If there was one thing Mimi had learned, it was that in a heartbeat, everything can change. In a heartbeat, she had found herself stranded in a farming town. In a heartbeat, everyone she had ever cared about was gone. And, in a heartbeat, she had fallen for the most unlikely person, Stanley. Yes life was full of surprises. And if she was so aware of that, then why did her throat drop to her stomach when one minute she had been complaining about emptying bedpans, and the next she had involuntarily splashed a bedpan of stale urine all over herself as a gurney burst through the doors and she found herself looking down at Stanley's bloodied figure.

Other gurneys followed. There was so much yelling, no one heard Mimi's screams as she rushed to find the gurney that had passed her, carrying Stanley. Pushing through the already-crowded hall, she searched desperately for a glimpse of the man she loved. In all the confusion, she almost walked right past him. She would have if she hadn't tripped and looked down only to come face to face with him. And time stopped, she just looked at his cut up face and blood-covered shirt.

"Are you going to help or not?"

Mimi's head snapped up. A nurse had grabbed Stanley's gurney and was motioning for her to grab the other end. Looking at him one last time, she grabbed the side of the gurney and let the nurse lead her.

"Where are we taking him?" Mimi asked, she felt like collapsing right there and bawling. But she trudged on, for Stanley's sake.

"He's probably the most critical one here, we're taking him straight to Kenchy," the nurse replied like he was just another patient. Mimi wanted to grab her by the shoulders and scream, "DON'T YOU REALIZE WHO THIS IS?!!" But the gurney came to an abrupt halt, and Mimi looked up to see they had wheeled Stanley into calmer, less crowded room, occupied only by Kenchy and a few nurses.

"What happened to this one?" Kenchy walked forward.

"Took a bullet to the shoulder, we won't know how close it is to his heart 'til we open him up," replied the nurse that had led Mimi into the room.

"You're going to cut him open?" Just the thought of it made her sick.

"Yep, well don't just stand there! Help us get him onto the bed!"

Mimi had been cowering in the corner. Too scared to get a good look at the damage. But at Kenchy's command, her feet floated to Stanley's side. A brief look at his scarlet shoulder was all it took to bring tears to her eyes. She immediately turn her head to focus on his good shoulder, she didn't want to see anything else.

"Alright, on three!"

Mimi quickly slid her hand under his shoulder.

"One! Two! Three!!!"

Together, they lifted him off the gurney and onto the operating bed. Stanley gave a quiet moan of pain. His eyes opened slightly. And he looked into hers, "M-Mimi?" he moaned.

"I-I'm here, Stanley," Her voice cracked as she took his hand and held it to her face.

"You wreak," he whined.

She smiled through her tears. A hand covered his mouth with an anesthetic mask and his eyes closed completely. His hand went limp on her face and she guided it to his side. A lantern was shoved in her face, she took it and held it above the blood-stained shoulder. She watched as hands holding scissors cut his flannel shirt off. Wasn't that his lucky one? It couldn't have been. She had told him not to wear it. No. She hated that shirt. She didn't care if it got splattered with blood. She had told him not to rely on it. But Stanley could be stubborn. He most likely had relied on the ugly flannel shirt.

Either way, the shirt was now a small lump on the floor. A scalpel rested on his shoulder. The gloved hand holding it pressed the edge of the scalpel onto his skin, and cut open Stanley's shoulder. She really, really wanted to throw up. But she had to be there. For Stanley.

The hours drove on. Mimi felt sick the whole time. And it took all her will power to stop herself from bolting out of the room. But, no matter how much it hurt, she stood beside him. She was strong for him. She didn't throw down the lantern and run screaming away when blood flowed from Stanley's open cut, or when a hand reached inside him and pulled out a tiny bullet, or when the same hand held a threaded needle and stitched his skin like it was a quilt.

But when the doctors around her pulled of their blood covered smocks and put down their lanterns, and she heard Kenchy utter the words "he'll pull through", Mimi dropped her lantern and ran to the nearest bathroom. Throwing open a stall door, she leaned over the toilet and vomited. She vomited for a good few minutes. When she finished, she walked out, rinsing her mouth, she stood straight up to rush to see Stanley again. But instead, the minute she even attempted to straighten her back, her shoulders crippled over and sobs spilled from her eyes.

The sound of a door slamming behind her caused her back the shoot straight up immediately.

"Mimi! I've been looking all over for you!" Jake looked tired and relieved.

"What is it?" it took all Mimi's strength to keep her voice from cracking.

"Uh…I don't know how to tell you this," Jake looked conflicted, "Stanley got shot in the shoulder a couple hours ago, I think he's still in surgery, but he wanted me to find you"

"I know, Jake. I was helping with his surgery," Mimi replied.

"Oh! Well is he going to be okay?" Jake looked relieved himself,

Mimi nodded, "The doctor thinks so"

"Well, that's great. I've, uh, gotta go find Emily," Jake ran out of the room.

Mimi took a moment to stare at her reflection. Her eyes were puffy, the urine in her hair had dried, and the imprints of drying tears left streaks down her face. She didn't care. She just wanted to be with Stanley.

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He was still sleeping when she found him. He was in a hospital gown and lying in one of the clinic's white beds. Sitting down next to him and taking his hand, she watched him, and waited for him to wake up.