Containment- Pilot (1.01)
Pairing: Athena Moore (OC) x Jake Riley
Summary: What starts as a normal day takes a dark turn when the possibility of bio-terrorism comes into play
Warnings: cursing, mentions of guns, virus, probably don't read if the idea of covid getting worse freaks you out?
Word Count: 5365
“Do you have to go?” Athena whispered as she ran her fingers along Jake’s arm.
He huffed in response, nose ducked into her neck. She squirmed closer to him with a giggle.
“I promised Lex I would help.”
Athena turned around with a smile. Jake’s blue eyes traced the lines of her face, and her smile grew wider. She cupped his cheek and leaned in, kissing him.
“I love you.” He sighed as she pulled away.
Athena’s smile turned into a grin as she ducked her head into his chest, nuzzling into him. His arm tightened around her waist and he smiled. It had been seven years since they moved in together, but waking up next to her never failed to leave him speechless.
“What time do you have to go?” She pulled back away and pushed herself up to rest on her elbow.
He turned onto his back with a grunt and looked at the clock. “Two hours.”
“Alright.” She sat up with a smile. “Come on, I’ll make you breakfast.”
“Or we could stay in bed for another hour.” He sent her a sly grin, and she rolled her eyes.
She leaned over, hands pressing against his chest as she kissed him. He tapped her hip, then moved his hand down to the back of her thigh. She chuckled, but she swung her leg over his hips to straddle him. He sat up without taking his lips from hers, hands on her waist.
Her hands tangled themselves in his hair, and he began to pull her shirt off.
A bark was followed by a large crash, and they both sighed. Athena gave Jake another quick kiss before rolling off of the bed and fishing a pair of pajama pants out of a drawer. She pulled them on and pushed the door open.
“Boys?”
A giggle came from the kitchen, and then the ticking of paws across the hardwood floor. Another crash, this one obviously plastic onto the ground. Their golden retriever, Noodle, came running, tail wagging. Athena scratched his head as she kept walking.
“Isaac? Levi?” Athena ventured into the kitchen and found their oldest son perched on a chair, rifling through the cereal cabinet.
She sighed and leaned against the wall, weight on one hip. “What’re you up to, Lee?”
The seven year old smiled and turned to his mother. “Was gonna make breakfast for you and Dad.”
A smile crept onto her face as she shook her head. “That’s very sweet, buddy.” She lifted him off the chair and set him on the floor with a huff. “But you can’t stand on chairs, alright? You could get hurt.”
“Morning, sport.” Jake called as he entered the kitchen with their youngest son perched on his hip.
“Dad!” Levi squealed, scrambling to Jake.
“Hi, baby.” Athena walked over with a grin and took Isaac from his father.
Jake, in turn, plucked Levi off his feet and gave him a squeeze. He could still pick Levi up with ease, even though Athena couldn’t. Isaac grunted and rubbed his eyes.
“Alright, come on, baby boy.” Athena set him on his feet and began to buzz around the kitchen.
She picked up the fallen cereal and set it on the counter. She stood on her toes to shut the cabinet door, and Jake took the chance of her distraction to wrap his arms around her waist from behind. She squeaked, caught by surprise.
“Morning, kitten.” He whispered into her ear.
She leaned back into his arms with a smile. “Morning, handsome.”
“Hey, as much as I’d love a home-cooked meal,” he kissed the crook of her neck and she sighed, “I think we should go out for breakfast.”
“Jake…” Athena shuffled in his grip, turning them to face the boys.
“Hey boys, who wants to go for pancakes?” Jake turned over his shoulder with a smile.
“Me! Me!”
“Yes!”
Both boys jumped around in the kitchen, faces lit up and small arms flying. Levi ran over, dancing over his parents’ toes.
“Babe…” Athena trailed off, her arms snaking up around Jake’s neck.
He grinned and leaned in, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “You love pancakes, babe.”
“Yeah, Mommy! Let’s go get pancakes!” Isaac ran over and tugged at his mom’s pant leg.
“Yeah, Momma.” Jake grinned, and Athena’s heart fluttered, as it always had. “Let’s go get pancakes.”
She rolled her eyes and popped back onto her toes, pulling him to meet her lips. “I love you.”
He grinned and let go of her, swinging each boy up under one arm. “Alright, let’s go get changed!”
Athena smacked his arm, maternal instinct kicking in. “Jake, be careful!”
***
“Alright, I’ll see you after?” Athena’s arms were hooked around Jake’s neck.
He nodded, ducking down to kiss her. “Yeah, I’ll get Lex to drop me off.”
“Okay. Boys, come say bye to Daddy!” Athena called over her shoulder.
“Bye, Dad!” Levi came running, throwing his arms around Jake’s leg.
“Bye, Daddy!” Isaac grabbed the material of Jake’s pants with his small fingers.
“Bye, my little monsters.” Jake let go of Athena and bent down, hugging both of the boys close to him. “Be good for your mom, okay?”
They both nodded. “Okay, Daddy.” The second Jake let them go, they ran off, distracted by their Uncle Lex. Jake stood again and sighed as his eyes fell on Athena. He brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and pulled her in for another kiss.
“Bye, Jake. I love you.”
He kissed her again, and Lex let out an audible groan.
“Athena, I only need him for a few hours.” Lex teased.
She pulled away from Jake with a smile. “Okay. I’ll see you later. Boys, let’s go, we’ve got stuff to do!” Athena gathered the boys and began pulling them toward the car. “Say bye to Daddy.”
“Bye Daddy!”
“Bye Dad!”
“Love you guys!” Jake called as Athena dragged the boys off and into the car.
“Love you! Bye, Lex!”
“Bye!”
***
Lex stormed down the steps of the apartment building and circled around the front of the van.
“Let’s go. She’s not coming.”
“Not coming?” Jake repeated, quickly scarfing down the pieces of apple in his mouth.
“No, Jake. She’s not moving in.” Lex picked up the dolly and threw it into the back of the van.
Jake followed Lex to the back of the van, confused. “You want me to go talk to her?”
“That is pretty much the last thing I want.” Lex shut the doors.
His phone rang, and Jake pulled out his phone, typing a quick text to Athena.
Hey babe, Jana had another moment, Lex is pretty upset, I might stick around with him.
He got a text back right away.
Of course! Is he okay? Anything we can do to help?
Jake’s grin grew wider. She was always so considerate.
I don’t think so, but I’ll let you know. Love you!
“We gotta go, I have a briefing.”
Love you too!
Jake reread the message before tucking his phone back into his pocket. “For what?”
“Some health department thing. Look, I can take you home after, I’m sorry.”
Jake shook his head. “No problem. Let’s go.”
***
Athena piled grocery bags into the trunk of the car. Levi handed her the next one, and Isaac cackled from the seat of the cart as two birds fought in the parking lot.
“Alright. You guys ready to go visit Daddy and Uncle Lex?” She grinned at her boys.
Levi nodded with enthusiasm. Athena shut the trunk and then grabbed Levi’s hand, pushing the cart with the other hand. She left it in the spot, pulled Isaac from it, and hauled the boys back to the car.
***
Jake put his phone to his ear, waiting for Jana to pick up. She did so with an annoyed sigh.
“What?”
“Don’t what me, you know what.” He began to move across the basketball court, squinting against the sun as he watched other officers play.
“I had a moment of indecision, okay?”
“The guys had an over/under on how long it would take before you freaked and pulled the plug.” Jake informed her.
“Well the guys need to mind their own business.”
Jake sighed. “You can’t string him along like you do.”
“I don’t string.” Jana frowned. “I had a panic attack, it happens.”
“I know relationship stuff isn’t easy for you-”
“Oh, just because you dated me for five minutes does not make you an expert.” Jana teased.
Jake laughed. “The fact that you dumped me after five minutes kinda makes my point for me, don’t you think?”
The two went on one date, back when Athena and Jake would do nothing more than flirt and deny their feelings for each other. It was something everybody joked about now, something good natured.
“I’m at work.”
“You guys are it, Jana. You two have that-that thing we all want. And everybody seems to know it but you.”
Jana snorted. “You and Athena are it, too.”
Jake smiled. “Yeah, we are. But Athena and I are a different story. You and Lex? You belong together.”
“I know that. Okay, of course I know that, Jake.”
“Then do a better job of showing it.” Jake hung up the phone.
He turned and saw Lex and Walden approaching. He pocketed his phone and nodded a greeting.
“Lex, hey.”
“Who was that?”
“Jana.”
A small frown flashed across Lex’s face.
“I was giving her grief.”
Walden huffed, and Jake resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Lex changed the subject.
“Listen.” He took a stack of pictures from Walden. “There’s a Syrian kid, needs to be picked up for questioning. I want you to run point.”
Jake nodded. As much as he wanted to get home to his family, he figured this was connected to Lex’s briefing. He would do what he had to do.
“I thought I was running point.” Walden complained.
“I changed my mind.”
“What, is this because I took the under on Jana?”
Jake looked up with a scowl. “Shut it, Walden.”
Lex only regarded him with a dirty look as Jake flipped through the photographs.
“Who’s sending us in? CIA? Homeland?” Walden questioned.
“None of your business.” Lex chastised. “Much like my relationship.” He began to walk off, and called Jake to follow. “It’s the health department. You know the drill. EIS official will meet you there.”
Jake turned around to lean on the hood of the squad car parked on the street. “Please tell me this isn’t some kind of ebola thing.”
“They don’t know what it is.” Lex sighed, then stood next to Jake, leaning against the car. “So what did she say, earlier… when she answered your call instead of all ten of mine?”
“She’s just being Jana, man. She’ll come around.” Jake reassured.
“Yeah? Well, maybe this time I won’t.”
Jake broke into a soft laugh. “You want me to call bullshit on that, or you want-you wanna call on yourself?”
Lex shook his head with a laugh. “Look, I gotta head downtown. The feds wanna talk to me.”
“Guess no matter how many stripes you got on a sleeve, you still gotta kiss the ring, huh, Major?” Jake teased.
“I guess I do, officer. Huh. I guess I do.”
The two men fist bumped, and Lex stood straight. “Alright.”
Jake flipped the photographs around in his hand. “Get it.”
He heard the familiar rumble of an engine and turned to see Athena parking the car across the street. He crossed the street to greet her as soon as she stepped out of the car.
“Hey.” She smiled as his hands immediately went for her waist.
“Babe, listen to me.”
She frowned at the gravity of his tone. “Jake, what’s wrong?”
He caught sight of his boys in the backseat, waving at him through the window. He waved back and then turned his back to them, positioning Athena in front of him.
“Jake.”
“Look, Lex had a briefing with the health department today. There’s a sickness, and they don’t know how serious it is.”
She sighed. “He has you running point, doesn’t he?”
Jake sighed. “Athena…”
She shook her head, ignoring the burn in her throat as she looked away.
“Athena.” He cupped her cheek and pulled her back his way. “Look at me.”
“You have a family, Jake. You’ve got two kids. Those boys need you, you’re their world.”
“Athena-”
“Jake, I get it’s your job. It was my job too, remember?”
He pulled her into a hug, and she rested her head against his chest, arms tightening around him.
“Thea…” He sighed again. “I’d feel better if I knew that you guys were home, safe.”
She nodded. “Okay. Just…” She pulled away, tears in her eyes. “If you die on me, Jake Riley…”
“I won’t.” He cupped her face. “I promise.”
She stood on her toes and kissed him, her hands landing on his neck. There were a few whistles from across the street, and Athena dropped back onto her toes. She and Jake looked over to see Walden and a few other guys watching. She rolled her eyes, and Jake’s hold tightened on her.
“Hey.” She put a hand on his chest and smiled. “At least take the coffee I brought you and Lex?”
He looked down with pure admiration in his eyes. “You’re amazing.”
She pressed a quick kiss to his lips again. “I love you too, handsome. Alright, come on.” She pulled away from him and opened the car door, pulling out two coffees and handing them to Jake.
The backseat window rolled down, and Isaac and Levi were both in their car seats, staring at their dad. Jake leaned in with a laugh.
“Hey, monsters. You boys being good for Momma?”
The smile on Athena’s face grew wider, and her heart grew lighter as she watched the interaction. They answered, Jake asked something else, and Levi cracked a joke. Jake laughed harder than he should’ve, but it was genuine. He bid them farewell and turned to Athena with a wink.
She pulled him in for one last kiss, and he laughed against her lips. She dropped back onto her feet with a satisfied smile.
“Just can’t get enough, huh?”
She shrugged. “I mean, I did have two of your children.”
He grinned and she nodded her head back to the precinct. “Alright, Superman, they need you. Go. I love you, be safe.”
“I love you too.”
***
“Alright, yeah. Copy that.” Jake huffed as he climbed out of the van.
He hung up the phone and pocketed it before turning to the other officers. “Alright, the doctors told Lex, it only seems to be spread through fluids. Blood, sweat, semen, urine.”
Walden pulled a glove on with a chuckle. “There’s a hundred percent a joke there.”
“Yeah?” Jake spat. “Well, keep it to yourself.”
Walden was, by all means, what the boys would consider, Jake’s arch nemesis. He had tried, and failed, on various occasions to get with Athena, he was usually out to get both Lex and Jake himself, and he was all around a dick.
“Put your gloves on and lower your visor. Don’t touch anyone or anything.” Jake ordered.
He took a helmet from the back of the van and started up the block. He worked on tightening the chin strap as another man in uniform joined him on the sidewalk.
“Officer Riley?”
“Yeah.”
“Jim Banks, EIS. You take the lead. Not sure who these people trust less, doctors or cops.”
Jake nodded as he knocked on the door. It opened, revealing a Syrian man.
“Atlanta PD. Do you live here?”
“Yes, I do.” The man answered, looking between Jake and the rest of the people on his porch.
“Great. You know this guy?” Jake held up a photograph of the boy needed for questioning.
The man hesitated, and then shook his head. “I don’t recognize him.”
“Sir, a city traffic camera captured the tags on your car when it was used to pick him up from Atlanta Midtown Hospital on Tuesday.”
The man looked down.
“Hey, look, sir. I’m not with immigration. We’ve been asked to bring him in as it pertains to a potential viral outbreak. Your friend’s health is at risk, and maybe yours too, and-and your family’s.” Jake explained.
The man looked down again, hesitating once more.
“Sir?”
“He’s my nephew.”
“Good. Thank you.” Jake lowered his visor. “You need to step back. Step back please, and stay four to six feet away at all times.” Jake and the others made their way into the house. “Thank you.”
They followed the man through the house, where the family was sitting around a dining room table, hissing words at each other.
“Hello, I’m with the Atlanta Police. I need to speak with Sayid.”
One of the women said something in Arabic, and the first man put his hand up and answered her. Jake licked his lips.
“When did he arrive in the country?”
“Monday.”
“How?”
The man looked down a third time, this time in shame. “He flew in the hold of a cargo plane. His father got him on the plane, I got him off.”
The woman began speaking again, this time angrier.
“Lena, please.” He ordered, putting his hand up again. “Those militant groups. They tried to recruit him. He wanted to come to America. To his family.”
“Yeah, t-that’s great. But we need to know who he’s been in contact with.”
“He hasn’t left the house except to go to the hospital. That flight took a lot out of him. He had a cold. Nothing more.”
Jake nodded, noticing a bag on a chair in the corner. “What’s in this?” He pointed.
“His belongings.”
Jake nodded and took a step forward. “Where’s he at?”
“In the bedroom.” The man pointed as Lena, the woman, whimpered.
Jake nodded yet again and followed him down the hall. Sayid was laying in bed, and an older woman was rubbing his forehead, trying to soothe him.
“Hey, hey, hey. Tell her she can’t touch him. He’s infectious.” Jake ordered.
The man did as asked, and the woman protested.
“We’ll need to take him with us.” Jim stated.
“Just stay calm.” Jake held a hand up as the woman continued to protest.
She broke into a coughing fit, and Jake took a step back. Sayid took the chance and ran. Jake fumbled around Jim and ran after him.
“Damn it, I’m trying to help you! Support!”
Walden stood in the door, barely lowering his visor in time. Sayid stumbled onto the floor, coughing. Jake pulled his gun.
“Stay on the floor! Hands where I can see them! Put your hands up! Put your hands up! Don’t move!”
Everybody fell silent, and the only sound was their panting. Jake shot Walden a glare and let out a deep breath.
***
Athena flipped her phone in her hands and let out a short breath.
“Mommy, when’s Dad coming home?” Levi looked up from his spot on the couch.
Athena blinked, then pulled on a smile as she faced her son. “Soon, baby. He’s just got work to do.”
“But I thought Dad didn’t work today.”
She sighed. “I know, Lee, but it was a last minute thing. Daddy’s gonna be home before you know it.” She s-miled again.
Levi sighed and turned back to the TV, little arms crossed over his chest. Athena leaned back against the wall and once more flipped her phone in her hands. She hoped Jake would call soon.
***
“EIS is with the family initiating home quarantine procedure. At least three of them have had direct contact. I think one is sick.” Jake handed a bag to Dr. Cannerts. “This is the stuff the guy carried with him. I’m gonna head to the precinct.”
“Actually, I think it would be wise, considering the contact you’ve had, if you stay here a while.”
Jake shook his head. “No, no, no. I had my visor on, gloves. No fluids got in there, man.”
“Just as a precaution.”
“I have a girl and two kids to get back to. I’m not sick.”
“I’m sure there’s nothing to work about, officer, but do you really want to risk exposing them?”
Jake sighed and turned back. He knew Dr. Cannerts was right, even though he didn’t want to admit it.
“Excuse me, miss? This is a private ward, you can’t be here.” Dr. Cannerts spoke, and Jake turned around to see a young woman, probably Athena’s age.
“Sorry, I’m looking for my son and his friend. They went looking for the rats in the research labs…” She trailed off as she noticed the sick man behind glass.
Jake sighed. “I’ll help her.”
“Officer. Four to six feet, both of you. Gloves and masks, please.”
Jake pulled his helmet back over his head and thumped the glove dispenser as he started to walk away. “Not a good time to let your kid go wandering off.”
The woman followed in silence, and Jake began to grow more and more upset. They stalked down empty halls, and the woman sighed.
“Where the hell are we?”
Jake said nothing as they kept walking.
“That guy back there, is it bad? I’ve got fourteen kids here. I feel like I should know if it’s bad.”
“Hey, four to six feet, miss.” Jake held a hand out, and she stepped away.
“And my son, Quentin, I didn’t just let him run off. He was obsessed with the rats, and I was talking to parents.” The woman explained.
A man came out of a pair of wood doors, and the woman jumped at the chance.
“Excuse me. We need to get in there.”
“It’s restricted.” The man pulled his mask off.
“Uh, we’re looking for a couple young kids.” Jake stepped forward. “They’d have been heading for the research labs.”
“Can we just take a quick look?”
The man shook his head. “I can’t let you in there.”
“Please.” The woman took a step forward. “I just need to look.”
“Hey. Four to six feet.” The man held a hand out.
“The officer and I were just in the same hallway as the infected man.” The woman continued to step forward, and Jake watched.
She reminded him of Athena.
“Better not get too close.” She pulled her mask off.
Jake blinked. Definitely like Athena.
“Hey, hey, hey, you’re-you’re a cop, man.”
“What do you want me to do, shoot her?” Jake deadpanned.
The man yanked his access tag off and tossed it at the woman. “Here. I ain’t dying for this job.”
The woman scanned the ID, and Jake chuckled.
“You’re a piece of work.”
She turned to him with a playful scowl. “Four to six feet, please.”
They started down the hall, which was dimly lit. Jake felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He felt like he was walking through a horror movie set. They crossed a window, where they could see two people lying dead on cots. Someone in a hazmat suit crossed by the window, inside the room, and the woman jumped, gasping. She backed up, bumping into Jake. She inched away and mumbled an apology.
“Here, here. Go, go.” Jake ushered her to keep moving.
They sped down the hallway, and the woman turned at the sound of a child’s giggle. Jake let out a breath of relief when they found the two kids in a room with an older man and a cage of rats.
“Quentin!” The woman scolded. “What did I say about sticking close?”
The two boys looked down, and the woman sighed. “I’m sorry for the bother, sir.”
Jake pulled his helmet off and ran a hand over his face.
“Oh, it was no bother.” The man smiled. “They were good, nice boys.”
“Thank you.”
“Come on, young ones. Let’s get you out of here.” The man led them out the room and down the hall.
“Freaky mask, mom.” Quentin looked at his mom before continuing down the hall.
The woman pulled the mask down with a soft sigh, avoiding Jake’s eyes. She walked past him with a sigh.
“Don’t ever have kids.” She laughed, a tired laugh.
Jake scratched the back of his neck, and the woman stopped cold. “Unless you do, in which case, sorry.”
Jake chuckled and shook his head. “I’ve got two boys. Levi and Isaac. Here, let me show you.” He fished his phone from his pocket and pulled up his favorite picture of them.
They were playing with Noodle in a river, giggling at Jake as he took the picture. He remembered that day. Athena had packed lunch, and they had gone for a picnic. Noodle got loose and dove into the river, and it turned into a family affair.
“They’re cute. How old?”
“Seven and four.” Jake looked after where the boys had gone. “How old’s he?”
“Eleven.”
Jake huffed. “You seem kind of young to have an eleven year old.”
The woman shrugged. “Well, life’s full of surprises, right?”
Jake sighed. “Yeah.”
“I’m Katie.” The woman held a hand out.
“Jake.” He held his hand back out, and they both paused, then began to laugh.
“Right.”
Her phone rang, and she declined the call with a sigh.
“Angry mother?”
She huffed. “Something like that. I uh, share custody with his dad’s parents. Long story. Tonight’s their night.”
Jake squinted. “You’re under lockdown.”
“You think that would make a difference, right?”
“I would, yeah.”
“Anyway, they live in fear of something going wrong on my watch, and I live in fear of them being right, so…”
“What are you guys doing down here?” A guy in nurse scrubs came down the hall.
“My son, Quentin-”
“They’re officially putting the hospital on lockdown.”
“We’re already on lockdown.” Jake narrowed his eyes.
“Well they don’t want anyone leaving for forty-eight hours.”
“Forty-eight hours?” Katie repeated.
“Gotta be kidding me.” Jake mumbled, letting out a heavy sigh.
He was tired, hungry, and he wanted to get home to his family.
“Look. I’m not gonna lie to you. This is a unique situation, but we’re in good hands. We just have to trust the system. Follow the rules, and everything will be fi-” The man sneezed.
Katie jumped back and pulled her mask on. Jake put his helmet back on and took a few steps forward.
“Alright, okay, back up, back up.” He glanced over at Katie. “Katie, go get the other doctor, Cannerts, now.”
Katie slid past the man, and Jake groaned. “Step aside, sir. Step aside!”
Katie ran down the hall and Jake cursed under his breath, then grew even more exasperated.
“Damn it!”
He pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
Athena was in the shower. She had successfully put both the boys down for a nap, and she was growing more and more anxious with each passing minute. The music stopped, and her phone began to buzz. She cursed as she shut the water off and hurried out of the shower with shampoo still in her hair. She wrapped a towel around herself and picked up the phone, putting it to her ear.
“Jake?”
“Baby, hey.”
She winced at his tone. “Honey, what happened?”
“Babe, look. I had to come to Atlanta Midtown for this case, and…”
“Jake. Talk to me.”
“Athena, they’re putting the hospital on lockdown.”
Athena put a hand over her mouth to try and stifle the groan that came.
“Jake…”
“I know, baby, I know. But I’ll be okay. As soon as this is over, I’m coming home, I promise.”
She sniffled, running a hand over her face. “Jake, are you even safe there?”
There was a pause, and she bit her lip.
“I am. I promise, I’m safe.”
“Jake, what’s going on?”
She could hear him sigh. “It’s dangerous. You have to stay home, okay? No matter what.”
She sighed this time and nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. “Okay. We did groceries earlier today, so we should be fine.”
“I’ll be back before you know it. I’ll call you every day. I love you.”
She sighed again. “I love you too, Jake. Please be safe.”
“I promise.”
“What do I tell the boys?” She whispered.
There was a long pause.
“Tell them I have a guy’s weekend with Lex.”
She sighed again. “Okay. They’re gonna miss you.”
“I’ll talk to them when I call you. Okay? I-”
“If you say promise one more time, Jake.” She chuckled, but tears were gathering in her eyes.
There was another pause, this one somber.
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Back at the hospital, Jake hung up the phone with a sigh, eyes squeezed shut. His anger flared, and he made the impulsive decision to call Lex.
“Hey, man, where are you?”
“I’m at the hospital. I can’t leave, I’m stuck.”
“You’re part of the lockdown.”
“Yeah, I’m in the middle of the damn hot zone, Lex! I mean, some guy just sneezed four feet from my face!”
“Listen to me. I have an in with the governor. I can-”
“No, Lex!” Jake began to pace. “They’re not gonna let me out! I had contact with patient zero! I can’t risk bringing that home to Athena and the boys! I mean, it’s the freaking zombie apocalypse up there in the isolation ward. I’m not getting out.”
The anxiety he had held back to keep Athena calm was ripping through his body in waves.
“Jake-”
“Screw you, Lex! Alright? You’re the one who sent me in here! You know I have a family to take care of! And you still did this!”
“Jake. Ja-”
Jake hung up the phone and took a deep breath. He slid his phone back into his pocket and turned at the sound of people coming down the hall. Cannerts stared at him with a blank face, and Katie gave him her most sympathetic look. Anger and anxiety hit at the same time, and he began to turn away.
He should be home, with his kids, with Athena. He should be there to keep them calm, keep them safe. He shouldn’t be here with a stranger and other people’s kids. He turned and knocked a hand sanitizer off the wall with a grunt. He kicked open a door down to his right and walked into the darkness.
***
Jake stood, three feet from the glass window, and watched. The man who had sneezed was noticeably worse. He was pale, had blood dripping from his nose, and he kept coughing. He walked away, dazed, and stopped at the sound of squeaking. He looked up to see another window being wiped down from the inside. A man in a hazmat suit sprayed the window and wiped away blood.
He made his way into the room where they were all to stay in silence. He stripped himself of his gear as he walked, and he finally entered the room with his vest and helmet in hand. Katie looked up when she noticed him, giving him a sympathetic smile. He only looked away and dropped his things onto his cot with a heavy sigh. He sat down, and Katie tried once more. He sighed again, and gave her a soft smile back.
As frustrated as he was, he knew better than to be rude to her. After all, they were all stuck in here together.
He sighed and ran his hands through his hair as he thought of Athena and his sons.
In their apartment, two miles away, a thirty minute walk from the hospital, Athena tucked her sons into bed. They were upset. They wanted their dad, and they couldn’t understand why he would leave for the weekend without telling them. She had given a quick answer, read them a story, and kissed their foreheads.
She laid in her own bed now, feeling small. She looked over, but Jake’s side was empty. She curled up on her side, hugging his pillow to her chest. She heard the door creak, and then Noodle jumped onto the bed, laying down at her feet. She sighed and closed her eyes, thinking of Jake.
