Constellations

Heart break

It has been a couple of days since Pierre's team arrived safely back on earth. Danny has given both teams the week off. You have chosen to go skiing with Neill and his sons. You are talking to them but you notice something off about Neil. It starts bothering you.

"Neil are you alright?" You ask. You are hoping it's you being paranoid. Both Mark and Eric shoot you worried glances. A minute later you have made it to the top and you have decided to do something about Neil. Your command training kicks in. It's a good thing that you are able to jump in like this. 

"Can one of you get the ski patrol?" You delegate the tasks as if you were in command of the Orion capsule. Mark gets to work on getting the ski patrol but Eric is a little confused.

"What's going on?" He asks to get to the bottom of the issue.

"I think Neil is having a heart attack," You respond as you help him to the ground. Why does it have to happen now? You check Neil's pulse. At least he hasn't gone into complete cardiac arrest. Thirty seconds later the ski patrol has arrived. You step back so they can get back to work. Eleven minutes later you have made it to the hospital. You are debating whether or not you should call your dad or Buzz first. It is bothering you. You start to pace around. 

"Lilly, I've called Buzz. Why don't you call your dad?" Mark makes the decision for you. You get your phone out but you hesitate. You end up doing it anyway. You stop pacing so that you can concentrate on what you are going to say.  

"How is the skiing?" Comes the response. It breaks your heart to be the bearer of bad news. 

"Well, there has been a complication," You respond. You dread telling him because they were good friends. You've never liked bad news anyway.

"Are you alright?" he asks. You can tell that there is some panic in his voice. 

"I'm fine but it's Neil. There is something wrong. He has had a heart attack" you let him know. You hang up and you start pacing around. The lack of information is bothering you. Eric tries to reassure you but it's not working. The doctor comes round the corner. He has a grim look on his face.

"It's not good news," he remarks. He then proceeds to tell you what is going on. You are devastated.

"Do you know when his surgery will be finished?" Mark asks. The doctor shakes his head.

"Well, I'm going to get something to eat. Do you guys want anything?" Eric asks as he gets up from his chair.  You can tell that Eric wants to distract himself.

"Any sandwich," You respond. You get the feeling that you may not eat much. You hope Neil will be alright. Eric leaves and you start thinking about the mission that you will have to undertake. You start to go over the preflight checklist to try and distract yourself. Your phone rings. You answer it.

"Yes Buzz," You remark. Hopefully, he hasn't phoned to ask about Neil.

"How are you holding up?" Buzz asks. That's nice of him. At least you will have the support of the others. 

"I don't know I'm just trying to distract myself by running through the checklists for constellation five," You confirm. That means you are not handling it well but you decide to lie about it. You wish Kelsey was here so he could give you a hug. Knowing him he will find a way to give you a hug. 

"Look I'm here if you want to talk.," He responds. Again it's nice of him to offer his support. He obviously knows how much Neil means to you even though he is not family. 

"Thanks, Buzz," you respond as you hang up. You continue going over the preflight checklist. You realise a saddened sigh. An hour later the doctor has finished. He doesn't look happy.

"You can see him," He remarks. He then lays out the instructions for visitors. You are still glad that you can see him. You enter the room to find Neil hooked up to different machines. At least he is alive. It still bothers you

"Hello Lilly," He remarks. You can tell he hasn't got much energy.

"Hey Neil," You respond.

"Thank you," He catches you off guard.

"For what?" you respond. You hope he is not going to make a comment on how you jumped in.

"Helping," He responds. It has been two days since Neil went into the hospital. There hasn't been much improvement. You have been joined by your dad and Buzz. They are reminiscing about their time together. It is fun to listen to. They are currently talking about how your dad was considered the loneliest man on the mission.

"I may have been alone but I wasn't lonely," Your dad insists. It has become a typical response over the years.

"Come on Mike you were tucked away in the command module for a couple of days," Buzz retorts. You can tell that your dad is trying to think of a response. 

"Well Buzz if it wasn't for Mike we wouldn't be here talking," Neil responds. You are grinning ear to ear because it is hilarious the way that Neil and Michael reflect Buzz's comments. You are surprised that they were able to pull off a mission such as Apollo eleven. 

"Lilly you are going to be a commander on a mission similar to Apollo eleven. What are your thoughts?" Buzz brings you into the augment. Why did he have to involve you? 

"I haven't left yet so I'm not saying anything," You respond. Another hour later Buzz and Michael are done talking to Neil. You have taken over but you don't get far. The heart rate monitor starts beeping. You know what that means. You step out of the room so the doctors can get to work on reviving him. Five painstaking minutes later the doctor comes out of the room. He has a sullen look on his face similar to the one that Danny had when the first manned Kennedy capsule went up.

"I'm sorry there was nothing we could do," he announces. Your heart shatters.