Silent Love, Silent Pain [Levi x OC]

99. Shocking news

As Eric was gone, trying to do whatever he planned on doing, Nathalie waited for Sophie's test results. She was sitting comfortably in her chair, only taking glimpses of Sophie and Levi who was sitting by her side the entire time. She was surprised that he didn't have any sleep or bathroom break. Heck, he didn't even eat nor drink. All she did was stare at his wife, caressing her hand and mumbling some words of comfort every now or then that she tried not to listen as it would feel like crossing a line. She knew she wasn't just her doctor anymore as they became friends over the time, but no one would ever be close enough to watch their private little moments. Moments that maybe Sophie wasn't even fully aware of at the moment. The mere thought left Nathalie with a sick feeling in her mouth.

She took another glimpse at the two of them. Soon she would have to come there and check on Sophie - whether her pulse was the same and her breathing steady enough. Of course, there was also Hange in the room, but she prefer to check on everything herself, even though they agreed to take turns. "She's stable," she later came to her office and sat next to her, taking a huge sip of coffee. They were both tired. "Seriously, how can he sit so still?" She mumbled and stood up walking back and forth to awake. "I'm falling asleep on my feet."

"I guess it's hard to leave even for a moment when your loved one is in need," Nathalie said and she covered her mouth to yawn. It was late after midnight and she would really use some rest, yet she was hesitant about leaving Hange in charge. What if something happened and she had trouble waking her up or dealing with a problem herself? She couldn't help but wonder. Yes, Hange was a scientist but she wasn't sure how far she got in her studies, considering the fact that she learned everything on Paradis which was separated from the rest of the world long enough for their knowledge to be outdated. Yes, she studied Grisha's medical books thoroughly and Nathalie exchanged notes with her, giving her an opportunity to get familiar with the newest discoveries, but still...Nathalie had a hard time entrusting anyone with her research who wasn't a Burgess like she.

"You're right, but...," she bit her lip and shook her head. "I bet Sophie wouldn't like to see him knackered when she wakes up."

If she ever will, Nathalie thought and immediately scolded herself for this. She will, she tried to convince herself. She felt like not believing it entirely was a betrayal to everyone - Sophie, their friendship, Levi, Scouts and of course Eric, who was more than happy to find a relative so down to earth like her. Alas, she was a damn good scientist and as one she couldn't lie to herself and cross out the possibility that she wouldn't wake up. In other words - she was torn and her lack of sleep wasn't helpful.

She heard how her equipment made a sound and paper with Sophie's results printed, landing in front of her. Her tired eyes took a lazy glimpse of the words and numbers written on it and widened right away. What?! Her mind immediately woke up, forcing her to drift from the state of sleepiness. But did she really wake up? These results...maybe her vision wasn't clear and the numbers were mixing before her eyes , she wondered as it was odd to look at. Not because the results itself were weird. No, she has seen it a lot during her practise in hospital, but never in a million years she would have expected Sophie's to turn like this. Unless...the mere thought caused her to gasp and the mug she held slipped from her hand, breaking on the floor with a loud plink. "Shit," she cursed as the coffee spilled everywhere. She hated mess.

"What happened?" They heard Levi's question from another room and both Nathalie and Hange looked into his direction, surprised that he acknowledged that anything non-Sophie-related happened. Of course he acknowledged it. What if Tyburs found out that they returned to Nathalie's lab? What if they wanted to storm in and take Sophie by force again? He had to protect her even more than usual as she couldn't protect herself at the moment.