Disclaimer: I don't own ER

Rough Path



Summary: This takes place right after the last scene of the season finale. Can Abby and Carter mend their relationship after everything that has happened?





Chapter 1: Can This Be Real?



She felt his lips touch against her skin. It seemed so real, but she knew that it couldn't be. It had to be a dream, as he is half way across the world, saving lives in Africa, not here in Chicago. She didn't know when he was returning. Or if he was ever returning.



I'm not going anywhere. She remembered when Carter made her that promise, when she was having all the trouble with Eric.



I trusted him, I thought he wasn't going to be like everybody else in my life. But he did exactly what I was afraid he would do … He left.



I want him to come home, I need him to come home.

I haven't slept much since the day that he left, as all can think of is him.

I don't even know if there is a we anymore, as we left on such a bad note. I think like we broke up with each other. He didn't even tell me that he was going to Africa. Would he have told me if I hadn't run into him that night? There was so much tension between us. I could tell that he wanted to tell me about his day, but he didn't.

When did our relationship get to the point where we can't even talk to each other about a simple thing like that?



I miss that. Can our relationship ever get back to normal?



***



She sat up and saw that he was really there, it wasn't a dream. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, crying.

"John.", she said as she put her hand on his shoulder and sat down next to him.

He turned around to face her. He smiled at her, happy that he was home.

She looked into his eyes and saw that there was something different about him, like he experienced something that nobody should ever have to face. What did he see in Africa? Was it really bad there? Will he talk to me about it? There were so many questions she wanted to ask him, but all she cared about right now was that he was home, alive.



Carter leaned over and kissed Abby. She looked up at him. "John, is it really you?", she asked, as she touched his face to make sure that she wasn't dreaming.

"Yes, it's me.", Carter said.

She leaned over and hugged him. "I missed you so much!", she blurted out.

Carter looked at her. I missed you, too. When I had that gun to my head, you were what I was thinking about. And that I would never be able to tell you how much I love you, that I want to spend the rest of my life with you.

He wanted to tell her that all right now, but he knew that there were some things that they needed to sort out before he did.



"John, are you okay?", she asked, as she looked up at him. She could see that he was thinking about something intensely.



"Yeah, I was just thinking about how we left things off when I left for Africa."

"Shhh, let's not talk about that right now.", Abby said softly. She knew that there were a lot of things that they needed to sort out, but right now all she cared about was that he was back home, not in Africa anymore.



Carter held her tightly, not wanting to let her go. He was back with the woman that he loves.

He looked at her. He missed everything about her. The way that she smiles at him, the way just being with her makes everything seem so much better.



Abby climbed back into the bed. She looked up at him as he lay down next to her. "I'm so glad that you are home.", she said as she rested her head on his chest. He turned to face her. "I'm glad to be home, too."



***



During the night Carter tossed and turned. He tried to fall asleep, but all he could think about was having that gun to his head and watching that guy get shot. That could have been me, he thought to himself as he climbed out of the bed and went into the kitchen to get a glass of water. There was only one other time he felt like this and that was 3 years ago, when Lucy died. He wanted to make the images go away, but they wouldn't and he didn't think they would for a very long time.



Then he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around. "Did I wake you?"

Abby looked up at Carter and could see that he was on the verge of crying. "Tell me what is wrong," she said, concerned, as she put her arms around him. Carter looked at her, not saying anything, just holding her tightly. There would be time for them to talk later, but right now he wanted to just stay in Abby's arms forever.



To be continued.