Disclaimer: I don't own any of the ER characters.

Rating: PG

Note: This story involves Susan / Carter / Abby / Luka. This is the second chapter. Each chapter will be from a different character's point of view. Please read and review. Thanks - Suzilee

Weary

Chapter Two: Abby

Randi strolled over to the admit desk where Dr. Weaver and Abby Lockhart were discussing something, rather heatedly from the looks of it.

"Hey Dr. Weaver, there's someone waiting to see you in chairs," Randy interrupted.

"I'm a little busy," Kerry snapped. "Who is it?"

"I don't know, I'm not a receptionist," Randi drawled.

"Read your job description Randi - that's exactly what you are. Do you have any idea who it is?" Kerry's voice dripped with irritation.

"Dr. Weaver," Abby said, trying to regain her attention.

Randi popped her gum insolently. "Some fireman, er, firewoman. She wouldn't say what she wanted. I told her to have a seat."

Kerry's demeanor changed, a slight smile crossing her face. She turned and wrote something on the board, and then started to walk away from the admit desk.

"We'll have to talk about this later Abby," she said over her shoulder.

"Dr. Weaver, this is really important to me." Abby's voice took on a pleading tone. "I really feel that my skills are wasted here. I'm an OB nurse, not an ER nurse."

Kerry turned to look at her. "Abby, you've become very proficient in the ER. I see no reason to make a change."

"I want to make a change. I want to get back into OB."

"I'm sorry Abby, OB isn't hiring right now. You know that. When you decided not to pursue medical school, you were lucky that we even had an opening in the ER."

"It wasn't that I decided not to pursue it - my ex-husband didn't pay my tuition, that's all."

Kerry looked at her with renewed interest. "Are you re-enrolling?"

Abby looked away from her stare. "Well, no. But…"

"We'll talk about it later," said Kerry, walking away.

"Dr. Weaver!"

"I said later Abby." With that, Kerry disappeared into the waiting room.

'Shit,' thought Abby. 'Nursing shortages all over the freaking country, and I have to work at the one hospital with NO OPENINGS.' Actually, she was quite sure that there were openings in the OB, but she had to have permission from someone with supervisory authority in order to transfer. And it didn't seem like Weaver was willing to let her go. Damn Weaver. Abby wasn't really surprised though. It was difficult to find nurses who were willing to work in the ER, and they were short-staffed right now, so getting Weaver's permission had been a long-shot, at best.

'Now what am I going to do?' she thought. It wasn't so much that she wanted to work in OB - it was more that she wanted out of the ER. There was too much baggage here in the ER. Every day, having to deal with Luka, with his girlfriend of the week, with Carter, and even with Dr. Lewis (who was becoming a royal pain-in-the-ass), was just too much for her. 'Never, never again will I get involved with anyone at work,' she thought. 'No more fraternizing with the co-workers.'

She knew that she ought to just mind her own business, and ignore everything that was happening around her, but she hadn't been able to do it. She had a morbid desire to know what was happening in the lives of her co-workers. Well, in the lives of some of her co-workers.

She needed to be away from it. She was messed up enough, emotionally, without being constantly confronted with the players in her screwed up social life every day, all day long. She came home from work each day exhausted - physically AND emotionally. She just wanted to escape.

'I can't afford to leave County,' she thought. Her years in OB had helped her pay to creep to the top of the scale. If she switched hospitals, she would have to basically start over. 'Then I can add bankruptcy to my list of achievements for this year,' she thought darkly.

She looked up to see Carter walking in the door. He had a little smile on his face. A stupid, goofy smile. It made her want to pick something up and throw it at him. Instead, she picked up a chart, and pretended to be engrossed in it. The last thing she wanted to do was talk to him. Maybe he wouldn't see her.

Unfortunately, Carter walked right up to the admit desk. "Morning Abby," he said cheerily, smoothing down his rumpled hair. "Is it busy?"

"No," Abby said shortly, not meeting his friendly gaze. She dropped the chart, and grabbed her styrofoam coffee cup. "I've gotta get some coffee," she said as she turned towards the lounge.

She didn't want to have another civil, psuedo-friendly conversation with him. They had been so close, and the shallow nature of their current relationship was hard to take. She missed talking to him, and hanging out with him, and it hurt her deeply to see that he apparently didn't miss her at all. Things had just gotten so screwed up.

She often found herself wishing that Dr. Lewis hadn't come to County at all. When she had shown up, he had just dropped her, completely. It was as if their months of friendship had meant nothing to him at all. It really pissed her off. 'Bastard,' she thought.

She swung the lounge door open a little too hard, and watched as Luka jumped when it slammed against the back wall. "Oops," she said.

"Having a bad day?" Luka said, straight-faced.

"Just great. Faaaantastic, thanks for asking," Abby muttered sarcastically. 'Great," she thought, 'Out of the frying pan, into the fire.'

"Well, I hope it gets better," Luka said gently. "Would you like a doughnut? I think they're fairly new - at least, I didn't see them in here yesterday."

Abby watched him for a minute as he poked the doughnuts, trying to find one that wasn't stale. "No, thanks, I'll pass." She went over to the coffee pot, and poured herself a fresh cup.

Behind her, she heard the door swing open.

"Hey Luka," Carter said.

"Carter," Luka nodded at him.

"How are you?"

"I'm good. How are you?"

"Oh, great. Man, it's so cold outside."

Abby listened as Carter and Luka talked politely to each other. It seemed bizarre to her. A few weeks ago, they hadn't even been capable of civility, and now, here they were - at pains to be polite and friendly to each other. Meanwhile, neither one of them felt comfortable talking to HER. At the sink, facing away from the two men, the weirdness factor of the situation struck her, and she couldn't hold back a frustrated chuckle. 'I'm so glad that I was able to bring them together,' she thought to herself. The absurdity of the events of the past few weeks flashed through her mind, and her chuckles escalated into harsh, helpless laughter that brought tears to her eyes.

Carter looked at Luka, questioningly. Luka shrugged.

"Uh, Abby," Luka said carefully, "Is everything o.k.?"

"I - I, " Abby couldn't finish, she just kept laughing, doubled over the sink. "I… I…" She stopped to compose herself, and turned around to see the two doctors staring at her as if she was insane. "I've got to go take care of a patient," she said, and then burst into fresh peals of laughter. She spun on one heel and quickly left the lounge, giggling as she went.

"Well, she seems to be in a good mood," Carter said with a frown. "Or else she's losing it." He peered out the window in the lounge door, watching her walk down the corridor."

"I'm voting for losing it," Luka said thoughtfully. He looked over at the sink, noticing her abandoned coffee cup. "Want a doughnut?"

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