#matego

It always came in quick, successive flashes. Being raised off the floor, Cecilia calling to her. Then she saw Mateo. She’d somehow blocked out the worst of his predicament- all she saw was him grabbing the key, fumbling with it, then lurching forward onto the concrete floor. She was never certain who was screaming- her or him. And then she was back to being raised in the air, that god forsaken beam penetrating her flesh and vision. 

 Cecilia was calling to her again, but she couldn’t comprehend her words. 

And then… she woke up as she always did. Heart pounding against the walls of her chest, eyes wet, lungs refusing to take air in normally. She laid there, gripping the sheets. It took her a moment to process that there was also a high-pitched, repetitive ringing sound that only exasperated her already frayed nerves. Mateo groaned and rolled over, switching on the bedside lamp with a violently shaking hand. He picked up his cellphone and stared at the tiny screen for a moment before declining the call. 

He then rolled onto his back and covered his eyes with his forearm. 

“You okay?” He muttered, glancing over at Gabriela after a moment. She shook her head and furiously wiped her eyes. 

“Who… who was calling?” 

She didn’t really want to rehash the details of her recurring nightmare for the millionth time. It never got any easier, despite the fact that Mateo had also lived it and could sympathize. 

“Blocked number.” He muttered, stretching his arms. “Was it-” 

The phone rang again. 

“Mierda, shut up!” Mateo growled, declining the call yet again. 

“Turn it off.” Gabriela said softly, sitting up and hugging her knees to her chest. 

“I can’t. Diego might call.” He switched the device to vibrate mode and rolled onto his side, his tired gray eyes meeting her brown ones. His boyfriend was once again pulling an all-night shift, earning money to support him while he was out of work.

“Anyway… was it the usual dream?” He inquired softly.

Fresh tears traveled down Gabriela’s cheeks and she nodded. 

“Yes… but I don’t see Valentina anymore.” Her voice broke. Mateo let out a sigh and sat up as well, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close. His cellphone started vibrating and he released her to check it once again. 

“It’s what, three in the morning? Who the fuck-” He growled. A sharp realization hit Gabriela and she grabbed his arm. 

“Mateo, you have to turn it off. There’s only one person I know who calls from blocked numbers.” 

He stared at her in confusion for a moment, but then his eyes went wide. 

“No. It can’t be. Not her.” 

“Turn it off! You have to!” Pure panic took hold of the young woman. Mateo nodded. 

“Okay, okay. You’re right.” He turned off the device and then handed it to her. “Take out the battery. I… I don’t think I can.” 

She nodded and fiddled with the door of the battery compartment for a moment before managing to wiggle it loose. She yanked the battery out and then gently tossed it and the phone onto the foot of the bed. 

“There. We’re not home.” Mateo said, “But…can it really be her? She’s been gone for months.” 

Before Gabriela could reply, the kitchen and living room phones started ringing. 

“SHIT!” Mateo growled. Gabriela’s breath briefly caught in her throat and it was enough to trigger full-blown hyperventilation. 

“Gabby… Gabriela… it’s alright.” Her companion tried to reassure her fruitlessly. 

“What if… what if she’s here?” Gabriela sobbed. 

“No no no no… she wouldn’t.” Mateo wrapped an arm around her again. 

“How can you be sure?” Gabriela yelled hysterically. The house phones continued to ring incessantly and she covered her ears, sobbing inconsolably. Both of them yelled as they heard the front door open, and Mateo frantically looked around for something he could use as a makeshift weapon. 

“Mateo? Gabby?” Diego called to them from the hallway over the din of the phones. 

“It’s Diego! It’s him, it’s okay!” Mateo reassured Gabriela once again and she gasped for air, one hand on her chest. Diego rushed into the room, looking just as panicked as they were. 

“It won’t stop!” Gabriela wailed, “She won’t stop!” 

“I know. She called me, too. Unfortunately I answered.” Diego said. 

“What?” Mateo shouted indignantly. 

“I wasn’t thinking, I wasn’t thinking. And she just kept on calling.” 

“What the hell does she want?” 

“I don’t know. I heard her voice and hung up.” 

“What the fuck do we do?!” 

The hopelessness of the situation hit Mateo hard and fast. They’d all end up being arrested if they went to the authorities, and it was no secret that Cecilia had dangerous connections. 

“We drive.” Diego said, pulling the keys to his cab out of his pocket. 

“Where?” Gabriela rasped, struggling to speak due to her exhausted lungs. 

“I don’t know. Somewhere away from here. Get up, get dressed. I’ll unplug the phones.” Diego rushed out of the room and Mateo gently grabbed his friend’s shoulders. 

“Grab your backpack, get dressed in the bathroom. Hurry!” 

The young woman nodded and scrambled off the bed, running on pure fear and adrenaline. Mateo rushed to change into his jeans and a t-shirt, but the process was hindered by his shaking hands and slightly off-kilter balance. The ringing in the kitchen and living room mercifully stopped and his boyfriend rushed back into the bedroom, releasing a deep breath as he did so. 

“Do you think she followed you here?” Mateo grabbed his hands. Diego shook his head. 

“No. No, I don’t think so. She’s likely calling from a whole nother country. Some fucking sick intimidation tactic.” He ran one of his hands through his fluffy hair. 

“I just… what the fuck does she want?” Mateo was struck by a slight dizzy spell and sat down on the foot of the bed, holding his head. Diego joined him, putting a hand on his knee. 

“I don’t know… but if she, or one of her goons, lays one fucking finger on you or Gabby… there’ll be absolute hell to pay.” There was fire in his brown eyes as he spoke. 

“Di, no. I don’t want you to get hurt. Not again.” The black-haired man’s voice broke as he looked him in the eyes. 

“If I have to protect you, I fucking will. End of story.” Diego pressed a kiss to Mateo’s lips before he could object further. 

“Okay.” He whispered just as Gabriela walked back into the room. 

“We have to get out of here. She’s trying me now.” She hugged herself. Diego stood up and extended a hand to Mateo. 

Just a little baby fic about Diego's feelings of survivor's guilt in a potential apprentice!Diego au (with a dash of Diego x Mateo as a treat for me)

I want to explore more of Diego's guilt in potential future ficlets - he ratted out all of his associates

I know his arms definitely (presumably) wouldn't have healed enough by the end of the movie to drive a car, but I wanted to write this.

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The old lab was near silent aside from Cecilia's cavernous yelling from the inner depths. The echoes almost made it more eerie - like his former boss had been reduced to a haunting presence. A ghost.

Diego's sneakers scuffed and squeaked against the floor, almost too loud in the relative stillness. He had to squint against the verdant darkness. He didn't have to see what had happened to his former accomplices. His friends. But he wanted to. Just to prove to himself that this was real.

He felt the toe of his shoe knock something - dragging him out of his thoughts. He glanced down at the shadow of an object the size of a basketball on the floor. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust before he saw it: the cold, dead eyes of Valentina gazing up at him. He bit back a yelp, stumbling and fighting for his breath. Holy shit… He fell silent for a moment, his hyperventilated breathing and pounding heart filling his head as he waited to see if Cecilia had heard him. She hadn't seemed to. Perhaps she was further inside.

It was called survivor's guilt, he thought. The sticky feeling clogging his throat as he stared down at Valentina. He had lived, they had died. God, why hadn't they just tried harder? Been faster? What made him the lucky one?

Was it true that none of them had made it?

"...Mateo," he called out in a hushed hiss - trying to keep as quiet as he could. The hollow, empty ambience of the space responded. "Mateo…"

"He's ready to leave now."

Diego jolted at the spoken response, whipping around to see the young lady - Amanda? - John had introduced him to. He caught his wits, looking her over. There was a certain soft sympathy in her eyes, but it was nothing against her blunt, cold determination. Diego kept his eyes on her before swallowing thickly.

"Was it quick?" He asked, quiet and heavy. "Did… Did he hurt?"

Amanda said nothing for a moment, her expression softening ever so slightly. I'm sorry, he thought it said. Or that may have been a wishful thought.

"Let's go," Amanda prompted again. "He had a chance, same as you. They all did."

Diego closed his eyes and bowed his head. He still felt it. The hot sting of the scalpels turning into a blaze of pain. The blood staining his skin red and black. The visceral sound of flesh and muscle being torn away. The ringing of the explosions in his skull. The…