Title: Stairway To Heaven
Chapter: Two/?
Rating: R
Pairings: KW/KL, Kerry Weaver, Elizabeth Corday
Genre: Drama
Spoilers: Up to and including season eight
Timeline: After Four Corners
Beta Reader: Scotty Welles
Summary: What if during Witch Hunt, and the following
Episodes it wasn't fear that kept Kerry from helping
Kim. What if there was something else going on with
her. What if Kim had no idea about what that
something was.
Disclaimer: Not mine. All characters belong to Warner
Bros and
Michael Crichton.
The cold wind wrapped around her, as she fingered the
pager. Three residents killed a young man. Two of
her most promising residents had missed a diagnosis
that a second year med student could make. A
diagnosis that she might have needed them to make for
her.
The doctors had failed that young man. Because of one
mistake, he would never get married. He would never
have children. He would never have grandchildren, or
experience his honeymoon. All because they had failed
him. All because doctors were as fallible as the next
guy.
And her. She'd lost her pager. Left it in the stall
of the bathroom. Something that she never would've
done before. Maybe she should just use the rest of
her vacation days. With everything going on in her
life, she just couldn't seem to concentrate.
Now, she was also faced with finding out who her
mother was. That knowledge was finally in her hands,
all she had to do was look. She would finally have
all her questions answered. She would finally have
all the mysteries about her life solved.
"I thought your shift was over?"
Kerry shut her eyes, telling herself that it was her
imagination. There was no possible way that she could
be hearing that voice. "I've finally lost it."
"Not yet."
Her eyes glanced over to the presence beside her,
taking in the gorgeous blonde smiling at her. "I
thought you'd left."
"I needed time to think." Kim stared out at the city
below. "I was so busy looking for reasons not to be
with you, that I forgot about the reasons to stay."
"Lori?"
"You." Kim sighed sadly and handed her the second cup
of coffee. "I was scared of what we had, and when
you... I was looking for an excuse to break up with
you."
Kerry doubted that it was that simple. If what Kim
was saying was true then there's no way she would just
come back for Kerry. "What changed your mind?"
"I took a job at Kennedy Hospital."
She stepped back from Kim, her heart racing at the
single sentence. It told her so much, with so few
words. Kim knew, she'd found out somehow. Did she
feel sorry for Kerry? Is that why she'd come back?
"I see. So now what? You say that you want to take
me back? That you feel sorry for me? That you have
some..."
"No!!" Kim slammed her cup down on the ledge of the
roof, and grabbed her. "I love you. When I found
out, all I could think of was how short life is. How
much I regretted not being there for you. How much I
had lost by breaking up with you."
"That's it? I have a disease, and that makes
everything okay? We just pick up where we were, and
forget everything that's happened?" She felt the
tears streaming down her face as Kim gently kissed
her.
"No. We learn from what happened, and we use it to
make our relationship stronger."
Kerry nodded, moving into Kim's arms, taking comfort
in them that she'd denied herself over the last
months. The tears began to run more freely, soaking
the blonde's blouse. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I
should've told you. I should've been there for you.
I..."
"Shhh. It's okay. It'll be okay."
Kerry relaxed into the stronger woman, believing it
for the first time in months. As long as Kim was by
her side, she would believe just about anything was
possible.
"You're still the chief of the ER?"
Kerry nearly groaned at the non-threatening tone in
Kim's voice. The nonchalance the psychiatrist was
displaying while she joined her at the table for
dinner was absolutely masterful. "Not that much has
changed since you left."
Kim set her fork down to study her with those drilling
blue eyes. "You're not going to step down."
"There's no reason to." Kerry went back to her
dinner, shoveling a fork full of teriyaki chicken into
her mouth.
"You're not serious." Kim grabbed her chin and forced
Kerry to look at her. "Kerry, I may be a
psychiatrist, but I still know a bit about medicine,
and unless there's been some new breakthrough that I
haven't been told about..."
"There hasn't." Kerry sighed at the hurt in her
ex...her lover's eyes. "I know that I need to be
taking it easy, but this is who I am, and nothing can
change that."
"Kerry, you can't just ignore this." Kim grabbed her
hand, pleading desperately with her. "If you keep
this up you're going to kill yourself."
"I'm going to be careful. There's nothing to worry
about."
"Bullshit. The slightest blood based infection could
kill you. Then there's your heart, anything could
trigger a..."
"I know all that, and I'm taking precautions." Kerry
squeezed her hand. "Look, if I think for one second
that it's too much for me, or that it's putting me in
danger, then I'll step down. I promise."
Kim muttered under her breath angrily, giving her a
hard glare. "If I believe that you're doing too much,
swear to me that you will back down."
"I swear. Now, can we finish eating?"
"Sure." Kim poked at the food, her mouth turned into
a small frown. "Is that what's wrong with your hip?"
Kerry laid her fork down and sighed. "Yes."
"You look a little stressed."
"I'm fine."
Kim smirked over at her. "Oh, too bad. I know a fun
way to relieve stress."
Kerry blinked at her plate, then looked over at her
colleague to make sure she wasn't reading too much
into it. But the red tint at the top of Kim's ears
told her exactly what the tall blonde was talking
about. "On second thought, the doctor did say I was
supposed to stay relaxed."
"Race you...!"
"Kerry...?"
'Shit.' She continued around the corner, hoping
beyond hope that the surgeon would get distracted, or
hit by a bus. Just because she was in a better mood
over Kim's return to her life, she still wasn't able
to deal with Corday. At least not today.
"Kerry, there you are. I was looking all over for
you."
'And we all know why, too, but if you do kill me it
won't be justifiable. At least according to Kim it
isn't.' "This really isn't a good time..."
"We need to talk."
She was tempted to shoot Malucci just to have an
excuse to get away from her. "If this is about Mr.
Patterson..."
"I'm talking about you." Elizabeth moved right into
her face. "Now, we can either have this conversation
here or we can have it in your office. I would
recommend your office however, since I doubt you want
your business all over the hospital."
"Fine." She stormed down the hall towards the
elevators, her temper flaring. "MY business is the
key word."
"What was that?"
She glowered at Elizabeth. The glint in the surgeon's
eyes confirming that she'd heard exactly what she
said. "Nothing. Nothing at all."
The only good thing about this was that Elizabeth had
picked her territory to talk on, giving her a little
advantage over this. It wasn't that she didn't like
the surgeon, she did. She even admired the other
woman. Corday was everything she'd ever wanted
in...to be as a woman.
A deadly beauty, that would send most men, and a
number of women, to their knees. Sexy curves that
went on forever and never stopped. A mind as quick
and sharp as any top surgeon or doctor. And she'd
only gotten sexier since she gave birth. Her body
softer, filled out more, in a way only a new mother
could have.
"I can think of any number of diagnosis that would
cover the most obvious symptoms, and I have a feeling
I know what's wrong with you. But I'd like to hear it
from you."
Kerry propped herself up on the front of the desk,
staring at the pacing surgeon with disbelief. "Look,
I know you want to hurt me for the whole thing with
Mark, but..."
"Damn it, Kerry, I am not trying to destroy your
career. I am your colleague, and I respect you. I
would like the chance to give you some sort of
support."
"Marfans's. I have Marfans's."
Elizabeth sank into the chair numbly. "But it's rare
for someone with a deformed aorta to survive this
long."
"They said that if I had waited any longer, that I
would've died."
The surgeon nodded absently, her eyes rapidly moving.
"Have you told your parents? Your family will need to
get tested as soon as possible. If you have it, then
one of them is the carrier."
"Not yet, but I will." Kerry cleared her throat
awkwardly. "I should get back."
"Of course." Elizabeth stood up, waiting for her.
"They have you on blood thinners?"
"And Beta Blockers." Kerry closed the door to her
office, and headed over to the elevators.
"If you need anything..."
Kerry hurried into the elevator. "I'll keep you in
mind."
As the doors closed, she slumped against the wall.
Chapter: Two/?
Rating: R
Pairings: KW/KL, Kerry Weaver, Elizabeth Corday
Genre: Drama
Spoilers: Up to and including season eight
Timeline: After Four Corners
Beta Reader: Scotty Welles
Summary: What if during Witch Hunt, and the following
Episodes it wasn't fear that kept Kerry from helping
Kim. What if there was something else going on with
her. What if Kim had no idea about what that
something was.
Disclaimer: Not mine. All characters belong to Warner
Bros and
Michael Crichton.
The cold wind wrapped around her, as she fingered the
pager. Three residents killed a young man. Two of
her most promising residents had missed a diagnosis
that a second year med student could make. A
diagnosis that she might have needed them to make for
her.
The doctors had failed that young man. Because of one
mistake, he would never get married. He would never
have children. He would never have grandchildren, or
experience his honeymoon. All because they had failed
him. All because doctors were as fallible as the next
guy.
And her. She'd lost her pager. Left it in the stall
of the bathroom. Something that she never would've
done before. Maybe she should just use the rest of
her vacation days. With everything going on in her
life, she just couldn't seem to concentrate.
Now, she was also faced with finding out who her
mother was. That knowledge was finally in her hands,
all she had to do was look. She would finally have
all her questions answered. She would finally have
all the mysteries about her life solved.
"I thought your shift was over?"
Kerry shut her eyes, telling herself that it was her
imagination. There was no possible way that she could
be hearing that voice. "I've finally lost it."
"Not yet."
Her eyes glanced over to the presence beside her,
taking in the gorgeous blonde smiling at her. "I
thought you'd left."
"I needed time to think." Kim stared out at the city
below. "I was so busy looking for reasons not to be
with you, that I forgot about the reasons to stay."
"Lori?"
"You." Kim sighed sadly and handed her the second cup
of coffee. "I was scared of what we had, and when
you... I was looking for an excuse to break up with
you."
Kerry doubted that it was that simple. If what Kim
was saying was true then there's no way she would just
come back for Kerry. "What changed your mind?"
"I took a job at Kennedy Hospital."
She stepped back from Kim, her heart racing at the
single sentence. It told her so much, with so few
words. Kim knew, she'd found out somehow. Did she
feel sorry for Kerry? Is that why she'd come back?
"I see. So now what? You say that you want to take
me back? That you feel sorry for me? That you have
some..."
"No!!" Kim slammed her cup down on the ledge of the
roof, and grabbed her. "I love you. When I found
out, all I could think of was how short life is. How
much I regretted not being there for you. How much I
had lost by breaking up with you."
"That's it? I have a disease, and that makes
everything okay? We just pick up where we were, and
forget everything that's happened?" She felt the
tears streaming down her face as Kim gently kissed
her.
"No. We learn from what happened, and we use it to
make our relationship stronger."
Kerry nodded, moving into Kim's arms, taking comfort
in them that she'd denied herself over the last
months. The tears began to run more freely, soaking
the blonde's blouse. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I
should've told you. I should've been there for you.
I..."
"Shhh. It's okay. It'll be okay."
Kerry relaxed into the stronger woman, believing it
for the first time in months. As long as Kim was by
her side, she would believe just about anything was
possible.
"You're still the chief of the ER?"
Kerry nearly groaned at the non-threatening tone in
Kim's voice. The nonchalance the psychiatrist was
displaying while she joined her at the table for
dinner was absolutely masterful. "Not that much has
changed since you left."
Kim set her fork down to study her with those drilling
blue eyes. "You're not going to step down."
"There's no reason to." Kerry went back to her
dinner, shoveling a fork full of teriyaki chicken into
her mouth.
"You're not serious." Kim grabbed her chin and forced
Kerry to look at her. "Kerry, I may be a
psychiatrist, but I still know a bit about medicine,
and unless there's been some new breakthrough that I
haven't been told about..."
"There hasn't." Kerry sighed at the hurt in her
ex...her lover's eyes. "I know that I need to be
taking it easy, but this is who I am, and nothing can
change that."
"Kerry, you can't just ignore this." Kim grabbed her
hand, pleading desperately with her. "If you keep
this up you're going to kill yourself."
"I'm going to be careful. There's nothing to worry
about."
"Bullshit. The slightest blood based infection could
kill you. Then there's your heart, anything could
trigger a..."
"I know all that, and I'm taking precautions." Kerry
squeezed her hand. "Look, if I think for one second
that it's too much for me, or that it's putting me in
danger, then I'll step down. I promise."
Kim muttered under her breath angrily, giving her a
hard glare. "If I believe that you're doing too much,
swear to me that you will back down."
"I swear. Now, can we finish eating?"
"Sure." Kim poked at the food, her mouth turned into
a small frown. "Is that what's wrong with your hip?"
Kerry laid her fork down and sighed. "Yes."
"You look a little stressed."
"I'm fine."
Kim smirked over at her. "Oh, too bad. I know a fun
way to relieve stress."
Kerry blinked at her plate, then looked over at her
colleague to make sure she wasn't reading too much
into it. But the red tint at the top of Kim's ears
told her exactly what the tall blonde was talking
about. "On second thought, the doctor did say I was
supposed to stay relaxed."
"Race you...!"
"Kerry...?"
'Shit.' She continued around the corner, hoping
beyond hope that the surgeon would get distracted, or
hit by a bus. Just because she was in a better mood
over Kim's return to her life, she still wasn't able
to deal with Corday. At least not today.
"Kerry, there you are. I was looking all over for
you."
'And we all know why, too, but if you do kill me it
won't be justifiable. At least according to Kim it
isn't.' "This really isn't a good time..."
"We need to talk."
She was tempted to shoot Malucci just to have an
excuse to get away from her. "If this is about Mr.
Patterson..."
"I'm talking about you." Elizabeth moved right into
her face. "Now, we can either have this conversation
here or we can have it in your office. I would
recommend your office however, since I doubt you want
your business all over the hospital."
"Fine." She stormed down the hall towards the
elevators, her temper flaring. "MY business is the
key word."
"What was that?"
She glowered at Elizabeth. The glint in the surgeon's
eyes confirming that she'd heard exactly what she
said. "Nothing. Nothing at all."
The only good thing about this was that Elizabeth had
picked her territory to talk on, giving her a little
advantage over this. It wasn't that she didn't like
the surgeon, she did. She even admired the other
woman. Corday was everything she'd ever wanted
in...to be as a woman.
A deadly beauty, that would send most men, and a
number of women, to their knees. Sexy curves that
went on forever and never stopped. A mind as quick
and sharp as any top surgeon or doctor. And she'd
only gotten sexier since she gave birth. Her body
softer, filled out more, in a way only a new mother
could have.
"I can think of any number of diagnosis that would
cover the most obvious symptoms, and I have a feeling
I know what's wrong with you. But I'd like to hear it
from you."
Kerry propped herself up on the front of the desk,
staring at the pacing surgeon with disbelief. "Look,
I know you want to hurt me for the whole thing with
Mark, but..."
"Damn it, Kerry, I am not trying to destroy your
career. I am your colleague, and I respect you. I
would like the chance to give you some sort of
support."
"Marfans's. I have Marfans's."
Elizabeth sank into the chair numbly. "But it's rare
for someone with a deformed aorta to survive this
long."
"They said that if I had waited any longer, that I
would've died."
The surgeon nodded absently, her eyes rapidly moving.
"Have you told your parents? Your family will need to
get tested as soon as possible. If you have it, then
one of them is the carrier."
"Not yet, but I will." Kerry cleared her throat
awkwardly. "I should get back."
"Of course." Elizabeth stood up, waiting for her.
"They have you on blood thinners?"
"And Beta Blockers." Kerry closed the door to her
office, and headed over to the elevators.
"If you need anything..."
Kerry hurried into the elevator. "I'll keep you in
mind."
As the doors closed, she slumped against the wall.
