the door to your apartment slammed open, and you nearly dropped the book in your hands at the sound. before you could react, vi stumbled inside, her usual swagger missing, replaced by labored breaths and the harsh sound of boots dragging across the wooden floor.

"vi?" you called out, rushing to her side as she slumped against the doorframe, one hand clutching her side. blood seeped through her fingers, the fabric of her shirt soaked.

"hey," she greeted weakly, her voice strained but laced with a cocky grin that didn’t reach her eyes. "you should see the other guy."

“vi, what the hell happened?” you demanded, guiding her toward the couch. she winced as she sank down, her hand still pressed tightly to her side.

“sevika,” she muttered, rolling her eyes. “we had a... disagreement.”

you grabbed your first aid kit from the bathroom and returned, kneeling in front of her. "a disagreement? she stabbed you, vi. that’s more than a disagreement!"

she let out a low chuckle but winced immediately after. "don’t make me laugh. hurts like hell."

"good," you shot back, pulling her shirt up to examine the wound. the gash was deep, and the sight of it made your stomach churn. “you’re lucky this isn’t worse. you need to stop doing this.”

"doing what?" she asked, her voice teasing despite the pain.