Prompt 30
This is a short story for the Hurt/Comfort Dialogue Prompts I posted a few days ago. The dialogue is "It hurts, it hurts, it won't stop, please-"
Also, I've realized that almost all of my short stories involve Hopper being injured and Flik's reaction to it. So this time I'm writing Hopper's reaction to Flik getting hurt.
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It seemed to be working just as Flik had hoped. With the rainy season drawing near, some of the elders were anticipating more flooding for this year. With that in mind, Atta had her mind focused on getting the boulders down from what used to be the offering stone.
And of course Flik was the first to jump at an opportunity to help his Queen.
Dim, being the most built, was steadily climbing in the air at a decent hover. A thick strand of cobweb laced around each of his legs so the weight of the stones wouldn't throw him off balance. The biggest of the stones had been moved without any complications. Naturally, the colony assumed the smaller ones would be a breeze.
But Flik, in his proud stupor, failed to see that the cobweb was gradually wearing thin from the weight it was subjected to. He stood close to guide Dim to its potential destination. As luck would have it, the cobweb loosened inch by inch until there wasn't enough to hold the stone a second longer.
Most the ants around the scene rushed back despite not being close enough to get hurt. The stone dropped quickly and Dim found himself being thrown off balance from the inertia.
"Ah!"
The rest of the workers harvesting stopped cold at the scream. Atta saw Flik pinned down by the leg. "Flik!" she flew to crouch in front of him, "Oh my gosh!" Vainly, she pushed against the stone, knowing the effort would be fruitless, but she tried nonetheless. "Help! Someone help!"
Flik couldn't bite back the screams as all the bones in his legs seeming collapsed and broke. Tears overflowed his eyes. He tried to think. To allow rationality to kick in. The weight of the stone on his legs, however, was a lot stronger than his pain tolerance.
"Hold on!" Hopper rushed over, not wasting any time. He hooked his claws beneath the stone and tried lifting it up. Molt landed beside him and began lifting as well. Between the two of them, the stone scraped back against the ground as they pushed it off and away from the ant.
Dr. Flora kneeled down beside him, inspecting the damage. "Oh dear, we need to get him something for the pain! Fast!" Molt bolted not a second later to get whatever necessary.
"Please make it stop!" Flik dug his fingers into the dirt, crying. Atta reached down to touch his legs, nearly black from the lack of circulation and damage. He screamed louder and she pulled her hand back quickly.
Hopper gently turned Flik onto his back, causing him to choke on a scream. "We hear you, kid. It's alright. Molt'll be back before you know it. Just breathe, alright?"
"It hurts, it hurts, it won't stop, please--!"
"Woah, woah, woah, you're alright, kid," Hopper ignored the panicked look the colony was giving him. He lifted Flik's upper body onto his lap and gave a small laugh, "Everything's fine. See? I wouldn't be smiling if it wasn't." The grasshopper gave him a toothy smile, anything to make Flik feel secure. He couldn't have the kid in distress. If he could make Flik believe everything was alright, then he wouldn't risk passing out on them.
Flik squinted up at him, seeing the relaxed look Hopper was giving him. Far be it from him to know it was fake. Slowly, Flik forced himself to calm down. The agony was unbearable, but perhaps the situation wasn't as dire as he thought it was. He dug in fingers into the most solid things closest to him.
It was a good thing the kid didn't have claws, or Hopper's arm would be the next injury. He grabbed Flik's hand, "Just relax. It's not as bad as it feels." The ant tilted his head up to see for himself, but Hopper lifted his head back again, "Don't focus on it. You just concentrate on breathing right now, alright? You have to trust me that everything's okay."
Flik grunted through another wave of pain. Inhaling shakily, he nodded, "O-Okay..."
"Do you trust me?"
The ant nodded again, "Yeah."
Atta stood when Molt was seen headed their way, "What took you so long?" she snapped.
Molt held his hands up in defense, "There were a lot o' plants. It took me a while to find the right one." He handed Dr. Flora a poppy seed. She managed to get Flik to chew it up and swallow. It would take a few more minutes for the adrenaline to wear off.
"Will he be okay?" Atta wrung her hands together.
Dr. Flora furrowed her brows, looking down at Flik's blackened legs, "Well--"
"He'll be fine," Hopper gave them pointed looks. He grinned down at Flik, who was beginning to relax a bit, "Right, kid? You're tough for a lightweight."
Flik laughed shakily, "I learned from the best." His grip on the ground and Hopper's hand eventually loosened.
"Darn right you did," Hopper laid Flik's arm across the ant's torso. Carefully, he picked him up, "Now, let's get you to the infirmary. I think you did more damage to the stone, though, than it did to you."
The kid's eyes drooped a bit, becoming tired from the seed, "Ya think so?"
Hopper grinned, "Think so? I saw that thing split in half. If anything, we need to take that stone to the infirmary."
Flik gave a tired laugh, "Thanks, Hop." He knew the grasshopper had to be lying now. But it didn't matter. The poppy seed was already taking the pain away, and he was just thankful everyone wasn't swarming around him in a panic.
"Don't mention it, kid." The ant lasted a few more heartbeats before drifting asleep.
