"That was a lie, Lisa. I should have been notified from the very moment to scramble."
Rick's anger had overtaken his initial confusion. At first he thought it was just due to a simple oversight. He and Lisa had not had coinciding shifts since that disastrous picnic. He knew that she knew his schedule better than anyone, but perhaps no one knew he covered the industrial sector because she wasn't there. When be found out from Vanessa that Lisa not only knew he was supposed to be called, but also fabricated a lie to prevent him from being notified, Rick became furious. After an exhausting and futile attempt to prevent Khyron from obtaining the Protoculture Matrix and then the additional task of subduing the fires and rescuing the inhabitants of Macross City, Rick had finally caught up to Lisa outside of the SDF-1 and vent his ire.
Despite his exhaustion and high emotions, Rick couldn't help but notice how subdued Lisa looked. It was unlike her. In days past, she would have stood toe to toe with him and fired both barrels. This quiet and somber figure before him was so unlike the Lisa he knew.
Lisa's eyes remained lowered throughout his tirade. She knew very well she was in the wrong and Rick's anger was justified. Without raising the veil of her eyelashes, Lisa at last quietly commented, almost as if to herself, "You should be more discreet when you have company over."
Her quiet tone was like ice water to the heat of Rick's anger. He opened his mouth, but no words followed. Instead, a sinking feeling began to settle in the pit of his stomach.
"I stopped by your place to apologize," Lisa went on and then paused. She pursed her lips slightly to control a tremor. She then raised her eyes to his, dull and wounded. "Your door was open. I know all about Minmei."
Any words Rick had died in his throat. He took a breath, but then he was momentarily distracted by the SDF-1 suddenly being illuminatedinated by twinkling Christmas lights. The sight was beautiful. Romantic, even.
"Merry Christmas, Rick," Lisa said quietly before turning and walking away. She didn't wait for a reply.
Rick stood rooted to the spot. The hollow feeling in his gut grew until he felt he would be swallowed up in it. He watched as Lisa disappeared from view. Rick felt the close bond they had built between them these past two years crumble away. And yet, despite the overwhelming feeling on loss, he did nothing to save it. Looking back, Rick still couldn't come up with a reason why he didn't call Lisa back.
Lisa concentrated on placing one foot in front of the other. Step... Step... Step... Despite her focus on this task, her eyes streamed with tears. Rick had made his choice, and whether he knew it or not, she just said goodbye to him. Lisa wandered the streets. Despite the tragedies of the day, the people of Macross City are a hopeful, resilient lot. They picked themselves up and were determined to still celebrate Christmas. Lisa tuned out the merrymakers and fell deeper into despair. At long last, she came upon a familiar door. The dark windows indicated no one was home, but Lisa had nowhere to go. She sat on the stoop and curled her knees up into a ball.