So lonely...

[McNeo]

Stuart was absolutely dumbfounded that such a beautiful woman had asked him for a drink. Of all people,
why would she ask him?

"Err *snif* sure, I'll get you a drink"

Stuart opened up his wallet and found the last few coins he had. He started to rise from his seat, but then fell back. He knew he didn't have the confidence.

'Enough wallowing' a thought passed through his mind. He could not be like this. Only a few weeks ago, he was out killing all manner of unlawful beings. Then his keys were taken from him by Jay. Rightfully so too...

Stuart couldn't help feeling that it was his fault, but he dismissed the thought from his mind. It was within human nature to find someone to blame. Always, he tried to shift it to someone else. Always.

He rose from his chair again, the beautiful woman observing his movements, and staggered to the bar. He ordered two drinks, one for the lady and one for himself, with the scarce money he had left. He turned around slowly, and noticed the silence in the bar. All eyes were on him. He knew he must do something. He blurted out suddenly.

"What you looking at!? Huh?"

Again, there was silence. After a few seconds, it was broken by a voice.

"Get 'im!"

Suddenly, there was a roar in the bar, as chairs scraped as people got up and charged at him. Stuart was dumbfounded with his mouth open as he was swamped by the figures in the bar. As the first punch was thrown by a Corsair, time appeared to slow as it connected with Stuart's jaw. As his head launched to his right, another punch struck his midriff, and another just above, breaking his rib.

The rest was a blur as fists and feet flied through the air. Stuart was left as a bleeding wreck on the floor,
as Corsair joined Hessian in beating down the helpless ex-bounty hunter.

As the triumphant crowd cheered themselves out of the bar together, the woman walked into a position above Stuart. What she saw was almost horrifying. Stuart's left Elbow was snapped backwards, his ribs were completely out of shape, and his right shoulder was dislocated backwards, almost ripping through the skin.

Stuart breathed quickly, with a look of horror in his eyes. As he rose, blood started dripping from his mouth.
He coughed, and it spurted out on to the dress of the woman. He fell back, relocating his shoulder. This
brought on him immense pain, even more so than the rest of his injuries.

A single, red tear from his right eye fell. His eyes closed, and he became unconscious. The woman knelt besides the seemingly dead body. He touched his left hand, and the body awoke. Only the eyes moved, as the blood continued to flow from his mouth.

The woman spoke.

"Hang in there. I'll fetch the medics!"

Another red tear fell from his eye, but this time he smiled and tightened his grip on the woman's hand. The reversed elbow joint moved, and Stuart's grip automatically released. The woman smiled down, with an empathetic expression. She averted his gaze, stood up, and moved away. As she left through the exit, she shouted back.

"Don't you die on me. Hang on!"

As she left, Stuart turned his head aside and began to think about the state of his life. He was about to give up hope before, but despite the state of his body, he felt happier. He had someone, who at least appeared to care for him. He didn't even know her name, and she appeared not to know his. But his heart felt more secure now, with someone there. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

--------------------------

He later awoke again on an operating table. His head was fixed in a full neck cast, and the surgeons around him seemed to be delving into his chest. However, he could not feel a thing. He realized that they were healing his internal wounds. Unconcerned, he looked to his right, and saw the beautiful woman. He smiled, or rather did his best in his tranquilised state. His lips moved only slightly, but the woman knew what gesture he tried to perform and smiled back. Stuart's gaze shifted to the left, and he saw Rick Deckard at his side. He nodded his head faintly, and Rick nodded back with a barely noticeable smile. Stuart's gaze returned to the default position of straight up, his eyelids closed, and he slept for the rest of the operation.