He can feel his throat ache dully as he catches the look in Clem’s eyes – startled and sorry and too young for any of this – and he wishes more than anything that he could tell her that it’ll be okay, that Nick’ll gasp for air and they’ll be safe forever, and have it be true. But she deserves better than sweet and gentle promises that are destined to be broken. And as much as he wishes he didn’t, he knows it in his bones that she has seen enough of the world in all its lawlessness and ugliness to know a lie when she hears it. So he says nothing at all.
Nearly all his energy is sucked into the desperate struggle to shove aside the growing hopelessness threatening to crush him under its weight -- and he’s so absorbed in the cycle of filling and refilling Nick’s lungs and pausing briefly between sets to eye his chest that he almost misses the flicker of Nick’s eyelids.
His heart jumps with a shiver of fearful hope.
“Nick…?” Luke draws back, staring – and just in time, it seems, because Nick’s sitting up faster than he expects, coughing and coughing. Definitely not walker behaviour. He presses a hand against Nick’s back for support, ducking his head a little to look into his face.
It's impossible to gauge the level of pain he might be in. But Luke is convinced that he'd at least have a pretty a good idea if Nick were dipping into shock.
His voice drops low, careful, gentle. "Nick, jus'... lie down a second. Or lean up against this wall. Catch your breath." He rubs at his back unthinkingly, glancing to Clem. They could spare a few minutes. Hopefully.
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Nearly all his energy is sucked into the desperate struggle to shove aside the growing hopelessness threatening to crush him under its weight -- and he’s so absorbed in the cycle of filling and refilling Nick’s lungs and pausing briefly between sets to eye his chest that he almost misses the flicker of Nick’s eyelids.
His heart jumps with a shiver of fearful hope.
“Nick…?” Luke draws back, staring – and just in time, it seems, because Nick’s sitting up faster than he expects, coughing and coughing. Definitely not walker behaviour. He presses a hand against Nick’s back for support, ducking his head a little to look into his face.
It's impossible to gauge the level of pain he might be in. But Luke is convinced that he'd at least have a pretty a good idea if Nick were dipping into shock.
His voice drops low, careful, gentle. "Nick, jus'... lie down a second. Or lean up against this wall. Catch your breath." He rubs at his back unthinkingly, glancing to Clem. They could spare a few minutes. Hopefully.