Bad Karma
Carby. Something happens to Abby. Will Carter get to her in time? Will he be able to save her? Read on to find out!
A.N.: I'm not the original author of this story. The original author is carby luva 313. She's decided she doesn't have enough time to write, so she's giving me the honour of finishing it for her. I hope I can do as good a job!
Disclaimer: I do not own ER. It belongs to Michael Crichton and the other members of the production team.
Chapter 10: By My Side
A few hours later Carter awoke to the sensation of movement in the palm of his hand.. He hadn't slept very well. He looked down at Abby and noticed she was awake.
"Hey, why didn't you wake me?" He asked tiredly.
"I thought you might need the rest as much as I did. Sorry I just had to move my hand, it was going numb." She smiled. He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.
"No, I'm glad you woke me. How are you feeling?" Carter asked sweetly.
"Better. It's just hard, knowing what that bastard did to me. I remember only a little, but I still remember never the less. I don't know how I can live with myself now..." She sobbed.
"Shh, don't cry honey. I'm here for you, and I'll help you live through it all. The memories, the nightmares, everything. I'm with you to the finish line." He said and kissed her knuckles.
"Really? Oh John, I thought you'd never want me back after I let it happen..." Abby trailed off sadly.
"I want you now more than ever! You were crazy thinking that, and besides, you are NOT the one that let it happen. There's nothing you could have done. All I can promise you is that I'll never let something like that happen again." Carter whispered apologetically as he looked deep into Abby's eyes. My God she was beautiful. The two of them sat there just drinking eachother in for a few minutes before the sound of the door opening snapped them out of their trances. Both of their heads snapped up and turned towards the door.
"Hello Abby, Carter. Sorry, if I'm interrupting I can come back later..." Elizabeth trailed off.
"No, it's okay " Abby said.
"Alright. I suppose you know why I'm here." She said like she was treading on eggshells. In a way, she was.
"Yes, a-and I think I'm ready. Just do it, do the rape kit now so I can try to move on." Abby sighed.
"Alright, John if you'd prefer to-" She was cut off by Abby.
"No, I want him to stay. I'm not sure if I can do it alone." She said quietly.
"I know it's hard. Just try to relax, it'll all be over soon. I mean the whole ordeal. It'll torture you for a while, but soon the memories will fade, and with them these feelings of hopelessness. I promise you that much." Elizabeth said and smiled encouragingly. She finished the kit relatively so Abby wouldn't have as much time to brood on the events of the past few days.
"There. All done. That wasn't too bad." Elizabeth said sympathetically.
"Thanks Elizabeth, I'm glad it was you." Abby said sincerely.
"No problem. If there's anything at all you need, just call me. Remember Abby, I'm always here to talk if you feel like it's too much." With that said, the surgeon swept out the door.
"Are you alright, sweetheart?" Carter asked, noticing the lost look on Abby's face.
"Yeah, fine. Just thinking about what Elizabeth said. Do you think all this will really eventually pass? I don't know how I'm supposed to live if it doesn't." Abby sighed.
"I'm sure it will. After I was stabbed, I felt weak and alone too, but now it hardly ever comes to mind anymore. Last I remember it was yesterday. I heard one of the detectives yelling he'd heard a gunshot over the phone, and immediately thought I might lose you, just like I lost Lucy all those years back. When I saw you coming out of the ambulance, it was the happiest moment of my life. I promised myself I'd never let you go again." He said sympathetically.
"Thank you." Abby said.
"For what?" John asked.
"You are the only one I believe when you say it'll be alright." She said simply. No words needed to be said anymore as they embraced. The embrace led to a passionate kiss that was broken by the door opening. Again the pair looked up only to see who had interrupted one of their precious shared moments.
"Good afternoon. Sorry to bother you, I just thought now might be a good time to talk to you Abby." Said Dr. Legaspi.
"No problem. Sure, may as well get this over with too." Abby said with a trace of bitterness in her tone. Kim didn't seem to notice because she sounded just like she had before when she spoke again.
"Alright. I'm sorry John, you'll have to wait outside. I know it's important for you two to be together after the past few days events, but you know the drill." She said sympathetically.
"Sure. Page me when you're done. I'm going to grab a coffee. See you soon babe." He said and kissed Abby on the cheek before leaving the room.
True to his word, Carter walked over to Doc Magoo's for some coffee. At least it LOOKED like coffee, it tasted like shoe polish. He couldn't help but think that maybe it wasn't such a good idea for Abby to talk to Dr.Legaspi so soon after the incident. Was she ready to relive it in such detail? Then again, this was coming from the guy who spent most of his psych rotation sleeping. After a half an hour of staring blankly out the window at the rain Carter's pager went off. He sprinted back to the hospital faster than he ever thought possible and was right by Abby's beside again before Dr.Legaspi had even left the room, after sliding a few meters down the hallway, falling over and taking a second to peel himself off the tiled floor.
"Hey girls." He said, whether it was from running or embarrassment, it's hard to say.
"Nice entrance Carter. Graceful, if I do say so myself." Abby giggled. Dr.Legaspi just surveyed him curiously.
"Don't tell me you saw that." He blushed.
"Okay, I won't." Abby laughed.
"Alright, well I'll see you both later." Dr.Legaspi said warmly and left the room.
"I hope that's everyone for now. I just want to spend some time alone with you, John." Abby said exasperatedly.
"Dito." He said. Before either of them knew it, they were kissing again. Thankfully this time no one was in the right mind to bother them. Soon, dinner came. Abby just stared at it in disgust.
"How can people eat hospital food?" She asked dejectedly.
"No kidding, I lost a ton of weight after I got stabbed. Hospital food is the devil's best friend." He joked.
"Speak of the devil, the day I eat this, hell will freeze over." She said and pushed the tray away from her.
"Don't worry, I'll save you from the evils of the cafetiria ladies!" Carter said proudly and puffed out his chest. Abby giggled.
"You know how sexy you are? Super-John?" She asked.
"Trick question?" He joked.
"If it was, would I do this..." Abby asked before leaning in to kiss him yet again. After she pulled away, Carter could only shake his head in response.
"Alright, I'll dash out and get us some REAL food. Can you hold on till then?" Carter asked, smiling.
"If you say real food, I'm betting it's nothing from Doc Magoos. Of course I can wait. I have the thought of my hero returning to sustain me." She said dramatically.
"In that case, I'll be back with dinner in a few minutes!" He said and kissed her one last time before dashing out the door.
While Carter was gone Abby thought about what both him, Elizabeth, and Kim had told her. Maybe they were right, maybe everything really would be okay. She let her wild thoughts and memories run through her head, like Dr.Legaspi suggested, so they had a lesser effect on her. After what felt like only minutes, Carter was back. Actually, he'd only been gone 10 minutes, and was back with gourmet Chinese food from the Peking Palace.
"Hope you like buk choy!" He said merrily.
"Like you would NOT believe! Thanks so much." She said.
"Your wish is my command." He said before leaning in to kiss her.
The two of them sat in a companiable silence for the duration of their meal. Carter was getting stressed trying to get the hang of using chopsticks. Fed up, he ran to the lounge to get a fork. Normally he would have gotten it right away, but he tried to work the chopsticks because he didn't want to be away from Abby for a second longer than he had to be. For thisl, she was glad. Being away from him that day and a half had been the longest time of her life. It felt like a million years. Soon after dinner, they sat just holding hands and staring into the depths of eachother's eyes. Abby's eyes weren't merely amber pools of warmth, they were a window into her soul. Carter saw that though she didn't admit it, her eyes showed great shame and sadness. He's help her feel better no matter what it took. A few minutes later, Kerry walked into the room.
"Hey guys, how are you holding up?" She asked.
"Well enough, I suppose." Abby said.
"Abby, the police would like a word with you, if you don't mind." Kerry said apologetically.
"Sure, why not?! Everyone ELSE has already had a 'word' with me today, why not shove this out of the way as well?!" Abby said irritably. Carter could see that she was upset.
"Kerry, can't you tell them to come back later?" He asked her desperately trying to spare Abby's feelings.
"I've been telling them since this morning to come back later, and they've kept coming back. They said they're not leaving without a report this time. Besides, Abby, I know you want this guy caught and thrown in jail. Once it's over, it's over. The decision is up to you, what do you want me to tell them?" Kerry asked again. Abby pondered this for a moment.
"Alright, send them in." She sighed exasperedly. Kerry turned and left to get the officers.
"John, please, I need you to stay. I don't think I can recount it without you here." She said with stinging the back of her eyes, threatening to fall.
"Of course I'll stay." He had time to say before the policemen barged in.
"Hello Miss Lockhart, Dr.Carter. My name is detective Morrison, and this is detective Harvey. We need to ask you some questions about the kidnapping" One of them introduced.
After about an hour, Abby and Carter had both cried their fair share. The police had questioned her thoroughly, and it wasn't easy to recount everything. Some of the horrors his Carter very hard, he was amazed at how strong Abby was actually being. Abby, on the other hand, felt much better. It was true, after recounting an event, even if it had only been three or four times so far, had lightened the impact it had on her. Though the memories and pictures remained vivid in her mind's eye, it was easier to ward them off.
"That wasn't so bad now, was it?" Carter asked jokingly. He was just trying to lighten the mood.
"No, not at all." Abby joked back. The least she could do was TRY to get her mind off it.
"It's getting late, how are you feeling?" He asked concernedly.
"A little tired, but not tired enough to want to go to bed, yet." She said. Why hadn't Abby's parents named her Oxymoron, instead? She was always contradicting herself. Oh well, that just made Carter fall deeper in love with her. Carter had crawled up onto the gurney next to Abby, and she had her face nestled in his neck. It felt so right, her being there. A few minutes later, Dr.Romano came in.
"Hello Miss Lockhart, Dr.Carter, how are you both?" He asked warmly.
"Fine, better than before anyway." Abby replied. Carter just nodded in response. He knew Dr.Romano was in to examine Abby again, so he hopped off the gurney and sidled himself back into his chair. Though it was not very comfortable, he had taken a liking to it. It felt great to just melt into it when he was tired.
"Alright, I'm guessing you want Dr.Carter here while I check you out?" Dr.Romano asked, knowingly.
"Was there ever any doubt?" Abby smiled.
"Of course not. First I'll ask you some questions. Any pain, nausea, dizziness, lightheadedness, sensitivity to light, or chills?" He asked concernedly.
"Yes, no, no, no, no, no." She replied trying to remember everything he had just asked.
"Where's the pain." Romano questioned further.
"My ribs, a bit of a headache, my back, and my stomach." Abby answered. Romano then proceeded to walk over to the IV and note the dosage.
"We'll up your morphine a bit." He said without looking up from the chart. He then checked her monitor readings, pulse ox, sats, pulse, temperature, dialation, foley output, and breath sounds.
"Everything looks alright so far. Let me just check out your abdominal pain. Just tell me where it hurts." Romano said warmly. He then walked over and stood at the side of her bed. He pulled back her covers and pulled up the gown. As he moved his hands over her stomach, she felt a sharp pain over her diaphragm.
"Ouch, right there." She winced. Carter just squeezed her hand tighther. She gladly held on tight.
"It's a little rigid. I'm wondering if it's still bleeding. I'll go get the portable ultrasound, be right back." He said and left the room in search of the device.
"Oh my God, John, what if I need surgery?" She asked worriedly.
"I'm sure it's not that bad. It's probably just an embolus that's built up to stop the blood flow. Here, let me see." Carter answered. He moved his hands up to where Romano had indicated the rigidity, and felt that it was indeed worse than he had first anticipated.
"I won't lie to you, Abby. It's pretty rigid, which means it's probably still bleeding. Even if it is, don't worry. It's minor surgery, just a small incision and cauterization. A few stitches should cover it. I'll be right outside the OR waiting for you when you wake up. I promise you'll be alright." He said sympathetically.
"I know, but-" She was cut off by the door opening. Romano was back.
"Alright, let's see what it is, shall we?" He asked. He turned the screen on and brought the probe sliding over her diaphragm. It showed a large dark area, blood.
"Well, Miss Lockhart, it looks like the bleeding hasn't stopped yet. We'll have to take you to the OR tomorrow to fix it. I'll set it up and I'll call in Drs. Corday and Dorset to assist. Don't worry, it'll be fine. Tomorrow I'll explain the procedure to you and it'll be over within the hour. See you then, sleep well." He said and with that he left the room.
"Oh my God!" Abby said and started crying.
"Shh. I know you're scared. I was scared too when I had to have surgery after the stabbing. You'll have the three best surgeons out there working on you. Nothing will happen, I promise you that Abby. I'll be right there with you up untill the OR doors, and right by your side when you wake up. I love you and I'll never let anything happen." Carter reassured her.
"I'm sorry. My surgery is so minor, and I'm scared. You had a six inch butcher knife in your back. I would have shat my pants! I know it'll be alright. As long as I have you to wake up to, everything will be okay..." She trailed off. The emotions of the day had obviously tired her out because she was out like a light as soon as her head hit the pillow.
"Sleep tight, my angel..." Carter said and laid his head down on the pillow next to hers. Soon he too was visited by the sandman.
"Aren't they adorable?" Susan asked observing from the outside.
"Yeah, and with spirits like theirs, you know everything will work out for the best." Said Luka...
A.N.: Hey everyone! Thank you so much to all of you who have reviewed! I never thought I could write Carby well but you've proved to me otherwise! I hope you like this chapter as much as the others, it was difficult to write! The next one will be up ASAP! In the meantime, keep reviewing, I need some feedback in order to motivate me. Love my readers! Julia