#checking pulse

The way the caretaker constantly reaches for the whumpee's wrist under the guise of guiding the whumpee or passing the whumpee something or supporting them when they grow unsteady. They worry that the whumpee remembers the chains around their wrists, remembers the bruising hands restraining them. But reaching for the whumpee's hand always comes second because for just a moment, there in the constant pulsing of the whumpee's blood, their fingers can confirm that their friend is alive.