CHAPTER 1:

It was eerily quiet. That's what woke him up. His eyes sprung open, flicking all around him, taking in the car, Aaron slumped unconscious next to him, and the rising water level. He took in a quick steadying breath. He had to get Aaron out of here. How was he going to get Aaron out? He estimated they were maybe thirty feet down. He was a good swimmer. He could get Aaron that far.

"Aaron! Aaron! Aaron!" Robert shouted, his heartbeat quickening when his boyfriend didn't stir. "Aaron, wake up!" He sighed with relief when Aaron startled awake.

Aaron's breathing quickened as the panic began to set in. His eyes flickered to Robert's, seeking assurance that they would find a way to survive this.

"It's okay. It's okay. Don't worry. We're going to get out." Robert spoke with as much confidence as he could muster. He was singularly focused, too focused to feel any fear. "Aaron?"

Aaron saw nothing but confidence in his boyfriend's eyes. They were getting out of this car. They would be fine. That's what he saw there. No doubt. No questions. It made him feel safe, even as the water level ebbed above his collarbone. But that feeling was short lived when he remembered the teenager locked in the boot of their sinking car.

"Lachlan!?" He yelped, a plea in his eyes for Robert to keep him from being responsible for the death of a child. Robert held his gaze steadily, not flinching at the seemingly impossible feat of rescuing them both.

"We can get him, but we can't open the doors until the pressure equalizes okay." He said. Aaron nodded, swallowing down his fear once more. And then his eyes widened in terror as he realized he wasn't able to move one of his legs.

"I'm trapped! I'm trapped!" He yelled closing his eyes in desperation. Robert's eyes flickered downwards, assessing the situation, keeping the growing feeling of dread from showing in his eyes. He needed a closer look. He dived down to see Aaron's leg trapped under the steering column. Stuff down the dread; he had to stuff it down before he resurfaced. It only took a moment and then he was back up above the water, attempting to calm Aaron down.

"I'll push. You pull. We'll get your leg free." It wasn't a question. It was a certainty. Aaron nodded, trying to keep his head.

"Okay." He whispered as Robert dived down under the water once more. He felt Robert pushing his foot upwards and pulled.

"Aargh!" He yelled as pain shot through his legs as his ankle threatened to break. Robert popped back up above the surface.

"Again." He held Aaron's gaze only a moment before diving down once more.

Robert could feel when Aaron stopped pulling, when the pain became too much. He stopped pushing and resurfaced once more to find Aaron in tears, his mouth and nose almost under water.

"It's not working! You need to go, Robert. I can't have you dying because of me." He sobbed. Robert shook his head immediately at Aaron's words.

"I'm not leaving you. You and I are getting out of this." Robert yelled, not quite able to keep the desperation out of his voice this time. Aaron only shook his head and looked at Robert with tear-filled eyes.

"I love you." Aaron took his last gasp of air as the water level rose again. Robert dived down again, to try to tug almost hopelessly at Aaron's leg, which remained stuck. But he wasn't giving up yet. He reached around the back of Aaron's seat, pressing down on the lever to move Aaron's seat down. One pump. Two pumps. With Aaron's seat lowered, Robert was able to yank Aaron's leg sideways out from under the steering column. He resurfaced to draw in a last breath of air before his side of the car was also completely filled to the top with water.

Aaron's eyes clouded over as he fell into unconsciousness and he only just registered his leg coming free as his world went black. Robert saw Aaron's eyes close and knew he was running out of time. He launched himself sideways at the car door, positioning his feet against Aaron's seat so he could push with his legs.

Upon impact with the door, Robert nearly gasped in a mouthful of water as an errant piece of shrapnel that was sticking out of the door pierced into his side. He kept pushing anyway, ignoring the pain, letting the adrenaline keep him moving, keep him fighting. The door gave and swung outward, the piece of metal getting yanked not so cleanly out of Robert's side, but that was a problem for later.

Robert grabbed Aaron by the arm and maneuvered them both out of the car. He wrapped one arm around Aaron and muscled his way to the surface of the water. Adam was there to help him tow Aaron to shore, having dived into the water upon seeing their sinking car.

Robert began working on Aaron as soon as he was safely to shore. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe dammit! Aaron spit out water, rolling to his side coughing. Robert nearly passed out with relief, but then he was back to business. He had told Aaron he would get Lachlan out. He spun around as an EMT rushed over to administer to Aaron and jumped back into the water, hearing Vic screaming as he did.

He swam quickly to the boot of the car, pulling it open to find it empty. He turned around searching for any sign of a body under the water. He felt his breath running out; he hadn't gotten enough air before he'd dived down again. He began to swim back towards the surface. His side ached with the effort. He broke the surface, gasping. Some of the rescue workers pulled him back to shore.

And there was Lachlan, watching, expressionless, as he nearly killed himself trying to save him. His brain wasn't working anymore, wasn't filtering out the bad ideas. Without even knowing how he got there, he was suddenly in Lachlan's face shouting with venom in his voice. Threats. Insults. He couldn't even remember what he'd said moments after he'd said it.

Robert turned away from Lachlan to see Aaron's ambulance pulling away. He needed to get to Aaron. Vic was there next to him, pulling him away from Lachlan and towards the van.

They were in the van driving then and Vic was asking all sorts of questions.

"What was all that before, with Lachlan?"

"It doesn't matter." He said quickly.

"Robert—"

"It doesn't matter anymore! Please Vic I just need to know he's safe." Robert cut her off.

Seeing how pale he looked, how scared, Vic decided to let him be. Had she not been driving, her attention on the road, she might have noticed Robert draw a hand covered in blood away from his side, which had been conveniently hidden by his jacket up till then. But a swift wipe off on the inside of his jacket covered up any evidence that he was injured. It would keep until he saw Aaron and made sure he was alright. He could barely feel it. How bad could it possibly be.

They arrived at hospital, rushing in to question Adam about Aaron's whereabouts.

"He's in surgery." Adam informed them, his voice raspy from crying.

"Surgery?" Robert felt faint and had to focus to stay upright.

"Something about internal bleeding." Adam elaborated.

Robert fell heavily into one of the waiting room chairs, closely followed by Vic and Adam. He pulled his jacket forward to make sure it covered his wound. He just needed to know Aaron was alright. Then he would worry about himself.

Whenever he started to feel faint from the pain, which seemed to be magnifying in intensity the longer he waited, he would dig his nails painfully into his palm until his vision cleared and the waiting room came back into focus. Just a bit longer.

Chas and Liv showed up looking pale and worried. Robert couldn't seem to find any words. Vic took over. He sat back down, adjusting his jacket once more. Liv sat down across from him, her eyes full of unshed tears. She was looking at him.

"You saved him?" He met her eyes only for a moment, before letting them flick back to an arbitrary spot on the floor.

"I don't know." It was getting hard to focus. He was starting to get confused. He stood up abruptly, swaying slightly. He wasn't going to be able to stay alert unless he did something to keep himself awake. He made his way quickly out of the room, not even hearing the enquiring queries coming from behind him.

He was back there at the site of the crash. Was it a bad sign that he couldn't remember how he'd gotten there? He really needed that ring. He needed to have it when Aaron woke up. He dove back into the water. His vision blurred but he kept swimming. He found it quickly and tucked it into his pocket, swimming back towards the surface. He found Vic's van nearby and the keys to it in his pocket. He wondered how he had ended up with her keys.

He drove back in a haze. He couldn't feel anything but a gentle throbbing coming from his side now. He wasn't sure if that was a bad thing or not. He arrived back at the hospital. Chas hugged him when he came back in.

"You're soaking." She sounded worried.

"I had to go back." Robert croaked. He told them about the ring, about the proposal. They seemed supportive. Chas made some jokes about having a big gay wedding once Aaron said yes and got out of hospital.

A doctor came to get them. Robert didn't know how long they'd all been waiting. He was using every ounce of concentration he had to stay awake. He nearly passed out when he stood up too quickly at the appearance of the doctor.

"He's out of surgery. It went very well. The bleeding's under control. We'll keep him under observation tonight, but if all goes well, he can go home tomorrow. I'll show you to his room."

They followed the doctor. Robert focused on his feet, trying not to let the relief at Aaron being alright distract him from walking too much. He just needed to get to the room now, one foot after the other.

Aaron looked so small and so frail in the hospital bed. Robert's mind flashed back to when he had nearly died of septicemia and he had sat at his bedside, worried sick. He swayed on his feet as his consciousness threatened to leave him again. A hand on Aaron's hospital bed rail helped him steady himself.

He, Chas, and Liv waited in silence for him to wake up, each of them holding their breath each time his heart monitor beeped or buzzed off pattern. And then he stirred and his eyes opened and found Robert's, then Liv's, then Chas's. Robert was chastising him almost immediately.

"Don't you ever do that to me again. Do you hear me?" Aaron gave him the weakest of grins.

"Yeah." Robert smiled weakly back.

"Good." Aaron shook his head, seeing that Robert hadn't gotten what he was saying.

"No, I mean, yeah." Robert's eyes widened, lighting up with happiness. He caught the reflected grins on Chas and Liv's faces as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring box. He slid the ring on Aaron's finger, sharing a private smile between the two of them as he did. And then the monitors started beeping and Aaron's eyes closed as he lost consciousness once more. Robert felt the grin slip off his face as his world was turned upside down yet again that day. Doctors rushed in and he only vaguely registered Chas and Liv pulling him out of the way and out of the room. His heartbeat was loud in his ears. He couldn't hear what Liv and Chas were saying to him. They looked stressed, he thought vaguely.

Chas saw immediately that Robert's nerves were frayed beyond measure. He wasn't taking anything in that they were saying. He was frozen in place. Liv had clearly seen he wasn't doing well either. They both took an arm and helped lead him from the room. Chas was craning her neck to get a look back in the room where her son's doctors were milling about. She was comforted to hear the beeping of the monitors had subsided and looked to see the relief on Liv's face as well. He was going to be alright. They could feel it now.

A doctor came out of the room with a reassuring smile aimed in their direction. "Everything looks fine. His blood pressure dipped a bit and that's why he lost consciousness, but that's just due to the medications we have him on right now. Nothing to worry about." He nodded at them before turning and heading down the hallway towards the sound of a monitor going off in another patient's room.

Chas and Liv were exchanging relieved glances. They both looked up at Robert, then, expecting to see him looking relieved as well. It was only then that they noticed, having their worry for Aaron finally put to rest, that Robert didn't look well at all. He was deathly pale with dark circles under his eyes, which were uncharacteristically blank and staring. Chas stepped towards him anxiously reaching out a hand to steady him.

"Robert, love. Did you hear that? Aaron's okay. He's fine." She shot a worried glance at Liv when Robert remained unresponsive and staring. "Robert?"

Robert knew something was happening in front of his eyes. Chas was talking to him. Then she was talking to Liv. He couldn't understand what was being said. It was almost like his auditory sense was no longer able to function due to all of his focus and energy being spent on remaining conscious and upright. Why was he there again? He didn't want to be with Liv and Chas right now. Where was Aaron? He just wanted to lay down and go to sleep next to Aaron.

"Robert! Oye, Robert!" Chas and Liv were both shouting at him now, knowing something wasn't right. Chas turned to Liv again.

"Did he ever get checked for injuries when he came in?" She asked already knowing the answer. No. No, he hadn't. He had been too focused on Aaron and so had everyone else. No one had even asked him if he was hurt. She closed her eyes, scolding herself internally. He had saved her son's life and she hadn't even spared his well being a single thought.

"Right, come on Liv. Let's get him to a doctor." They both began leading him down the hallway towards the information desk, trying to support his weight as much as they could. Liv was surprised to find Robert's clothes still seemed not to have dried. She readjusted her grip so she could help support his weight better, glancing down just in time to see the expanding dark red stain peaking out from under Robert's jacket. Liv shrieked, her eyes once again tear-filled as she held up a blood-covered hand to Chas.

"Oh God! He's bleeding, Chas." Chas swallowed down the emotions that rose up at hearing that Robert had been hiding a serious injury all this time so that he could see her son.

"Right, we need help over here." Chas started yelling loudly so that all non-occupied medical personnel close by immediately ran over to see what was wrong. They eased Robert down onto a gurney, gingerly examining his puncture wound, which was still bleeding freely.

"Can you tell us how you were injured sir?" One of the doctors asked Robert. Robert blinked at him, not able to make sense of what he was asking. Chas stepped forward to answer.

"He was in the car wreck earlier. He must have been injured during the crash, but he didn't tell anyone he was hurt…" She trailed off, the guilt for not forcing Robert to get checked out washing over her once more. The doctor nodded in thanks and bent down to get a closer look at the wound.

"We need to get this wound cleaned up and then get him into CT to see what kind of internal damage we're dealing with." The nurses began cutting Robert's shirt off to allow better access to the wound. Liv gasped as the ragged edges of the wound were revealed. Chas squeezed her shoulder, swallowing back a wave of nausea at the thought of how much pain Robert must have been in all day. They watched him get wheeled away, clutching at each other for comfort. Once Robert was out of sight, they made their way back into Aaron's room and fell heavily into their chairs.

After sitting in silence for a few minutes, Chas jumped up from her seat realizing Vic had no idea that her brother had been injured. She dialed her number, waiting while the phone rang. Adam answered.

"Chas? Is everything alright with Aaron?" Chas sighed.

"Aaron's alright. He's out of surgery. We're waiting for him to wake up…" She trailed off for a moment. "Is Vic there, Adam?" Adam paused, confused why Chas would need to talk to Vic.

"Yeah, she's just come back with tea. Hang on a mo." Chas rubbed a hand over her face as she waited for Vic to get on the line.

"Chas? What's going on? Aaron okay?" Chas paused again, not quite sure how to deliver the news gently.

"Aaron's fine. It's Robert…" Vic cut her off, her voice raising in pitch as she spoke.

"What about Robert!? Has something happened? What—" Chas nearly had to shout to get her to stop talking.

"He was injured during the crash, kept it hidden. We only just found out. The doctors are looking at him now." Vic was off again.

"He seemed fine! How bad was he injured? Why didn't he say something!?" Vic's voice was rough now, shocked tears falling from her eyes. "Where—where is he now?" Chas wiped away her own tears before answering.

"They were taking him to get a CT scan."

"I'm going there. I'll call to let you know how he is once I find out." Vic's voice came over the phone stronger now. She was on a mission.

Chas stared at the phone, praying Vic would call with good news before Aaron woke up again. Liv cried silently in her seat, splitting her time between watching Aaron and glancing at Chas's still silent phone. They jumped about a foot into the air when Aaron spoke, both having been focused on Chas's phone at the time.

"Mum? Liv?" He mumbled squinting at her, not having adjusted to the light yet. Liv and Chas were on their feet hovering around Aaron almost instantly.

"We're here. You're alright. You gave us a bit of a scare but the doctors say you're okay." She knew what the next question out of his mouth would be, but still had absolutely no idea how to break the news to him about Robert. His eyes searched around the room, not finding what they were looking for.

"Where's Robert gone?" He sounded a bit lost, like he needed Robert there to feel like everything was alright. Chas and Liv exchanged a look that Aaron picked up on immediately. He was instantly trying to push himself into a sitting position.

"Where is he? What's happened?" His eyes flickered between Liv and Chas, searching for the answer on their faces. Liv stepped forward, placing a hand on Aaron's as she told him gently.

"He's getting looked at by the doctors. Vic's supposed to call once she's found something out." Aaron looked from Liv to Chas.

"What's wrong with him?" His voice came out as a fearful whisper.

"He had some kind of puncture wound to his side. We think it must have happened during the crash. He didn't tell anyone he was hurt… He wanted to make sure you were okay." Aaron was shaking his head in denial.

"Didn't he get checked out by a doctor when he came in!?" Liv and Chas both shook their heads regretfully.

"We were all so worried about you. He seemed… fine." Aaron stared at them for a few moments before his gaze shifted to his engagement ring. This couldn't be happening. Not now.

END of CHAPTER 1