Title: Adjustments
Author: Listabets
Rating: PG-13 and a bit of R for the most part
Category: Robert and Elizabeth romance
Disclaimer: I do not own Robert or Elizabeth. I'm just borrowing them for a little bit for my own amusement, and hopefully for the amusement of those reading this.
It has been ages since I have added to this story. I have had issues in my real life that needed resolving and then I found I had a huge case of writers block. I hope I am past it all now.
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Robert pushed himself away from the desk in his study and flexed his right hand. Glancing at the clock he realized that time had flown this evening, as he had been absorbed in the work he had brought home. Standing and stretching Robert felt pleased with the amount of progress he had made and at the same time discouraged by how much he had left to do. It was as if he had been transported back in time to his Residency: working a full load during his shifts and then studying in every spare moment.
"That was fine when I was young!" Robert laughed to himself as he headed to the kitchen for a cup of tea. As he gathered the items he needed for a "proper cuppa", as Elizabeth would describe it, he fought the desire to pick up the phone and call her. While they had certainly changed the nature of their relationship over the last several weeks Robert felt far from comfortable making her the last phone call of the day. Nothing in the previous encounters with her had made Robert clearer on the nature of the relationship. Despite the obvious attraction, demonstrated very clearly on several occasions, the last words they had spoken about feelings had been on his patio the day Elizabeth had stormed over to clear the air.
"The air doesn't feel very clear." Robert muttered to himself as he poured boiled water over the tea leaves in the pot. As he waited for the tea to steep Robert leaned against the counter and gazed unseeing into space. His feelings for Elizabeth had evolved into something he no longer recognized. He had thought himself to be in love with her for years, had even blurted out as much to her while loaded up with narcotics after his reamputation. Now that he was allowed this slight access into her life Robert was getting to know Elizabeth far better than he thought possible. Pushing himself away from the counter Robert finished making his tea and headed upstairs to his bedroom. His thoughts continued to tumble around in his head as crossed the foyer and headed up the stairs.
Elizabeth in his office intently reading his ER proposals quickly replaced by the memory of her seated on his desk offering her neck to his lips. The shocked Elizabeth as she withdrew from the touch of his hand in the lounge the past Halloween fading to the same woman holding his hand to her pulse point, forcing him to experience the physical manifestation of her conflicted emotions.
"I wasn't scared of your feelings for me, I was scared of my feelings for you! Pity? I don't know what I am feeling, but it is certainly not bloody pity!"
Robert could hear her voice as clearly as if she had been right beside him. He was becoming scared of his feelings for her as well and totally unable to read them anymore. There was certainly passion and he thought there was love but Elizabeth in the abstract was an easier proposition then Elizabeth in the reality. In the years he had fantasized about her it had really been about him. His feelings for her, his attraction for her, his desire for her-but he hadn't really known Elizabeth-just his image of her.
Robert suddenly realized that he was standing motionless in the upstairs hall overlooking the foyer griping a cold cup of tea with entirely too much force. Feeling a bit embarrassed Robert finally headed off to bed.
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Elizabeth was struggling to get through the day. She hadn't seen Robert at all, and it was just as well as she was in a hideous mood. The surgical schedule had gone to hell, again, due to a simple illness. Elizabeth was getting truly sick and tired of being forced to manage a surgical staff that was chronically overstretched and under funded. She rose from her desk and headed for her coffee machine, helping herself to at least the fifth cup of the day. Blowing on the steaming liquid Elizabeth slid back into her chair and began reviewing charts. The never-ending stream of paperwork generated by the requirements of HMO's, PPO's and every other insurance board made her long for the days when the only Bureaucracy she needed to deal with was the National Health Service.
"I must be losing it if I am longing for the NHS!" Elizabeth grumbled as she shuffled papers around her desk.
Pushing aside the stack of reports she was supposed to be reviewing she pulled out the proposal Robert had pulled together outlining his vision for the future of ER services at County. The concept was very well thought out, but that was not surprising considering the source. Robert had illustrated not only how he envisioned the ER changing, but also how to fund it sufficiently. That would be especially important to the Board, as funding was a constant issue for a hospital that was required by law, and location, to care for the indigent of Chicago. Elizabeth leafed through the document and found herself once again drawn to the Critical Care Fellowship post described in the report. She leaned back in her chair and propped her feet up on the desk. A post like this would allow her to continue her career as a surgeon and have the adrenaline rush that she loved in the ER. The daily grind of Chief of Surgery would be a distant memory. Elizabeth dropped her feet to the floor and began to gather her things for the weekend. The paperwork she had been avoiding this afternoon would have to get done this weekend she realized with a small groan.
"Well at least I'm not on call". She thought with relief. She was planning on spending the weekend relaxing. Elizabeth lifted the hefty bag over her shoulder and headed out of her office.
Approaching the nurses station Elizabeth looked around for Shirley so she could run quickly through the OR schedule for Monday morning. Spotting her hunched over the computer terminal, as snowed under with work as the rest of the department, Elizabeth dropped her bag and came around the counter.
"Can I interrupt you for a moment Shirley?" Elizabeth began as she sank onto a worn office chair.
"Of course, Dr. Corday." Shirley responded looking up from her work and giving Elizabeth a huge grin
Swiveling in her chair Elizabeth gestured toward the OR schedule wipe off board "Is everything arranged to cover routine procedures for Monday AM or do I need to juggle things before I get out of here for two glorious days off?" Elizabeth swung around in her chair back toward Shirley and was surprised to see that her grin had not diminished one bit.
"OK, what's going on? You look way to pleased with yourself." Elizabeth teased. "Do you have some exciting plans for the weekend?"
Shirley just laughed and shook her head "No, nothing very interesting. So how about you?" Shirley paused and as she once again broke into another huge smile she added "Getting together with Dr. Romano?"
Taken aback, Elizabeth avoided Shirley's eyes "Dr. Romano? UM...No..not that I'm aware of...um..." Elizabeth glanced up and found herself looking directly into the very amused face of her long time colleague. She couldn't stop herself from smiling back.
"Something on your mind, Shirley?" Elizabeth laughed as she rose and moved to retrieve her bag of paperwork
"A couple of things, Dr. Corday, but I can wait until you are ready to share." Shirley watched as Elizabeth rounded the counter and lifted the heavy bag to her shoulder. "The schedule is fine for Monday and I can handle any minor details between now and then. You have a good weekend!"
As Elizabeth stepped onto the elevator she glanced over her shoulder and could feel herself blushing as she acknowledged the nurses good wishes and underlying message.
Rating: PG-13 and a bit of R for the most part
Category: Robert and Elizabeth romance
Disclaimer: I do not own Robert or Elizabeth. I'm just borrowing them for a little bit for my own amusement, and hopefully for the amusement of those reading this.
It has been ages since I have added to this story. I have had issues in my real life that needed resolving and then I found I had a huge case of writers block. I hope I am past it all now.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------
Robert pushed himself away from the desk in his study and flexed his right hand. Glancing at the clock he realized that time had flown this evening, as he had been absorbed in the work he had brought home. Standing and stretching Robert felt pleased with the amount of progress he had made and at the same time discouraged by how much he had left to do. It was as if he had been transported back in time to his Residency: working a full load during his shifts and then studying in every spare moment.
"That was fine when I was young!" Robert laughed to himself as he headed to the kitchen for a cup of tea. As he gathered the items he needed for a "proper cuppa", as Elizabeth would describe it, he fought the desire to pick up the phone and call her. While they had certainly changed the nature of their relationship over the last several weeks Robert felt far from comfortable making her the last phone call of the day. Nothing in the previous encounters with her had made Robert clearer on the nature of the relationship. Despite the obvious attraction, demonstrated very clearly on several occasions, the last words they had spoken about feelings had been on his patio the day Elizabeth had stormed over to clear the air.
"The air doesn't feel very clear." Robert muttered to himself as he poured boiled water over the tea leaves in the pot. As he waited for the tea to steep Robert leaned against the counter and gazed unseeing into space. His feelings for Elizabeth had evolved into something he no longer recognized. He had thought himself to be in love with her for years, had even blurted out as much to her while loaded up with narcotics after his reamputation. Now that he was allowed this slight access into her life Robert was getting to know Elizabeth far better than he thought possible. Pushing himself away from the counter Robert finished making his tea and headed upstairs to his bedroom. His thoughts continued to tumble around in his head as crossed the foyer and headed up the stairs.
Elizabeth in his office intently reading his ER proposals quickly replaced by the memory of her seated on his desk offering her neck to his lips. The shocked Elizabeth as she withdrew from the touch of his hand in the lounge the past Halloween fading to the same woman holding his hand to her pulse point, forcing him to experience the physical manifestation of her conflicted emotions.
"I wasn't scared of your feelings for me, I was scared of my feelings for you! Pity? I don't know what I am feeling, but it is certainly not bloody pity!"
Robert could hear her voice as clearly as if she had been right beside him. He was becoming scared of his feelings for her as well and totally unable to read them anymore. There was certainly passion and he thought there was love but Elizabeth in the abstract was an easier proposition then Elizabeth in the reality. In the years he had fantasized about her it had really been about him. His feelings for her, his attraction for her, his desire for her-but he hadn't really known Elizabeth-just his image of her.
Robert suddenly realized that he was standing motionless in the upstairs hall overlooking the foyer griping a cold cup of tea with entirely too much force. Feeling a bit embarrassed Robert finally headed off to bed.
............................................................................ ..........................................................
Elizabeth was struggling to get through the day. She hadn't seen Robert at all, and it was just as well as she was in a hideous mood. The surgical schedule had gone to hell, again, due to a simple illness. Elizabeth was getting truly sick and tired of being forced to manage a surgical staff that was chronically overstretched and under funded. She rose from her desk and headed for her coffee machine, helping herself to at least the fifth cup of the day. Blowing on the steaming liquid Elizabeth slid back into her chair and began reviewing charts. The never-ending stream of paperwork generated by the requirements of HMO's, PPO's and every other insurance board made her long for the days when the only Bureaucracy she needed to deal with was the National Health Service.
"I must be losing it if I am longing for the NHS!" Elizabeth grumbled as she shuffled papers around her desk.
Pushing aside the stack of reports she was supposed to be reviewing she pulled out the proposal Robert had pulled together outlining his vision for the future of ER services at County. The concept was very well thought out, but that was not surprising considering the source. Robert had illustrated not only how he envisioned the ER changing, but also how to fund it sufficiently. That would be especially important to the Board, as funding was a constant issue for a hospital that was required by law, and location, to care for the indigent of Chicago. Elizabeth leafed through the document and found herself once again drawn to the Critical Care Fellowship post described in the report. She leaned back in her chair and propped her feet up on the desk. A post like this would allow her to continue her career as a surgeon and have the adrenaline rush that she loved in the ER. The daily grind of Chief of Surgery would be a distant memory. Elizabeth dropped her feet to the floor and began to gather her things for the weekend. The paperwork she had been avoiding this afternoon would have to get done this weekend she realized with a small groan.
"Well at least I'm not on call". She thought with relief. She was planning on spending the weekend relaxing. Elizabeth lifted the hefty bag over her shoulder and headed out of her office.
Approaching the nurses station Elizabeth looked around for Shirley so she could run quickly through the OR schedule for Monday morning. Spotting her hunched over the computer terminal, as snowed under with work as the rest of the department, Elizabeth dropped her bag and came around the counter.
"Can I interrupt you for a moment Shirley?" Elizabeth began as she sank onto a worn office chair.
"Of course, Dr. Corday." Shirley responded looking up from her work and giving Elizabeth a huge grin
Swiveling in her chair Elizabeth gestured toward the OR schedule wipe off board "Is everything arranged to cover routine procedures for Monday AM or do I need to juggle things before I get out of here for two glorious days off?" Elizabeth swung around in her chair back toward Shirley and was surprised to see that her grin had not diminished one bit.
"OK, what's going on? You look way to pleased with yourself." Elizabeth teased. "Do you have some exciting plans for the weekend?"
Shirley just laughed and shook her head "No, nothing very interesting. So how about you?" Shirley paused and as she once again broke into another huge smile she added "Getting together with Dr. Romano?"
Taken aback, Elizabeth avoided Shirley's eyes "Dr. Romano? UM...No..not that I'm aware of...um..." Elizabeth glanced up and found herself looking directly into the very amused face of her long time colleague. She couldn't stop herself from smiling back.
"Something on your mind, Shirley?" Elizabeth laughed as she rose and moved to retrieve her bag of paperwork
"A couple of things, Dr. Corday, but I can wait until you are ready to share." Shirley watched as Elizabeth rounded the counter and lifted the heavy bag to her shoulder. "The schedule is fine for Monday and I can handle any minor details between now and then. You have a good weekend!"
As Elizabeth stepped onto the elevator she glanced over her shoulder and could feel herself blushing as she acknowledged the nurses good wishes and underlying message.