Quarantined (4/?)
Title: Quarantined
Character/Pairing: Wash/Elisabeth (friendship), Wash/Taylor, Jim/Elisabeth, Mark/Maddy, Skye/Carter, Mira/Guzman
Word Count: ~2600 for this chapter
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rating: PG-13
Summary: As far as she’s concerned, he’s never allowed to set foot near one of Malcolm’s research projects ever again.
Author’s Note: Fill for morganel’s Friday one word prompt “Quarantined” for Wash and Elisabeth. Note, this is set in the context of my other stories, but definitely not necessary to read those for this to make sense - just be aware that in my context now, Wash and Taylor are married and have a little girl named Gracie, and the Sixers have come back to Terra Nova.
And I lied. There’ll be one more chapter after this!
Thanks for all the well wishes! Baby (the Honey Badger) is doing quite well - doctor is super happy with her recovery, so all is good again (well, except that I’m considering temporarily changing her nickname from Honey Badger to Snotrocket)!
Disclaimer is as usual - no profit, not mine, just borrowing.
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
After unloading the plants from the back of the rhino, Alicia turns to face Reynolds, who was waiting at the gate for them when they came roaring in. “Is Gracie at school?”
He nods. “I figured that it was better to send her. Maddy is at Malcolm’s lab, ready to assist, along with the other science staff, with anything Dr. Shannon needs over the comms.”
“How are we getting the plants into the infirmary?” As she asks, Carter and Shannon come to stand next to her.
“We have a makeshift airlock set up, but someone is going to need to get into a bio-contamination suit and take it in.”
Before Shannon or Carter can volunteer, Alicia says, “Then let’s get me suited up, Mark.”
Fifteen minutes later, she’s encased in the bio suit and heading for the infirmary. She carries the plant material they need to synthesize the cure in a large bag. At least the suit is relatively comfortable, made of a light, non-porous material. She can move well in it, and it’s not bulky, though the helmet, gloves and suit make everything feel slightly muffled.
She takes a moment to stare at her wrists and the material binding her gloves to the bio suit. She can’t help but be amused by the fact that no matter how much tech they’d had back in the 22nd century, the best sealant they still used for things like this is duct tape.
They still have a decent amount of it left, but when he recovers, she’s going to point out to Malcolm that they really need to work on a replacement. Of course, the fact that they still have some left three years after blowing up the portal makes her wonder just how much they’d gotten sent here in the first place.
She arrives at the infirmary. As she passes into the airlock area (which she notes is constructed with the use of more duct tape), she finds herself holding her breath, suddenly nearly overcome with worry as to how Nathaniel will be doing when she gets inside.
She stands in the airlock after the door closed behind her, and she none-too-patiently waits for the lock on it to cycle shut. A moment later, she hears Reynolds’ voice in her ear. “Wash, ma’am, you’re good to go in. We’ve got a good seal on the airlock.”
“Thanks, kid.” She steps up, and at the push of a button, the door to the infirmary slides open.
Just beyond the threshold, Elisabeth stands waiting, still wearing a rebreather. Alicia approaches her, smiling through the faceplate of the bio suit. Elisabeth looks exhausted but otherwise well.
Nurse Ogawa is also waiting there, and she takes the bag of the plant material from Alicia. With a nod to Elisabeth, the nurse leaves, heading for the lab with the bag. Once the nurse is gone, Alicia asks, “How are you, Elisabeth?”
“I’m OK, Alicia. Tired. It’s been a very long twenty-four hours. Now follow me.” She motions with her head towards the rooms at the back of the infirmary. Alicia follows. “We separated them, mainly because it makes it easier for them to sleep. They all kept coughing and waking each other up.”
“Elisabeth.” Elisabeth stops walking, turning back to Alicia. “How is everyone? Give me the run down first.”
Elisabeth nods. “Quickly, as I need to get to work on the medication for this. Skye is doing great. A light cough, some congestion, but little worse than a bad cold. Mira is struggling, and so is Nathaniel.”
Alicia lifts an eyebrow. She’s never heard Elisabeth call Nathaniel by his name before. Elisabeth smiles. “He told me to call him that. He’s told me several times before, too, but suddenly, in this situation, standing on ceremony felt a bit silly. Anyway, they’re struggling, but they’re holding their own. Both are on oxygen and I.V. fluids for now.”
Realizing that Elisabeth hasn’t mentioned one person, Alicia says, “And Malcolm?”
Elisabeth sighs. “I just had to intubate him, Alicia. His sats were just too low. I’ve sedated him. Whatever we come up with, he gets it first. He’s running out of time.”
“How long?”
“Twelve hours at the most, probably less.” She meets Alicia’s eyes, fear in her own, and Alicia remembers that Elisabeth has known Malcolm for a long time.
“Then we have time, Elisabeth. And I know how all this stuff works, the machines and such. I’ll stay and help Nurse Ogawa, and you and Skye can work.” Alicia puts a gloved hand on Elisabeth’s shoulder and squeezes.
Elisabeth attempts a smile, and she pats Alicia’s hand with her own. “Now no more stalling, Alicia. He’s going to be fine, and it’s time for you to see him.”
Alicia blinks. She starts to argue but finds that she can’t. She’s terrified about what she’ll find when she enters his room. Instead of speaking, she just swallows hard and gives Elisabeth a nod. When they get to the door to one of the rooms towards the back of the infirmary, Elisabeth says, “Nurse Ogawa will come find you if she needs help with Malcolm or Mira. You stay with him.”
Elisabeth reaches out and squeezes her hand and leaves. Alicia stares at the door in front of her for a moment, and then she takes a deep breath and pushes it open. After closing it behind her, she turns to the only occupied bed in the room. He appears to be asleep, now dressed in infirmary scrubs, an oxygen mask covering his mouth and nose. His face is pale, and even across the room, Alicia can hear that his breathing is somewhat labored.
Her bio suit rustles a little as she crosses the room to his bed, and he turns his head towards her and opens his eyes. She can tell that it takes a moment for him to realize that it’s her in the suit, so she has time to get to him and perch on the edge of his bed before he can react.
She can see the moment when he knows it’s her, because the curiosity in his face gives way to an odd combination of concern and contrition. That look alone melts away the lingering irritation she feels about his choosing not to be honest with her about his condition.
Blinking back tears, the stoic look she’d been trying to maintain is gone in an instant. She gives him a weak smile. “So, soldier, come here often?”
He starts to laugh at that, but the laugh quickly morphs into deep coughs. He sits forward as he coughs, and she puts a gloved hand on his back, rubbing gently. When the coughing fit subsides, he glares at her a little, and she raises an eyebrow at him. “For the time being, that will serve as your punishment for hiding this from me. Later, when you’re back on your feet, I’ll kick your ass properly.”
He lifts his oxygen mask. “Understood. And I’m sorry. I just didn’t want you to worry, Alicia. It’s not like there’s anything you could have done, and it didn’t even present until late last night.”
She takes the mask from him and places it back over his mouth and nose. Then, she cups his cheek with her hand, frustrated that she can’t touch him without the gloves. From the look in his eyes, she can tell that it’s important to him that she forgive him for this, which, without question, she does. She brushes her thumb across his cheek. “It’s OK, Nathaniel. I’m not going to promise not to rough you up next time we’re in a sparring ring, but beyond that, it’s OK.”
He just nods, probably knowing that she won’t let him take the mask off again. Through it, he says, “You shouldn’t be here. Too dangerous.”
She shakes her head, continuing to stroke his cheek with her thumb. “That’s why I’m in the suit, Nathaniel. I’m perfectly safe, and I’m not going anywhere.”
“I could order you.” He smirks at her through the mask.
She rolls her eyes. “You and what army? And it’s not military. No orders allowed.”
He smiles briefly, but then his eyes turn serious. His hand comes up and grasps hers. “Alicia, please go. I don’t want you to end up sick too.”
She shakes her head again, pulling their joined hands to her chest. “I’m not leaving here, Nathaniel. I’m not leaving you.” She sees his eyelids start to flutter, and she can tell that’s he’s exhausted. “Now stop talking. You need to rest. I’m going to go check on Malcolm and Mira, and I’ll be back.”
He nods and mumbles something she doesn’t understand, and then he drops into a fitful sleep. Despite her intention to go make sure Nurse Ogawa doesn’t need any help, she can’t pull away yet. Instead, she sits there holding his hand and methodically running her free hand through his hair. After she does so for a while, he settles down and his sleep becomes deeper, less troubled. She relaxes slightly and watches him sleep, losing track of time.
Eventually, she blinks, realizing that she should go check on Elisabeth and the others. She disentangles her hand from his and, after gently caressing his face, she stands up and slips quietly out of the room. When she gets into the hallway, she has to stop a moment to lean against the wall and gulp in some of the stale air being filtered into her bio suit. She has always worried too much when he is hurt or sick, and this is no exception.
Looking up at the clock, she is amazed to see that she sat there holding his hand and watching him sleep for over an hour. She sighs and straightens up, heading for Elisabeth’s lab. Before she can get there, she hears the scream of an alarm, and she immediately turns and runs for the source of the sound.
Her path takes her to Malcolm’s bedside, and she’s met by an anxious Nurse Ogawa. “His sats dropped again, and his BP is plummeting, Lieutenant.”
Taking in the pallor of Malcolm’s face and his fading vitals, Alicia looks at the nurse. “Go get Dr. Shannon, now!”
The nurse takes off for the lab, and Alicia stands there, watching as her friend drifts away. Suddenly, the lab goes dark. She immediately hits her comm, praying it will work. “Reynolds, what the hell?”
Reynolds’ voice comes back immediately. “Wash, it’s colony-wide. We’ve got the separate generator on communications, have since the meteor a few years ago. We’ve already found the problem, one of the lines down. You’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“That’s too long, Mark!”
She realizes that Malcolm isn’t breathing. “Elisabeth! Nurse Ogawa! Skye! I need help!”
Elisabeth skids into the room, heading immediately to Malcolm’s side. She pulls the feed off of his ventilator and grabs an old-fashioned bag to help him breathe, squeezing it every few seconds. In between squeezes, she checks for a pulse.
“Alicia, his heart has stopped!”
Elisabeth is as close to panic as Alicia has ever seen her, but Alicia’s field training kicks in. She eyes the biobed and realizes that it’s too high for any of them to give him CPR. She nods, knowing what she needs to do. “Keep bagging him, Elisabeth.” Before Elisabeth can argue, Alicia jumps up on to the biobed, straddles Malcolm and starts manual CPR.
Unfortunately, as she climbs up, she feels her bio suit catch on something on the bed, and the ripping sound she hears makes her own heart skip a beat. She ignores the tear for now, focusing on Malcolm. She can’t even remember how many times she’s done this on a moving stretcher, keeping a soldier alive until he or she could be medevac’d out.
As she and Elisabeth count off breathing and heart pumps, they both wait anxiously for the power to return. A minute later, the lights blink back on, and Alicia scrambles off of the bed. The biobed’s monitor starts whining a flat line. Elisabeth hooks Malcolm’s vent back up to the oxygen feed, and, calling, “Clear!” she presses a button on the side of the table, shocking Malcolm.
A moment later, his heart is beating again, a slow but steady beat from the monitor. “Oh, thank God.” Elisabeth slumps back against the table.
Alicia smiles, but then she looks down at her suit. She’s dismayed to see a large, three-corner tear in it on her arm, and a cut bleeding underneath. After reaching out to grab a piece of gauze off the cart next to the bed, Alicia holds it to the cut and says, “I really hope you’re almost done with the medicine.”
“Maybe 30 minutes, tops.” Elisabeth looks up, and seeing the cut, she frowns. “Damn it, Alicia.”
“Sorry, Elisabeth. It caught on the bed. I guess I can take the suit off now.”
Elisabeth goes over and gets another rebreather off of a shelf, and she drags Alicia to her office. Once there, she helps Alicia pull the suit off until Alicia stops her. “Elisabeth, go. Finish the medicine. This cut isn’t deep, it’s just long. Go.”
She looks stubborn for a moment, staring at Alicia. Then, she nods and turns, exiting the office. Alicia finishes pulling the suit off, and she cleans and bandages her arm. She taps her comm. “Mark?”
“Yes ma’am?”
She thinks that he must be sitting right on top of the comm. “Small problem here. We had to give Malcolm regular CPR, and when I climbed up on his biobed, I tore my suit. I’m stuck here now too, until we have a medicine and it’s effective.”
After a moment of silence, Reynolds says, “Understood ma’am. Let me know if there’s anything you need.”
“Will do, kid. Washington out.”
Alicia ends the call and, pulling on the rebreather, she exits Elisabeth’s office. She heads back to Nathaniel’s room. When she gets there, he’s still sleeping. She perches on the edge of his bed again, this time able to actually touch his face and thread her fingers into his hair.
The contact startles him awake, and he blinks at her for a moment. He smiles briefly, but then he clearly notices that she’s not in her suit anymore. He furrows his brow and reaches for his mask.
She stops him. “We lost power, and Malcolm was coding. I tore the suit climbing up on his bed to administer CPR. I’m stuck here now too. I’m sorry, Nathaniel. I…” She thinks about Gracie, and one of the treacherous tears that she’s been holding back finally escapes. It weaves its way down her cheek, and he reaches up to brush it away.
When she speaks again, her voice is barely a whisper. “Elisabeth said they’re only about 30 minutes away from finishing the medicine.”
Without a word, he just nods and scoots over to one side of the bed. She gives him a puzzled look, but then he motions to the small empty space he just created. That prompts a weak smile from her. She takes the hint and crawls up next to him on the bed, carefully minding his oxygen and I.V. lines. She curls up on her side, resting her head on his shoulder and putting one hand on his chest.
As she feels his hand pull her hair free of its ponytail and his fingers thread through the strands, she sighs. “We’ll be OK. We’ll both be OK.”
Character/Pairing: Wash/Elisabeth (friendship), Wash/Taylor, Jim/Elisabeth, Mark/Maddy, Skye/Carter, Mira/Guzman
Word Count: ~2600 for this chapter
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rating: PG-13
Summary: As far as she’s concerned, he’s never allowed to set foot near one of Malcolm’s research projects ever again.
Author’s Note: Fill for morganel’s Friday one word prompt “Quarantined” for Wash and Elisabeth. Note, this is set in the context of my other stories, but definitely not necessary to read those for this to make sense - just be aware that in my context now, Wash and Taylor are married and have a little girl named Gracie, and the Sixers have come back to Terra Nova.
And I lied. There’ll be one more chapter after this!
Thanks for all the well wishes! Baby (the Honey Badger) is doing quite well - doctor is super happy with her recovery, so all is good again (well, except that I’m considering temporarily changing her nickname from Honey Badger to Snotrocket)!
Disclaimer is as usual - no profit, not mine, just borrowing.
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
After unloading the plants from the back of the rhino, Alicia turns to face Reynolds, who was waiting at the gate for them when they came roaring in. “Is Gracie at school?”
He nods. “I figured that it was better to send her. Maddy is at Malcolm’s lab, ready to assist, along with the other science staff, with anything Dr. Shannon needs over the comms.”
“How are we getting the plants into the infirmary?” As she asks, Carter and Shannon come to stand next to her.
“We have a makeshift airlock set up, but someone is going to need to get into a bio-contamination suit and take it in.”
Before Shannon or Carter can volunteer, Alicia says, “Then let’s get me suited up, Mark.”
Fifteen minutes later, she’s encased in the bio suit and heading for the infirmary. She carries the plant material they need to synthesize the cure in a large bag. At least the suit is relatively comfortable, made of a light, non-porous material. She can move well in it, and it’s not bulky, though the helmet, gloves and suit make everything feel slightly muffled.
She takes a moment to stare at her wrists and the material binding her gloves to the bio suit. She can’t help but be amused by the fact that no matter how much tech they’d had back in the 22nd century, the best sealant they still used for things like this is duct tape.
They still have a decent amount of it left, but when he recovers, she’s going to point out to Malcolm that they really need to work on a replacement. Of course, the fact that they still have some left three years after blowing up the portal makes her wonder just how much they’d gotten sent here in the first place.
She arrives at the infirmary. As she passes into the airlock area (which she notes is constructed with the use of more duct tape), she finds herself holding her breath, suddenly nearly overcome with worry as to how Nathaniel will be doing when she gets inside.
She stands in the airlock after the door closed behind her, and she none-too-patiently waits for the lock on it to cycle shut. A moment later, she hears Reynolds’ voice in her ear. “Wash, ma’am, you’re good to go in. We’ve got a good seal on the airlock.”
“Thanks, kid.” She steps up, and at the push of a button, the door to the infirmary slides open.
Just beyond the threshold, Elisabeth stands waiting, still wearing a rebreather. Alicia approaches her, smiling through the faceplate of the bio suit. Elisabeth looks exhausted but otherwise well.
Nurse Ogawa is also waiting there, and she takes the bag of the plant material from Alicia. With a nod to Elisabeth, the nurse leaves, heading for the lab with the bag. Once the nurse is gone, Alicia asks, “How are you, Elisabeth?”
“I’m OK, Alicia. Tired. It’s been a very long twenty-four hours. Now follow me.” She motions with her head towards the rooms at the back of the infirmary. Alicia follows. “We separated them, mainly because it makes it easier for them to sleep. They all kept coughing and waking each other up.”
“Elisabeth.” Elisabeth stops walking, turning back to Alicia. “How is everyone? Give me the run down first.”
Elisabeth nods. “Quickly, as I need to get to work on the medication for this. Skye is doing great. A light cough, some congestion, but little worse than a bad cold. Mira is struggling, and so is Nathaniel.”
Alicia lifts an eyebrow. She’s never heard Elisabeth call Nathaniel by his name before. Elisabeth smiles. “He told me to call him that. He’s told me several times before, too, but suddenly, in this situation, standing on ceremony felt a bit silly. Anyway, they’re struggling, but they’re holding their own. Both are on oxygen and I.V. fluids for now.”
Realizing that Elisabeth hasn’t mentioned one person, Alicia says, “And Malcolm?”
Elisabeth sighs. “I just had to intubate him, Alicia. His sats were just too low. I’ve sedated him. Whatever we come up with, he gets it first. He’s running out of time.”
“How long?”
“Twelve hours at the most, probably less.” She meets Alicia’s eyes, fear in her own, and Alicia remembers that Elisabeth has known Malcolm for a long time.
“Then we have time, Elisabeth. And I know how all this stuff works, the machines and such. I’ll stay and help Nurse Ogawa, and you and Skye can work.” Alicia puts a gloved hand on Elisabeth’s shoulder and squeezes.
Elisabeth attempts a smile, and she pats Alicia’s hand with her own. “Now no more stalling, Alicia. He’s going to be fine, and it’s time for you to see him.”
Alicia blinks. She starts to argue but finds that she can’t. She’s terrified about what she’ll find when she enters his room. Instead of speaking, she just swallows hard and gives Elisabeth a nod. When they get to the door to one of the rooms towards the back of the infirmary, Elisabeth says, “Nurse Ogawa will come find you if she needs help with Malcolm or Mira. You stay with him.”
Elisabeth reaches out and squeezes her hand and leaves. Alicia stares at the door in front of her for a moment, and then she takes a deep breath and pushes it open. After closing it behind her, she turns to the only occupied bed in the room. He appears to be asleep, now dressed in infirmary scrubs, an oxygen mask covering his mouth and nose. His face is pale, and even across the room, Alicia can hear that his breathing is somewhat labored.
Her bio suit rustles a little as she crosses the room to his bed, and he turns his head towards her and opens his eyes. She can tell that it takes a moment for him to realize that it’s her in the suit, so she has time to get to him and perch on the edge of his bed before he can react.
She can see the moment when he knows it’s her, because the curiosity in his face gives way to an odd combination of concern and contrition. That look alone melts away the lingering irritation she feels about his choosing not to be honest with her about his condition.
Blinking back tears, the stoic look she’d been trying to maintain is gone in an instant. She gives him a weak smile. “So, soldier, come here often?”
He starts to laugh at that, but the laugh quickly morphs into deep coughs. He sits forward as he coughs, and she puts a gloved hand on his back, rubbing gently. When the coughing fit subsides, he glares at her a little, and she raises an eyebrow at him. “For the time being, that will serve as your punishment for hiding this from me. Later, when you’re back on your feet, I’ll kick your ass properly.”
He lifts his oxygen mask. “Understood. And I’m sorry. I just didn’t want you to worry, Alicia. It’s not like there’s anything you could have done, and it didn’t even present until late last night.”
She takes the mask from him and places it back over his mouth and nose. Then, she cups his cheek with her hand, frustrated that she can’t touch him without the gloves. From the look in his eyes, she can tell that it’s important to him that she forgive him for this, which, without question, she does. She brushes her thumb across his cheek. “It’s OK, Nathaniel. I’m not going to promise not to rough you up next time we’re in a sparring ring, but beyond that, it’s OK.”
He just nods, probably knowing that she won’t let him take the mask off again. Through it, he says, “You shouldn’t be here. Too dangerous.”
She shakes her head, continuing to stroke his cheek with her thumb. “That’s why I’m in the suit, Nathaniel. I’m perfectly safe, and I’m not going anywhere.”
“I could order you.” He smirks at her through the mask.
She rolls her eyes. “You and what army? And it’s not military. No orders allowed.”
He smiles briefly, but then his eyes turn serious. His hand comes up and grasps hers. “Alicia, please go. I don’t want you to end up sick too.”
She shakes her head again, pulling their joined hands to her chest. “I’m not leaving here, Nathaniel. I’m not leaving you.” She sees his eyelids start to flutter, and she can tell that’s he’s exhausted. “Now stop talking. You need to rest. I’m going to go check on Malcolm and Mira, and I’ll be back.”
He nods and mumbles something she doesn’t understand, and then he drops into a fitful sleep. Despite her intention to go make sure Nurse Ogawa doesn’t need any help, she can’t pull away yet. Instead, she sits there holding his hand and methodically running her free hand through his hair. After she does so for a while, he settles down and his sleep becomes deeper, less troubled. She relaxes slightly and watches him sleep, losing track of time.
Eventually, she blinks, realizing that she should go check on Elisabeth and the others. She disentangles her hand from his and, after gently caressing his face, she stands up and slips quietly out of the room. When she gets into the hallway, she has to stop a moment to lean against the wall and gulp in some of the stale air being filtered into her bio suit. She has always worried too much when he is hurt or sick, and this is no exception.
Looking up at the clock, she is amazed to see that she sat there holding his hand and watching him sleep for over an hour. She sighs and straightens up, heading for Elisabeth’s lab. Before she can get there, she hears the scream of an alarm, and she immediately turns and runs for the source of the sound.
Her path takes her to Malcolm’s bedside, and she’s met by an anxious Nurse Ogawa. “His sats dropped again, and his BP is plummeting, Lieutenant.”
Taking in the pallor of Malcolm’s face and his fading vitals, Alicia looks at the nurse. “Go get Dr. Shannon, now!”
The nurse takes off for the lab, and Alicia stands there, watching as her friend drifts away. Suddenly, the lab goes dark. She immediately hits her comm, praying it will work. “Reynolds, what the hell?”
Reynolds’ voice comes back immediately. “Wash, it’s colony-wide. We’ve got the separate generator on communications, have since the meteor a few years ago. We’ve already found the problem, one of the lines down. You’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“That’s too long, Mark!”
She realizes that Malcolm isn’t breathing. “Elisabeth! Nurse Ogawa! Skye! I need help!”
Elisabeth skids into the room, heading immediately to Malcolm’s side. She pulls the feed off of his ventilator and grabs an old-fashioned bag to help him breathe, squeezing it every few seconds. In between squeezes, she checks for a pulse.
“Alicia, his heart has stopped!”
Elisabeth is as close to panic as Alicia has ever seen her, but Alicia’s field training kicks in. She eyes the biobed and realizes that it’s too high for any of them to give him CPR. She nods, knowing what she needs to do. “Keep bagging him, Elisabeth.” Before Elisabeth can argue, Alicia jumps up on to the biobed, straddles Malcolm and starts manual CPR.
Unfortunately, as she climbs up, she feels her bio suit catch on something on the bed, and the ripping sound she hears makes her own heart skip a beat. She ignores the tear for now, focusing on Malcolm. She can’t even remember how many times she’s done this on a moving stretcher, keeping a soldier alive until he or she could be medevac’d out.
As she and Elisabeth count off breathing and heart pumps, they both wait anxiously for the power to return. A minute later, the lights blink back on, and Alicia scrambles off of the bed. The biobed’s monitor starts whining a flat line. Elisabeth hooks Malcolm’s vent back up to the oxygen feed, and, calling, “Clear!” she presses a button on the side of the table, shocking Malcolm.
A moment later, his heart is beating again, a slow but steady beat from the monitor. “Oh, thank God.” Elisabeth slumps back against the table.
Alicia smiles, but then she looks down at her suit. She’s dismayed to see a large, three-corner tear in it on her arm, and a cut bleeding underneath. After reaching out to grab a piece of gauze off the cart next to the bed, Alicia holds it to the cut and says, “I really hope you’re almost done with the medicine.”
“Maybe 30 minutes, tops.” Elisabeth looks up, and seeing the cut, she frowns. “Damn it, Alicia.”
“Sorry, Elisabeth. It caught on the bed. I guess I can take the suit off now.”
Elisabeth goes over and gets another rebreather off of a shelf, and she drags Alicia to her office. Once there, she helps Alicia pull the suit off until Alicia stops her. “Elisabeth, go. Finish the medicine. This cut isn’t deep, it’s just long. Go.”
She looks stubborn for a moment, staring at Alicia. Then, she nods and turns, exiting the office. Alicia finishes pulling the suit off, and she cleans and bandages her arm. She taps her comm. “Mark?”
“Yes ma’am?”
She thinks that he must be sitting right on top of the comm. “Small problem here. We had to give Malcolm regular CPR, and when I climbed up on his biobed, I tore my suit. I’m stuck here now too, until we have a medicine and it’s effective.”
After a moment of silence, Reynolds says, “Understood ma’am. Let me know if there’s anything you need.”
“Will do, kid. Washington out.”
Alicia ends the call and, pulling on the rebreather, she exits Elisabeth’s office. She heads back to Nathaniel’s room. When she gets there, he’s still sleeping. She perches on the edge of his bed again, this time able to actually touch his face and thread her fingers into his hair.
The contact startles him awake, and he blinks at her for a moment. He smiles briefly, but then he clearly notices that she’s not in her suit anymore. He furrows his brow and reaches for his mask.
She stops him. “We lost power, and Malcolm was coding. I tore the suit climbing up on his bed to administer CPR. I’m stuck here now too. I’m sorry, Nathaniel. I…” She thinks about Gracie, and one of the treacherous tears that she’s been holding back finally escapes. It weaves its way down her cheek, and he reaches up to brush it away.
When she speaks again, her voice is barely a whisper. “Elisabeth said they’re only about 30 minutes away from finishing the medicine.”
Without a word, he just nods and scoots over to one side of the bed. She gives him a puzzled look, but then he motions to the small empty space he just created. That prompts a weak smile from her. She takes the hint and crawls up next to him on the bed, carefully minding his oxygen and I.V. lines. She curls up on her side, resting her head on his shoulder and putting one hand on his chest.
As she feels his hand pull her hair free of its ponytail and his fingers thread through the strands, she sighs. “We’ll be OK. We’ll both be OK.”