A/N: Set not too long after "Body and Soul." Truly an incredible episode...major props to James Woods, Maura (duh), Paul McCrane, Michael Chrichton, and Joe Sachs. One of the most poignant episodes of ER. Also - ATP was my downfall in AP chem. And the Kreb's cycle. Punnett squares and mRNA? I'm all over it. Anything involving circular arrows? Hell to the no.
This one's for ILA4E. I really am a whore for compliments.
"If nothing else, I will teach you how to fight."
The grass, heavy with frost, crunches underfoot as she moves to lay a hand on the polished wood. She fingers the sloped edge. Is it possible to sum up so much in a moment's last respect? Her index and middle fingers waltz atop the surface. The Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy. She smiles.
"Bye, Nate." The words are swallowed in the wind.
"Abby."
She turns, knowing to whom the voice belongs without needing to recognize it. Fran smiles, oddly composed. "He asked me to give you this."
She takes the envelope hesitantly. "A letter?"
"Something like that. I didn't ask questions."
Abby nods and tucks the parchment into her purse, cocking her head to one side. A stray lock of hair, blown free by the breeze, hangs across her rose-rimmed eyes. "Do you need me to do anything, Fran?"
Fran shakes her head and purses her lips. "Thank you, but no. I'm okay, really. He was ready. We both were."
She sighs and glances down to the swell of belly that makes buttoning Abby's suit jacket impossible. "He was very proud of you, Abby. I think seeing you get to where you are was a kind of affirmation for him."
"Thank you." It comes out a cracked whisper. Nate had been proud of her. He had taken notice of her. And she'd never properly thanked him.
Fran catches her eye. "He knew. You didn't have to say it to him. He knew, those last few days, when you wouldn't let him go."
"I offered him ten bucks to stay."
"I know." Fran shakes her head. "He never expected you to let him go. If you had, it wouldn't have meant as much to him."
Abby nods slightly, brushing tears from her face with the back of a woolen glove. "I hope you'll stay in touch."
"Absolutely." Fran smiles again, eyes twinkling. "I want to see pictures of the baby."
"Right." She keeps forgetting about the thing living inside her, making its presence more obvious to the world by the day. She has to put it on Nate's terms. How much ATP does a fetus have anyhow? "I'll have to get one of those little plastic molecules for the nursery."
Fran laughs softly. "He'd be honored."
They hug awkwardly, trade phone numbers and emails. In all honesty, she'll probably never see Fran again. Too painful. Abby shivers and turns away from the gravesite, wrapping her arms around herself as she walks towards the car and a waiting Luka.
"What'd she give you?" His fingers comb through her hair.
"What?" Her eyes widen in surprise, remembering the envelope for the first time since receiving it. "I don't know. Hold on."
Slowly, cautiously, she slides open the seal and pulls out the contents. A mix of tears and laughter come forth as the ten-dollar bill lies in her hand.
"Did I ever tell you how I got an A in biochem?"