Squall paced in Balamb Garden's infirmary. The sound of his dirty boots hitting the clean floors echoed in an even rhythm. He clenched and unclenched his fists while breathing in the familiar scent of bleach. The black leather of his gloves stretched tight and cracked over his knuckles. If only every problem he had could be solved with force, then he'd feel more useful.
The soft sounds of medical machinery and the smell of antiseptics filled him with a sense of helplessness. Maybe his spirit would have been feeling better if it were in the daytime, but during the night, time stretched out slowly and fears that could be hidden during the day loomed largely in his mind.
What if she doesn't get better? What if this doesn't have a cure?
He walked back towards one of the examination rooms and peered in at Rinoa's still body on the bed as Dr. Kadowaki was busying herself with taking tests and checking vitals. The beep of machines could be heard from where he stood. The beeping seemed regular, nothing like an alarm. He assumed everything was fine, or at least it wasn't taking a turn for the worse. He'd keep watch over her to make sure it didn't.
Although what could he do if it did? He wasn't a doctor. He was more adept at hurting than healing. He certainly didn't know what was wrong with her. Did anybody?
What if she's in a coma forever? What will I do then?
He was angry, but he should be thankful that Garden had been mobile and able to pick them up at Trabia Garden so quickly. At least as quickly as a giant flying school could go. It had only taken a few hours even though it had felt longer. Expecting it to go at ambulance speed wasn't realistic, even if that was what he was wanting. When Rinoa's health was concerned, he had a streak of impatience.
The inactivity of waiting stretched before him. How long had it been since this happened? Not very long, but it felt like forever. He wished he could do something, but this wasn't his area of expertise. Dr. Kadowaki would know best. At least he hoped that was true. If she didn't, well, there was always Esthar and Dr. Odine, but that was reserved for a last ditch effort.
He started pacing again. His heavy black boots made loud clacking noises on the tiles of the infirmary.
"Commander Leonhart," Dr. Kadowaki said in a strained voice, "could you please give me some space to do my work. I'm assuming you want me to do a thorough and professional examination on Ms. Heartilly."
Squall's head snapped up and he took several steps backwards. He wasn't expecting Dr. Kadowaki to address him like that.
"Yes, Dr. Kadowaki," he replied, "please find out what the problem is. I'll leave you to your work then." He flipped his hair down to cover the embarrassment on his face and walked back towards the main room of the infirmary.
Stupid. Let the doctor do her work. You don't want to cause Rinoa to get any worse. It'll be your fault if you keep bothering Dr. Kadowaki, he admonished himself.
He decided to check on the patient in the other examination room. He looked up and saw Irvine, Zell, and Quistis hovering over a bed where Selphie's motionless body was.
"She looks so weird," Zell remarked while staring at her blank and completely relaxed face. Irvine gave him a glare. "I mean, she looks weird when she's not moving around, smiling, or blowing up stuff. It's like she's a completely different person. It's like she's not Selphie at all. It's completely..."
"Unsettling," Quistis finished.
"I don't think I've ever seen her like this. She's always excited and happy," Irvine said. "Or furiously angry," he added after a moment's pause. "She even smiles when she's takin' a nap. Unsettlin' is a real good word for this Quisty."
Irvine tilted his head back and looked up towards the harsh fluorescent lights when Squall stepped into the already overcrowded examination room. Irvine's head looked back down to see Squall's approach. Irvine opened his mouth to greet him, but he didn't get a chance to speak.
"How is she?" Squall asked while looking towards Selphie with a nod of his head.
Squall was concerned about her, but he was not as worried about her as he was about Rinoa. He viewed Rinoa as being delicate and breakable like a fine porcelain figurine. Selphie was strong and sturdy like a children's plastic action figure. He wasn't overly worried about her. She seemed like she'd be able to pull through anything. She even survived a massive explosion at the Galbadian missile base, and that didn't even remotely make sense. A strange sickness or fainting spell wouldn't do her much harm compared to that. He expected her to bounce back to health whenever this illness had run its course. Maybe it was a 24 hour virus or something. It could even be completely unrelated to whatever extremely rare and possibly magical malady Rinoa was suffering from.
"Do I look like a doctor?" Irvine replied to Squall's question.
No, you don't, Squall thought to himself.
Quistis rolled her eyes at her friends.
"What Irvine meant to say was that he doesn't know the status of Selphie's condition," Quistis responded. "Dr. Kadowaki just made sure her vitals were doing well before she went to check on Rinoa again."
"You think they caught the same thing?" Zell asked nervously. "Do you think we're gonna get it too? Is it some weird kind of Trabian sickness? Do any of you guys feel hot and clammy? I think I might be getting sick too. Do you guys think I look hot?"
"You're not my type, Dincht," Irvine said.
Zell didn't even hear the response as he started nervously pacing with his elbows out and his hands on his hips. There wasn't any space for that and he kept bumping into his friends in the small room.
"Zell, calm down. We're okay," Quistis said while crossing her arms protectively over herself.
"BUT THEY AREN'T!" Zell said loudly while pointing at an unconscious Selphie.
"She's just resting, I'm sure she'll be better soon," Quistis replied with more confidence than she felt while she smoothed her blonde hair behind her ears.
"RESTING?" Zell yelled while picking up Selphie's limp wrist and letting her arm flop back down onto the bed. She was like a marionette puppet with her strings cut.
"Zell, calm down. It's been a long day. You can go back to your dorm and catch some sleep. Actually all of you should do that," Squall said. "Worrying about unknowns is not going to help. Sleep would be the best thing because there's nothing we can do here right now."
"Then why are you still hanging around here?" Irvine asked.
Squall said nothing but stared back at Irvine.
Quistis looked between her friends' faces. Everybody knew Squall was worried and agitated about Rinoa, but Irvine was also worried about Selphie, albeit to a much lesser degree.
"Actually, I think that's a good idea Squall. Dr. Kadowaki is doing her job here. We should all go and get our rest while we can. We can come back in the morning and see what she's discovered about their health. We aren't doing any good wasting our energy here."
She took Irvine and Zell by the arms and gently directed them out of the examination room while Squall followed them.
"Let's all go back to the dorms now," she said while taking charge.
Squall continued following them towards the infirmary's exit, but as they left he turned around and headed back towards Rinoa's examination room. He pulled up a chair near the entrance and sat down.
Nobody said anything about this because nobody was surprised. He'd just stay a bit more. He could always go back to his place after a few hours. Maybe she'd wake up and he'd be right there.
He pulled a cloth out of his pocket and eyed his black boots. They really were dirty, still caked with salt and mud. He should stay up longer and wipe them down. He'd get to bed eventually.
End of Chapter 2
Short chapter, but I don't want to give up on this story completely even though my baby is keeping me really busy. I hope nobody minds if it isn't the greatest.
