-----
Doug had started his new job that day as the Pediatric Attending. He was standing at the admit desk with Mark, Carol, Conni, Elizabeth, Randi, and Cleo.
"So, how's your first day so far?" Mark asks him. He nods slightly.
"Good as can be expected." Doug says. Mark nods.
"Kerry been alright?" Mark asks. Doug chuckles lightly.
"Alright as can be expected." Doug says. Everyone smiles at that comment, except Cleo, who didn't really know about the relationship between Doug and Kerry.
"Well Doug, if it means anything, I'm glad you're back." Conni says. Doug smiles widely at her.
"Well thank you very much Conni. I'm glad someone appreciates me." He says, chuckling lightly. Carol frowns lightly at his comment.
-----
All day Doug's comment floated around Carol's brain. 'I'm glad someone appreciates me.' She was in the lounge, nursing a coffee on her break. It had dawned on her that Doug didn't know she appreciates him. She knew that was her fault, her way of showing her feelings but she didn't know how to let him know without actually telling him. Carol sighed and stood up, walking to the window and staring out of it for awhile.
Doug walks in to get his coffee and sees Carol staring out the window. He decides not to bother her, since she apparently didn't hear him come in. He gets himself a cup of coffee and she turns from the window and when she sees him she jumps.
"Jesus Doug! You scared me!" She says. He smiles slightly.
"I still can?" He asks. She makes a face at him.
"Ha ha." She says. He chuckles lightly and tastes the coffee, making a face of his own.
"Didn't this coffee get any better?" He asks. Carol laughs.
"Yeah right, Doug." She says. He smiles and moves, sitting on the couch. He puts his coffee on the table and leans back into the couch, sighing deeply. "Rough day?" She asks sympathetically. He smiles slightly, his eyes closed.
"You could say that." He says. She smiles and sits beside him on the couch. They sit in silence for a few minutes before Carol speaks up.
"Doug?" She asks quietly.
"Hmm?" He asks, not opening his eyes.
"I uh, I was wondering what you're doing tonight?" Carol asks.
"I have a date with my TV." Doug says smiling slightly. Carol smiles.
"Would you like to switch your date from the TV to me?" Carol asks softly. He opens his eyes and looks at her.
"Carol.." He says.
"Doug, I just..we need to talk about things." Carol says. He sighs and looks at her.
"This is what you want?" He asks. She nods.
"Yes." She replies. He nods.
"Alright then. What are we doing?" He asks.
"Dinner at 8?" Carol asks. He nods.
"Sounds good. Do you want me to pick you up?" He asks.
"No, how about we just meet somewhere, that way I can take Madison to my mother's house." Carol suggests.
"Alright. Where do you want to meet?" He asks.
"How about at Viternio's?" Carol asks.
"Okay. Sounds good. I'll meet you there at 8 then." Doug says. She nods.
"Okay, thank you." She says. He smiles.
"It's my pleasure." He says. She stands.
"I'll see you later then." She says and walks out of the lounge. He nods after her, picking up his coffee then gulping it down. He shakes his head at the bitter taste and then stretches out on the couch.
-----
Carol walks into Viternio's later that night. She is dressed in black jeans, a red sweater, and a black leather jacket. She looks around and spots Doug at the bar, a drink in his hand, apparently waiting for her. He is wearing khakis and a green sweater with his brown coat draped over the seat beside him. He is watching her. She smiles at him and walks over to him.
"Sorry I'm late. I uh, I had some problems with my mother." Carol says. He chuckles lightly.
"Sounds like the Helen I know and love." He says. She smiles. "Our table's ready." Doug says.
"Great." Carol says and he leads her to the table, carrying his drink. They sit in the booth, opposite of each other and are immediately greeted by a waiter. He gets Carol's drink order and leaves the table for them to look at the menu. Carol flips the menu open and looks at the choices.
"What problems did you have with your mom?" Doug asks, curious if they are about him. Carol smiles and sighs lightly.
"Well..when I took Madison there, she was so excited and told Ma that I was going on a date with Daddy." Carol says.
"Uh-oh." Doug says. Carol laughs lightly and nods.
"To say the least, she was not thrilled." Carol says, shaking her head slightly.
"Carol, I'm really sorry." Doug says. She looks up at him.
"Why?" She asks.
"For coming back and messing up your whole life. For making you have to deal with your mom." Doug says. She smiles softly at him.
"I can deal with my Mom. I've been dealing with her for my whole life. And as for coming back and messing up my whole life, that's not true and Madison adores you to pieces. Besides, I can't say that I don't like having you back. Seeing you everyday at work." Carol says shyly. He smiles, looking down at the menu. He knows he loves her, but he doesn't know if he can take this teasing from her. She kissed him but then she told him she wasn't sure if she wanted him back in her life. Then she asks him out and is telling him that she likes to work with him again, likes having him back. But she still said she's not sure what she wants.
"Carol?" He asks, his voice hesitant. She looks up.
"Hmm?" She responds softly. Just then the waiter comes back. He places Carol's drink on the table in front of her.
"Have you decided what you would like to eat?" He asks. Carol smiles up at him and looks at Doug. He nods. She turns back to the waiter.
"I'd like the lasagna." She says. He nods, copying this down onto his pad. He turns to Doug.
"I'll have the 6 oz. steak, medium-well, with a baked potato. Butter, no sour cream." Doug says. The waiter nods.
"Is that it?" He asks. They nod.
"Alright, I'll be back." He says, taking their menus and walks off. Doug fiddles with his straw wrapper.
"Doug?" Carol asks.
"Yeah?" He replies.
"What did you want to ask me?" She asks. He sighs and rubs his hand over his cheek slightly before looking at her.
"What are you doing?" He asks. Her eyes take on a confused look.
"Doing what?" She asks.
"This..you..you kissed me and then you said you weren't sure what you want...Then you..ask me out on a date..and, and tell me that you like having me back. Do you know what you want..are you leading me on or what..because I need to know what you're doing before I get hurt." Doug says. Carol looks at him, slightly surprised by his words. She pauses for a long minute before speaking softly.
"I..I'm not sure what I want. Mark says I should just give you a chance..go out with you," Carol tries to continue but Doug cuts her off.
"You're just doing this because Mark says you should?" He asks, slightly disgusted, sitting back in his seat.
"No..no. I..Mark knows me..better then I know myself." Carol says, smiling slightly. "He knows that I am confused and so he told me what I already knew. I'm trying to learn to be able to trust you again..but..I..you've broken my trust before...twice. I...it took me so long to get over you the first time but deep inside, I never really did. And now..I didn't get over you, but I accepted the fact that you wouldn't come back for me and I moved on. Then you show up 4 years later and confuse me. You know that I'm scared and you've tried not to interfere but now you work with me, again. My thoughts are all screwed up in my head and I'm just confused. I don't want to lead you on, but I need to figure things out. I don't want you to avoid me because you think it's what I want. That's not what I want. I don't want to jump right back into our relationship but I want to..see if..I can trust you..have a relationship with you." Carol says, sighing. She looks up at him hesitantly. He stares into her eyes before the gaze becomes too intense for them and they look away. He clears his throat.
"I'm trying to give you space. I want you to be able to trust me. I..I love you Carol." She looks up quickly. "I don't expect you to tell me that you love me, because I know you don't...but..if you're going to kiss me...and...and ask me out and give me false hope, and then decide you just don't want me back...I don't know if I could handle that...I don't want to get my heart broken. I can never make up what I did to you and I'm sorry for that and always will be. But sorry doesn't even amount to what I owe you, but I don't know how else to make you trust me." Doug says. Carol smiles softly and they just sit there for a few minutes. They make small, unimportant talk the rest of their dinner and leave each other that night, only partly satisfied.
-----
Carol walked into the lounge the next morning. Doug didn't have to been in for a few more hours. Mark was sitting in the lounge, drinking coffee.
"So, how did your date go?" Mark asks, raising his eyebrows. She sighs and flops down beside him on the couch.
"It was alright." Carol says.
"Just alright?" Mark asks.
"He's so forgiving. How can he forgive me so easily? He's so hard on himself, doesn't give himself any credit." Carol says. Mark smiles.
"Carol, he thinks that he screwed up everything good in his life. I hate to break this to you, but all he wants is for you to be happy, even if that means sacrificing his happiness for it." Mark says. Carol looks up at him.
"That doesn't help." Carol says. Mark smiles softly.
"It's not supposed to Carol." Mark says, standing and walking out of the lounge. Carol sighs and rubs her hands across her eyes.
"Life's a bitch." Carol says.
-----
Doug was on the roof, the wind tossing his hair about. Mark opens the door to the roof, causing Doug to turn and look at him.
"I figured I'd find you up here." Mark says. Doug nods.
"I missed this spot." Doug says. Mark chuckles.
"It is great for thinking." Mark says. Doug turns to him.
"Now, for your next question, last night's date was fine." Doug says. Mark chuckles.
"You know me well." He says. Doug smirks, turning to look back over the city.
"Yeah. It could have been better, but at least we got some things in the open." Doug says.
"Like?" Mark asks.
"Well...she let me know that she doesn't have any clue what she wants. I told her I would give her the space she needs. I know that I've hurt her many times, but I really could do without her breaking my heart. If she doesn't know what she wants, how do I know that she's not going to lead me on and then just drop me?" Doug asks. Mark sighs.
"She knows what she wants, she's just afraid to give into it." Mark says. Doug turns to him.
"And you know this how?" He asks.
"Look Doug, ever since you've left, I've been the one she's came to. I've been her best friend. I've learned to read her pretty well. She talks to me. She loves you and she wants to be with you, but she doesn't want to get hurt, just like you don't want to get hurt. She's been hurt so many times in her life, Doug. Your little girl is what has held her together these past four years. She thought she would never have you and she settled on the fact that she had your daughter with her everyday. Then after she has moved on, accepted the fact that you're gone, you come back to turn all that upside down again. She's scared because she learned to live without you and she doesn't want to be dependent on you again. She was dependent on you before and then you were gone. The only thing that kept her from going over the edge was Madison." Mark says, as if this is all should be obvious to Doug.
"And I wouldn't leave her ever again. I can't even leave her now and we're not even together. God, Mark, I miss her so much. All I ever think about is her and Madison. I was so stupid before. I was hurt and proud and that caused me to lose the two best things that ever happened to me. If I just would have stayed, talked to Carol some more and not just left as suddenly as I did, maybe things would be different. But all because of one little mistake, my whole life was turned upside down and it's all my fault. I don't expect Carol to forgive me but I want to be with her Mark. Life is short and I want us to be a family. I can't think of anything I could do that would make her trust me." Doug says. Mark sighs slightly.
"I don't know if there is anything you could do. You have to let Carol do this all on her own time." Mark says. Doug nods.
"I know..but the time is ticking away as we speak. I'm going to give Carol time and space, even if it's not what I want." Doug says. Mark smiles slightly.
"Things will turn out okay." Mark says.
"I hope to hell you're right." Doug says. Just then Mark's beeper goes off. He holds it up to his face and reads the number.
"That's the ER. You should probably head back too Doug." Mark says. Doug nods.
"Let's go." Doug says and they head back downstairs.
-----
"Headin' home?" Doug asks as Carol gets her stuff out from under the desk.
"Yep." She says. He nods, putting his chart in the finished pile.
"Carol! We need you!" Mark yells, a trauma coming in.
"Dammit! I'm already late!" Carol says.
"I'll go get Madison and bring her down and watch her until you're ready to leave." Doug says.
"That'd be great. Thanks Doug." Carol says, throwing her stuff under the desk and running off.
-----
Doug is in the lounge, Madison in his lap as they watch TV. Carol walks in, her coat and purse in tow.
"Hey baby. Ready to go home?" Carol asks.
"Yeah!" Madison and Doug both answer at the same time. Carol snickers and Doug chuckles. Doug begins to help Madison into her coat.
"You'll be good for Mommy, right?" Doug asks. Madison nods.
"Yes Daddy." She says. He grins and kisses her forehead.
"Good. I'll call you later, alright?" He asks. She nods. Doug looks up at Carol.
"When do you get off?" Carol asks.
"In an hour." Doug says.
"Why don't you come over for dinner? It's still pretty early." Carol says. Madison's face lights up.
"Yeah, Daddy, please!" She says. He chuckles.
"Alright. Do you want me to bring anything?" He asks. Carol shakes her head.
"Nah, I'll fix us something at home." She says.
"Alright then, I'll be there soon after I get off." Doug says. Carol nods.
"Come on Maddie." She says, reaching her hand out. The little girl takes it.
"Bye bye Daddy." Madison says.
"Bye sweetheart." Doug says as the two exit the lounge. He chuckles lightly to himself.
-----
After dinner Carol and Doug are sitting on the front porch as Madison plays in the yard. Their knees are touching as they talk quietly.
"When did things start to go wrong?" Carol asks Doug quietly. He looks at her and reaches up, scratching the back of his head. He lets his hand drop to his lap and stares at his hands.
"I'd say about when we met Joi Abbott. Things started to spiral out of control after that. I lied to Mark and gave Joi the code and all the stuff with Mr. Abbott happened, almost ruining Mark, Kerry, and your careers. Then the whole bus accident and my wreck. Then I left, barely giving you time to realize what happened. And all of this happened because of me, my selfishness, my narcissism," Doug quotes Carol from a few years back. She bows her head, slightly embarrassed. "It's amazing how much one little family can damage everything you know. I don't blame the Abbotts at all, I take full responsibility. God, Carol, it got so lonely up there." Doug says. Carol looks at him and nods slightly. Doug hears a car coming down the road and he looks up just in time to see Madison running into the middle of the road, chasing her ball. He jumps up. "Madison!" He screams, his heart jumping to his throat. The car swerves but not in time. It hits Madison, her little body being thrown, sprawled out across the pavement. Carol jumps up as Doug and her run to their daughter. The car stops and immediately the driver's side open.
"Oh God! Is she okay?" He asks. Doug bends down over his daughter, feeling for a pulse. He feels a weak one.
"Call 911! NOW!" Doug screams. Carol bends down beside Doug. The driver grabs his cell phone.
"Doug? Is she breathing?" Carol asks.
"Barely." Doug says.
"Oh God. Doug..." Carol says.
"Madison, baby, can you hear me?" Doug asks, stroking the little girl's forehead.
Nothing.
-----
Doug had started his new job that day as the Pediatric Attending. He was standing at the admit desk with Mark, Carol, Conni, Elizabeth, Randi, and Cleo.
"So, how's your first day so far?" Mark asks him. He nods slightly.
"Good as can be expected." Doug says. Mark nods.
"Kerry been alright?" Mark asks. Doug chuckles lightly.
"Alright as can be expected." Doug says. Everyone smiles at that comment, except Cleo, who didn't really know about the relationship between Doug and Kerry.
"Well Doug, if it means anything, I'm glad you're back." Conni says. Doug smiles widely at her.
"Well thank you very much Conni. I'm glad someone appreciates me." He says, chuckling lightly. Carol frowns lightly at his comment.
-----
All day Doug's comment floated around Carol's brain. 'I'm glad someone appreciates me.' She was in the lounge, nursing a coffee on her break. It had dawned on her that Doug didn't know she appreciates him. She knew that was her fault, her way of showing her feelings but she didn't know how to let him know without actually telling him. Carol sighed and stood up, walking to the window and staring out of it for awhile.
Doug walks in to get his coffee and sees Carol staring out the window. He decides not to bother her, since she apparently didn't hear him come in. He gets himself a cup of coffee and she turns from the window and when she sees him she jumps.
"Jesus Doug! You scared me!" She says. He smiles slightly.
"I still can?" He asks. She makes a face at him.
"Ha ha." She says. He chuckles lightly and tastes the coffee, making a face of his own.
"Didn't this coffee get any better?" He asks. Carol laughs.
"Yeah right, Doug." She says. He smiles and moves, sitting on the couch. He puts his coffee on the table and leans back into the couch, sighing deeply. "Rough day?" She asks sympathetically. He smiles slightly, his eyes closed.
"You could say that." He says. She smiles and sits beside him on the couch. They sit in silence for a few minutes before Carol speaks up.
"Doug?" She asks quietly.
"Hmm?" He asks, not opening his eyes.
"I uh, I was wondering what you're doing tonight?" Carol asks.
"I have a date with my TV." Doug says smiling slightly. Carol smiles.
"Would you like to switch your date from the TV to me?" Carol asks softly. He opens his eyes and looks at her.
"Carol.." He says.
"Doug, I just..we need to talk about things." Carol says. He sighs and looks at her.
"This is what you want?" He asks. She nods.
"Yes." She replies. He nods.
"Alright then. What are we doing?" He asks.
"Dinner at 8?" Carol asks. He nods.
"Sounds good. Do you want me to pick you up?" He asks.
"No, how about we just meet somewhere, that way I can take Madison to my mother's house." Carol suggests.
"Alright. Where do you want to meet?" He asks.
"How about at Viternio's?" Carol asks.
"Okay. Sounds good. I'll meet you there at 8 then." Doug says. She nods.
"Okay, thank you." She says. He smiles.
"It's my pleasure." He says. She stands.
"I'll see you later then." She says and walks out of the lounge. He nods after her, picking up his coffee then gulping it down. He shakes his head at the bitter taste and then stretches out on the couch.
-----
Carol walks into Viternio's later that night. She is dressed in black jeans, a red sweater, and a black leather jacket. She looks around and spots Doug at the bar, a drink in his hand, apparently waiting for her. He is wearing khakis and a green sweater with his brown coat draped over the seat beside him. He is watching her. She smiles at him and walks over to him.
"Sorry I'm late. I uh, I had some problems with my mother." Carol says. He chuckles lightly.
"Sounds like the Helen I know and love." He says. She smiles. "Our table's ready." Doug says.
"Great." Carol says and he leads her to the table, carrying his drink. They sit in the booth, opposite of each other and are immediately greeted by a waiter. He gets Carol's drink order and leaves the table for them to look at the menu. Carol flips the menu open and looks at the choices.
"What problems did you have with your mom?" Doug asks, curious if they are about him. Carol smiles and sighs lightly.
"Well..when I took Madison there, she was so excited and told Ma that I was going on a date with Daddy." Carol says.
"Uh-oh." Doug says. Carol laughs lightly and nods.
"To say the least, she was not thrilled." Carol says, shaking her head slightly.
"Carol, I'm really sorry." Doug says. She looks up at him.
"Why?" She asks.
"For coming back and messing up your whole life. For making you have to deal with your mom." Doug says. She smiles softly at him.
"I can deal with my Mom. I've been dealing with her for my whole life. And as for coming back and messing up my whole life, that's not true and Madison adores you to pieces. Besides, I can't say that I don't like having you back. Seeing you everyday at work." Carol says shyly. He smiles, looking down at the menu. He knows he loves her, but he doesn't know if he can take this teasing from her. She kissed him but then she told him she wasn't sure if she wanted him back in her life. Then she asks him out and is telling him that she likes to work with him again, likes having him back. But she still said she's not sure what she wants.
"Carol?" He asks, his voice hesitant. She looks up.
"Hmm?" She responds softly. Just then the waiter comes back. He places Carol's drink on the table in front of her.
"Have you decided what you would like to eat?" He asks. Carol smiles up at him and looks at Doug. He nods. She turns back to the waiter.
"I'd like the lasagna." She says. He nods, copying this down onto his pad. He turns to Doug.
"I'll have the 6 oz. steak, medium-well, with a baked potato. Butter, no sour cream." Doug says. The waiter nods.
"Is that it?" He asks. They nod.
"Alright, I'll be back." He says, taking their menus and walks off. Doug fiddles with his straw wrapper.
"Doug?" Carol asks.
"Yeah?" He replies.
"What did you want to ask me?" She asks. He sighs and rubs his hand over his cheek slightly before looking at her.
"What are you doing?" He asks. Her eyes take on a confused look.
"Doing what?" She asks.
"This..you..you kissed me and then you said you weren't sure what you want...Then you..ask me out on a date..and, and tell me that you like having me back. Do you know what you want..are you leading me on or what..because I need to know what you're doing before I get hurt." Doug says. Carol looks at him, slightly surprised by his words. She pauses for a long minute before speaking softly.
"I..I'm not sure what I want. Mark says I should just give you a chance..go out with you," Carol tries to continue but Doug cuts her off.
"You're just doing this because Mark says you should?" He asks, slightly disgusted, sitting back in his seat.
"No..no. I..Mark knows me..better then I know myself." Carol says, smiling slightly. "He knows that I am confused and so he told me what I already knew. I'm trying to learn to be able to trust you again..but..I..you've broken my trust before...twice. I...it took me so long to get over you the first time but deep inside, I never really did. And now..I didn't get over you, but I accepted the fact that you wouldn't come back for me and I moved on. Then you show up 4 years later and confuse me. You know that I'm scared and you've tried not to interfere but now you work with me, again. My thoughts are all screwed up in my head and I'm just confused. I don't want to lead you on, but I need to figure things out. I don't want you to avoid me because you think it's what I want. That's not what I want. I don't want to jump right back into our relationship but I want to..see if..I can trust you..have a relationship with you." Carol says, sighing. She looks up at him hesitantly. He stares into her eyes before the gaze becomes too intense for them and they look away. He clears his throat.
"I'm trying to give you space. I want you to be able to trust me. I..I love you Carol." She looks up quickly. "I don't expect you to tell me that you love me, because I know you don't...but..if you're going to kiss me...and...and ask me out and give me false hope, and then decide you just don't want me back...I don't know if I could handle that...I don't want to get my heart broken. I can never make up what I did to you and I'm sorry for that and always will be. But sorry doesn't even amount to what I owe you, but I don't know how else to make you trust me." Doug says. Carol smiles softly and they just sit there for a few minutes. They make small, unimportant talk the rest of their dinner and leave each other that night, only partly satisfied.
-----
Carol walked into the lounge the next morning. Doug didn't have to been in for a few more hours. Mark was sitting in the lounge, drinking coffee.
"So, how did your date go?" Mark asks, raising his eyebrows. She sighs and flops down beside him on the couch.
"It was alright." Carol says.
"Just alright?" Mark asks.
"He's so forgiving. How can he forgive me so easily? He's so hard on himself, doesn't give himself any credit." Carol says. Mark smiles.
"Carol, he thinks that he screwed up everything good in his life. I hate to break this to you, but all he wants is for you to be happy, even if that means sacrificing his happiness for it." Mark says. Carol looks up at him.
"That doesn't help." Carol says. Mark smiles softly.
"It's not supposed to Carol." Mark says, standing and walking out of the lounge. Carol sighs and rubs her hands across her eyes.
"Life's a bitch." Carol says.
-----
Doug was on the roof, the wind tossing his hair about. Mark opens the door to the roof, causing Doug to turn and look at him.
"I figured I'd find you up here." Mark says. Doug nods.
"I missed this spot." Doug says. Mark chuckles.
"It is great for thinking." Mark says. Doug turns to him.
"Now, for your next question, last night's date was fine." Doug says. Mark chuckles.
"You know me well." He says. Doug smirks, turning to look back over the city.
"Yeah. It could have been better, but at least we got some things in the open." Doug says.
"Like?" Mark asks.
"Well...she let me know that she doesn't have any clue what she wants. I told her I would give her the space she needs. I know that I've hurt her many times, but I really could do without her breaking my heart. If she doesn't know what she wants, how do I know that she's not going to lead me on and then just drop me?" Doug asks. Mark sighs.
"She knows what she wants, she's just afraid to give into it." Mark says. Doug turns to him.
"And you know this how?" He asks.
"Look Doug, ever since you've left, I've been the one she's came to. I've been her best friend. I've learned to read her pretty well. She talks to me. She loves you and she wants to be with you, but she doesn't want to get hurt, just like you don't want to get hurt. She's been hurt so many times in her life, Doug. Your little girl is what has held her together these past four years. She thought she would never have you and she settled on the fact that she had your daughter with her everyday. Then after she has moved on, accepted the fact that you're gone, you come back to turn all that upside down again. She's scared because she learned to live without you and she doesn't want to be dependent on you again. She was dependent on you before and then you were gone. The only thing that kept her from going over the edge was Madison." Mark says, as if this is all should be obvious to Doug.
"And I wouldn't leave her ever again. I can't even leave her now and we're not even together. God, Mark, I miss her so much. All I ever think about is her and Madison. I was so stupid before. I was hurt and proud and that caused me to lose the two best things that ever happened to me. If I just would have stayed, talked to Carol some more and not just left as suddenly as I did, maybe things would be different. But all because of one little mistake, my whole life was turned upside down and it's all my fault. I don't expect Carol to forgive me but I want to be with her Mark. Life is short and I want us to be a family. I can't think of anything I could do that would make her trust me." Doug says. Mark sighs slightly.
"I don't know if there is anything you could do. You have to let Carol do this all on her own time." Mark says. Doug nods.
"I know..but the time is ticking away as we speak. I'm going to give Carol time and space, even if it's not what I want." Doug says. Mark smiles slightly.
"Things will turn out okay." Mark says.
"I hope to hell you're right." Doug says. Just then Mark's beeper goes off. He holds it up to his face and reads the number.
"That's the ER. You should probably head back too Doug." Mark says. Doug nods.
"Let's go." Doug says and they head back downstairs.
-----
"Headin' home?" Doug asks as Carol gets her stuff out from under the desk.
"Yep." She says. He nods, putting his chart in the finished pile.
"Carol! We need you!" Mark yells, a trauma coming in.
"Dammit! I'm already late!" Carol says.
"I'll go get Madison and bring her down and watch her until you're ready to leave." Doug says.
"That'd be great. Thanks Doug." Carol says, throwing her stuff under the desk and running off.
-----
Doug is in the lounge, Madison in his lap as they watch TV. Carol walks in, her coat and purse in tow.
"Hey baby. Ready to go home?" Carol asks.
"Yeah!" Madison and Doug both answer at the same time. Carol snickers and Doug chuckles. Doug begins to help Madison into her coat.
"You'll be good for Mommy, right?" Doug asks. Madison nods.
"Yes Daddy." She says. He grins and kisses her forehead.
"Good. I'll call you later, alright?" He asks. She nods. Doug looks up at Carol.
"When do you get off?" Carol asks.
"In an hour." Doug says.
"Why don't you come over for dinner? It's still pretty early." Carol says. Madison's face lights up.
"Yeah, Daddy, please!" She says. He chuckles.
"Alright. Do you want me to bring anything?" He asks. Carol shakes her head.
"Nah, I'll fix us something at home." She says.
"Alright then, I'll be there soon after I get off." Doug says. Carol nods.
"Come on Maddie." She says, reaching her hand out. The little girl takes it.
"Bye bye Daddy." Madison says.
"Bye sweetheart." Doug says as the two exit the lounge. He chuckles lightly to himself.
-----
After dinner Carol and Doug are sitting on the front porch as Madison plays in the yard. Their knees are touching as they talk quietly.
"When did things start to go wrong?" Carol asks Doug quietly. He looks at her and reaches up, scratching the back of his head. He lets his hand drop to his lap and stares at his hands.
"I'd say about when we met Joi Abbott. Things started to spiral out of control after that. I lied to Mark and gave Joi the code and all the stuff with Mr. Abbott happened, almost ruining Mark, Kerry, and your careers. Then the whole bus accident and my wreck. Then I left, barely giving you time to realize what happened. And all of this happened because of me, my selfishness, my narcissism," Doug quotes Carol from a few years back. She bows her head, slightly embarrassed. "It's amazing how much one little family can damage everything you know. I don't blame the Abbotts at all, I take full responsibility. God, Carol, it got so lonely up there." Doug says. Carol looks at him and nods slightly. Doug hears a car coming down the road and he looks up just in time to see Madison running into the middle of the road, chasing her ball. He jumps up. "Madison!" He screams, his heart jumping to his throat. The car swerves but not in time. It hits Madison, her little body being thrown, sprawled out across the pavement. Carol jumps up as Doug and her run to their daughter. The car stops and immediately the driver's side open.
"Oh God! Is she okay?" He asks. Doug bends down over his daughter, feeling for a pulse. He feels a weak one.
"Call 911! NOW!" Doug screams. Carol bends down beside Doug. The driver grabs his cell phone.
"Doug? Is she breathing?" Carol asks.
"Barely." Doug says.
"Oh God. Doug..." Carol says.
"Madison, baby, can you hear me?" Doug asks, stroking the little girl's forehead.
Nothing.
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