DISCLAIMER: I don't own the staff of Cook County General, not the ER
staff, anyway. I own the Pedes ward, though (hehehe...)
Anyway, sorry for the delay. I know that some readers actually have been coming back to read the other stuff that I wrote.
I'm actually working on another story, when I'm not writing for this one. It's about what might happen if Lucy had lived...don't know if that would work, so for now I am sticking with this AU thing.
******************************************************8
SAVING GRACE—CHAPTER NINE
******************************************************8
Dr. Weaver took a few deep, steadying breaths at the back of the room. Carter closed the door and stepped forward. Kerry followed him.
"You're back," Grace said. "That was fast," she said as she smiled at Carter. He smiled back.
"Yep, I am. I want to introduce you to a friend of mine, Grace," Carter began as Kerry stepped forward. She smiled gently at the child.
"Hello," she said, moving closer to the child lying in the bed. Grace didn't smile back, instead, Carter could see her muscles contract in defense. She was getting nervous. Carter put his hand on Kerry's shoulder, gently pushing her back slightly. He gave her a warning glance, flashing his eyes towards the child, who was growing anxious. Kerry nodded, slightly disappointed. Carter pulled the stool up to her bedside and sat on it.
"It's all right, Grace," Carter said in what he thought was a soothing voice. It worked on her. She shot a frightened glance at Kerry. "She is my friend. I promise that I would never let anyone come to see you who would hurt you, okay?" Grace hesitated a little.
"Okay," she whispered, hugging her octopus to her chest, as if for protection. Carter stood up again, letting Kerry move forward cautiously.
"This is Dr. Weaver," Carter told the child as Kerry approached her bedside. Grace looked at Kerry for a moment, and then gave her a tiny smile. Kerry returned the gesture.
"Hi, sweetie, how are you feeling?" Kerry asked in a calm voice. With her perceived threat gone, the little girl softened up to her new visitor.
"I am okay," she said quietly. "It still hurts, though."
"What hurts, honey?" Kerry asked, concerned. Grace loosened her grip on Squirt, and tried to scoot up a little in her bed. She looked to Carter for support. From the foot of her bed, he nodded encouragingly.
"My tummy hurts, and my back, and my head a little," she said to Kerry. Kerry sat down on the stool next to the bed and leaned forward.
"Yes, we had to open up your tummy to fix some things that were hurt in the accident, so that will hurt for a little while." She explained. Grace listened to what she had to say, growing more comfortable with Kerry's presence.
"Yes, Dr. Carter said that my spleen was fractured," she said to Kerry. "My leg is broken, too."
"Yes, but your leg isn't broken badly, so it should heal well." Grace nodded at this news.
"That's good," She said to Kerry, looking at Carter happily, as if to say, 'I'm not scared anymore.' Kerry looked at Carter, and turned back to the child, pausing for a moment.
"Grace," she began carefully, "do you know where you are?"
"Yes," she answered. "I am at the hospital."
"Do you know what city you are in?" Kerry asked.
"Chicago," Grace told her, frowning slightly. She shifted slightly in her bed.
"And which state is Chicago located in?"
"Illinois," Grace said, holding her octopus closer. Her eyes flicked to Carter, and he detected a bit of apprehension in them.
"That's right, you are a smart girl," Kerry said, sensing the tension and trying to ease it. Her attempt didn't succeed. Grace looked away, out the window. She said nothing. Carter moved closer to Kerry.
"What are you trying to get at?" Carter whispered in her ear. Kerry swept a lock of her hair behind her ear.
"She needs to know that she can't stay here forever. She needs to go back, it's law," Kerry told Carter in a very low voice. Grace's head snapped back toward them.
She had heard. Carter straightened up suddenly, moving slightly away from Kerry, expecting the child to lash out. She didn't.
"I-I have to go back?" she asked, her voice remarkably calm, containing a note of sadness. She bit her bottom lip lightly. Kerry sighed under her breath and sat up straight in the stool.
"Well, eventually, yes. You are a very long way from home, and your foster parents don't know where you are," Kerry told her.
"They aren't supposed to know," Grace retorted, "That's the whole point of running away without telling them where I am going." Carter gave a short laugh under his breath. The girl certainly wasn't stupid.
"I'm sure that they miss you very much," Kerry reasoned with her, but Grace shook her head sadly.
"They don't," she said. "They are nice people, but it's not the same." Kerry scooted the stool closer to the child's bedside. Carter moved around to the left side of the bed, where there was another chair for visitors, and he sat down. This could turn into a long conversation.
"Not the same as what, honey?" Kerry asked her gently, leaning in closer. Grace lowered her head, staring at her hands. She gave a short shrug of her shoulders.
"It's not the same as it used to be, with my grandma. It was just her and me, and she loved me very much, almost as much as my mother did. But now, there are three other children in the foster house." Carter and Kerry exchanged looks. Carter gave a small nod at Grace.
"You don't have to leave right away," he began. "Not until you get better and can get out of the hospital on your own," He finished. Grace looked at him with comprehension. She fiddled with the octopus' stuffed tentacles.
"How long will that be?" Grace questioned him, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. Carter gave a sort of unsure half-shrug, half-headshake.
"I don't know, maybe two weeks," he told her. Grace didn't have a visible reaction to this news.
"So I have two weeks, then," she said hopefully. Kerry broke in.
"Yes, but we have to call the S.C.C.S. to tell them when you are better, and they will send someone to come and get you and take you back to Ohio." Carter gave Kerry a somewhat questioning look.
"S.C.C.S.?" He asked. Kerry nodded.
"Summit County --"
"Child's Services," Grace finished. Kerry nodded.
"You know," she said comfortingly, "It really is the best thing for you right now, Grace." The little girl, however, shook her head.
"No it isn't." She told Kerry. She looked between Carter and Kerry. "The best thing would be living with my father." Kerry sighed.
"Yes, you're right, but since you don't know your father's name, the chances of finding him aren't great, especially since you don't know where he is now."
"He's in Chicago!" Grace exclaimed, but Kerry shook her head.
"He worked in Chicago the same time that your mother did. He could have moved far away by now." Kerry told her this with a light heart, but it was progressively getting heavier.
Grace looked like she was near tears. She lowered her head and sniffled, clutching Squirt in her hands, as if desperately. Carter could tell that some of the reality of the situation was sinking into her young mind.
"But he's out there," she said in a small voice, her words quivering. Carter bit his bottom lip. This poor girl would probably never find a family, but she still had so much hope. Kerry smiled sadly at Grace. She touched the child's hand reassuringly.
"I promise that I will do everything in my power to find your father, okay sweetie?" Grace lifted her head and wiped away her tears. She looked at Carter, as if for a confirmation that Kerry's promise was real. Carter nodded reassuringly, and Grace turned back to Kerry.
"Thank you, Dr. Weaver." Kerry stood and nodded, then, gripping her crutch, and walking quickly out of the door. Grace sighed and lay back against her pillow. Carter scooted his chair closer to her bedside. The two of them sat in silence for a moment.
"So now what?" Grace asked Carter, a note of uncertainty in her voice. She turned her head to look at him. Carter gave her a small smile.
"Now you get to hang out here for a while," he said. Grace lightly bit her lower lip and gave a small nod.
"Okay," she said. Carter smiled at her, glad that she wasn't too upset about having to leave. Secretly, he was also glad that she would stay for a while longer.
As they sat in the midst of another silent spell, the quiet was broken as the door to the room opened. A nurse walked into the room, clipboard in hand. She was a jolly-looking nurse, with short, curly golden-blonde hair and a full figure. She smiled at Grace when she walked into the room.
"Good morning, Miss Grace," she said cheerily. Shadows of frown lines appeared on the childs face, as if she was unsure why this nurse was being so kind and jolly.
"Good morning," she replied politely. The nurse approached her bedside with the clipboard.
"My name is Lorraine, and I am going to be your daytime nurse," the woman said. "I'm also going to make sure that you get breakfast, lunch, and dinner each day."
"Okay," Grace nodded. Lorraine smiled again and nodded. She handed her clipboard to Grace. Carter leaned over to look at it. The sheet of paper attached to the clipboard looked like a sort of menu.
"This is an order form for your meals," Nurse Lorraine explained to Grace, indicating the paper on the clipboard. She handed Grace a pen from the counter behind her. "All you have to do," she continued, "is check the boxes next to each thing that you want. You get two options for most of the meals, main dish and fruit or vegetable. You also get to choose your drink."
"Okay," Grace said. She straightened up as much as she could without sitting, and held the pen in her hand, staring at the menu.
"I'll be back soon to pick that up, but I need to go see another patient quickly, okay?" the nurse said. Grace nodded, and the nurse left the room.
Carter watched as the child took the pen between her fingers and stared intently at the meal options. She held the clipboard in her left hand and the pen in her right. It was a very difficult position to write in, but she tried. After a moment of watching her struggle, Carter broke in.
"Do you want me to help you?" Grace shook her head.
"I can do it," she said, determined. After a moment, however, it became too much for her to try to do at once. Carter smiled as she reluctantly handed over the clipboard to him. She seemed not to like the interdependence.
"Can you read?" Carter asked her, taking the pen from her.
"Of course I can read!" she said, "I just can't do this laying down." Carter nodded.
"Well then," he said, setting the board on his knee, "Breakfast: choose two of the following: pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash browns, or sausage" he asked, reading Grace the options off of the paper.
"Pancakes and eggs," she said. Carter circled the items on the menu.
"Good choice," he said. "Do you prefer apple juice or orange juice?"
"Orange juice."
"Okay, on to lunch," Carter began. He helped the child go through the day's food choices, and soon Nurse Lorraine came back to collect the menu. As she was taking the clipboard from him, Carter's pager went off. Sure enough, it was the ER, calling him back to his work.
"What's that?" Grace asked, curiously. Carter cleared the page and clipped the device back onto his belt loop. He rose from his seat.
"That's my pager," he told her.
"Are you leaving?"
"I have to get back downstairs so that I can help some other people get better," he said. "I have to do my job."
"Will you come back to visit later?" Grace asked him hopefully. Carter smiled at her.
"Of course I will. I will come back as soon as I finish my shift." Grace smiled.
"Okay, see you soon," she said. Carter looked back at her quickly before turning and making his way back down to the Emergency Department.
"Hey, Carter, we've got multiple traumas coming in, where were you?" Susan asked him. He had no sooner gotten off of the elevator when Susan had accosted him.
"Checking up on a patient," Carter said as he grabbed a yellow gown and tied it on, going out with Susan to the ambulance [AN-if anybody knows what those things are called, please tell me]. "What happened?"
"Couple of thugs tried to rob a drugstore at gunpoint, cops got involved, store owner, a cop, and both robbers took bullets," she said as the first ambulance pulled up.
"Great," Carter said. "Bring it on."
******************
"Hey Carter." Carter turned from the patient chart he was filling out.
"Oh, hey Abby, what's up?" Abby stood in the doorway, arms crossed over her chest. Carter signed the chart and gave it to the nurse standing by.
"Could I speak to you for a moment?"
"Sure," he said. He turned to the elderly woman sitting on the gurney. "Mrs. Zeloc, would you excuse me for a moment?" The woman nodded, and Carter left the room. In the hallway, he put the pen into the pocket of his lab coat. "What is it?"
"Well, I've been thinking," she began, but stopped abruptly.
"That's a change," Carter chuckled.
"Hey!" Abby exclaimed, taking a playful swipe at Carter's head. He moved it just in time.
"So what is it, really?"
"Well," Abby said, leaning against the wall, arms crossed again. "I want to go visit your patient, Lucy's kid."
"Okay," Carter began. "Can I ask why?" Abby shrugged.
"Curiosity. I liked Lucy, and I feel kind of bad about missing her photo when I went through the girl's things. But I want to go up and visit her." Carter nodded.
"So why are you asking me?" he asked, curious. If she wanted to see Grace, she could have gone herself.
"Because I don't really want to go alone, and since you're her doctor..." Abby's voice trailed off. Carter looked at her, reading the begging look in her eyes. He exhaled quickly.
"All right, all right," he said. Abby smiled.
"Thanks, Carter, you're the best," she said. "What time are you off?" Carter glanced at the clock. It was 5:45.
"Another 15 minutes, and I'll be good to go," he told her. Abby nodded.
"Okay, then. I was off at 5:00, so I'll just wait for you in the lounge or something."
"That's fine," he said. "See you in 15." With that, he pushed open the door to Exam 2. "Okay, how are you doing?" he asked the woman, ears open to her complaints.
Fifteen minutes later, Carter handed off his patients and headed for the lounge. He clocked out, pulled off his white coat and grabbed his jacket. Abby had already changed into her normal clothes, and was waiting for him in the lounge.
"Ready to go?" he asked her, opening the lounge door for her, allowing her to slip past him.
"Yep," she said, leading the way to the elevators. They rode to the fifth floor, and went down the hall to the room. Carter stopped in front of the door before going in.
"What?" Abby asked, slightly confused. Carter let out a small sigh.
"She's a little bit scared of new people," he told her. Abby nodded.
"I won't bite, I promise," she said, jokingly. "Don't worry," she assured him. Carter opened the door to the room, walking in.
He saw that the second space in the room was occupied, another bed filling in the empty space that had been there that morning. In the bed slept another girl, about eight or nine years old, with mousy light-brown hair.
"Hi, Dr. Carter," came a cheerful voice from the first bed. He looked over to see Grace, smiling at him. He walked over to her bedside.
"Hello, Miss Knight," he greeted her. "How are you this evening?"
"I'm feeling better," she told him. She looked better as well. Her cheeks had more color in them, and her bed had been propped up so that she was in a sitting position.
"You're sitting up," Carter observed. Grace nodded.
"Nurse Lorraine said that she didn't see any harm in it. She said that it was okay as long as I wasn't straining my stomach muscles." She said this happily. Grace glanced over at Abby, who still lingered over the foot of her bed. "Hello," she said to Abby, giving her a small smile.
"Grace, this is Abby. She's a nurse in the Emergency Room." Grace nodded slowly.
"Oh," she said. "It's nice to meet you."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, too," Abby said, moving closer to Grace and reaching out her hand. The child shook it.
"So what have you been up to all day?" Carter asked. She shrugged.
"I watched a movie. Nurse Lorraine brought the Lion King from the playroom and let me watch it in here. After the movie ended, they brought Amanda in," she gestured to the girl in the other bed.
"Is she a nice girl?" Abby asked. Grace shrugged.
"I don't know, she's been asleep ever since they brought her in. She had surgery and she hasn't woken up yet." Carter nodded.
"Oh, yes, you were like that after your surgery, too," he told her. She frowned a little.
"Maybe, but at least I was asleep at night, not during the day!" Grace suddenly noticed that Carter wasn't wearing his lab coat. "Hey, where's your white coat?" Carter chuckled.
"It's downstairs. I only wear that when I work. I'm off work now."
"Then how come you're up here with me?" Abby and Carter exchanged glances.
"I wanted to come see you, and I asked Dr. Carter to come with me," Abby said quickly.
"Okay," the girl said. "I like having people to talk to. Amanda's parents have been here nearly all day, but nobody but the nurse comes to visit me," Grace smiled.
"Well, we've come to see you," Carter told her, touching her shoulder. Grace looked up at him, grinning.
"Thank you," she said genuinely. "I've been bored all day, except for when you came to visit me earlier." Carter smiled back at her. It was hard not to: Grace's smile was contagious. There was a pause for a moment. Abby looked around at the sleeping girl, Amanda, in the bed across the room.
"Where are her parents now?" Abby asked. Grace shrugged.
"I think that her dad is at work, and her mom went down to the gift shop to find some Get Well balloons." Abby nodded. She glanced around the room, and noticed something on a table under the television.
"Hey, Grace, would you like to play a game?" she asked as she picked up the box off of the table. The child's face lit up.
"I would like that very much," she said, grinning from ear-to-ear. Carter read the box.
"Do you like Chutes and Ladders?" he asked as Abby sat in the chair on the left side of her bed and set the game out on Grace's lap table.
"Yes," she said. She looked at Abby, then at Carter. "Aren't you playing too, Dr. Carter?" she asked hopefully. Carter thought for a moment.
"Well," he said, "I don't know--"
"Party pooper," Abby said, a smile playing at her lips. Carter snorted softly at her, then took a seat.
"Good," Grace said. The box was opened, and the board set out. "Choose a piece," she told them. "I'm going to be this one, 'cause she sort of looks like me," she said as she held up a small cardboard cutout playing piece resembling a blonde-haired girl.
"I'll take this one," Abby chose a girl with red hair and freckles. Carter selected a boy with brown hair, and they began to play the game.
"I like this game," Grace said as she rolled the dice and landed on a ladder.
"Do you play a lot?" Carter asked.
"Not this game, I've only placed once or twice, while I was staying over a friend's house." Abby's turn to move.
"What kinds of games do you like to play?" she asked, advancing her piece.
"I really like card games and mind games."
"Mind games?"
"Yeah, like checkers and Chinese checkers and Stratego, and that stuff," Carter rolled the dice and listened to her.
"So what sorts of card games do you play?"
"Ummm....let's see...I know Go Fish, Crazy Eights, Egyptian Corkscrew, Speed, War, and Water Sharks," she said, taking her turn again.
"Oh, I love Egyptian Corkscrew and Speed, they are my favorites," Abby said. Grace smiled at her.
"Maybe we can play sometime. I will be here for two weeks, after all." They continued to play the game and chat about nothing in particular. After about 10 minutes, the door to the room swung open.
A woman stood there, maybe in her mid-thirties. She was petite, and had short, light-brown hair and rather high cheekbones. She carried some brightly colored balloons in her hand, and stopped at the sight of them.
"Oh, hello there," she said. Her gaze jumped from Grace to Carter to Abby and back again.
"Hello," Carter said to the woman.
"I'm Mary Boatsman, Amanda's mother," she said, crossing the room to set the balloons on her daughter's bedside table. Amanda continued to sleep soundly.
"John Carter," he said, giving her a friendly smile. Mary stood, looking at the three of them. Abby had landed at the top of a long chute, and was complaining about moving back, trying to cheat her way out of the fate. Grace was laughing, insisting that she was cheating, while Abby denied it, unable to keep a straight face. They laughed, and Carter watched them, chuckling at the sight of the two of them joking around. Mary watched them too.
"What a cute family," she said, looking at them. Carter, the only one really paying attention, looked at her with slight confusion.
"No, no, we aren't her parents. I'm her doctor, that's her nurse," he explained. Well, one of her nurses.
"Dr. Carter, it's your turn," Grace said, eyes sparkling from laughter.
"Come on, Carter, you're holding up the game," Abby smiled, turning to him. Mary smiled at him and turned, crossing the room again to sit at her daughter's bedside.
"I'm coming, I'm coming." Carter sat down again in his stool and took the dice into his hands.
************************************************8
So that's all for chapter nine! Keep watching for updates on the weekends, I work the most on Fridays and Saturdays when I don't have to worry about schoolwork.
Time for READER SHOUT-OUTS!!!!! I'd like to thank:
MeliGurlJo for being a wonderful loyal reader and reviewer! I'd like to say, too, that if you e-mail me a name, age, and description, I will gladly create a patient or other character in your honor. Callista Rose, Mac Abbott, and Lucy917 for reading and for reviewing!
That's all for now. Stick around for chapter 10!
Snapdragon
Anyway, sorry for the delay. I know that some readers actually have been coming back to read the other stuff that I wrote.
I'm actually working on another story, when I'm not writing for this one. It's about what might happen if Lucy had lived...don't know if that would work, so for now I am sticking with this AU thing.
******************************************************8
SAVING GRACE—CHAPTER NINE
******************************************************8
Dr. Weaver took a few deep, steadying breaths at the back of the room. Carter closed the door and stepped forward. Kerry followed him.
"You're back," Grace said. "That was fast," she said as she smiled at Carter. He smiled back.
"Yep, I am. I want to introduce you to a friend of mine, Grace," Carter began as Kerry stepped forward. She smiled gently at the child.
"Hello," she said, moving closer to the child lying in the bed. Grace didn't smile back, instead, Carter could see her muscles contract in defense. She was getting nervous. Carter put his hand on Kerry's shoulder, gently pushing her back slightly. He gave her a warning glance, flashing his eyes towards the child, who was growing anxious. Kerry nodded, slightly disappointed. Carter pulled the stool up to her bedside and sat on it.
"It's all right, Grace," Carter said in what he thought was a soothing voice. It worked on her. She shot a frightened glance at Kerry. "She is my friend. I promise that I would never let anyone come to see you who would hurt you, okay?" Grace hesitated a little.
"Okay," she whispered, hugging her octopus to her chest, as if for protection. Carter stood up again, letting Kerry move forward cautiously.
"This is Dr. Weaver," Carter told the child as Kerry approached her bedside. Grace looked at Kerry for a moment, and then gave her a tiny smile. Kerry returned the gesture.
"Hi, sweetie, how are you feeling?" Kerry asked in a calm voice. With her perceived threat gone, the little girl softened up to her new visitor.
"I am okay," she said quietly. "It still hurts, though."
"What hurts, honey?" Kerry asked, concerned. Grace loosened her grip on Squirt, and tried to scoot up a little in her bed. She looked to Carter for support. From the foot of her bed, he nodded encouragingly.
"My tummy hurts, and my back, and my head a little," she said to Kerry. Kerry sat down on the stool next to the bed and leaned forward.
"Yes, we had to open up your tummy to fix some things that were hurt in the accident, so that will hurt for a little while." She explained. Grace listened to what she had to say, growing more comfortable with Kerry's presence.
"Yes, Dr. Carter said that my spleen was fractured," she said to Kerry. "My leg is broken, too."
"Yes, but your leg isn't broken badly, so it should heal well." Grace nodded at this news.
"That's good," She said to Kerry, looking at Carter happily, as if to say, 'I'm not scared anymore.' Kerry looked at Carter, and turned back to the child, pausing for a moment.
"Grace," she began carefully, "do you know where you are?"
"Yes," she answered. "I am at the hospital."
"Do you know what city you are in?" Kerry asked.
"Chicago," Grace told her, frowning slightly. She shifted slightly in her bed.
"And which state is Chicago located in?"
"Illinois," Grace said, holding her octopus closer. Her eyes flicked to Carter, and he detected a bit of apprehension in them.
"That's right, you are a smart girl," Kerry said, sensing the tension and trying to ease it. Her attempt didn't succeed. Grace looked away, out the window. She said nothing. Carter moved closer to Kerry.
"What are you trying to get at?" Carter whispered in her ear. Kerry swept a lock of her hair behind her ear.
"She needs to know that she can't stay here forever. She needs to go back, it's law," Kerry told Carter in a very low voice. Grace's head snapped back toward them.
She had heard. Carter straightened up suddenly, moving slightly away from Kerry, expecting the child to lash out. She didn't.
"I-I have to go back?" she asked, her voice remarkably calm, containing a note of sadness. She bit her bottom lip lightly. Kerry sighed under her breath and sat up straight in the stool.
"Well, eventually, yes. You are a very long way from home, and your foster parents don't know where you are," Kerry told her.
"They aren't supposed to know," Grace retorted, "That's the whole point of running away without telling them where I am going." Carter gave a short laugh under his breath. The girl certainly wasn't stupid.
"I'm sure that they miss you very much," Kerry reasoned with her, but Grace shook her head sadly.
"They don't," she said. "They are nice people, but it's not the same." Kerry scooted the stool closer to the child's bedside. Carter moved around to the left side of the bed, where there was another chair for visitors, and he sat down. This could turn into a long conversation.
"Not the same as what, honey?" Kerry asked her gently, leaning in closer. Grace lowered her head, staring at her hands. She gave a short shrug of her shoulders.
"It's not the same as it used to be, with my grandma. It was just her and me, and she loved me very much, almost as much as my mother did. But now, there are three other children in the foster house." Carter and Kerry exchanged looks. Carter gave a small nod at Grace.
"You don't have to leave right away," he began. "Not until you get better and can get out of the hospital on your own," He finished. Grace looked at him with comprehension. She fiddled with the octopus' stuffed tentacles.
"How long will that be?" Grace questioned him, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. Carter gave a sort of unsure half-shrug, half-headshake.
"I don't know, maybe two weeks," he told her. Grace didn't have a visible reaction to this news.
"So I have two weeks, then," she said hopefully. Kerry broke in.
"Yes, but we have to call the S.C.C.S. to tell them when you are better, and they will send someone to come and get you and take you back to Ohio." Carter gave Kerry a somewhat questioning look.
"S.C.C.S.?" He asked. Kerry nodded.
"Summit County --"
"Child's Services," Grace finished. Kerry nodded.
"You know," she said comfortingly, "It really is the best thing for you right now, Grace." The little girl, however, shook her head.
"No it isn't." She told Kerry. She looked between Carter and Kerry. "The best thing would be living with my father." Kerry sighed.
"Yes, you're right, but since you don't know your father's name, the chances of finding him aren't great, especially since you don't know where he is now."
"He's in Chicago!" Grace exclaimed, but Kerry shook her head.
"He worked in Chicago the same time that your mother did. He could have moved far away by now." Kerry told her this with a light heart, but it was progressively getting heavier.
Grace looked like she was near tears. She lowered her head and sniffled, clutching Squirt in her hands, as if desperately. Carter could tell that some of the reality of the situation was sinking into her young mind.
"But he's out there," she said in a small voice, her words quivering. Carter bit his bottom lip. This poor girl would probably never find a family, but she still had so much hope. Kerry smiled sadly at Grace. She touched the child's hand reassuringly.
"I promise that I will do everything in my power to find your father, okay sweetie?" Grace lifted her head and wiped away her tears. She looked at Carter, as if for a confirmation that Kerry's promise was real. Carter nodded reassuringly, and Grace turned back to Kerry.
"Thank you, Dr. Weaver." Kerry stood and nodded, then, gripping her crutch, and walking quickly out of the door. Grace sighed and lay back against her pillow. Carter scooted his chair closer to her bedside. The two of them sat in silence for a moment.
"So now what?" Grace asked Carter, a note of uncertainty in her voice. She turned her head to look at him. Carter gave her a small smile.
"Now you get to hang out here for a while," he said. Grace lightly bit her lower lip and gave a small nod.
"Okay," she said. Carter smiled at her, glad that she wasn't too upset about having to leave. Secretly, he was also glad that she would stay for a while longer.
As they sat in the midst of another silent spell, the quiet was broken as the door to the room opened. A nurse walked into the room, clipboard in hand. She was a jolly-looking nurse, with short, curly golden-blonde hair and a full figure. She smiled at Grace when she walked into the room.
"Good morning, Miss Grace," she said cheerily. Shadows of frown lines appeared on the childs face, as if she was unsure why this nurse was being so kind and jolly.
"Good morning," she replied politely. The nurse approached her bedside with the clipboard.
"My name is Lorraine, and I am going to be your daytime nurse," the woman said. "I'm also going to make sure that you get breakfast, lunch, and dinner each day."
"Okay," Grace nodded. Lorraine smiled again and nodded. She handed her clipboard to Grace. Carter leaned over to look at it. The sheet of paper attached to the clipboard looked like a sort of menu.
"This is an order form for your meals," Nurse Lorraine explained to Grace, indicating the paper on the clipboard. She handed Grace a pen from the counter behind her. "All you have to do," she continued, "is check the boxes next to each thing that you want. You get two options for most of the meals, main dish and fruit or vegetable. You also get to choose your drink."
"Okay," Grace said. She straightened up as much as she could without sitting, and held the pen in her hand, staring at the menu.
"I'll be back soon to pick that up, but I need to go see another patient quickly, okay?" the nurse said. Grace nodded, and the nurse left the room.
Carter watched as the child took the pen between her fingers and stared intently at the meal options. She held the clipboard in her left hand and the pen in her right. It was a very difficult position to write in, but she tried. After a moment of watching her struggle, Carter broke in.
"Do you want me to help you?" Grace shook her head.
"I can do it," she said, determined. After a moment, however, it became too much for her to try to do at once. Carter smiled as she reluctantly handed over the clipboard to him. She seemed not to like the interdependence.
"Can you read?" Carter asked her, taking the pen from her.
"Of course I can read!" she said, "I just can't do this laying down." Carter nodded.
"Well then," he said, setting the board on his knee, "Breakfast: choose two of the following: pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash browns, or sausage" he asked, reading Grace the options off of the paper.
"Pancakes and eggs," she said. Carter circled the items on the menu.
"Good choice," he said. "Do you prefer apple juice or orange juice?"
"Orange juice."
"Okay, on to lunch," Carter began. He helped the child go through the day's food choices, and soon Nurse Lorraine came back to collect the menu. As she was taking the clipboard from him, Carter's pager went off. Sure enough, it was the ER, calling him back to his work.
"What's that?" Grace asked, curiously. Carter cleared the page and clipped the device back onto his belt loop. He rose from his seat.
"That's my pager," he told her.
"Are you leaving?"
"I have to get back downstairs so that I can help some other people get better," he said. "I have to do my job."
"Will you come back to visit later?" Grace asked him hopefully. Carter smiled at her.
"Of course I will. I will come back as soon as I finish my shift." Grace smiled.
"Okay, see you soon," she said. Carter looked back at her quickly before turning and making his way back down to the Emergency Department.
"Hey, Carter, we've got multiple traumas coming in, where were you?" Susan asked him. He had no sooner gotten off of the elevator when Susan had accosted him.
"Checking up on a patient," Carter said as he grabbed a yellow gown and tied it on, going out with Susan to the ambulance [AN-if anybody knows what those things are called, please tell me]. "What happened?"
"Couple of thugs tried to rob a drugstore at gunpoint, cops got involved, store owner, a cop, and both robbers took bullets," she said as the first ambulance pulled up.
"Great," Carter said. "Bring it on."
******************
"Hey Carter." Carter turned from the patient chart he was filling out.
"Oh, hey Abby, what's up?" Abby stood in the doorway, arms crossed over her chest. Carter signed the chart and gave it to the nurse standing by.
"Could I speak to you for a moment?"
"Sure," he said. He turned to the elderly woman sitting on the gurney. "Mrs. Zeloc, would you excuse me for a moment?" The woman nodded, and Carter left the room. In the hallway, he put the pen into the pocket of his lab coat. "What is it?"
"Well, I've been thinking," she began, but stopped abruptly.
"That's a change," Carter chuckled.
"Hey!" Abby exclaimed, taking a playful swipe at Carter's head. He moved it just in time.
"So what is it, really?"
"Well," Abby said, leaning against the wall, arms crossed again. "I want to go visit your patient, Lucy's kid."
"Okay," Carter began. "Can I ask why?" Abby shrugged.
"Curiosity. I liked Lucy, and I feel kind of bad about missing her photo when I went through the girl's things. But I want to go up and visit her." Carter nodded.
"So why are you asking me?" he asked, curious. If she wanted to see Grace, she could have gone herself.
"Because I don't really want to go alone, and since you're her doctor..." Abby's voice trailed off. Carter looked at her, reading the begging look in her eyes. He exhaled quickly.
"All right, all right," he said. Abby smiled.
"Thanks, Carter, you're the best," she said. "What time are you off?" Carter glanced at the clock. It was 5:45.
"Another 15 minutes, and I'll be good to go," he told her. Abby nodded.
"Okay, then. I was off at 5:00, so I'll just wait for you in the lounge or something."
"That's fine," he said. "See you in 15." With that, he pushed open the door to Exam 2. "Okay, how are you doing?" he asked the woman, ears open to her complaints.
Fifteen minutes later, Carter handed off his patients and headed for the lounge. He clocked out, pulled off his white coat and grabbed his jacket. Abby had already changed into her normal clothes, and was waiting for him in the lounge.
"Ready to go?" he asked her, opening the lounge door for her, allowing her to slip past him.
"Yep," she said, leading the way to the elevators. They rode to the fifth floor, and went down the hall to the room. Carter stopped in front of the door before going in.
"What?" Abby asked, slightly confused. Carter let out a small sigh.
"She's a little bit scared of new people," he told her. Abby nodded.
"I won't bite, I promise," she said, jokingly. "Don't worry," she assured him. Carter opened the door to the room, walking in.
He saw that the second space in the room was occupied, another bed filling in the empty space that had been there that morning. In the bed slept another girl, about eight or nine years old, with mousy light-brown hair.
"Hi, Dr. Carter," came a cheerful voice from the first bed. He looked over to see Grace, smiling at him. He walked over to her bedside.
"Hello, Miss Knight," he greeted her. "How are you this evening?"
"I'm feeling better," she told him. She looked better as well. Her cheeks had more color in them, and her bed had been propped up so that she was in a sitting position.
"You're sitting up," Carter observed. Grace nodded.
"Nurse Lorraine said that she didn't see any harm in it. She said that it was okay as long as I wasn't straining my stomach muscles." She said this happily. Grace glanced over at Abby, who still lingered over the foot of her bed. "Hello," she said to Abby, giving her a small smile.
"Grace, this is Abby. She's a nurse in the Emergency Room." Grace nodded slowly.
"Oh," she said. "It's nice to meet you."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, too," Abby said, moving closer to Grace and reaching out her hand. The child shook it.
"So what have you been up to all day?" Carter asked. She shrugged.
"I watched a movie. Nurse Lorraine brought the Lion King from the playroom and let me watch it in here. After the movie ended, they brought Amanda in," she gestured to the girl in the other bed.
"Is she a nice girl?" Abby asked. Grace shrugged.
"I don't know, she's been asleep ever since they brought her in. She had surgery and she hasn't woken up yet." Carter nodded.
"Oh, yes, you were like that after your surgery, too," he told her. She frowned a little.
"Maybe, but at least I was asleep at night, not during the day!" Grace suddenly noticed that Carter wasn't wearing his lab coat. "Hey, where's your white coat?" Carter chuckled.
"It's downstairs. I only wear that when I work. I'm off work now."
"Then how come you're up here with me?" Abby and Carter exchanged glances.
"I wanted to come see you, and I asked Dr. Carter to come with me," Abby said quickly.
"Okay," the girl said. "I like having people to talk to. Amanda's parents have been here nearly all day, but nobody but the nurse comes to visit me," Grace smiled.
"Well, we've come to see you," Carter told her, touching her shoulder. Grace looked up at him, grinning.
"Thank you," she said genuinely. "I've been bored all day, except for when you came to visit me earlier." Carter smiled back at her. It was hard not to: Grace's smile was contagious. There was a pause for a moment. Abby looked around at the sleeping girl, Amanda, in the bed across the room.
"Where are her parents now?" Abby asked. Grace shrugged.
"I think that her dad is at work, and her mom went down to the gift shop to find some Get Well balloons." Abby nodded. She glanced around the room, and noticed something on a table under the television.
"Hey, Grace, would you like to play a game?" she asked as she picked up the box off of the table. The child's face lit up.
"I would like that very much," she said, grinning from ear-to-ear. Carter read the box.
"Do you like Chutes and Ladders?" he asked as Abby sat in the chair on the left side of her bed and set the game out on Grace's lap table.
"Yes," she said. She looked at Abby, then at Carter. "Aren't you playing too, Dr. Carter?" she asked hopefully. Carter thought for a moment.
"Well," he said, "I don't know--"
"Party pooper," Abby said, a smile playing at her lips. Carter snorted softly at her, then took a seat.
"Good," Grace said. The box was opened, and the board set out. "Choose a piece," she told them. "I'm going to be this one, 'cause she sort of looks like me," she said as she held up a small cardboard cutout playing piece resembling a blonde-haired girl.
"I'll take this one," Abby chose a girl with red hair and freckles. Carter selected a boy with brown hair, and they began to play the game.
"I like this game," Grace said as she rolled the dice and landed on a ladder.
"Do you play a lot?" Carter asked.
"Not this game, I've only placed once or twice, while I was staying over a friend's house." Abby's turn to move.
"What kinds of games do you like to play?" she asked, advancing her piece.
"I really like card games and mind games."
"Mind games?"
"Yeah, like checkers and Chinese checkers and Stratego, and that stuff," Carter rolled the dice and listened to her.
"So what sorts of card games do you play?"
"Ummm....let's see...I know Go Fish, Crazy Eights, Egyptian Corkscrew, Speed, War, and Water Sharks," she said, taking her turn again.
"Oh, I love Egyptian Corkscrew and Speed, they are my favorites," Abby said. Grace smiled at her.
"Maybe we can play sometime. I will be here for two weeks, after all." They continued to play the game and chat about nothing in particular. After about 10 minutes, the door to the room swung open.
A woman stood there, maybe in her mid-thirties. She was petite, and had short, light-brown hair and rather high cheekbones. She carried some brightly colored balloons in her hand, and stopped at the sight of them.
"Oh, hello there," she said. Her gaze jumped from Grace to Carter to Abby and back again.
"Hello," Carter said to the woman.
"I'm Mary Boatsman, Amanda's mother," she said, crossing the room to set the balloons on her daughter's bedside table. Amanda continued to sleep soundly.
"John Carter," he said, giving her a friendly smile. Mary stood, looking at the three of them. Abby had landed at the top of a long chute, and was complaining about moving back, trying to cheat her way out of the fate. Grace was laughing, insisting that she was cheating, while Abby denied it, unable to keep a straight face. They laughed, and Carter watched them, chuckling at the sight of the two of them joking around. Mary watched them too.
"What a cute family," she said, looking at them. Carter, the only one really paying attention, looked at her with slight confusion.
"No, no, we aren't her parents. I'm her doctor, that's her nurse," he explained. Well, one of her nurses.
"Dr. Carter, it's your turn," Grace said, eyes sparkling from laughter.
"Come on, Carter, you're holding up the game," Abby smiled, turning to him. Mary smiled at him and turned, crossing the room again to sit at her daughter's bedside.
"I'm coming, I'm coming." Carter sat down again in his stool and took the dice into his hands.
************************************************8
So that's all for chapter nine! Keep watching for updates on the weekends, I work the most on Fridays and Saturdays when I don't have to worry about schoolwork.
Time for READER SHOUT-OUTS!!!!! I'd like to thank:
MeliGurlJo for being a wonderful loyal reader and reviewer! I'd like to say, too, that if you e-mail me a name, age, and description, I will gladly create a patient or other character in your honor. Callista Rose, Mac Abbott, and Lucy917 for reading and for reviewing!
That's all for now. Stick around for chapter 10!
Snapdragon