Luka stood alone outside the E.R bay oblivious to the freezing cold weather. He just needed some breathing room from people asking him about Sam. Apparently before she took off she had left a message for Kerry explaining that she was leaving town for an indefinite period of time and would not be returning to work. At least that's what Kerry had said when she asked some of the other nurses if one of them could work a double to cover Sam's shift. It had been so hard for him to go to work, knowing that she wasn't going to be there. Even over the past couple of days before she left and they had not been together, just the nearness of her was enough for Luka. But now he didn't even have that and it was almost too much to handle.
"How are you doing?" Luka hadn't even heard Carter approach.
"Fine. Why do you ask?" Luka replied giving Carter a half smile knowing full well the meaning behind the question.
"I heard about Sam. I'm sorry. Do you think that she will come back?"
Luka knew the answer was no, but to say it out loud and acknowledge the reality again was something Luka was not prepared to do, even in front of his friend. Instead he just shrugged his shoulders at Carter. "Well maybe she just needs a little time..." Carter started to say "Tell Kem I said hi." Luka said before he could finish. With that Luka turned around and walked back into the hospital.
Sam had stopped around 11:00pm for the night at a small but clean hotel off of the highway. The room was small, but it had two double beds and a small TV with cable and a coffee pot. It wasn't ten minutes after they entered the room, exhausted from the drive, that they were fast asleep.
Unable to sleep anymore, Sam turned over and picked up her watch from the nightstand only to see that it was 5:30am. With a groan she got up and quietly started to make coffee so not to wake up Alex.
Sitting on her bed in the quiet with a cup coffee in her hands, she watched Alex sleeping and began to really question her decision. He didn't deserve this she thought, neither did she for that matter. They both were feeling pretty good about their lives in Chicago. He made some good friends and was doing great in school. She was at a job that she really liked and worked with some great people, some of which she considered friends. But more importantly there was Luka. He was the first man to make her want to believe in childhood dreams of happily ever after and that was one of the nicest feelings she had in long time. But that was ruined with the arrival of her ex. Damn it! Why did he have to show up again and ruin things? But as soon as that question left her head another one popped right in behind it "Why do I let him?" Because she knew that running was easier then trying to fight Steve and his influence over Alex. But what kind of example is that for Alex, she thought. Sacrificing their long awaited happiness and stability because of a man unable and unwilling to sacrifice anything for the people he says he cares about. In a flash Sam got angry, not at Steve, but at herself. She allowed this to happen, but not anymore. She would not allow Alex or herself to sacrifice any more of their lives. At that moment Sam decided to stop running...from everyone.
"Hey Kovac!" Frank yelled at Luka, who just had come down from X-Ray and was approaching the front desk. Luka had only been at work for five hours but it seemed like he had been on all day and he wasn't really in the mood to deal with Frank at the moment.
"What? I'm busy" which was a lie. The one day Luka needed the E.R. to be busy and distract him as much as possible was the one day that it wasn't.
"Hey don't yell at me." Frank replied throwing his hands up in front of himself. "Did you know that you had a message?" Frank said while waving a little piece of white paper. "It must have come in while I was on break." He said as he handed the piece of paper to Luka.
"Thanks." Luka looked at the message but all it had was his name, a phone number and the word important underlined. "Hey Frank do you know what city uses the 502 area code?" he called out while starting to dial. "Do I look like a phonebook?" was the only reply he got as Frank started straightening out the desk.Luka patiently waited for someone to pick-up. After about the 6th ring he was about to hang up figuring the number was written wrong. Just as he was pulling the phone away from his ear he heard someone pick up with a faint hello. Luka rushed to pull the phone back, "Hi...hello this is Dr. Kovach. I was given this number...." "LUKA!" "ALEX!" "How did you find us? Where are calling from? I didn't think that I would get to talk to you again. Can you come and get me? Where are you? How did get this number?" Alex could not contain his excitement at hearing Luka's voice. "Alex slow down. Is everything alright? Are you and your mom o.k.? "We're fine. How did you get this number?" "You didn't call the hospital and leave a message for me?" Luka said with a bit of confusion. "No." Luka knew that there was only one other person who could of called and for the first time in what seemed like ages, Luka felt the twinges of hope. "Alex is your mom with you?" "No, she went to see if she could find some more towels and....wait a minute." Luka could tell that someone had entered the room. He heard the faint murmurings of two people talking then the sound of the phone being passed over to another person. "Luka?" Sam said more as a question then a statement even though Alex had just finished telling her that it was him. Luka hadn't realized that he was holding his breath until he heard her voice, "Sam, are you o.k.?" "I'm fine, we both are. Thanks for calling me back." "No don't thank me I'm just glad you called and that you both are alright." There was a moment of silence when both of them were trying to figure out how to proceed. "Listen Sam I don't know what happened to make you leave but there are some things that I need you to know, that I need to tell you and ..." "I miss you." There she said it and felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted off of her shoulders she was on the way to taking back her life. "Where are you?" Luka asked afraid that the intensity of his emotions at hearing those three words were about to render him motionless. All he wanted was to get to her as soon as possible. "We are in some motel off of hwy 105. But I plan on coming back tomorrow. I would leave tonight but I am still a little tired from the drive and I don't want to risk it." "Just tell me the name of the motel and I'll come to you" "Luka you don't have to..." Sam started to say. "I know I don't have to but I want to." The finality in Luka's voice gave Sam all the encouragement she needed to give him directions to her and Alex. After Sam finished giving Luka all the information he needed they said their good-byes, "So I'll see you in a few hours. Drive safely O.K." "I'll be fine, oh and Sam." "Yes." "I miss you too, both of you." With that said Luka hung up the phone, told Frank he had to leave and was out the door in a matter of seconds.
"I miss you too, both of you" Sam kept replaying those words back in her head unable to keep the smile off of her face or the tears from forming in her eyes. "Mom, is everything alright?" Alex asked after coming out of the bathroom. "It's going to be Alex, it's going to be."
"How are you doing?" Luka hadn't even heard Carter approach.
"Fine. Why do you ask?" Luka replied giving Carter a half smile knowing full well the meaning behind the question.
"I heard about Sam. I'm sorry. Do you think that she will come back?"
Luka knew the answer was no, but to say it out loud and acknowledge the reality again was something Luka was not prepared to do, even in front of his friend. Instead he just shrugged his shoulders at Carter. "Well maybe she just needs a little time..." Carter started to say "Tell Kem I said hi." Luka said before he could finish. With that Luka turned around and walked back into the hospital.
Sam had stopped around 11:00pm for the night at a small but clean hotel off of the highway. The room was small, but it had two double beds and a small TV with cable and a coffee pot. It wasn't ten minutes after they entered the room, exhausted from the drive, that they were fast asleep.
Unable to sleep anymore, Sam turned over and picked up her watch from the nightstand only to see that it was 5:30am. With a groan she got up and quietly started to make coffee so not to wake up Alex.
Sitting on her bed in the quiet with a cup coffee in her hands, she watched Alex sleeping and began to really question her decision. He didn't deserve this she thought, neither did she for that matter. They both were feeling pretty good about their lives in Chicago. He made some good friends and was doing great in school. She was at a job that she really liked and worked with some great people, some of which she considered friends. But more importantly there was Luka. He was the first man to make her want to believe in childhood dreams of happily ever after and that was one of the nicest feelings she had in long time. But that was ruined with the arrival of her ex. Damn it! Why did he have to show up again and ruin things? But as soon as that question left her head another one popped right in behind it "Why do I let him?" Because she knew that running was easier then trying to fight Steve and his influence over Alex. But what kind of example is that for Alex, she thought. Sacrificing their long awaited happiness and stability because of a man unable and unwilling to sacrifice anything for the people he says he cares about. In a flash Sam got angry, not at Steve, but at herself. She allowed this to happen, but not anymore. She would not allow Alex or herself to sacrifice any more of their lives. At that moment Sam decided to stop running...from everyone.
"Hey Kovac!" Frank yelled at Luka, who just had come down from X-Ray and was approaching the front desk. Luka had only been at work for five hours but it seemed like he had been on all day and he wasn't really in the mood to deal with Frank at the moment.
"What? I'm busy" which was a lie. The one day Luka needed the E.R. to be busy and distract him as much as possible was the one day that it wasn't.
"Hey don't yell at me." Frank replied throwing his hands up in front of himself. "Did you know that you had a message?" Frank said while waving a little piece of white paper. "It must have come in while I was on break." He said as he handed the piece of paper to Luka.
"Thanks." Luka looked at the message but all it had was his name, a phone number and the word important underlined. "Hey Frank do you know what city uses the 502 area code?" he called out while starting to dial. "Do I look like a phonebook?" was the only reply he got as Frank started straightening out the desk.Luka patiently waited for someone to pick-up. After about the 6th ring he was about to hang up figuring the number was written wrong. Just as he was pulling the phone away from his ear he heard someone pick up with a faint hello. Luka rushed to pull the phone back, "Hi...hello this is Dr. Kovach. I was given this number...." "LUKA!" "ALEX!" "How did you find us? Where are calling from? I didn't think that I would get to talk to you again. Can you come and get me? Where are you? How did get this number?" Alex could not contain his excitement at hearing Luka's voice. "Alex slow down. Is everything alright? Are you and your mom o.k.? "We're fine. How did you get this number?" "You didn't call the hospital and leave a message for me?" Luka said with a bit of confusion. "No." Luka knew that there was only one other person who could of called and for the first time in what seemed like ages, Luka felt the twinges of hope. "Alex is your mom with you?" "No, she went to see if she could find some more towels and....wait a minute." Luka could tell that someone had entered the room. He heard the faint murmurings of two people talking then the sound of the phone being passed over to another person. "Luka?" Sam said more as a question then a statement even though Alex had just finished telling her that it was him. Luka hadn't realized that he was holding his breath until he heard her voice, "Sam, are you o.k.?" "I'm fine, we both are. Thanks for calling me back." "No don't thank me I'm just glad you called and that you both are alright." There was a moment of silence when both of them were trying to figure out how to proceed. "Listen Sam I don't know what happened to make you leave but there are some things that I need you to know, that I need to tell you and ..." "I miss you." There she said it and felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted off of her shoulders she was on the way to taking back her life. "Where are you?" Luka asked afraid that the intensity of his emotions at hearing those three words were about to render him motionless. All he wanted was to get to her as soon as possible. "We are in some motel off of hwy 105. But I plan on coming back tomorrow. I would leave tonight but I am still a little tired from the drive and I don't want to risk it." "Just tell me the name of the motel and I'll come to you" "Luka you don't have to..." Sam started to say. "I know I don't have to but I want to." The finality in Luka's voice gave Sam all the encouragement she needed to give him directions to her and Alex. After Sam finished giving Luka all the information he needed they said their good-byes, "So I'll see you in a few hours. Drive safely O.K." "I'll be fine, oh and Sam." "Yes." "I miss you too, both of you." With that said Luka hung up the phone, told Frank he had to leave and was out the door in a matter of seconds.
"I miss you too, both of you" Sam kept replaying those words back in her head unable to keep the smile off of her face or the tears from forming in her eyes. "Mom, is everything alright?" Alex asked after coming out of the bathroom. "It's going to be Alex, it's going to be."