//After this event but some days ago
The ambulance had just arrived to the hospital with a Red-Code patient with strange symptoms never seen on other people. That girl, recovered from the space aroused more question from the 5th| pilots who have found her far away from any waypoint of New York system; who is she, how have she done to lose in the Liberty systems, what was her past and mostly, what disease had, that managed to make her survive at highest fevers like 45°C but at the same time to make her suffer so much. They can't have answers anymore. That girl has fainted if not dead. Her skin was wet for the intense sweat that she had.
Suddently, once that the strecher was unloaded from the ambulance to move it fastly at the structure, a masked man, just exited from a bar nearby the hospital, had seen all the scene and with a screaming he ran towards the people involved. He looked very desperate, was he a her's parent? One her friend?
As the stretcher was unloaded Mike ran along side it, looking over the woman that still showed high fever signs while she was unconscious. What could have been the cause for all of this, he thought to himself.
When the unknown man ran into the scene Mike would wrap his hands around him from the back, as he couldn't let him too close. "Sir! Sir calm down! Who are you? Do you know her?" He asked with a strong voice, while trying to keep some distance from the stretchers with the man, who he let follow everyone into the building.
The masked man was desperate, only seeing that girl was enough to make him so, like if he knew her very well. And indeed:
<<SHE'S MY GIRLFRIEND! WHAT'S HAPPENED TO HER? WHY IS SHE HERE?>>
The group was entering in the hospital emergency sectors and he wanted to stay with her, trying a little to overstep the soldier.
"Easy now! She's got a high fever and we're doing everything we can to help her. I can explain you everything when she stabilizes and is out of danger." He replied to the man, letting him walk a bit easier but still held one hand on his shoulder, as they walked side by side, a few steps behind the group.
The man calms himself, remaining still worried about his girl and continuing to walk sometimes seeing her.
<<I know this! She hadn't to go outside in the space! Where did you find her?>>
"We found her in New York, sector Beta 5. She was in a almost destroyed ship and close to fainting. I managed to connect to the ship's computer and she said she wanted to come here, so that is where I guided her. Her temperature reached 45 at one point but she somehow managed to pull through it, and it's now descending." He explained it all to the man, looking towards the unconscious woman with a worried expression. "Don't worry. She's strong and will pull through this." He said a little quietly, turning to look at the man.
<<She... she wanted to go in California? W-why?>>
The man wanted to wipe away the tears but he couldn't (or didn't want) remove his mask. The sad man continued
<<I knew that diesase; if you intervene promptly you can avoid the death... but it makes so much pain the same, she's suffering! She's suffering so much! Oh god, why! Why the hell was there?>>
He started to sigh
The stretchers and the group would enter a room, closing the doors behind them as they needed to work further on helping the woman. The doors had a small window through which it would be possible to see inside, although all that was visible were the people around the woman, working.
"Please, come here. Sit down." Mike guided the man to a seat close to the door. "I can get you water, if you wish?" He asked in a calm voice. The mask on the man's face was something he wondered about, but the moment to ask was most likely not the right, he thought to himself.
<<Y-Yes... *sigh*>>
The masked man was crying; he had to dry himself for the tears and sweat. He moved to a corner of the waiting room to remove partially his mask without make himself to see from anybody. When he finished, he sits, continuing to be sad.
<<How much time will last in that room? I want to see her... maybe... maybe she could be better close to me...>>
The waiting seemed endless...
Mike sighs quietly and while the man went off to the corner he stopped a nurse which was passing by, telling her to get a glass of water, to what she nodded and went off.
"I don't know. As long as it takes for her to get better.. I'm not sure if you'll be able to see her even when they do finish, she needs some rest and it's best to not disturb her." Mike replied as he sat down next to him, leaning slightly forward while his hands fiddled with each other. Few moments later the nurse would come by and hand the man his water, leaving after that to do her duties.
![[Image: IT4OzS8.jpg?1]](https://i.imgur.com/IT4OzS8.jpg?1)