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Charlotte

She saw the life in Whizzer's eyes start to go before anyone else did. 

  He was leaning on Marvin's shoulder, and Mendel was standing near him, listening to Jason say the prayers. She could see his smile as he watched Jason, the boy he had loved, speak those words that turned him from boy to man. She smiled in turn, remembering how Whizzer had always cared for Jason in a way that was almost more loving and parental than his real parents, remembering how throughout all of Trina and Marvin's fights and games, he had stayed loyal to the child that wasn't even his own. 

  She felt Cordelia grasp her hand, and she squeezed it back, listening to Jason's small voice sing the Hebrew words. Then, almost as if Cordelia had triggered it, a flash went through Whizzer's eyes. 

  Charlotte let go of Cordelia's hand and took a step forward, but Marvin shook his head at her, tears welling in his eyes. Jason wasn't finished with the prayer, but Whizzer's legs were buckling, and she could tell it was all Marvin could do to keep him upright. 

  Cordelia tensed behind her. From off to the side, Trina lifted a handkerchief to her mouth. Mendel reached to steady them. 

  Everyone's eyes, except for Jason's, were on Whizzer. 

  The last word of the prayer faded, and any self-control Whizzer had evaporated. He seemed to crumble, and Marvin and Mendel lunged for him. He caught Jason's shoulder and whispered something to him, something no one in the room could hear, and went limp. 

  In a flash, Charlotte was next to the three of them, supporting Whizzer to the bed. She turned and pulled the curtain shut on Jason, Trina, and Cordelia's shocked faces before whipping back to Whizzer. "We need help!" she shouted, and began checking him for something, anything, a sign that he was still alive. 

  A pulse, however faint, was detected under her fingertips. By now various nurses burst in and went to work. Dimly she was aware of Marvin, crouching next to the bed and grasping the hand that hung over the edge, whispering, "You're going to be okay. You're going to be okay." Mendel was nowhere to be seen, most likely gone back for Jason and Trina. 

  The bustle around Whizzer slowed, and Charlotte had worked in a hospital too long to not know what that meant. She felt tears prick the back of her eyelids. She couldn't go through a death of a complete stranger without having to cry, either in the moment or later, but it being someone you knew, someone who had a place in your heart, was worse. Far worse. 

  Whizzer had always been kind to her, always made her feel happy. If she'd ever gotten yelled at for holding hands or kissing Cordelia in public, and Whizzer was there, he'd always march over and give that person a piece of his mind. If either of them was feeling down, Whizzer was there - just a phone call or a short drive away. He understood when Charlotte grieved over lost patients, understood in a way that Cordelia, with all of her innocence and bubbly joy, never could. He even pretended to like Cordelia's food, took the bullet for Charlotte if she wasn't in the mood for chicken that tasted like bland pudding. 

  In the weeks following Whizzer's diagnosis and stay in the hospital, there had been something in Charlotte that refused to believe that it was happening. She'd seen the sick, frightened bachelors come in before, and knew what would come of it - as far as medical symptoms, Whizzer had been no different. But he had been different to her, and that was what mattered. 

  The nurses pulled away from Whizzer, and Charlotte pulled back into reality. They had given him some medication and put him on life support. His heart was beating, but only just. 

  "I'll watch him," Charlotte told the nurses, and they left slowly, probably with other business to attend to. 

  She glanced over at Marvin, still holding Whizzer's hand, and closed her eyes, sending a prayer to whatever entity might be out there. 

  Let him live.

  Please.