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Posted: Fri May 09, 2014 12:38 pm
Oliver felt like he was suddenly thrust into a war zone. When he was first assigned to the infirmary after the latest mission, as a Life trainee he was assisting with patient care. There were so many burns, bandages everywhere, and the pain was so thick in the air he could practically feel it pressing down around him. Although he was assured pretty much all of the hunters would make a full recovery in up to a week, the nervous teen couldn't help but feel horrified at the extent of the injuries. However, when one of the supervisory staff noticed he looked like he was about to cry, throw up, or pass out, Oliver was relocated to the files section. It wasn't until the evening that he was able to visit the ward of his own volition. With a familiar tupperware container held a little bit too tightly, he wandered up and down the bandaged rows looking for his friend. There were so many hunters there, many with bandages covering a part or all of their face. It might have been easier to just search for the most angry intermediate in the Infirmary...
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2014 4:03 pm
Finn had wished he'd never woken up. If the pain at the time had been excruciatingly unbearable, it was absolutely no better once he had awakened from a deep slumber induced by pain, and kept by both medication and his weapons insistence that he remain under. However, sleep had gradually wore away, and he awoke. And found himself reliving hell on earth. The pain was unimaginable, and all the medications seemed to do was make him feel hazy and disjointed from himself, rather then take that feeling away. Perhaps it was better this way, but he couldn't, at the moment, imagine it being much worse. The hours ticked by, and while Trynt had assured him he was working on the healing process and that he would be set to rights within days, he felt no different. Bandaged from his hands to his shoulders, around his chest and around his right thigh, with a face that looked sunburned across the cheeks and forehead, and lips that were chapped, cracked and dry, Finn knew he likely appeared to be a mess. In fact, Ian had confirmed it for him earlier, a fact that he would not have minded if the other man had chosen not to share. Again. It couldn't possibly get worse. But then, quite abruptly, it did. Finn was not stupid enough to believe that people wouldn't show up and visit him. They inevitably would. They would show up, either to coddle him or to tell him he got what he deserved. Either way, he didn't want it. Either way, he would have rather he remained quite alone. When he caught sight of Oliver wandering along the hall of the infirmary, past it's line up of many stretchers, all of which seemed to currently be occupied, Finn closed his eye and pretended to be asleep.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2014 6:55 pm
"He might choke." Ripley offered after a moment of silence, having noticed the tupperware container and simply assumed it was filled with cookies. Somehow, he doubted there would be left over spaghetti or half-frozen chicken in there, after all. He was also assuming that it was for Finn; for all he knew, the skittish young man was here for someone else. "Hello." He added, belatedly, while scanning the room of casualties for one that looked remotely Finn-shaped.
"He's right there~" He said out loud, and only for Oliver's benefit, as he spotted Finn in his mummified glory. Then, after casting a glance to Oliver, he made his way to the side of Finn's bed, staring down at the supposedly sleeping form. The Trainee stared down at his friend, looking at him from head to toe, assessing the damage through the amount of bandages and, of course, the colour of Finn's face. He imagined that it would have been worse, had there been no weapon shield there to save him. He was alive, his vitals seemed fine, and Ripley felt that he didn't need to be concerned; so he turned to Oliver, and a thin, almost cruel smile crawled on his lips.
"Do you have a marker on you, by chance?"
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2014 7:24 pm
Oliver couldn't help it, he jumped half a foot with a frightened squeak when Ripley spoke up from behind him, the tupperware container flying farther and prompting a hasty catch. "S-sorry! I-I'm just... ah..." The kid once again looked nervous enough to throw up. "I-it's just... he brought me something when I was feeling bad..." Oliver trailed off, not sure exactly what else to say. He couldn't exactly explain why it was so important he give Finn cookies, it was more than simply returning a favour. Finn had taken care of him, in a rough, irritated way, and every simple kindness on this island felt like something that had to be cherished. Even if that act of kindness involved being bundled up in a blanket and thrown into the shower against his will. The sickly-looking teen followed Ripley to the side of the bed, and glanced at Finn as though afraid to look at the damage. When Ripley turned around Oliver was expecting a serious face and a curt summary of their friend's prognosis. The smile was almost as startling as the initial greeting. Oliver froze like a deer in the headlights. Then he slowly reached into his pocket, still full of supplies from his regular duties, a blue pen, a couple elastic bands, a pencil in desperate need of sharpening... And a sharpie for writing indications on beakers. Without a word he handed the last item over.
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Posted: Fri May 09, 2014 8:27 pm
"That's surprising." Ripley let out a musing 'huh', and glanced once more at the prone form of their friend. Finn had brought Oliver something, huh? He hadn't imagined Finn to be that nice, but he assumed he had it in him. Somewhere. The Trainee was getting used to Oliver's constant deer-in-the-headlights stare - though it was still amusing - and he waited with a practiced patience for the marker, or an indication that he had none.
"It's not a cast." He started as a means of explanation for Oliver, turning back to stare down at their friend. "But it'll do" Though he didn't lean over to start writing on Finn immediately; it would be rather mean of him, considering Finn had yet to do something that mean to him.
"Hey Buddy, you awake?" He'd at least give him one shot.
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Posted: Sat May 10, 2014 11:28 am
It wasn't hard to pretend to be asleep. Finn was already quite schooled in controlling his facial expressions, anyways, and once he was settled in with his eye closed, it was just a matter of slowing his breathing to a more controlled and measured pace. And it would seem that he had chosen to put on this act at either the best or absolute worst time imaginable, depending on how he looked at it, because soon enough he could hear an all too familiar voice, not far away, and he could only assume it was speaking to Oliver. It took a fair bit of effort not to "wake up", and say something like don't bet on it a*****e. I wouldn't give you that pleasure, but he managed, and he remained where he lay, carefully feigning sleep in the hopes now that not one visitor, but two, would ******** off and carry on elsewhere. But of course they wouldn't. Ripley had, apparently, spotted him, and for a second Finn actually cursed the fact that his face remained exposed and bandage free. He heard the footsteps approaching, heard the short, and somewhat alarming, one-sided conversation about markers. Of course Oliver would give Ripley one if he had one. And then a question was asked, and Finn had only a moment to debate whether or not he wanted to respond. Was it worth it, to ignore them both and hope for a few more hours of peace? If he did, was he going to end up with a giant d**k drawn on his face, or were Ripley's intentions not quite so cruel as that? Finn didn't open his eye. Didn't grimace, but he did hiss out in a raspy voice. "No. Only a kiss will wake me." He paused, for just a second, and then continued. "But not on the lips." He then carefully, and slowly, turned himself over, using his arm to lift his blanket enough to expose his bare a** out the back of his hospital gown. "You may proceed."It hurt so much to make those few, small movements. But it was totally worth it.
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Posted: Sat May 10, 2014 1:08 pm
Oliver was overjoyed to hear that grumpy voice, and moved closer to the bed with a relieved smile. Finn was clearly not dying if he was talking about kisses and stuff. It seemed to be one of his favourite things, if the whole Wonderland marriage situation could be believed, the kid began to turn a little red just thinking about it. But not even the memory of having his butt pinched was able to prepare him for what happened next. Before Finn could even finish revealing himself, the tupperware was dropped on the bed, and Oliver had turned away and shielded his eyes with one hand. The red colour creeping up the back of his neck made it hard to tell if he was shielding his eyes from Finn's backside, or shielding his face from both Finn and Ripley's view. Apparently not even showering together was enough to rid the kid of his embarrassment and sense of modesty.
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Posted: Sat May 10, 2014 7:30 pm
Ripley stared on, unimpressed by the display. Honestly, he had been expecting a snarky remark, but this... The Trainee stayed quiet during the display and struggle, and only looked away to see Oliver's reaction. The young man's red face spoke questionable volumes even before the tupperware was dropped and he inevitably turned away, but, naturally, didn't surprise him; he expected him to be prudish on top of skittish.
He sighed.
"Well, if that's what it takes." Ripley placed his free hand on the bed, propping himself up...while he wrote KISS on Finn's a** as quickly as he could, in the sharpie Oliver had given him. "There." His voice cracked with amusement, leaning back to recap the marker.
"I'll buy you a new one." He added, to Oliver this time.
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Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 6:10 pm
Finn felt something hit the bed near his leg, heard the scuffling sounds of shoes as if somebody were quickly moving away, and he couldn't help but smirk from his position, ready to flip back over onto his back and engage in conversation that would hopefully not last long, already thinking about what he could say in order to get the other two to leave, hopefully in anger (though in Oliver's case, mortification would probably be the quicker route to take). Of course, if rolling over onto his side had been a struggle, rolling back again was almost more so. he didn't want to just flop back into place and the inevitable pain that would follow and probably make him whimper like a little baby. No, that was no good at all, and would completely destroy all of the work he had done so far in attempting to drive away his visitors. So, of course, he took his movements slow, ready to ease his way back when suddenly, something cold with a slightly damp feeling was pressing against his bare butt, in quick and hasty movements that left Finn grimacing before he rolled back over, one eye narrowed balefully up at the one who would dare to do such a thing. "You know, if you wanted to accost my rear end, we could have made arrangements for later, in private." He half complained, half mocked the death trainee, before his gaze wandered past him and to Oliver. "All right, princess? I haven't soiled your virtue, have I?" More of that same, dry, mocking tone. Like he really cared if he did.
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Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 6:24 pm
The sense of humour the others displayed was not exactly shocking for poor Oliver, but it was definitely out of his comfort zone. Clearly Ripley and Finn were either very close, or both very messed up individuals. He quickly shook his head in response to Finn's mocking question. "N-no, I- ah... I-it's just, uh, a-are you s-sure you should be moving around so much?" Oliver finally stammered out. Despite his attempted argument to the contrary, he was still turned away from the pair. "I-it l-looks painful..."
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Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 7:45 pm
"And miss this opportunity?" Ripley replied, his question clearly rhetorical. He regretted nothing, though he did drag his gaze down towards the marker he held - which was now held out at arms length. "I should burn this." Sorry, Oliver; he really would buy you a new one.
"If he hurt that badly, he wouldn't have moved." Ripley said quietly, glancing over at Oliver before looking back down at Finn, once more surveying the damage. "Consider his..." The Trainee vaguely gestured to all of Finn. "...A good sign." It meant he wasn't broken, or devastated, and that he likely going to make it with his (sigh) sense of humor.
"What happened?"
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Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 12:11 pm
Finn rolled his eye at Oliver, who couldn't see it because he hadn't turned around. "It does hurt." He admitted with a pain filled shrug of his shoulders, all while inching and wiggling his way up into his bed before pushing up with his elbows into a sitting position, letting out a small hiss between clenched teeth to emphasize his point. "But what can I say, princess. I like it." Well, not like this. Not anywhere even near what this was like. This was quite possibly the worst pain Finn had ever experienced, though it was slowly getting better, becoming more bearable as Trynt worked away on healing him up. His hands, which had been in excruciating pain earlier that day, were still completely wrapped up in bandages, but were no where near the same level of pain they had been before. He settled those in his lap, frowning down at them before looking back up at his very unwelcome guests. "Is the word Sahara enough of an answer for you, Ripples? Or do you want the gory details one what it's like to be burned ali---" He suddenly stopped, his mouth snapping closed when he realized just who he was talking to. He'd seen the burn scars on Ripley's hands, he had witnessed the memory in the mirror that had left his friend in tears. Changing the subject then. " Hey, as long as you're both here, why don't you make yourselves useful and get me something to drink? Preferably alcoholic." He wasn't going to hold his breath on the preferably part.
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Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 5:04 pm
Oliver dared a peek, and then relaxed when he saw Finn was no longer exposing himself. "H-how can you like pain? I-it hurts t-to remind you not to like it!" The kid frowned, watching how careful Finn's movements were. The direction the conversation had taken left him in the dark, all he knew was that there was a mission... and then there were bandaged bodies everywhere. It was worse than a train wreak, he couldn't even handle it himself. And what Finn had started to say... Was that what awaited them all? Just pain and torture? The kid fidgeted, rubbing at his hands nervously.
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Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 5:49 pm
Finn's words made Ripley's blood run cold. He had cut himself off, and that was when the damage had been done. It wouldn't have been an issue had Finn not known about it and finished what he was saying - he could have passed it off and played like nothing was wrong. But he knew, and he remembered, and he'd cut himself off to avoid the issue. Ripley recognized that it was for the best - and that it had been done because the other man wasn't as heartless as he tried to make himself out to be - but it still hurt, simply because the other man knew. He had tried very hard up until then to hide it, to bury it in the past with his old life, where it belonged; but it got pulled to the surface again, and it was shared. It hurt more than he could properly describe.
He said nothing. No reply left him one way or another. He didn't flinch. His fist didn't clench. He merely stood there, letting the chill run through his blood and the ache to further numb his heart.
"It reminds you that you're still alive." Ripley said finally - and a little belatedly - to Oliver's question. Sure, he was answering for Finn, but he felt that the other man would agree with him, at least a little bit. In his case, at least, he liked it because it reminded him that he was capable of feeling when everything else was numb. He turned and walked away, leaving it at that for now.
When he returned a few minutes later, he had a styrofoam cup held against his gloved palm with a straw poking out from between his fingers. His free hand was buried in a pocket, but he held the cup out just enough for Finn to either take it from him, or simply start drinking from the straw.
Either way, he was sure Finn would be disappointed to find that it was just water.
"Has Fini been by yet?"
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Posted: Tue May 13, 2014 9:53 am
Finn was more then aware that he had completely ******** up, and once again it was because of his stupid inability to learn when to speak and when to hold his tongue. It was unfortunate that the one time where he realized his err halfway through the sentence, was the one time he would have been better off finishing what he started. But Ripley didn't react in any way. There was no flinch, no grimace, no trace of emotion whatsoever. But he knew the man could feel, didn't doubt for a second that what he'd said hadn't had at least some effect on him. He remembered too well the man's emotional display in the end-game of wonderland, and beyond that, still had the faded, dream-quality memories of a man who had known the death trainee quite a bit more intimately. But even knowing all of this, Finn didn't exactly back-track on his comment, or even offer an apology of any kind. Not because he was completely callous, not because he wanted to hurt the other man more, but simply because it was much too public. Too many people watching and listening, and beyond that, he wasn't all that sure that Ripley would appreciate it, anyways. But maybe, just maybe, he would try to make it up to him, later, if he felt it was worth it to at least try. Once he got out of this damn infirmary, at least, and took care of some other things.... He was about to answer Oliver's question, happy to move on to a different topic, when Ripley answered it for him. Nodding his head at the death trainee, Finn could only agree, and even smiled a little bit, though with the cold look in his eye it really didn't look anything more then sardonic. Ripley left, and Finn held bandaged hands out towards Oliver. "Help me get these off, princess." He smirked at the younger man, and waited for him to help, though if he refused, Finn would just resort to using his teeth to aid in getting the damn things off. Two hands emerged, raw, red, and still blistered in some areas. They still hurt like hell, still hurt more then any other part of him, currently, but he had hated not being able to use them, to be able to bend his fingers, to be able to touch things, if only just gingerly. When Ripley came back with the cup, he reached up and carefully grasped it between the palms of his hands, bringing it to his lips for a long sip through the drinking straw. "Thanks, nurse." He took another sip, before carefully leaning to the side and setting it down on the bedside table, near another cup that was already empty. At that point, Ripley asked a question, and Finn didn't answer right away. He took his time maneuvering back into place on his bed, sat with his hands held palm up in his lap as he slowly worked on bending each finger, assessing the damage in his head before he looked up, a small frown on his forehead. "No. And I'm not sure whether to expect that she will. We're not, ah, strictly together anymore." That was a round about way of saying that they had broken up, though it had all been so terribly civilized and Fini had threatened to still be his closest friend, so it was hard for him to gauge whether or not she might stop in to see him. "Probably for the best if she didn't, anyways. You're talking about the woman who pushed me out of my seat at a picnic table when I was still only half healed from previous serious injuries."
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