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 honor 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 15: Visits
Abby woke up after a long, peaceful sleep. The previous night John and Abby had stayed up late, talking about everything from music to sports to movies. They were great together. Abby remembered it all and smiled contentedly. She then looked over at Carter. He looked extremely uncomfortable, sleeping with his head hung over his shoulder. His neck would be hurting. Abby decided to wake him up, even if he did look like he needed the sleep. She nudged him gently.
"John, wake up!" She hissed.
"What, huh?" Carter mumbled confusedly.
"Come on, sleepy head." Abby said playfully.
"Alright, alright. I'm up." Carter responded groggily.
"Good morning sleeping beauty." Abby joked.
"Oh, very funny." Carter said sarcastically.
"I thought so..." Abby giggled.
"How are you feeling today?" He asked running his fingers through her hair.
"Better than you look, I'm betting." Abby replied.
"Ha. Ha." Carter said with a raised eyebrow.
"John, I want you to do me a favor." Abby said.
"Sure, what is it?" He asked.
"I want you to go home, eat something, take a shower, get some clean clothes, and sleep for a while." Abby instructed.
"But I-" He started, but Abby put a finger on his lips to silence him.
"No buts. I know what's best for you." Abby said seriously.
"Alright, on one condition." Carter said.
"What's that?" Abby inquired.
"Only if it makes you feel better." Carter retorted.
"Of course! Now how would it look, if you landed in here next to me from fatigue?!" Abby said shocked.
"Good point. Okay, in that case, I'll be back later." Carter said.
He stood up, and gave Abby one last kiss goodbye before turning to leave.
"See you!" Abby shouted after him.
She sat up in bed, thinking about her last statement. It really WOULD look hilarious if Carter was next to Abby in his own bed. People would think they drove each other insane, and landed each other in the hospital with over stress. She giggled to herself. Soon, Dr.Romano came in to examine her again. Everything was looking okay for now. After he left, Abby thought about what was going on in the ER. Just then, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in." Abby shouted just loud enough for whoever it was to hear. Her throat was still sore from the intubation.
The door slowly opened and Susan walked in. She was carrying a large bouquet of assorted flowers. Lillies, and mums among others. She set them down in a vase of water next to Abby's bed.
"Aww, you shouldn't have." Abby said.
"Everyone at the ER chipped in. We all miss you." Susan said.
"Yeah, miss me because I'm not there to pick up your slack and do your scut." Abby joked.
"Oh very funny. So where's Carter. I thought you guys might still have been sleeping." Susan inquired.
"I told him to go home, he was going to wear himself out." Abby replied quietly.
"Yeah, when you were... missing... we all told him to take a break, get some sleep, that you'd be fine, but he didn't believe it. He loves you so much, he would have probably killed himself if something happened to you. We TRIED to ambush him with a syringe full of serotonin, but Mark wasn't thrilled with the idea. He said something about the ER not being a place for childish games..." Susan said reminiscently. The two women laughed.
"Yeah, that's just like Mark. I love Carter so much, too. I don't know where I'd be if I didn't have him here." Abby sighed.
"Hey, you still have all of us in the ER. We all care about you, and hope you're back with us soon." Susan pointed out.
"I know." Abby said lightly.
Just then, Susan's pager went off. A pained expression flickered across her face.
"Great, the hell hole needs me. I swear it I will hunt down and kill the guy who invented pagers. I will haunt him to his dying day. If he's already dead, I'll find him in heaven and kill him again, then send him to hell!" Susan laughed.
"Guess you have to get back." Abby said.
"Yeah. See you later, get well soon! Say hi to Carter for me!" Susan said.
With that she was gone. Abby sat and thought about Susan's visit. maybe people really did care. Maybe she wasn't just a complaining scut solver. Or maybe this was just people feeling sorry for her, pitying her after what had happened. So many maybes, so many what if's. Abby snapped out of her reverie when she heard another knock on the door.
"Come in." She shouted for the second time that day.
Luka slowly opened the door and waltzed into the room. He walked over to Abby's bedside and sat down in the chair Carter had affecitonately dubbed as being his over the last few days.
"Hey Abby, great to see you. You're looking much better. How are you feeling?" Luka asked after giving Abby a gentle hug. He didn't want to hurt her. After all, she was still delicate after the surgery.
"Hey Luka, good to see you too. Thanks, I feel much better too." Abby responded.
"I see you got out get well gift already." Luka pointed out.
"Yeah, either that or the staff are trying to kill me. For all I know they could have put some kind of airborne poison in those flowers, and it'll be released and slowly kill me." Abby deadpanned.
"Oh come on, you're the charge nurse. Why would they possibly want to kill you?" Luka asked skeptically.
"I complain to much." Abby said simply.
"That's not true. Without you, the ER would probably be long gone. We would drown in a sea of patients, and kill more people." Luka said.
"Alright, I'll give you that one." Abby said.
"When are you getting out of here?" Luka inquired.
"Soon, I hope. Drs. Corday, Dorset, and Romano want to keep me for observation for another two or three days, and if there are no signs of complications, I'm free to go. I swear they'll find a way to keep me in. They just want to milk the insurance company for all they're worth." Abby giggled.
"Oh yes, everyone is out to get you." Luka smiled.
"Well you never know!" Abby remarked.
She had a serious expression on her face, but she had to fight back laughing. She couldn't hold it in anymore, and she burst out. Soon both Abby and Luka were laughing like idiots, for no apparent reason.
"Oh, no! Stop! It hurts to laugh." Abby bit back as she held her sore ribs.
"Sorry, are you alright?" Luka asked concernedly as soon as he saw the pained expression on Abby's face.
"Yeah, I'll be okay." Abby said breathlessly.
Luka looked at her, searching for a sign of discomfort, or pain. Abby was independent, too much so for her own good sometimes. He then looked at his watch.
"Uh oh. Weaver's going to, how do you say, have my head for this. My break ended ten minutes ago!" Luka exclaimed.
"You should get back then." Abby said.
"Yeah, but remember. If you ever need to talk or something, I'm just a phone call or a page away." Luka said.
Without knowing what she was doing, or why she was doing it, Abby leaned in and kissed Luka. He was shocked.
"What was that for?" He asked confusedly.
"I don't know. I guess I'm just glad to know you care." Abby said blushing.
"Okay, see you later." Luka smiled.
"Bye." Abby returned.
With that Luka got up and left. Why had she kissed him? She found herself wondering. Was it because she was happy he cared, or did she still have some feelings for him. No. She loved Carter, and nothing, no one, could ever change that she reassured herself.
Not long after, the lunch lady came in. Abby hadn't eaten much over the past few days, but she just didn't have the appetite. In a vain effort to get out of the hospital faster, she tried to pick at something on her plate. This was pointless. She pushed her food away and closed her eyes. She needed to get away from reality for a while. Just then, there was another knock on the door.
"Come in!" Abby yelled.
Kerry slipped in through a crack in the door.
"Good afternoon, Abby." Kerry said warmly.
"Hello, Kerry." Abby replied politely.
Kerry came over and sat down by Abby's bed. She smiled before speaking again.
"How are you doing?" Kerry asked.
"Better by the minute. More than I could probably say about John..." Abby trailed off.
"What do you mean?" Kerry asked.
"I sent him home to get some rest, but knowing him, he's probably either lying awake in bed thinking about me, or on his way back over here right now." Abby explained.
"That sounds like our Carter." Kerry laughed.
Abby thought talking to Kerry would be boring, and awkward. It actually wan't so bad. She could be nice, if she tried. Just like Romano. Abby found herself thinking God, maybe those two should get together. Uh, reality check, Weaver's a lesbian! Just then, Kerry spoke again.
"Abby, are you alright?" She asked.
"What? Oh, sorry, I just got lost in a thought for a second there." Abby said sheepishly.
"I understand. I'm sure it's hard concentrating now. I don't know exactly how you're feeling, or what you're going through, no one can, but I can, however, be here to listen whenever you need me." Kerry reasoned.
"Thanks, Kerry." Abby said lightly.
"Well, I should be heading back to the ER, in hopes that no one has managed to blow it up yet. I'll be back to see you later, Abby. Bye." She said.
"See you." Abby said.
She watched as Weaver got up and crutched out of the room. That hadn't been as bad as it could've been. Who knew Kerry could be such a nice person to talk to. She seemed to be the only one that understood. Abby didn't need someone to understand her right now, she just needed someone to listen, and empathize. Why couldn't people understand? While thinking this, Abby hadn't even noticed her eyes were tearing up. Maybe that was what she needed, just to cry herself out. Without John here, now was the perfect time. He would just want to talk, to help her forget. But she couldn't forget, she didn't want to talk. By now Abby was crying more than she had in a while. It felt good to let her feelings out. Abby had a tough exterior, but inside she was just a crumpled soul. She couldn't go on much longer without completely breaking down. Just then, the door creaked open. For the fourth freaking time that day. What now? Abby thought to herself. She was looking down at her hands, but when whoever it was that was with her came over and sat down, she looked up. Her eyes met with Mark's worried gaze.
"Are you alright?" He asked concernedly.
"Rhetorical question. I'm so sick of people asking me that! There's only so much I can take! No, I'm not okay! Maybe I will be eventually, but right now I'm not!" Abby snapped.
She said it a little more harshly than she intended to, but right now she wasn't feeling very fuzzy towards anyone. Mark simply looked at her wide eyed and open mouthed. Immediately Abby felt sorry for what she had just done.
"I'm sorry, Dr.Greene, I just-" She was cut off by him hushing her.
"Shh. It's alright. I know it's a hard time right now. It's fine with me. Better this than keeping it bottled up. If you want some time alone, I can come back later." Mark suggested.
"No, please. Stay." Abby said, a little lost for words.
Mark just looked at her, to start a conversation. He wasn't sure which waters were safe to tread right now. He gave her an encouraging nod, telling her to go on. Abby fished around for a subject.
"Is the ER busy today?" She asked.
Oh, smooth. Real great topic. Mark had come up here to get away from it and see her, and Abby wants to talk about the ER. Wonderful. Absoulutely spiffing.
"It was. I managed to escape for a bit. It's so much harder without you. There's so much more to do." Mark said.
"Yeah, well..." Abby trailed off.
"I know it'll probably be hard to return to work in the ER. That's where this whole nightmare started. We need you, Abby. The place just isn't the same without your constant joking and lightening the mood." Mark said.
"Really? I've heard it all before, but I'm having a hard time believeing it. It will be hard for me to come back, but I promise I will. If I don't, it'll be like a major loss in life." Abby said, more to herself than Dr.Greene.
"It would be a major loss. Not just to you, but to all of us. Your family is here, down in the ER. It would be like losing a sister." Mark reassured.
"It would be like losing my entire family, all over again if I left. I know my family is still here, but they're so distant. I can't go to them for refuge." Abby sobbed silently.
Mark put a comforting hand on her back. With his other hand he brought her chin up to look at him.
"You listen to me, Abby. No matter how bad your family life is, I can assure you you're not alone. They will always come if they are called. I know you want them here right now, but your second family, the ER staff, will just have to do for now." Mark said firmly.
"Actually, I don't want them here. Maggie would just make a big deal out of it, that wouldn't help. Eric wouldn't really care. As for all of you guys, it's more than I could ever ask for." Abby said, feeling much better.
Dr.Greene smiled down at her. He glanced at his watch.
"I have to get back to the ER. I'll come by again, Abby. Hope you feel better." He said.
"Thanks, bye Dr.Greene." She replied.
Abby watched Mark get up and walk towards the door. The door opened and then closed with a click and he was gone. A few seconds later the door opened again. Abby thought it was Mark come to say one last thing, but it was just her dinner. Pea soup. Gross. It looked more like mud water with chunks of God knows what in it. She made a face and then pushed the food away. Abby knew the doctors, and John, would be worried she wasn't eating, but how could she? This stuff didn't even look remotely like food. It was absolutely heinous. For what seemed like the billionth time that day, the door opened. Abby looked up.
"Hey sweetie, I'm back." Carter said as he strode into the room.
He walked over and gave Abby a kiss. He was carrying two brown paper bags which he set down on the night table. He took a seat in his favourite chair.
"Hey John. You look much better now. Wow, you got some sleep after all." Abby smiled.
"Yes, I did. I knew you wouldn't let me live it down if I didn't. You're looking better too. What did you do all day?" Carter asked.
"Oh you know, mental sight seeing, a couple of visitors. That's about it. I can't very well leave the room." Abby laughed.
"Okay, stupid question. I know how gross hospital food is, but you have to eat. As an answer to that little problem, I brought us chicken alfredo pasta." Carter said.
"Oh my God you are a lifesaver." Abby exclaimed.
"Glad to be of service." Carter smiled as he set their food out.
The pair of them ate in silence. Even though she was extremely hungry, Abby still found it hard to eat. It made her feel sick. However, she didn't want John to worry, so she ate as much as was physically possible.
"That was great, thanks John." Abby said.
"Boy, am I ever full." He replied.
After their meal, both Abby and Carter were sleepy. Abby spent the entire day talking to anyone and everyone who crossed her path. Carter slept through everything. He climbed up onto the gurney beside Abby. She nuzzled her face into his neck and sighed contentedly.
"I missed you today." She said quietly.
"I missed you too." He replied.
Abby tried to stifle a yawn, but was unsuccessful in her endeavour. Carter noticed.
"Are you tired?" He asked.
"Well, I guess there's no point in lying to you, cause you can see through me like a hole in the wall. Yes, I'm tired." Abby said, yawning again.
"In that case, I love you, and sleep tight." Carter whispered and kissed the top of Abby's head.
"I love you too, goodnight. Don't let the bed bugs bite." Abby replied.
Carter held Abby in his arms. She was fast asleep. Poor thing, the smallest easiest tasks tired her out now. He knew she would soon be back to her old obnoxious self, but couldn't help loving this moment. Abby was so perfect, curled up in his embrace. She was warm against his body. Her breathing was a little raspy, but rythmic never the less. Carter looked down at Abby. Asleep, like a perfect little angel. Soon Carter, too, drifted off to sleep.
A.N.: How was that one? Sorry it took so long to post, but I had it over half written, and my computer decided to crash. All my files were deleted. Oh well, it's up now! Thanks to all my loyal reviewers, especially hyperpiper91! For those of you new to the story, please tell me what you think! I'll post the next one soon! Love my readers! Julia