fanfic_name = The Promise

chapter = 8

author = LTjg_GT_RDF

Type = Alternative Universe

fanfic = THE PROMISE

CHAPTER EIGHT

Roy was late in seeing Rick because he was part of the relocation team. He, Claudia, Lisa and everyone else was busy in helping the civilians and military people move out of the SDF-1. He was tired but he wanted to see Rick to see how his first day of physical therapy went. He went into Rick’s room and found it empty. He notified the head charge nurse.

“Nurse, Commander Hunter is not in his room. Where is he?”

“He’s not in his room?” The head nurse asked in a panicked tone of voice as she walked towards Rick’s room.

“No ma’am he’s not. Where is he?”

“Commander Hunter said he wasn’t tired and asked if he could stay up a bit longer. I told him yes.”

“This is just great!” Roy said in a frustrated tone of voice. “I’ll go look for him!”

“Thank you Captain Fokker.” The head nurse said as she picked up the telephone to notify security. “Security, this is Major Franks. The head nurse in charge of the Rehabilitation Ward. Commander Hunter is not in his room. Start a search of this ward and floor.”

Roy started running and looking and peering into empty rooms. As he came upon the therapy pool, he noticed the door was open. He went inside the room and saw Rick in a wheelchair, short centimeters away from the side edge of the pool. Not wanting to startle Rick by yelling, he ran up to where Rick was, wrapped his hands around the wheelchair’s handle bars and yanked Rick back just as Rick was about to go over the side. Roy’s face was red with rage. He pulled the wheelchair around, knelt down and looked straight into Rick’s eyes.

“What the Hell were you trying to do Rick?!”

“I was just going for a swim, Roy.”

”The Hell you were! You were trying to kill yourself! Weren’t you?!”

“So! What if I was trying to kill myself?”

“Damn it the Hell Rick! Do you want to end up in the Psych Ward? You have too much to lose for by trying to pull a stupid stunt like this! What would Lisa think if she comes to the hospital tomorrow morning and the doctor tells her you’re dead because you committed suicide by drowning yourself?”

“Her life would be better without me! She doesn’t need to married to a man who can’t walk!”

“Didn’t you even bothered to ask her if she wants to be married to you now that your legs have been amputated?!”

“NO! But she deserves better than me!”

“Rick! I’m not going to tell the doctor and the charge nurse of this stupid stunt you tried to pull just now. But if you ever try something like this again. God so help me, I will permanently pull your flying status so fast it will make your head spin!”

“Well, that’s just redundant, isn’t it Roy? You’ll pull my flying status when I can’t even fly much less walk because my legs have been amputated.”

“Let’s just go!”

As Roy pulled Rick to the door’s threshold, Roy looked around to see if anyone was coming up or down the hallway. No one was coming. He began wheeling Rick back to his room when a security guard came running up.

“He’s ok. He just wanted to get a breath of fresh air and he lost his way. I’ll take him back to his room.” Roy lied to the security guard.

“Thanks commander.”

Roy wheeled Rick back to his room and helped him to his bed and pulled up the railing. “Rick, you’re going to stay in bed and you’re not going anywhere unless a nurse or someone on the hospital staff is with you. Just so you don’t get any ideas in wandering off again.” Roy wheeled the chair away from Rick’s bed and parked it in the corner of the room. “I’m sorry I had to do that Rick. But, it’s for your own good.”

“Go to Hell Fokker!” Rick cursed as he turned his back on Roy.

Roy was hurt by what Rick did but he didn’t show it in his voice. “See you tomorrow morning little brother.”

I don’t have a brother. I don’t have anyone. Rick said to himself.

The next morning

Lisa stopped by to see Rick before she reported to duty. Breakfast was served but Rick didn’t even touch his food. He didn’t even bother to uncover the plate. Lisa went over to kiss Rick. She had a concerned look on her face.

“Hi Rick. How’re you doing sweetheart?” Lisa asked as she kissed Rick on the lips.

“I’m doing fine babe.” Rick lied.

Lisa pulled down the railing and sat at the foot of the bed. She was quiet for a while as she bit her lower lip as if she was nervous as to what she was about to say to him. “Rick, Roy told me what you tried to do last night.”

Rick didn’t say anything but he closed his eyes and made a face of frustration. Damn you Roy. Why did you have to do that for?

“Why Rick? Why did you try to kill yourself?” Lisa asked as tears began welling up in her eyes.

“Lisa, it’s because my life is over! I can’t fly anymore. My legs are gone! I can’t fly a plane without legs!”

“That’s not true, sweetheart. If you have the bio legs and the implant, you can fly again.”

“No, I’m not going to do it Lisa. It will not make me feel complete. It will not make me feel like a man. I can’t support you that way.”

”It doesn’t matter sweetheart. I don’t care about you supporting me. I can support you. You can still find ways to be involved with flying. You can teach at the academy.”

“But it will not be the same Lisa! I do care about me supporting you. I’m the man. I’m supposed to provide for you, not the other way around.”

“I don’t care, Rick. I don’t care.” Lisa said as she began to cry.

“But I do care, Lisa. You should have a man that is whole. You should have a man that will carry you across the threshold on your honeymoon. I can’t!”

”I don’t care about that Rick! Don’t you see? I love you no matter what!”

“But it matters to me, Lisa. I love you too! But I can’t be the man you deserve to have any longer. I think it should be best if we don’t get married.” Rick said quietly.

“If that’s the way you feel about it, Rick Hunter! Then so be it!” Lisa said as she took off her engagement ring and slammed it on the table. She left the room crying. Rick’s spirit was broken. I’m sorry Lisa. But it’s the best for the both of us. Rick said to himself as he was crying.

Just then Roy was walking down the hall to Rick’s room. “Hello Lisa. What seems to be…the…problem?” As Roy walked into Rick’s room, he noticed the engagement ring on the table. He groaned. This is just great. Roy said to himself.

”Rick, what just happened in here?”

“The engagements called off, Roy. Lisa and I are not getting married.”

“So you’d given up on yourself and now you’re giving up on Lisa. Is that right?” Roy asked as he started walking towards Rick’s bed.

“That’s not true, Roy. I’m just saying it will be better for Lisa if she wasn’t married to me. I can’t provide for her the way she should. That’s all.”

“Did you even bother to ask her if that what she wants?”

“No.” Rick said quietly and with a slightly bowed head.

“You’re something else. You know that Rick? If Pop was alive, he would tell you to stop feeling sorry for yourself, get off your lazy butt and start getting your life back together.”

“You keep Pop out of this Roy! Pop has nothing to do with what I’m gong through!”

“Pop has everything to do with what you’re going through right now and you know it Rick! You’re just too damned scared, stubborn and bull headed to admit it!”

“That’s crap Roy! Did you know Pop wanted you to have the flying circus after he died? He put you down as the heir to the flying circus in his will! Not me his own son!”

“That’s because your father wanted you to have another life instead of the flying circus! That’s why he never gave you flying lessons! Did you know that?” Rick shook his head. “He wanted you to have something more for your life other than being known as the son of the owner of the Hunter Flying Circus!”

“But the flying circus has been in my family for generations! It started when my great-great grandfather was barnstorming the country after World War I. I wanted to take over the flying circus after pop died!”

“I know that Rick. But your father wanted more for you.” Roy said as he was calming down, found a chair and sat down next to Rick’s bed. “He wanted you to go to college and become a doctor or a lawyer or an engineer. He didn’t want you to take over the flying circus. Not because he knew you couldn’t handle the business end of the circus but because he wanted you to have something more for your life. It was only after you begged me to teach you how to fly and Pop caught us that he finally taught you how to fly.”

“Then why didn’t you come back to us after the Global Civil War was over? Why did you stay around when the SDF-1 crash landed?”

“It’s like I told you before so long ago on Macross Island. This robotech stuff just gets into your blood and you can’t get it out. I know what you’re getting at Rick and I’m sorry. Sometimes, I wish I didn’t convince you to join the RDF. I wish I didn’t invite you to come to Macross Island. But the Zentraedi attacking, the space fold and everything, it just happened. You were at the wrong place at the wrong time. I didn’t know all of this was going to happen, it just did, and for that I’m sorry. If I knew all of this was going to happen to you, I would have never convinced you to come to Macross Island and later join the military. But I did, and this happened to you. And for that, I’m sorry. But we now have to move on with our lives. But also, if I didn’t convince you to come to Macross Island, you and Lisa would have never met and fallen in love. And then where you would be? Do you understand?

Rick nodded his head. He was finally beginning to accept his disability and was ready to move on with his changed life.

“I’m sorry this happened to you, Rick. But I believe this happened for a reason. Call it karma or fate, but I think something good can come out of this for you and Lisa. I really do believe it.”

“You don’t have to apologize, Roy. But thanks for talking to me and getting into my thick skull and getting me to see the light.”

“No problem, Rick. That’s what big brothers are for. We are still brothers?” Roy asked as he extended his hand.

“Yeah, we’re still brothers.” Rick said as he took Roy’s hand and they embraced.

“Good. Now, let me find your fiancée and try to talk some sense to her before she makes the biggest mistake of her life.

“Thanks Roy. I owe you one big time.”

“That you do little brother. That you do.”

Roy walked out of Rick’s room. Roy went searching everywhere for Lisa. He used his cell phone to call the bridge. Claudia told him Lisa wasn’t there. He called her quarters, the voice mail service picked up. The only place Roy knew where Lisa would be is at the officer’s lounge. He walked to the lounge and found Lisa at a table in the back corner at the end of the lounge. He walked over to Lisa’s table.

“Hello Lisa.”

“Hello Roy.” Lisa said quietly.

“Do you mind if I sit down?”

“I’m about to go back on duty, but go ahead. Look Roy, if you’re here to try to convince me not to break off my engagement to Rick, you’re too late.”

“I’m not here for that, Lisa.”

“Then what are you here for?”

“I don’t how to say this Lisa. But, we fighter pilots are perfectionists. We want everything to be right. If anything is wrong, we try so hard to get it right. If we can’t, we’ll still try everything possible to get it right. Rick is that kind of person.”

“Roy, why can’t Rick understand he can’t do it by himself? Why did he try so many times to shut me out?”

“Rick’s a man. He’s needs to prove to himself that any obstacle he faces, he can rise up to that and meet it head on without anyone’s help. If he needs anyone’s help, it shows that he’s less of a man.”

“But he doesn’t have to prove that to me, Roy. I fell in love with Rick for the man he is on the inside, not on the outside.”

“Did you tell him that?”

“Not exactly, but in many ways I did.”

“You need to tell him that. He needs to hear that for himself. Otherwise, he will never know.”

Lisa nodded her head.

“Also, no matter how much he will deny it, he needs you beside him. You’re his strength and anchor. He can’t do it alone. You need to be there to help him up when he falls, to encourage him when he’s tired or frustrated and wants to give up. Don’t give up on him, no matter how much he will give up on himself. He needs you now more than ever.”

She looked at her watch. Amy will not come for Rick until afternoon.

“I think I left something very important in Rick’s room.” She then got up and left the lounge.

Several minutes later, Lisa walked into the hospital. She quietly entered Rick’s room. “Hi Rick.”

“Hello Lisa. What’re you doing here?”

“I left something very important in here.” She looked over at the table and saw her engagement ring. “There it is. It must have fallen off my finger.” Lisa said with a shy smile as she slipped the ring back on her left ring finger and sat at the foot of Rick’s bed. There was awkward silence between the two of them for a long time until Rick spoke up quietly.

“Why, Lisa?”

“Why? What?”

“Why are you still here after all the times I tried to push you away? Why?”

“I made a promise to you Rick. When you put this ring on my finger, I made a promise to you to never to leave your side, and I’m keeping that promise. No matter how many times you’ll try to push me away, I will never leave your side. I love you and I will never stop loving you.” Lisa answered quietly as her heart and voice was breaking with love for Rick.

“But Lisa, you deserve better than me. You deserve a man that is whole. Not a man who has lost his legs.”

Tears began to well up in Lisa’s eyes as she put her hands gently and lovingly on Rick’s face and looked at him straight in the eyes. “I don’t care about that, Rick. I don’t deserve better. I have the best. I have the best in you.” Lisa said in between sobs as Rick shook his head and began to cry. “I know your head may not want to hear what I’m saying to you, but I know your heart is saying yes, you want to hear it. Oh, please Rick, listen to your heart. I don’t care if you don’t have any legs or arms. I didn’t fell in love with Rick Hunter, the man with two legs. I fell in love with Rick Hunter, the man inside. I fell in love with you because you have a good heart. People always tell me what a wonderful person you are because you have a good heart. You’re so kind to people. Many women are envious of me and tell me how lucky I am to be engaged to you because you have a good heart. You’re so warm, kind and gentle. I can’t imagine not having a more wonderful person like you to be engaged to.”

“Lisa, you don’t deserve someone like me.” Rick said with tears coming down his face.

“Yes I do, Rick. Yes I do. Oh Rick, can’t you see that I love you? I don’t care about you missing your legs. It doesn’t change the person you are inside.”

Rick cried with joy when Lisa said those words to him. “Oh baby I’m sorry! I’m sorry I failed you by not being more careful in combat!”

“You didn’t fail me sweetheart. You didn’t fail me at all.” Lisa said as the tears flowed freely from her eyes. “We’re going to get through this. We’re going to get through this together. And with the help of Roy and Claudia, we will see this through to the end. Even Max and Miriya say they will help us, even though they are going to Lamaze classes right now. I’d never given up on you. Please, don’t give up on me. And most of all, don’t give up on you.”

Rick looked at Lisa with love in his eyes. “Lisa, where did you come from? How did you come into my life? You must have come down from Heaven like an angel.”

“Perhaps God, fate or chance has brought us together. Whatever the case may be, I’m so thankful for that. If it wasn’t for you coming into my life, I would never fallen in love again. You came into my life at the right time and you changed it for the better and I’m so happy for that.”

“I love you Lisa Hayes.”

“I love you Rick Hunter.” Lisa said as she was drying her eyes and sniffing her tears. “Now promise me you will do one thing before you go to therapy today.”

“What’s that?”

“Eat your lunch. You didn’t eat breakfast and you will need your strength when you go therapy, no matter how bad the hospital food is.”

Rick laughed through his happy tears and nodded. “Ok Lisa. I’ll eat my lunch.”

“Good because if you don’t, I will come in here and I will force feed your lunch.” Lisa said with a smile through her tears.

“Well, if that’s the case, maybe my arms should have been amputated.” Rick said with a grin.

Lisa balled her fist and hit Rick with all her strength on his arm. “You wise guy.”

“Hey, that hurts.”

“Oh, let me kiss it where it hurts and make it better.” Lisa said as she bent down to where she hit Rick on the arm.

“Better?”

“Yes, much better.”

“I’ll see you this afternoon when you go to therapy.”

“Ok. I love you Lisa.”

“I love you too sweetheart.”

Roy came in just as Lisa was walking out. She smiled as she lifted up her left hand to show Roy that the engagement ring is back on her finger. Roy smiled a big smile. Rick spotted Roy and smiled. “Thanks big brother.” Roy did the thumbs up salute to Rick.

Lunch was served and as Rick promised, he ate his lunch. Later in the afternoon, Amy came in to take Rick to therapy.

“Good afternoon, Commander Hunter.” Amy sweetly said as she smiled at Rick.

Rick genuinely smiled back at Amy. “Good afternoon, Amy. Amy, I want to apologize to you for my behavior yesterday. I really acted like a jerk. I’m sorry.”

“No apology is needed, commander. I’m used to it. When you’re a physical therapist, you have to have a thick skin. So, shall we go to therapy?

“Let’s go, Amy. I’m ready to move on with my life.”

State = Continuará/To Be Continue

feedback = Sí/Yes

email = georgemtATearthlink.net