"Is it straight yet?" Doug muttered frustrated, holding the new sign, as the women below stood at the foot of the ladder, barking orders.
"More to the left." Elizabeth replied cocking her head to the side so her ear touched her shoulder.
"Yeah.. and up a little on the right-hand side." Abby giggled.
"Yeah.. and stand on one foot, on your tip toes. You'll get more height that way. Inch it up a little.. That's it, honey!" Carol smiled.
Doug sighed. "So it's good now?" He smiled, relieved.
"No.. A little more to the right.." She murmured thoughtfully.
"ARGH!!!!!" Doug poked at it as he balanced uneasily on the ladder.. His leg shaking and nervous sweat trickling down his calf before Doug's foot slipped and the whole ladder and paediatrician fell into the ditch.
******
"You smell like you were attacked at a Vaudeville show.." She murmured softly, wrinkling her nose.
"The orchard wasn't exactly the best place to take a nap, Chief." Dave grumbled.
"I'm not the one who looks like he was rolling in pig slop." Kerry smiled tiredly. "I managed to get there without falling in fruit. You do seem to fall down a lot.. Could it be an inner-ear thing?" She said thoughtfully.
"Chief.. Why.. Why were you crying like that?? You scared the shit out of me.. Did you have a nightmare or something?"
Kerry's face clouded and she sighed. "None of your business, Malucci."
"I'm gonna go take a shower.. Is that okay?? I can come back afterwards, if you want to talk." Dave asked worriedly.
"That'd be nice.. Go get yourself cleaned up Malucci, and thank you." She smiled slightly, snuggling down into the bed as Dave left, stripping off his t-shirt.
****
Dave walked down the hall, hopping on one foot as he pulled off his pant-leg, shedding them in the hallway like a snake shedding it's molt. As he pulled off his underpants Carter stormed up the stairs from behind.
"Shit! Carter!" Dave gasped in surprise as the resident brushed past and into the bedroom and slammed the door.
Around the time that Dave had started to recover from the fact that Carter had seen him naked, Carter burst from the bedroom looking confused. "Dave.. Did you know you are standing in the middle of the hall with no clothes on?"
Slowly, Dave glanced down at himself with an expression of feigned horror before running into the bathroom. "Oh my god! You're right! I *AM* naked!!"
Carter sighed before going back into the bedroom that both Dave and him had become accustomed to sharing.
Life had gotten pretty fucked up lately and there was nothing he could do but watch it and hope it didn't get any worse.
He lay back on the bed, his eyes closed as he listened to the noises around him, the muffled pounding of Doug finally nailing the sign in place, the wet hush of the shower going as Dave washed himself clean of the manure, dirt and apple sauce, of the sound of Carter's own breathing as he drifted off and fell asleep.
*****
"Hey... Chase.. What's that?" His cousin said laughing as he dragged the trunk from under the bed and opened it.
"Leave it alone you pecker-wood!" John's cousin growled half-heartedly. John was just a stupid kid.. He didn't know any better.
"What are you doing with, Auntie Evie's pills? She's crazy.. She needs those pills. Are you sick? You're not going to get sick like Bobby are you?" John blubbered, his brown eyes filling with tears.
"What?! No... But they do make me feel better. Go play with your sister and leave me alone will you?" Chase grumbled.
"But.. Gamma should know that you're sick! We should tell her!!" John pleaded.
"If you tell.." Chase thought for a minute. "If you tell, I'll tell your Mom that I caught you in the basement smoking her cigarettes."
"But.." Tears rolled down John's face and he turned away from Chase, staring sullenly out the window. "That's a lie.. I never did that!"
Chase sighed and stared out the window with his cousin watching Barbara roll on the grass with the new puppy. "Some day Johnny.. Some day you'll be in as much pain as I'm in. Then you'll understand. You'll understand why I need them. You'll understand why I have Evie's pills hidden under my bed. Don't tell anyone. I'd rather you forgot you ever found them, Johnny. Just forget about it. I'm fine really. You don't have to worry about me. You'll understand some day, Johnny." He watched John's expression carefully as he dumped a handful of the diazepam into his palm and swallowed them. "They make me feel better. You'll understand some day.."
*****
"Luka.. Come on.. We're home." Nikola whispered tiredly, pulling the man from the truck.
"This isn't my home. Or my uncle's... Where are we?" Luka said looking alarmed at the small bungalow.
"It's my home. Where Dashenka and I lived for many happy years. Her heart was weak. She died of an attack last spring. So this is where I live. Alone. Enough answers for all your questions, boy?" Nikola said gruffly as he banged into the house.
He collapsed into a chair and stared at Luka. "Your limp. You were shot??" Nikola asked bluntly.
"Yes.. After.. After my apartment building was bombed, I joined the forces as a doctor. My infantry was captured.. I escaped and was shot in the fields as I was running." Luka replied sadly.
Nikola nodded gravely. "Are you sure? I mean.. I heard that you stepped on a mine." There was a twinkle in his eye and Luka knew he was busted.
"I have had first hand experience with mines.. I have escaped with my life and limbs intact, I was also shot in the war.. But.. That's not why I have a limp.." Luka sighed as he started to recall the memories.
*********
Dave rubbed his hair dry with the towel as he walked out of the bathroom, making sure that another towel was wrapped securely covering his 'full monty python'. He crossed the hall knocking on the bedroom door where Carter lay snoring. "Carter!? Hey man.. I need to get changed Carter!"
The only thing that could be heard coming from the room was the buzzing of Carter's deep slumber. Dave jiggled the handle, and found it was locked.. From the inside.
"Aww.. For crying out loud!" Dave muttered under his breath, dripping wet and goosebumps forming on his flesh.
"Dave!!" Kerry hissed quietly from her doorway. "I think you could probably borrow something from Peter.. Come on.. I'll find you something to wear."
He smiled, grateful and walked into the room and Kerry pounced on him. "CHIEF!? What are y-" She kissed him hard on the mouth, and ripped the towel away with one hand and slamming the door with the other.
Dave stood in the room, his towel at his feet and his face reddened. "Uhh.. Chief.." He moaned in surprise. As she knocked him onto the bed. She pulled off her plaid shirt and jogging pants, and started to work on her bra-clasp, when the door opened.
"Hey.. Dr.We-HOLY CRAP!!!!"
****************
"Doug!!!! Are you okay!? Doug!?" Carol crawled onto her belly and peered into the deep trench on the side of the road.
"Dr.Ross??" Abby said fearfully as she scrambled down the embankment and soon was up to her ankles in water. A frog leapt out of the long grass and the nurse screamed at the top of her lungs. "HOLY CRAP!! A f-frog!!"
"You mind keeping it down a notch?? Sounds are sort of amplified in here." Doug said with a muffled echo.
Abby ran down the marshy ditch and found Doug laying amongst the reeds and cat-tails like Baby Moses. His legs protruding from the culvert like the Wicked Witch of the East's from under Dorothy's house.
"Are you okay Dr.Ross??" Abby peered into the corrugated metal tube that had been placed under the end of the lane way to let the water in the ditch flow freely.
"Well, not really Abby.. But thanks for asking." Doug grumbled. "Can you help me out please?"
Abby pouted and crossed her arms. "Not if you're going to be so mean."
"Please Abby? I'm sorry for yelling." Doug pleaded.
Carefully the surgeon and Head ER RN climbed into the ditch amidst groans and "ewwww"s. Before they made their way to the culvert and pulled away the ladder which had fallen on him. It was dark and wet as Doug could hear the voices reverberate in the drain.
****
"Douglas. I saw you on tv. On the news. You're a hero, son!" Ray Ross beamed.
"Ray.. I don't care if you saw me on Jerry Springer! You still have no right to call me son." Doug glared at him.
Ray turned away, tears in his eyes. "Doug.. I-I have tickets to the bulls game."
"Screw that. You can't do that anymore. You can't bribe me.. I'm not five years old anymore, Ray. You can't." Doug said angrily, his hands clenched. "I didn't save that fucking kid to get on your good side. It was dark. It was cold, and I was scared shitless. You know what Ray? I thought of Mom.. I thought of Carol. I thought of them, if something happened to me, and the kid and I didn't get out alive. I thought of them. But.. I never thought of you. Not once. You're not worth it."
Ray trembled slightly, it wasn't noticeable to Doug, but he kept his hands forced down into his pockets anyway. He smiled a little and changed the subject. "That Carol sure is a pretty thing. She was on the news at the hospital. I think she punched a cameraman, the screen went fuzzy after that." Ray murmured. "Come on, Doug.. Take the tickets."
"NO!!!" Doug snatched the tickets and ripped them in two.
"That was pretty stupid of you Doug." Ray said sadly. "What did you have to do that for?"
"Well. No.. What was stupid was climbing into that news chopper and letting you know I existed. What was stupid was coming here after you called and giving you another chance!!"
*****
"Doug?! Can you hear me Doug?!" Carol stuck her head in the culvert. "God.. He passed out.. He must have hit his head. Doug! Wake up honey.." She shook him. "Doug.. Come on.. Please Doug."
***
"The tickets don't mean anything to me Douglas.. I can get more. The only thing that means something to me is you." Ray said solemnly.
"I do, do I?" Doug laughed, a laugh bitter and full of hate. "If I mean so much to you, then why did it take a damn news story of me risking my ass in a storm drain for you, to phone me up?! Why didn't you bother to find me till now? I wasn't 'the hero'? I wasn't worth it before? I mean for fuck's sake Ray.. It's been DECADES."
"Please.. Stop calling me that.. I'm your father.." Ray said quietly, pleading.
"No... You're not my father. You were somebody who was married to my mother, briefly. That's all. You don't deserve the title of Father." Doug spat back at him angrily.
"Can I earn it back Doug? I want to.." Ray said hoarsely. The ticket
pieces cupped in his hands like a wounded bird.
*****