#because nicholas sees the rescuee as a kid
Febuwhump #2: Failed Rescue Attempt
Context: Nicholas from Selection Process, sometime after his encounter with Jefe
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A dull thud echoed down the empty street. Only a few steps away from his car, Nicholas looked around uncertainly. Words tumbled over each other from the alley ahead, Spanish syllables too fast for him to translate with his limited knowledge. Hesitantly, he approached the alley and looked around the corner.
The wan light at the end of the narrow street silhouetted two figures. A skinny kid in a hoodie had his hands up, pleading, while a larger man in a jacket loomed over him. Suddenly the larger man’s hand shot out, grabbed the kid by the throat, and slammed him against the wall.
The crack of head hitting brick sent a surge of energy through Nicholas. He leapt into the alley without a thought, unable to stand there and watch someone give a kid a concussion.
He charged the aggressor, using his body to knock the man away from his would-be victim. It worked, but that was the extent of Nicholas’s plan. He tried to grab the man’s jacket, with half an idea about throwing him to the ground.
The man jerked out of his grip, thrust a hand into a pocket, and pulled out a gun.
Time stretched and narrowed. The barrel rose toward him in slow motion. Nicholas had never carried a weapon, not even pepper spray. First, do no harm. He made a desperate grab for the gun, shoving it aside just as the man’s finger tightened on the trigger.
The shot’s deafening blast was beyond anything he’d ever encountered or expected. He stumbled back and fell to the ground, clutching his ears.
The other man recovered and raised the gun again. Nicholas watched in frozen dread. He’d been stupid, incredibly stupid, and now he was going to die for his reckless attempt at heroics.
The man’s finger tightened on the trigger.
Nothing happened.
Nicholas turned and scrambled desperately for the alley entrance as the man furiously racked the slide. The corner, he just had to get round the corner; surely someone would be there, someone would be investigating the noise. A piece of trash slid away under his foot and he started to fall.
The searing impact on his right shoulder knocked him the rest of the way down. The last thing he remembered was his chin striking the pavement.
