Chapter Text
When Simon first woke up, he was completely disoriented. Everything hurt and he felt absolutely sick to his stomach. He can’t feel parts of his body and god everything hurts…
He also realizes quickly that he’s not alone.
As he dies his best to sit up, yanking a few needles from his body as he does, Simon realizes he’s in a med bay. He can smell the faint smell of sanitation and hear the beeping of monitors around him. His eyes are blurry so it takes him awhile to take things in but as he does..
There’s someone here with him.
In his dazed state - they must’ve drugged him - it takes Simon awhile to take in that bed beside him has a person in it. A person who is smaller than Simon and looks pale. His hair, much to Simon’s surprise, is silver like gray. His facial hair isn’t though. It's a dark brunette. He’s not bad looking as far as Simon is concerned but he looks so pale…
“There a reason you keep staring at me?” The man spoke up, making Simon flinch as the man opened his eyes and glared at Simon with bright, sickly blue eyes… A glare that looked very familiar…
“Who are you? Where am I?” Simon croaked out, looking away from the man to look around instead, taking in his surroundings as he came to.
“Med bay. And you fucking blasted me with radiation and don’t even know my name? Real nice, convict,” the man grunted out as Simon’s head whipped back to him and he swallowed thickly.
“The welder,” he mumbled and the welder closed his eyes and grunted in response.
“Jack,” he replied back. “Hope the name haunts your sorry ass.”
Simon tried not to flinch at his tone. He was bitter and angry and plenty of hostile emotions were evident in his tone. Simon couldn’t blame him but…
“They didn’t tell me,” Simon spoke up, needing to defend himself. “I didn’t know about the camera. I was scared. You sealed me in a metal coffin. I just wanted to be heard. I didn’t know.”
“Don’t give a shit,” Jack said, voice flat, eyes still closed. “Doesn’t matter. You did it and it’s done and I’m fucked.”
“Didn’t any of you think it was imperative to let me know that the ship had a RADIATION X-RAY on it that could HURT people,” Simon’s voice rose, the guilt twisting in his belly to anger. “If any of you bothered to tell me a goddamn thing, we wouldn’t be in this situation!” he bellowed, coughing as the raise of his voice stressed his vocal cords. God how long had he screamed and been out of it?
“You’re really fucking loud, you know that?” Jack sighed. “I don’t know how they did things in Eden, but a med bay is a no shouting zone. So shut the fuck up.”
Simon bristled and wanted to tell the man off but he closed his eyes and seemed to drift off and Simon felt himself deflate, falling back against the pillow of his bed.
How was he alive? How was he able to… He shouldn’t be here. He was drowning. The blood was alive! It had swallowed him whole and then…
Blank. Simon couldn’t remember anything-
Ava was dead.
Simon jerked up in bed and gasped. Ava was dead. She’d been eaten by that thing that had chased him… Who was in charge now? What was gonna happen to him? Simon could feel his breathing getting shallow as he gripped the railing of his bed and tried to think, tried to process-
“What part of shut the fuck up-“
“Can you just… Can you talk to me? Please. I can’t- I can’t breathe-“ Simon rasped out, holding a hand to his chest as his heart monitor beeped like crazy
“Hey easy- Hey, convict- fuck,” Simon heard the other guy but he might as well be far away on another ship.
“Look at me!”
Simon’s head snapped and he gasped painfully. Jack had gotten up from his bed. He was sweating heavily as he was hunched at Simon’s side, using the railing to stay upright and meet Simon’s gaze head on, letting Simon see his cloudy blue eyes better.
“What’s your name?” Jack asked and Simon - breathing heavily - sputtered at him.
“Simon,” he replied, voice cracking.
“Simon. Okay. You’re okay. You’re here in AT-5’s med bay. You’re alive. So it’s okay. You don’t need to-“ Jack began before Simon cut him off.
“Ava’s dead. She’s dead because of me. All I do is get people killed. I just wanted to live, Jack. I just wanted to live,” Simon sobbed, body shaking as he allowed himself to truly cry for the first time since Filament Station.
“Ava’s alive, Simon,” Jack spoke up, making Simon choke in disbelief.
“No-no don’t fucking lie to me I saw-I saw her get eaten. I saw-I saw!” Simon hissed, rage building in him. Why did the C.O.I keep lying to him?
“I’m not fucking- why would I lie? I ain’t got no reason to lie to you. Ava’s in an induced coma missing a leg but she’s alive, Simon. David told me,” Jack stated so firmly that Simon wanted to believe him but-
“Who’s David?” Simon asked, sniffling.
“The Commander. You told him to “shut the fuck up” when he tried to talk to you. Pissed him off after he was giving you a chance,” Jack explained, looking disappointed at Simon
Simon didn’t remember doing that but everything in the SM-13 felt like it all was a very terrible memory he wanted to forget for the rest of his existence.
“How did she… I saw it eat her ship,” Simon whispered, though more to himself than Jack. He didn’t really expect an answer…
“Just got lucky,” Jack replied anyway, pushing himself back and weakly shuffling back to his bed.
Simon stared at the welder and felt his chest tighten. The man was in pain and sick with radiation poisoning and he’d still pushed himself to help calm Simon down… Something he didn’t have to do. Something he didn’t have a reason to do.
“Thank you,” Simon mumbled to Jack as the other man settled back in his bed.
“Just couldn't sleep with you being loud. Don't think nothing of it. Still hate you,” Jack sighed and Simon noted it lacked any real bite.
“Right,” Simon conceded, laying back in his bed and drawing the covers up around himself like a shield. He was so tired now… He just needed to sleep.
It wasn’t long before Jack’s soft, even breathing lulled him to sleep.