CHAPTER 81 – JACK'S RESPONSE
Jack kept up a brisk pace as he made his way along one of the transporter's many corridors leading away from the Communication Center.
While the CC – as it was affectionately known by the passengers and crew - wasn't necessarily the most comfortable place for an hour-long meeting, it was the only place that had allowed for satellite-to-satellite relays so that people on Earth could communicate with the ship with only a minimum delay in time – and that was only because the transporter was still fairly close to Earth.
Putting aside his unanswered questions from his meeting, Jack tried to make sense out of Elizabeth's messages.
He decided not to waste time waiting for the elevator, and headed towards the stairwell.
Elizabeth had assured him that nothing serious was wrong, but her long string of nine messages in less than two minutes was clearly an indication that she was in need of either venting, a hug, or both.
Jack missed a step as he replayed the most recent message in his mind.
She peed on Aaron?
Can't be.
Must be a typo that was then auto-corrected.
For what?
What could it possibly be an auto-correct for?
He thought for a moment. Running various letters and words through his mind as he slowed his pace, but he couldn't come up with a logical possibility.
Nothing.
Jack shook his head in bewilderment
She really did mean that she peed on our son.
She actually PEED on our son!
What goes on with her?!
"How's my favorite boy?" Jack asked his son as he took the small boy from Elizabeth's arms and planted a kiss on the boy's soft baby cheek immediately after walking into their quarters. He was rewarded with a big smile; it was obvious that the boy enjoyed being back with one of his two favorite people.
"Why's his hair all wet? Ah geez, it's not –", a disgusted Jack didn't finish his question as he moved his face a few inches back from the boy's hair and looked at Elizabeth.
"No, it's not pee," she dismissed his concern. "You think I would let him wander around with pee in his hair? It's wet because I gave him a shower. After I peed on him."
Jack carried Aaron around the room, winced slightly when the boy pulled on his short hair, pretended to munch on the tiny fist shoved into his mouth, gently rocked the tiny body back and forth in a wide exaggerated swing, and finally sat on the floor to allow the energetic boy to crawl on him, all while Elizabeth provided a non-stop account of the last two hours of her life.
She went into so much detail that Jack thought it may just be an entire two hours until she finished talking.
. . . . he threw his socks. Obviously, he was mimicking me when I threw socks at you. He's a smart baby and learns quick. We'll need to be on our toes with him. . . .
. . . you weren't at your office, but that rude First Officer was there, and he said that you didn't have Aaron with you. I don't really like that man . . . .
. . . . and Abigail didn't directly blame him, but I'm pretty sure that she thinks he dropped the banana peel . . . . .
. . . Hazmat had to be called to wipe up the blood and sterilize the kitchen after Tom fell. But really, how hard could it have been for Tom to see a yellow peel on the floor? Even if he was carrying a case of water. Seem like he's a bit clumsy if you ask me.
. . . . I just wanted a nap! We didn't sleep well last night. Now I know why. He had another tooth coming in. . . . .
. . . Susie and Joyce tried their best but they didn't have his teething toy because Abigail was so preoccupied with making banana bread, - it was delicious by the way. She'll probably serve some as a dessert tonight. Anyhow, the kitchen was a mess, and with getting dinner started, she forgot to give his teether to the girls. I have it now, but he doesn't need it. . . . .
. . . . . Cassie gave him the wrong medication . . . .
. . . .the doctor seemed to think it wasn't that serious, but honestly, he needs to be written up, and so does Cassie. . . .
. . . . Of course, he then told me how serious it actually was. So, which was it? Serious or not serious? It can't be both. Serious for me because I can't let the boy out of my sight for seventy-two hours, but not so serious that Cassie gets relieved of her duties or that Doc begs for my forgiveness. That seems very convenient for the doctor and Cassie. Putting it all on me, like I'm some mother who can't take proper care of my son without tons of instructions. Maybe if Cassie had followed proper instructions, she wouldn't have given our son the wrong medication! That doctor actually told me that maybe if I had more experience around children, I would be able to cope better! I'm a teacher and a mother! I can cope just fine! . . . .
. . . . . and I said . . . .
. . . I fed him again. He acted like he was starving. Gosh, my breasts actually hurt now. . . . .
. . .didn't lock the door and he was crawling. Those new door sensors are getting to be a real bother . . .
"And that's what happened," she finally finished with a flourish, and then flopped backwards onto the berth. She sighed and waited for Jack to offer sympathy about her situation.
"Did you have to pee on him?" Jack asked in disbelief.
"That's all you got out of this?! That I had a slight accident?! What about the part about him not being able to feel pain?!"
When Jack apologized for having been too busy to pick up Aaron from Abigail, which would have prevented the whole sequence of events, Elizabeth took the blame for the entire incident.
"It's all my fault. I threw my t-shirt and my socks at you this morning. He's only doing what he sees me doing. That's what started everything. I taught him that throwing things was fun. He threw the banana peel, Tom slipped on it, Abigail got overwhelmed."
"It's not your fault."
"It is," Elizabeth said with resignation from her place on the berth. She was tempted to close her eyes and fall asleep, but her stomach growled, reminding her that it was dinner-time . "Why did you ever marry me? I am so much trouble."
"Jack? Did you hear me? I asked why you ever married me," she repeated, as she lay on her back and stared at the ceiling, when Jack didn't immediately respond.
"Oh, did you want an actual answer? I thought that was just some kind of rhetorical question."
"Yes," she answered as she jerked herself upward into a sitting position. "Now I actually would like an answer."
"Jack?"
"I'm thinking!"
The corridor near the Cafeteria had been crowded as hungry passengers and day crew-members made their way to the large room for the evening meal. Three weeks into the voyage meant that the passengers were not yet totally bored with the menu, but the intercom announcement of freshly baked banana bread for dessert had been a nice surprise. Like an unexpected present.
Jack had transferred Aaron to Elizabeth's arms at the doorway, told her to save him a seat, and promised to be back in ten minutes.
"I assume you heard," the doctor said when his clinic door slid open and Jack walked in. "I'm surprised you weren't here earlier. I was expecting you the moment your family left my office."
It was clear that the doctor had spent the last hours re-thinking how Elizabeth had dressed him down, and he had decided that he didn't like feeling like a chastised student of hers.
"I was in a meeting, but Elizabeth has told me everything," Jack explained.
"Before you get started, Officer Thornton, I think you should know that I don't appreciate your wife addressing me in that manner which she did."
"Really?"
"I am a professional, and have never had a patient injured in my care. Lt. Greenview is young and she made a mistake, but it didn't have any lasting consequences. Your son will be fine. He just needs to be watched carefully. I've spoken to Lt. Greenview and she feels entirely guilty about what occurred."
"She should," Jack said simply.
"She's extremely upset by the incident. She's spent the last hour crying and reviewing medical literature and medication side-effects and dosages so that she doesn't make another mistake."
"That's good."
"My brother warned me about your wife", the doctor, still feeling the sting of Elizabeth's words, informed Jack. "He took care of her when she was pregnant on her last flight."
"I remember."
"Said she was determined," the doctor said critically. "Selfless to the point of being irritating. Overly concerned with matters that she considered important."
"I think our son is important," Jack said. He looked across the room at Ensign Sooner, who was organizing supplies. Jack's eyes darted from the ensign to the door, and the medic immediately put down the object in his hand and scurried from the clinic.
"Well, yes. Obviously, he's important," the doctor admitted when the door slid closed leaving him and Jack alone. "But I mean her attitude as a whole was simply uncalled for. May I remind you that it is only because of my approval that your son has even been allowed on this flight. And it was my generosity that allowed for your wife to bring aboard that excessive amount of . . . STUFF that she insisted on bringing for him."
"And we appreciate that excess weight allowance," Jack agreed.
"Well. Good," the doctor replied in pleased surprise. He was slightly taken off guard by Jack's calm demeanor. "I would appreciate you having a word with your wife before things get out of control. I am the only doctor aboard this transporter and I will need to interact with your son, and your wife, over the next three and a half months."
Jack leaned back against a wall and look curiously at the doctor. "You want me to have a word with my wife?"
"Yes. About her attitude. I assume you've come to apologize on her behalf, but I would expect her to do so on her own."
"Doctor, Elizabeth told me what she said to you and Lt. Greenview," Jack said. "My wife was brought up a lady and she sees the best in people so it's highly unusual for her to be confrontational. If you think that I came here to apologize for her behavior, I believe you have entirely misunderstood the purpose for my visit. Like Elizabeth, I came here to remind you of two things. My own two things. One, I'm a father and you have messed with my son. Don't ever do that again. Two, you were condescending to my wife. Don't ever do that again. You, see, despite how I may tease her from time to time, she truly is the sun, and the moon, and stars to me. Keep that in mind the next time you talk to her and you even think about possibly being rude. And just so you know, my wife has an impeccable reputation. One word from her to the citizens of Coal Valley about her experiences with you, and I think you'll find your time there to be quite difficult. As for the remainder of this voyage, I expect you to spend the next three months being on your best and most professional behavior. If not, I'll see to it that you're written up for this medical error."
Without another word, Jack turned and walked out of the clinic. Aaron and Elizabeth were waiting for him in the cafeteria, and he had already decided that he had spent too much time away from them today.
On the lowest level of the ship, the machinery hummed in a soothing rhythm. The man on duty stood up from his swiveling chair and looked at his watch. He still had more than an hour before his shift ended and he'd have the opportunity to flirt with the cute woman from logistics. Pushing his blond hair off of his forehead, the Tech Sergeant decided to take a quick walk to stretch his legs.
The door had just slid closed behind him when the largest of pipes which ran the width of station made a small and out-of-the ordinary burping sound.
The water inside the three-foot wide in diameter metal cylinder burped one more time, then made a long echoing noise like a mythical giant gargling mouthwash.
By the time the Tech Sergeant returned two minutes later, the pipe had returned to its normal humming.
He sat back in his chair, none the wiser to the unusual process going on inside the pipe.