The Runners: Chapter 5
Chapter 5
“Waaaaa! Waaaaa! Waaaaa!”
In the summer of 2167, with thundering protests, a 5.5 lbs baby girl cried loudly in a small delivery room at a rural hospital in Waukesha, WI. The doctor handed the baby to a female nurse to have it wrapped up in warm blankets. The mother running out of breath and with cries of joy wanted to see her baby as she was begging, “let me see my baby…, isn’t she precious!” The nurse, after a quick prep, set the baby beside the mother, who then pulled the new born closer to her bosom. Moist with sweat and blood, the mother held her baby and began shedding tears of joy.
“Linda, we are finally a mom and a dad!” exclaimed Craig Simpson, the baby’s father who was also elated with the birth of his daughter.
“I was so concerned after what you have gone through. With your heart conditions and everything…” Craig paused to regain his emotions and continued.
“I love you so much and this baby is the most precious gift from God. And you made it happen!”
Still holding the baby in her arms, Linda took her husband’s hand. She squeezed Craig’s hand in hers, with the assurance and appreciation for the fact that he had stuck with her through all the trials and challenges. “Your patience and support helped me cope through all these years. You gave me the strength to live for this moment.”
Craig hugged his wife and gave a soft kiss on her cheek. Then, both parents turned to Danielle, showering her precious cheeks with soft kisses. This soothed the baby and soon she stopped her protesting cry.
Danielle was born to Mr. and Mrs. Simpson. They met at Waukesha high school. Craig played football while Linda was active in the honors student activities. She excelled in academics and thought about being an aerospace engineer and, eventually, an astronaut. They met during a school dance where Linda slipped and stumbled in to Craig who had caught Linda before she crashed to the ground. They began dating and became known as the ‘accidental couple’ in school because of how they met. After finishing college, they got married in a simple wedding with only few family and friends in attendance.
Soon after, they had settled in Detroit as Craig landed a job with Android Motors or AM, as an apprentice in a solar vehicle assembly line. With an engineering degree, Linda pursued her dreams of becoming an aeronautics engineer. Although, she handily exceeded all the required qualifications, her health issues held her back and no one would take a chance on a person who posed so much risk in the long run. It was at this time that Linda discovered how serious her heart conditions were and it had become the hurdle that she could not overcome on her own. Her conditions worsened with the first miscarriage of their baby and it quickly deteriorated from there.
Two years into Craig’s employment, there was a deadly fire at the AM plant which caused the roof of the building to collapse onto the assembly lines where Craig was on duty. Five people lost their lives and several were injured. In this fire, Craig lost one of his arms and damaged his right leg, which severely incapacitated his mobility. Eventually, he could not perform the tasks of an assembly line engineer and was let go with a small severance package.
The couple moved back to their home town in Wisconsin, but was unable to make comfortable living. Even under such challenging circumstances, they kept to each other and longed to raise children of their own. After two heartfelt miscarriages and in the midst of Linda’s worsening health, the couple finally succeeded giving birth to a healthy baby girl. They were overjoyed with the addition of Danielle to their lives. Craig and Linda sworn to each other and were determined to provide a nurturing environment for the very special gift in the form of this beautiful princess, Danielle.
Even in her early childhood, Danielle showed passion for life and demonstrated unmatched capacity for compassion for the well being of others. When she was ten years old, there was a new girl, Cathy Emerson, who had recently transferred to her 5th grade class from the South. All the other girls in the class room bullied the new student as she had unfamiliar accents in her speech. The new girl was ridiculed. But, Danielle was the only one who had embraced Cathy by befriending her. Danielle made a point of sitting together with Cathy during lunch and spending time with her after school as well. Eventually, the other children would stop the bullying as Danielle was a very popular girl among her friends and teachers. Cathy and Danielle remained the best of best friends through high school and eventually, they would enroll at the same university.
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Danielle was blessed with her father’s physique, applied to women’s standards and her mom’s intelligence. She grew up a beautiful lady and she excelled in academics. When she turned thirteen, she had won the very prestigious North America Future Scientists and Engineers Award sponsored by the United Nations North America Scientists and Engineers Organization. She was selected based on the written test scores and the leadership qualities measured on the direct responses to oral examination. For any students destined for great career in academia, it would have been an extreme honor just to have been invited to compete in this event, let alone winning it all. She had bright future ahead of her, winning scholarship after scholarship throughout her high school years.
In 2183, at age 16, Danielle had graduated high school with the highest honors in the NA region for her academic achievements. She was awarded a full scholarship to study quantum physics at the University of Wisconsin. UW Physics alumni dominated high ranking positions both in the UN and at various private research consortiums. As a result, success of her future career was already set in stones even before she had arrived at the campus. She showed incredible potential beyond her humble beginnings and she was well on her way to realizing her long time dream and passion for academia by following her mother’s footsteps, which she could not pursue. Danielle was on her way to achieving her own dreams as well as for Linda in her proxy.
In the summer two years later, a tragedy struck the family. Her mother had suffered complex heart failures and strokes. She was rushed to the emergency room of Waukesha Memorial Hospital. Due to the severity of the situation, it became obvious to the doctors that Linda would lose part of her vision and suffer partial paralysis in her arms and legs. This unfortunate medical emergency dealt a big blow to the modest family of three that was struggling to build a happy and caring family life. It also left both Danielle’s parents with disabilities that subsequently reduced their qualities of life while putting great financial strains.
The life became very challenging for the family and it was during this time that Danielle went off to the university to start her senior year. But, her concerns for the well being of her parents followed her to the campus. She would talk to her mom whenever she could. Linda would assure Danielle that they were well. But, without Danielle’s daily presence, Craig and Linda’s relationship no longer had focus. They lacked that common bond, which consumed their livelihood, energy, and strength needed in the making of a happy family life. Further, Danielle would later learn that Linda’s assuring words weren’t always to be taken at face value.
Six months later, her father Craig had passed away from an accidental overdose of drugs used to manage pain and treat his depression. Danielle rushed to her mother’s side to comfort her and to ensure that Linda does not lose her sanity. For the first time, Danielle saw the devastating pain that her mom was enduring in her dad’s absence. No one else to turn to, Danielle vowed that she would take care of her mother and determined to keep the small family together.
It was also at this time that a mysterious man acquainted Danielle at the hospital in Waukesha, with the promise of helping to bring health back to her mother as well as providing financial support to the family. Desperate circumstances got the better of Danielle’s judgments as she fell into the trap set by the enticing words of the man people simply called, ‘the director’.