“How are we feeling today?” he asked Dana, moving to her side to check her vitals on the machine beside her bed.

“She was feeling pretty rough this morning,” Alice answered, knowing that Dana didn’t have the strength to respond fully to the doctor’s questions.  “But, she seems to be doing a bit better now,” she added hopefully.

“Well, I have some good news,” Dr. Bauer said, looking at both women.  

“Good news?” Alice repeated, feeling shocked and suddenly elated at once.  

For the first time since she had met him, Alice saw a flicker of a smile cross Dr. Bauer’s face.  “Yes,” he confirmed, looking down at Dana.  “The course of antibiotics we’ve been giving you appears to be finally working on the infection.  Your fever has come down noticeably today, and your vitals are looking better than they have all week.  We’ll keep up the same course of treatment for the next couple of days, and we’ll continue to monitor on your progress, but I think we can all feel cautiously optimistic that you might just be on your feet again by the end of the week.”

“Really?” Alice asked, releasing a breath of air that came out partly as a laugh and partly as a sob of relief.  She grabbed Dana’s hand and squeezed it, exchanging a look of pure happiness with her friend.  

“Yes, really,” Dr. Bauer answered matter-of-factly.  “I’ll come back tomorrow morning to check up on you.  But, in the meantime, try to get some rest, ok?”  He glanced up kindly at Alice as he spoke, including her wordlessly in his advice.  

As he turned to leave, Dr. Bauer noticed the flower sitting on the table beside Dana.  “Those are cute,” he said simply before leaving the room.

As the door shut behind him, Alice sank down on the side of the bed.  Before she realised what was happening, she felt tears streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks.  

“Al,” Dana whispered, aching inwardly when she saw the emotion etched on her friend’s face.  She tightened her grip on Alice’s hand, which only resulted in Alice releasing a pent-up sob as all the emotions she had been harbouring for the past few days came flooding over her.

“I’m sorry,” Alice said brokenly, as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.  She smiled brightly at Dana through her tears.  “It’s just that that was the best news I think I’ve ever heard.”  She sighed happily as she cupped Dana’s cheek with her hand.  “I guess your incentive pile of M&Ms really worked, didn’t it?” she joked, and inwardly rejoiced when she saw Dana’s lips curve into a brighter smile than she had seen on her face all week.  

Dana closed her eyes in relief as the doctor’s words began to sink in.  She was going to be ok.  She would get out of this bed.  She would once again see the world beyond these four walls.  Dana finally allowed herself to cling to these certainties that had seemed entirely unrealistic only a few hours earlier.

As she mulled over her thoughts, Dana suddenly felt Alice get up from her spot on the bed beside her.  She opened her eyes and looked at her friend questioningly.

“You should get some rest,” Alice said.  “Doctor’s orders.”

“Stay here,” Dana whispered, refusing to let go of Alice’s hand.  She looked at the empty space on the bed beside her and then back at Alice.

Alice paused for a moment before nodding silently.  Carefully avoiding Dana’s I.V. tube, she gently slid onto the bed beside her friend, laying her head on a corner of Dana’s pillow.  Although there wasn’t much space on the narrow mattress, she managed to fit herself snugly against Dana.  Dana shifted her head slightly so that their foreheads touched.  She took a deep breath as Alice’s familiar scent washed over her.  Then, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

tbc