Sick

Sara felt dizzy. She could hear Greg talking to her, heard the simple answer she gave him, but she just couldn't make herself turn to face him. She dropped to the floor and her eyes fluttered closed as she fell unconscious. Greg's heart was in his throat as he pushed the buzzer again and again. "Help! I need help in here!"

A doctor came running towards them. "What happened?" He asked as he entered Sara's isolation room and checked her.

"She was talking to me, she was talking, and she just passed out. She never passes out. she walked miles in the desert hurt, dehydrated, before...That's the only time...she needs help."

The doctor nodded as he lifted Sara into her bed. She was burning up and that worried him. "Has she had any other symptoms? Other than this?"

"She's been drinking a lot."

"Water?"

"Of course. That's all they'll give us." He yearned for something stronger than water almost as much as he did for Morgan. Almost.

"Okay. Is it possible that she may have been exposed in a worse way than you?"

Greg shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe. We entered together, but maybe she was in a different space longer...I've been going over and over it in my head, but we didn't know. We were too busy looking at the victim. We didn't see it until the end." He felt like he was letting Sara down by not remembering, Nick as well. Without speaking, each man held each other responsible for their girlfriend's safety when at crime scenes.

"It isn't your fault. The company responsible for this outbreak is." The doctor continued ecking her for signs of being infected. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. I just...Please. Please take care of her."

"Of course. She's not showing much symptoms yet, but she is unconscious so it's harder to tell. When I'm not here, you have to watch her carefully."

He nodded. "Will...will you call our boss? He needs...He needs to tell her boyfriend."

"Of course."

Greg wished that he could be in the same partition as Sara, but they'd gone over that even before this newest development. He knew it was a no go.

"She'll be okay," the doctor said without really believing it.

"She's survived worse," Greg tried to convince himself. He wanted to go home, take Sara with him, wanted this all to be the nightmare it felt like. The doctor nodded as he left, worried. Sara hadn't woken yet. "C'mon, Sara. Please. C'mon." Greg whispered to himself, settling on his bed, more tired than he wanted to admit. His eyes never left her.

Half an hour later, Sara opened her eyes to find Greg staring at her. She had no memory of getting into bed and she was confused. "Thank God," Greg whispered under his breath. "Doc!"

"Don't yell so loudly, Greg," said Sara. "I have a headache. What happened?"

"You had a headache because you hit your head when you passed out."

"Passed out? When?"

"Thirty minutes ago. You were out for half an hour."

"I'm sorry. I must have scared you."

"I had him call Russell, so he could tell Nicky." He rarely called his friend the nickname Catherine had started years before.

"I'm okay though."

"Sara, you passed out. You're burning up."

"Would explain my eyes being sore?"

"Where's the damned doctor?"

"Greggo?" Greg pushed the button again.

The doctor finally came. "What's wrong?"

"She's awake. Her eyes are sore."

"Let me have a look, Sara. How sore are they?"

Just then, Greg heard Nick's familiar voice pop up on the laptop he was using. "Greg?"

"Hey, Nick."

"Is she awake yet?"

"The doctor's just checking her now." He didn't want to tell his friend that Sara wasn't well.

Nick left Greg's computer and Morgan sat down at it. "Hey. How's the case going?"

"Slow. Frustrating." She paused. "Russell told us Sara was sick?"

"I'm worrked about her. She has a fever and now her eyes are sore. Tell me there's something to fix this."

"We're looking, babe. I promise we're looking." She paused. "How do you feel?"

"Fine. Just tired and a little scared."

"I've gotta go. I'll be there again tonight, okay?" Instead of going to the house she'd shared with Sara, she slept in a chair at the edge of the quarantine zone so she could be close. Nick did the same, in shifts.

"I love you."

"Love you too." She got off before she started crying again. She'd done remarkably well, she and Nick both had, but there was no denying that her best friend, her boyfriend, were in danger and there was nothing she could do.

"Greg?" called Sara. "Was that Morgan?"

"Yeah. Nicky will probably be on yours in a few minutes." His friend was more than likely giving the doctor a few minutes with Sara first.

"Okay. Are they okay?" She wanted to see Nick with her own two eyes, but she was terrified of him finding out that she wasn't well.

"Babe?" Nick popped up on Sara's computer. "Sweetheart, are you there?"

"Yes." She felt like crying as the doctor handed her the computer.

"How you doing, peanut?"

"Tired. Did you close the case yet?"

"We're working on it. I promise. I just...I needed to see you."

"I'm okay. I promise."

"Russell said..." He couldn't make himself say it because if he said it, it was real.

"I was just exhausted, that's all."

"Is the doc still there?"

"Yes."

"Let me talk to him."

"Okay." She turned the computer around.

"Is there a problem?" asked the doctor.

"How is she?"

"She's not well," he said honestly. "But we will get her better."

"Please," Nick paused. "She's...she's everything."

"I understand. I'm doing everything I can, but if you found a cure, that would be good."

He nodded. "I will."

"Be quick." Nick nodded, unable to speak.

The doctor handed the computer back. "Buzz if you need me." Greg nodded, starting to get a headache.

"Are you okay, Greg?"

"Yeah."