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Still don't own E.R or any characters from it!LEAN ON ME
Chapter III
The smoke invaded their nostrils as soon as they entered the place. The pub was dark, nosiy and smelt of cigarettes and men. 'Oh Lord' thought Elizabeth, 'Here we go.'
"Errmm – nice place Robert. My God, is that actual sawdust on the floor?" she exclaimed.
"Hee-hee, yeah – cool place huh?" Robert snickered.
"Frequent it often do you?" replied Elizabeth sarcastically.
"Look around you. See anyone from County here? – No? – Do you envisage anyone from County walking in here to witness our impending debauchery? – No – So stop whining!" Robert said.
Elizabeth looked around her again. He was right; no one would be witness to this, thank God.
"Poison?" he interrupted her reverie.
"What?" she muttered.
"What do you want to drink, as in what's your poison Lizzie?" he sighed. "This is why were here after all."
"Oh, er, I'll have a bacardi and coke please." Elizabeth answered. "Oh, and Robert?"
"What?"
"Make it a double!"
"Fine but you've got the next round." He retorted.
Robert approached the bar and ordered the drinks. "Oh, make the bacardi a treble." He smirked. The bartender asked if he should start a tab.
"Definitely" was Roberts's reply.
Scooping the glasses up, Robert turned around and scanned the room. Elizabeth had found a table in a dark corner. He weaved his way through the crowd to the table and placed the drinks down. He grinned as Elizabeth picked up the glass and examined it before smelling it.
"Checking for botchulism? I'm pretty sure they are required by law to wash the glasses you know," he said as he took a seat opposite her.
Elizabeth peered over the glass at him.
"What you got there then?" She enquired.
"Scotch – is that okay with you?" he snarked back.
They both sat back observing the other. Elizabeth then raised her glass to her lips.
"Tally ho then," she said, still holding the glass aloft.
"Chin, chin," Robert replied in his best British accent before downing his drink in one go and throwing a challenging look over at his companion.
Elizabeth smiled revealing perfect white teeth. She put the glass to her mouth and slowly sipped at the drink. Robert folded his arms and began to look smugly at her, but then stopped in his tracks as Elizabeth threw back her head and downed the drink in on session.
"Wow, Lizzie where'd you learn to do that, finishing school?" he said with genuine admiration.
"No – boarding school actually." She scoffed back.
"Well slugger I believe it's your round," he countered.
"Fine." Elizabeth rose as steadily as she could. She couldn't do that too many times, she thought to herself. She sauntered over to the bar.
The bartender greeted her with a nod of the head.
"Same again?" he gruffly asked.
"No – I'll have a plain old coke and another scotch, oh - and make it a double please." She smirked.
"How much?" she enquired.
"Your friend started a tab" he waved his hand at her before moving on to the next customer.
Elizabeth returned to the table and placed the drinks down.
"So?" she said as she sat down.
"What?" he knew what she meant.
"Are you going to tell me about it?" she parried.
"Take a lot more of these to loosen these lips," he countered picking up the glass and swirling the liquid around.
"Guess, I'll just have to drink you under the table then," and with that Elizabeth picked up her drink and took a large gulp.
'Bloody hell the girl can drink' he thought as he raised his own drink and downed it in one again. At this rate they'd both end up in the E.R with alcohol poisoning. He smiled as he thought of their colleagues' reaction to that little scenario!
They continued in this fashion for a about an hour, making small talk about work and doing a lot of 'Kerry bashing' into the bargain. The drinks continued to come in varying degrees depending on who went to the bar.
"Shhoo then. Have you had enough yet?" Elizabeth asked.
"Check this," Robert stood.
"What are you doing?"
"Men's room – watch me walk a straight line."
Elizabeth watched and giggled as Robert's 'straight line' bounced him off several people and turned him into a human skittle
"Hey watch it man!", "Oi", 'Jerk' assorted protests rebounded of Robert's back as he disappeared into the crowd in his quest for the men's room.
Elizabeth sank back into her chair, closed her eyes, and brought up a hand to rub them. The smoke was beginning to take its toll on them and her head was swimming in a thick fog. 'Okay closing eyes not such a hot idea.' She wished Robert would just get what was bugging him off his chest. Still she was kind off having a good time though, who'd have thought Romano would be good social company? Course she was pretty plastered and her mother would probably be acceptable company in her present inebriated state!
After a while Robert had still not returned. Elizabeth began to fret.
"If that little turd has ditched me, he can bloody well standby!" she muttered to herself.
She weaved her own wobbly path through the crowd and looked around for the loos. Spotting the men's restroom, she grabbed the nearest male arm.
"Hi pardon me sir,(hiccup) my friend disappeared in there a while ago and hasn't come out. Could you (hiccup) possibly see if he's okay?"
The man regarded Elizabeth then smiled.
"Sure what does he look like?"
"Total lack of hair and manners. Incredibly short and very pissed – you'll know him!"
Five minutes later the door opened to produce an angry looking Robert with a very wet head.
"Did you sick him on me?" he asked her accusingly, pointing at her search and rescue man.
Elizabeth looked from Robert to the man she had despatched on her extraction mission, back to Robert's sodden head and started chuckling. "What happened?" she ventured
Rescue man shrugged his shoulders, smiled and said, "He was fast asleep – the only thing that would wake him was water!"
"Ohh- well, err thanks" she smirked trying to picture that one in her head.
"No problem lady" he called over his shoulder before disappearing.
"Thanks Lizzie I really enjoyed that – NOT!" Robert whinged.
Elizabeth began to laugh and this did not do anything to make Robert feel better.
"C'mon we're leaving before you have someone beat me up!" He caught hold of her arm and pulled her towards the bar.
"Oi watch it, you're the one who fell asleep on me and virtually left me abandoned, so don't be getting shitty." She dripped.
"Yo, can I pick up my tab?" Robert yelled over at the bartender.
The bartender slid the bill over to Robert.
"Bloody hell Lizzie you are one expensive date."
"Oh, shut up, you're the one who drinks like a fish!" she fumed. She stank of smoke, was two sheets close to the wind and was still none the wiser as to what was bugging Robert. Really successful evening she sulked.
Romano pulled out his wallet and started to reach for the wad of dollar bills. He quickly eyed the amount. Nope he'd have to dig deep into his emergency fund. Rooting deeper into a compartment he hardly ever used but knew he kept a $50 bill her photo came out with it . There she was smiling up at him. His whole body froze.
"Buddy, you okay?" asked the bartender.
That made Elizabeth look up. She glanced at Robert. He seemed lost in his own little world. 'Useless drunk' she thought and pulled the wallet away from him.
"It's green and called money Robert – look see." She said with a flourish as she pulled out the notes and gave them to the bartender.
"Thanks lady – you want me to call you guys a cab, you err seem pretty sloshed the pair of you."
Elizabeth did not answer. She was staring at a photo in the wallet. It was an image of Lucy, but not Lucy; there were subtle differences, but the likeness was uncanny. She was beautiful. No. She was stunning – she was also noticeably pregnant.
"Robert?"
Nothing. She jabbed him hard in the ribs.
"Robert, who is this?" she asked still staring at the photo.
Robert sighed and his shoulders slumped.
"That would be Laura" he replied in a low soft whisper.
"Who.." Elizabeth started – but he cut off –
"My wife" was all he said.
Elizabeth was shocked. She had no idea Robert was married. There was never any mention of a family and she knew for a fact he wore no ring.
The bartender rolled his eyes and walked away. Some other chump caught cheating –he hoped the redhead decked him!
"Where is she now?" she dared to ask.
Robert looked at her hard. His eyes bore into hers and all the hurt that had re-surfaced earlier threatened to return. His eyes glistened with tears again. No, no way was he loosing it here, in front of her again.
Elizabeth thought he was going to bolt so she grabbed hold of his arm.
Robert looked down at her arm and then to her face. He reached over and took his wallet back, placed it in his pocket. Then he slowly removed her fingers from his arm.
"Robert?"
He looked into her face. It was full of concern, concern only for him. She had shown him kindness tonight, been a true friend, he owed her something, some sort of an explanation. But not here.
"Come on Lizzie, time to go."
"I'm not going anywhere till you start talking," she said.
Robert sighed. The women just wouldn't quit.
"Not here Elizabeth." He said warningly.
Elizabeth folded her arms and stared at him crossly.
He sighed loudly and rubbed his eyes.
"She's dead Elizabeth. Happy now?" he spat out.
He didn't wait for an answer, just turned and left leaving a shell shocked Elizabeth staring after his retreating form.
TBC