Disclaimer- I do not own the characters of Jesse Travis, Mark Sloan,
Amanda Bentley, Steve Sloan, or any other character that may appear on the
CBS television series, Diagnosis Murder. Teresa Chingas is a character
created by Lee Goldberg of his Diagnosis Murder books, which I highly
recommend. Kaitlin Everling, Jenny Everling, and Frank Krumble were made up
entirely by me. Also, because I have only been in L.A. for two layovers in
LAX, I have no clue whether or not there is a restaurant in Malibu called
Kramer's. I just needed a name, and Seinfeld happened to be on.
Summary- Jesse's new girlfriend moves to L.A. with a few surprises from the past.
Back From The Past
Chapter 1- Jesse's New Friend
Jesse Travis threw his sandals in the back seat of his car, and grabbed his surfboard. It felt great to take a break from working in the hospital E.R. and the restaurant that he co-owned, BBQ Bob's. As he ran towards the waves, he thought about the unexpected turns his life was taking. He had just met his new girlfriend, a twenty-year-old who was going to nursing school. She had dark wavy hair, and a huge smile. She was the first woman he had felt this comfortable with since his ex-girlfriend, Susan Hilliard had moved to Oregon.
As he coasted over waves, Jesse fondly remembered the day they met, almost a month earlier. He was working the counter at BBQ Bobs, when she walked in. She looked over the counter, and saw him.
"Do you know how I can get to Community General Hospital?" she had asked. Could she have come to a better place? Jesse thought.
"Sure, I know. I work there. If you'd like I could take you over when my business partner arrives. It shouldn't be more than twenty minutes." Jesse said. "Could I buy you some lunch?" The woman looked at him with wonder, but agreed quickly. "Do you usually buy lunch for complete strangers?" she asked when Jesse brought her a hamburger with French fries.
"Oh, I'm sorry," he said with a laugh, "I'm Jesse Travis."
"Kaitlin Everling," she said, shaking his hand. "So, Mr. Travis, what do you do at Community General?"
"Actually, I'm a doctor. I co-own the restaurant with my friend. He's a cop," Jesse explained. As if on cue, Lt. Steve Sloan had opened the door and come into the restaurant. The familiar noises and smells of the BBQ Bob's lunch rush met him. As he hung up his jacket, Steve looked around and counted the customers. There were fifteen, counting the girl sitting at the counter with Jesse. He walked over to relieve the doctor of his grilling responsibilities.
"Hey, Steve. This is Kaitlin Everling. Kaitlin, Lt. Steve Sloan." Jesse said, getting his lab coat from under the counter. "She's a nursing student. I'm taking her over to the hospital."
Steve saw something in the girl's face that he recognized, and he couldn't shake the feeling of de-ja-vou that he felt when Jesse and his new friend were leaving.
Jesse grabbed his towel, and started jogging back towards his car. He hopped in and drove over to his apartment to get ready for his date. He felt that he was taking a big step by introducing Kaitlin to the rest of his friends, especially since he thought so highly of Amanda Bentley and Mark Sloan's opinions.
Jesse picked up Kaitlin at her place at six-thirty on the dot. As Jesse drove out to the fancy restaurant, they fiddled with the radio dial, trying to find goofy songs to sing along with. Once they found an oldies station, that wasn't hard. Meanwhile, at a new restaurant in Malibu, called Kramer's, Mark and Steve were waiting for Amanda and Jesse. Steve had found himself thinking about the girl more and more, but he could not place her. Jesse pulled into a parking spot between Amanda's Explorer and Mark's Jaguar. He walked around the car, straightening his tie, and helped Kaitlin out of the car. He felt increasingly nervous as they went inside, but as the evening wore on, he was pleased with everyone's responses to Kaitlin. Everyone's opinions, that is, except for Steve's. Something was bugging the cop, but he was trying to hide it. Jesse could tell that Mark and Amanda noticed it too. After dinner, they retreated to Mark's beach house for coffee. Everyone tried to make Kaitlin feel at home, and she even felt comfortable enough to answer some questions about herself.
"Where are you from?" Amanda asked.
"I've spent most of my life in Wisconsin. We lived about twenty minutes away from the little town of Eagle River, on the South Twin Lake. This has been a big adjustment for me."
"The weather?"
"Well, there's that, and the people are much friendlier here. And the buildings are so tall." Kaitlin answered with a laugh.
"What made you so interested in medicine?" Mark asked.
"When I was a little girl I broke my arm, and my aunt, who is a nurse, splinted it until we could get to the hospital. She was so calm about it, too. I wanted to be just like her."
"Judging from what Jesse tells me, you're well on your way," Mark said.
"I used to hear about you on the news sometimes," Kaitlin said. "The incident I remember most was when the hospital blew up. My mom got really upset, and she turned off the TV."
"It sounds like you had a pretty happy life in Wisconsin. What made you come out to L.A.?" Jesse asked.
"Well, my mother grew up out here, but she moved when she got pregnant with me. Last summer I found an old box of letters in our attic. They were letters to my mom from her sister, who lived here until she moved to Oregon a couple of years ago. These letters gave me a few clues to help me. I keep them in a shoebox under my bed. I've probably read them a million times, trying to find something that will help me find my father, but I'm still getting nowhere.
"I know that my mom met my dad when he came back from serving in Vietnam. They dated for awhile, but I don't know when or why they broke up. She never even says his name. Only that he was a close friend of my Aunt's boyfriend. Another clue was Community General."
"You know, Mark's a pretty good detective, maybe he could help you out," Amanda suggested.
"It's a wild goose chase, Dr. Bentley. I'll probably never find him. I just figured that I could work in a place where he might have once been."
"Even if it is a fruitless investigation, at least it will keep Mark from meddling in Steve's cases." Jesse said, getting a laugh from his fellow doctors. Steve was sitting thoughtfully, sipping his decaf. Amanda glanced at her watch.
"I'd better go and relieve my babysitter," she said. After everyone left, Mark carried the dishes into the kitchen, and loaded them into his dishwasher. When he came back into the living room, Steve was still sitting on the couch, staring out the window.
"Is something wrong, Son?" Mark asked, sitting down beside him.
"It's just that something about that girl has been bugging me since Jesse introduced her to me at Bob's. She looks so familiar, but I just can't figure it out." Steve said.
"Is that a big deal?"
"Well, not really, but I just wish I knew. She could be someone I arrested before."
"Jesse, believe it or not, can take care of himself," Mark said. Steve stayed silent. "Well, try to get some sleep."
Summary- Jesse's new girlfriend moves to L.A. with a few surprises from the past.
Back From The Past
Chapter 1- Jesse's New Friend
Jesse Travis threw his sandals in the back seat of his car, and grabbed his surfboard. It felt great to take a break from working in the hospital E.R. and the restaurant that he co-owned, BBQ Bob's. As he ran towards the waves, he thought about the unexpected turns his life was taking. He had just met his new girlfriend, a twenty-year-old who was going to nursing school. She had dark wavy hair, and a huge smile. She was the first woman he had felt this comfortable with since his ex-girlfriend, Susan Hilliard had moved to Oregon.
As he coasted over waves, Jesse fondly remembered the day they met, almost a month earlier. He was working the counter at BBQ Bobs, when she walked in. She looked over the counter, and saw him.
"Do you know how I can get to Community General Hospital?" she had asked. Could she have come to a better place? Jesse thought.
"Sure, I know. I work there. If you'd like I could take you over when my business partner arrives. It shouldn't be more than twenty minutes." Jesse said. "Could I buy you some lunch?" The woman looked at him with wonder, but agreed quickly. "Do you usually buy lunch for complete strangers?" she asked when Jesse brought her a hamburger with French fries.
"Oh, I'm sorry," he said with a laugh, "I'm Jesse Travis."
"Kaitlin Everling," she said, shaking his hand. "So, Mr. Travis, what do you do at Community General?"
"Actually, I'm a doctor. I co-own the restaurant with my friend. He's a cop," Jesse explained. As if on cue, Lt. Steve Sloan had opened the door and come into the restaurant. The familiar noises and smells of the BBQ Bob's lunch rush met him. As he hung up his jacket, Steve looked around and counted the customers. There were fifteen, counting the girl sitting at the counter with Jesse. He walked over to relieve the doctor of his grilling responsibilities.
"Hey, Steve. This is Kaitlin Everling. Kaitlin, Lt. Steve Sloan." Jesse said, getting his lab coat from under the counter. "She's a nursing student. I'm taking her over to the hospital."
Steve saw something in the girl's face that he recognized, and he couldn't shake the feeling of de-ja-vou that he felt when Jesse and his new friend were leaving.
Jesse grabbed his towel, and started jogging back towards his car. He hopped in and drove over to his apartment to get ready for his date. He felt that he was taking a big step by introducing Kaitlin to the rest of his friends, especially since he thought so highly of Amanda Bentley and Mark Sloan's opinions.
Jesse picked up Kaitlin at her place at six-thirty on the dot. As Jesse drove out to the fancy restaurant, they fiddled with the radio dial, trying to find goofy songs to sing along with. Once they found an oldies station, that wasn't hard. Meanwhile, at a new restaurant in Malibu, called Kramer's, Mark and Steve were waiting for Amanda and Jesse. Steve had found himself thinking about the girl more and more, but he could not place her. Jesse pulled into a parking spot between Amanda's Explorer and Mark's Jaguar. He walked around the car, straightening his tie, and helped Kaitlin out of the car. He felt increasingly nervous as they went inside, but as the evening wore on, he was pleased with everyone's responses to Kaitlin. Everyone's opinions, that is, except for Steve's. Something was bugging the cop, but he was trying to hide it. Jesse could tell that Mark and Amanda noticed it too. After dinner, they retreated to Mark's beach house for coffee. Everyone tried to make Kaitlin feel at home, and she even felt comfortable enough to answer some questions about herself.
"Where are you from?" Amanda asked.
"I've spent most of my life in Wisconsin. We lived about twenty minutes away from the little town of Eagle River, on the South Twin Lake. This has been a big adjustment for me."
"The weather?"
"Well, there's that, and the people are much friendlier here. And the buildings are so tall." Kaitlin answered with a laugh.
"What made you so interested in medicine?" Mark asked.
"When I was a little girl I broke my arm, and my aunt, who is a nurse, splinted it until we could get to the hospital. She was so calm about it, too. I wanted to be just like her."
"Judging from what Jesse tells me, you're well on your way," Mark said.
"I used to hear about you on the news sometimes," Kaitlin said. "The incident I remember most was when the hospital blew up. My mom got really upset, and she turned off the TV."
"It sounds like you had a pretty happy life in Wisconsin. What made you come out to L.A.?" Jesse asked.
"Well, my mother grew up out here, but she moved when she got pregnant with me. Last summer I found an old box of letters in our attic. They were letters to my mom from her sister, who lived here until she moved to Oregon a couple of years ago. These letters gave me a few clues to help me. I keep them in a shoebox under my bed. I've probably read them a million times, trying to find something that will help me find my father, but I'm still getting nowhere.
"I know that my mom met my dad when he came back from serving in Vietnam. They dated for awhile, but I don't know when or why they broke up. She never even says his name. Only that he was a close friend of my Aunt's boyfriend. Another clue was Community General."
"You know, Mark's a pretty good detective, maybe he could help you out," Amanda suggested.
"It's a wild goose chase, Dr. Bentley. I'll probably never find him. I just figured that I could work in a place where he might have once been."
"Even if it is a fruitless investigation, at least it will keep Mark from meddling in Steve's cases." Jesse said, getting a laugh from his fellow doctors. Steve was sitting thoughtfully, sipping his decaf. Amanda glanced at her watch.
"I'd better go and relieve my babysitter," she said. After everyone left, Mark carried the dishes into the kitchen, and loaded them into his dishwasher. When he came back into the living room, Steve was still sitting on the couch, staring out the window.
"Is something wrong, Son?" Mark asked, sitting down beside him.
"It's just that something about that girl has been bugging me since Jesse introduced her to me at Bob's. She looks so familiar, but I just can't figure it out." Steve said.
"Is that a big deal?"
"Well, not really, but I just wish I knew. She could be someone I arrested before."
"Jesse, believe it or not, can take care of himself," Mark said. Steve stayed silent. "Well, try to get some sleep."