<div style="text-align: center"><b><u><span style="font-size: 18px">Ericka</span></u></b>​</div><span style="font-size: 12px">Ericka felt someone grip her shoulder, hard. She ripped herself away and turned abruptly to face the culprit, "Excuse me who-" and then she saw his thin freckled face, with magnified eyes staring at her in distress. <i>Carl</i>. He had been her research partner for almost a decade now, having met during one of their internships as fresh graduates. Just as she registered who it was another voice interrupted her thoughts. <br/>
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"Excuse me, Ma'am, is this gentleman troubling you?"<br/>
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She turned her head to see that same man she had been staring at earlier, in his bright yellow raincoat. Ericka smiled meekly, stuttering a bit as she gained composure. <br/>
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"Oh uhm, no, no trouble at all, " she replied as she shot a glance to Carl, "at least none that  I'm aware of at this time."<br/>
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"No," Carl whispered harshly, "there <i>is</i> a problem and I need you <i>right now</i>." <br/>
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Ericka scrutinized Carl's face for a moment. She had never seen him like this before. Whatever it was, it had shaken Carl to his core and she could <i> feel</i> his panic in the air. "Carl..." she said softly, while maintaining eye contact with him. </span><br/><br/>Carl stepped back, realizing the spectacle he was making. Straightening himself and smoothing back his mop of curls on his head, Carl sighed heavily. "There's no problem here," he said to the man in the yellow coat. "At least none that concerns you. Ericka, come on. We need to go."