"How did you find me?", Madi frowned.

"I have friends...", I replied to her, which made her look at Elijah who was standing next to her.

"Traitor...", she told him.

Elijah laughed and replied to her, "Sorry Madi...its the intern code, interns over senior residents"

"I'll remember that when I am making next year's schedule", she laughed back at him.

Madi thrust an open box of masks into my hands and said, "If I have to put up with you...at least, make yourself useful"

Pointing to the front of the medical tent we were standing in, she said, "Stand there and offer a mask to anyone who is not wearing one"

"Yes, boss...", I grinned at her from under my own mask, and the way she held my gaze for a couple of seconds told me that she too was smiling even if she tried to pretend that she was angry with me.

For the next hour, I handed out those masks because even though we were out in the open the crowd of people had swelled from just a trickle when I first got here to people walking on both the streets and the sidewalks now. Thankfully, almost 90% of the people were masked, and the others were willing to put one on when I asked them. This was a far cry from some of the anti-masking rallies that were happening in parts of the country.

After Elijah had texted me their location I had decided to drive back to my apartment building, which luckily was only a few blocks away from here, and leave my car there. Otherwise, trying to drive in this crowd would have been absolute nightmare. Apparently, as Madi found out from Twitter, there were at least 2 other demonstrations going on like this in other parts of downtown. And while the demonstrations themselves seemed to have been impromptu, the organizers were now encouraging people to march towards the city government offices which were next to the Chicago Police Department's headquarters.

Since I had reached here, we had also been joined by a couple of ER physicians from other hospitals around the city, as well as some nurses with experience in trauma cases.

"There is no way ambulances will be able to get through this crowd, so I've told the organizers to call us if medical services are needed somewhere", one of the ER attending said. This attending had volunteered at other such demonstrations as well, so we were hoping to draw from his previous experiences.

Madi held up a map of the downtown area and pointed out, "If services are needed in this circled area, we will be responding to them"

One of the trauma nurses who had also volunteered at another local demonstration before, added, "It's best if we do this in pairs...maybe one physician and one nurse"

Lucky for me, there were more physicians than nurses in our group so Madi and I paired up, even though she still seemed very upset at me.

"I almost regret choosing you...:, she told me, without looking at me, as the two of us stood in the corner of the medical tent and unpacked some of the supplies that the ER physicians had brought with them.

The way she said that, though, made me wonder if they was a deeper meaning to her words.

"Madi...are you talking about right now, or what happened back at the hospital", I decided to ask her.

But she just ignored me and continued to unpack the boxes, so I spoke up again because she deserved an explanation, "I am so sorry about what I said. I would never have suggested that you would be better off with Faraz, except your dad asked me to think about what is best for you and not myself. And I just thought that a drama-free life would be better for you...even if it would kill me to see you with someone else"

Her back was towards me and so I couldn't see her face, but she did pause for a few seconds and gently shook her head. When she did turn towards me again, she said, "I don't need you to be selfless or treat me like I am some fragile porcelain doll, Omar. I can take care of myself. I just need you to have my back"

"Madi...I will always have your back, no matter what happens between us"

For some reason that made her even more upset, and she forcefully put down a box of gloves on the table in front of us.

"Stop saying whatever happens between us. The only thing that will happen between us is that...we will get married", she was glaring at me, but I could also see the moisture building up in her eyes, "I don't know about you, but that is my only option, Omar. Because for me, there will never be anyone but you. I have no plan B!"

She was almost breathless as she wiped her eyes and stood there looking at me defiantly, "I am tired too. But I am not giving up on us. I can't..."

I couldn't help but admire the tenacity of this woman who I was so deeply in love with. And for the first time since I had asked her to marry me, I wholeheartedly believed that she and I would have a lifetime together. I wasn't sure how, or when, but there was no else for either of us. Our souls and hearts were bound only to each other. So, we had no choice but to get married.

In that moment I desperately wanted to pull her into my arms, but that would never be appropriate. So instead, I blurted out, "I love you...so much, Madi. I have only ever loved you, and ever will. And don't for a second think that I would be ok without you"

That instantly softened the look in her eyes, and if she wasn't wearing a mask I bet her lips would have parted slightly as she continued to hold my gaze, making me want to taste her as I devoured her lips with mine.

The air between us was suddenly electrified. And everyone and everything around us blended into oblivion. I was no longer standing outside the glass wall separated from her by a sea of people. I was right there with her, holding her hand, building a life with her.

The crackle of the walkie-talkie that the organizers had given us brought us both out of the trance we seemed to be in for a few seconds. I turned to look at the ER attending who was talking to someone on it. When I looked back Madi had already walked away and was talking to Elijah.

But I couldn't get rid of the image inside my head, of me and her standing on the same side of the thick glass that I had seen in my nightmare. It was as if subconsciously, something had suddenly clicked. Call it a sixth sense, or trust in Madi, but I just knew that she would be my wife one day.

My. Wife. That made me smile, the clichéd ear-to-ear kind of smile.

The next step was clear. I would have to call her dad and let him know that I was thinking of what was best for his daughter, when I asked to marry her. Because no one else would love her, respect her and protect her, the way I did. And she would trust no one else with her heart the way she trusted me.

Getting married was our only choice, whether our parents like it or not

"Omar and Madi and are you guys up for dealing with this call?", one of the ER attendings asked us.

"Yup, come on Omar", Madi said without hesitation.

We grabbed and our first-aid kit, and some other supplies, and started to walk in the direction of the 60 year old woman, who was feeling dizzy, as had been reported to us by one of the organizers.

As we walked, I told Madi, "I am going to call your father when I get home. No one will ever be able to give you what I can, because no one will ever love you the way I do. He has got to see that"

She looked a little take aback, but nodded anyway.

A couple of minutes later, she said, "And I will talk to Faraz. He has to see that I could never feel the same way about him, as I do about you...I'll make him see it. No rishta, no choice left for my parents"

What?

"Wait...no, Madi. You're not talking to him..."

But before she could reply, we had already reached the woman, who was sitting on a bench surrounded by several young people.

"Oh thank God you are here, grandma felt dizzy all of a sudden and then she tripped on the sidewalk. I caught her before she fell, but her ankles look pretty swollen", said one of the young men.

His grandma tried to laugh it off though, "Oh I am fine, they are just fussing about me unnecessarily"

Madi examined her ankle quickly, which wasn't fine, as I took her blood pressure and measured her heart rate. She seemed a bit dehydrated to me, it was relatively hot that day and this woman had been marching with her grandson and his friends for almost 2 hours. So I offered her the gatorade we had and some cool packs.

Her ankle did look slightly swollen, but was probably just sprained, so Madi wrapped it up in a bandage to support it. However, she was in no shape to walk any further, and there was no way that a private car or even a taxi was going to make it through the crowd.

"You boys keep walking, I'll be fine", then she turned towards Madi and said, "I almost didn't come, but the enthusiasm and sense of justice these young men have is so inspiring, I couldn't help myself"

"That sounds like something I would do when I am 60 as well", Madi replied to her with a chuckle.

And I would tell her she is crazy, but she would do it anyway...I laughed internally.

"There was a train station just a couple of blocks away from here, and looks like the trains are still running, maybe we can get out of here that way. I don't think any of the buses are coming in here either...", one of the men said.

Madi and I left the men to help the grandma to the station and were heading back to our medical tent, when the walkie-talkie that Madi was carrying crackled again. There was another demonstrator who had fainted a block away from us, so we headed there instead.

And so for the next couple of hours, we alone attended to at least a dozen other people in the crowd. Most had dehydration, or cramps, or were dizzy from the heat. Most people had still continued to keep their masks on, but a significant number had taken them off given the heat and humidity of the day. A couple of people had breathing difficulty when we were called to attend to them. In the middle of the pandemic those symptoms made me nervous and I made sure that both Madi and were wearing eye goggles as well when we approached them. But both patients just had a mild panic attack because they were feeling claustrophobic in the crowd.

According to Twitter and other live news outlets, there were nearly 30,000 people on the streets in downtown Chicago at that moment. With the sun setting, I hoped that people would start to disperse soon. Because we were running low on supplies and Madi and I had barely had a chance to sit down before we, like the other pairs of medics, were called back out into the crowd.

"And to think your original plan was to watch a movie or have tacos tonight...", I told Madi as we took our masks off and drank fluid while on a break in the medical tent. The last thing we wanted to do was to get dehydrated ourselves.

"Everything happens for a reason...like you being a jerk and telling me to to marry Faraz", she gave me a side eye.

I laughed, "Ok...I deserve that..."

Elijah and his partner nurse joined us in the tent, and reported seeing some skirmishes between some demonstrators and the police.

"Take care you guys...there are reports of riot police moving in around the city government buildings and along the main streets. Hopefully, we are far away and have our healthcare worker badges, so nothing will happen. But keep your goggles with you anyway, in case of tear gas...", the nurse told us.

Riot police? Tear gas?

I looked at Madi, who seemed completely unfazed and was taking out the clear plastic goggles from our supplies bag.

Does she even have a fearful bone in her body?

"Madi...maybe it's time we head out. As soon as night falls the police will start to clear up the demonstrators. It won't be safe for us then"

"And it will be safe for the rest of the physicians and nurses in our team?", she raised any eyebrow, "I am staying till everyone else decides to leave. You can go if you want"

God, she is so stubborn. Of course I wasn't going to leave till she got out of here too.

Just then we got another call about a man who was having difficulty breathing, so we grabbed our bags and headed out again. When we reached the 37 year old man, he was breathless but was also coughing, and sweating profusely. He introduced himself as 'DeShawn'. When I checked his temperature it was nearly 102F, and his oxygen level was only 89%. Madi and I looked at each other...this was not simple anxiety.

"Mr DeShawn, did you have any coughing or breathing difficulty before coming here. Or did you come into contact with anyone with COVID?", Madi asked him.

"The coughing started last night and maybe I felt a bit warm. But I had no breathing problems till now. And no, I don't know of anyone with COVID, but I do work in a large cramped warehouse so who knows if I unknowingly came into contact with someone"

Madi looked at me again, and I nodded, understanding exactly what was going through her mind.

I turned to our patient, "Mr DeShawn, you'll need to come with us back to the medical tent. We'll call for an ambulance and get you to the hospital. You may have COVID and it's best that you don't stay out here among other people"

"Oh shucks...I had a feeling that may be the case, but I so badly wanted to come here and support my people. But I promise, I kept my mask on the whole time. I hope I haven't gotten anyone else infected", Mr DeShawn said with remorse.

Honestly, it would be hard to tell if he did. With him being masked and out in the open, the chances of spread were lower but not zero, especially since people were literally marching shoulder-to-shoulder. Nevertheless, we needed to get him out of the crowd and in a more secluded place. So, we asked him to put another mask on top of his cloth one, and then helped him back to the medical tent.

The ambulance discharge person told us that it would be at least half an hour till they could get to us. We had portable oxygen with us which we put onto our patient, and had him rest at the back of our tent.

Meanwhile, a couple of police in riot gear came by our tent and asked us to wrap up because they were starting to clear up the area now that it was past 9 pm, the official end of the demonstrations.

"Sir, we will as soon as the ambulance comes to get our patient. It should be here soon", I explained and they simply nodded and moved away to other group of people standing nearby.

The ambulance was till 15 minutes away, and there were reports of the police getting impatient and forcefully removing people, and/or arresting them. According to social media, the police had already resorted to using rubber bullets and tear gas on the other side of downtown to clear away the demonstrators.

"I am not leaving till my patient is safely in an ambulance", I heard Madi argue with one of the ER attendings.

"Madi..it is getting dangerous now. It takes one person to retaliate against the police and all hell breaks loose. I've been there before, and it's not pretty...we can ask the police to stand guard next to him till the ambulance arrives", the ER attending tried to convince my wife-to-be.

Except, that now her arms were crossed across her chest and she was shaking her head, and I knew exactly what that meant.

"Ok...Madi and I can just stay till the ambulance comes and then we'll get out of here...", I told both of them, "The rest of you should pack up and get out. At least that will show the police that we don't intend to disobey their orders"

The ambulance was 7 minutes out when the last of the medical supplies were packed and all the medical personnel, other than Madi and I, headed to the parking garage where their cars were parked. There were fewer people on the streets now, so we hoped our colleagues would get out safely, and the ambulance would come by soon.

But as we would soon find out, in the middle of a highly charged situation a lot can happen in 7 minutes, when a trigger happy cop clashes with a defiant senior resident.

The number of police in riot gear had substantially increased around us. For the first couple of minutes after our colleagues left, nobody bothered us. We made sure to prominently display our badges and we waited impatiently. Our patient was sitting on a folding chair that we had bought with us. His breathing had improved somewhat, but his oxygen level had not changed.

While I was adjusting the airflow on the portable oxygen tank, a policeman in full riot gear came by and started yelling at Madi.

"Get out...MOVE...NOW!"

"Sir, we are medical personnel. We are waiting for the ambulance for our patient", she said calmly.

"I don't give a shit...You have 2 minutes to get the fuck out of here", he yelled at her again.

She started to say something to him, but he moved on and was yelling at a young couple nearby.

"What the hell is his problem?", she turned to me, "This is why no one trusts these cops"

"Madi...calm down. You can't talk back to these cops, not when they are so riled up", I told her. That was a lesson I had learnt very quickly when I first came to the US. As a brown man, you never questioned authority.

Exactly 2 minutes later that cop was back again, even more agitated than before.

"What the fuck are you still doing here...?", he yelled at us, and then proceeded to kick the oxygen tank which ripped the nasal cannula off our patient's face.

That triggered Madi in all the wrong ways, and before I could stop her she was yelling back at the cop, "GET AWAY FROM MY PATIENT"

"BACK OFF BITCH...", he screamed before taking a couple of steps backwards.

"Officer, the ambulance should be here in 2-3 minutes...", I tried to intervene and reason with the cop.

"I am not. Leaving. My. Patient", Madi said again, in a lower tone, but still loud enough for that cop to hear.

And that is when things went from bad to frightfully horrific in a matter of seconds.

What happened next was a blur to me, but somewhere in between seeing that cop raise his gun and pointing it at Madi, and then feeling the searing pain in my back and side as the rubber bullets pummeled into my skin and muscles, I had pushed Madi down to the ground and was laying almost completely on top of her.

"Omar...", she looked at me with concern as I got off her, "Are you ok?"

"I...am", I struggled to get the words out, and ignore the excruciating pain in my back.

Madi scrambled off the ground and ran to our patient who had stumbled to the ground as well, "Mr DeShawn, are you ok?"

"I...I...am", he too stuttered, in shock at what had just happened, "My arm hurts...I think something hit me"

I could finally hear the noise of the ambulance sirens as Madi examined that arm of our patient, and angrily told me, "That idiot's rubber bullet hit Mr DeShawn...I swear, I am going to sue the crap out of him"