Work Text:
Jayce's hands felt heavy on Mel’s arms but also were the last thing that was holding him grounded while he was trying to shake off the repercussions of the blast that hit the council room in the middle of the meeting. His vision was blurry, his ears ringing violently, and as he was gathering his thoughts he remembered.
Viktor.
He remembers that Viktor was sitting just centimetres away from him, but now as Jayce turned, he was nowhere to be seen, his seat empty – no, his seat fully gone, actually. Jayce doesn't even realise that his grip on Mel’s arms strengthened as he started frantically looking around, searching for his partner, praying that he would be okay. And then he saw him.
He saw him, laying on his back, as if he were asleep, eyes closed, his mouth slightly open as if in delight, caught in the middle of a little gasp that he sometimes let out when they were alone together. And the last time Jayce saw him that way was when Viktor was coming apart under his touch, heavy pants escaping his mouth as he grabbed and pulled Jayce’s hair, but now wasn't one of those moments, no. Now it was the touch of destiny finally reaching Viktor that was making him look that way, both too soon and too cruel if one were to ask Jayce.
And so he ran, towards him, calling his name among the chaos, disregarding whatever words or questions were directed at him, his mind laser focused on the body laying in the middle of the rubble pile. He took Viktor’s hand in his hand, as if out of reflex and his heart sunk, when he realised how limp it were.
“Viktor?” he tried to ask, but no words left his mouth, just a cough from all the ash that was filing the air around them that he accidentally inhaled. He tried again and again, until his voice came back to him, letting him scream as he tried to shake the older awake.
“No, you can't, you can't leave me, I can’t do it without you…” he sobbed, as he kneeled beside him, his hands looking for something but without mind’s help they were useless. “DON’T TOUCH HIM.” Broke out of his throat, a scream of protest as he noticed someone leaning over nearby, that made the enforcer that stumbled upon them, not even actually aiming to help Viktor, but wishing to check up on Jayce, back away in haste. She watched, her eyes wide open with surprise and horror, Jayce’s futile attempts to find Viktor’s pulse, then, when he didn't succeed, watched him as he unsuccessfully tried to move Viktor onto flat ground. She saw the way Jayce’s hands started shaking, heard the wail he let out, noticed, the way that the strange man’s spine bent, making him all crooked as the aftermath of Jayce’s actions, his attempts to try to move him from where he was laying. And it was all strange to the young woman because she couldn’t understand why does he matter, a man that she had never seen, that apparently councillor Talis held close to his heart, yet no one knew his name…
Why did he matter? She wondered, as she observed the careful way Jayce picked Viktor up, pulled him close, letting his head fall onto his shoulder and cried, openly, cradling the man closer with every tremor that went through his body. She wondered why she never heard about the councillor Talis ever having a partner, and for a second, she feels bad, but then she hears another shout that brings her back to reality.
Jayce Talis didn’t need her saving.
Jayce Talis didn’t want to be saved at all.
Nobody knows, but he wishes it were him, under the rubble, instead of Viktor, that it were him lying on the floor, lifelessly. But instead he ‘s just fine, untouched, his lack of injury almost laughable in comparison.
He didn’t come to the funeral, he didn’t have to. They held another one for him next week anyway.