What Lies Beneath
Chapter 4: Matters of the Heart, Brain and Other Major Organs
On Thursday, Elizabeth met with Robert for lunch, this time someplace nicer than Doc Magoo's. Robert could tell from Elizabeth's taut expression that whatever had been bothering her earlier seemed to be getting worse. He was almost afraid to ask, so at first they just caught up with some friendly chit-chat.
"I saw that Melora's scheduled for release on Sunday," Elizabeth observed distractedly.
Robert nodded, digging into his salad. "Yes. She's been walking around quite a bit lately. We upgraded her to her normal pajamas and now she just kind of goes wherever the elevator takes her."
"Oh?" Elizabeth replied, and Robert thought that she probably not even listening.
"Mmm-hmm," he said, deciding to test her. "Yesterday she went over to Oncology and discovered a cure for cancer."
"Hmmm." Elizabeth picked at her salad, then looked up at him. "What did you say about cancer?"
Robert smiled. "Ha! I knew you weren't listening. What's up, Lizzie? You've been miles away this week."
Elizabeth sighed. "I've been wanting to talk to you about something. Actually, I need to, seeing as how I'll need to get some time off. I suppose I just didn't want to bring down our luncheon chat."
"Go ahead, bring it down. I'm used to it," he assured her, playing it off as nothing even though internally, he worried a bit for her.
"Well, you know that Mark and I got a house together."
Robert nodded. "Yeah – I saw the change of address. You guys are only ten minutes from me, actually."
Elizabeth shook her head. "It's not as jolly as all that. You see, Mark…" She lowered her voice as she looked at him. "Mark's got a brain tumor."
Robert stopped eating and looked at her, seeing the pain and uncertainty in her eyes. "Oh, God. I'm sorry, Lizzie. What type?" He wasn't a huge fan of Mark Greene, but he knew the man loved Elizabeth and Robert wouldn't wish a brain tumor on even his worst enemy.
"Glioblastoma multiforme."
He was silent for a moment. What could you say to that? The man was as good as gone; it was just a matter of time. "How far progressed?" The answer to this question would determine the when, in all likelihood.
"The good news is, it's just one tumor so far. The bad news is, its location is rather close to the Cerebellum for the surgeons here to want to try and remove it. And without removal, all chemo or radiation will do is buy us a limited amount of time."
His salad forgotten now, Robert's mind was already trying to find another solution to Elizabeth's problem. "Has he looked for a second opinion?" He had several names loaded and ready, if needed.
Elizabeth replied, "Yes, actually. That's where the potentially good news comes in. He's sending his case to a Dr. Burke in New York City. Have you heard of him? We're meeting him on the 23rd. He sounds cautiously optimistic that Mark may be a candidate for his new procedure. It sounds terrifying, but it's all we've got right now. Aside from the baby, anyway."
Robert almost did a double-take. "Baby? You guys are -?"
Elizabeth nodded, managing a smile this time at his almost comically surprised expression. "Yes. But it's only the second month, Robert, and you're the only person in Surgery who knows. So I'd appreciate it if you could keep it quiet for the time being."
"Sure, sure. Of course." He couldn't quite wrap his head around it – a baby and a brain tumor all at once.
"We'd planned to marry but this has put a bit of a damper on our plans. Everything seemed so bright a few weeks ago, and now…" She shook her head, trying to make herself eat at least the protein bits of her Cobb Salad. "Now, instead of fixing up a nursery and celebrating the holidays in our new home, we're off to New York for oncology appointments. Which is why I need two days off before Christmas."
Robert nodded almost dismissively. "Absolutely! I'll cover scheduling for you while you're gone. Just tell Brenda what days you'll be away."
She gave him a sly look. "You won't give Peter my job while I'm gone?"
"Ha-ha," he replied, relieved that her sense of humor was intact. "I think it's safe to say I'd give your job to Shirley before I'd give it to Benton."
That earned a laugh from Elizabeth, and he was glad that he could at least do that. "Thanks for that visual," she grinned, having an easier time with her lunch then. "I'd actually like to see that, I think."
Once they returned to the hospital, Robert walked Elizabeth to the ER, where she suddenly gave him a hug. "Thank you for everything, Robert," she said quietly in his ear. "I'm glad we're friends again."
Though Robert was surprised by the show of affection, he was happy to hear it from her. The fact that she said they were friends again implied that when she first came to County, he hadn't been alone in thinking they were friends. "Me, too," he told her, smiling as they separated. "Don't hesitate to ask for anything. And keep me posted, too?"
"I shall," she assured him, hurrying off towards the lounge to call Mark at home.
Robert noticed that Chuny, Jerry and Malucci were all pretending not to have seen any of it. Great, he thought. Between those three, he was pretty much guaranteed some sort of gossip about that hug. This place, he thought to himself, heading up to Medicine to visit Melora in her room, a take-out bag from the restaurant in hand.
He entered her room, finding her (not surprisingly) in bed, eyes closed, listening to music on her headphones. "Just as I thought. Lazing around in bed again." He could tell she was awake and could hear him, so he continued as he took a peek at the chart. "You're thinking, aren't you? Thought I told you to cut that out."
"Why? Afraid I'm going to realize what a fool I've been and leave you?" she smiled slyly, sitting up a bit too fast and emitting an "Ow! That hurt."
"Then don't do it," he suggested, sitting on the edge of her bed beside her.
"Wise-ass," she grinned as she placed her headphones on the rolling tray next to the bed. "If he'd thought of it, I'm sure my father would have warned me about guys like you."
"Hmmm, what kind would that be? Caring, considerate, at your beck and call-"
"Wise-asses," she replied, solidifying in Robert's mind why he liked simply being around her so much; she was always genuine, even when joking.
"I'm spoiling you, I think." He held up the bag from the restaurant. "I just came from lunch with Lizzie at Finch's. Picked you up a chicken salad sandwich on croissant. And a brownie."
"Wow!" She accepted the bag, smile widening and giving him a kiss. "Don't tell anyone, but I think you're a very thoughtful man. When you feel like it, anyway." She paused. "Is 'Lizzie' Dr. Corday?"
Robert nodded, trying to look natural. Why did he feel like he needed to feel guilty or as if he'd been caught at something? Was it because of his history with Elizabeth? Yes. There was something about Melora not knowing there was a history, let alone an unpleasant one, that made him feel the need to come clean about it. "Yeah. I call her that sometimes. She's here because of me, actually. I sponsored her to come here from England."
"Really?" Melora raised her eyebrows as she took out her lunch. "When was that?"
"About three years ago," he replied, deciding to just get it all out in the open so he didn't have to feel like he was hiding anything. "Honestly? I was kind of an ass to her back then. I sort of developed this crush on her. I might have been a little bit…well, not the smoothest guy in the world. And when she turned me down, I chose not to renew my sponsorship."
Melora forgot about her sandwich for now, her eyes looking at him with a mixture of surprise and anger. "What? Robert, did you sexually harass that nice lady?"
"No!" he replied quickly and vehemently. Why did everyone keep saying it that way? "No, I was completely within my rights not to renew it."
"And I suppose you'd have come to the same decision if she'd slept with you? Because if not, that is the actual definition of sexual harassment."
Robert knew deep down that she was right, but he wasn't going to admit it. All he would say to that was, "There's a reason why people around here developed certain unfavorable opinions about me. Back then, I was a guy with a lot to prove and not a lot of social finesse."
Melora sighed, giving him a pitying look. "Yeah, I guess I can see where you might unintentionally come off as pervy sometimes."
Robert chuckled a little at that. "Only sometimes? Anyway, Elizabeth found a way around the sponsorship, anyway. But…admittedly, things between us over the past few years have been pretty much shit. Until Monday, when she operated on you," he confided. "I guess I let my guard down and saw her for who she really is – a talented surgeon and one of the only people I trusted enough to do your surgery, past issues aside. It's weird, but we're actually friends again, thanks to you."
Melora wasn't sure how to feel about being the conduit for making peace between her boyfriend and his old crush. "Uh…you're welcome?" She sat back and munched on a French fry. "So, you and Dr. Cord – uh, Lizzie? - are buddy-buddy now?"
"Stick with Elizabeth. I think Lizzie annoys her a little." Robert shrugged. "Yeah. Well, it's not like we're besties, but at least I don't feel as if she's picturing my grisly death when she looks at me now. Plus, she's going through some tough stuff right now, so if I can do her a solid and be there for her at work, that's something, right?"
Melora nodded, still not entirely sure about this. "Yeah, sure." She knew she couldn't very well begrudge him a female friend after he'd learned to accept the fact that half of Melora's friends were male. She'd assured him her heart only had room for one, and like it or not, that one was Robert. She just hoped that his heart operated in a similar manner. "She seems really sweet," she offered. And smart. And gorgeous. And tall…. "Did I tell you what she said about shoveling snow?"
Robert grinned at the memory. "You did! And I look forward to your days of shoveling snow once more, hopefully not too far in the distant future."
Reassured by that, Melora said, "Everyone here has been so nice. I'll have to remember this place the next time my organs fail."
Robert cringed a little at that; he knew she was going to be fine, but it was hard for him to joke about things like that. Not about her. "There won't be a next time."
There was a rapid tapping at the half-shut door and Serena and Anastasia came in carrying a small bag of CDs. "Hi honey! Your music committee is here!" Serena was even smaller than Melora, her voice almost like a child's. Ana, on the other hand, was about six feet tall, gaunt and silent, but no less warm in spirit than her friends. Serena saw Robert was standing to leave, and she motioned for him to stay. "Look, we've got a bit of a problem, but maybe also a solution."
Uh-oh. Now what? "Yes?" he prompted.
To Melora, she said, "We know you can't get back on the job full-time for two months, right?" Serena asked, looking at Robert for confirmation.
"Jobs involving physical labor, yes that's right," I nodded.
"What about the cello?"
"Two weeks, I'd say."
"Well, that sticks us for rent," Serena said. "I know it's early but I'm only bringing it up now because -"
"I'll float you," Robert said quickly; Melora's share of their already-low rent was next to nothing for him.
"No, that's not what I mean." Serena shook her head.
"What do you mean, that's not what you mean? That's why you brought it up, right?"
Serena's face flushed. "No, I wasn't panhandling."
"Guys, slow down!" Melora intervened, though from the look on her face she was both confused and exasperated. "Serena, what's up?"
"Joey's sister is in town for the holidays but wants to extend her stay through January, and she needs a place to stay. We thought maybe she could sublet your room while you're recovering. She'll pay your share, you can maybe stay with him -" Serena gestured towards Robert as she spoke, " - and you don't have to worry about rent and utilities. And we don't have to feel bad about taking his money."
Melora seemed a bit overwhelmed by all of that. "You're putting both Robert and me on the spot here, Serena. What's he going to do, say no, I can't stay there?" Melora looked much more bothered by this than Robert would have liked.
"Mel, it's okay. I prefer to be able to look after you -" he told her, and Serena nodded.
But Melora cut him off. "I don't need looking after! I'm just not supposed to be toting trays loaded down with food around all day. You know, Serena, you could have spoken to me about this first."
Serena shot Robert a help-me-out look, and he came to what he hoped was the rescue, saying, "Look, it seems pretty simple to me. You can stay with me, drive the Volvo if you want to come into the city once you're more mobile. You'd be doing me a big favor by taking care of Gretel while I'm at work. You yourself said staying at my house was like vacation – spa tub, stereo system, big TV. You can get plenty of rest, practice your music as loud as you want, take long baths - need I go on? If you get bored out in the 'burbs, invite Ana and Serena over for practice and lemon drops. But don't for a minute think you're imposing. I know being subjected to me for six weeks is a lot, but you were complaining just two weeks ago that we never see each other -" He trailed off, giving her his best "it's your loss if you say no" look, and she buckled, laughing.
"You had me at the huge TV and spa tub. Okay, then - I'll pick up a few of my things on Sunday when they release me." Robert knew that "a few" meant half of her earthly belongings and winced. She caught his look and added teasingly, "I saw that!"
"That's my girl," he joked back. "I'll make sure to stock up on liquor."
"Just remember," she told Robert, wagging a finger at him, "You asked for it!"
8888
The next day, Melora decided to attempt a longer walk than usual, and remembering Dr. Dave and Abby, she decided to seek them out down in the ER. She was just wearing a pair of black lounging pants and a sweatshirt bearing the 4AD record label logo, along with a pair of sheepskin slippers. She just hoped that she wouldn't be mistaken for an escapee from the Psych ward.
Luckily, she timed her visit during a slow moment. She saw Dr. Carter talking with another very pregnant doctor in hushed tones, so she steered away from them and ran into Malucci joking around with Malik and Jerry. She waved hello at them. "I've given the fifth floor nurses the slip. Thought I'd test out my legs down here."
"All right!" Malucci greeted enthusiastically. "I've been keeping tabs on you since you were my patient down here. They're springing you Sunday?"
"Yes!" Melora replied with enthusiasm. "I can't wait. The constant monitoring of vitals and bodily functions is making me nuts. And I miss the outdoors."
"No, you don't," Malik joked. "It's freezing out there."
"Is it weird that I even miss the snow?"
"It's extremely weird," Jerry teased. "But you kind of have to be a little weird to be Dr. Romano's girlfriend, right?"
Malucci made a shhh! gesture at Jerry. "Watch it, man. Unless you miss the night shift."
"No, no, he's right," Melora said, playing along. "I am, admittedly, a little weird."
"And patient, too, I guess," Chuny remarked as she dropped off a chart in the in-box. She tossed a wink at Malucci and Jerry, leaving Melora to wonder what that meant.
As Chuny walked away, Melora looked at the two men. "What? Why am I patient?" Oh God, she thought – what more was she about to uncover? Was she about to find out the real reason he'd kept her hidden for so long?
Jerry almost replied, but Malucci patted him on the shoulder and gave him a small shake of the head, saying, "Nah, it's nothing. It's just… all of a sudden, Dr. Corday and he are friends, which was sort of like, I don't know, a sign of the apocalypse or something. She hated him. But after she worked on you… It's like, none of us knew he gave a shit about anything besides himself until you came in here. So it's just kinda Twilight Zone for us, ya know?"
Melora nodded, realizing she wasn't about to hear about Robert's other family or something. "Oh! Okay. Yeah, I guess I can see that. He's told me a little about how he's seen around here, and how he acted with her before and pretty much earned her dislike. All the stuff that feeds people's perceptions of him. We all have our own brand of armor."
Malucci looked surprised that she already knew about Corday and Romano's past. "He told you? And you still like him?" He shook his head, adding, "You sure you didn't get the edited-for-TV version?"
Melora's face fell; she hadn't even considered that. "Oh. I – I don't know." Might there be more to the story than a simple crush and really regrettable case of borderline harassment? And if so, how bad did it get? How bad could it have been, if all it took was Melora's accident to aid in mending the rift? She decided to cover her sudden sense of naiveté by saying, "I'm just glad they're getting along again. She's a great doctor."
"Right. Exactly," Malucci told her, seeing the growing concern on Melora's face. She was a nice lady and probably didn't see Romano's work persona the way the rest of them did. But, maybe she should. Who knew? Maybe he wasn't as nice deep down as she thought he was. She should at least be warned and given all the information so she can judge for herself. He lowered his voice and told her, "It's just, when your boyfriend and Dr. Corday came back from lunch yesterday, they hugged. Which is no big deal for anyone except those two. I mean, last week she'd have strangled him before hugging him. So…it's just weird, you know?"
"Yeah. I know. You mentioned the pre-apocalyptic vision of it all." She was quickly souring on the conversation. Was nice Dr. Dave being just a little condescending here, like she was some dumb blond who needed to be warned about her evil boyfriend? Melora wasn't sure who she should be angry with right now: Robert, who likely had done nothing wrong, Dr. Corday, who also may have done nothing, Malucci for making her think there may be something wrong, or herself for doubting and/or believing in Robert. To say it was confusing and conflicting was putting it mildly.
Malucci could see it on her face, and said as Abby stopped by the desk to say hello, "Look, don't take it so serious. Like I said, it was no big deal or else they wouldn't have done it right out here in the open, right? It was just…a weird thing to see."
Abby, who'd heard about The Hug (or Charged Embrace, depending on who told the story) yesterday, knew that Malucci must have spilled the beans to Melora. "Dave! You didn't!"
"There was nothing to tell!" he said defensively. "Chuny started it, and Jerry was about to say something stupid-"
"What?" Jerry chimed in incredulously. "No, I wasn't!"
"Dude, you totally were. You were about to say something sarcastic."
"How would you know that?"
"Because you started making that same face you make when you're about to say something that you think is hilarious." Dave pretended to look like Jerry about to make a snide comment, getting a "not bad" from Lydia as she passed by.
"Idiots," Abby muttered, waving Melora over to her. "Come on, don't listen to them. They're worse than a couple of fishwives with their gossip."
Melora joined Abby, who steered her back to the elevators. "I don't know what I'm supposed to think about any of this," she murmured, half to herself.
Boarding the elevator with Melora, Abby replied, "Let me explain the ER to you, for context's sake. It's a hugely stressful job. People die here just about every day. So to distract themselves from the actual pain going on around them, a lot of the people who work here thrive on imagining what intrigue may or may not be going on in other people's lives. And it's rarely based in reality. Okay?"
Melora nodded dully, already regretting having decided to visit Dr. Dave. "I think he was giving me the edited-for-tv version," she remarked, not entirely sure whom she was speaking of.
The elevator deposited them on the fifth floor once more, and Abby walked with Melora back towards her room. "Honestly? I don't think there's any 'version' to worry about. They're just stunned that two stubborn surgeons appear to have mended fences like grown adults for once. And that's only because they don't want to acknowledge that who we are at work isn't all there is."
Melora understood what Abby was saying, and she appreciated it, even if it didn't completely set her at ease. "I think I get now why Robert wanted to keep me away from all of this." Was it just to protect her from hearing bad things about him, or to protect himself from having to explain them to her.
Back in her room now, Melora sat on the edge of her bed, and looked at Abby. "Robert said Dr. Corday was having a rough time right now."
Abby knew about what was happening with Mark, and nodded. "She is. Very difficult. And it's got to be a huge relief for her to have a friend as a boss, rather than someone who's trying to undermine her. Sometimes a hug is just a hug. Especially when it's right at the front door of the ER."
Melora sighed, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. Was it the longer-than-usual walk, or was it all the information and the uncertainty? "You're right. I guess I just feel weird that people are talking about my relationship. It doesn't seem like it's anyone's business. Is this how celebrities feel? Because if so, I am never looking at another issue of People magazine again." She kicked off her slippers and slid under the covers.
Abby sighed, thinking her own experiences with gossip brought on by her mother's mental health. "People are always going to talk. Just don't let their issues become yours."
Wise words, Melora thought to herself. "Thanks, Abby."
"No problem. I'll look in on you later," Abby replied, letting herself out while Melora tried to rest.
But still, sleep wouldn't come for a while.
TBC