Title: The Spider in the Cave
Author: Paradise4writin
Rating: Pg
Words: Water, Danger and Egress
Warning: Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort
Thanks to Bonnie, Julie and EJ for helping me with this when I was stuck. I love you girls!
It had been Nick's idea to take his lover on vacation. It had been a grueling week at work and Nick was worried about Gil's state of mind. So he put in for a weeks vacation for him and Gil and booked them on a flight to Hawaii. Nick had a friend who had a cabin there who let him use it.
They were there for a few hours when Nick had an idea. There was a cave not car from the cabin. You could look out the window of the kitchen and see the opening of the cave. Knowing how much Gil loved bugs, Nick decided that he would explore the cave and see what bugs he could find for his lover.
Now Nick just had to find a way to tell his lover that he was going to the cave without giving away why he was going.
"Hey Gil, I'm going to go explore the cave for a little bit."
"What cave?"
"The cave that you can see when you look out the kitchen window."
"Oh that cave. Are you sure? You have no idea what danger can be lurking in a cave like that."
"I'll be fine. You can watch me come out and go into the cave from right in the kitchen."
"I will. Be careful."
"I will."
After giving Gil a quick kiss, he started toward the cave. Before he entered the cave he turned back towards the house and sure enough Gil was watching him through the window. Nick waved and entered the cave.
******
‘Ugh what the hell was I thinking doing this? This is the last time I hey look at that.'
Nick shined his light on a spider crawling a few feet in front of him. He had never seen one look like it before, so he knew that was the one he had to get. Nick reached for it but couldn't quite reach it. So he stepped a little closer. He didn't notice the water under his feet. As he reached for the spider Nick lost his footing and fell forward. He cracked his head on a rock. As he laid there, his vision getting fuzzier and fuzzier, his last thought was his life might be over because of a little spider…how ironic.
******
‘One down, six letters. The act of going out or leaving, or the right or freedom to leave; departure.'
Gil sat back and thought a few moments before putting his pen back to the crossword puzzle.
‘Egress'
Gil threw down his pen and looked out the window. Due to pending nightfall, he could barely see the cave that Nick went in several hours ago. He was staring to worry about Nick. The cave did not look that big, so it wouldn't take that long to check out.
Gil reached into a drawer and pulled out a flashlight. After checking to make sure it worked, Gil made his way towards the cave. He called Nick's name, and after getting no response he ventured into the cave.
It didn't take long for him to find Nick laying on his stomach unconscious. Gil's heart stopped beating when he saw the small puddle of blood under Nick's head. Gil was by Nick's side in a second. He carefully rolled Nick on his back, being careful not to move his head too much. After checking the wound above Nick's eye, Gil contemplated how to wake Nick up. Hitting him in the cheek would risk moving Nick's head, and without knowing what kind of damage was done, Gil didn't want to risk it.
He shook Nick's arm and called his name. His heart just about burst out of his chest when he saw Nick's eyes open.
"Nicky, are you alright? Do you need a doctor? What happened? Does your head hurt?"
Nick had to laugh at borage of questions.
"Yes I am alright. No, I do not need a doctor. I slipped on some water and hit my head on a rock. Given my previous answer, yes my head does hurt."
Gil smiled and offered his hand to help Nick to his feet. They slowly made their way back to the house, with Gil constantly asking Nick if He was ok.
Once they made it to the cabin, Gil guided Nick to the bed. Nick chuckled as he settled into the blanket and pillows.
"You know, this is where I wanted to spend most of our vacation."
Gil smiled and went into the bathroom. He returned with a wet cloth, some ointment and some bandages. He carefully cleaned the cut above Nick's eye and bandaged it up. When he was finished he gently kissed Nick's forehead.
"What happened Nick?"
"I was reaching for something and I slipped. I cracked my head on the way down."
"What were you reaching for?"
Nick mumbled something as he tried to hide his face in the pillows. Gil caught his face and brought it towards him.
"What was that my love?"
"A spider."
"Why were you reaching for a spider?"
"For you. I wanted to bring you back something special."
Gil pulled his lover close to him. All this over a bug?
"You didn't have to do that."
"I know, but I wanted to. I love you."
Neither one of them has said those words before. Gil knew that he loved Nick, but was scared to say it in fear of what Nick would think. Gil could feel tears start to build up in his eyes as he buried his head in Nick's shoulder. He felt Nick wrap his arms around him and comfort him. Gil breathed in the scent of his lover.
He often wondered why Nick was with him. There were so many other people Nick could be with, yet he was with Gil. Gil didn't want to ask Nick why, because he was afraid.
"Could you not think so loudly? It's making my head hurt. I love you because you're you and that's it."
Gil smiled and cuddled deeper into Nick's embrace.
"I love you too my love."
*The end*