A New Daddy?
Mariana stared at the Detective. They've found someone to adopt them?
"Now, the decision is all up to you." Detective Morris said. "If you don't want to be adopted by the person we have right now, you don't have to. We'll keep on searching."
Mariana rolled her eyes. Why did they always have to drag things out? All she wanted to know was who's interested in becoming her parents.
She sighed and exclaimed, "Well, who is it?"
Detective Morris smiled and said, "How 'bout Dr. Kovac?"
Mariana and Alexandria both stared at the doctor in surprise.
~*~*~*~*~
They were staring at him. Luka was so nervous. Did they want to be his daughters? Would they say no on the spot? Would they think about it? Would they say yes right now? Who is that man sitting next to Mariana's bed and why is he here?
~*~*~*~*~
Mariana snapped out of her surprised gaze when she noticed Luka's gaze settle on Pastor Hart.
Mariana cleared her throat ignoring the pain it caused, "Uh, Dr. Kovac, this is Pastor Hart."
Luka smiled at the man, "Hi."
Pastor Hart smiled.
"Well, girls? We don't have all day? Would you like to have Luka as your father?" Detective Morris cut in.
Mariana looked at Alexandria. They didn't need twin telepathy to know what they were thinking. The look in their eyes told each everything. They looked at the Detective, ready to tell her their decision.
~*~*~*~*~
Luka had never realized how much nervousness made time slow. It seemed to take forever before Mariana and Alexandria looked over their way, even though the clock said that it only took ten seconds for them to decide.
Luka closed his eyes and then opened them. Looking at Alexandria and then Mariana he felt himself relax. Their eyes were shining happily.
"Yeah. We'd like having Dr. Kovac as our father." Alexandria said as Mariana smiled at Luka.
Detective Morris looked surprised. "Okay!" she said after she paused. "Then you'd better get used to calling him Luka or Dad because I think it would be awkward calling him Dr. Kovac all the time!"
Luka smiled at the girls.
"I'll go get the paperwork and let you all get aquainted." She said as she walked out of the room, shutting the door.
After she left there was an awkward silence. Pastor Hart broke it by saying, "So, you're adopting Mariana and Alexandria! Congratulations, they are great girls!"
Luka looked at the Pastor, embarrassed. "Thank you."
~*~*~*~*~
Luka had left the hospital. Two hours later he was trying to get to sleep.
His alarm went off. Groggily getting out of bed he wondered what time he had gotten to sleep. He was so tired!
He showered, got dressed, and left his apartment. On the way to the hospital he grabbed a cup of coffee at a coffee shop.
He walked in, receiving strange looks as he walked to the lounge. He hung up his coat, put on the lab jacket, and placed his stethoscope around his neck. Finishing his coffee, he threw the cup away as he walked out the door.
He strode over the admit desk and looked at the board. Abby walked up to him. "Are you missing your children, Luka?"
He looked at her, confused. "What?"
"Your children. Do you miss them?" Abby asked again.
"Of course I do. I always have." He said. It was strange that she was talking to him about them at work. He looked back at the board.
She sighed. "Let me put it this way, do you miss having kids?"
Luka looked at her, confused. Then it dawned on him. She was talking about him adopting Mariana and Alexandria. How did she know? He was about to reply but didn't have a chance.
"Luka! Dr. Romano and I would like to see you in his office." Kerry yelled as she walked past the admit desk over to the elevator.
Luka rolled his eyes and followed her. She didn't say anything at all. When they got to Romano's office they knocked on the door.
"Come in!"
Kerry opened the door and they walked in. Romano was standing behind his desk. He motioned to the two chairs in front of the desk and then sat down. Kerry and Luka sat down before him.
"Do you know why you're here, Dr. Kovac?" Romano asked him.
"Because of Mariana and Alexandria?" he inquired.
"Yes." Romano confirmed.
"How do you all know?" Luka asked.
"Luka, this hospital is a hotbed for gossip." Romano told him. "Were you really surprised when we found out?"
Luka shook his head, "No."
Romano sighed. "Luka, we're okay with you adopting the twins. They need a good home, and you don't adopt every troubled child that comes through. You never shown an interest before, and it'll be hard to get them an adoptive parent."
"But…" Luka prodded him to go on after he stopped talking for a minute.
"But. We need to know something."
Another silence.
"What?"
"Are you doing this because you want a children again?" Romano asked him. "Are you doing it because Detective Morris threatened to put a restraining order on you?"
Luka rubbed his eyes wearily. "I've always wanted children again, ever since my children died. I love being a father, and watching kids grow. I love being with them when they're happy, and comforting them when they're sad.
"But, adopting your children isn't the same as creating them. Especially when the children you're adopting are sixteen. They knew their mother, and their father. And they'll always remember the parents who gave them life. That's why I've never been interested in adopting any.
"But Mariana and Alexandria are different. I've been so interested in their case, thinking about them nonstop since Mariana was rushed in. I was so determined to help make them happy, because I know what's it like when you're not. I never realized that I wanted to adopt them, until Detective Morris threatened me with the restraining order. It was then that I realized how much I love those girls, and how much I'd miss not being able to see them."
Weaver and Romano listened patiently. "Okay. That's all." Romano said. "You may go."
~*~*~*~*~
That was so strange, Luka thought as he rode the elevator back down the ER. Kerry had stayed up to talk to Romano about a surgical case that had just come in a while ago.
He got off the elevator and walked back into ER, gazes turning once he stepped into the hall.
Soon, Abby was by him. "What did they want?"
"What do you think?" he asked. "They wanted to know the exact same things all you wanted know."
"Which is?" Abby tried to get some answers without him actually asking.
"No to both questions! I want to do this!" he yelled out so that others would hear.
"Gunshot wound to the abdomen! ETA 2 minutes!" Randi shouted out. Luka ran forward to meet the ambulance outside, and get away from all the stares.
~*~*~*~*~
After his shift was over, Luka ran up to Mariana's room. His daughters room. He had signed the papers the night before, now all they needed was for the courts to clear them.
He knocked on the door and walked in. Mariana and Alexandria looked up and smiled. He was glad to see that Ana was breathing on her own. Detective Morris was sitting with them.
"Hi! Luka!" Detective Morris said standing up and holding out her hand. "Now there's a place for the girls to go to, we need to go take their stuff from the apartment. And I think it would be good for healing if both girls go along. Can we get Mariana a pass to leave the hospital?"
Luka shook the Detective's hand. "Yes, we can do that. I can go with."
"That's a good idea."
Alexandria looked at them relieved. "Can we go tonight? I haven't been able to change since Mariana came in!"
Detective Morris looked at Luka. "If we can get a pass for tonight we can."
Luka looked at the door. "I'll go out and talk to them now."
~*~*~*~*~
After ten minutes of negotiating and telling the ICU doctor that if he didn't let Ana go, they'd get the police to let her go, he finally got a four-hour pass. Alexandria would be able to go back to school the next day.
They bundled Mariana up in Luka's leather jacket; she had only a hospital gown to wear.
They walked to police car, Luka carrying Mariana. They didn't want to strain her in any way. Once they were all settled in the car, the heat blasting through the radiators, Detective Morris grabbed her cell phone and called the apartment. There was no answer.
She called Officer Inglebrit; told her what they were doing and that she should meet them there.
~*~*~*~*~
Once they were settled outside of the apartment and Officer Inglebrit was standing outside of their car, Detective Morris called once more.
When no one answered they walked in. Everyone followed Alexandria up the stairs.
"Do you think that the blood is cleaned up?" Alexandria asked.
"I'm not sure. Only if your neighbors did it?" Officer Inglebrit responded, pulling her gun out for safety.
Mariana let out a short laugh, but no one had time to ask her what she meant by it. The door to their neighbors opened.
She smiled when she saw them walking through the hall. "I thought I heard Alexandria's voice!" she saw Mariana in the doctors arms and her smile grew wider. "Mariana! I'm so glad to see you! We thought it might be something serious! I'm so glad to see you're okay!"
Alexandria smiled and walked past. "Hi, Mrs. Wilson." She pulled out her keys and opened the door.
"I hope you don't mind, a bunch of us got the spare set of keys from the landlord and we went in there to clean up." Mrs. Wilson told them and then added, "And call me Anita."
"Thanks." Alexandria smiled as they walked into the kitchen. Blood was still staining the floor.
Mariana winced and put her face in Luka's shoulder. Luka moved one hand up to stroke her hair gently.
Detective Morris looked at Anita. "Uh, Anita, I thought you cleaned up the blood."
"Oh, well, we weren't exactly sure if they'd want us too, so we left half of it on the floor just in case." Anita said.
Luka rolled his eyes behind the woman's head and then said, "Well, I don't think Mariana wants to see it, so I'm gonna go put her on that couch."
Anita turned around and sighed sadly when she saw Mariana's head resting on Luka's shoulder. "Oh dear, the poor girl! Did it hurt when he stabbed you?"
Mariana laughed shortly again as Luka walked over to the couch in the living room.
He gently placed her on it, and, grabbing the afghan folded it up and placed it under her head.
Anita didn't notice that Mariana didn't answer. She ran out of the door and yelled into her apartment, "Bud! Alexandria and Mariana are in their apartment right now!"
Then she ran down the hall screaming, "Alexandria and Mariana are in their apartment! They're back!"
Soon, there was a line outside of the apartment of people wanting to get in. Officer Inglebrit, who was guarding the door yelled, "I'm sorry, but you can't come in here!"
"Why not?" the neighbors yelled out, angry.
"Because one of you might be Jack Watkins, and we're trying to keep him away from Mariana!" she yelled back, almost adding Alexandria but realizing that they had sent her to him once already.
"None of us are Jack!" one yelled.
"We want to welcome our neighbors back!" another yelled.
Detective Morris came to the door and shouted, "I need to get through and get some boxes from my car!"
The line parted so that there was a path for her to walk through. Once she was gone, the path disappeared.
"Boxes? Why do you need boxes?" one of the neighbors asked.
"The girls have been adopted by someone who will take them well. We're moving them out." Officer Inglebrit replied.
"Adopted?" a teenage girl, asked. "Were they adopted by that cute man sitting on the couch with Mariana?"
"I'm not able to divulge anymore information. You all need to leave. We can't perform our duties!" Officer Inglebrit called out when she saw Detective Morris behind the pack of people.
"Well, one quick question!" one of the neighbors said.
Officer Inglebrit rolled her eyes, annoyed. "What?"
"Well, none of us have ever been stabbed before, and we were just wonderin' if it hurts."
"Have you ever cut yourself while you were cutting something to eat?"
"Yep!" they all replied.
"It hurts worse than that. Now go!" she yelled back.
Grumbling the group dispersed and Detective Morris got through.
~*~*~*~*~
Five hours later, Luka looked into the room one last nighttime for the night and then shut the door.
"Goodnight Dr. Kovac." The night nurse said as he waited for the elevator.
"Goodnight."
They had gotten all the twins things moved from their old apartment to Luka's apartment. Alexandria had a pair of clothes and her backpack. Luka would pick her up earlier the next morning to take her to school.
After the papers had cleared, Alexandria could stay at Luka's. Even though she wanted to stay with her sister, she was glad that soon she'd be getting to sleep in a bed instead of on the creaky cot with little padding.
The twin's furniture would be moved the next day.
After he got home, he poured himself a glass of water. Sitting at the cupboard he opened the newspaper from the day Mariana had been rushed in. He hadn't looked at any since then.
After going through that newspaper, he looked into the one of the day after she had been stabbed. News of her stabbing was in the paper. He read, interested. She was well respected, along with Alexandria, in her school.
Today's, Monday's had news of the papers being signed, and the girls being adopted.
The phone rang and Luka picked it up.
"Hello?"
"Hi, is this Luka?" a voice came through. He knew right away whose it was.
"Yeah. How are you Detective Morris?"
"Good. I just got a call from the county courts."
"Did the papers clear?" he asked her.
Mariana stared at the Detective. They've found someone to adopt them?
"Now, the decision is all up to you." Detective Morris said. "If you don't want to be adopted by the person we have right now, you don't have to. We'll keep on searching."
Mariana rolled her eyes. Why did they always have to drag things out? All she wanted to know was who's interested in becoming her parents.
She sighed and exclaimed, "Well, who is it?"
Detective Morris smiled and said, "How 'bout Dr. Kovac?"
Mariana and Alexandria both stared at the doctor in surprise.
~*~*~*~*~
They were staring at him. Luka was so nervous. Did they want to be his daughters? Would they say no on the spot? Would they think about it? Would they say yes right now? Who is that man sitting next to Mariana's bed and why is he here?
~*~*~*~*~
Mariana snapped out of her surprised gaze when she noticed Luka's gaze settle on Pastor Hart.
Mariana cleared her throat ignoring the pain it caused, "Uh, Dr. Kovac, this is Pastor Hart."
Luka smiled at the man, "Hi."
Pastor Hart smiled.
"Well, girls? We don't have all day? Would you like to have Luka as your father?" Detective Morris cut in.
Mariana looked at Alexandria. They didn't need twin telepathy to know what they were thinking. The look in their eyes told each everything. They looked at the Detective, ready to tell her their decision.
~*~*~*~*~
Luka had never realized how much nervousness made time slow. It seemed to take forever before Mariana and Alexandria looked over their way, even though the clock said that it only took ten seconds for them to decide.
Luka closed his eyes and then opened them. Looking at Alexandria and then Mariana he felt himself relax. Their eyes were shining happily.
"Yeah. We'd like having Dr. Kovac as our father." Alexandria said as Mariana smiled at Luka.
Detective Morris looked surprised. "Okay!" she said after she paused. "Then you'd better get used to calling him Luka or Dad because I think it would be awkward calling him Dr. Kovac all the time!"
Luka smiled at the girls.
"I'll go get the paperwork and let you all get aquainted." She said as she walked out of the room, shutting the door.
After she left there was an awkward silence. Pastor Hart broke it by saying, "So, you're adopting Mariana and Alexandria! Congratulations, they are great girls!"
Luka looked at the Pastor, embarrassed. "Thank you."
~*~*~*~*~
Luka had left the hospital. Two hours later he was trying to get to sleep.
His alarm went off. Groggily getting out of bed he wondered what time he had gotten to sleep. He was so tired!
He showered, got dressed, and left his apartment. On the way to the hospital he grabbed a cup of coffee at a coffee shop.
He walked in, receiving strange looks as he walked to the lounge. He hung up his coat, put on the lab jacket, and placed his stethoscope around his neck. Finishing his coffee, he threw the cup away as he walked out the door.
He strode over the admit desk and looked at the board. Abby walked up to him. "Are you missing your children, Luka?"
He looked at her, confused. "What?"
"Your children. Do you miss them?" Abby asked again.
"Of course I do. I always have." He said. It was strange that she was talking to him about them at work. He looked back at the board.
She sighed. "Let me put it this way, do you miss having kids?"
Luka looked at her, confused. Then it dawned on him. She was talking about him adopting Mariana and Alexandria. How did she know? He was about to reply but didn't have a chance.
"Luka! Dr. Romano and I would like to see you in his office." Kerry yelled as she walked past the admit desk over to the elevator.
Luka rolled his eyes and followed her. She didn't say anything at all. When they got to Romano's office they knocked on the door.
"Come in!"
Kerry opened the door and they walked in. Romano was standing behind his desk. He motioned to the two chairs in front of the desk and then sat down. Kerry and Luka sat down before him.
"Do you know why you're here, Dr. Kovac?" Romano asked him.
"Because of Mariana and Alexandria?" he inquired.
"Yes." Romano confirmed.
"How do you all know?" Luka asked.
"Luka, this hospital is a hotbed for gossip." Romano told him. "Were you really surprised when we found out?"
Luka shook his head, "No."
Romano sighed. "Luka, we're okay with you adopting the twins. They need a good home, and you don't adopt every troubled child that comes through. You never shown an interest before, and it'll be hard to get them an adoptive parent."
"But…" Luka prodded him to go on after he stopped talking for a minute.
"But. We need to know something."
Another silence.
"What?"
"Are you doing this because you want a children again?" Romano asked him. "Are you doing it because Detective Morris threatened to put a restraining order on you?"
Luka rubbed his eyes wearily. "I've always wanted children again, ever since my children died. I love being a father, and watching kids grow. I love being with them when they're happy, and comforting them when they're sad.
"But, adopting your children isn't the same as creating them. Especially when the children you're adopting are sixteen. They knew their mother, and their father. And they'll always remember the parents who gave them life. That's why I've never been interested in adopting any.
"But Mariana and Alexandria are different. I've been so interested in their case, thinking about them nonstop since Mariana was rushed in. I was so determined to help make them happy, because I know what's it like when you're not. I never realized that I wanted to adopt them, until Detective Morris threatened me with the restraining order. It was then that I realized how much I love those girls, and how much I'd miss not being able to see them."
Weaver and Romano listened patiently. "Okay. That's all." Romano said. "You may go."
~*~*~*~*~
That was so strange, Luka thought as he rode the elevator back down the ER. Kerry had stayed up to talk to Romano about a surgical case that had just come in a while ago.
He got off the elevator and walked back into ER, gazes turning once he stepped into the hall.
Soon, Abby was by him. "What did they want?"
"What do you think?" he asked. "They wanted to know the exact same things all you wanted know."
"Which is?" Abby tried to get some answers without him actually asking.
"No to both questions! I want to do this!" he yelled out so that others would hear.
"Gunshot wound to the abdomen! ETA 2 minutes!" Randi shouted out. Luka ran forward to meet the ambulance outside, and get away from all the stares.
~*~*~*~*~
After his shift was over, Luka ran up to Mariana's room. His daughters room. He had signed the papers the night before, now all they needed was for the courts to clear them.
He knocked on the door and walked in. Mariana and Alexandria looked up and smiled. He was glad to see that Ana was breathing on her own. Detective Morris was sitting with them.
"Hi! Luka!" Detective Morris said standing up and holding out her hand. "Now there's a place for the girls to go to, we need to go take their stuff from the apartment. And I think it would be good for healing if both girls go along. Can we get Mariana a pass to leave the hospital?"
Luka shook the Detective's hand. "Yes, we can do that. I can go with."
"That's a good idea."
Alexandria looked at them relieved. "Can we go tonight? I haven't been able to change since Mariana came in!"
Detective Morris looked at Luka. "If we can get a pass for tonight we can."
Luka looked at the door. "I'll go out and talk to them now."
~*~*~*~*~
After ten minutes of negotiating and telling the ICU doctor that if he didn't let Ana go, they'd get the police to let her go, he finally got a four-hour pass. Alexandria would be able to go back to school the next day.
They bundled Mariana up in Luka's leather jacket; she had only a hospital gown to wear.
They walked to police car, Luka carrying Mariana. They didn't want to strain her in any way. Once they were all settled in the car, the heat blasting through the radiators, Detective Morris grabbed her cell phone and called the apartment. There was no answer.
She called Officer Inglebrit; told her what they were doing and that she should meet them there.
~*~*~*~*~
Once they were settled outside of the apartment and Officer Inglebrit was standing outside of their car, Detective Morris called once more.
When no one answered they walked in. Everyone followed Alexandria up the stairs.
"Do you think that the blood is cleaned up?" Alexandria asked.
"I'm not sure. Only if your neighbors did it?" Officer Inglebrit responded, pulling her gun out for safety.
Mariana let out a short laugh, but no one had time to ask her what she meant by it. The door to their neighbors opened.
She smiled when she saw them walking through the hall. "I thought I heard Alexandria's voice!" she saw Mariana in the doctors arms and her smile grew wider. "Mariana! I'm so glad to see you! We thought it might be something serious! I'm so glad to see you're okay!"
Alexandria smiled and walked past. "Hi, Mrs. Wilson." She pulled out her keys and opened the door.
"I hope you don't mind, a bunch of us got the spare set of keys from the landlord and we went in there to clean up." Mrs. Wilson told them and then added, "And call me Anita."
"Thanks." Alexandria smiled as they walked into the kitchen. Blood was still staining the floor.
Mariana winced and put her face in Luka's shoulder. Luka moved one hand up to stroke her hair gently.
Detective Morris looked at Anita. "Uh, Anita, I thought you cleaned up the blood."
"Oh, well, we weren't exactly sure if they'd want us too, so we left half of it on the floor just in case." Anita said.
Luka rolled his eyes behind the woman's head and then said, "Well, I don't think Mariana wants to see it, so I'm gonna go put her on that couch."
Anita turned around and sighed sadly when she saw Mariana's head resting on Luka's shoulder. "Oh dear, the poor girl! Did it hurt when he stabbed you?"
Mariana laughed shortly again as Luka walked over to the couch in the living room.
He gently placed her on it, and, grabbing the afghan folded it up and placed it under her head.
Anita didn't notice that Mariana didn't answer. She ran out of the door and yelled into her apartment, "Bud! Alexandria and Mariana are in their apartment right now!"
Then she ran down the hall screaming, "Alexandria and Mariana are in their apartment! They're back!"
Soon, there was a line outside of the apartment of people wanting to get in. Officer Inglebrit, who was guarding the door yelled, "I'm sorry, but you can't come in here!"
"Why not?" the neighbors yelled out, angry.
"Because one of you might be Jack Watkins, and we're trying to keep him away from Mariana!" she yelled back, almost adding Alexandria but realizing that they had sent her to him once already.
"None of us are Jack!" one yelled.
"We want to welcome our neighbors back!" another yelled.
Detective Morris came to the door and shouted, "I need to get through and get some boxes from my car!"
The line parted so that there was a path for her to walk through. Once she was gone, the path disappeared.
"Boxes? Why do you need boxes?" one of the neighbors asked.
"The girls have been adopted by someone who will take them well. We're moving them out." Officer Inglebrit replied.
"Adopted?" a teenage girl, asked. "Were they adopted by that cute man sitting on the couch with Mariana?"
"I'm not able to divulge anymore information. You all need to leave. We can't perform our duties!" Officer Inglebrit called out when she saw Detective Morris behind the pack of people.
"Well, one quick question!" one of the neighbors said.
Officer Inglebrit rolled her eyes, annoyed. "What?"
"Well, none of us have ever been stabbed before, and we were just wonderin' if it hurts."
"Have you ever cut yourself while you were cutting something to eat?"
"Yep!" they all replied.
"It hurts worse than that. Now go!" she yelled back.
Grumbling the group dispersed and Detective Morris got through.
~*~*~*~*~
Five hours later, Luka looked into the room one last nighttime for the night and then shut the door.
"Goodnight Dr. Kovac." The night nurse said as he waited for the elevator.
"Goodnight."
They had gotten all the twins things moved from their old apartment to Luka's apartment. Alexandria had a pair of clothes and her backpack. Luka would pick her up earlier the next morning to take her to school.
After the papers had cleared, Alexandria could stay at Luka's. Even though she wanted to stay with her sister, she was glad that soon she'd be getting to sleep in a bed instead of on the creaky cot with little padding.
The twin's furniture would be moved the next day.
After he got home, he poured himself a glass of water. Sitting at the cupboard he opened the newspaper from the day Mariana had been rushed in. He hadn't looked at any since then.
After going through that newspaper, he looked into the one of the day after she had been stabbed. News of her stabbing was in the paper. He read, interested. She was well respected, along with Alexandria, in her school.
Today's, Monday's had news of the papers being signed, and the girls being adopted.
The phone rang and Luka picked it up.
"Hello?"
"Hi, is this Luka?" a voice came through. He knew right away whose it was.
"Yeah. How are you Detective Morris?"
"Good. I just got a call from the county courts."
"Did the papers clear?" he asked her.
