Jake Barry
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Chapter 58
🕑 Added 2023-11-29 15:54:58 +0000 UTCThe first time I ever helped the Lillis with construction, I was extremely nervous. My heart was racing, my hand was trembling, and my stomach was tied in knots. Looking back on it now, I feel I have come a long way. I am perfectly calm--happy, even. Of course, calm does not mean relaxed. You can never be relaxed when people's lives are involved. One wrong move will be devastating for them. Now more than ever, with all the delicate, little buildings surrounding their build sites. I do not need any accidents to teach me that.
Over time, I became better at handling objects from the 'small' world. I would gently pinch them between my thumb and index finger, with the smallest amount of force possible. Fragile as they seemed, they were surprisingly sturdy... Or so I thought. A building can remain in one piece, even if its structure is compromised. I am careful because of what I cannot see; the little, various damages I may cause because I am so much bigger. After all, what was the point of my help if I only made things worse?
So, I performed every action painfully slowly, prepared to stop at a moment's notice. I made myself aware of the path my hand would take beforehand, and verbally told those around me to clear the way. That extra care I put in inadvertently helped them grow used to me. I was not seen as a force of destruction, just a girl who wanted so desperately to be helpful. They stood clear, directed me, and communicated the entire time. I cannot imagine all of that coming to them naturally. It must have required significant preparation before I was even in the picture.
All of that might sound tedious, but it was a small price to pay to ensure everyone's safety. Slow as I was, I still saved them a lot of time. While they could have surely completed those projects on their own, having a big, powerful Brob to help was irresistable to them. They would ask for me, even with the little things, no pun intended. I think the construction crew just liked me, or something. But seriously, I have been involved in a lot. That said, I would never claim ownership of the citizens or what they have built. What's theirs is theirs, but it never stops me from welling up with pride every time I glance at [our city, Magna Gratia].
"Steady, your Majesty. Just. Like. That..." Engineer Cliff directs me. Today, he has assumed the role of 'Brob director'. It is his fourth time doing so, if memory serves. "Bring the girdurs to the 'X'." He tells me, communicating over earpieces.
"You know I prefer 'Jeannine'." I make an irritated face at him, pouting. My eyes only glance him for half a second before returning to the construction site on the shelf above the city. It is an expansion to accomodate our ever-growing population. Large, lavish apartment buildings that will hopefully have a great view of the greater city below. In my hand is a mass of metal 'sticks' about as thick as hairs. All of them put together hardly weigh more than my earbuds. I hold my hand still, hovering above the mark. "Alrighty, how's this?"
"My sincerest apologies, Jeannine." He chuckles, knowing full well how his words tease me. I am not annoyed, just a little embarrassed. I do not think that title will ever feel right to me. He then checks with a coworker before responding. "This should do. Bring it down slowly."
"Okay. Everyone, please give me some space." I announce, counting to ten in my head.
I want to give them plenty of time to clear out, just in case. Only then do I lower my hand with the metal beams. My gaze fixes on a nearby crane, careful not to bump it as I move. Focusing even harder, I can make out someone inside, waiting for me to place the objects down, probably to move them afterward. He or she has paused their activity, as they all did, until my hand is out of their space. As I am about to set them down, I suddenly hear a terrible screech from my earpiece.
"Agh!" I cry, wincing in pain.
My shoulders hunch on reflex, and my hand flinches as the sound refuses to stop. Using my free hand, I reach for the device and take it out before it can deafen me. I am fine, but that is far from the only problem. My hand bumped into the nearby crane's tower, badly enough for it to cave in. I realize too late that it is collapsing. With no time to think, I drop what I am holding and turn my palm upright to catch the structure. As soon as I feel contact, I curl my fingers around it. My grip ends up being tighter than intended.
"Mmnn!" I grunt, louder this time.
I feel several, little, sharp spikes pierce me. I resist the urge to let go, instead bearing the pain until I have lowered the broken upper-half of the crane down to the ground. The crew below helps the operator out, at which point I uncurl my fingers. The tower rolls out of my palm onto an empty area on the build site, but not without leaving behind the shards. Tiny dots of blood begin to ooze from the places I have been cut. It hurts! I am unsure if I can pull such tiny fragments out. Turning my attention back to the Lillis, I rapidly scan the area for any damage. Thankfully, I was able to avoid any. But is everyone okay?
"What in the world was that sound? More importantly, is anyone hurt?" I ask, my tone serious and slightly worried. I wait for a response, only to remember that I took my earpiece out. I put it back in my ear and repeat my question.
"No clue! It must be some sort of interference or something!" Cliff explains in a panic. "We are all safe, thanks to you. But, you! Are you okay?!" He asks, followed by other voices in the background expressing their concern. I see that a small crowd has formed around him. "We saw blood. Please, tell us you're alright!"
"I... I will be alright." I tell them, doing my best to hide the pain. I ball my hand into a fist and move it out of sight. "I think it might be best we halt construction for today."
"Jeannine. Please show us your hand." He instructs me. He is dead serious. "Workplace injuries that happen on my shift are my responsibility."
I hesitate, glancing in its direction once more. Slowly, I move my fingers away to check. It does not look good, I can say that for sure. Reluctantly, I bring it over and turn it to face them. "It is not as bad as it looks. Really, it isn't." I receive no response. I wait for a few seconds, but no one says a word. "H-Hello?"
"Sorry about that. I am back." Cliff says. His voice sounds somewhat relieved. "I called the hospital. Several of the medical staff are already on their way."
"What? You're kidding! W-Why-" I try, but he interrupts me.
"Not like it was a secret. I'm sure everyone in the city knows." He explains, just as my phone dings. I look at my desk, seeing a very concerned text from Nick, followed by another from Ori, and then some more. "They would have volunteered either way."
"Your concern is so very touching, but seriously! I mean this in the nicest way, but what can they do that running this under cold water and spraying disinfectant won't?"
"Let the professionals take a look at it." He says, unconvinced. His tone then softens, clearly trying to appeal to my sentimental side. "You help us so much. Now, let us help you."
Damn it. I cannot argue with that. I hate to trouble others, really I do, but honestly, I would be lying if I said I can fix this myself. I doubt I could go to a doctor without raising some very troublesome questions about how this happened either...
How many times am I going to say this same line? It never ceases to amaze me what Lillis can do.
It only takes fifteen minutes for half our entire medical staff to mobilize and travel all the way from the city to my desk. It is only about half a meter, but still! A difficult distance for them that had to be travelled using aircraft. They had me sit at my desk with my palm upturned and very still. Soon after, there were countless little dots moving about on it, each attending to one of my tiny cuts or splinters. They brought everything that could possibly be used to treat me with them. Honestly, I was worried they would deplete their entire stock of antiseptics! I made a mental note to go buy them a bottle later. Slowly but surely, they removed every last piece of metal and reduced the hot, stinging sensations to a minimum. They even wiped away all traces of blood! I was in utter disbelief. It made me seriously wonder if Lilli doctors had a place in Brob hospitals.
As quickly as they came and did their job, they were off and headed back to the hospital. All but one Dr. Simon who stayed behind to talk with me.
"How do you feel?" He asks me.
I make a fist then stretch my fingers a few times to see. "Much, much better. It still hurts, but not nearly as much as before. This is easily manageable."
"I am glad. Please don't hesitate to ask for us. I mean ever."
"Yes, I know." I look away, feeling embarrassed. Yes, I was frantic after getting hurt, but what I said is making me feel quite guilty. I was absolutely proven wrong in the best of ways. "I would like to apologize for what I said earlier. Our doctors are top notch and it was highly disrespectful of me to forget that. I cannot believe how sizist that was..."
"You were forgiven before you even brought it up." He tells me, cheerfully. "Patients tend to say and do things they would not otherwise do, especially when in distress. You would not be the first, nor the last. Believe you me, I have seen far worse in my time!"
"Thank you all! I really appreciate this." I smile, glancing at my hand again. I take my uninjured one and extend a finger toward him, placing the nail a short distance away. "Would you like me to take you back?"
He chuckles. "A ride from our city's Queen? How could I say no?"
He climbs on and I take him back, setting him on the roof of the hospital, beside one of the helicopters. I wave him goodbye and then all goes quiet in the room. I had expected to spend the better half of this afternoon helping with construction. Now that I am not, I am not sure what to do.
"Oh, right. They texted me..." I mutter, unlocking my phone to respond. I am met with a couple of texts from Nick asking if I am alright, and a short essay from Ori voicing her worry. Icarus, Daedalus, Rin, and some others also checked on me. Their concern is so touching. This was not a major injury, not remotely life threatening. They simply hate to see me in pain. Maybe it is because they know I worry more about others than myself? "I do tend to downplay my own hardships..."
Thinking about them some more, and with nothing better to do, my mind becomes filled with thoughts of gratitude. I feel compelled to thank them, somehow. I am well aware that they do not expect anything for their services, but still! I have this feeling in my chest that refuses to go away.
How can I show them how much I appreciate them?
I sit in my chair, lost in thought for the next half hour. When it seems like I am completely lost for ideas, an amazing one comes to mind. It is so simple that I cannot believe I had not thought of it sooner. Picking my phone up again, I turn it over in my hand, visually measuring its dimensions. An excited smirk appears on my face.
"Yes. This will do just fine."
Day turns to night and before I know it, it is eight in the evening. I imagine most people are home by now, but if not, that is alright as well. I hold out the cheap phone mount I went out to buy earlier. It is nothing special, but it will do the job. I stick my phone in it and pull the stand out until it clicks. Holding the new 'structure' out before me, I nod in satisfaction. This is perfect. And just the right size for what I am about to do.
I walk over to my shelves, leaning over a little so I do not tower over the city. I clear my throat to get everyone's attention. Again, I am not fond of doing this. I do not believe that being bigger bestows upon me the right to suddenly interrupt thousands of people's lives. That said, I believe this is for a good reason.
"Hello, everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful day. I just wanted to express my gratitude for all the concern and love I received after my earlier mishap." I raise my phone and its mount up for everyone to see. On the screen I have a movie at minute zero, waiting to be played. "I know that most of you, if not all, have never seen a movie before. I figured it was about time to do that, and I picked a very special one. It's a classic in my culture." I tell them, moving it to the park, which is most always clear of people at this hour. As it touches down on the large, grassy area, I am relieved to see that it is not too big. "In the future, I can get you all movies, but seeing as this is your first ever, what better way to watch than on the biggest screen I can physically provide? If you would like to watch, bring a friend and head down to the park. I will start it in fifteen minutes."
By the ten minute mark, the park is already packed with people. It looks as busy as when Rin makes a public address at city hall. I had not expected such a turnout, and I am anything but disappointed. I wait another five minutes as the last of the movie-goers arrive before pressing the play button. I have already dimmed the lights in my bedroom, disabled vibration and the ringer, as well as lowered the volume to the lowest for their sakes. Naturally, it is so quiet that I cannot hear from a meter away. Getting any closer would just be a disturbance, and I would hate to ruin the experience, so I keep my distance and read the subtitles.
The movie is a cute one about a boy and his dog. They fall through a magical gateway and try to find their way home as they explore the silly, cartoon-inspired other world. The takeaway is that home is where your heart is. I used to watch it with my mom when I was little. It has no racial issues, war, bloodshed, or even bad language. It is something that everyone can enjoy, regardless of race. Despite all of the actors on screen being Brobs, they could easily be mistaken for Lillis. I suppose that is just the effect of screens. You would never know unless you were told. It is wonderful, in a weird way.
About halfway in, my legs begin to hurt. Seeing as my chair is too low to let me see, I decide I have had enough and go to lay on my bed. I have seen the movie plenty of times, after all. I hope they will all like it as much as I do.
"Ahh... What a day." I mumble, closing my eyes. I feel sleep begin to overtake me and I yawn quietly. "Never in my wildest dreams..."
Comments
Haroon
nice work
G
Nice work Jake and it’s nice seeing Jeannine letting her people help her and she gave them a movie experience for the first time wow overall 10/10 chapter
