Robotech Macross: "What If...?"
Story 1 part 3a

"Damn! Do you know how long this will keep me off the dancefloor?!" growled Kim as she looked at the casts on her legs.
Sammie wrung her hands and looked over at Vanessa on the other side of the room who was shifting uncomfortably. Sammie got up and went to Vanessa's bedside and asked what was wrong.
"This fricken call button is stabbing me in the back," said Vanessa in annoyance.
Sammie rolled Vanessa over a little bit and found that somehow she was lying on the call button box, so Sammie pulled it out from under Vanessa and asked, "There Miss Cranky, is that better?"
Vanessa rolled her eyes, saying, "Yes Florence Nightengale, you've got such a great bedside manner."
Sammie put her hands on her hips and said, "Well, fine, if you two wicked stepsisters are going to be grumpy the whole time, then I'm just not going to come and visit you!"
"Oh come on Sammie," said Kim, "Vanessa is just pissed that's all, she was suppose to go on that big date next week, remember?"
"Ohh...that's right..." said Sammie quietly.
Vanessa waved her hand, "Nevermind. Considering what happened, I think we should be glad we're alive. I'm sorry I snapped at you Sam. I'm just really irritable, because I feel like crap."
"It's alright, I'm sorry I said I wouldn't come see you guys and that I called you Miss Cranky. I'm just so exhausted and my nerves are so frazzled. Today has really been a nightmare," returned Sammie.
"It all happened so fast, do any of you guys remember what happened?" asked Kim.
Sammie thought for a moment then replied, "What I remember was seeing Vanessa's screen and realized that we would be hit so I ran towards the door because the Pinpoint Barrier guy told us to get out. Then I heard the explosion and found myself out in the hallway and I looked back and saw the door was damaged and I tried to get it open but it wouldn't budge and I could hear Captain Gloval on the other side telling me to get the door open. Then the damage control teams came and that's when they got you all out. How about you?"
Kim also took a few moments to think then said, "I remember hearing them tell us to get out and I saw Sammie running towards the door, so I followed her and Captain Gloval was behind me but I thought, he's the captain, he needs to be safe first, so I twisted around and tried to push him through the door, then I heard the explosion and was thrown into Sammie's station and that's all I remember."
Kim and Sammie looked at Vanessa and waited for her to start her narrative. She closed her eyes and tried to remember what happened. After what seemed like a long time, she opened her eyes and spoke slowly, trying to remember as she spoke, "I remember Captain Gloval grab my arm and pull me towards the door, I saw Sammie get out and then saw Kim and the Captain in front of me. I heard Claudia right behind me telling me to get out, then there was the explosion and I don't remember anything after that." Vanessa pondered for a moment then began counting, "Sammie, me, Kim, the Captain, and Claudia...wait! Lisa! Where was Lisa?" Vanessa looked at Kim with a look of realization and then both women looked at Sammie.
Sammie wrung her hands and started sniffling, remembering the sight of Rick coming out of the operating room.
"Sammie..." said Vanessa quietly as she gave Kim a worried look.
"Sammie...tell us..." urged Kim.
"It...doesn't look good...one of the doctors is a friend of her father's and he thinks she can pull through, but the surgeons don't think she can..." said Sammie in a rush before she started crying.
Kim held out her arms and Sammie went to her as if Kim were her mother and hugged her. Vanessa looked over at them and let out a loud sigh and said, "Someone please tell me this is one big nightmare and that when I wake up everything will be back to normal..."
Kim handed Sammie a tissue and then Vanessa suddenly remembered something.
"Sammie, is Roy still with Claudia right now?" asked Vanessa.
"No, Captain Gloval is with her. Roy and Max took Rick home because he was so upset, then Roy said he was coming back after they got Rick settled," replied Sammie.
"Rick? Upset?? About what? What is he doing here?" asked Kim with bewilderment.
Sammie looked at Kim, then Vanessa, and said, "He was with Lisa when they pulled her off the bridge and all during the surgery."
Kim and Vanessa looked at each other and then looked at Sammie as if she were crazy.
Kim held up her hands and said, "Whoa whoa, hold up here. Did you say Rick? As in thee Rick Hunter? The one who always fights with Lisa, the one who's always such a jerk? Surely you can't be talking about the same Rick Hunter?"
Sammie shook her head, "I know it seems hard to believe, but it was him. He stayed with her the whole time."
Vanessa was still completly dumbfounded and retorted a bit sarcastically, "Why?"
Kim folded her arms and replied, "Yeah, I want to know too, why?"
Sammie stood up and put her hands on her hips again, "You girls are too much. I mean, come on, they are friends...at least, sometimes they are. And you should've seen him, he was really really upset. It's not like he's a heartless monster."
Vanessa and Kim looked at each other with skepticism then Vanessa replied, "He's probably just got a very guilty conscious that's all. You'll see the minute Lisa's out of the woods, Rick will be back to his old self again, backtalking, giving her grief all the time, giving us a headache with his arrogance, he won't change."
Sammie shook her head, "You didn't see him, you didn't see the look on his face."
Vanessa shrugged her good shoulder dismissively and said, "Well, anyways, before I forget, and I nearly did because we got sidetracked on the Rick issue, listen, Sammie. Lisa told Claudia that if she were ever injured, to not call for her father, Admiral Hayes. And Claudia told me that if both she and Lisa were injured then I was to carry out the orders, which is to make sure Admiral Hayes doesn't get called. This was Lisa's specific wish. So since I'm stuck here for who knows how long, and so is Kim, then it's now up to you, ok?"
"What?" exclaimed Sammie. "Not call her father? For goodness sakes, Lisa might die, her father needs to be here!"
Kim looked over at Vanessa and said, "Come on V, surely Lisa probably only meant if she were slightly injured. But it's very serious here, as her father, he has every right to be told about what happens to his daughter."
Vanessa sighed again and said, "I don't know, but that's what Claudia said. I'm sure that Lisa didn't think a worst case scenario would happen. If it were up to me I'd call for him right away too."
"Well then what are we waiting for?" asked Sammie.
"I don't want Lisa to get mad at me. Look, ok, why don't we just wait and talk to Claudia first. That's why I asked for Roy, maybe he can ask Claudia what she thinks we should do," said Vanessa.
"What we should do is call her father, right now," said Sammie adamantly.
"Waita minute," interrupted Kim, "I don't even think this is our decision to make. Shouldn't Captain Gloval be the one to decide? And don't you think the doctors are already making the call?"
Vanessa shrugged again, "I don't know but all I was told...wait, now I remember, and Lisa had told me herself, she said under no circumstances was her father supposed to be called."
"Vanessa Leeds, stop being so damned stubbornly loyal," said Sammie with a rare flash of true anger. "Lisa's father is going to be called whether she likes it or not. She may not want to see him, but he sure would want to see her and I don't think he should be stopped from seeing her just because Lisa is mad at him for whatever reason. Don't you understand? She might die! And I don't want to be the one who kept Admiral Hayes from seeing his daughter one last time..." Sammie broke down into tears and went back to her chair and slumped down in it.
"It's not our decision to make Vanessa, let's leave it up to the Captain..." said Kim quietly as she wiped her eyes.
Vanessa turned her head and stared out the window, wishing she could wake up from this nightmare.

* * * * * * *

"Rick, here's your stuff, now go and take a shower, you'll feel better afterwards," said Roy as he handed a bundle to Rick.
Rick took the bundle and shuffled to the shower area of the locker room. Roy walked back towards the lockers and sat down on the bench where Max was waiting.
"Do you think he understood what you were telling him?" asked Max.
Roy cupped his ear and then heard the noise of the shower, "Well, at least it seems he remembered how to turn on the shower. If he doesn't come out after 30 minutes, we'll go check on him."
Max nodded and said, "I've never seen him so upset about anything before. I haven't known him that long though, does he always get this upset?"
Roy took out his lighter and lit the cigarrette that was in his hand and said, "No. I've never seen him so upset about anything before, and I've known him since he was born."
"I guess it must've been very traumatic for him in the operating room," mused Max.
"I would really liked to know what happened, but I think it's best to just be patient and let him talk about it when he's ready to...and I guess...perhaps now we know just how much Lisa means to Rick..." said Roy, tapping the ashes off his cigarette.
"What do you mean?" asked Max.
"Well, think about it...how would you react if it were Miriya in that operating room, how would I react if it were Claudia in that operating room. As a squadron leader you sometimes go into the operating room with your pilots, and as we all know, sometimes our pilots don't make it back. We've lost a lot of people since we launched. We lost Ben, and that was very hard on Rick, but...I stayed with Rick the day Ben died and he was still able to function. He was upset naturally, but he wasn't like he is now... he's reacting as if Lisa were his wife or something...And...if you ask me, if this were Minmei, I still don't think he'd be this upset..."
Max thought about it for a few moments, trying to imagine if he and Miriya were in the situation Rick had just gone through with Lisa, and he realized Roy's point. Max lowered his voice and looked around first, to make sure no one was in earshot and then said, "He's in love with Lisa isn't he?"
Roy shook his head slowly, took another puff of his cigarette, then said quietly, "He's never realized it, but maybe after what happened today, he will."

Rick stood completely still as the water cascaded down on him. 'I suggest you go look it up in the manual, since you don't know.' Rick remembered those words and they were screaming in his mind incessantly. Rick ran both his hands through his hair and gritted his teeth in anger. People under his command had been injured before, had been killed before, why Lisa having such an effect on him? Because she wasn't injured at the direct hands of the enemy. Rick himself, had placed Lisa into the hands of the enemy by issuing his stupid challenge to her. Why did she have to take me up on the challenge? Why did I even push the issue in the first place? Why didn't I stop and see her last night? Now I might not ever get the chance to apologize to her...Now I might not ever see her again...and it's all my fault...

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Flashback ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

"Hello Lieutenant," said Lisa cheerfully as she stood in front of Rick.
"Lisa, I mean, Commander, what can I do for you?" stammered Rick, surprised to find Lisa at his door.
"I was out shopping with the girls last week and I saw this in the store window and I thought it would look good on you," said Lisa shyly as she held out a wrapped box.
Rick took the box with a great amount of surprise and stared at it.
"I thought...it would make a nice birthday present," said Lisa with a shrug and a slight smile.
Rick stared at Lisa, still surprised, and then shook himself out of his stupor and said, "Come on in, I just finished boiling some water, would you care for something to drink?"
Lisa smiled nervously and followed Rick into his small quarters. Rick fixed two cups of tea then opened up Lisa's present. Lisa was seated on the only chair in the small room.
Rick's eyes lit up when he opened the box. He held up the sweater and exclaimed, "Hey! I've been eyeing this sweater for the longest time, and it's my favorite color too!"
Lisa smiled, she could tell from the expression on Rick's face that he truly did appreciate her gift.
Rick grinned at Lisa and asked, "This is great, thank you! Do you think I can try it on now?"
Lisa chuckled and gestured with her hand, "Be my guest, it is yours after all. You don't need my permission for anything, we're not on duty right now."
Rick gave an embarrassed laugh, "Oh yeah, that's right."
Rick put on the knit pullover sweater and brushed smooth the arms, he turned around in a circle then faced Lisa again and asked, "How does it look?"
Rick saw a strange, unreadable look in Lisa's eyes for a split second, then she smiled and said, "It looks very good on you. I hope you like it."
"I love it!" exclaimed Rick. "It's so comfortable too."
Lisa smiled then sipped her tea. Rick was completely taken by surprise, since he and Lisa had just had another big fight the day before, he thought she would be angry at him for at least a week. He had said something stupid to her yet again and he knew it. Having her here now, he thought he should apologize.
"Lisa, listen, about what I said yesterday...I'm sorry," said Rick quietly.
Lisa put down her cup and said, "It's alright. I already forgot about it, but this means I get a freebie swipe at you next time."
Rick laughed, marvelling at how relaxed and easy-going Lisa was at the moment. He held up his hands and said, "Alright alright."
Lisa smiled at Rick then looked down quickly. He wondered why she did that, why she was so shy whenever they had a civil and even fun conversation. He wished she didn't look away from him, he liked her smile, he thought she looked so cute when she smiled, and he loved to see the glow from her green eyes.
Lisa's cellphone sounded and she excused herself then answered it. After hanging up she told Rick, somewhat reluctantly it seemed to him, that she had to attend a meeting that had been moved up. Rick walked her to the door and didn't know how to thank her for the gift. Just say thank you? Give her a hug?
"Uh...thank you for the sweater Lisa, I love it," mumbled Rick, still figuring out what to do.
"I'm glad you liked it," she said with another shy smile. Then she came up close to Rick and hesitated for a second, then went up slightly on tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek and said, "Happy Birthday Rick," then she hurried away.
Rick stood in his doorway, watching Lisa walking quickly down the hallway, the feel of her kiss still lingering on his cheek. He watched her until she was out of sight then closed his door and sat in a daze for a long while.
Max and Roy came over awhile later and took him out for his birthday. When he got back home, Rick had hoped to find a birthday message of some type from Minmei, but there was none. She never called that night to wish him happy birthday, nor did she call the next day, nor the next...and for several days after that, Rick could not get Lisa's image out of his mind, the kiss, as simple and harmless as it seemed to be, kept replaying in his mind several times throughout the days...

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ End Flashback ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

"Hey Rick, are you all right?" Rick heard Roy holler.
"I'm fine," said Rick numbly.
"Ok, if you need us we're out here by the lockers," replied Roy.

Rick opened his locker and the first thing he saw was that sweater Lisa had given to him. He slowly pulled it off it's hanger and held it up and said more to himself than to Roy and Max, "She gave me this sweater for my birthday. I think I told you guys the story..."
Roy and Max glanced at each other and Roy uttered something in acknowledgement and continued to wait for Rick to finish getting dressed. After he finished dressing, Rick just sat down on the bench and stared at the lockers.
Roy clapped his hands together and said, "I think we all need a drink, come on, let's go into town and find a quiet place to get something to drink and eat."
Max waited and then Rick got up and followed Max and Roy out of the locker room in silence.
Roy knew of a place that was empty at this time of day and decided to head there, incase Rick caused a scene of some sort he wouldn't embarrass himself in front of a lot of people.
As they walked down a back road, they heard a car honk, then pull up next to them.
"Rick! Roy! Max! What a coincedence to see you here! I was just on my way to a photoshoot but I can spare a few moments to say Hi to my friends," said Minmei cheerfully as she stepped out of the car, wearing a tight red dress and high heels.
Max and Roy greeted Minmei and then she walked over to Rick and clamped her arm around his and said, "Hey there handsome! Rick, look at my dress, isn't it just lovely?? It's so expensive but the boutique let me borrow it, I just love dressing up in these beautiful clothes, it makes me feel like a princess!"
Rick gave no indication that he was aware of Minmei. Minmei looked at him and stomped her foot slightly, "Hmph! Rick, you silly guy, aren't you paying attention to me?? Look at my dress, isn't it beautiful?"
Rick still didn't answer and Minmei shook his arm playfully, but Rick wasn't in the mood to be playful or bothered so he jerked his arm away from Minmei, stuck his hands in his pocket, and kept on walking.
"Riiiick!" whined Minmei before Roy could pull her aside.
"You gotta forgive him, he's very upset right now Minmei, Lisa is in really bad shape," explained Roy.
"Lisa? Who's Lisa?" asked Minmei, with total obliviousness.
"Look, Minmei, it was nice running into you, check back with Rick in a week or so and hopefully he'll be in a better mood," said Roy, annoyed that Minmei didn't remember who Lisa was.
Minmei shrugged then twirled around for Max and Roy's benefit and asked, "So do you guys like my dress??"
Max and Roy nodded but didn't comment, amazed at Minmei's self-centeredness.
"Well, that's good, at least I know some people are paying attention to me," she said in a snipped tone, and then headed back into the car and was on her way.
Max pushed his glasses up and asked Roy, "What on earth does Rick see in her?"
Roy tossed his cigarette on the ground and said, "I have no idea Max, I have no idea..."

to be continued....
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next time...
1) what happens when Rick gets drunk?
2) Admiral Hayes is made aware of his daughter's condition
3) Rick is put in charge of bringing Admiral Hayes safely to the SDF-1, what could they possibly talk about?

I plan to give Admiral Hayes (what is his first name? anyone know?) a good amount of air-time because...I actually do like the guy and feel sorry for him. I always thought that Lisa gave him too much of a hard time and that the strain on their relationship was more of her doing than her father's. So I will hopefully add more to a character who we really don't know too much about but always wanted to know a little bit better.

This is turning out to be much longer than I expected! I have a very difficult time writing anything 'short' LOL! For some reason the hot weather makes me type faster and I've been able to get on a roll with this story.

For those wondering about my To The Stars chapter 21, I am going to start on that this weekend. I expect it will be a rather short chapter, since it is a downtime chapter, but then again, look at how long my last downtime chapter turned out to be. YIKES! But I think this chapter 21 will not be too long, because I really want to get the action started, which will start in chapter 22. Stay tuned!

MORE UPDATES MORE STORIES!! PLEASE PEOPLE WRITE/UPDATE MORE RICK-LISA MACROSS STORIES!! I need something to read!! I don't read my own stuff, only unless I do proofreading or am really really bored, so I need something to read, written by other people. Pretty please? Thanks! :)