Chapter 3: The morning after the night before
As Susan a woke she could hear the sound of snoring in her living room. Feeling puzzled and hungover she put her dressing gown on wandered through. Then she remembered, Mark had stayed.
"Wow, must have been a heavy night" She thought "Can't remember much else apart from Mark singing, before and after that is all a bit hazy."
It was 9.30am now, and Susan had only had about 6 hours sleep. It had taken her a while to settle, the room was spinning quite a lot when she got into bed.
She put the kettle on and put the coffee in the pot. She needed coffee right now and suspected Mark did too. She could see him sleeping from the kitchen. As the kettle boiled she just stood there and watched him. Half of him was on the couch, half not. He really did look worse for wear, but kinda cute at the same time.
As she made up the coffee and put it on the table, Mark began to stir. She was still watching him although this time it was from the comfort of her huge armchair.
"Morning oh drunken one, how's the head?" Susan laughed
"Oh god I feel so sick" Mark groaned. "Did I embarrass myself last night? I can remember being carried up some stairs then being, quite roughly, thrown on the couch"
"Well that was the only way I could get you on there, you were so drunk. I swear you must have drunk half your body weight in beer and whiskey. Still it made for and interesting night" Susan grinned
"Seriously though. Oh god my head. Did I make a fool outta myself, or make you ashamed to know me?" Mark enquired
*LONG PAUSE*
"Errrr no not at all." Susan said, hoping Mark was too hungover to recognise the lying tone in her voice. "And besides even if you did, do you think I would tell you? I'd tell everyone at work first" Susan tried to put a humorous spin on her blatant lie.
Mark slowly raised himself from the couch and padded over to the coffee on the table. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror as he did so. Boy did he look rough.
"Hey Susan, weird question but any chance you have a razor handy?" Mark asked
"Yeah sure. I use men's ones anyway. Women's razors don't get the really little hairs" Susan answered.
"Thanks. Why is it that alcohol seems to make the hairs grow super fast? I mean yesterday I was clean shaven. Now I look like someone who hasn't seen a razor for a week" Mark pondered his rather strange question.
"Um I don't know. But the razor is in the bathroom cabinet. It hasn't got a blade on but there should be some in the next compartment."
"Oh great. Mind if I take my coffee with me?" Mark didn't want to seem rude
"No go ahead. I'm gonna watch some Ren and Stimpy" Susan snuggled further into her armchair.
Mark walked into the bathroom and noticed how nicely Susan had decorated it. Now to find the razor. Mark opened that bathroom cupboard, but on the wrong side. Instead of being met by a razor and some blades he was met with a mass of feminine hygiene products and aspirin. Even though he was a doctor he still wasn't comfortable with the whole tampon thing. He didn't think any man was. He knew Carter wasn't. They'd talked about it once. It all seemed very strange to them.
"Hey Susan, mind if I grab and aspirin?!" Mark called from the bathroom
Susan cringed slightly realising which cupboard door he'd opened.
"No go for it. You can bring them out her when you're done shaving" She called back.
As he shaved, he began to hum the tune to the song he'd sung (well yelled) the night before. He knew the song, it was one of his favourites, but he had no idea why it was in his head. Maybe Susan hadn't told him the truth. He liked that song so much because when some of the staff went to a rock and roll night he and Susan had jived to that song. She looked so adorable, she had no idea what to do but was still giving it her best shot and smiling all the way through.
In the next room Susan could hear the tune more clearly than she had done last night and suddenly remembered where she'd heard the song before. They had all joked and started singing Susie Sue instead of Mary Lou, they were all pretty drunk that night too.
As Mark continued to think about the song and Susan he cut himself shaving right under his chin. Blood started dripping into the sink.
"Ah damn it!" Mark yelled.
Susan came rushing in. "Mark what happened?"
"I cut myself, right under my chin. And I got blood in your sink." Mark said as he clutched his chin, still bleeding.
"Here put this on it and come through to the living room, I'll clean you up." Susan said as she gave him a small face towel to put on his chin.
"I'm ok" Mark answered.
"Hey I don't want blood on my carpet. Sit down" Susan ordered.
She went to the kitchen cabinet and grabbed the first aid kit. She came back and sat in front of Mark.
"Lift your head and I'll fix you right up. Hey what's that?" Susan asked
"Oh that's my scar from when I played Ice hockey. Puck in the chin." Mark said
"Ooh nice. Strange I never noticed it before" Susan said
"Well you wouldn't it's under my chin, you've never looked that closely at me." Mark strained to talk.
As Susan carefully stuck a plaster over Marks chin she smoothed it over with her thumb, he felt all smooth now he'd shaved. The tension was unbearable. Susan knew then that she wanted more than friendship from Mark. She was confused as to how to approach the matter, so just got up and returned to the kitchen as Mark wandered back to the bathroom. Little did he realise she had stuck a Ren and Stimpy plaster on his chin.
"Ah Susan!" He yelled. But she could tell by the way he said it he was smiling.
" I thought you might like it! Want anything to eat? we've still got 2 hours before work." She called
"Some toast would be great. Followed by sausage, bacon, eggs, tomatoes." Mark chuckled.
"Yeah, you'll be lucky! With my cooking skills? I don't think so" Susan answered.
As she stuck some bread in the toaster Mark entered the living room and flopped on the sofa again.
"I do like this sofa, it just seems to swallow you up, in a nice way" Mark said
"I prefer the arm chair, it has the best view of the TV" Susan answered.
At 11.30am the two of them walked to work Susan was still thinking about Mark and what she felt for him. What she didn't know is that he was thinking the same.
As they approached County Susan went up to the news cart.
"Fancy another coffee, I know I could do with one" Susan asked
"Yeah sure, thanks Susan" Mark replied
Mark still felt pretty bad, as they wandered into the doctors lounge. Susan seemed in a hurry to get on with work.
"Strange" Mark thought "That must be what hangovers do to her"
As Susan a woke she could hear the sound of snoring in her living room. Feeling puzzled and hungover she put her dressing gown on wandered through. Then she remembered, Mark had stayed.
"Wow, must have been a heavy night" She thought "Can't remember much else apart from Mark singing, before and after that is all a bit hazy."
It was 9.30am now, and Susan had only had about 6 hours sleep. It had taken her a while to settle, the room was spinning quite a lot when she got into bed.
She put the kettle on and put the coffee in the pot. She needed coffee right now and suspected Mark did too. She could see him sleeping from the kitchen. As the kettle boiled she just stood there and watched him. Half of him was on the couch, half not. He really did look worse for wear, but kinda cute at the same time.
As she made up the coffee and put it on the table, Mark began to stir. She was still watching him although this time it was from the comfort of her huge armchair.
"Morning oh drunken one, how's the head?" Susan laughed
"Oh god I feel so sick" Mark groaned. "Did I embarrass myself last night? I can remember being carried up some stairs then being, quite roughly, thrown on the couch"
"Well that was the only way I could get you on there, you were so drunk. I swear you must have drunk half your body weight in beer and whiskey. Still it made for and interesting night" Susan grinned
"Seriously though. Oh god my head. Did I make a fool outta myself, or make you ashamed to know me?" Mark enquired
*LONG PAUSE*
"Errrr no not at all." Susan said, hoping Mark was too hungover to recognise the lying tone in her voice. "And besides even if you did, do you think I would tell you? I'd tell everyone at work first" Susan tried to put a humorous spin on her blatant lie.
Mark slowly raised himself from the couch and padded over to the coffee on the table. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror as he did so. Boy did he look rough.
"Hey Susan, weird question but any chance you have a razor handy?" Mark asked
"Yeah sure. I use men's ones anyway. Women's razors don't get the really little hairs" Susan answered.
"Thanks. Why is it that alcohol seems to make the hairs grow super fast? I mean yesterday I was clean shaven. Now I look like someone who hasn't seen a razor for a week" Mark pondered his rather strange question.
"Um I don't know. But the razor is in the bathroom cabinet. It hasn't got a blade on but there should be some in the next compartment."
"Oh great. Mind if I take my coffee with me?" Mark didn't want to seem rude
"No go ahead. I'm gonna watch some Ren and Stimpy" Susan snuggled further into her armchair.
Mark walked into the bathroom and noticed how nicely Susan had decorated it. Now to find the razor. Mark opened that bathroom cupboard, but on the wrong side. Instead of being met by a razor and some blades he was met with a mass of feminine hygiene products and aspirin. Even though he was a doctor he still wasn't comfortable with the whole tampon thing. He didn't think any man was. He knew Carter wasn't. They'd talked about it once. It all seemed very strange to them.
"Hey Susan, mind if I grab and aspirin?!" Mark called from the bathroom
Susan cringed slightly realising which cupboard door he'd opened.
"No go for it. You can bring them out her when you're done shaving" She called back.
As he shaved, he began to hum the tune to the song he'd sung (well yelled) the night before. He knew the song, it was one of his favourites, but he had no idea why it was in his head. Maybe Susan hadn't told him the truth. He liked that song so much because when some of the staff went to a rock and roll night he and Susan had jived to that song. She looked so adorable, she had no idea what to do but was still giving it her best shot and smiling all the way through.
In the next room Susan could hear the tune more clearly than she had done last night and suddenly remembered where she'd heard the song before. They had all joked and started singing Susie Sue instead of Mary Lou, they were all pretty drunk that night too.
As Mark continued to think about the song and Susan he cut himself shaving right under his chin. Blood started dripping into the sink.
"Ah damn it!" Mark yelled.
Susan came rushing in. "Mark what happened?"
"I cut myself, right under my chin. And I got blood in your sink." Mark said as he clutched his chin, still bleeding.
"Here put this on it and come through to the living room, I'll clean you up." Susan said as she gave him a small face towel to put on his chin.
"I'm ok" Mark answered.
"Hey I don't want blood on my carpet. Sit down" Susan ordered.
She went to the kitchen cabinet and grabbed the first aid kit. She came back and sat in front of Mark.
"Lift your head and I'll fix you right up. Hey what's that?" Susan asked
"Oh that's my scar from when I played Ice hockey. Puck in the chin." Mark said
"Ooh nice. Strange I never noticed it before" Susan said
"Well you wouldn't it's under my chin, you've never looked that closely at me." Mark strained to talk.
As Susan carefully stuck a plaster over Marks chin she smoothed it over with her thumb, he felt all smooth now he'd shaved. The tension was unbearable. Susan knew then that she wanted more than friendship from Mark. She was confused as to how to approach the matter, so just got up and returned to the kitchen as Mark wandered back to the bathroom. Little did he realise she had stuck a Ren and Stimpy plaster on his chin.
"Ah Susan!" He yelled. But she could tell by the way he said it he was smiling.
" I thought you might like it! Want anything to eat? we've still got 2 hours before work." She called
"Some toast would be great. Followed by sausage, bacon, eggs, tomatoes." Mark chuckled.
"Yeah, you'll be lucky! With my cooking skills? I don't think so" Susan answered.
As she stuck some bread in the toaster Mark entered the living room and flopped on the sofa again.
"I do like this sofa, it just seems to swallow you up, in a nice way" Mark said
"I prefer the arm chair, it has the best view of the TV" Susan answered.
At 11.30am the two of them walked to work Susan was still thinking about Mark and what she felt for him. What she didn't know is that he was thinking the same.
As they approached County Susan went up to the news cart.
"Fancy another coffee, I know I could do with one" Susan asked
"Yeah sure, thanks Susan" Mark replied
Mark still felt pretty bad, as they wandered into the doctors lounge. Susan seemed in a hurry to get on with work.
"Strange" Mark thought "That must be what hangovers do to her"