Title: Medical Wonders: Chatter
Author: Jen Zoromski
All other information is in the first chapter.
Author's Note: Here's a nice long chapter for ya since I gave you guys a small one yesterday. Thanks so much for all of the great comments because it really does help. Well…keep on reading and reviewing. Hope you enjoy!
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July 1, 2003
County General Hospital
10:19 a.m.
The ER is buzzing with activity. Nothing too major has rolled through the doors as Robert Romano walks around with a smug look on his face, he's only been here an hour and he's already pissed off three of the nurses and Dr. Carter.
Romano strolls up the board looking at it with disgust.
"Dr. Lewis why isn't this board cleared yet?"
"This is a working ER it will never be completely cleared."
"Some of these patients have been here since last night. Why aren't they gone yet?"
"Actually that patient," she gestures towards the chart he's holding in his hand, "Died."
"Well then why the hell is it in this pile?"
"I have no idea."
"We need a new filing system. Jerry!" Romano calls after the large man at the admit desk.
"Dr. Romano glad to see you are your perky self today."
"Cut the crap Jerry, I need you to set up a new filing system."
"Does that include more money?"
"Do it or you're fired."
Jerry rolls his eyes and takes the chart out of Romano's hand and heads towards the other ones grumbling at the thought of adding one more duty to the already hectic job of keeping the ER somewhat organized.
Romano walks away from the admit desk.
"He seems happier today," Susan responds, laughing.
"Happier?" Carter asks, "If this is happy I don't want to be around when he's angry."
"Isn't that everyday?" Chuny asks.
They all share a laugh and then it gets quiet as more and more of the staff starts to congregate around the admit desk. Things have started to slow down, although that usually lasts for a few brief moments.
Romano breezes by them again, this time in an obvious hurry.
"Shit, I'm late!" he says as he heads towards the elevators.
"Isn't he supposed to be working?" Carter asks obviously annoyed with Romano.
"I heard that Carter. If you're not all working when I get back you're all fired," Robert yells over his shoulder right before he steps onto the elevator.
The doors shut and it seems as though the entire ER breathes a sigh of relief.
"Hey Jerry, where'd Romano head off to?" Susan asks.
"He said something about needing to go up to the fourth floor for an appointment."
"Why would he need to go up to the fourth floor -- the only thing up there is obstetrics. And Romano isn't a woman nor is he pregnant," Luka speculates.
Around the admit desk its turned into a full fledged gossip hour.
"Thank-god for that," Susan says, "Could you imagine him with as a woman."
"Oh, God, Susan, bad images," Carter replies playfully.
"Well why did he go up there?" Chuny asks, obviously very interested.
"Hey has anyone seen Dr. Corday lately?" Haleh inquires bringing in a whole new object to the gossip.
"She hasn't been down here much. They usually send Edson down for the consults," Susan responds already knowing where this was heading.
"She looks like she has put on some weight," Chuny adds.
"Could she be --? Nah," Luka counters.
"Hey you never know," Carter says and then walks away from the group with gaping mouths.
"Did he just confirm that?" Haleh asks.
"Wasn't he her doctor when she came in a few months ago passed out?" Chuny asks.
"I think he was," Jerry pipes up.
"So would that mean that Romano and Corday are together?" Luka wonders out loud.
"Something like that," Susan replies trying to walk away from the group.
"Susan, you know something."
"I know nothing. Well except that Jerry is going to be one rich guy," she says leaving them with that.
Luka turns to Jerry, "How much did you bet on Elizabeth and Romano getting together?"
"Enough. And it looks like I'm going to be getting the whole pot," Jerry replies smugly.
The rest of the staff is brought back to the real world when the ambulance doors fly open. A gurney rolls through the door with a blood spattered patient.
"What do we have?" Luka asks the EMT.
"Multiple car accident. We've got two more behind this one."
Meanwhile…Upstairs
"Elizabeth, how're you feeling today?" Dr. Koenig asks as she enters the beige room. Laying on the examining table is Elizabeth Corday with a hospital gown covering her expanding stomach.
She looks at the clock. He's late. Twenty minutes. Damn. Maybe he doesn't want this after all. Maybe its all been a hormonal induced dream where she thought that she could include Robert Romano in this.
"Elizabeth?" Dr. Koenig asks concerned.
"I'm feeling fine."
"You seem a little withdrawn."
"I'm fine."
"All right. Let's see you're eighteen and a half weeks along. How is this comparing to your pregnancy with Ella?"
"It's different."
"Different how?"
"Well for one thing this time around I'm running after a two year old and a forty something year old sarcastic surgeon," Elizabeth replies becoming somewhat angry at the fact that he's not here with her.
"Where is Dr. Romano?"
"That's something I'd like to know."
"Do you want to wait for him?"
Elizabeth glares at her. She's angry and her hormones are already flaring. Plans of how to torture Robert are already going through her mind.
"All right then. I'm going to do an ultrasound to make sure everything's looking okay. And if you want I can tell you the sex of the baby," Dr. Koenig replies as she grabs the gel and the roller. Elizabeth lays down on the table exposing her stomach.
The grainy image of the fetus pops up on the screen. A tiny heart is beating, the spine looks like a string of pearls against the black screen, there's a foot, a hand, and finally the child's head.
"Everything looks perfect," Dr. Koenig replies.
"God damn-it, why won't you let me in the office?" Robert's voice comes streaming through the door.
"Maybe Robert didn't want to sleep outside tonight," Elizabeth grumbles trying to remain angry, but a small smile graces her lips.
A young nurse replies, "You can't go in there."
"I'm going in there," Robert replies.
"I'm sorry--"
Just then Dr. Koenig opens the door with a huge grin on her face. Robert looks at her angry.
"Jill, let me in."
"How much is it worth to ya?" she inquires.
"Well I don't want to be sleeping in the garage tonight so its worth it," Robert tells her.
"On one condition."
"What's that?"
"That you calm down in this office. Just asking nicely would more than likely get you through the door."
"Is Lizzie angry?" Robert whispers.
"A little."
She lets him by and he walks over to Elizabeth who's still laying on the table. Elizabeth glares at him.
"Robert," she says cooly.
"Lizzie, I --"
"Dr. Romano, we just started the ultrasound. So you haven't missed much," Dr. Koenig tells him.
The room is silent. Neither Elizabeth nor Robert talk. He reaches out for her hand and much to his surprise she takes it smiling up at him slightly.
"Are you mad?" he whispers.
"The couch."
"What?"
"I'm not angry enough to kick you out of the house, but the couch might be calling your name when we get home."
"But, Lizzie, I don't like it when the couch calls my name," Robert whines like he's a two year old.
"I know," she says smugly.
"Do I get some company?"
"Maybe --" Elizabeth responds.
They both turn their attention back to the screen. The small fetus is moving its arms and legs furiously, waving to his or her parents.
"Do you two want to know the sex?"
"No--" "Yes--"
Robert turns to Elizabeth, confused.
"I thought you didn't want to know the sex."
"I didn't, but -- oh I don't know."
"Are you having a fight with yourself?" Robert asks laughing.
"No, I'm not. And I thought that it'd be easier if we knew the sex."
"Well I guess it doesn't matter to me then."
"So you want to know the sex?" Dr. Koenig asks.
"Yes--" "No--"
Dr. Koenig rolls her eyes.
"How about I'll give you a few minutes to talk about it."
Dr. Koenig leaves the room and the two of them still trying to figure out what they want. It seems that they are always figuring out what they want.
"Lizzie, are you be indecisive?"
"You are too," she counters.
"I was--" he stops.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"No, what were you going to say."
"Nothing."
"You know the garage might be calling your name tonight--"
"Well I was just going to say that I was trying to --"
"What?"
"I like the garage," he says grinning.
She slaps him playfully on the shoulder.
"Come on Robert I want to know what you were going to say."
"How about I buy you some ice cream and pizza after this?"
"Don't try and bribe me with food. I want to know what you were going to say," Elizabeth mulls it over and then grins, "I know what you were going to say."
"What?"
"Oh nothing --" she replies grinning.
"Lizzie do I hear an echo?" Robert snarks.
Dr. Koenig comes back into the room.
"Did you guys decide something?"
"We don't want to know the sex," Elizabeth tells her.
Robert shoots her a puzzled look.
"Lizzie, I thought that you wanted to know."
"I guess we can wait," Elizabeth replies.
Robert's pager goes off. He takes it off his waistband and looks at it with an annoyed look.
"It's the ER," he tells her.
"I guess you've got to go."
"Yeah," he replies disappointed. Robert leans in to kiss Elizabeth quickly before he heads out the door.
"Oh Robert," Elizabeth calls after him. He turns around waiting for her to talk, "I like Rocky Road ice cream and cheese pizza."
Robert rolls his eyes as she gives him a huge grin, one knowing that she'd won. There'll be Rocky Road and pizza waiting for her later and she knew it.
"Does this mean I'm not sleeping in the garage?"
"It depends," she counters.
"On what?"
"Oh you'll just have to wait and see."
He shoots her a big smile and then leaves heading down to the ER. As he walks towards the elevator the smile leaves his face as he realizes that he was going back down to the ER. Not as a surgeon consulting a trauma, but rather as the head of the hell hole down there. Robert grimaces at the thought as he punches the button to the ground floor. Going down.
As the doors open he is swallowed into the world of uncertainty. A patient could come crashing through the doors hanging on by a thread and it was the action of the doctors down here that determined whether that patient would live or die. Robert laughs at the thought. Who in the world would put that much trust in some of these morons? But then he realizes as much as he'd like to forget it -- he is now a part of their world. A part of the morons down in the ER. That's probably not the best attitude to have in his mind when heading towards the major traumas rolling through the door.
But then he thought back to this morning and being able to feel sensation in his left hand. Maybe there was a slim chance. A glimmer of hope where he'd be able to gain function in that hand. A glimmer is better than nothing -- isn't it?
He didn't have time to ponder as he was swept away in the action of the ER. In saving lives, making decisions in which a patient would either live or die and for the first time in a long time he did so with some enthusiasm. With hope.
TBC
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More to come! Please R&R
~Jen