DISCLAIMER: Okay, you know what I'm going to say…I don't own them!! I'm just borrowing them for a while…I'll return them!
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The 6th chapter of LAR takes place sometime after chapter 5. Thank you so much for the kind reviews!
RECONCILIATION
Carter was beginning to realize that the situation was getting out of control. He and Kovac had been avoiding each other as much as possible, and when they did have to be in the same room, you could almost taste the tension in the air. The nurses had a pool going, betting on who would snap first. The betting was split fairly evenly between the two, leaning a little towards the Luka side.
But the last straw for Carter had come earlier that afternoon. A patient, after watching the two doctors interact, had remarked slyly to Carter, "Don't like him much, huh Doc?" Carter had muttered something noncommittal, like "He's a good doctor," and then got the hell out of there. He was shocked that even the patients were picking up on the animosity between the two, and decided that something had to be done.
"Haleh, have you seen Dr. Kovac?" he asked. Haleh raised her eyebrows and nodded in the direction of the roof. God, the roof again, he thought wryly, between Abby and Luka they must own the place. Nevertheless, Carter found himself on the roof, staring at Kovac's back. He coughed, and the Croatian turned. "Dr. Carter."
"Dr. Kovac," Carter nodded. An awkward silence fell until Carter spoke again. "I love her, you know."
Luka's face darkened, but all he said was, "So do I. More than she knows."
Carter acknowledged this with a curt nod of his head. Then he sighed. "And she loves you. I know that. You'd have to be blind not to see it."
Luka raised his head in surprise. Carter continued. "I want her to be happy. And she…" He paused; this was harder than he'd expected. "Well, you make her happy. So I decided to…to stop trying to make her love me. Marry her. Make her happy. Let her make you happy. You have my blessing. I know that's old fashioned, and you don't need my blessing, but I'm giving it anyways. I thought you should know." Carter's breath whooshed out and he was suddenly exhausted. He hadn't counted on feeling a sense of relief along with the loss he felt.
Luka just stood there, amazed. "Thank you," he finally said softly, knowing how much that admission had cost Carter. He closed his eyes, also knowing that it was now his turn to offer something back to the man who stood in front of him. "You're a good friend to her. Don't let that friendship go because of this. She needs a friend like you."
Carter nodded, agreeing as Luka continued. "You know, I could always use another friend too…" He trailed off, wondering if he was pushing his luck.
But Carter suddenly grinned and stuck out his hand. The two men shook hands firmly and Carter answered, "You can never have too many friends."
Luka returned Carter's grin and said, "I was going to see if Abby wanted to head to Doc Magoo's for dinner. Want to join us? Give the nurses something else to talk about?"
Carter slapped Luka on the back, in a man-to-man gesture. "I'd like that."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Luka entered the lounge, whistling. Abby turned, a smile on her lips. "What's with you?" she queried.
"Can't I be happy? I had a good day, that's all." He put his arm around her shoulders and kissed her cheek.
Abby laughed. "I'm glad you're so happy," she said, squeezing his hand.
"I was thinking of going over to Doc's for dinner, to celebrate. What do you think?"
She smiled up at him, amused. "Sounds good."
He took her hand. "Do you mind if I bring along a new friend of mine?"