Author's Note: Again, thanks for your reviews. As for Lila and their son, Sean, well I know what's ultimately going to happen to them. You'll have to wait for future chapters, but it will all be there. Don't own anything but this story.

Episode 9: Panic

She breathed heavily in the cold early morning air as she continued running. All her problems would be temporarily washed away by sweat and fatigue. She paused for a moment to catch her breath and change a song on her iPod.

"Ok, Helga, a few more times around the block and you're done." She jogged in place for a bit and started running again.

"It's that time of year again." Arnold checked off some slots on the marker board.

"What do you mean?" Debbie asked lazily from the admit desk.

"Flu season."

"The panic?" Arnold nodded his head.

"This shortage of vaccines isn't helping either."

"Well, we've always had a shortage, but Chiron didn't help us very much this year."

"Tell me about it." She looked outside at the waiting room and saw a large crowd beginning to form. Elderly men and women, mothers with young children, and middle aged workers were growing restless and impatient in the cold waiting room.

"I'll get this." Arnold walked out from behind the desk and headed towards the waiting room. He was greeted by a chorus of grumbles and heated questions.

"I need a flu shot!" An old man cried waving his cane in the air.

"Yeah, my husband and I qualify; at least that's what the news says." His wife chimed in.

"Please, my baby needs a shot too. She's only nine months old." A young black mother pushed her baby girl forward.

"Watch it sister," the old man snarled. "We were here first."

"You're not getting one before my baby gets one." She shot back.

"That's the trouble with you young people, these days. You don't respect your elders."

"Hey, what about me?" A large construction worker chimed in. "I've gotten a flu shot every year. Why can't I get one this year? It's not fair."

"I'll tell you what it is." A bespectacled woman replied in a feverish tone looking up from her newspaper. "It's a government conspiracy, that's what it is. I bet they have stocks of the shots that they're just hoarding up in some warehouse, waiting for the right time to sell them at inflated prices. That's what the government does. That's why they don't release the aliens locked up in Area 51." The construction worker gave her a weird look.

"Look lady, I don't care about conspiracies or aliens. I just want a damn flu shot!" Arnold decided that he had heard enough.

"Ok, people, listen up!" They turned towards him.

"Everyone here needs to relax. Yes, there is a shortage of flu shots this year. In fact, every year, we never have as many flu shots as we would like, but we've always made it through the flu season. Now this year, it's going to be a little different. Only certain people such as the elderly over 65, young children under two years old or people with chronic health problems really need flu shots. It's been this way for years, except in the past the shortages weren't that bad. So if you fit into those categories, then you qualify for a flu shot. The important thing is for you not to panic. Please, everybody relax." The crowd started settling down. Arnold walked over towards the elderly couple.

"Now if you'll just come with me, we'll make sure you get your flu shots." He then turned towards the young mother.

"You'll be right after this couple, I promise." She nodded her head. However the construction worker remained unsettled.

"What about me?" Arnold turned towards him.

"Sir, I'm sorry you don't look like you fit one of the categories. Do you have any chronic medical problems that we should know about?"

"No, but I need to have this flu shot. Please." He pleaded in a desperate tone.

"I'm sorry sir, but we're not allowed to dispense flu shots to those that don't qualify. Besides, it is very possible that even with the flu shot that you can still get the flu."

"But the chances will be smaller?"

"Well, yes, but it is possible, if you're careful to remain healthy even without the flu shot." The man shook his head.

"You're not doing a very good job, doc. You won't be able to get that stuff past me."

"Sir, please..."

"I'm getting that shot whether it's from you or someone else!" He barged past Arnold and ran into the hallway.

"Sir!" He turned towards the elderly couple and gave them a sad smile. He ran after the man who was heading towards a locked glass cabinet.

"Excuse me, sir, what are you doing?" Nadine looked at him a bit confused.

"I'm getting a flu shot, even if I have to give it to myself."

"But sir..." Arnold walked next to her.

"It's all right, Nadine, he'll get his flu shot." The man looked at him with hopeful eyes, and Nadine looked at Arnold with shock.

"You're going to give it to me, doc?"

"Yes, I'll give you a shot. Just go into curtain room one over there and I'll be with you shortly."

"Finally, some service." He went into the room and sat on the bed. Arnold took a syringe and headed towards the sink. He filled it with water and squirted it in the air once. Nadine smiled.

"A placebo." Arnold chuckled.

"Hey, I promised to give him a shot." He pulled open the curtain and headed towards the much calmer patient.

"All right, sir, please roll up your sleeve." The man rolled up his sleeve and Arnold quickly gave him the shot. The man breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thanks a lot doc. I don't know what I would do without my flu shot"

"I don't know what you would do either."

"Phoebe, we've got one coming on from the helipad." Troy turned towards Phoebe from the help desk.

"The helipad?"

"Yeah, this one is coming from a little outside the county."

"Any info on what it is?"

"Dispatch said it was some girl complaining of a strep throat and a rash." Phoebe raised an eyebrow and gave Troy a puzzled look.

"A rash and strep throat? Why are they coming here then? Couldn't their local clinic deal with this?"

"It sounded pretty urgent to me." Phoebe sighed.

"All right, then I guess we'll take it." She nodded to Sheena and they headed towards the elevator.

"Oh, and call Wartz or Gerald and tell them to get ready. Let's get a gurney ready." Troy nodded.

"So how's Eugene?"

"Oh, he's doing fine, thanks."

"No more injuries?" Sheena chuckled.

"No, not as much. Besides it wouldn't look good for his job if he kept getting hurt."

"Isn't he still doing Shakespeare in the Park?"

"No, he's selling insurance now." Phoebe chuckled.

"Somehow that seems so fitting." The elevator stopped at the rooftop. They stepped out and were greeted by powerful gusts of the cold wind. Phoebe's white coat was blowing in every direction and they struggled to walk against the winds. The helicopter was slowly descending onto the helipad.

"Are you sure that this thing is safe?" Sheena remarked as she watched the chopper sway perilously in the wind.

"Let's hope so." Phoebe remarked dryly. The chopper finally descended on the pad. The EMT's swung the door open and carried out the young girl stretched out on a stretcher.

"Ok, let's get her on the gurney!" Phoebe yelled above the noisy chopper. "One, Two, Three, move!" They moved her onto the gurney. The young girl was around thirteen years old. She was feverish and was in a state of shock. She also had some purple skin discolorations around the right leg along with evidence of swelling and warmth. There was also a foul smelling odor emanating from the site of her leg.

"What do we have here?" Sheena asked loudly.

"Thirteen year old girl has strep throat but then ends up with these weird lesions on her legs. Purple looking and smells god-awful." Phoebe squinted closely at the swelling on her legs.

"No, no, it can't be." She said to herself.

"Dr. Heyerdahl?" Sheena called. Phoebe snapped out of it.

"Ok, this doesn't look good. You say she had strep?"

"Yeah, she was almost over it, according to her parents, and then these lesions start showing up on her legs."

"Ok, let's get an IV with saline. Is she allergic to penicillin?"

"I don't think so, her parents didn't say."

"Ok, IV of penicillin, impenem, and sulbactam. We need to get her to surgery ASAP." Sheena started inserting the IV's in. Phoebe continued.

"We need to get her to surgery right now. It looks like she's developed necrotizing fasciitis from the strep she had.

"Flesh-eating bacteria?"

"I'm afraid so. Let's move it!" They wheeled the gurney toward the elevator and quickly ran in as the doors closed behind them.

"Nice of you to drop in." Arnold looked up as Helga walked in.

"You miss me?"

"Of course."

"Glad to hear." He smiled.

"Busy so far?" She asked as she put on her white coat.

"Just a lot of flu shots and one placebo shot." Helga laughed.

"You used water?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"It's the oldest trick in the book, football-head."

"Hey, it still took a certain level of skill and poise to pull this off. This guy was not an easy character."

"Just keep telling yourself that."

"I will."

"Dr. Greene?" Nadine called, walking from curtain room 2.

"Yeah."

"There's a young boy who I think has a case of pneumonia." She handed him the chart and Arnold took it without even looking at it.

"Ok, Nadine, I'll take a look at him."

"He's displayed the usual symptoms; fever, cough, some chest pains. His breathing was very labored so I got him started on oxygen as a precaution."

"Ok, that's good Nadine." He walked towards the curtain and pulled it open.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Gr... short-man?" Arnold stepped back in shock. There lying on the examining table was his son looking very tired. He gave his father a tired smile. Sitting beside him was his mother, dressed surprisingly conservatively. Arnold turned to her.

"Why didn't you take him to Dr. Bailey?"

"I did, but he told me to take him here just to make sure that there wasn't anything seriously wrong." She replied very matter-of factly.

"Did you tell Nadine not to tell me that it was Sean?"

"Just keeping you on your toes, doctor." Arnold shook his head, wiped his brow, and sat down on the bed.

"Well short-man, I wish I didn't have to see you like this." He held his son's hand for a while.

"Am I going to be all right, daddy?"

"Yeah, short-man, you should be fine." Nadine entered the room and gave an apologetic grin. Arnold waved it off.

"Ok, short-man, we're going to have to do some tests on you first." He turned towards Nadine.

"Why don't we get a chest x-ray, CBC, and blood cultures? Also, let's get him started on levofloxacin and macrolide for when he leaves." He turned back to his son.

"Ok short-man, Nadine is going to take you to get some tests done to make sure that you're ok. If the tests come out right, then we'll give you some medicine here and more to take when you get home."

"Do I have to stay here?"

"I don't think so, short-man. I think you'll be able to go home with your mother. You'll just have to get plenty of rest, drink your fluids, and take your meds." He kissed his son's forehead.

"I'll see you later, short-man."

"Bye, daddy." Nadine wheeled the bed away towards x-ray, leaving Arnold and Lila standing in the room. An awkward silence pervaded the room.

"Well."

"Well."

"You want to sit down somewhere?"

"That would be nice." They walked slowly towards the waiting room, hands swaying, close but not touching. Arnold sat down first.

"So how's he doing?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know, how's he handling the fact that his parents don't live together anymore?"

"He seems ok to me. I mean he was sad in the beginning but he's getting used to it." Arnold looked at her with a pained expression. She realized that she had hurt him and put her hand on his in a comforting gesture.

"I'm sorry Arnold. I didn't mean it like that. Of course he missed you, but it's important that he learns to live with us being separated."

"Yeah, I know." He gave her a small smile and she squeezed his hand a couple of times.

"We need to get him into surgery right now." Wartz barked.

"Do you know what you're doing, Vince?" He gave Phoebe an incredulous look.

"Of course, I do Phoebe."

"We've never faced a flesh-eating bacteria case before."

"It's in the textbooks."

"This isn't a textbook."

"Can I but in or is this a private conversation?" Wartz and Phoebe looked up and saw Gerald standing in front of them.

"I'm sorry, Gerald, of course." Gerald cleared his throat.

"There's another option, one that we haven't discussed."

"And that would be?"

"We could use the hyperbaric oxygen chamber." Wartz raised an eyebrow.

"That's only used for treating wounds. Besides, it's not really an accepted practice."

"Massachusetts General Hospital used hyperbaric oxygen to treat a case very similar to ours; saved the young boy's legs from being amputated." Wartz rubbed his chin.

"It's too much of a risk."

"I'm telling you, that it's been done before."

"It could be too dangerous."

"We have to resist the urge to cut, Vince." Wartz took two steps forward so that his face was inches away from Gerald's.

"What are you implying, Johanssen?" He hissed.

"Nothing, Vince. I'm saying that sometimes some surgeons have a predisposition towards cutting when there are possible non-invasive options." Phoebe decided that it was time to step in.

"Ok, that's enough. This is not helping our patient." They were silent for a while. Phoebe continued.

"I'm going to make a decision as chief of this ER. We're going to use the oxygen therapy." Wartz's eyes lit up.

"I am a director of the hospital, Phoebe. Technically I could have you reprimanded for this."

"I'll take full responsibility for what happens, Vince. Any liability, any repercussions, you can place on my shoulders." He smirked.

"Fine with me then." He stormed off leaving Phoebe and Gerald alone.

"Nadine, was that Lila who came in?" Helga looked up from the desk.

"Yeah, she brought in their son. He's caught pneumonia."

"Ouch."

"It's unfortunate."

"Is he still in curtain room 2?"

"Yeah, he just got back from X-Ray." Helga walked out from behind the desk and headed towards the room. She pulled the curtain open to find Sean resting comfortably in the bed. His eyes brightened when he saw her.

"Hi, Helga." He smiled tiredly at her.

"Hey, kiddo. You don't have to talk much; I know you're tired." She sat down on the edge of the bed.

"I don't want to have to take all these medicines." Helga smiled and patted his hand.

"Well kiddo, these medicines are going to make you feel better. You're lucky your case wasn't as bad."

"I hope I get better before Christmas." He was starting to doze off. Helga smiled and squeezed his hand.

"You will kiddo. Now just get some sleep." She stood up to leave and he fell into a deep sleep with a smile on his face. She walked out of the room and pulled the curtain shut.

"Hey Nadine, do you know where Arnold is?"

"He should be around here somewhere, but I'm not exactly sure." Helga started walking around and stopped at the waiting room. He was sitting there with Lila, hands intertwined and engaged in meaningful conversation. Helga felt her pulse shoot up and she took a deep breath.

"Ok Helga, don't get too worked up. They're divorced, remember."

"Can you explain to us how this procedure works again?" The girl's father scratched his head.

"Of course, Mr. Kaline." Phoebe responded patiently. "What we're going to do is put Jamie in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber which is a pressurized chamber full of one-hundred percent oxygen. The oxygen will react with the bacteria producing free radicals. Free radicals are chemically unstable and will start to break apart upon formation. That's how the oxygen will destroy the bacteria."

"Are you sure this is going to work?"

"I can't guarantee anything. I can only tell you that it's been done before at one of the best hospitals in the United States. I can also tell you that if this procedure works, Jamie will be able to continue her softball career as opposed to potentially being an amputee." He took a deep breath.

"We're willing to take the chance."

"And we're going to do everything that we can to make sure it works."

Arnold sighed as he walked back from the waiting room. Sean had just been discharged from the hospital and he was going back with his mother. He walked behind the desk and signed off a few charts that were left for him. He massaged his temples and walked towards the lounge. As he entered he noticed Helga sitting quietly at the round table.

"Hey, are you all right?" He asked in a concerned tone.

"Yeah I'm just tired, that's all." He put his white lab coat in his locker, removed his stethoscope and sat down next to her.

"Guess that makes the two of us, then."

"So how's Lila?"

"She's doing fine. Almost too fine it seems."

"What does that mean?"

"Well she's seeing someone; that partner in her firm. The one she had the fling with." Helga was silent.

"Oh."

"It's like we weren't even married; she just went from me to him like I wasn't there."

"She doesn't realize what she's lost." Helga looked at him intently. Inside she was rejoicing. He smiled.

"I'm glad somebody thinks that." He continued.

"You know, I probably sound really childish, but for some reason, I was holding on to the notion that Lila and I would end up getting back together, even after the divorce. In the back of my mind I thought we would end up working things out."

"It's all right to think that. I guess that everybody has things that they don't want to get rid of; sometimes we hold on to them for so long that it becomes a part of who we are." They sat quietly for a while, two people holding on to seemingly lost dreams.