DISCLAIMER: I do not own Chicago Med or any of the characters. Alright, this chapter is pretty much setting up for the next one (which is where it's really going to start). Please review and hope you all like!
Choi and Natalie had worked on re-stabilizing the patient, succeeding in bringing down her temperature a few degrees, yet not where they would've liked her to be. Once Rhodes had completed the spinal tap and the blood cultures were back, the team of doctors and nurses all gathered as they looked at their results, the tests and symptoms added up: Meningitis.
Everyone in the trauma bay was silent, a case of viral meningitis was more than rare. All of them could've been infected depending on the stage of the disease.
"Rhodes," April quietly spoke, "What do we do?"
Rhodes responded, with a grim look on his face, "Dial Sharon. Tell her we've got a code green, and to get a hold of the CDC."
…
Within minutes, the ER was cleared and only necessary staff were waiting in the hallway outside. Maggie sifted nervously through any information she could find about Meningitis and it's cures while Sharon tersely spoke on the phone with a hospital board member. Men with hazmat suits came rushing in, isolating all of the doctors and nurses in the room with Allison Grace. She was wheeled to an isolation chamber, still unconscious, and test were being done to determine how far along the disease was.
They medical staff that were treating Allison Grace were to sit in decontamination, none of them knew for how long. They were waiting to see if any of them showed any symptoms, yet none of them had been in the vicinity long enough for the virus to transmit.
"Are you still feeling okay?" Choi asked Natalie for the fourth time, she was under extra observation because of her condition.
"Yes, Ethan," she comforted her friend's worries, "I'm still having the chocolate donut cravings and my bladder feels like it's going to explode, so I'm feeling great."
She tried to joke, yet inwardly she was a mess. Her mind kept wandering to the baby in her tummy, 1 month till the due date, and if anything were to happen to him.
April paced the room, trying to recall all the different treatments of viral meningitis she had learned over the years. They had never gotten a case at any hospital she had worked at, none of them had.
Ethan spoke up, "What about the cafe and ambulance they brought her in? They could be infected, whatever she touched or wherever she went could be exposed."
Rhodes responded, head in his hands and eyes still closed, "I talked with a CDC member, the ambulance was on it's last shift and it's being inspected, so are the paramedics. The coffee shop they picked her up at is under quarantine too, they closed it down and are investigating the whole building like it's a crime scene."
"I wonder how she even got infected," Natalie wondered, "I mean this disease isn't easy to contract."
April just shook her head.
"How long has it been?" Choi asked.
"2 hours, 31 minutes, and 11 seconds," Rhodes answered immediately, "but whose counting."
….
Halstead sprinted down the corridors when he heard the news. He pushed through throngs of patients and doctors until he made it outside the ER doors, CDC officers in hazmat suits blocked the entrance.
"Look, I need to go in there," Will explained to one of the officers, frantically, "My colleagues are in there, they need my help-"
"I'm sorry, sir," the officer cut in curtly, "but no one is allowed to go through those doors."
"You have no right to tell me that, I'm an ER doctor and this is an emergency situation-"
"Dr. Halstead!" shouted a voice behind him.
He quickly turned around to see Mrs. Goodwin standing in front of the mass of patients and doctors standing outside the ED. A sigh of relief escaped his lips before turning around to give the officer one last glare. He rushed towards her, asking, "Where are they? Where's Natalie?"
"Dr. Manning, along with the other ED staff on the case, have been put in quarantine for the time being. None of them have showed any symptoms yet. They're unbelievably lucky, they weren't in with the patient long enough to have caught the virus it seems like."
"But what about Natalie?" Will questioned, distraught, "She's pregnant, and if anything were to happen to the baby-"
"Will," Mrs. Goodwin cut in, "she's fine for now. She hasn't shown any symptoms and as soon as the quarantine is over, we'll do tests to make sure everything is alright."
"Meningitis, Sharon?" Will sighed, "I mean, this isn't to joke around with if it spreads! Any news on how she contracted it?"
"Keep your voice down," Sharon whispered, not wanting to alarm any of the patients standing nearby, "they don't know yet, they're doing the tests now."
"Who? The CDC? Yeah, they're real charmers, maybe they should let real doctors do their work instead of playing around," he said, loud enough for the officers behind him to hear.
Maggie walked up to them at that moment, handing the phone to Mrs. Goodwin, "Hey, just got an update. Everyone is fine so far, no symptoms, and they're allowing some staff in protective gear to talk with them behind the glass."
"About damn time," Sharon mumbled, grabbing the phone and putting it to her ear as she walked away.
"Who was working on the case, anyway?" Halstead asked Maggie as they followed Mrs. Goodwin.
"A few nurses, Cathy, April, and Charlotte," Maggie confessed, "and Ethan, Natalie, and Rhodes."
At the mention of Rhodes, Will relaxed a little. Although he wasn't the most welcoming of the mix, Dr. Rhodes was a brilliant trauma doctor and he knew the rest were safe with him around.
"God bless that boy," Maggie mumbled to herself as they made their way to the quarantine section.
…..
A knock on the glass window snapped Rhodes from his thoughts as he saw Sharon, Dr. Charles, and few CDC officers standing in full protective gear. He instantly sat up as they all rushed to the glass wall.
"Sharon," Natalie breathed, relieved, "finally, a familiar face. Any news on when we're getting out of here?"
"Not yet, sweetie. But things are looking pretty good since none of you have gotten any symptoms yet," she answered, hopefully.
The expressions that followed were either despair, frustration, hope, or impatience. Everyone expressed their feelings except for Rhodes, his face a blank canvas.
"How's the patient?" Connor asked.
"She's been moved to isolation and her stats are low. Symptoms have progressed throughout the hour and her tests came back concluding the virus is getting worse. It wasn't strong enough to transmit however till recently, so the ambulance and cafe most likely aren't infected," Mrs. Goodwin grimly informed the eager ears of the doctors behind the glass.
"Have they found anymore rashes?" Choi pondered.
"Unfortunately, the disease has begun to spread rapidly. If it continues at this rate, she'll really be in danger in about a day or two. We're trying to treat it with antibiotics, but so far nothing's working," Sharon grimly responded.
"In the meantime," Dr. Charles spoke up in his soothing tone, "Sit back, relax, and we'll try to get you out of here as soon as possible."
"Don't suppose you can get a movie or something going on in here?" Rhodes asked from his seat on the wall, sarcasm clear in his voice due to his frustration at being locked up for a few hours.
Dr. Charles smiled, "I'll see what I can do."
The CDC officers led them out without another word, their visiting time was up.
"How long now, Rhodes?" Choi asked.
"4 hours, 56 minutes, and 28 seconds."
….
Maggie and Halstead rushed through the small makeshift hallway noisily, their hazmat suits loudly rubbing against each other in the small space. As soon as the rest of their friends were seen behind a huge glass wall, they ran the rest of the way to meet them, Will heading straight for Natalie on the far side of the glass.
"Natalie," Will breathed, "are you okay? They wouldn't let us in till now-"
"Will," she soothed, "We're all fine, trust me. Choi has got me under the radar too."
"Good, I was worried," Will sighed, "in the, uh, "good friend" type of way."
Will, unsuccessfully, tried to hid his passion for Natalie, yet everyone seemed to notice except for Manning. Choi rolled his eyes.
"Maggie, have they told you how much longer we'll be in here for?" April asked, desperately, "We've been here- what? 6 hours, Rhodes?"
"Almost 7," he responded from his seat on the wall.
"7 hours," April continued, "and none of us have developed any symptoms!"
"Seriously," Rhodes finally interjected, slightly annoyed, and stood up to walk and face Maggie behind the glass, "No one has told us anything so far and we're the ones who treated Allison Grace in the first place! It seems like a good idea if these guys got off their high horses and spread the wealth."
"Look, don't get nasty with me, sugar," Maggie retaliated, but knew she needed to be calm since they were all on edge, "It's almost midnight and all the other emergencies have been redirected to other ED's. The whole hospital is in lockdown, but I did hear some of the CDC officers talking and I'm almost sure you'll be out of observation by tomorrow morning."
"Great," Rhodes huffed, turning around and walking back to his seat on the wall.
"Well aren't you a ray of sunshine today," Halstead said, some of the fire coming back in his words.
The tempers behind the glass wall were steadily rising and the agitation was palpable, Rhodes ready with a stinging retort when the head member of the CDC walked in.
"Good evening, or shall I say night, to all of you," he began, "my name is Dr. Simon Muller and I understand that you were the medical team present when Ms. Allison Grace came in today."
Rhodes, silently appointed spokesperson, responded, "That is correct," in a stern, powerful voice.
"I'm going to ask you all to give me a step-by-step playback of the events and medical steps taken when Ms. Grace checked in. I must humbly ask for all your questions to be saved till the end and all unnecessary personnel please exit the room," Dr. Muller looked pointedly at Maggie and Will.
Saying their goodbyes, the two left, Halstead shooting an intense glare at Dr. Muller the entire way out, yet the CDC head didn't seem to notice.
"Now," Muller started, "Let's begin."
…..
6 hours and 27 minutes later, the 3 nurses and 3 doctors sat silently on the floor of the glass room, dejectedly. Natalie was lightly dozing on Choi's shoulder, while the other nurses slept on the far side of the room, they had kept to themselves throughout the hours.
"I really need to pee," said April to no one in particular.
Both Choi and Rhodes managed a smile, counting down the seconds till they were released.
"I'm going to Molly's first thing," Rhodes declared, "and getting more drunk than Maggie on Thursday nights."
April and Choi both laughed at that, picturing the stubborn and stern head nurse on her crazy Thursday nights.
"I cannot wait to shower," Choi remarked, "I smell like latex."
"I think that smell comes with the job," April giggled, "uh, how long has it been?"
"From the time you asked me 3 minutes ago... it has now been 11 hours and 42 minutes," Rhodes responded, sighing.
"Can't even tell if it's day or night in here," April remarked.
"I wonder if the girl is still alive," Choi stated.
"How did she even get meningitis in the first place?" April questioned, "her history showed no recent travels and no possible way she could've gotten it."
"I don't think she'll make it through tomorrow if they don't do something quick," Rhodes said, grimly.
The trio sat in silence for a few seconds.
"How long has it been now?"
…..
"Congratulations," Dr. Muller said aloud, hours later, "you've made it to the end of the quarantine. We have successfully come to the conclusion none of you are carrying the disease and will dismiss you from inspection momentarily. Dr. Manning, if you would like to access the OB department and check on the well being of your baby, please inform us to give you special access since the hospital is still in lockdown. The patient, Allison Grace, continues to remain in isolation and on life support. You are all ordered to return home for the rest of the day and return to your duties when we have approved. Thank you."
And with that, a CDC member opened the door on the far wall of the glass room, leading the medical team through a makeshift tube and out into the hospital lobby.
Mrs. Goodwin, Dr. Charles, Halstead, Maggie, and even Sarah Reese greeted them upon their release.
"You're all more than welcome to go home for the day, the hospital is still in lockdown but this area was declared secure," Sharon informed them.
Choi and the two nurses said their goodbyes, Ethan hurrying home to take a shower. April and Maggie rushed to the bathroom while Halstead escorted Manning to the OB, worry clouding her mind.
That left Dr. Charles, Rhodes, and Mrs. Goodwin, Connor quickly getting to the point, "Where's Allison?"
"Connor, wouldn't you rather go home, take a nap, eat something-" Mrs. Goodwin started.
Rhodes intervened, "I wasted 16 hours in that quarantine, Sharon. Now, where's Allison? She'll die without proper medical attention."
"I'll take you there," Dr. Charles suggested, "She's in isolation 4, I've already been down to see her. She woke up a few hours ago."
Rhodes nodded and followed Dr. Charles to the elevator.
…..