Two months of living in utter hell and this is what he returns to. A completely new facility with a brand new structure to it. Granted he was rather fond of the openness of the facility, but still. He'd managed to find himself lost three times in the hour since his return. He walked through the main corridor, limping slightly, and entered the hub. Jess was seated at the ADD with Becker standing beside her. He smirked slightly. Emily had informed him of Becker finally making a move.
Becker looked up from the ADD and nodded. "Get yourself lost Matt?"
"No comment." Matt replied.
Becker smirked and looked back down at his file.
Jess turned in her chair. "It's really easy once you get the hang of it. Besides, it's much bigger than the last facility."
Matt nodded. "I appreciate that fact."
"You and everyone else." Becker said.
"Jess."
All three of them turned. Emily was walking toward the ADD with a file in her hand. She wore a light blue wrap around sleeved shirt. The top held a soft 'v' down the front and a tie on the lower left side. She wore fitted jeans and flat shoes. Her hair was pulled up into a loose side pony. Several freed curls bounced with each step. Matt found himself fixated on her as she walked.
"Delivering reports for Lester." Jess asked.
Emily nodded and sighed. "At least it's something."
"True." Jess said. "I'll go up there with you and then we can leave straight away."
Matt frowned. "Leave?"
Jess and Emily turned toward Matt. "Oh, you didn't know. Emily has an appointment today. Did you want to take instead?"
Matt shook his head quickly. "No. I should stay here and keep everyone outta trouble."
Emily nodded. "Alright. We'll be back in a few hours."
Jess and Emily walked around the ADD. They walked up the railing toward Lester's office. Matt waited a moment before looking over his shoulder. He watched Emily as she walked up the ramp with ease, talking in depth with Jess toward the office.
"That was subtle." Becker said.
"Like you're one to talk." Matt replied, looking at Becker.
"True, but I have dealt with that." Becker stated.
"Only took you how many near death experiences?" Matt asked.
Becker set the file down. "I stopped counting after one."
Matt smirked.
"My point is, you need to act." Becker said.
"Act on what?" Matt asked.
"Were you not just staring at your pregnant wife as she walked by?" Becker asked.
"Right, well acting on that's what got me into this situation in the first place Becker." Matt said. He turned from the ADD and started walking out of the hub. As he left the hub, something nagged at him mentally, but he couldn't figure out what.
Emily was lying back on the examination table. Her feet hung over the edge of the table while the doctor sat beside her. Emily's blue shirt was pulled up over her protruding belly. A paper-like skeet covered her bare legs as the doctor continued with the exam. The doctor grabbed a small bottle and laid out a pool of a jelly substance over Emily's belly. Emily inhaled quickly at the touch of the jelly.
"Always cold." The doctor smiled.
Emily smiled. "Yes. I don't think I'll ever get used to it."
The doctor placed a small device over her belly and looked at the screen in front of her. She smiled. "Well you're babies grown since the last examination. Very good news. How's the movement?"
"Off and on." Emily answered.
The doctor nodded. "They're moving right now."
"I can tell." Emily laughed.
The doctor pressed a few keys at the computer. "Listen to this." The silence was suddenly filled with a low bumping sound. It echoed every few seconds. "Your baby's heartbeat."
Emily smiled.
"Did you want to know the sex?" the doctor asked.
"You can tell?" Emily asked.
The doctor nodded. "They finally decided to let us see. Would you like to know?"
Emily bit her lip. Did she want to know? Or would she rather wait? Would Matt want to know? "Yes. I would."
Seconds after Jess and Emily had returned to the ARC, the alarm sounded. The team had set out, Matt and Danny included. Jess and Emily took the ADD, watching over the teams actions. The anomaly had opened in the forest just outside the city limits; thankfully there were no witnesses or people put at risk.
The ARC vehicles came to a suddenly halt. A small herd of three horned herbivores grazed about the field in front of them. Matt cut the engine to his car. He looked around the herd, taking in the numbers. He knew very well that any triceratops could turn hostile toward them.
"I count twelve." Matt said.
"Same here." Abby answered.
"Any sign of the bull?" Matt asked.
"Yeah, far left. Probably on your nine." Abby explained.
Matt turned his head. He spotted the larger of the tops several meters away. "I see him."
"So what's the plan?" Becker asked.
"Start a stampede toward the anomaly." Matt explained.
"How?" Danny asked.
"Threaten the bull and it'll follow the car straight to the anomaly." Matt explained.
"So who gets to distract the bull?" Connor asked.
Matt turned the ignition back on. He stepped on the gas, revving the engine loudly. The tops nearby moved away. Matt watched the bull's attention turn to him. He revved the engine again, egging the bull toward him.
"Matt!"
Matt threw his truck into reverse and waited. "Find the anomaly."
The bull roared and charged Matt. Matt floored it. His truck ripped from the herd in reverse. Matt turned the wheel sharply, turning around. He threw it into drive and headed from the herd. He could hear the bull stomping after him. He weaved the truck in between tree clusters, hoping to slow the bull down. Matt glanced into his mirror. The bull was several meters behind him, but not by much. The bull shook its head in anger, trying to hit the back of the truck.
"Abby Connor, did you find the anomaly?" Matt asked.
"We're on our way to it now." Abby explained.
The bull slammed into the back of the truck. Matt jerked forward. The car whined loudly. He felt it starting to slow down. Matt looked at the gas gauge. The needle was slowly dropping toward the empty.
"Dammit. I'm losing fuel, I gotta turn around now or I'll never make it back." Matt explained.
"Do it." Becker ordered.
Matt set his teeth and swerved the truck around. He narrowly missed the tops in the swerve. The truck turned around and headed back toward the anomaly. Matt dropped his gaze back to the gauge, which was quickly dropping. The car jerked again as the tops slammed into it with its horns. Matt jerked the wheel again, driving it way from the tops. But the tops kept coming back.
"Matt, Connor has the anomaly ready, herd them along." Abby said.
"Copy that." Matt replied. "Jess, send me the coordinates."
"Sending them now." Jess explained.
The truck jerked again. Matt groaned in pain. "Get all the vehicles four meters behind the anomaly. Make sure everyone's ready to fire at the stragglers."
"Copy." Becker said.
Matt swerved around the trees. He spotted the bright anomaly and the vehicle formation just meters ahead. His gauge was just reaching empty. He was so close. So close.
Suddenly the truck jerked to the right. Matt held onto the wheel, trying to stabilize the truck. The truck screeched loudly. Matt winced in pain. The truck jerked violently forward Matt glanced through the window. The triceratops rammed the truck again. Mat winced, grabbing the wheel for support. He fought to keep the truck in control. The triceratops ran alongside the truck and slammed its side. The truck jerked beneath Matt's guidance.
"Matt we see you." Abby said.
Suddenly the bull slammed into the back of the truck. The force of the impact knocked the truck into a spin. Matt stepped on the breaks, trying to stop the truck. The truck tires screeched as it came to a stop. Matt looked to his left. The triceratops was charging the left side of the truck. Matt gripped the steering wheel tightly, bracing himself for the impact. The bull slammed into the left side of the truck, throwing it into the air. Metal crunched under the force and impact as it tumbled across the ground.
Jess and Emily sat at the ADD. Jess ran her fingers over the computer keys, trying to work without CCTV footage. Emily glanced occasionally between Jess' frustrated expression and the black box screen. The team's dots were located several meters from the anomaly. Suddenly one of the dots took off from the group. Emily frowned. Matt was ripping from the group and from the anomaly.
"What is he doing?" Emily asked.
Jess shook her head. "Trying to get the heard into stampede formation."
Emily's eyes grew large. "What?"
Jess grabbed one of the comms and passed it to Emily. "here."
Emily took the comm and slipped it into her ear. She watched the screen as Matt drove from the group. She noticed its erratic movements forward. She sighed heavily in frustration. What good were she and Jess when they couldn't see what was happening?
"Dammit. I'm losing fuel, I gotta turn around now or I'll never make it back." Matt explained.
"Do it." Becker ordered.
Emily watched Matt make a sharp turn around, heading back to the others. She leaned forward, watching the screen nervously. He was slowly heading back, his movements erratic.
"Matt, Connor has the anomaly ready, herd them along." Abby said.
"Copy that." Matt replied. "Jess, send me the coordinates."
"Sending them now." Jess explained. She typed quickly, biting her lip.
"Get all the vehicles four meters behind the anomaly. Make sure everyone's ready to fire at the stragglers." Matt said.
"Copy." Becker said
Emily could hear the grinding of metal. She winced at the sound, watching Matt's black box. IT was becoming even more erratic. But he was so close to the others. Ten meters and closing. Almost there.
"Matt we see you." Abby said.
Suddenly a massive screech of metal echoed through the comms. Emily cringed, pulling the comm from her ear. Jess gasped beside her, holding her hand over her ear. Emily looked at the ADD screen. The black box wasn't moving toward the others. A red light highlighted the box id, flashing off and on. Emily's hand trembled on Jess' armrest of her chair. Jess grabbed Emily's hand, hoping to comfort her friend.
"Jess call the medics! The tops flipped the truck." Danny explained.
Jess moved quickly. "On it."
Emily drew her hands up to her mouth. He had to be alright. He just had to be. "Jess, can you put me through to Matt?"
Jess turned. She nodded slowly. With the press of a few keys and one finally nod, Jess had patched Emily through to Matt.
Emily removed her shaking hand from Jess' arm. She pressed the comm in her ear. "Matt? Matt can you hear me?"
Silence followed through the comm.
"Keep trying." Jess urged.
Emily nodded. "Matt can you hear me?"
Still nothing.
"Becker, medics are en route. ETA, five minutes." Jess explained.
"I copy Jess." Becker replied.
Emily watched the screen. She could see Becker and Abby's figures move around the bull, trying to get close enough to the truck. Abby was closest to the truck, but the bull turned on her and charged. Abby managed to dive out of its way. Becker made a move for the truck but the bull turned on him as well.
"Matthew answer me, dammit." Emily yelled.
There was static on the receiving end of the comm. Then a garbled reply broke through. "Would you stop yelling at me?"
Emily sighed I relief. She grabbed onto the arm of Jess' chair for support. "Thank god. Are you hurt?"
She heard Matt groan through the comms. "I think so."
"Matt listen, the medics are on the way, just hold on." Emily explained.
"I don't know how long I can do that." Matt replied.
"Can you estimate how severe things are?" Emily asked.
"Probably a few broken or bruised ribs. And my legs pinned beneath the console." Matt explained. "It's…it's pretty hard…to focus."
Emily bit her lip nervously. She had to do something to keep him focused. There had to be something. "Um…Matt, there's…there's something we need to talk about. And I think now is the…the best time."
"I'm listening." Matt said.
Emily glanced in Jess direction. "Remember my meeting with the doctor?"
"Yeah."
"Well…she…she informed me that…that I could know which gender our baby was." Emily explained.
Jess turned her head. Her eyes were wide and her lips were slightly parted.
"I don't know if you want to know, but I did." Emily said.
"Boy or girl?" Matt asked.
Emily smiled. "Which would you have preferred? A son or a daughter?"
"In all honesty, I never thought about it before." Matt answered.
"We're having a daughter." Emily answered.
"A girl?" Matt asked.
Emily nodded, knowing he couldn't see. "I supposed we should start thinking of names then."
"At least we can remove Connor, James, and Becker from the list." Matt said.
Emily laughed lightly. "Yes we can." She could hear the exhaustion in his voice. He couldn't stay conscious much longer if it was just Emily talking. Then Emily got an idea. "Choose a letter."
"What?" Matt asked.
"Choose a letter." Emily repeated.
"Um…L?" Matt answered.
Emily nodded. "Alright. Start thinking of names beginning with 'L'." Emily ordered.
Matt snorted lightly. "Okay. Linda. Lorie. Lydia. Lisa. Liza. Any one of these sound interesting?"
"A few." Emily answered.
"Good." Matt said.
"Medics are arriving." Jess said.
Emily exhaled deeply. "Matt, the medics have arrives."
The comm was silent.
"Matt?" Emily asked. Panic gripped her chest. "Matt can you hear me?"
Still there was nothing.
Emily turned to Jess looking panicked. "Jess-"
"It's alright, the medics have him." Jess explained.
Emily watched Matt closely. He laid fast sleep on his makeshift bed, back in his apartment. She'd gone home with him after the medics had released him from the hospital hours ago. However, upon the doctor's request, someone was to stay with him for the next few days and monitor his condition. As everyone else was still needed, and would be needed over the next few days, Emily had nominated to watch over Matt.
Emily sighed heavily. She was absolutely exhausted but it wasn't yet seven in the evening. Still, it wasn't like she had the ability to go or do much of anything else. She turned from the window and looked back down at Matt. Several smaller bandages covered smaller injuries he'd sustained. His chest was wrapped tightly in beige colored bandages to help him heal. His head was turned to his left as he slumbered. His right arm lay across his stomach. A thin sheet was draped over his body.
Emily contemplated sitting on the ground and watch him longer, but she doubted she would be able to rise later on. Instead, she headed back to the bedroom. Carefully, Emily began pushing the mattress across the floor out to the living room. She pushed it several meters from Matt's bed. Emily turned back, returning to the bedroom and retrieved several blankets. Emily draped another over Matt, careful not to waken him. She settled herself on the mattress and removed her shoes. She eased herself back, leaning on her hands on the mattress and looked back to Matt.
How much longer was she to keep doing this to herself? How much loner was her heart and body to be tested? She'd only just gotten him back and he was nearly taken from her again. They had yet to grow closer, but Emily felt that there was a chance between them. She felt that Matt had actually cared about her and the baby. Whether he cared for her or not was just something Emily would need to discover, if fate would allow the proper moments for such a discovery. Emily reached for her bag and pulled out her journal. She opened the book and began writing quickly.
London England
September twenty-seventh two thousand and eleven
I wright tonight's entry within the familiar wall of Matthew's flat. Today has become a day full of emotions. A gateway opened in the forest just outside the limits of the city. Thankfully, there were no people around to be in danger. However, the same could not be said for the team. In his attempt to distract the animals to allow the others time, Matthew's vehicle was attacked and rolled numerous times. Although he survived, he is injured and in pain. Several ribs were broke and others bruised. He has also sustained numerous cuts that will take less time to mend. However, Jessica has informed me that Matthew will be on 'medical leave' for a few days. I am told this will prevent him from working to allow him time to heal. I am unsure however how Matthew will respond to such idea. He is hardly able to stand motionless for a few seconds. To limit his movement to his flat for a few days' time almost seems like suicide.
On a more peasant note, I return from my doctor's appointment with very appealing news. The baby is growing at a wonderful rate. The movements are wonderful news, if not further growing uncomfortable for me. I have also been told the gender of the child I carry. I am proud to declare that I will soon be the mother of a baby girl. Already I grow anxious of her features. Whether she will carry more of myself or Matthew's features.
As I am now aware of the gender of my child, I am left with a difficult task of naming them. I have been given several names, listed by Matthew during his incident with the Triceratops this afternoon. There are few that I am fond of. I shall write them within my journal so I may not lose such a needed list. I will also continue to write names that Matthew or myself further hear and are fond of…
How much more am I to endure? Since my arrival to this time, I have yet to behold a calming…dull day. It had been nothing but trials and tribulations. I do not complain of such turbulent days here, no. They have been the days that I learn more, that I grow further. Still, I find myself reaching limits I never thought I could endure before. But I am reaching my limits nonetheless. I partially believe that part of such limits are induced by emotional changed caused during pregnancy. However, there are items that I must address before it is too late. I can only pray they will be soon.
Charlotte. Jessica. Abigail. Jennifer. Lucy. Lydia. Linda. Lorie. Liza. Lisa.
can't just be nice can i?