An All American Love Story
Ch. Nine: Between Friends
After another sleepless night Romano's alarm once again woke him up. Glaring at the red numbers, he turned off the music and stayed in bed. "I promised her something fun today. What the hell am I going to do?" he asked himself. After going over many choices in his mind he got lost in the possible outcomes. After finally forcing himself to sit up he brought his head down and stared across his bedroom. He could hear Gretel outside his door and he knew she wanted to go out, but he needed a moment for himself. He slid out of bed and shivered as his feet hit the cold wooden floor.
After putting on some workout pants and a shirt he walked outside his room to greet Gretel. "Hey girl, you ready for a walk?" he asked as he scratched her shaggy head. He tapped the side of his leg as he walked down the stairs. Romano grabbed his wallet and jacket while Gretel held the leash in her hand. "Ok, girl. Let's go get some breakfast." Romano clipped the leash onto her collar and opened the door. Gretel jumped out the door taking Romano with her. Loosing his balance because of the unexpected jolt he stepped quickly to regain his center. However, Gretel had plans of her own. She bounded down the brick stairs, not knowing that her master's hand had been caught in the leash.
As Romano fell head first onto the brick he let out a yell. It took him a moment to get up. Moving from his stomach, he leaned back to sit on the step. Romano brought his right hand up and touched a painful spot above his eyebrow. He brought his hand down and looked it as it dripped with blood. "Ah, damn it." he grumbled as Gretel doubled back to look him in the face. "I blame you." He said as he got his baring and stood up. Leaving Gretel outside for a moment he walked back into his house to clean up before he tried to go out again.
He stared at his cut in the mirror. He knew it needed stitches. Looking himself over, he only had two other cuts on him, one on his hand and a scrape on his knee. "Not to bad for flying into concrete." After placing a bandage on his injuries he decided to swing by the hospital, get fixed up, and then take Elizabeth out. It was nearly nine and he knew by the time he got done at County, it would be close enough to steal her away. He walked back outside he drug Gretel into the house. "I hope you did what you had to do while I was gone. Otherwise you'll be one hurting puppy."
Elizabeth hadn't been called down to the ER all morning. It had been a pretty slow week actually, and she was grateful. Just as she was finishing up another post-op paperwork set she felt the vibration of her pager. "Damn, I thought it was too good to be true." She said out loud as she jogged to the elevator. Once she got down she was met by a smiling Carter. "What's going on?" she asked. "Oh, it's no emergency, just Romano in one. He needs some sutures above his eye." Now scowling, Elizabeth watched as his grin widen. "And you can't do this on your own?" she asked back. Noticing her hostility Carter answered as he walked away. "No, I could. I just choose not to."
Elizabeth pushed the door open to find Romano, sure enough, with a good size laceration above his right eye. "Morning." He said with a smile. "So Robert, who did you get into a fight with this early in the morning." She asked him as he sighed, "Well Gretel beat me up. She found out I was seeing another woman. I tried to tell her there was enough of me to go around but she just wouldn't have it. I'd watch your back if I were you."
Now grinning, Elizabeth prepared to suture his head. "Looks like you hurt your hand too." She remarked after looking him over. "No, it's fine. Not anything to stop the fun of our next adventure." At this Elizabeth stopped stitching.
"What?"
"I promised you something fun today. Something that wouldn't get messed up, and I found it."
"Oh right." Elizabeth said softly. "It's not busy today, so I should be able to get out of here fairly early. Ok, you're all done." She said backing up in her chair. They walked out together. The hospital was almost empty. There was only Carter, who was sitting with his feet up on the admit desk sucking on a lollypop, and Jerry who was talking on the phone. Elizabeth pointed to the empty waiting room. "Like I said, it's a slow day." Romano nodded as he walked up and pushed Carter's feet off the counter. Romano scowled at Carter before he could say anything and looked back to Elizabeth's direction. "Yeah, oh well. Thanks Lizzie." He said pointing to his head, "I'll pick you up in an hour."
At those words Elizabeth's eyes shot over to Carter who was trying to pretend he hadn't heard what Romano said. "Yeah." Elizabeth remarked, quickly walking past Romano before he could get close enough to touch her. Romano watched Elizabeth walk past him. He couldn't believe she was acting like this after the last three days. As he turned back around his eyes caught Carter's smile. The look Romano gave him was enough to quickly get rid of it. As Romano walked out of the hospital Carter got up and followed Elizabeth into the elevator.
They both stood in silence for a moment before Carter's smile was back. "Shut up Carter. It's not what you think." Elizabeth curtly remarked. Carter tried to wipe the grin off his face but he couldn't. "I didn't say anything Dr. Corday." He paused; "So you two are going out then?" at this he couldn't help it. Carter let out a laugh that nearly doubled him over. Elizabeth looked at him furious. "No. It's not like that Carter." The tone in her voice was enough to stop his laughter. As the elevator opened Elizabeth stepped out. "Not coming?" she asked. "No I am going up to the roof. It's the first hour of decent weather so far, and they are calling for more rain." Carter answered. Elizabeth was about to walk away but right before the elevator doors closed she stuck her hand in stopping them. "Carter. Would you please keep this between us?"
Carter nodded as the doors closed, his face more serious then before. Elizabeth didn't know why that had scared her so much. She didn't care what most of the people at County thought. She liked Romano because he was a genuinely decent person. Elizabeth walked back into her office and sat down where she had been. After looking down at the report she had been writing she closed it and put it in her bag. It was only eleven thirty but there was no one there. Within minutes she was back down in the ER with her things ready to go. "Jerry, I am leaving early. If we get any serious cases just page me ok? Otherwise I will see you tomorrow." She said as she walked out the door. "Sure Dr. Corday!" Jerry answered back before the doors closed.
It took Elizabeth fifteen minutes to drive to Romano's house. By the time she got there it was starting to lightly drizzle again and the gray clouds were back. Quickly she jogged to his door and pressed on the doorbell. At first all Elizabeth heard was a dog's bark so she pressed it again. This time she heard the noise of Romano walking down the stairs. "Shut up Gretel! I can hear them to you know!" When Romano opened the door he was surprised to see Elizabeth standing there. "What are you doing here Lizzie? Aren't you on for another hour or so?" Elizabeth looked up at the raindrops that were now dropping harder on her head as she listened to his question. "Yeah I know, but there was no one at the hospital so I told Jerry to page me if I was needed." Bringing her gaze back to Romano she cleared her throat before she spoke again. "I wanted the extra time with you."
The words stung Romano a little. She had been the one, not thirty minutes ago, that hadn't wanted him to touch her. "Oh so now that we are out of everyone's sight and earshot it's ok for me to be with you. Yeah I can see how that's fair." Elizabeth hated his sarcastic tone. She again looked up at the rain. "You know, can we talk about this inside? I'm getting kind of wet out here." To that Romano stepped aside and let Elizabeth walk in. After he closed the door he was quick to restart the conversation. "You know, I don't have the time or the patience to try and be with someone who can only stand to be with me when we're alone." Elizabeth's mouth almost dropped as she realized that he was actually yelling at her.
"I'm sorry Robert, I just don't really want the whole hospital knowing about my love life!"
"It wasn't the whole hospital Elizabeth, it was Carter. And I don't care about that. I just don't feel like you really want to be with me. It seems that every time something is about to happen you stop it."
"Don't you dare blame that on me! You won't even kiss me for Christ's sake!"
Romano stopped at hearing that. He didn't want to fight with her, but he just couldn't find the right thing to say. "Look" these words were quiet, just above a whisper. "I'm sorry. It's just been a long day. I didn't mean." he was cut off my Elizabeth's hand reaching out for his. "We can talk about this later Robert. Right now I want to do something fun. So let's go before it really starts to storm." She interjected. Romano nodded. "Ok but we have to stop by your house then." Elizabeth looked at him inquisitively as he got his coat. "For what?" she asked.
"Your swim suit."
After another sleepless night Romano's alarm once again woke him up. Glaring at the red numbers, he turned off the music and stayed in bed. "I promised her something fun today. What the hell am I going to do?" he asked himself. After going over many choices in his mind he got lost in the possible outcomes. After finally forcing himself to sit up he brought his head down and stared across his bedroom. He could hear Gretel outside his door and he knew she wanted to go out, but he needed a moment for himself. He slid out of bed and shivered as his feet hit the cold wooden floor.
After putting on some workout pants and a shirt he walked outside his room to greet Gretel. "Hey girl, you ready for a walk?" he asked as he scratched her shaggy head. He tapped the side of his leg as he walked down the stairs. Romano grabbed his wallet and jacket while Gretel held the leash in her hand. "Ok, girl. Let's go get some breakfast." Romano clipped the leash onto her collar and opened the door. Gretel jumped out the door taking Romano with her. Loosing his balance because of the unexpected jolt he stepped quickly to regain his center. However, Gretel had plans of her own. She bounded down the brick stairs, not knowing that her master's hand had been caught in the leash.
As Romano fell head first onto the brick he let out a yell. It took him a moment to get up. Moving from his stomach, he leaned back to sit on the step. Romano brought his right hand up and touched a painful spot above his eyebrow. He brought his hand down and looked it as it dripped with blood. "Ah, damn it." he grumbled as Gretel doubled back to look him in the face. "I blame you." He said as he got his baring and stood up. Leaving Gretel outside for a moment he walked back into his house to clean up before he tried to go out again.
He stared at his cut in the mirror. He knew it needed stitches. Looking himself over, he only had two other cuts on him, one on his hand and a scrape on his knee. "Not to bad for flying into concrete." After placing a bandage on his injuries he decided to swing by the hospital, get fixed up, and then take Elizabeth out. It was nearly nine and he knew by the time he got done at County, it would be close enough to steal her away. He walked back outside he drug Gretel into the house. "I hope you did what you had to do while I was gone. Otherwise you'll be one hurting puppy."
Elizabeth hadn't been called down to the ER all morning. It had been a pretty slow week actually, and she was grateful. Just as she was finishing up another post-op paperwork set she felt the vibration of her pager. "Damn, I thought it was too good to be true." She said out loud as she jogged to the elevator. Once she got down she was met by a smiling Carter. "What's going on?" she asked. "Oh, it's no emergency, just Romano in one. He needs some sutures above his eye." Now scowling, Elizabeth watched as his grin widen. "And you can't do this on your own?" she asked back. Noticing her hostility Carter answered as he walked away. "No, I could. I just choose not to."
Elizabeth pushed the door open to find Romano, sure enough, with a good size laceration above his right eye. "Morning." He said with a smile. "So Robert, who did you get into a fight with this early in the morning." She asked him as he sighed, "Well Gretel beat me up. She found out I was seeing another woman. I tried to tell her there was enough of me to go around but she just wouldn't have it. I'd watch your back if I were you."
Now grinning, Elizabeth prepared to suture his head. "Looks like you hurt your hand too." She remarked after looking him over. "No, it's fine. Not anything to stop the fun of our next adventure." At this Elizabeth stopped stitching.
"What?"
"I promised you something fun today. Something that wouldn't get messed up, and I found it."
"Oh right." Elizabeth said softly. "It's not busy today, so I should be able to get out of here fairly early. Ok, you're all done." She said backing up in her chair. They walked out together. The hospital was almost empty. There was only Carter, who was sitting with his feet up on the admit desk sucking on a lollypop, and Jerry who was talking on the phone. Elizabeth pointed to the empty waiting room. "Like I said, it's a slow day." Romano nodded as he walked up and pushed Carter's feet off the counter. Romano scowled at Carter before he could say anything and looked back to Elizabeth's direction. "Yeah, oh well. Thanks Lizzie." He said pointing to his head, "I'll pick you up in an hour."
At those words Elizabeth's eyes shot over to Carter who was trying to pretend he hadn't heard what Romano said. "Yeah." Elizabeth remarked, quickly walking past Romano before he could get close enough to touch her. Romano watched Elizabeth walk past him. He couldn't believe she was acting like this after the last three days. As he turned back around his eyes caught Carter's smile. The look Romano gave him was enough to quickly get rid of it. As Romano walked out of the hospital Carter got up and followed Elizabeth into the elevator.
They both stood in silence for a moment before Carter's smile was back. "Shut up Carter. It's not what you think." Elizabeth curtly remarked. Carter tried to wipe the grin off his face but he couldn't. "I didn't say anything Dr. Corday." He paused; "So you two are going out then?" at this he couldn't help it. Carter let out a laugh that nearly doubled him over. Elizabeth looked at him furious. "No. It's not like that Carter." The tone in her voice was enough to stop his laughter. As the elevator opened Elizabeth stepped out. "Not coming?" she asked. "No I am going up to the roof. It's the first hour of decent weather so far, and they are calling for more rain." Carter answered. Elizabeth was about to walk away but right before the elevator doors closed she stuck her hand in stopping them. "Carter. Would you please keep this between us?"
Carter nodded as the doors closed, his face more serious then before. Elizabeth didn't know why that had scared her so much. She didn't care what most of the people at County thought. She liked Romano because he was a genuinely decent person. Elizabeth walked back into her office and sat down where she had been. After looking down at the report she had been writing she closed it and put it in her bag. It was only eleven thirty but there was no one there. Within minutes she was back down in the ER with her things ready to go. "Jerry, I am leaving early. If we get any serious cases just page me ok? Otherwise I will see you tomorrow." She said as she walked out the door. "Sure Dr. Corday!" Jerry answered back before the doors closed.
It took Elizabeth fifteen minutes to drive to Romano's house. By the time she got there it was starting to lightly drizzle again and the gray clouds were back. Quickly she jogged to his door and pressed on the doorbell. At first all Elizabeth heard was a dog's bark so she pressed it again. This time she heard the noise of Romano walking down the stairs. "Shut up Gretel! I can hear them to you know!" When Romano opened the door he was surprised to see Elizabeth standing there. "What are you doing here Lizzie? Aren't you on for another hour or so?" Elizabeth looked up at the raindrops that were now dropping harder on her head as she listened to his question. "Yeah I know, but there was no one at the hospital so I told Jerry to page me if I was needed." Bringing her gaze back to Romano she cleared her throat before she spoke again. "I wanted the extra time with you."
The words stung Romano a little. She had been the one, not thirty minutes ago, that hadn't wanted him to touch her. "Oh so now that we are out of everyone's sight and earshot it's ok for me to be with you. Yeah I can see how that's fair." Elizabeth hated his sarcastic tone. She again looked up at the rain. "You know, can we talk about this inside? I'm getting kind of wet out here." To that Romano stepped aside and let Elizabeth walk in. After he closed the door he was quick to restart the conversation. "You know, I don't have the time or the patience to try and be with someone who can only stand to be with me when we're alone." Elizabeth's mouth almost dropped as she realized that he was actually yelling at her.
"I'm sorry Robert, I just don't really want the whole hospital knowing about my love life!"
"It wasn't the whole hospital Elizabeth, it was Carter. And I don't care about that. I just don't feel like you really want to be with me. It seems that every time something is about to happen you stop it."
"Don't you dare blame that on me! You won't even kiss me for Christ's sake!"
Romano stopped at hearing that. He didn't want to fight with her, but he just couldn't find the right thing to say. "Look" these words were quiet, just above a whisper. "I'm sorry. It's just been a long day. I didn't mean." he was cut off my Elizabeth's hand reaching out for his. "We can talk about this later Robert. Right now I want to do something fun. So let's go before it really starts to storm." She interjected. Romano nodded. "Ok but we have to stop by your house then." Elizabeth looked at him inquisitively as he got his coat. "For what?" she asked.
"Your swim suit."