The Impossible Journey
Rating: T
Synopsis: Looking back on it now, Oliver quickly began to regret even suggesting survival training, let alone agreeing to take Felicity along with him after Diggle had bowed out, citing a feverish infant. Turning on his heels, Oliver watched in shock and horror as her tiny body tumbled down the embankment. He was powerless to stop it. Instead, he stood paralyzed by the unrelenting fear that consumed him as his friend, his partner, the woman he secretly loved, continued her downward roll, bouncing off one tree before hitting another.
Pairing: Oliver & Felicity
Characters: Oliver & Felicity
Season/Episode: Future fic
Category: Hurt/Comfort, Drama
Disclaimer: (the usual, don't own, idea was mine though)
AN: I know I've already posted this in "Dribbles & Drabbles" but I've had a sudden stroke of inspiration and continued it. If you've already read Part 1, skip to Part 2.
Part 1
One wrong move was all it took. As soon as he heard the branch snap behind him, he knew it was too late. Turning on his heels, Oliver watched in shock and horror as her tiny body tumbled down the embankment. He was powerless to stop it. Instead, he stood paralyzed by the unrelenting fear that consumed him as his friend, his partner, the woman he secretly loved, continued her downward roll, bouncing off one tree before hitting another.
His heart seized in his chest. Of all the ways he thought he'd lose her, this one hadn't even crossed his mind. Looking back on it now, Oliver quickly began to regret even suggesting survival training, let alone agreeing to take Felicity along with him after Diggle had bowed out, citing a feverish infant.
Yes, they'd packed enough supplies and navigational equipment to make sure they would get out alive if anything bad happened to them, but Felicity had been carrying the pack with all the electronics. Watching her bounce and roll with it on her back caused Oliver's stomach to drop to his knees.
"Felicity!" he desperately called out to her once she finally reached the bottom, her body having limply rolled to a stop against a tree just on the edge of the river. Fear gripped him and held on tight when she didn't respond.
Oliver knew he couldn't wait. He grabbed the rope tied around his waist and quickly looped it around a tree before rappelling down into the ravine. It took significantly more time than it would have if he'd followed her path, but better safe than sorry, he thought. Oliver spared no expense when it came to Felicity's life. There were at least three back up plans in place if she went on a mission. But this time, he didn't have any.
'Idiot,' he berated himself on the slow descent. 'Why didn't you think about this happening? Didn't you learn anything on that god-forsaken island?' A groan suddenly echoed from his fallen comrade and Oliver sped up, pushing his legs off the side of the hill as he let go of the rope, making sure not to hit any trees in the process or get tangled in any branches.
Once he'd finally made it to the bottom, he practically ran to Felicity's side, skidding to a halt on his knees where she lay in a crumpled heap on the riverbank. "Felicity," he roughly whispered, emotions clogging his throat as his hand reaching out to brush away the hair that had fallen into her face. Blood clung to the long, blonde locks and he could taste the bile rising from his stomach..
That not so distant night flashed in his mind. Images of her sprawled out in the overturned van, unconscious and bleeding from a massive laceration on her temple made Oliver's heart nearly stop. His hand pushed back more of her hair revealing a similar injury, this time on the other side of her head, along with several more scrapes and bruises all over her face and neck. "Felicity," he whispered again, pressing his fingers against the pulse point in her neck to feel the steady beat of her heart, "Felicity, wake up. Please, Felicity, open your eyes."
Another flashback, this time from over a year ago, released another rush of horrifying images that he'd never forget: Tommy propped up on a concrete block, a thick piece of rebar sticking out of his chest. The image of his best friend suddenly became superimposed on the woman laying propped up against a tree beside him. Oliver immediately went to check and make sure she had no similar injuries.
The hem of her powder pink polo shirt was yanked up to reveal nothing but creamy skin turning sickening shades of black and blue beneath. Overwhelmed with relief and guilt, Oliver continued to check her body for any other significant injuries. With her head, neck and torso already cleared, his eyes and hands traveled down her arms. The left was definitely broken, most likely a fracture of the ulna and radius from the way it was bent at an awkward angle. He was going to have to splint that until they were rescued.
There didn't seem to be anymore glaring injuries, but Oliver knew there could be other fractures and possibly internal bleeding. He'd have to monitor her every half hour for signs of those, but right now, her arm needed his full attention. He grabbed the medical supplies out of his pack, rummaging through them until he found gauze and tape. Since they were running on the bare minimum to save weight, Oliver improvised a splint by using several sticks that were roughly the same size and thickness.
Just touching her broken arm elicited a painful groan from Felicity. At least she was still somewhat conscious, allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief. Gently maneuvering the bones back into place had her whimpering in agony. It was a sound Oliver never wanted to hear again. He sped up, doing his best to cause her as little physical pain as possible while he wrapped the gauze around the sticks then taped the end.
With the splint fully covering her forearm, he moved on to make a sling out of an extra t-shirt he had in his pack. Securing it around her neck, he grabbed one more thing from the first aid kit: a bottle of smelling salts. It was wafted under her nose for just a moment before Felicity finally came to.
"Ol'ver?" she mumbled through the haze. "Wha happen'd? Where 'm I?"
Gently stroking his hand along her bruised face, he smiled at her hoping to keep the fear and guilt at bay. "You fell," he simply answered. She moved to get up but yelped in pain. "Whoa! Easy," Oliver said, placing a hand on her uninjured shoulder. "Just sit still."
Glancing down at her arm, Felicity asked, "Oliver, what happened? Why is my arm in a sling?" She was now fully awake, her eyes shooting to his for an explanation.
He sighed heavily. "You broke it in the fall."
The look of pure terror crossed her bruised features. "Oh, no," Felicity breathed before frantically reaching behind her with her good arm and searching for her pack. "No, no, no!" she cried when she couldn't find it.
Oliver's hand came up to cradle her cheek in an attempt to calm her. He knew exactly what she was looking for. "It's over there," he mumbled, pointing to his left. Halfway down her tumble, the pack had flown from her arms, rolling a few hundred feet away from where she landed.
"Bring it to me!" Felicity practically shouted, the panic evident in her voice.
Scrambling to his feet, Oliver did as he was told, retrieving the pack from where it lay and bringing it to her. She frantically pulled open the zipper then reached inside. "Oh, no," she whispered, her voice shaking. As she retracted her hand, several bits of broken plastic and wires came along with it. Tears fell freely from her cheeks as her hand dropped limply to her side.
"Shh, it's okay," Oliver tried to comfort her. He wrapped his arms around he waist, pulling her into the warmth of his body as she shook with the force of her sobs.
"How are we supposed to get home now?" Felicity bawled while burying her face into his shoulder.
"Don't worry," he whispered into her ear. His hands stroked up and down her back in an attempt to ease her mind. "I'll get us home."
