Chapter 2
Alexx didn't like that what she was about to do. How could she even in the slightest? She blinked a few times rapidly to prevent the tears from spilling over, quietly brushing away that one obstinate tear that had managed to sneak over her lower lid, running down her cheek in a straight line. She mentally prepared herself and slowly heaved one of the deepest sighs of her life before rounding the corner to where her former team members were gathered. As she walked up to them, she suddenly couldn't help but smile. It had always been a close team. Within minutes after Horatio had been shoved into the hallways by her colleagues, the whole of the team had gathered up in the waiting room, including Frank. She walked over to them slowly, wanting to prolong that what she didn't wish to do as long as possible. By the time Alexx had reached her former team, Calleigh, Horatio, Natalia, Ryan and Frank had all already gotten up from their seats in order of mentioning.
"Alexx?" Two voices sounded at the very same time. Both voices were strained and belonged to Calleigh and Horatio. Natalia stood by swallowing nervously, while Ryan seemed to lose it with worry and Frank looked as if he already expected what was to come. He looked up at the young, blond ballistics expert with worry. It wasn't a secret for anyone anymore that she and Eric were, or maybe had been, seeing each other for a little while. That was now the result of working close to each other every day.
Horatio and Calleigh looked at each other for a brief moment, then turned back to the former M.E. in unison, too. "I'm sorry," she whispered, barely loud enough for all team members to hear her. It took a few moments before this information seemed to kick in. The first one to react was Calleigh. She let out a despairing howl, making to run into the direction Alexx had come from, but the African American woman stopped her, holding her, gently patting the small of her back while trying to shush her. Natalia's eyes flashed back and forth as if she was hoping for someone else to jump out of nowhere and say it was a joke. No one jumped in view, though... Frank's hand went to lay upon the brunette's shoulder for comfort, while Ryan just stood there dumbfounded at the news, hand in front of his mouth.
Horatio's world suddenly seemed to stand still there at once. Eric... gone? It couldn't really be... His mind's thoughts were, however, interrupted by a female struggle on his right. The redhead simply did what he'd learned to do; what he'd been educated to on the job: trying to break them apart. Calleigh was still trying hopelessly to get away, almost surely to go back to Eric's room. She needed to be confronted with it; with the hard facts, before she'd even consider believing it. Her head simply felt like splitting under the intensity of this all. She'd killed Eric... Killed him... He was gone now... He wouldn't come back this time... The smell of his famous Cafe Cubano would never fill the break room anymore...
The red haired lieutenant quietly moved, taking Calleigh from their friend and holding her against his chest trying to calm her down, thinking that maybe letting her fight until she had to give up from pure exhaustion, would work. She was already so much exhausted emotionally, thus he assumed that it wouldn't take that long. She, however, scrambled even more, and managed to get away, running along the hallway into the direction of the ICU.
Natalia's breath caught, before she turned around into Frank's arms and started to cry. He simply let her. Ryan was still too much discombobulated. Eric and he never had gotten along that well, but... Horatio, and Alexx, however, ran after Calleigh the fastest their legs could carry them.
The blonde simply burst into Eric's room, being confronted with two nurses in their mid-thirties who were uncoupling the tubes and monitors he'd been attached to. This sight actually appeared to be even more intense and extremely painful than only hearing the news had already been. Calleigh's legs now started trembling, and her breath caught more each half second passing. By the time Alexx and Horatio got there, she was sinking down slowly again, even though tears were long gone at this point, maybe replaced by shock.
Soon enough, she was down on her knees, gazing off with beglazed eyes. Horatio's eyes were rimmed with tears, just like Alexx'.
