Chapter 55: The Heated Discussion

Zalen kept his face completely neutral as he sat beside Nelly in the meeting room. His eyes never left the man sitting opposite him. They were cautious - not enough to cause tension in the room. He’s simply alert.

“Where were we?” Chad asked as he turned to Nelly, shifting their attention back to the topic of discussion. “Why can’t we try asking her? At least we try..” Nelly continued the argument from where they stopped.

“I said no and that’s final,” Chad’s tone was firm. Hank remained quiet as he watched them going back and forth. He leaned back in his chair, showing mild interest but listening attentively. Zalen looked confused. “Who? What?” He leaned forward as he asked, trying to piece together their discussion from the fragments of their exchange.

Nelly turned to him, like she’d remembered something. “Please give your insight on this. Cecilia’s still hanging there, fighting for her life. With the equipment we have here, I don’t think we can sustain her for long. The equipment is really hard to come by. I’d suggested that we go to Sammy for help. She has the skills and certainly needed this motivation to break through her situation. I’d say that it’s a win-win.”

Her speech was highly motivated. Words after words, sentences after sentences tumbled out of her mouth. They’d wonder if she even breathed throughout the speech. She beamed at Zalen, hoping that he’d support her proposal.

Zalen’s eyes darted between both of them. Nelly had the look of a righteous lawyer after her speech, while Chad remained calm and unwavering.

He cleared his throat awkwardly. “Sounds like a win-win, alright,” he started his comment cautiously. Nelly’s eyes lit up as she looked towards Chad. Her excitement was barely concealed. She looked exactly like a child beaming up at her parents when another adult supported her.

“But?” Hank voiced out from his seat. Nelly gave him a confused look. “Sounds like a sentence with a but in the end,” Hank shrugged dismissively as he explained.

“But I believe Chad has his own reason to oppose,” Zalen finished his sentence. Nelly’s face fell. “What’s the reason, then?” She kept her voice leveled with an edge of curiosity.

Everyone looked at Chad. “I don’t want to agitate her,” he gave a simple explanation which Nelly immediately refuted. “She needed the agitation. Supposedly, now she’s lost all reason to move on. That’s why she stayed that way. She’d need a push. We shouldn’t give up on her. She’s given up on herself. If we even give up on her, then that’ll really be the end!”

Her implication hung in the air. Chad’s brow twitched, a subtle evidence of his current emotion which both the other men noticed. They sat in silence as they watched the scene unfold in front of them.

“How much confidence do you have that the push you said she really needed will lead to a good result?” Chad finally spoke, looking up straight at Nelly. His voice was too calm. Nelly blinked. It made her stop to think. Her brows knitted together as she tried to logicalize the whole thing in her mind.

“Right. What’s the risk?” Hank probed as well. “The risk..” Nelly tried to say something. Nothing came to her mind. She started stressing and flipping through some of the books she brought into the room.

The room was silent as they waited for her. The only sound in the room was her aggressive flipping and occasional mumble as her finger moved across words. Her eyes darted across the pages like a scanner.

“Here,” she said as she pushed the book to the middle of the table. To her surprise, nobody moved or showed interest. Awkwardly, she reached out and pointed at the words. “Here, it says.. treatment for depression..”

Zalen massaged his temples. “Just, tell us what it says..”

She made some awkward noises before pulling the book back to her side.

“Lifestyle and self-care under the treatment section says that those with mild depression should stay active. They should engage in regular physical activities such as short walks. Also, they should stay in touch with friends and family, as social connection can improve your mood. And they need to maintain regular sleep and eating habits. Avoid alcohol, illicit drugs, and excessive caffeine,” she read the extensive paragraphs and her eyes lit up. “Here. ‘Engage in enjoyable activities: Try to do things you used to enjoy’. That’s exactly what we are asking her to do. Building equipment is something she used to enjoy.”

Chad ran a hand down his face, seemingly exhausted. “I asked about the risk. I know it’s good for her, but what’s the risk that comes with it?”

“R..isk?” Nelly said the word like it’s in a foreign language. “This is not a surgery.”

“Everything comes with a risk, Nelly,” Chad sounded annoyed and tired. “I didn’t find any mention of the risk in the book,” Nelly retorted.

“What if it’s not written in there?” Zalen challenged. “But the book..” Nelly tried to say something but Chad cut her off. “Are you sure the book is right? Do you believe everything the book says? Do you follow all the steps in there when you operate?”

Nelly shook her head. “They are all theories. In a surgery, it highly depends on the situation. But if we can write out the steps for every possibility..”

She stopped short. “What are you trying to say?” The question sounded more like a problem solving step than curiosity. Her eyes were on the table instead of Chad, making her sound like she’s stating a research question instead of asking him in a two-way discussion.

“Say, have you ever treated a person with depression?” Hank directed the question at her. She shook her head. “Like what I said earlier, that’s not my specialty. That’s why I refer to the book.”

Chad spoke next. He stared right into her soul.

“Do you have any experience with a loved one falling into depression?”