"Try Again" (A DHMIS OC insert)

• one •

But in that moment, Marvin had fallen dead silent too, his eyes widening as he realised at apparently the same time as Roy that the approaching person was bolting forward with no intentions of stopping. And before they could do so much as draw breath, the figure had charged into the road entirely, and what followed was a garbled shout of curses from them both as the person halted only a few yards ahead of their car- the strength in which Marvin slammed his foot down on the break pedal was almost winding, not only to him but to Roy, who jerked forward violently as the truck screeched to a standstill. The seatbelt managed to rag him backwards (which, in hindsight was incredibly fortunate, and he was at least grateful he didn't reel forward and crash into the windscreen).

The back of his head hit the headrest with a force so hard it almost instantly made his ears ring and the back of his neck pulse with agony, his mouth falling open in a breathless gasp as the air was punched from his lungs. Then there was static. All consuming, thrumming defeaningly in his ears. Roy couldn't catch his breath for a few agonising moments, his chest labouring uselessly with ragged inhales and exhales, a bid to bring air to his lungs. His vision danced, blurring and clouding and through the fog that had settled over his mind, and he couldn't move a muscle without his entire body sprouting with pain.

Marvin was in no better state. Roy could distantly hear the other man devolving into a vicious coughing fit, likely being asphyxiated by his seatbelt. But he couldn't bring himself to care at that moment, consumed by not only pain but also shock. The minutes that passed by, ones that were spent trying to recover from the scare and the physical impact of such a forceful manoeuvre, seemed to drag into hours. They couldn't have been there for more than two minutes but it seemed like a short eternity. After a while, the pain seemed to slowly lessen, and when he found he could move without being in excruciating pain, Roy gingerly unbuckled his seatbelt and almost fell out of the door when he opened it.

He slowly, almost begrudgingly, limped to stand by the front of the vehicle, half-dreading the damage. Roy didn't know if they had hit the person, and he hoped to god they didn't, but it didn't help to quell his worries when he saw the form sprawled out on the floor a few paces away from the front of his truck. Marvin had stumbled out after him, now standing beside him and looking down on the unconscious mess of rags and limbs with just as much anxiety as his companion.
"Did- uh, d'you think we knocked them over?" He muttered, turning to look at Roy with an expression of dread. And then added in a smaller voice. "D'you think we killed them?"
"Fucking hell, I hope not." Roy returned, worrying his bottom lip between his jagged teeth.

Up close, the form was distinctly feminine, clad in tattered rags that fashioned clothes. Their body was large, even bulky, yet appearing weakened by the impact, and their visible skin was a dull purple, but that was barely comprehensible under the dirt and grime that coated every square inch of their flesh. There was no considerable bruising, which Roy took as a positive. Their hair was dark blue, almost appearing faded, awfully matted and covered in mud and cropped short by their shoulders. Roy was able to make out the slight movements of their body, indicating that they were, in fact, alive. He sighed heavily, his tense shoulders slumping with relief.

"No, we're alright, look, she's breathing." He said softly.

"So let's get off, then, she might grass on us if she wakes up and goes to the police, eh? C'mon, Roy, let's go." Marvin urged, and hastily made to turn around but before he had the chance to return to the truck, Roy raised his arm out and cut his course short, levelling the jumpsuited man with a glare.

"You what?" Roy scoffed, face contorting in disbelief. "We can't just leave her bleeding in the road, you mong, look at the state of her. She's filthy!"

"Well, how is that our problem?! She came running into the road, that's not our fault!" Marvin was shaking his head, quite visibly fretting. "And sure, we ought to tell the bluebottles that, aye? Cause it's the truth, but I've been in and out of the nick too many times for them to believe a word I bleeding say, Roy, we need to go!"

"Maybe if you weren't a bloody crook, they'd believe you. We aren't leaving her bleeding in the road, Marv. How knows what wrong-uns are around at this time of night. Do you really want that type of blood on your hands, eh?" Roy retorted. He glared at his friend, his eyes hardening, and Marvin knew that look. Those eyes told him that the decision had already been made. So with a wearied sigh, he let off. He watched, defeated, as Roy approached the girl once again, bending down to lift her with some struggle.

When they were all rather uncomfortably pressed into the front of the car, Marvin in the driver's seat and Roy sat awkwardly with the stranger on his knee, he quickly set a course for the dodgy area on the outskirts of Clayhill. His eyes flickered incessantly towards the rear view mirror on the journey home, and he was half expecting the beacons of red and blue and the shrill sound of the sirens to follow after them, but they never came. Their flat was another five minutes away from where they had stopped. Getting her in the flat wasn't an easy feat, but after a struggle, they had gotten her laid on their sofa.

Now the two of them stood over her, wondering what to do. It was Roy who broke the silence this time.

"What now?"