EMAIL: equusflame@aol.com
CATEGORY: A/C
RATING: ahh... just PG
SPOILERS: probably...not sure! :)
ARCHIVE: Just tella me kk?
DISCLAIMER: all right... all together now.. I dont own them, and I promise to return
them peachy clean! :)
Author's Notes: just hear my battle cry: The chickens are coming! The chickens are coming!
(yes, I am currently in therapy, thank you!) lol

"Hey" Carter said quietly.

"Hey" Abby croaked in reply. She had a massive hangover and every little sound was like a
jackhammer in her head.

Carter pulled a chair up to her bed and looked at her, expecting her to explain why she had come
to him, and what had set her back so badly. When she didn't make a move to explain, he asked,
"Abby, what happened?"

Abby looked away, suddenly unable to look him in the eyes. She was o ashamed, why had she
thought that going back to the bottle would bring anything but pain for her and those who
surround her? Why had she thought it would bring salvation? She hadn't even felt the happy
giddiness she usual felt when she was drunk. There had been nothing. Nothing, but now the pain.

"Abby, come on, tell me." Carter pleaded

"Just leave me alone Carter, I don't want to talk about it."

"Fine." Carter said, the hurt obvious in his voice. He left the room feeling dejected
and confused.
------
A week later after Abby had been released from the hospital, she arrived at Carter's door
unannounced. Carter looked at her and saw that something was terribly wrong.

"Abby, come in , what's wrong?" Carter asked hurriedly.

"Carter, I came to thank you for your help that night..."She trailed off.

That's OK, but I still don't know why you came to me... why did you Abby?"

"I had nowhere else to go, I couldn't go to Luka, and its not like mother is that great at being
anything but trouble." Abby chuckled dryly.

They sat on the couch as far away as they could get from each other as there was still much
tension between them.

"Carter I'm so sorry that I hurt you that day in the hospital... I didn't mean to. I just
didn't want to talk about it. I didn't mean to hurt you. Why didn't you come back?"

"Because I thought you didn't want to talk." Carter said as though it were the most obvious thing
in the world.

"That didn't mean I didn't want company." Abby replied feeling the loneliness of the hospital
creeping up on her again. With the loneliness came, inevitably, the tears.

"Abby, don't cry."

"I'm not." Abby said as she brushed the tears fiercely away. She hated to cry, especially over
such stupid things. She couldn't do anything about the fact that she was destined to be an
abusive alcoholic.

Carter slid closer to her and brushed away a stray tear. He then pulled her into his arms,
and she wrapped her arms around him tightly, never having felt quite so safe. She buried her face into his
chest, and whispered to him, "Friends forever?"

"Forever and a day."
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to be continued...
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okay, okay... I know it was short again... but thats just the way i write k? lol