So, hi. It's Christmas Eve. Why does it feel like mid November? Is it just me or is this year particularly unfestive? It's just me, isn't it? But anyway! Chapter-iness! Woo! As usual, please review to humour a small homunculus, and I hope you enjoy.

Hannah the Hobbit Xx

Cal woke up, his head still spinning. It pounded and ached and the room refused to stay still. The toilet bowl swam in front of his eyes and he pressed his fingers into the bridge of his nose, rubbing his palm across the bleary eye as he did so. He must have been really drunk last night, to not remember a thing and for this killer hangover. He stumbled out of the door, pausing when he saw the two unfamiliar female bodies sprawled across the floor. He carefully removed one boot from the slender dark-skinned arm of the girl sprawled across the floor. As he pulled it on, he spied his t-shirt lying on the opposite side of the room. Carefully stepping over the unconscious girl, he retrieved it and tugged it over his head. The door creaked, the noise unreasonably painful in his hungover state, and he glanced at the blonde mop of hair on the bed as it stirred at the noise. But the girl settled back down to sleep, the other not even stirring from her alcohol-induced coma. Cal breathed a sigh of relief and crept out the door.

Lucie's eye caught sight of the hungover Cal creeping into the ED. Immediately she noted the dark rings under his eyes, the way he winced slightly at loud noises, the specific style of 'ruffled' (messy) hair that only came from sleeping on the floor of some unknown person's bathroom/bedroom/hotel room/lounge. She threw the card back on to the counter and turned away from her patient, excusing herself politely. She strode over to Cal and slapped him sharply across the cheek. Her hand made a loud crack, echoing throughout the waiting room as it connected.

"Care to explain where you were last night?" She asked, folding her arms angrily across her chest.

"I-" Cal began, quickly racking his brain for a plausible explanation. "Stayed at Ethan's."

Another crack sounded. Lucie lowered her stinging hand.

"Liar. I asked him this morning when I ran into him, so again if you don't mind. Where. The Shit. Were. You?"

Cal's excuses left him as a stuttering wreck. The disgusted look he was getting off Lucie sent his heart sinking into an endless abyss, which only darkened as she gave a disbelieving snort of derision and stalked away.

Lofty caught up with Cal, falling into step with him.

"You were a right mess in the pub." He said as a greeting. Cal turned to look at him, exhaustion forming bags under his eyes, deep purple circles.

"Trust me, I am feeling it now." He said, almost regretfully. Lofty laughed at his self-pitying look.

"So... Did you pull?"

Cal looked at him, his expression unreadable.

"Sort of." He relented. Lofty laughed.

"Which one?" He demanded. Cal looked slightly sheepish.

"Well... Both of them?"

Lofty cackled cruelly.

"Oh man, Lucie is going to kill you." He stated gleefully. Cal spun, walking backwards so that Lofty could see his other cheek. The one with two overlaying red hand prints on it.

"She already has."

"Mate? She's barely begun."

Lucie strode into the cubicle, and asked with stiff formality.

"Is that her card?" She nodded at the piece of card on the bed. Cal grabbed it up.

"No. Actually that's my patient's." He informed her. The patient raised an eyebrow at the two of them. Lucie forced a tight smile down at her.

"Then get back to them." She said coldly. "I can take this one."

Cal glanced over at the patient, eyeing her subtly.

"I can help out-" he began to offer, purely for his own benefit.

"Dr Knight, remove your being from this cubicle, or I swear I will hit you in the face with my shoe." Lucie snapped. The patient frowned at the weird threat, but Cal held up his hands in surrender, and backed out of the cubicle. Lucie breathed out shakily, her posture drooping slightly. The patient raised an eyebrow again. Lucie caught sight of it this time.

"Dr Knight is a douchebag." She explained wearily.

Lucie had struggled to remain civil towards both her patient and to Cal as she watched him dart back into her cubicle every five minutes, flirting with the blonde woman. Lucie silently watched, her heart wrenching itself into tiny shreds. She'd never thought Cal had it in him to be such a cruel, heartless bastard! She'd swallowed her anger, savagely scrawling on the form. However when she slumped against the outside wall, not two metres from the ED entrance, she had had enough of Cal's behaviour. She watched the slender hand hold out the phone questioning, short conversation passing between Cal and the patient. Cal moved forwards to take it and swiftly typed in his number, presumably. He looked up at the blonde beauty, who gracefully slid into the taxi. Cal watched her as it sped away, and as he turned back to return to his work, his eyes fell on Lucie. She spun away, violently scrubbing the tears from her eyes.

Cal hurried up to her, pulling her shoulder around to face him. Lucie threw his hand from her shoulder.

"I don't want to hear it." She snapped. Cal began to form a clumsy retort, but she cut across him. "No, it doesn't matter Cal. It's fine."

Oddly enough, whilst her tone was harsh and bitter, it wasn't sarcastic.

"What?" He spluttered. Lucie smiled tautly.

"Don't worry, You never meant that much to me either." Lucie spat, staring determinedly into Cal's eyes. She glowered at him and stalked away. As her head flicked around, tears began to form in the corner of her eyes. She swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to maintain her composure as long as possible. The lie she'd thrown into his face was the hardest thing she'd ever done. She'd felt as though she'd pulled her heart out along with the words. She curled her fingers into a fist, then straightened them out again- an old habit she thought she'd stopped. Rita caught sight of her, and hurried over, a concerned frown decorating her face.

"Are you alright?" She worried. Lucie nodded, not meeting her gaze.

"I'm fine." She choked, her eyes betraying her. "I'm fine." She tried again, but it came out even shakier and tearful than the last. Rita wrapped her arms around her protectively.

"What's happened?" She demanded, pulling away from the hug. She looked into Lucie's eyes, noting the pain and anger forcing the tears out, rather than sadness.

"Doctor Carter." Connie called to Lucie's exhausted back. She turned slowly, defeat echoing in eyes.

"Whatever million things I've done wrong, email me the list. I'm sure it's lengthy." She said dejectedly. Lucie looked helplessly at Connie. "But tonight, I am done."

She slowly turned back around and continued on her way out. Connie closed her mouth, the rest of those on the shift slowly trickling out from around her. Something was seriously wrong for Lucie to be so disheartened. The usually, whilst a sarcastic little shit, optimistic doctor being so defeated and lost was not a positive omen.