Here it is!!! Chapter 12 of "He is Human"! : ) I'm back in school now
(two more months until graduation... woo hoo!) So it might take me awhile to
get some of the chapters posted... There shouldn't be too many more to go
until we reach the end of this story!
Note: Carter is, as I like to call him, "Pre-Africa"... and "Pre-Abby." During the days when he was more carefree... and Lewis is... Lewis.
But, you know what I'd love??
FEEDBACK!
Yep, uh huh, I would... because I haven't had any in a very long time.
And also, "Consecrated to God" now has chapter 3 up... maybe y'all read it and didn't like it... but let me know either way... : ) There will be more to come... for all of my stories!
But anyway... feedback PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!
And... here we go....
~Natalie~
Robert Romano woke with the sun. He watched as the orange sun peeked over the horizon and filled the sky with amazing colors. The scene was painted beautifully with red, pink, orange, and purple streaks sparring over the entire sky. It was a magnificent sight and Robert felt almost a sense of loss as the colors disappeared when the sun finally and climactically reached its full potential.
He groggily rolled out of bed. Damn, he was tired. He hadn't gotten much sleep the night previous. His thoughts had been preoccupied with his current situation. Elizabeth had flat out asked him if he loved her. Really, what was he SUPPOSED to say?
"Why yes, Elizabeth, I'm glad you asked, the answer is yes, in fact, I've been in love with you for years now."
Yeah, THAT would have gone over well. So, he did the only thing he knew how to do: He put up his defenses.
He had asked her to ask herself if it really mattered. He was certain that it didn't, but he didn't know, at the time, what else to say. Not that he knew in retrospect, but at the time he had been shocked out of his mind. He didn't want to lie to her, but he couldn't tell her the truth, he simply couldn't.
Trying to shrug off the memory of last night, Robert began to prepare for the day ahead of him. He walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower. The hot water flowed from the showerhead in a steaming stream. As he stepped into the water he tried to wash his thoughts away; it didn't work. His thoughts kept circling around to Elizabeth, no matter what he did.
And that's how the ride to the hospital went as well. He just couldn't stop thinking about her. To be honest, that's how it usually was, but today it seemed worse, magnified even, his thoughts of her seeming almost forceful. His thoughts were so immersed in Elizabeth that he hardly noticed when he arrived at the hospital. Almost mechanically, Robert got out of the car and headed up to the OR. His stomach was in knots... would he see Elizabeth? He felt incredibly nervous as he stepped onto the surgical floor.
Then, he remembered: today was Elizabeth's day off. He felt a wave of relief wash over him, and at the same time, he felt a pang of disappointment. He was disappointed because he didn't get to see her, yet he was relieved for the exact same reason. He wasn't sure if he could even face her. What if she decided that her instincts were wrong? What if she had realized that what Carter and Lewis had said was the absolute truth? How could he deal with that? ... Could he? Rocket Romano could do nearly anything, but when Elizabeth Corday was involved, things were exceedingly different. He was jolted out of his thoughts by the incessant beeping of his pager.
He rode the elevator down to the ER. He looked at Jerry who directed him to trauma one. He pushed the door open to see Carter and Lewis trying to jumpstart a patient's heart. Romano rolled his eyes and asked: "What have we got?"
There was no response.
"Come on people, YOU paged ME here." Romano said impatiently.
Lewis explained over her shoulder "30 year old male, hit by a drunk driver, he may need surgery...."
"Ah, master of the obvious" Romano interjected.
No. That's it. Call it." Carter said.
As Lewis called the death, Romano began walking out the door, and as he was leaving, he tossed over his shoulder: "Make sure your patient's alive before bringing me down to this hellhole." He walked out of the door, before he reconsidered and reentered "And in 15 minutes, I need to see you in my office."
"Who?" Carter and Lewis asked simultaneously.
Romano rolled his eyes: "Both of you." He stated as he exited the trauma room at a brisk pace.
. "As soon as he was gone Lewis turned and fixed a cool gaze on Carter. At first he didn't notice, but after a few seconds he felt the burning gaze on him.
He looked up: "What?"
"I'm going to kill you." She said with somewhat mock venom.
Carter looked confused "What? Why?"
She sighed: "Romano wants to see us" she stated simply.
"Yeah, so?"
"Well, what do you think it's about?" she asked sarcastically.
He shrugged "How should I know?"
She fixed him with yet another cold stare.
"Think about it." He looked confused for another moment before recognition finally crossed his face.
"There ya go, Einstein." She mocked.
He said nothing. "This is all your fault you know." She said as she began walking out of the room.
Carter looked shocked as he began to follow her "What? Susan... how??"
Romano made his way back to the surgical floor. He absolutely hated to be called down to the ER, but he positively detested being called down to the ER for no good reason. But, he also liked to look on the bright side... at least with this encounter. And, for this situation, the bright side was definitely Dr. Lewis's face when he'd told them to meet him in his office. It was absolutely priceless... like one of those commercials... Trip to the ER: 47 dollars. Two way elevator ride: 100 dollars. Energy used for the ordeal: 57 dollars. The look on a fellow colleagues mind when they're scared out of their wits: Priceless. Susan Lewis's face was priceless. He smirked to himself, it was a magnificent feeling: instilling that much fear. All the color had drained out of her face, he remembered with pride.
Yep, she definitely knew what he wanted to see them about. Definitely.
Romano went to his office to finish up some paperwork. After he was done, he tried to think about what he was going to say to the dynamic duo of Carter and Lewis. Granted, they HAD told Corday simply the God's honest truth, but that didn't change the fact that Romano was extremely pissed off. And, the truth didn't change the fact that they shouldn't have been talking about him and his emotions in the first place. This was a hospital for crying out loud, not a damn hair salon. Gossip shouldn't be spread, even the truthful gossip.
And besides, it didn't matter if what they had said was the truth. It didn't matter that he loved Elizabeth because she didn't love him, and one- sided love was utterly pointless. That's all he would ever have with the beautiful Dr. Corday.
As his thoughts began to progress they were interrupted by a knock at the door.
"Come in" he said sternly.
The door opened quickly and Carter and Lewis stepped in.
"You're late." He said matter-of-factly as he motioned for them to sit down.
"Yeah, there was a patient..." Carter began
"I didn't ask for your excuses Dr. Carter, so don't offer them."
There was silence before Romano continued: "So, I see you two have taken the liberty of spreading hot gossip all over the hospital." Both sat in silence feigning confusion "Don't play dumb with me you two, I know that you are both well aware of what I'm talking about."
"Look..." Carter started trying to explain.
"No, you look Dr. Carter, if you want to make snide comments to ME about things you only THINK to be true, then go ahead, but when you go to one of my colleagues and proceed to create a potentially uncomfortable and not to mention unprofessional situation..." He began venomously before Susan cut him off.
"With all due respect, Dr. Romano, are you actually trying to tell us that what we told Dr. Corday was false?" She asked seriously, trying to bite back a smile.
"With all due respect, Dr. Lewis" He mimicked "Are your ears working properly? Yes, that is what I'm telling you."
With that Susan let out a laugh as Carter shot daggers through her.
"Is something funny Dr. Lewis?" Romano asked angrily.
Carter tried to interject "No, she's just..."
"Dr. Carter, I don't remember asking you to speak, let me try this again. Dr. LEWIS," he said pointedly, "Is something funny?"
She looked at him and finally controlled her laughter, but there was still blatant amusement dancing around in her eyes.
"Oh come ON Dr. Romano. We know it's true. EVERYONE knows it's true." She said as a flash of hurt crossed his face. "Stop pretending Dr. Romano, that's really all I'm trying to say. Have you told her yet?"
Romano considered confessing, but he quickly pushed the thought out of his mind: "No, Dr. Lewis, because there's nothing to tell." He cleared his throat "Now, please refrain from creating another incident like this one... and get the hell out of my office!" He barked.
Carter and Lewis both got up at the same time and began heading for the door.
Before she left, Dr. Lewis turned around and looked at Romano "Really though, you should tell her. What's the worst that could happen?" She smiled at him.
"OUT!" he yelled, and she quickly walked out of the door shutting it gently behind her.
When everyone had left Romano sighed and ran his hands over his face, pressing down firmly. She was right, and however much he denied it, she knew she was right. He loved Elizabeth so much. But, he assessed, Dr. Lewis didn't know EVERYTHING. She didn't know how MUCH he loved Dr. Corday. She didn't know that nearly every waking moment was spent thinking of Elizabeth, and every Single moment he was asleep she filled his thoughts.
Back in the ER it was Carter's turn to stare coldly at Lewis.
"What?" she asked.
"What did you just do in there?"
She smiled devilishly "I said what everyone else is constantly thinking."
"You couldn't have just kept your mouth shut?" he asked, smiling.
"You know me." She said humorously.
"Yeah..." he said as he expelled air through his nostrils in a small laugh "And you blamed this on ME."
"Well, it WAS your fault..."
He smiled. "Ah... but now, it's yours."
They shared a laugh, and then they both went back to work.
Back in his office, Romano stared at the paperwork in front of him. He couldn't finish it now, not right now, not here, and certainly not with this burning question on his mind. What DID he have to lose? 'A helluva lot.' He thought to himself. He tried making a list in his head: 'Respect... dignity...' But then he considered it again, were those the things that mattered in life? He had always thought so... was he wrong?
The question plagued his mind for the rest of the day, and as he laid in bed waiting for sleep, the question still haunted him...
What did he have to lose?
He came to realize that he knew the answer....
End Chapter 12
: )
Don't forget to offer your feedback! : ) It makes me dance!
~Natalie~
Note: Carter is, as I like to call him, "Pre-Africa"... and "Pre-Abby." During the days when he was more carefree... and Lewis is... Lewis.
But, you know what I'd love??
FEEDBACK!
Yep, uh huh, I would... because I haven't had any in a very long time.
And also, "Consecrated to God" now has chapter 3 up... maybe y'all read it and didn't like it... but let me know either way... : ) There will be more to come... for all of my stories!
But anyway... feedback PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!
And... here we go....
~Natalie~
Robert Romano woke with the sun. He watched as the orange sun peeked over the horizon and filled the sky with amazing colors. The scene was painted beautifully with red, pink, orange, and purple streaks sparring over the entire sky. It was a magnificent sight and Robert felt almost a sense of loss as the colors disappeared when the sun finally and climactically reached its full potential.
He groggily rolled out of bed. Damn, he was tired. He hadn't gotten much sleep the night previous. His thoughts had been preoccupied with his current situation. Elizabeth had flat out asked him if he loved her. Really, what was he SUPPOSED to say?
"Why yes, Elizabeth, I'm glad you asked, the answer is yes, in fact, I've been in love with you for years now."
Yeah, THAT would have gone over well. So, he did the only thing he knew how to do: He put up his defenses.
He had asked her to ask herself if it really mattered. He was certain that it didn't, but he didn't know, at the time, what else to say. Not that he knew in retrospect, but at the time he had been shocked out of his mind. He didn't want to lie to her, but he couldn't tell her the truth, he simply couldn't.
Trying to shrug off the memory of last night, Robert began to prepare for the day ahead of him. He walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower. The hot water flowed from the showerhead in a steaming stream. As he stepped into the water he tried to wash his thoughts away; it didn't work. His thoughts kept circling around to Elizabeth, no matter what he did.
And that's how the ride to the hospital went as well. He just couldn't stop thinking about her. To be honest, that's how it usually was, but today it seemed worse, magnified even, his thoughts of her seeming almost forceful. His thoughts were so immersed in Elizabeth that he hardly noticed when he arrived at the hospital. Almost mechanically, Robert got out of the car and headed up to the OR. His stomach was in knots... would he see Elizabeth? He felt incredibly nervous as he stepped onto the surgical floor.
Then, he remembered: today was Elizabeth's day off. He felt a wave of relief wash over him, and at the same time, he felt a pang of disappointment. He was disappointed because he didn't get to see her, yet he was relieved for the exact same reason. He wasn't sure if he could even face her. What if she decided that her instincts were wrong? What if she had realized that what Carter and Lewis had said was the absolute truth? How could he deal with that? ... Could he? Rocket Romano could do nearly anything, but when Elizabeth Corday was involved, things were exceedingly different. He was jolted out of his thoughts by the incessant beeping of his pager.
He rode the elevator down to the ER. He looked at Jerry who directed him to trauma one. He pushed the door open to see Carter and Lewis trying to jumpstart a patient's heart. Romano rolled his eyes and asked: "What have we got?"
There was no response.
"Come on people, YOU paged ME here." Romano said impatiently.
Lewis explained over her shoulder "30 year old male, hit by a drunk driver, he may need surgery...."
"Ah, master of the obvious" Romano interjected.
No. That's it. Call it." Carter said.
As Lewis called the death, Romano began walking out the door, and as he was leaving, he tossed over his shoulder: "Make sure your patient's alive before bringing me down to this hellhole." He walked out of the door, before he reconsidered and reentered "And in 15 minutes, I need to see you in my office."
"Who?" Carter and Lewis asked simultaneously.
Romano rolled his eyes: "Both of you." He stated as he exited the trauma room at a brisk pace.
. "As soon as he was gone Lewis turned and fixed a cool gaze on Carter. At first he didn't notice, but after a few seconds he felt the burning gaze on him.
He looked up: "What?"
"I'm going to kill you." She said with somewhat mock venom.
Carter looked confused "What? Why?"
She sighed: "Romano wants to see us" she stated simply.
"Yeah, so?"
"Well, what do you think it's about?" she asked sarcastically.
He shrugged "How should I know?"
She fixed him with yet another cold stare.
"Think about it." He looked confused for another moment before recognition finally crossed his face.
"There ya go, Einstein." She mocked.
He said nothing. "This is all your fault you know." She said as she began walking out of the room.
Carter looked shocked as he began to follow her "What? Susan... how??"
Romano made his way back to the surgical floor. He absolutely hated to be called down to the ER, but he positively detested being called down to the ER for no good reason. But, he also liked to look on the bright side... at least with this encounter. And, for this situation, the bright side was definitely Dr. Lewis's face when he'd told them to meet him in his office. It was absolutely priceless... like one of those commercials... Trip to the ER: 47 dollars. Two way elevator ride: 100 dollars. Energy used for the ordeal: 57 dollars. The look on a fellow colleagues mind when they're scared out of their wits: Priceless. Susan Lewis's face was priceless. He smirked to himself, it was a magnificent feeling: instilling that much fear. All the color had drained out of her face, he remembered with pride.
Yep, she definitely knew what he wanted to see them about. Definitely.
Romano went to his office to finish up some paperwork. After he was done, he tried to think about what he was going to say to the dynamic duo of Carter and Lewis. Granted, they HAD told Corday simply the God's honest truth, but that didn't change the fact that Romano was extremely pissed off. And, the truth didn't change the fact that they shouldn't have been talking about him and his emotions in the first place. This was a hospital for crying out loud, not a damn hair salon. Gossip shouldn't be spread, even the truthful gossip.
And besides, it didn't matter if what they had said was the truth. It didn't matter that he loved Elizabeth because she didn't love him, and one- sided love was utterly pointless. That's all he would ever have with the beautiful Dr. Corday.
As his thoughts began to progress they were interrupted by a knock at the door.
"Come in" he said sternly.
The door opened quickly and Carter and Lewis stepped in.
"You're late." He said matter-of-factly as he motioned for them to sit down.
"Yeah, there was a patient..." Carter began
"I didn't ask for your excuses Dr. Carter, so don't offer them."
There was silence before Romano continued: "So, I see you two have taken the liberty of spreading hot gossip all over the hospital." Both sat in silence feigning confusion "Don't play dumb with me you two, I know that you are both well aware of what I'm talking about."
"Look..." Carter started trying to explain.
"No, you look Dr. Carter, if you want to make snide comments to ME about things you only THINK to be true, then go ahead, but when you go to one of my colleagues and proceed to create a potentially uncomfortable and not to mention unprofessional situation..." He began venomously before Susan cut him off.
"With all due respect, Dr. Romano, are you actually trying to tell us that what we told Dr. Corday was false?" She asked seriously, trying to bite back a smile.
"With all due respect, Dr. Lewis" He mimicked "Are your ears working properly? Yes, that is what I'm telling you."
With that Susan let out a laugh as Carter shot daggers through her.
"Is something funny Dr. Lewis?" Romano asked angrily.
Carter tried to interject "No, she's just..."
"Dr. Carter, I don't remember asking you to speak, let me try this again. Dr. LEWIS," he said pointedly, "Is something funny?"
She looked at him and finally controlled her laughter, but there was still blatant amusement dancing around in her eyes.
"Oh come ON Dr. Romano. We know it's true. EVERYONE knows it's true." She said as a flash of hurt crossed his face. "Stop pretending Dr. Romano, that's really all I'm trying to say. Have you told her yet?"
Romano considered confessing, but he quickly pushed the thought out of his mind: "No, Dr. Lewis, because there's nothing to tell." He cleared his throat "Now, please refrain from creating another incident like this one... and get the hell out of my office!" He barked.
Carter and Lewis both got up at the same time and began heading for the door.
Before she left, Dr. Lewis turned around and looked at Romano "Really though, you should tell her. What's the worst that could happen?" She smiled at him.
"OUT!" he yelled, and she quickly walked out of the door shutting it gently behind her.
When everyone had left Romano sighed and ran his hands over his face, pressing down firmly. She was right, and however much he denied it, she knew she was right. He loved Elizabeth so much. But, he assessed, Dr. Lewis didn't know EVERYTHING. She didn't know how MUCH he loved Dr. Corday. She didn't know that nearly every waking moment was spent thinking of Elizabeth, and every Single moment he was asleep she filled his thoughts.
Back in the ER it was Carter's turn to stare coldly at Lewis.
"What?" she asked.
"What did you just do in there?"
She smiled devilishly "I said what everyone else is constantly thinking."
"You couldn't have just kept your mouth shut?" he asked, smiling.
"You know me." She said humorously.
"Yeah..." he said as he expelled air through his nostrils in a small laugh "And you blamed this on ME."
"Well, it WAS your fault..."
He smiled. "Ah... but now, it's yours."
They shared a laugh, and then they both went back to work.
Back in his office, Romano stared at the paperwork in front of him. He couldn't finish it now, not right now, not here, and certainly not with this burning question on his mind. What DID he have to lose? 'A helluva lot.' He thought to himself. He tried making a list in his head: 'Respect... dignity...' But then he considered it again, were those the things that mattered in life? He had always thought so... was he wrong?
The question plagued his mind for the rest of the day, and as he laid in bed waiting for sleep, the question still haunted him...
What did he have to lose?
He came to realize that he knew the answer....
End Chapter 12
: )
Don't forget to offer your feedback! : ) It makes me dance!
~Natalie~