One draft! Thank you, DetectiveOfTheOpera, for the suggestion! I am totally willing to expand this from a one shot to a multi chapter situation, if anyone is interested! Please review! Thank you!
"Oh, I was gonna marry him," Lucy whispered wistfully as she watched the dark haired man being wheeled away. Finally, her adrenaline was fading. She was still in shock, of course. She couldn't believe the dark haired handsome man had said Merry Christmas to her, that she had stammered in response, that she had watched him be pushed onto the train tracks and that she had jumped onto the trucks and somehow rolled them both off together. She kept running through these events in her mind, faster and faster, but she couldn't make sense of any of it.
She stumbled into an open seat in the waiting room and buried her face in her hands. She was so exhausted and oddly emotional. She knew her silly crush on the man was just a funny little daydream she had to pass the time at the L but she was shaken because she had jumped onto the track! She did that! She knew was still in a state of shock but she was proud of herself! She took a deep breath and settled in, assuming that eventually the police officer or a nurse would come find her for questions. As she began chewing on her finger nails, a young red headed nurse approached her, smiling softly. Lucy stood and let the woman put her arm around her and led her to the ICU unit. Lucy chewed on her bottom lip as her eyes darted around. She hadn't been in an ICU unit since her father had died.
Lucy sat down next to the handsome dark haired man quietly. "Let him hear your voice, hon," the kind nurse instructed and Lucy nodded.
The nurse walked away and Lucy whispered, "Hi… everything's gonna be okay. I know it." A police officer entered the room then, telling her he needs to ask her a few questions. She agrees meekly. A doctor interrupted the police officer and introduced himself to her. "I'm Lucy," she murmured, already forgetting his name.
Lucy heard a commotion down the hall of the ICU and looked over to see a crowd of people, four older people and a young girl, talking over each other and entering the room. She cringed and silently retreated to the back of the room, as she quickly realized this was the handsome man's family. One of the men demanded to know what happened and the doctor explained that he was in a coma. One of the women was very emotional. Lucy watched silently and wide eyed from the back. "How did this happen," the emotional woman asked.
"Um, he was pushed from the platform at the train station," Lucy began to explain.
"Who is she?" the man taller, bald man asked.
"She's his fiance," the kind, smiling red headed nurse answered.
"His fiance?" "Peter's fiance?" "Peter's engaged?" Peter's family asked over each other.
"Yes," the nurse answered.
"No, no, you don't understand," Lucy began but the rest of the room continued to talk over each other.
"I mean, he would have told us right?" "Maybe he was busy." "Too busy to tell his own mother he's getting married?" "Don't yell at him!" "I'm not yelling at him!" "If only Jack were here!"
Lucy buried her face in her hands for a brief moment and then cleared her throat loudly. The family continued speaking over each other, so Lucy cleared her throat once more and raised her voice slightly saying, "Excuse me!" She immediately felt guilty for raising her voice in a room with a man in a coma but it worked; the family, the doctor, the nurse, and the police officer fell silent and looked at her. Lucy swallowed but felt brave. She took a deep breath and reminded herself that she was a grown woman. She had a job and an apartment and a cat. She jumped onto the tracks and saved a man from a train an hour ago! That makes her the type of woman that decides what happens to her. She knew this family was in a state of trauma but they deserved to know the truth. She refused to stand there meekly and let the situation unravel. She would take control, just like she did on the train tracks.
"I'm not his fiance," Lucy clarified. "I just...know him...Peter, right?" Lucy asked, turning toward the nurse. Everyone in the room nodded. "I know Peter because I work at the L. I see him every morning. This morning, he passed me and said Merry Christmas and a moment later I saw him pushed onto the tracks. But I'm not… I'm not his fiance. I just-"
She was interrupted then, by another doctor coming in and asking the first doctor, "Excuse me, Doctor, was is she doing here?"
"Hey, buddy she saved his life!" The police officer answered.
"You saved his life?" Peter's mother asked.
"Yeah, yeah, but…" Lucy began.
"I thought he was pushed off a train platform?"
"She jumped on the tracks," the police officer answered.
"You jumped on the tracks?"
"Doctor, it's supposed to be family only," the younger doctor argued.
"She is family," Peter's father said, pressing the back of his hand to the doctor's chest and pushing him out of the way. Lucy's jaw hung open in shock.
"She saved him," the first doctor hissed.
"We're so grateful you saved him," Peter's mother said, approaching Lucy. "You seem like such a nice girl...and so brave. I'm so grateful you saved him." Her face contorted and she began sobbing, throwing her arms around Lucy. Lucy was surprised but hugged the woman in return. Peter's younger sister joined the hug and Lucy embraced both of them.
A moment later, after the entire family had hugged Lucy, introduced themselves, and thanked her for saving Peter, the police officer once again approached her and said he still had to ask her a few questions. Lucy walked out of the room with the police officer and nurse.
"I am sorry I said you were his fiance," the nurse said, looking slightly embarrassed and confused. "I thought I heard you say-"
"Oh, I was just… talking to myself," Lucy said, also slightly embarrassed. "I was… still in a bit of shock. To be honest, I don't remember what I said."
The nurse nodded, understanding. "I am glad we got that sorted out," she said and Lucy agreed.
After Lucy sat in a break room with the police officer and recounted the incident and answered all his questions the best she could, the nurse appeared to walk her back to the room. "The family is asking for you," the nurse explained. Before they entered the room, she whispered, "My shift ends at 10, if you come back before then, just ask for me at the security counter and I can let you into the room. If you wanted a little bit of quiet time with your friend…"
"Thank you, thank you," Lucy whispered earnestly.
Saul was leaving the room then (Lucy was surprised she remembered his name) and began asking the nurse about nitroglycerin for Elsie's heart problems. "You know something, I think you saved her life. In fact, I think you saved the whole family. Bless you," Saul said, raising a head to touch her cheek.
"How's that," Lucy asked, slightly confused.
"You saved Peter. You couldn't have chosen a better man to save. The Callaghan's… well, you're not going to be able to get rid of them easily, Lucy. Ox meant when he said you're family now." He smirked. "Midge is already talking about inviting you over for New Years." With a chuckle, he took off, following the nurse toward the pharmacy.
Lucy couldn't help but smile to herself. She didn't want to get her hopes up but… it was hard not to. Two hours ago, she was sitting alone in the L ticket booth and feeling like the only person in Chicago without a family. But now… it seemed like there was a group of loud but loving people who wanted her around, at least for New Years, and that felt really good.