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The sounds of Amelia’s choked sputters and gasps for air were just barely heard over Lucia’s string of curses.
Amelia coughed and hacked desperately, her hands softly clinging to her throat out of reflex. Lucia kept one hand on Amelia’s back while the other was kept on her thigh, giving encouraging squeezes throughout. Lucia whispered something under her breath, though Amelia couldn’t catch what. And quite frankly, that wasn’t on the mind at the moment - not when her airways were flaring and filling up with mucus .
❝ Shit, shit, c’mon sweetheart, breathe! Breathe for me, Ames - slow breaths, just like the doctor said. ❞ Lucia said, her voice shaky and panicked.
I’m trying , Amelia tried to say, but all that came out was a strangled wheeze. Lucia took her eyes off of her for just a second, just so she could actually think about what to do in this situation. A droplet of sweat ran down Lucia’s brow. Her hands shook against Amelia’s thigh. ❝ Fuck- okay, okay, it’s okay, just hold on. ❞
Amelia barely noticed when Lucia took her hand off of her, and ran upstairs to find… something , while Amelia focused on trying not to choke on her own esophagus. Amelia gripped her knee and dug her nails into it, to the point of drawing blood , trying to take controlled breaths.
Lucia came running back downstairs mere moments later, with her backpack in hand. As Amelia’s breathing became worse , Lucia muttered a string of curses under her breath. ❝ O-okay, okay, just hang on, hold on- ❞ Lucia was cut off by Amelia’s vigorous gasps. ❝ Oh my god, just hold on! ❞ Lucia shouted - though, not at Amelia or anything Amelia was doing. It was as if she were talking to time itself.
❝ L- Lu- ❞ Amelia attempted to talk, but Lucia shushed her immediately. ❝ Don’t, just focus on breathing for me. Stay with me, Ames. ❞ The word please sat heavy on her tongue. At this point, Amelia’s tongue felt like sandpaper. Amelia just nodded before violently coughing. Lucia flinched.
Lucia unzipped the green backpack, finding what she needed in the matter of seconds.
An inhaler, equipped with a spacer.
The sound of a small metal ball hitting the sides of the inhaler rang through Amelia’s ears, barely being heard over Amelia’s beating lungs. She would sigh in relief if she could. Lucia presses the tip of the spacer to Amelia’s lips.
❝ Open. ❞ Lucia instructed, and Amelia complied almost immediately. ❝ Ready? ❞ Lucia asked. Amelia nodded. Lucia pressed down, and the pump puffed out the medicine. Amelia breathed in hard and desperate as the relievers did their job.
Lucia pressed down again. And again. Then a few more times. By the ninth pump, Amelia scowled and moved away from the inhaler. ❝ Just one more, hermosa, slower this time. You’re doing so well. ❞ She praised Amelia while she breathed in, softer this time. Amelia’s heart swelled, literally , as she took in the medicine once again.
Eventually, Amelia’s violent gasping became soft panting. ❝ … You okay? ❞ Lucia asked after a minute or two of silence - minus Amelia’s short and heavy breaths. ❝ Yeah… yeah, I’m good. ❞ Amelia croaked. Lucia nodded, ❝ Good. ❞
All Amelia let out was an mhm , before attempting to stand up again. Her chest burned and ached for mercy, and she winced. ❝ Hey, no. No more running, no more walking anywhere. We’re done. ❞ Lucia declares, softly pushing Amelia back down on the couch they were sat on.
❝ You can’t tell me what to do. ❞ Amelia grunted.
❝ We’re not in a rush. Give it a minute. ❞
Lucia could almost hear Amelia rolling her eyes. She tried to recover from her initial and leftover panic, while Amelia just chilled out.
❝ … Hey, I forgot my inhaler! Since when did you have one of my inhalers? ❞ Amelia asked, despite her chest hurting when she spoke.
❝ Since it got worse, honestly. I worry about you sometimes. It’s like you take five steps and can barely breathe. ❞ Lucia replied, shrugging her shoulders. Amelia snorted and laughed. Lucia’s face flushed, as did Amelia’s. Though, she tried not to let this new knowledge inflate her ego too much.
❝ … I love you too much to let anything happen to you. ❞ Lucia admitted, and Amelia’s face flushed redder than freshly picked strawberries.
Amelia didn’t have to say it back. Lucia already knows she loves her, so a response wasn’t needed.
❝ … My chest hurts. ❞ Amelia says after a while.
❝ I bet it does. Want water or anything? ❞
❝ No, ❞ Amelia shrugged. ❝ I’m just wondering how a game of tag could turn into something so dangerous. ❞
Lucia threw her head back and laughed.