looked up at Lan.
"L-L-Lan?" Her voice squeaked out.
Azul felt his shoulders relax as he let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding.
He placed his hand on her cheek.
"Sira. Look at me Sira. Sira!"
Her eyes darted around frantically, although never focusing on him.
"You're going to be okay Sira. Focus on me. Look at me."
Their eyes locked but hers were still out of focus, and slowly the lids of her eyes closed.
"No! No! SIRA! SIRA STAY WITH ME!" He yelled frantically as her eyes shut completely.
"SIRA! SIRA!" He rubbed her cheek with his thumb and gently shook her, but there was no response.
"LAN! LAN WAKE UP!"
His eyes widened as he finally noticed the severity of Lan's injuries.
Blood trailed down Lan's face and matted the back of his hair.
The blaring sirens of emergency vehicles added to the commotion and Azul was quickly moved aside by paramedics.
Officers arrived at the scene and began taking witness statements.
Azul moved to the ambulance as Sira was lifted on a stretcher.
However, one of the paramedics blocked his path.
"Sir, you need to move back. You can't come."
The paramedic's tone was very calm and matter of fact and Azul knew that his focus was making sure Sira was okay, yet, all it did was make Azul see red.
He pushed forward, causing the paramedic to grab his arms and push back.
"Sir, you need to move back!" His tone was becoming more stern the more Azul fought to get into the ambulance.
"I'm her husband! I'm her husband!"
After hearing Azul's frantic declaration, the paramedic moved back and nodded his head, motioning to the ambulance.
"Alright, sir. You can ride along. Your wife will be alright."
Azul climbed into the vehicle, sitting on the small bench inside and making sure he didn't get in the way of the paramedics.
His heart raced as he watched them run vitals and check her condition.
He so desperately wanted to ask them how she was, he wanted to know if she was going to be okay, how severe her injuries were, about the blood on her hands, but he knew he had to let them focus.
Sira needed to be their number one priority, so he was stuck there, his heart in his throat as he prayed for her to be okay, as he prayed for her to open her eyes and smile at him again.
When they finally arrived at the hospital, they wheeled her in and Azul rushed alongside them, holding her hand.
Yet, he was stopped again by a nurse.
"Sir, I'm sorry but you need to wait out here."
He watched hopelessly as they wheeled her further down the hall of the hospital.
"I'm her husband! That's my wife! That's my wife!"
The nurse held up her hands in an attempt to calm him down.
"Yes, sir. I'm sorry, but you have to wait here. Your wife is in good hands, they're going to run tests and someone will be out with you to give you updates."
Defeated, Azul slumped in the seat of the waiting room, where he was forced to play the dreadful waiting game.