Netherworld
AUTHOR: Emma Stuart CATEGORY: Drama/AU SPOILERS: First episodes of Season 10; the rest is all in my head. DISCLAIMER: I do not own ER, or any of the characters. This does not preclude me from playing with them, their psyches, their fates, and their futures.
SUMMARY: Abby finds something lost, and loses something found. Carter? Luka? Stay tuned.
ARCHIVE: Just ask.
Chapter 3. Lost and Found
"Shut it down and call this road a day And put this silence in my heart in a better place I have traveled with your ghost for so many years That I see you in the shadows In hotel rooms and headlights Coming up beside me Whether it's day or night
These days my life is an open book With pages I cannot seem to find These days your face In my memory Is in folded hand of grace against these times"
It was her fourth diner of the day, coming hot on the heels of five hotels and seven motels. I'm really seeing America from the point of view of a truck driver, Abby thought idly as she walked into the Forest Diner. The diner was a true piece of Americana, gleaming aluminum and glass with red leather booths and a long counter with swivel stools.
She scanned the booths first, then slowly glanced at the occupants of the stools at the counter-bingo. A man in a worn bomber jacket and a baseball cap was hunched over a menu at the end of the counter. Her heart thudding double time, she moved slowly to stand behind him, avoiding the curious gaze of the waitress behind the counter and praying that she was right.
"Eric," she said quietly. He swung around from the counter and gazed at her, then slowly smiled. He looked like a homeless person, she thought, one of the many people she had seen hovering on the edges of the bus and train stations on her dash west from Chicago. They were ragged and shabby, with empty eyes. But Eric's eyes weren't empty; he looked at her with a strange combination of defensiveness and calculation.
"Caught me, have you?" he asked as he swiveled to face her.
"And what should I do with you now that I've caught you?" she asked, crossing her arms on her chest.
He thought for a second, and replied, "Feed me and take me home with you?"
"That I will." She sat on the stool next to his and plucked a menu from his hands. "I'm guessing you want to be fed first," she remarked lightly, glancing at the day's specials.
"You guessed right." He paused before asking, "How did you find me? And what are you doing here-where's Carter?"
She lowered the menu to the counter. "I found you by following your tracks. You are cute and friendly, and people tend to remember you. Especially the girls."
"So I guess I shouldn't rob any banks, huh?" he responded wryly. "But why have you been following me?"
She sighed in exasperation. "Because I'm worried about you, you idiot. The last I saw you, you were promising me you'd stay in the rehabilitation program at County. Next thing I know, you've vanished. I wasn't about to hang around the phone for the next several months, waiting for you to show up again. No way, buddy boy. For better or worse, you're stuck with me until you can prove you're doing OK on your own."
He grimaced. "Ouch. Won't you just take my word for it that I'll take care of myself?"
"Nope." Abby broke off what she was going to say when the waitress approached them. "Hi, I'll have a piece of your key lime pie and a cup of coffee, black. What do you want, Eric?"
"Cheeseburger, fries, and a chocolate shake, please." He smiled winningly at the waitress. "And can I have a Coke, too, please?"
The waitress smiled warmly at him. "You sure can, honey," she chirped, and sauntered away with their order.
"Haven't lost the charm, have you?" Abby smiled.
"And you haven't told me how Carter is," Eric replied.
Abby let out a long breath. "I don't know how Carter is-we're not together anymore."
Eric played with the napkin holder. "He couldn't get over what happened at the funeral, huh," he asked quietly.
"It was more than that, Eric. The funeral just brought to a head what we both had known for several months-we are too different to make a go of it. There's a huge gulf between our experiences and expectation, and it's impossible to bridge that gulf. The funeral just pointed that out." She forced herself to continue, "Carter went to Africa to practice medicine, and I headed out after you. End of story."
"Is that why you're ordering coffee and pie?" he asked slyly. "Weren't you two the coffee and pie champions of Chicago?"
Abby stared at him stupidly. She hadn't realized what she had ordered, it just came out without thinking. "I've liked coffee and pie for a long time, Eric," she responded evenly. "Just like I was a nurse before he came along."
"I'm just saying, you may have more in common than you think." In an abrupt shift of conversation, he continued, "Hey, how is that foreign doctor that you're friends with?"
Abby ducked her head. "He's missing-and it's a long story. I'll tell you about it after we eat, and after you clean up."
He smiled. "Believe it or not, I am happy to see you, Abs."
She returned his smile. "Back at you."
*************
Abby looked at the clock next to the bed. It was 1:00 a.m. She knew she should be asleep, but her mind was clicking along from one thought to another. So much had happened that day. She had found Eric, and they had come to an understanding. After a long talk, he accepted the fact that she was going to stay with him and see him through his treatment.
They had formulated a plan-they would go to Seattle, where Abby knew of a rehabilitation program that focused on vigorous physical activity as well as drugs and counseling. The physical aspect appealed to Eric, as she knew it would. She could get a job at any number of hospitals in the greater Seattle area, and they would share an apartment. She promised him that once he was on his feet again, she would cut the strings and leave him to lead his own life.
But, for the time being, she needed to stay with him and make sure he followed through with the treatment. He understood; after all, Abby had to do for him what she had never quite been able to do for Maggie.
Maggie, she thought and remembered the phone conversation among the three of them. Her mother had been overjoyed to hear that Abby had found Eric; when they had called their mother earlier in the evening to tell her of their plans, it was all they could do to keep her from hopping on a bus and meeting them in Seattle. After much negotiation, Maggie agreed to come visit when both were settled in Seattle.
Seattle. Abby sighed. A rainy place, from the little she knew. Very beautiful, very different from Chicago and the mid-West that she knew and loved so well. What in the world would she do with herself in Seattle? "Guess I'll find out," she muttered sleepily, punching at her pillow and rolling onto her side.
She idly wondered what Susan was doing at home, then sharply thought of Luka again. She didn't want to call Susan every day to find out if she had heard anything, but not knowing was horrible. She tried to imagine Luka dead, but couldn't do it. Her life seemed too complete-she couldn't believe that he could be dead, and she wouldn't feel something-anything. She had never been an optimist, but he had to be all right.
She slipped from the bed quietly to kneel on the floor. This was getting to be a habit, she thought wryly. She must be scaring God, praying two nights in a row. "Thanks for letting me find Eric today. Help him to get better. And please let Luka come home soon. Keep him safe and well, and let me see him again. Thanks."
She remained on the floor for a second, head bent to her chest. Funny, she thought, Luka's the one I want to see, not Carter. Without even realizing it, she had let Carter go from her hopes and dreams. She felt a pang of loss, but not as horrible a pang as she had felt when she had heard about Luka's disappearance. She tried to puzzle it out, but was too tired and muzzy-headed.
Shrugging her shoulders and shivering, she climbed quickly back into bed. Tomorrow, they were off to Seattle, to the Emerald City, to see a wizard about a cure for Eric. And what would the wizard have in his little black bag for her? Who knew-maybe a heart, maybe a brain-but she intended to find out. Abby yawned, turned onto her stomach, and slept.
"No one's ever come between your memory and me I have driven this weary vessel here alone Will you still find me if I leave you here beside this road Cuz' I need someone who can touch me Who'll put no one above me Someone who need me Like the air he breathes.
I can't remember where this toll road goes Maybe it's Fort Worth or a heart of gold The price of love is such a heavy toll That I've lived my love in the backroads With your love in my pocket If I spend the love you gave me Tell me where will it go?"
The song is by Nanci Griffith from her marvelous album, "The Dust Bowl Symphony," which is full of songs that will break your heart. This chapter is a little slow, but I need to set up events to come. Is anybody out there reading? Please review and tell me what you think.
AUTHOR: Emma Stuart CATEGORY: Drama/AU SPOILERS: First episodes of Season 10; the rest is all in my head. DISCLAIMER: I do not own ER, or any of the characters. This does not preclude me from playing with them, their psyches, their fates, and their futures.
SUMMARY: Abby finds something lost, and loses something found. Carter? Luka? Stay tuned.
ARCHIVE: Just ask.
Chapter 3. Lost and Found
"Shut it down and call this road a day And put this silence in my heart in a better place I have traveled with your ghost for so many years That I see you in the shadows In hotel rooms and headlights Coming up beside me Whether it's day or night
These days my life is an open book With pages I cannot seem to find These days your face In my memory Is in folded hand of grace against these times"
It was her fourth diner of the day, coming hot on the heels of five hotels and seven motels. I'm really seeing America from the point of view of a truck driver, Abby thought idly as she walked into the Forest Diner. The diner was a true piece of Americana, gleaming aluminum and glass with red leather booths and a long counter with swivel stools.
She scanned the booths first, then slowly glanced at the occupants of the stools at the counter-bingo. A man in a worn bomber jacket and a baseball cap was hunched over a menu at the end of the counter. Her heart thudding double time, she moved slowly to stand behind him, avoiding the curious gaze of the waitress behind the counter and praying that she was right.
"Eric," she said quietly. He swung around from the counter and gazed at her, then slowly smiled. He looked like a homeless person, she thought, one of the many people she had seen hovering on the edges of the bus and train stations on her dash west from Chicago. They were ragged and shabby, with empty eyes. But Eric's eyes weren't empty; he looked at her with a strange combination of defensiveness and calculation.
"Caught me, have you?" he asked as he swiveled to face her.
"And what should I do with you now that I've caught you?" she asked, crossing her arms on her chest.
He thought for a second, and replied, "Feed me and take me home with you?"
"That I will." She sat on the stool next to his and plucked a menu from his hands. "I'm guessing you want to be fed first," she remarked lightly, glancing at the day's specials.
"You guessed right." He paused before asking, "How did you find me? And what are you doing here-where's Carter?"
She lowered the menu to the counter. "I found you by following your tracks. You are cute and friendly, and people tend to remember you. Especially the girls."
"So I guess I shouldn't rob any banks, huh?" he responded wryly. "But why have you been following me?"
She sighed in exasperation. "Because I'm worried about you, you idiot. The last I saw you, you were promising me you'd stay in the rehabilitation program at County. Next thing I know, you've vanished. I wasn't about to hang around the phone for the next several months, waiting for you to show up again. No way, buddy boy. For better or worse, you're stuck with me until you can prove you're doing OK on your own."
He grimaced. "Ouch. Won't you just take my word for it that I'll take care of myself?"
"Nope." Abby broke off what she was going to say when the waitress approached them. "Hi, I'll have a piece of your key lime pie and a cup of coffee, black. What do you want, Eric?"
"Cheeseburger, fries, and a chocolate shake, please." He smiled winningly at the waitress. "And can I have a Coke, too, please?"
The waitress smiled warmly at him. "You sure can, honey," she chirped, and sauntered away with their order.
"Haven't lost the charm, have you?" Abby smiled.
"And you haven't told me how Carter is," Eric replied.
Abby let out a long breath. "I don't know how Carter is-we're not together anymore."
Eric played with the napkin holder. "He couldn't get over what happened at the funeral, huh," he asked quietly.
"It was more than that, Eric. The funeral just brought to a head what we both had known for several months-we are too different to make a go of it. There's a huge gulf between our experiences and expectation, and it's impossible to bridge that gulf. The funeral just pointed that out." She forced herself to continue, "Carter went to Africa to practice medicine, and I headed out after you. End of story."
"Is that why you're ordering coffee and pie?" he asked slyly. "Weren't you two the coffee and pie champions of Chicago?"
Abby stared at him stupidly. She hadn't realized what she had ordered, it just came out without thinking. "I've liked coffee and pie for a long time, Eric," she responded evenly. "Just like I was a nurse before he came along."
"I'm just saying, you may have more in common than you think." In an abrupt shift of conversation, he continued, "Hey, how is that foreign doctor that you're friends with?"
Abby ducked her head. "He's missing-and it's a long story. I'll tell you about it after we eat, and after you clean up."
He smiled. "Believe it or not, I am happy to see you, Abs."
She returned his smile. "Back at you."
*************
Abby looked at the clock next to the bed. It was 1:00 a.m. She knew she should be asleep, but her mind was clicking along from one thought to another. So much had happened that day. She had found Eric, and they had come to an understanding. After a long talk, he accepted the fact that she was going to stay with him and see him through his treatment.
They had formulated a plan-they would go to Seattle, where Abby knew of a rehabilitation program that focused on vigorous physical activity as well as drugs and counseling. The physical aspect appealed to Eric, as she knew it would. She could get a job at any number of hospitals in the greater Seattle area, and they would share an apartment. She promised him that once he was on his feet again, she would cut the strings and leave him to lead his own life.
But, for the time being, she needed to stay with him and make sure he followed through with the treatment. He understood; after all, Abby had to do for him what she had never quite been able to do for Maggie.
Maggie, she thought and remembered the phone conversation among the three of them. Her mother had been overjoyed to hear that Abby had found Eric; when they had called their mother earlier in the evening to tell her of their plans, it was all they could do to keep her from hopping on a bus and meeting them in Seattle. After much negotiation, Maggie agreed to come visit when both were settled in Seattle.
Seattle. Abby sighed. A rainy place, from the little she knew. Very beautiful, very different from Chicago and the mid-West that she knew and loved so well. What in the world would she do with herself in Seattle? "Guess I'll find out," she muttered sleepily, punching at her pillow and rolling onto her side.
She idly wondered what Susan was doing at home, then sharply thought of Luka again. She didn't want to call Susan every day to find out if she had heard anything, but not knowing was horrible. She tried to imagine Luka dead, but couldn't do it. Her life seemed too complete-she couldn't believe that he could be dead, and she wouldn't feel something-anything. She had never been an optimist, but he had to be all right.
She slipped from the bed quietly to kneel on the floor. This was getting to be a habit, she thought wryly. She must be scaring God, praying two nights in a row. "Thanks for letting me find Eric today. Help him to get better. And please let Luka come home soon. Keep him safe and well, and let me see him again. Thanks."
She remained on the floor for a second, head bent to her chest. Funny, she thought, Luka's the one I want to see, not Carter. Without even realizing it, she had let Carter go from her hopes and dreams. She felt a pang of loss, but not as horrible a pang as she had felt when she had heard about Luka's disappearance. She tried to puzzle it out, but was too tired and muzzy-headed.
Shrugging her shoulders and shivering, she climbed quickly back into bed. Tomorrow, they were off to Seattle, to the Emerald City, to see a wizard about a cure for Eric. And what would the wizard have in his little black bag for her? Who knew-maybe a heart, maybe a brain-but she intended to find out. Abby yawned, turned onto her stomach, and slept.
"No one's ever come between your memory and me I have driven this weary vessel here alone Will you still find me if I leave you here beside this road Cuz' I need someone who can touch me Who'll put no one above me Someone who need me Like the air he breathes.
I can't remember where this toll road goes Maybe it's Fort Worth or a heart of gold The price of love is such a heavy toll That I've lived my love in the backroads With your love in my pocket If I spend the love you gave me Tell me where will it go?"
The song is by Nanci Griffith from her marvelous album, "The Dust Bowl Symphony," which is full of songs that will break your heart. This chapter is a little slow, but I need to set up events to come. Is anybody out there reading? Please review and tell me what you think.