Slowest whump writer ever

“Jesus,” he muttered, finally swinging his legs over the side of the bed and standing, the sound of his bones popping filling the otherwise quiet home. He trudged through the living room, adjusting the waistband of his sweatpants. 

He didn't even bother turning on the lights, huffing in annoyance as he reached for the doorknob and the knocking started again. He swung it open quickly, forming a curse on his tongue until he noticed who now stood before him.

"Ethan? Wha-"

"Charlie," he breathed, pushing past him and into the dark living room, "I got an email– with a link-"

"You woke me and all of London for an email?" He said incredulously. He closed the door and followed Ethan into the house.

"No Charlie, uhm, there was a picture too and- it's Crow."

"What do you mean it's Crow?" He asked, voice now more serious as he flipped the light switch. It felt like a rock had sunk in his stomach… There was no way this could be good.

"J-just look," Ethan said, turning his phone to face Charlie. The first thing he noticed was the picture… it was hard not to. Charlie grabbed the phone from his fingers.

It was in Crow's apartment, the kitchen maybe, and Crow's body was sprawled on the floor. He had a large red inflamed spot around his right eye and a split in his lip. Charlie couldn't see much more from the way he was positioned and the closeness of the camera.

His eyes trailed back above to read the subject line, "Your Captain needs better locks." 

Below the picture was the link, then another paragraph that read, "If you want to see your friend alive, wait at the link provided until further notice. -Your friend, 🐺"

Charlie stared at the phone blankly for a second trying to process, glancing back at Crow's unconscious form on the floor of his own apartment. He was otherwise uninjured as far as Charlie could see, but the likelihood of him staying that way seemed… slim.

"Did you click the link yet?" He asked, turning to Ethan who shook his head in response.

"No, I didn't know what to do. Adrian's back home, so I just came here when I saw it… I ubered and I forgot my keys…" 

Charlie's finger hovered before clicking the blue text, the phone loaded for a second before moving to a gray screen with text that said: "See you soon :)"

He looked to Ethan again, a frown forming on his face, "It's just a waiting screen," he said, yawning- it was way too damn early to be awake.

"Do you think it's even real?" Ethan mumbled nervously, "Y-you think they really have Cap?" 

"I don't know… I guess we'll just have to wait," Charlie sighed. Ethan nodded meekly, crumpling onto the couch and pulling his knees up to his chest. 

Charlie moved into the kitchen. He thought maybe today was the day he should drink a coffee in the morning, but he decided on his usual glass of orange juice instead.

A wave of discomfort moved through his body as he took his first sip. He couldn't think of any specific reason why Crow was being targeted; enemies came easy in this line of work. He slowly moved back into the other room, sinking next to Ethan on the sofa and setting his glass on the table. Ethan was staring at the phone now, the screen remaining unchanged. After ten minutes passed, Charlie decided to cast it onto the TV.

"How long do you think we'll have to wait?" Ethan asked quietly. Charlie only shrugged.

When the TV screen finally lit up around a half hour later, Charlie sat up, inhaling heavily through his nose in anticipation. He nudged Ethan with his elbow; he had begun to nod off where he sat curled into the edge of the couch and startled awake at the contact.

They were greeted on the TV by a man, sharp-faced with dark hair and stubble lining his chin. He was wearing a tight black shirt with a logo on the breast that Charlie didn't recognize.

"Hello friends, my name is Wolf," he spoke, "I'm glad you've joined us today. It seems that I have something of interest to you," He said, stepping back and to the side, revealing a man sitting in a chair behind him… Crow.

He was gagged, a tight white cloth wrapped around his head and tucked tightly behind his teeth, his hair was a mess, as were his clothes. It looked like what he normally slept in, ripped and stretched in some places… They must have dragged him out of his own bed.

"Fuuck," Charlie breathed, burying his chin in his hands. 

His hands were tied to each arm of the chair with layers of coarse-looking rope, and Charlie could see his ankles were bound to the chair legs in a similar fashion. Another rope wrapped around his waist and the back of the chair to keep him secured. The red mark in the picture had turned into a full-blown bruise now, deep purple and blue around his eye that leaked down to follow the curve of his cheekbone. His eyebrows were drawn down, a spark in his eyes– He was pissed.

"What do we do?" Ethan asked quietly. Charlie didn't respond, he was too distracted by what was going on to think properly. They watched as the man walked up behind their captain, wrapping a large hand around the back of his neck, eliciting a muffled groan from him.

"We've got your friends watching live, say hello," The man said, using his hand to straighten Crow's head. Unfocused eyes looked up, struggling to find the camera in the room. He seemed disoriented, like he couldn't tell what he was looking at.

"Now, we don't want anything from you; not money, not information, not death… if this one behaves," Wolf spoke again, hand moving up to Crow's hair and tangling into the messy strands, tugging against them as he talked. Crow tried to move away, but he seemed so uncoordinated that he could barely even shift to the side. "We just want to show you what you're fighting against… We're going to have a lot of fun."

Wolf beckoned to someone with a nod of his head, calling, “Baker.”

Another man walked into frame from off-screen, a syringe in his fingers. The other man, who was seemingly the leader, tightened his grip in Crow's hair and used it to pull his head back, exposing his neck. The other man prepped the syringe, stalking closer to the chair. As Charlie watched, he felt goosebumps rise on his skin. 

“Looks like he’s still got the other shit in his system,” Baker laughed, eying the camera, “He's a big guy, gotta pump him full just to make sure he stays down.”

Crow growled into the gag, trying to jerk away when the man grabbed him by the shoulder. His head was pulled further back, hair twisted in the leader's hand so tight it seemed like he might nearly pull the chunk out of his scalp. The needle was jabbed into his neck, plunger pressed until all the liquid inside had entered his veins.

"What the fuck was that?" Charlie asked aloud, he couldn't help the waver in his voice. His heart was thumping in his chest, he didn't want to watch whatever they were going to do, but he didn't know how to stop any of it, and he felt like he couldn't look away.

"I don't know." Ethan whispered, biting his bottom lip, "But they must have sedated him before...There's got to be a way we can track him or something, right?"

"I don't know how to track a fucking IP!" Charlie responded, eyes wide and voice toned with exasperation. He pulled his phone from his pocket and opened his contacts, scrolling to a name and dialing.

"Who are you calling?"

"Adrian," He mumbled, "I don't know… he can't really help but he should know what's going on." 

A short silence followed between them, until Charlie spoke again, "He didn't pick up. He's probably passed out drunk somewhere right now– fuck."

On the screen, Baker pulled a box from his pocket, popping open the top and pulling a cigarette from it, lighting it with a lighter from his other hand. He took a deep drag and puffed the smoke right at the side of Crow's face. Crow stared straight ahead, not letting them get a reaction, but he clenched his jaw in annoyance.

As soon as Wolf noticed, his face upturned, “Put that out, I don't want to smell that shit,” He said. Baker side-eyed him, raising the stick up to his mouth another time and exhaling the same way he did before. Crow glared at him as the tobacco smell invaded his nostrils. Baker chuckled, but as he leaned back up, he noticed Wolf’s disapproving stare.

“You wanna end up next to him?” He sneered. At the silence that followed, he spoke again, “Then fucking put it out.”

“Fine.” Baker rolled his eyes. He flicked the excess ashes off into Crow's hair and in one swift move, jabbed the lit end of the cigarette onto the curve of his trachea. 

Crow whined in surprise as the heat seared into the skin on his throat. He sluggishly pushed backward into the edge of the chair, flinching as Baker removed the cigarette and plastered it just above his collarbone.

The pain prickled into him, slow and sharp like the push of a needle. Baker pressed it in firmer until the smell of Crow's own burning flesh wafted upwards into his nose. His nose scrunched up and he fought his drugged brain not to gag. Baker held it there until he could hardly feel the skin underneath anymore, nerves singeing away. He flicked his lighter, reheating the bud until it glowed bright red again, and lit four more down the line of Crow's throat to trail the first, the captive holding his stare the entire time.

Baker pulled the cigarette away from blistered skin, moving it mere centimetres from Crow's left eye, heat wafting in until it watered slightly.

"I'll put that fucking glare in your eye out" he hissed. Crow grunted in response.

"Stop messing around and grab the bucket," Wolf ordered.

Baker chuckled lowly, dropping the remains of the cigarette to the cement floor and crushing the bud with his boot. He moved out of the stream's view, the sound of rustling could be heard to the side. He appeared again shortly after with a large bucket, lugging it toward Wolf and setting it at his feet, water sloshing out of the side as he went. When he was done he returned to the other side of Crow's chair, hand grabbing his chin and tilting his head far back so it was parallel to the floor, leaving the fresh burns on perfect display. 

The camera was picked up and moved closer, angled so they could see Crow from the side, just as a cloth was placed over his face. His chin moved as he weakly tried to escape, the drug sapping at all of his strength… Baker just moved it back and tightened his hold. 

Wolf picked up the bucket from the floor, bringing it above Crow's head, and though Crow couldn't see what was coming for him, both Charlie and Ethan braced in nervous anticipation.

The bucket tipped. Ice cold water rushed out and onto the man below, drenching the cloth and his clothes immediately. He flinched hard, his fists curling up as he pulled against the ropes securing him to the chair. A strangled gargle filled the room, echoing off the cement walls.

Ethan gasped, his hands shakily moving to cover his mouth. Charlie stared straight ahead. His blood was boiling, hand white-knuckled around his glass. Seeing Crow like this made him nauseous, and there was nothing he could do about it besides watch. 

The towel clung to Crow's face, water soaking into the gag he wore and seeping into his nostrils. He felt like he was suffocating, until it soaked fully through and entered his airways. With the gag there he couldn't close his mouth, and Baker’s harsh grip ensured that he couldn't shake the rag away. His body convulsed with violent coughs, trying desperately to expel the liquid entering his lungs. 

It felt like forever until Baker pulled him back up and peeled the rag off of his face. Water began leaking from his nose, but Baker took his time removing the gag. When he finally did, Crow hacked the water back out onto his lap, trying to pull in as much air as he could. Every cough agitated the burns on his throat. The relief was short-lived though, because he was barely given enough time to recover before his head was pulled down again. 

He spluttered on his own words trying to speak- nothing coherent came out before the towel was thrown back over his face.

This time, when the bucket tipped, his choking was much more audible.

Charlie stood abruptly from his seat, tugging a hand through his hair as he began to pace around his spot in the living room. 

"Fucking--shit-" He mumbled, heart pounding in his chest and his pacing growing more erratic as the torture continued on, "-Shit shit shit." 

Crow tried to toss himself to the side, but his body was so sluggish that even without Baker's grip holding him still, he wouldn't have made it. He gagged violently as his lungs were invaded, chest seizing with panic. His head pounded, ears ringing this time as the water ran down his throat. 

They let him up seconds later, and just like the first time, he immediately devolved into a fit of coughs. The men laughed at his struggle, the leader speaking something to the camera that he couldn’t make out– not that he was paying much attention– he was mostly trying to feel like he wasn't dying anymore.

A hand returned in his hair- which seemed to be a favourite move of theirs- and pulled him eye-to-eye with Wolf. “Ready to go again, big guy?” He mocked.

“Fuck you…” Crow wheezed, words slurring together.

Wolf laughed again and motioned for Baker to resume his hold. The rag was put back over his face, but they left his eyes uncovered this time. Crow did all he could to brace himself, but there was no way to prepare for the terrible sensation of drowning that followed. Everything burned, his chest, throat and nose felt like they had been grated with sandpaper.

They held him under longer than before. The ringing in his ears seemed to multiply and the room swayed like Adrian after a long night of drinking. As the water poured, he was forced to stare above at Wolf's sadistic smile. He coughed and gagged as he struggled, skin scraping away where his wrists strained against his bonds. 

He never thought drowning would be the way he’d go, but as black swam around the edges of his vision, he was beginning to think that might be the case. Just as it seemed like unconsciousness would take hold of him, the flow of water stopped. He was so weak he couldn't even pull his own head up this time, they had to do it for him. Just like the last two times, his body convulsed, draining the liquid from his lungs.

His head was yanked back up by his wet hair until his bloodshot eyes faced the camera again. The scowl on his face hadn't faltered, but there was a tremble in the way his body sat that made him look vulnerable in a way Charlie had never seen before.

"Not so strong, is he now?" The man holding him spoke with a chuckle, letting Crow's head go where it then slumped slightly to the side, water dripping from his beard. When he’d finally expelled everything from his mouth and nose, Baker pulled the gag back between his teeth like it was nothing.

The camera moved back to where it was originally, the sound of water hitting the floor echoing in the room. Crow's chest heaved with every breath, soft pained groans escaping between. 

As Baker moved to retreat behind the camera again, he paused in front of their captive. His fist curled into the fabric of Crow's shirt, pulling his body as far forward as it could go before being stopped by the ropes. His head hung still, he was far too weak and drugged to hold it up now. He barely reacted when Baker began to cut his shirt away.

He startled though when a low buzzing sound filled the room and something hard glided onto his head. His eyes widened as chunks of black hair fell into his vision, sinking between Baker's arms and onto his lap. He shifted backward, puffing through his nose in shock.

"Keep fucking still," Wolf growled above him, wrapping an arm around his neck and pulling him back into a headlock. He drove the razor through Crow's hair again. Baker laughed at his stunned face next to him, finishing cutting through his shirt and pulling the soaked cloth from his body.

His hair was buzzed down to the scalp as he was held in place. His teammates watched still; Charlie huffed angrily, and Ethan shook with nerves. He felt sick to his stomach and curled further into the couch. It felt like they were watching his identity be stripped away from him.

When Wolf was done, Crow was unmoving where he sat. He almost looked defeated; the sedative and exhausting torture forced him to put all his focus on breathing alone, he didn't even have time to dwell on his missing hair. 

Wolf gave the electric razor to Baker as he exited the frame. It was just the two of them again now, and Wolf circled the chair like a boa about to constrict its prey. He gave him a few seconds of reprieve as he checked the time on his phone, face pulling into a smirk as he realized how long it had been.

Wolf stopped beside him and slowly trailed a finger up Crow's leg. He slipped his hand under the bottom of the shorts he wore and followed up his bare thigh, adding slight pressure the closer he got to the top. A soft moan followed, but not one of pain, making Charlie's eyebrows furrow. Crow's half-lidded eyes fluttered closed, head tilting ever so slightly back, almost as if he didn't realize the noise that had come from his own mouth.

"What the…" Charlie whispered in disbelief, thought cut off by the man speaking again.

"Seems like our little friend from earlier has finally decided to kick in," Wolf said, flashing a wicked smirk.

Charlie's eyes widened, his chest panging with all the emotions running through him. He couldn't tell if he was angry, or upset or scared- truly, he was a mix of all three. It finally started to dawn on him what they had injected Crow with at the start.

Wolf moved behind him, cradling Crow's head with one of his hands, his other one coming around, a finger poking out and hooking around the cloth to pull the gag from his mouth. 

"Don't…" Crow managed through an unintelligible mess of sounds, voice croaking, "Don't touch me…"

"How cute," Wolf mumbled, caressing down Crow's jaw and over his beard, "You think you have a say in this," his voice dripped in mockery, a sinister chuckle following after. The man's hand travelled slowly down Crow's chest and stomach, finally landing on his boxers.

"Stop," He breathed, a waver in his raspy voice. He tugged at the ropes as hard as he could in his weakened state- to no avail. Charlie could see that his wrists were rubbed raw at this point; screaming red welts peeking out from underneath the bonds.

Crow knew they were watching– Charlie, or Ethan, maybe even Adrian. He was trying his hardest not to react, trying so damn hard not to make a sound, to be strong. Everything hurt, limbs aching and his throat still burning from the water he'd inhaled; every movement he made to struggle lit his wounds on fire. And with both heavy drugs coursing through him, it was hard to keep his focus over all the pain.

He couldn't help it.

He whimpered as the man started to palm him through his boxers. His whole body felt heavy, barely responding to his brain- it took everything in him just to move slightly, let alone speak. He felt like his body was betraying him… no part of him wanted this, but the drug in him made his body react anyway. The best he could do was look up at the ceiling so he didn't have to see, but mostly, so he didn't have to look into the camera. It didn't take long for him to get hard.

He wished the gag was still in his mouth.

"Oh my god, oh my god–" Ethan squeaked through uneven panicked breaths. Charlie glanced at him, he was shaking like a leaf, a mortified expression on his face. "I can't-" he said, standing from the couch and stumbling around the corner into the kitchen.

Charlie wanted to follow him, but he felt stuck to his seat. He wanted to find anything that could lead them to Crow's whereabouts, no matter how much it pained him to watch.

Wolf grabbed the waistband of Crow's boxers and pulled them down. Crow shifted uncomfortably in his chair, pursing his lips. When a cold hand wrapped around his dick, he began his last attempt to struggle, managing only a slight twist of his torso and a small kick of his leg. The friction alone sent a shudder up his spine; his skin was flushed now, warmth spreading through his body and sweat trickling down his forehead.

"Ah- f-fuck," he gasped as the man began to stroke him. His teeth sunk into his bottom lip and he cursed himself for making noise 

"Look, he can't even hold himself together," Wolf chuckled behind him, quickening his pace. Despite Crow's best efforts, another moan was choked out of him. "Your captain sounds like a little whore."

"I'mmm gonna…" Crow mumbled weakly, a whine escaping in between, "fu-fucking kill you," He breathed, all his focus on forming words on his tongue.

"Sounds like you're enjoying it to me, big guy," Wolf murmured, "Are we sure it's the drug? Or are you so depraved that you're getting off to this? What do you think your friends are thinking watching you right now?" He asked, leaning down and kissing Crow's neck, sucking a hickey in its spot.

"Think he's gone enough to suck a few cocks?" The cameraman asked. Crow growled in response.

Charlie jumped from his chair again, muttering curses under his breath. He turned towards the table, grabbing the first thing he saw and throwing it against the adjacent wall. His glass cup shattered, shards flying onto the floor with a crash.

"Charlie-" Ethan gasped as he scrambled back into the room.

"Fuck, Ethan," he huffed, angrily throwing his hands into his hair, "they're-"

Both their heads turned toward the TV screen again when they heard Wolf laugh. Crow was overtaken by the drugs in his bloodstream, his head weakly leaned back against Wolf's chest. Every touch sent warmth cascading through him. His body couldn't hold back anymore, and his hips mindlessly bucked against Wolf's hand. 

"You really must love this, hmm," Wolf taunted, his other hand coming up to rub against Crow's nipple. A broken breathy moan left his lips.

"N…no," he whimpered, but his protests went ignored as Wolf quickened his pace again, stroking him through unwanted pleasure until he finally finished right into his hand.

"You're fucking disgusting," Wolf chuckled. His unoccupied hand grabbed Crow's chin and pushed his head further back against his chest, tilting it up until he was staring into the dazed eyes of his captive. He pushed his fingers into Crow's mouth. He gagged around the force of the intrusion, but Wolf held them there, forcing Crow to lick his own cum from each of them. A trail of saliva followed when he finally pulled them out, and he wiped the remnants onto Crow's stomach.

Ethan's mouth gaped, his legs beginning to wobble underneath him. "I… I-" he choked, pulling himself back onto the couch when his legs refused to hold him up anymore. A few tears slipped from his eyes and he heaved a sob from deep in his chest.

On the other side of the room, Charlie was fuming. "Motherfucker," he grumbled. He turned around, avoiding stepping in the glass and threw a punch at the wall. When he wasn't satisfied with the first, he punched it again, and again until he punched through the drywall and his knuckles pulled away bloody.

The cameraman handed something to Wolf, who accepted it with a devious smile. He brandished it to the camera, revealing a large knife as he pulled it around and pushed it slightly against Crow's throat, right next to glaring red burns.

"Maybe we should cut you open, huh?" Wolf purred into his ear. The blade dug into his skin, blood leaking from underneath, Wolf jerked hard and away, as if he was going to slit his throat. Charlie heard Ethan take a sharp breath next to him. 

"I think we should give you something so you'll never forget this moment," Wolf smiled, the knife in his hand glinting off the ceiling light. "So you'll never forget your friends here, and hopefully, neither will your teammates."

He leaned over Crow's shoulder, placing the tip of the blade on his chest, just above his nipple. He pressed in, blood spilling out and dripping down his stomach. Wolf drew a jagged line straight down, then pulled up again, continuing to carve into Crow's skin until Charlie realized that he had made a large W into his flesh.

He didn't stop there though, he moved an inch over and cut a curving line right next to it. The blood seeped into Crow's boxers and his shorts, staining them red. He moved over again, and as the straight red line was formed down Crow's chest, Charlie finally realized what was happening.

He was carving his name, branding him like he was property.

Crow's breathing was heavy, every new line pulled pained noises from his lips. Wolf carelessly sliced the blade through his skin, cutting down his abdomen when he had finished the letters.

"Isn't that beautiful," he said, "But sadly, that's all I have time for. I'll leave him with one last thing, and hopefully… someone will find him." 

He lightly dragged the knife down Crow's side, and just before he got to his hip, he jabbed it in, all the way to the handle, quickly pulling it out just as fast as it had gone in. Crow yelped, blood pouring from the wound.

"Otherwise, you might just be searching for a new captain."

Wolf smirked and waved at the camera, and just like that, the screen turned black. Charlie was so pissed that his hands were shaking, and his stomach continued to flip in nauseating waves. He almost felt tears burning at the back of his eyes, but he didn't let any fall. He took a deep breath to calm himself.

"So-" He started, clearing his throat to stop his voice from wavering, "So how are we going to find him?" 

Ethan was quiet where he sat, sniffling through his nose. He was coming down from his panic attack still, and wiped his eyes as he thought of anything at all to help the situation. He moved into the kitchen again and poured a glass of water, taking big gulps trying to calm his racing heart.

Charlie followed him, attempting to call Adrian again as he walked. He waited through every ring until the voicemail played. When there was no answer, he tried another time, tapping his leg nervously.  He was sent to voicemail for the third time and he threw his head into his hands– getting ahold of Adrian before one pm on a vacation was a lost cause.

A few excruciating minutes passed while they sat in thought, both of their brains seemed to be working in slow motion.

"I don't know what to do… Where do we even start? We have no clues, no address, nothing." Charlie huffed.

Ethan trembled still, setting his glass on the counter as he began to speak, "I… what if we grab Deke and… w-we can go to Crow's apartment to see if they left anything there."

Charlie nodded, and just as he began to move downstairs for a gun, the back door suddenly swung open on the other side of the kitchen. Ethan jumped at the loud bang as it hit the wall, and Charlie tensed. His first thought was that the men who had taken Crow had now come for them. 

A pained moan and disorderly shuffling broke the silence in the house. Charlie's search for a weapon was cut short as Ethan peeked around the corner.

"Crow?" He spoke, stunned still in his spot. Charlie's brow furrowed as he stepped behind him to look over his shoulder.

"Hey," Crow's deep voice croaked. He stumbled into his bedroom and shut the door behind him while the boys were still too shocked to do anything.

"How did he..?" Ethan mumbled after a few seconds.

"I don't know… He's gonna bleed out in there if you don't get to him though," Charlie muttered back. They shared worried looks before stepping up his door and knocking.

"...Crow?" Ethan called softly. He slowly tried turning the knob, only to find that it was locked. Ethan looked back at Charlie again, the frown on his face growing deeper as he turned to knock again.

"Your wounds looked bad… Please Crow, at least just let us patch you up," He pleaded.

"Well leave you alone after if you want," Charlie added after.

There was a short moment with no response. They were beginning to think he hadn't even heard them, and just as Ethan began to open his mouth again, they heard the click of the lock turning in the door.

Ethan paused before gingerly pushing it open. Crow was still making his way back to his bed, he was stumbling and had to hold onto the wall just to keep himself standing.

Ethan took one good look at him and rushed out to grab his tools.

He had made makeshift tourniquets with his shirt remnants where they had stabbed him, and he now had more bruises than he did when the stream left off; the one by his eye had gotten even worse. He had dark red strips of flayed skin on each wrist and he huffed breaths with every step.

He let himself fall into the bed with a deep groan just as Ethan bounded back in. 

"Charlie-" he said hurriedly, tossing him a warm wet washcloth, "take this and wipe as much blood as you can."

Charlie nodded and began doing as told. There was a lot more blood up close than on the tv, Crow's clothes were soaked with it, and it quickly got all over Charlie as he cleaned it away. On the other side of him, Ethan was uncovering the wound on his side; it was still leaking blood. Crow whimpered as Ethan put pressure on it, red spilling out between his fingers and onto the comforter as he grabbed for his own towel.

Charlie watched him fumble for his supplies with his other hand, "I need to stitch it," he said, pushing the bloodied towel firmer against the wound. Crow only whined in response.

After a few minutes, Ethan finally got the bleeding to stop. He wasted no time threading his sutures and beginning to work on closing the wound.

While Charlie was distracted watching, he felt a hand brush against his. He looked down to see Crow reaching out to him. Charlie noticed the blood on his hands then, smeared across like he had left a murder scene, but Crow interlaced their fingers anyway, squeezing onto him. Charlie squeezed back, but neither of them spoke a peep, the only sounds in the room from Ethan pushing needle into skin and Crow's heavy breathing. 

Crow grimaced as the thread pulled through him, and Charlie squeezed his hand again in reassurance. 

When Ethan finally finished with the stab wound, he moved on to the cuts on his chest and neck. They weren't deep enough to need stitches, so he cleaned and bandaged them instead. 

"Is there… anything else we can do now..?" Ethan asked timidly as he packed his stuff away.

"I just… wanna shower… and b-be alone," Crow mumbled, still struggling to speak coherently. 

Ethan nodded, and after telling him to be careful about getting his bandages wet, Charlie followed him out of the room. He took one last look back at Crow's crumpled form on the bed before shutting the door behind them. 

About a minute later, they heard the lock turn again.

An hour later, Charlie lay awake in his bed. He had been tossing and turning since he layed down, and even though he was tired from being woken up in the middle of the night, he couldn't fall asleep. All he could think about was Crow and the stream; every time he closed his eyes he saw Wolf smiling above his head as he tortured him. 

He had given up on getting any sleep tonight.

He startled when his bedroom door suddenly opened, and he sat up quickly. He couldn't shake the fear that the men were going to come back for the rest of them. 

In his doorway though, stood Crow.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" He asked. His voice was still raw from the drowning, but it seemed that the drugs had finally started to wear off. Charlie shook his head in response. He moved over and motioned for Crow to sit next to him.

"I'm bloody exhausted," he whispered as he crawled into the bed, "But I couldn't sleep."

"I can't sleep either,"  Charlie said, turning toward him. Now when Crow was so close, he noticed that his eyes were slightly puffy, as if he had been crying. 

"I still can't see straight," Crow mumbled. There was still a slight slur in his voice, too. He pulled his hand up to his head, feeling the short buzzed stubble there where his hair had been. "I don't know if I can get used to this," he said sadly.

Charlie frowned and snuggled closer to him, burying his face into the curve of Crow's neck. Crow shifted, all the talking was agitating the burns on his throat, and Charlie's warm breath over the hickey Wolf had left him made his breath waver. After a second, he wrapped his arms around the smaller man and pulled him closer anyway.

Charlie noticed the falter, but neither of them mentioned it. Crow was happier that way. He could still feel Wolf's hands on him, especially below his waist. No matter how long he had showered, or how hot the water had been, he could still feel the shame burning under his skin as fresh as the stab in his side or the brand on his chest. He was glad nobody had said anything; all he wanted to do was sleep... For now, Charlie's company was enough, no matter how wrong it was.

"Maybe, don't tell anyone I slept in here," he breathed.

"It's alright," Charlie responded quietly. He found Crow's hand and interlaced their fingers again, "Just try and get some rest."

Crow pulled him close one more time, resting his chin on top of Charlie's head. He squeezed his hand tightly, and finally, he was able to close his eyes for some much-needed sleep.