Fortunately, when Russell left Maxion's place, he'd run into just the person he was looking for; that was not by accident. Tommy's rounds were absolutely perfect, so perfect that they were predictable. He started his rove at precisely 0430, 1300, and now at 1600, every day. Russell had a similar system, and he could swear that by merging with Tommy, he'd inherited some of that oh-so-special Dynamic Patrol training— which made their lives more efficient. He could see Tommy just outside the glass door of his office every day, talking to people, giving out high fives, and paying attention. Today, he was silent and driven when someone said hi. He did not indicate that he was paying attention when someone attempted to initiate a high-five. He rejected them. Intentionally. Perhaps it was because of such proximity to the anniversary of the day the charges went off and killed all those people; maybe it was something else, Russell couldn't be sure.
Tommy was a zombie; he'd ultimately walked past his playmate whenever Russell attempted to wave. Tommy's reaction was to frown and look past Russell with a 1000-yard stare like a ghost before his eyes returned to his tablet. Which Russell found insulting. "Hey, Tommy!" Russell yelled this time. He enclosed his hand around Tommy's shoulder after speedwalking to catch up to his friend, and the squirrel reacted immediately, pulling himself out of Russell's grip forcefully. "What do you want? Can't you see I'm busy?" Tommy huffed, off to a great start. "I just wanted to see how you were. It's been a while since we've talked."
"Yeah? Well. I've had a lot on my mind. I don't have time for idle conversation." Russell's eyes narrowed, "But you have time to threaten our medic?" Tommy's expression darkened, his jaw clenched as he glared at Russell. "I didn't threaten anyone. I was merely trying to ensure that Cam understands that Kai isn't an option for him." Russell shook his head, unimpressed by Tommy's deflection. "What? Do you think it's not really your place to dictate Kai's romantic choices?"
"He is my cousin. I think I have some say." Tommy insisted as he raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, but your behavior towards Cam was unacceptable. He's a valuable member of this station, and he deserves to be treated with respect at this point. You said that yourself."
Tommy scoffed, crossing his arms defensively. "I don't need you to lecture me, Russell. I know what I'm doing." Russell sighed, trying to keep his frustration in check. "Look, I get it. You're under a lot of pressure, especially with everything happening lately. But taking it out on others won't solve anything. We need to work together as a team if we're going to get through this." Tommy's gaze softened slightly, but he remained stubborn. "I appreciate your concern, buddy. But I don't need anyone to coddle me. I can handle myself."
"Maybe I'd believe you if your hand wasn't balled up into a fist." Russell pointed out as his gaze drifted toward his hand. Tommy looked down, and sure enough, his body had conducted an involuntary operation; Tommy relaxed upon noticing this. "Just leave me alone!" Tommy shouted. Several onlookers stopped at that and stared; they were concerned, but Russell didn't like attention. "Keep your voice down," Russell said in a hushed tone, his eyes darting around as the crowd formed around them. Tommy noticed it too, but he wasn't as peaceful, "What are you people looking at? Get out of here!" He observed Tommy as he threw his tablet across the room at the crowd with pure hatred. There were several gasps, but Howie was walking right in front of the tablet at the time and had taken a sharp collision to the face; he shouted in pain and grabbed his eyeball, freaking out like a fool. Howie seemed to be in his pocket dimension, "My eye! It's going to fall out, oh my god!" He was running in circles until he bumped into a wall and fell into an unconscious state. Surprisingly, the onlookers kneeled to see if he was okay despite their hatred toward him. "Woah! Hey! Why'd you do that?" Russell was spooked by Tommy's explosion of anger, "Shut up!" Tommy shouted; he flailed his arms up into the air and headed for the door, and Russell rushed after him, "Stop right there, Tommy." And so he did; he turned around and stared daggers into Russell's soul. "You know what? When was your last day off?" Russell asked. The idea was already forming in his mind; Cam had planted it earlier. Tommy's expression did not change at all at Russell's question; his frustration was still palpable. He sighed heavily before responding, "I don't remember. Maybe a couple of weeks ago?"
"Well, if you can't remember, it's been too long. You'll spend the next few days with Cam in medical." Russell pressed, "What for?" He growled, "Observation." The bunny informed him. Tommy laughed at his face, "Observation!? You can't do that. I outrank you!"
"Yes, I can. What you can discover when you take the time to study the rules and regulations of the chain of command is very interesting. According to section 121-Alpha. As written here by you. In your '150 step plan,' the two department heads can relieve the commanding officer of his duties if they endanger their command without good reason, have become physically or mentally disabled, or have otherwise violated the law or regulations. You wrote it, and we all signed it." 'We' was every member of Gel-Squad; they would only let this new policy go into effect if every member agreed. Now Tommy kicked himself for inadvertently allowing Russell and Cam so much power. "Wait... did Cam put you up to this? So I overreacted," Tommy laughed nervously. "Don't be crazy... come on!"
"No! You work exceptionally long hours without a break and are bordering on exhaustion, and you're irritable... more so than usual. You need rest. And a psychological exam. Let's go, Tommy." Tommy stomped his foot like a pouting toddler, "No. I'm not going anywhere with you!"
Russell growled, "Tommy," He started firmly, "Unless you want to spend the rest of the day in security with me because you just assaulted someone, I suggest you stop fighting and relax; otherwise, this is going to be a long day for you. He grabbed Tommy by his underarm and forced him into the elevator under the scrutinizing gaze of half the station's population. Tommy could've easily escaped, but where would he have gone? Russell would've sent out a search party and would've found him eventually.
"Russell, let me go." Tommy began as his friend dragged him by the heels. "This is what I get? A forced sabbatical? You're hurting me!" Russell ignored Tommy. He knew his friend was under much pressure, but allowing him to continue working in such a state would only worsen things. He needed to relax, even if it had to be forced on him.