Who Knew - Chapter 1 - Never Thought

A/N: I couldn't remember the name of Chloe's boyfriend (I tried looking it up on different sites but I didn't have any luck finding it) so in this story his name is going to be Jim.

It had only been eight days since Doug had left for Settle, but to Carol it seemed as though he had been gone for an eternity. She would awake each morning alone in a bed that seemed far too big for just one person. She'd go to work, where she'd try to keep as busy as possible. Which wasn't a hard thing to do seeing as she was the head nurse of a fast-paced ER. Then, at the end of the day she would come back to her lonely house. Somehow, Chicago seemed emptier now that Doug wasn't there.

Mark could remember everything about the last time he saw Susan. Her brownest-blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she had the green scarf that he had given her for a birthday present a few years back around her neck. She was surprised to see him there. To be truthful, he was surprised too. Nevertheless, he knew he was doing the right thing. If he'd let her leave without telling her that he was in love with her he'd regret it. There was actually a part of him that really believed she would stay.

Susan had been gone for over two years now. She loved being in Arizona with Chloe and little Suzie. Watching Suzie grow up was incredible and Chloe had managed to stay clean. She loved her life, but every now and then her mind would wonder back to when she used to work at county. Back to when she used to talk to Mark everyday. They still talked on the phone occasionally, but with their busy schedules it was hard to keep in touch. She missed their friendship.

Seattle was gorgeous and a heck of a lot warmer then Chicago was at this time of year. One thing that Doug didn't miss about Chicago was the weather. It always seemed to be too cold or too hot. But, other then the weather, he did miss Chicago. He missed his friends and Carol and as crazy as this may seem he actually missed county. He didn't think moving to Seattle would be so difficult. Perhaps if Carol had come with him it would have been an easier adjustment.

7 months later

Susan was going back. She was going to tell Mark how she really felt, because she couldn't hide her feelings forever. Her bags were packed and in the car, the train ticket was in the front hall. Now all she had to do was say goodbye to her family. She walked into the living room were Suzie was playing with a doll she had received for her fifth birthday, and Chloe and Jim were relaxing on the couch. It was going to be weird without them.

"Big Suzie!" Chloe exclaimed as she jumped off the couch and pulled her sister into a big hug. Susan let out a laugh, "I can't believe you still call me that." Once Chloe finally let go, Susan gave Jim a hug as he wished her good luck, and then it was time for little Suzie.

"Come here sweetie." Instead of running towards her aunt, Suzie just grabbed onto her doll tighter, fighting back tears. Susan walked to where her niece was and bent down so they were eye level to one another. "I know you're sad about me leaving, I'm sad too, but your going to come to Chicago to visit me."

"Why can't I just come live with you in Chicago?"

"Because you have to stay her with your mommy. She needs you, okay?" Suzie nodded her head, indicating she understood and wiped back some tears.

Suzie climbed onto her aunt's lap and the two gave each other a big bear hug.

2 days later

Susan pulled into the County General Hospital parking lot. She was going to talk to Mark today. Hopefully he is working today and isn't too busy. It seemed so surreal walking through those doors again. Walking towards the front desk she saw several familiar faces and some non-familiar as well. They were all too busy to notice her though.

When she got to the front desk she saw Randi doodling on some paper. "Hey Randi, do you know where Mark is?"

"Try the roof." She said without looking up to see who had asked.

"Okay, thanks." Susan replied and made her way towards the elevator. She couldn't wait to see Mark. He was going to be so surprised to see her and even more shocked when she told him she was moving back. They were going to be living in the same city again and he's not married anymore, so there's no more Jenn. They could finally be in a relationship together.

When Susan finally made it up to the roof she was taken back at what she saw. Mark was in a lip lock with someone else. One thing she hadn't counted on was that Mark would be dating someone else. Especially when that other person was one of her closest friends, Carol.

okay there's the first chapter. dun dun dun. reviews make my day. (i really want to know what you all think of this ... so please review and let me know if you thought it was good or bad..)