Chapter Two

Her eyes snapped open, registering how light it was. Oh, my God, she thought. She'd fallen asleep in Luka's bed. She glanced at the clock on the table beside his bed. 8:00 a.m. She'd slept through the night. In Luka's bed.

She threw back the covers and jumped up, then realized what had awoken her. Someone was in the apartment.

Her heart in her throat, she crept to the bedroom door. A low male voice murmured something, but she couldn't make out the words. She heard a soft clicking sound, and then the voice was louder.

"See you tomorrow, fellas." The door closed moment later.

The fish, she realized with a sigh of relief. The man had been a neighbor, come to feed the fish. He hadn't known she was here.

Not wanting to press her luck any further, she straightened his bed spread and grabbed her jacket. She let herself quietly out of the apartment and walked away from the building.

Back in her apartment, she cursed herself as she showered. She couldn't believe she'd gone to Luka's apartment in the first place, let alone fallen asleep on his bed. Stupid. They weren't together anymore, even if a part of her wanted to be.

It was Cheerios and Pepsi for breakfast, then she left her apartment and headed for the El station. Carter's two weeks were up, she realized. She wondered if he was back yet, if she would see him at the hospital. She wondered if she cared.

She got to the hospital and stowed her jacket in the lounge. The weather was cold and rainy, like her mood.

Pratt was at admit when she left the lounge, flirting with Chen. Frank was on the phone, grousing to whoever was on the other end of the line.

"Morning Abby." Susan stopped at the desk and deposited a chart.

"Morning." She looked around. Patients were everywhere, the noise level high. "One of those days, huh?" she asked.

"I hate rainy nights," Susan said as she erased a name from the board. "Every idiot in the city sees to show up here when it rains. First there was the guy who thought he had worms in his legs and tried to dig them out with a butcher knife. Then there was the guy who jumped into the river-to save a whale, he says-and almost drowned. And let's not forget the couple who decided to see if a golf ball would fit 'up there'."

Abby grimaced. "I'm afraid to ask."

"It fit. And he didn't sound too happy when we took it out."

"Ouch. I'm really sorry I missed that."

"Sure you are. At least I've only got an hour left."

The radio beeped an incoming call and Abby answered it. "Don't be so sure of that hour thing," she told Susan a moment later. "Multiple MVA ten minutes out. Two criticals, seven minors. All headed our way."

Susan sighed. "All right. Prep Trauma 1 and page surgery. I'll go find Pratt and Chen."

"Who else is here?"

"Gallant's around somewhere, I think I saw Weaver earlier, but she's probably up in Romano's office. Oh, and Carter's due in about an hour. Have Frank page him early."

"Got it." So he was back, she thought. She wondered how he was doing. Would he want to see her? Or was he going to continue avoiding her like he'd done before he left?

She dropped the thoughts when the ambulances started rolling up. She got pulled in with Susan and Chen. Their victim was a twenty-five-year-old woman with an open leg fracture and facial lacerations from hitting her head on the car window.

"What's your name?" Susan asked.

"Lisa."

"Lisa, I'm Doctor Lewis. This is Doctor Chen. We're going to take care of you, okay? Now are you allergic to any medications?"

"No. Please, my leg, it's killing me."

"Give her ten of morphine and get ortho in here," Chen said.

"I need an operation?" Lisa asked, panicked.

"Don't worry," Abby told her. "You're going to be fine. But your leg is broken and it'll have to be fixed in the OR." She grabbed the phone and paged an orthopedic surgeon, then turned back as Susan gave her orders to another nurse.

"Let's get a full trauma panel, type and cross for four units, and full films on that leg now."

"I'll take her," Abby said. She took the chart and hung it from the side of the gurney. Once a nurse had drawn a vial of blood she said, "Okay, Lisa. We're going to get some x-rays now, then the surgeon is going to take a look at your leg. He'll get you fixed up in no time."

"Can you call my boyfriend for me? I was on my way to see him when this happened."

"Sure." Abby wheeled her into radiology and grabbed a blank notepad and pen. "Write down his name and phone number."

When the x-rays were done, she wheeled Lisa back to the trauma room, where the surgeon was waiting. She handed him the x-rays and told him what had happened. "I'll go call your boyfriend," she said to Lisa.

"You're leaving?"

"Don't worry. You're in good hands." She smiled as she left the trauma room. At the desk, she picked up the phone and dialed the number she'd been given. When a male voice answered, she said, "Is this Jeff?...This is Abby Lockhart at County General Hospital. Your girlfriend Lisa was in an accident..."

She glanced up as Carter walked in through the ambulance entrance. He met her eye, then turned away and entered the lounge. Abby shook her head, then remembered she was in the middle of a phone call. "...No, she's going to be fine, but she needs surgery on her leg...Just come to the front desk and we'll let you know where she is."

She hung up, then came around the desk and started toward the lounge.

"Abby! Can you start a line on the guy in Exam 4?" Susan called out from behind her.

She glanced at the lounge. "Sure."

For the next two hours she was busy with patients and didn't have much time to stop and think about Carter. Susan left at some point and Weaver took over. Abby helped with a final victim of the car accident, then a man who was stabbed by his wife.

She was changing dressings on a patient with minor burns when Carter poked his head in the room. "You have a minute?"

She met his eye and took a deep breath. "Okay."