fanfic_name = The Sit. Room Incident

chapter = 8

author = Dwparsnip

Rating = AP15

Type = Romance

fanfic = Sue Graham was heading for her quarters after her rescue from the moon and Sterling's question and comments haunted her as she walked the corridors.



'I hope nothing happened Lieutenant. If something did, it would upset someone very close to me, and that would be a very bad thing', he had said.



Max Sterling had the reputation of being the best pilot in the REF, even one of the greatest pilots of all time. He had more flying time and combat missions punched than anyone else, and his kill ratio was unsurpassed. When he was in a Veritech, and later an Alpha, he was a fighting machine.



For all of that though, he also had the reputation of being an easygoing and mild mannered person outside of an aircraft. He never yelled or lost his temper and patience appeared to be his virtue. He never had a bad word to say about anyone and he was very helpful to anyone who needed help. Of course, he was fiercely loyal to his family and friends.



So when Max Sterling looked at her in the hangar deck with blue eyes as cold as the polar ice caps, it worried her.



'It's not like anything really happened anyway', she thought regretfully. 'He thought he was with Lisa, not me.'



She opened the door to her cabin and entered, closing and locking it behind her. As she headed for the shower she began taking off her dirty uniform. When she had removed her clothes she turned on the shower and allowed the hot water to massage her bruises and strained muscles.



'.that would be a very bad thing', was all she kept hearing. She shook her head and after turning off the water, got out of the shower and into her robe.



She sat on the edge off her bed and brushed out her raven locks.



As she brushed her hair she remembered those cold eyes of Max Sterling and realized, with a shiver going down her spine, that she didn't want to make an enemy of him.

------------------------------ ----

Lisa woke up a couple of hours after falling asleep beside Rick and moved to the large well-padded chair next to his bed so that he could be more comfortable in the small bed. The chair was surprisingly comfortable, and she wasn't in it very long before she dozed off again. She didn't dream as such, but various thoughts and memories of Rick entered her mind. Like the day that Roy was born, and the look of awe and pride on Rick's face. The day he told her that he loved her for the very first time on that terrible day in New Macross. The night they were together intimately for the very first time. Of course, she also thought of the times to come.



She woke up and looked at the clock. Though it seemed as though she were asleep for only a couple of minutes in the chair, several hours had actually passed. She stood up, raised her arms above her head and stretched out the kinks she had in her back and neck. She brought her arms down and moved to the view port to see two Alphas fly by. She realized that she was still in her flight suit, dirt and sweat staining it in several places. She had decided that she couldn't leave Rick alone, not even long enough to go clean up and change. The night nurse was thoughtful enough to bring in some cloths, some soap and a basin of water so she could tidy up a bit.



She leaned her back against the window and looked at him sleeping in the bed. He had a restless night for the most part. Every once in a while he mumbled something, but she couldn't make out what any of it was, except for a couple of times when she could pick out her name. She was happy that he was thinking of her as she was thinking of him. Even sleeping, they were always on each other's minds.



She silently walked over to his bed and looked down at him. She was so worried at the pain he was in and had gone through. 'My darling Rick', she thought as she smiled and gently stroked his cheek with her hand. 'I don't know what I would do without you. How could I live without you? I have loved you for so long that I don't know anything else. I don't want to know anything else.'



He turned his head sharply and startled her, making her quickly remove her hand. "He's dreaming", she thought. He started to slowly move his head back and forth and mumble something, and it was obvious that whatever he was dreaming about was distressing to him.



"No", he moaned, and Lisa decided to wake him up.

------------------------------ ----

He was in the cave kissing his wife in the dull light, touching her everywhere on her exquisite body, feeling her touch him everywhere and loving her. She was saving his life by doing this, he was certain of it. His body and soul were hurting and she was healing them, with her presence and her love for him. He opened his eyes to look at her. Her precious green eyes were emitting their usual radiant glow and her smile was captivating. When she spoke to him she was out of breath from their kissing and anticipation of what was going to happen next. "I love you Rick", she said.



He went to kiss her beautiful lips again when a brilliant flash of lightning from the storm outside momentarily lit up the cave, and for that second he saw Sue Graham in front of him, not his wife. He closed his eyes and shook his head, and when he looked at her again, the low light had returned and Lisa was before him, waiting patiently for him to resume what he was doing. Again he moved closer to kiss her. He had her face in his hands and again a bright flash of lightning illuminated the cave, this time for a little longer. Her hair was black not brown, her eyes hazel not emerald green and her facial features were all wrong.



He let go of her face and fell back away from her, landing hard on the solid floor of the cave. When she spoke to ask him what was wrong it was Lisa's voice he heard, the voice he always heard when she was concerned about him. He was about to tell her what was happening but she interrupted him, asking again if he was feeling okay. As she spoke there was another flash of lightning and this time, besides changing just her appearance it changed her voice as well. "Rick, are you.", asked Lisa, then the flash of bright white and Sue Graham finished, ".feeling okay?"



His eyes opened wider than he thought was possible with fright and confusion. He brought his hand up to the tender spot on his forehead and the pain reverberated throughout his body. "No", he said painfully.



When he looked up he was seeing double through the pain.sort of. Instead of seeing two Lisas, he saw one Lisa to the left and one Sue Graham to the right. It didn't make any sense and his puzzlement deepened and deepened. He blinked his eyes to try to get them to focus on Lisa, but much to his dismay, as his vision cleared and the images of the two women merged together, it wasn't his wife that came into focus, but Sue Graham.



Again he brought his hands up to his head as if to keep it from exploding with the pain and he screamed, "Lisa.!"



"Rick!", he heard her say in an alarmed voice in the distance.



Everything was going white and the vision of Sue Graham was leaving. "Lisa!", he cried out again, terrified that Lisa had left him.



"I'm here Rick, it's okay", her voice was calm and soothing now, and very close to him.



He opened his eyes to see her worried face looking down at him. She had her right hand on his chest and the other on the top of his head, trying desperately to calm him.



His eyes were moving around, trying to figure out where he was. It was bright, not dark, and he was lying down on a soft medical bed, not the hard floor of the cave. "Not the cave", he thought with immense relief, and as the realization hit him he totally relaxed and sank into the infirmary bed.



Lisa said as soothingly as she could, "It's okay Rick, you're in the infirmary. You're safe, and you're going to be fine."



'Am I?', thought Rick, not so sure.  He looked at Lisa, and brought his right hand up to his chest to hold her hand. When he took her hand he was still unsure if it was hers and he held it tightly. She was looking at him with a very worried expression and he then knew with absolute certainty that it was really her.



Only Lisa could possibly look that worried about him.



He smiled at her and said, "I'm okay Lisa. It was just a dream, a bad dream."



She reached with her left hand, picked up a cloth from the table next to his bed and wiped the sweat off of his brow, carefully avoiding the bruised lump. "About the crash?", she asked.



"I'm not sure Lisa. It was so strange."



He looked at her and noticed that she was still in a flight suit, and she looked very tired. "How long have I been out? Have you been here all night?", he asked, worried about her.



She put the cloth back on the table and kissed his cheek. "The answer to question one is you've been asleep for almost ten hours. It's almost ten in the morning." She brought his hand that was holding hers up and gave it a tender kiss. As she lowered it back onto his chest she said quietly, "In answer to your second question, there was no way that I was going to leave you here alone."



He didn't know what to say to her. There were no words to show his gratitude, his appreciation or his love for her. Everything he thought of never even came close to articulating his feelings for her.



He tried to say something, but she stopped him by saying, "I love you Rick Hunter. I am right where I am supposed to be, where I need to be and where I want to be. I wasn't leaving, and I know it would be the same way for you if I were in that bed."



This time he brought her hand up to his lips to kiss. He then held her hand to his cheek, closed his eyes reveling in her closeness and said seriously, "Nothing would stop me from being by your side." He looked up at her, his eyes watery and said in a hushed voice, "I love you so much."



She bent down and softly kissed his lips, and as she did his eyes closed and the tears that had gathered in his blue eyes fell down his cheeks.



She stopped their kiss and looked at him and asked, "Is there anything wrong, Rick?"



"Not while you're with me", he said.



She sat on his bed, facing him. "Well then", she said happily, "there will never be anything wrong, will there?"



She smiled her lovely smile and her green eyes glittered. He loved it when she did that.



"Lisa", he said. "What about the other people on the shuttle? Besides Marks I don't even know who else was there. I mean, I noticed when I headed for the cockpit that there were three people in the cabin, but I never noticed who they were."



Lisa had been waiting for that. She had been a part of the night trying to figure out an easy way to tell him that everyone except him and Graham hadn't made it. The only thing she could come up with was to tell him the whole truth. He deserved it.



"Rick", she began quietly, "there was Lt. Marks, Dr. Bjorn, Nurse Grady and.well.Sue Graham. Rick, only you and Graham made it. I'm so sorry."



"No", he whispered. "It can't be true." He could see by the pain in her eyes as she nodded that it was, and a tidal wave of sorrow engulfed him. "Any other casualties?"



She nodded. "Lt. Trentwell. His Alpha was hit by lightning and exploded. He didn't make it either."



He remembered seeing that. He closed his eyes and slowly shook his head in a mixture of anger, sadness, disbelief and loss. He thought, 'I should have done something, been able to help them. I should have gotten them out sooner. I should have realized the danger. I should have trusted Max and reacted to his warning. I should have.'



"It wasn't your fault Rick", Lisa said forcefully, as if reading his mind. She had been waiting for that as well. She knew Rick would feel responsible, it was in his nature to help and come to the rescue. And when he couldn't, he felt responsible for it. "You said it earlier, it came on so fast and was so strong, there was nothing that could be done. Rick, no one is to blame for this."



"I know you're right Lisa."



"That's a first", she said playfully.



He smiled and continued, "But it doesn't make it any easier."



Lisa smiled the warmest smile and said tenderly, "You wouldn't be the wonderful man and the respected leader that you are if it was easy for you Rick." She lovingly squeezed his hand that she was still holding and said, "You wouldn't be the man I fell in love with either. The man I grew to love more than anything. The man I love now with all of my heart and soul."



He looked at her and told her what he had thought a minute earlier. "I don't know how to tell you how much I love you Lisa. There are no words to describe it."



"I feel the same way Rick", she said, and then she leaned down and kissed him again.



They heard the door open and then heard Max say with amusement, "Oooppps. I'm sorry I must be in the wrong room. I thought there was a comatose guy I used to fly with in here. Bye."



"Max!", they both yelled.



He poked his head in around the door and with a sheepish grin said, "I'm sorry you two."



"Come on in Max. Don't worry about it. When I get out of here there will plenty of time for me to kiss my beautiful wife."



Max laughed as he walked in. He gave Lisa a hug and moved to Rick's bedside. "How are you feeling Boss?", he said. "That was one heck a knock you took and one hell of a scare you gave us."



"Better, thanks in large part to you."



"Well", said Max modestly, "I did what I had to do, what you would have done for me. So don't mention it ever again. Okay Boss?"



Rick held out his hand. Max gladly took it and the two friends shook on it.



A nurse came into the room and addressed Lisa. "Admiral", she said, "Captain Forsythe sends his compliments and asks you to give him a call when you have a chance. He said it wasn't urgent."



Rick sensed the opportunity and took it. "Go ahead Lisa. You need a break.  Max will keep me company for a while."



Noticing the look in Rick's eyes, Max sat down in the chair and said, "Absolutely. Skull One is still out of commission, so I don't have a lot to do. The chief ran into so many problems with the electrical system that I was afraid he'd start yelling at me.again, or worse get me to help."



Lisa kissed Max on the cheek and said, "Thanks Max, I could use a shower and a fresh uniform." She reached down and kissed Rick. She looked at him and said, "I'll do that, see what Forsythe wants and be back as soon as I can. I love you."



When she got to the door he said lightheartedly, "Don't miss me too much baby."



She rolled her eyes and said, "You rat", and left.



Rick looked at Max in the chair by his bed and said, "I really wish she would stop teasing me like that."



The two good friends shared a laugh, and when it died down Max looked at Rick and said, "What's on your mind Rick?"



Rick knew he could count on Max to sense that he needed to talk to him. It was one of the things that made him the best friend he could have.



"What happened Max? I don't remember what happened after the crash."



Max explained to him what he knew. "Apparently, after you crashed Graham pulled you out of the shuttle and into the cave. She activated the emergency locator and communication console and tried to contact the ship with no luck. When Lisa and I got restless and brought a shuttle into orbit, she heard our calls." He went on to explain in detail the landing on the moon, his rescue, the flight off of the moon, Miriya's actions and the rest.



"I really don't know how to thank."



"We already took care of that Rick. I meant what I said", said Max in a warning tone.



"Okay old buddy", Rick said in surrender.



He hesitated and Max knew there was something else. "Max, what do you know about what happened in the cave?"



The question caught Max by surprise. "I.well.nothing really. Only the little tidbits I got from Graham as she answered Jean's questions in the shuttle. Why do you ask?"



"What questions?", asked Rick.



"I don't know Rick. When you passed out, how you were feeling, were you talking, did you do anything physically exerting. That was the only question she had trouble with. It's almost like she wasn't sure what to say." He saw the wheels turning inside Rick's head and asked, "What are you thinking Rick?"



Lost in thought, Rick replied, "Nothing."



"Rick, come on. What's the problem?" Max noticed Rick's distance and thought to himself with annoyance, 'Graham.'



Rick looked at the door to make sure it was closed and said in a hushed voice, "I had a dream this morning and I don't know what to make of it." He told Max his dream in detail.



Max wasn't sure what to make of it either. "It's probably just the concussion Rick. Don't get yourself worked up over it."



"But what if there is more to it Max? What if something happened and I."



The door opened and in walked Dr. Jean Grant. "How's my favorite patient?", she said cheerfully.



Rick looked at her and said, "I'm fine Jean. When can I get out?"



She laughed. "You must be feeling better", she said.



Jean started going over Rick with a fine tooth comb. Using her penlight, she checked his pupils. Then she checked his blood pressure, listened to his heart and his lungs, checked his reflexes and finally, checked he lump on his head.



"How do you feel Rick?", she asked, watching him for any signs of fibbing.



He looked at her and flashed his best boyish smile. "I feel fine Jean, really."



  She ignored the smile. "Any nausea?"



"Nope."



"Dizziness? Blurred vision? Vomiting? Headaches? Would you tell me if you did?"



"No, no, no, just where I hit the console and I absolutely would."



"You're sense of humor and memory are intact, and that's as good a sign as any." She looked at his chart. "If the tests come back okay this afternoon and you promise to be a good little Admiral and stay in your quarters away from work and stress, I'll spring you before dinner."



Rick almost jumped out of bed, but the stern look on Jean's face stopped him cold.



"I'm warning you Rick. I usually wouldn't let someone with a concussion leave here so soon and I'm doing you a favor. If you so much as."



"All right Jean, I promise I'll be good. I'm not going to do anything that could possibly jeopardize my being with my wife tonight in our own quarters."



Max leaned back and said with a grin, "Ah, that's my boy."



All three of them laughed and Jean looked at Rick.



"Good", she said. She looked again at the lump on his head. "That's going to be tender for a while. The nurse will be bringing in some icepacks a little later. Use them." She headed for the door and said, "I'm going to say tentatively that you can go home this evening. But remember what I said. If I find out that you've been working or fooling around I'll have you back in here so fast."



"I promise to be good Jean", he interrupted.



"Right. Just to be sure I better tell Lisa, too", she said.



She opened the door and started to leave, but stopped when she heard him ask, "Jean, are weird dreams common with this type of thing?"



She looked at him concerned and said, "What kind of weird dreams?"



"It was something really strange. I don't remember it exactly, but I can remember it was weird." He didn't want her to know that his dream concerned Lisa and Sue Graham.



She thought for a second. "Yes, sometimes dreams can occur. You should know about that as well as anyone. As I recall you had some pretty interesting visions when you were shot down over the Pacific many moons ago." She thought about it some more and continued, "It could also be memories. Where you had a concussion you may have been fading in and out of consciousness, so you could be remembering bits and pieces, with your subconscious filling in the blanks. There's also the possibility that it could be a combination of the two."



She saw the worried expression intensify on his face and said supportively, "But sometimes a dream is just a dream, nothing more."



He looked at her and managed a smile. "Thanks Jean."



"Are you sure you're okay?", she asked and ducked as Rick threw a pillow at her. She stood up straight and looked at the pillow. "Definitely feeling better", she quipped. She picked up the pillow and tossed it back to him. "I'll check in on you later Rick. See you later Max."



She closed the door and Rick sat up and let his legs dangle over the side of the bed. He brought his hands up to his face, rubbed his eyes and tried to force himself to remember.



Max was getting very concerned and asked, "Do you want me to talk to Graham about this, Rick?"



"No Max. I'm going to have to talk to her myself."



"Rick, I'm not sure that." Max cautioned, but Rick cut him off.



"Something happened Max, I know it. I don't know what, I.I think we kissed.but I'm not sure if we.I can see her shoulders and her.I think.I can't remember!", he finished in an exasperated voice.



Rick was getting agitated and Max had enough, stood up and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Rick, you have got to calm down. Take some deep breaths and we'll talk it through."



Rick did as Max suggested and took several deep breaths and began to feel much better.



Max sat back down and asked, "What's the first thing you remember after the crash?"



Rick thought hard. "I .remember someone dragging me along a rough path of some kind. I had something on me, probably the communicator."



"That would be Graham taking you to the cave", he said. "Good. What next."



Rick closed his eyes and tried to keep remembering. "I remember. seeing and hearing Lisa in the cave." He looked at Max and said quietly, "She is the only person I remember being there with me."



"That's not right", said Max, shaking his head. "That must be a result of the concussion. Lisa was who you wanted and needed to see, so that's who you saw."



"But it wasn't her, it was Sue." The situation was terrifying to him. Sue Graham had brought him to the cave, yet he thought that she was Lisa.



"Then what?", prodded Max.



Rick closed his eyes and when he opened them again he said, "I remember kissing Lisa, and touching her all over. I wanted to.well, you know." Max nodded his understanding and Rick continued, "I can remember undoing Lisa's uniform top, and then there was a sharp pain in my head. Lisa asked me if I was okay. I remember taking off Lisa's top and she threw it on the floor of the cave. That's when my head really started to hurt." He reflexively brought his hand up to touch the tender spot, just as he did in the cave. "The next thing I remember is talking to Lisa in the infirmary last night."



He stood up, and Max got up just in case he needed help. Rick walked gingerly to the view port and looked at the stars, with Max close behind him. "My God Max, it wasn't Lisa at all." He turned to look at his dear friend and said in a horrified voice and with his eyes full of revulsion, "It wasn't Lisa I kissed. It wasn't Lisa I almost undressed. It wasn't Lisa I was going to make love to! It was Sue!"



Max looked at Rick. He was already a couple of steps ahead of Rick in figuring it all out, and had spent a few moments trying to figure out how to calm Rick down.



"How could this happen Max?"



"Rick", he began slowly and calmly.



"Don't you understand Max? Lisa will be devastated. Hell, I'm devastated."



"Rick."



"Max, I.what.how do I tell her?"



"You just tell her Rick."



The simple answer caused Rick to pause and he looked at Max.



Max seized the chance and continued, "Rick, you've got to calm down. You had a bad concussion that drastically limited your sense of what was real, what was right and what was wrong. It doesn't even matter about right and wrong. They never came into play because you thought that Lisa was there with you. You weren't yourself. If you were in your right frame of mind, you would have realized it was Graham and nothing at all would have happened. You're not responsible for your actions Rick. Not at all."



Max smirked a little. "Besides, I think any anger and blame that Lisa will feel will land squarely on the shoulders of a certain black haired lieutenant."



Rick looked at him blankly and Max elaborated. "Rick, you were out of it and Graham was in total control. Would she have known that you thought that she was Lisa?"



Rick, seeing where Max was going with his comments, nodded his head. He remembered calling Lisa's name more than once.



"She took advantage, Rick. She knew that you thought that she was your wife, and she took the chance."



Rick had been so intent on how Lisa would feel, how hurt she would be, that he hadn't even considered Graham's actions. The anger started to swell in his chest.



Rick opened his mouth to speak but Max continued, "And Lisa is a very intelligent woman Rick. She knows that the hit you took was bad. She knows that it hurt you, she knows Sue Graham, and when she realizes what happened and more importantly why it happened, she will understand."



He gave what he had said a moment to sink in and went on.



"And more than all of that, Rick, Lisa loves you very much, too much to let this bother her and interfere with your relationship. You should have seen her Rick", he said shaking his head as he remembered. "She was beside herself with worry after you crashed. Her eyes were lifeless." Rick looked at Max sadly. Max nodded and added, "The only time I have ever seen her eyes like it."



Max put his hand on Rick's shoulder. "But when she found out you were going to be okay, Rick, the glow came back to her eyes. It was magical to see." He put his other hand on Rick's other shoulder and faced him to look him in his eyes. "All of that boils down to this: she will understand what happened and why. She will realize and understand that it happened not because you thought it was Sue Graham, but because you thought it was her."



Rick said in a hopeful voice, "Do you really think so Max?"



Max Sterling let go of Rick's shoulders, looked at his best friend and said confidently, "Of course I think so." He slapped Rick's shoulder and asked good-naturedly, "Have I ever steered you wrong?"



Max's reasoning relieved Rick immensely. He knew Max had made many valid points, and his understanding of Lisa was right on.



Jokingly, Rick said, "Well, there was that one time in New Macross."



The two friends looked at each other and laughed.hard.



"It's nice to see that you're taking it easy Rick", came a heavenly voice from the doorway.



Lisa was standing there, cleaned up and looking stunning. She had decided not to bother with a uniform, she was taking time off to be with Rick and wouldn't be on duty after all, and was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a semi-tight white, long sleeved blouse. For the first time in a long time she had her hair pinned back on both sides, revealing more of her delicate cheeks and feminine jaw line.



Rick's smile was automatic. She noticed, like she always noticed when he smiled at her, walked over to him and in one fluid motion took his face in her hands and locked her lips onto his with an eagerness that was overwhelming.



Max waited for a couple of seconds and cleared his throat. "Ahem, I'll be leaving now." He walked to the door and said over his shoulder, "Miriya and I will stop by your quarters tonight to check on you Rick, if you think you'll be up to the company."



Rick broke away from Lisa to say, "Absolutely Max. And thanks."



Max offered him a casual salute in response and was gone.



Lisa looked at Rick in confusion and asked, "Did he say they'd drop by our quarters to see you?"



Rick looked at her and smiled. "Jean said if some tests come back okay today and I would promise to behave myself I could go home this evening."



Lisa hugged her husband and said thankfully, "That is just what I wanted to hear." She added in a whisper, "What I needed to hear."



Still hugging each other, Rick said into his wife's ear, "There's something I have to tell you Lisa, something important." He squeezed her lovingly, and unwilling to let her go right then he added, "But it can wait for a little while."

















State = Continuará/To Be Continue

feedback = Sí/Yes

email = dparsnipAThotmail.com