Chapter Two - With A Little Help From My Friends.
Abby had approached the admin area in an unusual situation; she had nothing to do. The board was fairly clear, which as everyone knew was a bad sign. Kind of like the calm before a storm. She placed a chart on the rack and said to Susan, "Kind of like the calm before a storm."
Susan also had nothing to do. Well, she did have something to do but she thought that naked guy could wait a little longer. Anyway she was too busy trying to see if she could get a paper ball into the trashcan. "Yeah." She replied without looking up.
"What ya doing?" Asked Abby seeing what Susan was doing.
"Trashketball."
"Oh." Abby turned and surveyed the emergency room before adding breezily, "You might want to aim a bit lower."
"I know what I'm doing." Susan said before throwing the paper ball. It completely missed not only the trashcan but also the desk behind the trashcan. It landed at the floor of Chen who was treating a patient. She picked up the paper ball, looked over at Susan and called, "You might want to aim a bit lower."
"Yeah, thanks." Replied Susan.
"Told you." Said Abby.
"Yeah, thanks." Again replied Susan, but this time with something resembling sarcasm.
Nothing of them said anything for a minute or so. Finally Susan asked, "So are you going or not?"
Abby looked confused.
"To the charity thing." Susan added.
"Oh. I don't know. Carter doesn't want to but..." She paused.
"You do?"
"I suppose. I mean I'm not a big fan of the whole Carter family..." Abby tried to think of an appropriate word, "...thing. But it would be nice to go to formal, you know, as a couple."
"You want him to show you off to his family?"
"Well...yeah."
"That's understandable."
"Apparently not to him."
"Well, he is a man."
"That's true." Said Abby with a smile. "But we shouldn't use it against him."
Now Susan was also smiling, "No, we shouldn't."
They both paused and looked at each other but laughing.
"What are you two laughing?" Asked Chen who had finished with her patient and came to deposit a chart.
"Men." Replied Susan and Abby together.
"Oh. What have they done now?"
"Carter won't take me to a charity thing." Answered Abby.
"Why?" Asked Chen.
"He says it's not his thing." Replied Susan.
"That's a kind of conceited, isn't it?" Said Chen placing her chart on the rack.
"Oh!" Said Susan in excitement turning to face Abby. "You should play the shoe shopping card."
"Oh, that's a good one." Said Chen.
Abby didn't know what they were talking about, "I don't know what you're talking about." She said.
"The shoe-shopping card..." Susan paused as if this was explanation enough but as Abby continued to look confused she carried on. "You say that you will do what he wants this time if he will take you shoe shopping."
"Works every time." Added Chen.
Susan nodded.
"The shoe-shopping card..." Abby said to herself.
She was about to ask something when Carter approached.
"I think we need to talk." He said. He looked over Abby's shoulder at Susan and Chen who were busy trying to look busy before added, "Over there."
Abby followed Carter and threw the paper ball, she had been holding, over her shoulder as she went. It landed dead centre in the trashcan with a reassuring thud.
