Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
SWEAT GLISTENS OFF THE MAN'S FOREHEAD, HIS BREATH LABOURING. Quinn McKenna sat back in the chair beside her father's accustomed hospital bed, tears building in her eyes. Since the girl could remember, everything was bursts of sunshine and rainbows until the dark grey clouds covered all that was bright, the heavy pour of rain crashing against her body. All Quinn could do was clutch the man's hand as tight as she could, all the medical training she'd studied since the age of five disappearing from her mind.
With the limited amount of medicines and morphing an individual was restricted to, Jamison McKenna was educated to have only a week left. Quinn couldn't imagine a life without her father, who made her laugh and smile with each dad joke he said, supporting her throughout her journey of becoming a medic in the Ark. Follow your heart, he'd always say. And at this moment in time, that was what she had to do to save Jamison.
Her eyes scanned her surroundings before pulling the cabinet open with the keys her mother gifted her when she became her assistant within the medical wing of the Ark, the woman teaching the girl everything she knew within the health department. Quinn's eyes stared into the capsules of morphing that seemingly taunted her, laughing at the fear splaying in the girl's chest. Quinn knew that when she was to get caught, she'd be put into the Skybox, staring at the same four walls for three years before she was eligible to be floated.
Every crime in the Ark was punishable by death. But, presently, Quinn couldn't think of the consequences as she grasped the morphing, supplying it into the man's blood system. She could only think of the relief she'd feel when she saw her father's eyes open again, holding the same proud glint he'd always admired her with. Quinn hoped that her actions wouldn't have the pride Jamison had in his daughter diminish.
She was switching her gaze from the man's vitals to his still figure on the bed, making hours feel torturous. Now, it was a waiting game, and with each minute that ticked by, Quinn felt her lungs contract deeper. Clutching her father's hand, she allowed the tears to begin to spill, soft sobs escaping her raw throat from the lack of water and speaking she'd done since finding out her father had grown ill.
"Dad ..." she softly spoke, keeping her voice down. "I didn't know what else to do, and when the council finds out, they're going to arrest me. So, please, I need you to wake up before that happens." Quinn sniffled. "I need you to wake up to know it was worth it." From the lack of answer, Quinn slumped in defeat, her sobs heightening. However, a return of pressure on her hand made the girl pause, picking her head up from where she dropped it on the edge of the bed. She swore she could have seen his eyelids slightly flicker as though the man was having trouble opening his eyes. She straightened her posture, rubbing at her nose. "Dad, I'm here. Open your eyes, please."
