Teamwork

Chapter 37 - Movie

Diggle helped Oliver into a clean pair of pants and one of his hoodies, knowing that it would be too painful to try and get a t-shirt over his head in the condition that his back was in. Once that was accomplished he and Sara slowly helped him make his way up the stairs and out to the car followed closely by Felicity. Once Oliver was settled in the back seat and Felicity was beside him Diggle and Sara climbed into the front seats and the Team left for the Queen Mansion. The drive took a bit longer than usual as Diggle didn't want to cause Oliver any more unnecessary pain.

Felicity held Oliver's hand tightly in hers during the entire drive to the mansion. After having seen him go through so much she wasn't about to let go of him anytime soon. Occasionally she would feel Oliver squeeze her hand a bit tighter and she came to realize that he did that whenever Diggle would hit a bump in the road. She hoped that once they got to the mansion he would be able to lay down and get some much needed rest. However, knowing his family, that was going to be a challenging task.

Oliver held onto Felicity's hand the whole drive home. Whenever they would hit a bad patch of road that would case the pain in his body to flare up again he would squeeze her hand just a little tighter in order to keep any sounds of pain from escaping. He knew that if she heard him in pain it would cause her to worry and that was the last thing that he wanted to do. A while later he felt relief wash through him as he saw the mansion up ahead. Those feelings, however, were quickly replaced with a slight nervousness about what he would find when they arrived. Will my family be safe? How worried are they? Thea better not run into me again. He thought with a slight smile as he remembered the last time he came home injured and his sister had all but tackled him to the ground. As they rounded the drive he saw Walter, Thea, Detective Lance, Laurel, and Roy, standing outside the front door, eagerly awaiting their arrival.

"Thea." Roy said, turning to his girlfriend as he saw the car pulling up the drive. When he was sure he had her attention he continued cautiously. "Don't forget that Oliver is hurt. You can hug him, but do it carefully."

Thea wasn't sure what Roy was going to say, but the look on her face had had her worried, until she realized that he was only looking out for her brother. She was about to say something to him when she remembered back to the last time Oliver had come home injured and how her hug had caused him more pain than he was already in. She determined to be extra careful this time since she had seen just how badly Oliver was hurt. She nodded her head slightly, letting Roy know that she understood what he was telling her and that she would be careful.

As soon as the car came to a stop in front of the house Roy quickly went to open Oliver's door and offer him a hand out. Oliver met the younger man's eyes with an appreciative look, letting Roy know that the assistance was greatly appreciated. Once he finally made it out of the car he squeezed Roy's shoulder, letting the kid know that he was good, before turning and taking Felicity's hand and walking towards the group standing at the front door. He could see that Thea wanted to run to him but was hesitant. That was the reason that as soon as they reached the group he reached out and pulled his sister to him, giving her a tight hug.

"It's okay Thea." Oliver said quietly as he held her close. He knew that this whole experience had shaken her up pretty badly and he wanted to reassure her that he was indeed going to be fine. "I'm fine. We are safe. You don't have to worry anymore."

"I thought I was going to lose you Ollie." Thea cried as Oliver held her close. She reached up and put her hands on his arms as he held her, not wanting to hurt him more. "I thought Slade was going to kill you."

"But he didn't." Oliver said as he pulled back and looked his sister in the eyes. "He lost that fight and now I'm home."

"And probably tired. Why don't we move inside?" Moira stated as she watched her children embrace. Her heart broke for both of them. It broke for Oliver and what he had had to endure, yet again. It broke for Thea and what she had seen done to Roy and Oliver. Neither of her children were going to be the same after this. She just hoped that they wouldn't close themselves off like Oliver had done when he came home from the island.