"Oi! Watch it!" Sarah snapped at Felix, yanking her head to the side and causing herself more pain. "Jesus bloody Christ." Cursing under her breath and her teeth gritting at the pain, Sarah reached out for her hair and rubbed her scalp.
"Sarah!" Felix scolded exasperatedly, throwing his arms up in the air. "You're screwing it all up. Would you just let me finish? Please?" His hands reached out for her hair cautiously again, and Sarah slouched back in the chair.
The two spectators that were sitting on the couch both had amused grin on their faces.
"Was it like this when you were getting your dreads, cherie?" Delphine murmured through her giggle before she turned to Cosima.
Despite the light mood all four of them were in, the immunologist felt her heart sink a little.
Yes, the Darwinist was laughing, but her laugh was almost always interrupted with coughs that shook all her petite body. Her eyes were still smiling under the dark-rimmed glasses but were now also decorated with two dark circles around them, contrasting eerily with her pale, almost transparent skin. When she coughed, her hand brought a tissue to her lips, sighing upon seeing blood on it and her thin arm trembled as she lowered it down.
Catching Delphine's gaze, Cosima smiled at her just as brightly, all the same fixing the IV that was attached to her arm. Automatically, Delphine's hand covered hers, giving her a light squeeze.
"Actually, Delphine," Her voice was hoarse but still playful, "This is the first time I see myself more of a badass than Sarah. And those aren't, like, even real dreads." Her hollow cheeks filled with air as she laughed again. Sarah was the only not amused one, and her eyes rolled.
"Just get it over with, Fe. We don't have too much of a bloody time, now do we?"
/
"Are you okay?" The blonde's voice was merely a whisper and a brow slightly furrowed as she adjusted the pillow under Cosima's head.
"Yeah, yeah, of course. Don't worry about me." Cosima replied, mustering yet another smile before she coughed in her tissue again. These days she could only sit up long enough to eat or walk to the bathroom before she would feel drained again.
The DYAD was the only option left, to everyone's disappointment, but all of it needed to be done in secrecy. Leekie was not to know about Cosima's illness, not yet, which was the reason Sarah had her hair pulled out in order to make believable dreadlocks, combined with a wig Felix had found.
"You know I worry." Delphine replied, her hand stroking Cosima's temple gently. She wished that for just one more day she could see her Cosima being full of life, with filled cheeks and a non-sickly tan. She wished that for one more day they could take a walk in the park or drink wine bottles on the campus. But that day would come. It had to.
The look they exchanged, the silent look that was appearing more often as of late, and that said more than any words could, was interrupted by the voices that came out of the bathroom where Sarah went to finish up the last touches of her new 'science geek' look, as Felix dubbed it.
"You make a better Cosima than Alison, I gotta give you that." Felix said, his arms crossed on his chest, face swelling with pride at his own work.
"Shut up." Sarah snapped, fixing the glasses up her nose and shrugging her shoulders, her weight shifting on one leg as Cosima used to do.
Delphine turned around and a comment got hitched in her throat at the sight of Sarah. Only it was not Sarah anymore. With the dreads tied up in a bun, the mouth twitching the same way Cosima's did, and hands shoved inside the pockets of the red coat she loved so much, it seemed like that the ghost of the Christmas past had taken her back to the time when they had just met.
Her heart suddenly beat a little bit faster, and it seemed that moment in which she had stopped breathing had lasted for a small lifetime.
"Dude." The real Cosima's voice behind her snapped the blonde out of the small trance she had fallen in. "You're spot on." Cough. "You can totally pass as me. Look at Delphine, she's like, speechless." Another chuckle. And another cough.
"You can look but you can't touch, Frenchie. Yeah? Let's go." Sarah barked, breaking the illusion and causing Delphine to get up from the bed and finished buttoning up her own coat. Her gaze lingered on Sarah for couple of moments before she looked at Cosima, whose eyes were closed after she had taken off her glasses to give them to Sarah. Her lips moved, as though she could feel Delphine's gaze on her face.
"Take care of yourself, 'kay? Don't let Sarah punch Leekie in the face or something."
Delphine laughed, lowering herself to place her lips on Cosima's hot forehead, and then on her lips. She had fever again.
"We will be back soon. Sleep the fever off, yes? Je t'aime." Her hand stroke the dreads and their eyes met once Cosima opened hers.
"I love you too. Good luck."
/
"We're very pleased to have you here, Cosima."
Leekie had a wide smile on his face, one of those that Delphine had grown to admire over so many years, and now despised with every core of her being. Each time he would smile at Sarah, her own hand gripped the wine glass a little bit tighter, threatening to break it.
"I understand that this is an opportunity of a lifetime. Delphine made the decision easier. You're all great at what you do, and I'd be an idiot to miss the opportunity."
Delphine's gaze fell on Sarah, trying to keep her face straight. How was it possible that every single detail of Cosima's appearance, including the way she waved her hands and held herself while smiling at Aldous Leekie, was spot on? Even the accent and the low husk that only Cosima out of all the other clones had, was close to perfect.
"We're glad that Delphine made you change your mind. You're a valuable asset to the DYAD and the neolutionist movement as a whole. We're happy to have a Darwinist as talented as you are on our team."
Bullshit. Delphine thought.
"And I am personally glad that you and Delphine found a common… tongue." He added, and the blonde could see Sarah's face twitching a little bit.
Even though he had a smile on his face, Delphine could hear the snide remark hidden behind it. It had all started when he read Delphine's emails to Cosima, since the DYAD employees had no privacy whatsoever, which she found out about way too late in the game. Since then, she always had to listen to him commenting on their relationship and keeping an even closer eye on her. It was a nightmare. The only remotely good thing that came out of it was the fact that she did not sleep with him anymore, as he had told her he was disgusted by her poor choices.
Barely holding back an eyeroll, Delphine took a sip from her glass and watched the rest of the conversation unfold before Leekie left them both alone.
The welcoming party for the new couple of DYAD employees was a great event, and everyone was going out of their way to have a talk with the 'great mastermind' Aldous Leekie. Sarah and Delphine moved to the side as soon as he left them alone, feeling relieved that everything went according to their plan.
"You were very good." Delphine praised Sarah, who had finally dropped the grin from her face and scowled, the way only she knew how to.
"Yeah, yeah. It took everything not to bloody break this glass and shove it in his face."
"Shh," Delphine shushed her, but a giggle left her lips. Even though she had met Sarah properly only the month before, and she was a lot to handle, the two of them found a common trait, which was to protect Cosima at all costs. "Do not let them hear you."
"Let them hear me. I'll bloody kill them all from keeping Kira away from me. You said Rachel would be here, Delphine."
"She should have." Delphine looked around. "Maybe later. Oh merde."
A photographer was rushing their way and Delphine immediately knew that Leekie had sent him, judging by the look he was giving them from across the room.
"A photo of the brilliant couple?" The guy suggested, and the immunologist saw Sarah's mouth fell open a little.
He wanted a scene, and a scene he would get.
"I am so sorry." Delphine whispered, and before Sarah could understand what was happening, or protest for that matter, the blonde cupped her cheeks and brought her up for a kiss.
Sarah's lips were much rougher than Cosima's, and the scent was completely different, but then again, Delphine did not feel the taste of blood in the kiss for the first time in a long time. The mixture of emotions were further confusing when they pulled away and she saw those hazel eyes and rimmed glasses. It only lasted for part of a second, for Sarah's scowl returned as soon as the photographer walked away after several shots.
"What the hell, Delphine? We agreed no bloody PDA!" She hissed under her breath, sipping the wine as to wash away what just happened. Delphine, on the other hand, looked content.
"Leekie was watching. He is not anymore." The two looked his way, and then back at each other.
"I'm a better kisser, aren't I?" Sarah asked with a smirk and raised eyebrows, and Delphine could not help herself, and laughed.
Then the phone buzzed in her pocket.
"It is from Felix." Her face, lit up only second before, turned to a frown, and then to worry. "I have five voicemails, Sar- Cosima."
The sinking feeling was back again. They had told him not to call unless it was a great emergency. Sarah pulled her own phone from the pocket, and saw that there were four voicemails there. And a text message.
"Shit, Delphine." Sarah said, lifting her gaze from her phone.
"What… what?" Delphine could feel herself panicking now. She wanted to shout: It is not Cosima, Cosima is okay, nothing is wrong-
"Her heart stopped. Fe called an ambulance. They're in the hospital."
"We need to go." Delphine said, only a bit relieved. She was alive. She was going to be okay. They are going to be okay.
"What about the bloody party?" Sarah asked, but Delphine was already passing her the coat.
"We will say we will be back later. Come on."
