This is the first piece of a new Mark and Elizabeth series, set in the year 2018. There are virtually no spoilers since I changed a lot from what happened on the show. For the purposes of this series, you need to know the following:
Mark and Elizabeth got together in the Spring of 1998 and she never had a relationship with Benton. They married in May of 2000 and have two children. Joshua David was born in March 2001 and is currently in his junior year in high school. He plays baseball for his high-school team. Rebecca Isabelle was born in September 2004 and is in the eighth grade. Mark is Chief of Staff at County Stephanie is Mark's secretary in this new position. Elizabeth is Chief of Surgery, a position she accepted once she returned to full-time status when both children started school. She had offers at other hospitals to become Chief of Staff but preferred to retain her position at County as she is happy there and knew she would prefer to be in the OR than be constantly buried behind a wall of paperwork. The house they currently live in is not the house they bought in Sand and Water, hope this clears up some confusion about the layout. Mark and Elizabeth's bedroom is on the second floor while Josh and Rebecca's are downstairs.
Doug and Carol have been together since Spring of 1997. There was no Greg Powell and no Ricky Abbott to cause problems in their relationships. They married in December 1998 and had Kate and Tess in November of 1999. Doug got an offer to head the new County Pedes Clinic that opened in May of 2004 so he is there as director. Carol is a head nurse there. However, since the clinic is also affiliated with County they are often at the hospital. Doug has privileges there and Carol takes shifts in the ER if coverage is needed.
As for some of the other characters: Kerry moved away from Chicago to take a position as Chief of Staff in a Florida hospital. Jing-Mei is Chief of Emergency Medicine, while Carter, and Malucci are ER attendings. Benton is still a surgeon at County, having turned down offers elsewhere to stay close to Reese. Other characters will not be receiving much of a mention in this story, so they can be wherever you think would end up after leaving County or in whatever positions I have not mentioned.
Thanks goes to Lori and Jo for reading through early versions and letting me bounce ideas off them. Please e-mail me with any questions or comments that you may have.
Note: This is probably rated PG-13 for sexual references, but there is no sex.
I do not own any of the characters and make no money from their use.
March 2018
After what felt like forever working on the budget, Mark looked at his watch and saw that it was 10:30 PM. "There is nothing here that can't wait until tomorrow," he thought, shutting down the computer in his study. While he was on a conference call earlier, Elizabeth had come into the study and written a note saying she was going to lie down. Mark went down the hall to their bedroom to see if she wanted tea and saw that the room was totally dark.
Quietly, he went downstairs to say goodnight to Josh and Rebecca. He knocked softly on Josh's door, which was partially closed and heard, "Come in."
Mark saw that Josh was lying on his bed studying. "What test do you have?"
"European History, the unit on the Constitutional Monarchy."
"So mom gave you all the help you needed?"
"Yeah," Josh said with a laugh. "She knows a ton about that."
"Think about how much you've studied about the American Presidency."
"True, but I don't think I know that much," Josh said, laughing.
"Do you have practice tomorrow?"
"Yes, but we have a half day of school so practice is from 1-3 so I won't be home late."
"I didn't remember that you had a half day. I'm on until 5 and mom is on until 7 so make a snack when you get home and we'll have dinner when mom gets home."
"OK, see you tomorrow."
"Good night. Good luck with your test."
"Thanks."
Mark closed the door again and headed down the hall to Rebecca's room. He knocked, heard her say "Hold on." A few seconds later she added, "Come in."
Mark opened the door and saw that she was on the phone. "What's the rule about using the phone on a school night?" he asked.
"I know dad, I'll be off in a few minutes
"No, now," Mark said firmly, waiting in the doorway as Rebecca ended the call with her friend Josie.
"I don't see why you guys don't let me talk on the phone like a normal person," Rebecca complained, setting the phone down on her night table.
"You know very well why we have the agreement we do," Mark said. "When you pull your grades up, we told you it would be reevaluated. But if you keep breaking the rule and don't show us that we can trust you, the longer the rule stays in place," Mark warned.
"Whatever," Rebecca said, sullenly. "I'm going to sleep."
"Are you coming right home tomorrow since you have a half day?"
"I don't know, I might have plans."
"Make your plans during the school day and call mom or me at work as soon as you get out so we know where you are. Also, please be home for dinner around 7:30."
"On a Friday night?" Rebecca complained.
"Yes," Mark said, in a tone that indicated the matter was not up for discussion. "Good night."
"'Night," Rebecca said, switching off her light.
Mark turned off the other lights downstairs and went upstairs to their bedroom. He got ready for bed as quietly as he could, so as not to wake Elizabeth.
As Mark slipped into bed, he heard Elizabeth whisper, "Mark?"
"You'd better not be expecting anyone else!" he teased. When Elizabeth didn't laugh, he asked gently, "What's the matter?"
"Can you get me a cold towel?"
"Of course." When he returned to the bedroom a few moments later and placed it on her forehead he asked, "You have a fever or your head hurts?"
"Everything hurts, but my head especially," Elizabeth said. " I had hoped that lying down would help, but..."
"Did you sleep at all?" Mark asked, using his thumb to gently wipe away a tear that had escaped down her cheek.
"No, I was in too much pain to get comfortable."
"Is your headache any better?"
"Would I be on the verge of tears if it was?" Elizabeth snapped. But immediately she added, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean..."
"Ssh, it's OK," Mark said, taking her hand. "Tell me what I can do to help," he said softly.
"Just hold me?"
"Of course," Mark said, putting his arms around her. "You comfortable?"
"As much as I can be."
"Just try to relax and maybe you can sleep." Giving her a gentle kiss, he added, "I love you."
"Love you too."
Although Elizabeth was feeling far from well the next morning, she went to work at 8 AM because she had only one scheduled surgery. By 9:30, she realized going to work had been a mistake. Her headache was still bad, she had body aches, and a sore throat as well. She checked the surgical schedule, and then went to search out one of the other senior surgeons. Just outside of her office she ran into Peter, "I was just coming to look for you," he said.
"Same here," Elizabeth said with a slight smile. "What did you need?"
"I wanted to know if it was OK with you if I reassigned my two surgeries scheduled for next Tuesday. I just found out Reese is scheduled to receive an award and I'd like to be there."
"Of course. Tell Reese I say congratulations. If you run into difficulty getting them covered, let me know."
"Thanks, I really appreciate this. What did you need?
"I'm really not feeling well and I was wondering if you could cover the hysterectomy I was supposed to scrub in on today? It's at 3, and really all you'd be there for is to supervise Louis and in case he got into trouble."
"That's not a problem at all. Get some rest. I hope you feel better."
"Thanks."
Elizabeth walked back to her office and gathered her coat and purse. She also wrote a note to leave for Mark in case she couldn't find him before she left. Stopping down in his office she asked Stephanie, his secretary, "Is Mark in?"
"He just went down to the ER to check on something. Maybe you can catch him there?"
"I'll try, but I'll leave this here in case I don't," Elizabeth said, leaving the note with his phone messages. "See you later."
"You too."
Elizabeth didn't see Mark as she entered the ER and looked near the admit desk. Carol was sitting at the desk looking over some supply requisition forms. Surprised to see her, Elizabeth asked, "What brings you here today. Things get too predictable at the clinic?"
"Nahh," Carol said with a laugh. "It seems like everyone has come down with the flu except me so Jing-Mei and Mark asked me to come cover some shifts here. I do miss the bustle of the ER though; seeing the same stuff day in and day out does get a little boring."
"I know what you mean about the flu," Elizabeth said, taking a seat next to Carol. "I just came down here to find Mark as Stephanie said he was down here. I wanted to let him know I was going home."
"He was here briefly but then he got paged and I don't know where he went," Carol said. "I could tell you weren't feeling well because you look like hell," Carol said, laughing.
"Gee, thanks," Elizabeth said laughing briefly before starting to cough. "I went to bed at half past eight last night because I had a miserable headache but I didn't sleep well. I'm going to try and sleep this afternoon and see if that helps."
"Try Tylenol Cold and Flu. I used it when I was sick and it really helped."
"Thanks," Elizabeth said, popping a cough drop into her mouth.
"Your throat is bad as well?"
"Dreadful."
"Have you had a throat culture? We've seen a lot of strep at the clinic."
"No, but now that you mention it, I suppose I should. Feel like doing it?"
"Sure, let's go to Exam 2," Carol said, grabbing a chart and taking a quick glance at the board. "I need a break from ordering supplies anyway."
Carol quickly swabbed Elizabeth's throat before saying, "The lab is pretty backed up today, do you want me to just give Mark the results?"
"Please, I don't feel up to waiting around."
"I don't blame you. Are you OK to drive?"
"Yes, thanks. Unless by some miracle I feel better tomorrow I think I'm going to cancel on our shopping trip."
"That's OK, we'll do it next weekend. And I'll tell Mark he is under strict orders to take care of you when he gets home."
"Thanks," Elizabeth said with a smile.
When Elizabeth got home, she got a pair of Mark's sweats and a t-shirt from the laundry room, and changed into them as she was cold. After making a cup of tea, she placed it on the end table next to the couch, and lay down. Soon after lying down, she fell asleep and did not wake up until she heard the front door open.
Wiping sleep from her eyes, she looked at her watch and saw it was 12:45. She heard someone walk into the kitchen. Remembering Josh had practice she called softly, "Rebecca?" She regretted doing so almost instantly, as her throat felt worse than before.
Rebecca came into the room and asked, "How come you're home?"
"I felt too sick to stay at work."
"Why are you using my blanket if you're sick?"
"It was just here on the sofa, I didn't realize it would bother you. If you'll run up to my room and get one from the closet, I'll use that instead."
"It doesn't matter now, I'll already get sick from it."
"I'll wash it tonight," Elizabeth promised. "Are you home for the afternoon?"
"I told Josie I would be over as soon as I dropped off my bag, why?"
"I just thought maybe we could watch a movie."
"No, thanks. It's a Friday afternoon; I want to go see my friends. See you for dinner," Rebecca said, heading out.
"Dad will be home by 5:30, please be here for dinner by 6:00. Call me if you're going anywhere but Josie's."
As Elizabeth heard the front door slam shut, she couldn't help but feel more than a little disappointed that Rebecca was choosing an afternoon with her friends over one with her mother. When Elizabeth was thirteen, she always looked forward to Half-Term Holiday at her boarding school, just for the rare opportunity to see her parents. A tear slipped down her cheek as she tried to figure out just when she had started to lose her daughter. It wasn't even that Josh spent every moment with her and Mark. Yet he was much more likely to sit down and watch a movie or just talk with them. But Rebecca always chose her friends, and Elizabeth couldn't figure out why.
Elizabeth knew that part of their trouble with Rebecca likely had to do with the fact that they didn't spend a lot of time together. Elizabeth wanted to talk to her about this, but past attempts to talk had failed, so Elizabeth decided to write a letter to Rebecca.
After getting up to take Tylenol Cold and Flu, Elizabeth settled back on the couch with the lapdesk and a piece of paper and pen to write a draft of the letter. She soon discovered that the flu and medicine were interfering with her ability to think clearly so she put the paper and pen down and decided to rest a while.
Around 3:30 Josh pulled his blue Honda Civic into the driveway and was surprised to see Elizabeth's green Jeep Cherokee there since Mark had told him the previous she was on until 7. He let himself into the house and when he walked past the den, he saw Elizabeth on the couch, about half awake. "Did you have a good day?" she asked softly.
"Nice and short," Josh said, collapsing in the arm chair. "But practice wore me out. Why are you home? Are you sick?"
"The flu finally caught up with me. How did your test go?"
"I think I did really well. Did I wake you up when I opened the door?"
"No, I've just been sleeping on and off all afternoon. I had been awake for about ten minutes."
"I'm glad I didn't wake you up." After a moment, Josh added, "I stink from practice. Do you need anything before I take a shower?"
"No, thanks. If I fall asleep before you get back, just wake me."
"No, you need your sleep. I'll just talk to you when you wake up. I'll be back in a few minutes."
Josh returned from the shower about 15 minutes later and brought some of that day's mail in. Elizabeth was still awake so he said, "Mom, you got a letter from someone in England."
"Can you pass me my glasses please?" Josh passed her the envelope and her glasses. As she read the return address she said, "Grandpa posted it from his office."
She opened it and Josh saw a smile spread across her face, "What is it?" he asked.
"Grandpa decided to tease me. Remember how he told us he had a conference to attend at the time of his usual visit?"
"Yes," Josh said remembering that they had been disappointed at the news that Charles might not be able to fly to Chicago that summer.
"Well what he neglected to tell us was that the conference is in Chicago," Elizabeth said with a laugh. "He sent this to let us know the dates that he will be here."
"I'm glad he's coming," Josh said. "I know what it means to you."
Elizabeth put the letter on the end table and Josh asked, "Do you feel like watching some television?"
"Sure. I don't know what's on though."
Josh flipped through the channels and realized that in the late afternoon, there was little more than the talk shows on. "I will never understand these shows," Elizabeth commented. "Why would anyone want to go on TV to air their family business. Surely that can't help the situation at all."
"But its good entertainment," Josh said, settling on a show whose topic was I'm sleeping with my sister's boyfriend. "At least we know we're normal," Josh said with a laugh.
Around 5:00 Josh said, "I'm going to start dinner so it will be ready when dad gets home. What do you feel like having?"
"Thanks." Elizabeth said, "Don't worry about me. I don't think I'll be able to eat. Just make something the three of you would like."
"How about I heat up the chicken soup that way you can eat that if you feel up to having something."
"OK. I would appreciate that. Is that something you three want though?"
"Well I know I want it. And since dad and Rebecca aren't here, they can live with my choice," Josh said with a laugh. "I'm going to put the pot on, I'll be right back.
Around 5:15, Mark came in through the back door which led into the kitchen. "Hey," he said to Josh. "How was your day?"
"Not bad. The test went well and coach took it easy on us since we've been playing well."
"That's good. How's your mom? Is she awake?" Mark asked, looking toward the closed den door.
"She was awake a few minutes ago," Josh said. "She just asked me to close the door as the smell of the soup was making her queasy."
"I'm going to check on her. Thank you for starting dinner."
Mark quietly opened the door to the den and saw Elizabeth lying on the couch, her eyes closed.
At the sound of the door opening, Elizabeth opened her eyes. "I didn't mean to wake you up," Mark said, sitting on the edge of the couch. "Go back to sleep," he added, pushing Elizabeth's damp curls back from her forehead as they kissed.
"I wasn't sleeping," she said, taking his hand. "How was work?"
"Crazy, but you know that's about normal these days. What time did you come home?"
"Around 10. I just knew I couldn't stay any longer. I've been sleeping on and off all day."
"I must have just missed you. I got back to my office not 15 minutes after you went down to the ER, Stephanie said. So I went down there and Carol said you had just left."
"I had a feeling I'd end up missing you so that's why I left the note. Did Carol say anything to you about the throat culture?"
"It was positive," Mark said, taking a prescription bottle from his pocket. "I called when she gave me the results to see if you wanted me to bring home the prescription, but the machine picked up."
"I turned off the ringer in here so I could sleep."
"That's what I figured. Do you want a fresh glass of water to take the pill with now?"
"Please."
When Mark returned to the den, he put his arm around Elizabeth's shoulders, helping her to sit up. After she took the pill, she continued to lean back in his arms. Mark sat down behind her so he could hold her. "Thanks," she said softly.
"Not a problem," he said softly, kissing the top of her head. "Do you want me to get you a fresh shirt? This one is quite damp."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. It doesn't bother me. I just wanted you to be more comfortable."
"I thought about taking a shower but I'm too lightheaded."
"I'll get in with you if that will help?"
"I hate to ask you to do that," Elizabeth said. "I feel helpless."
"I don't mind," Mark said. "Can you manage the stairs?"
"I could, but I don't want to go up and down and then back up for bed. I was thinking about asking Josh if he minded if I used their shower."
"Good idea, but why would he mind?"
"I don't know. Rebecca was irked that I used her blanket while I was sick."
"She was home?" Mark asked, making a mental note to speak with Rebecca later.
"For about five minutes early this afternoon. She's at Josie's but I told her to be home for dinner at 6:00."
As Elizabeth slowly stood, Mark said, "I'll walk with you to the bathroom and then talk to Josh and get you fresh clothes."
"Thanks," Elizabeth said as they headed to the bathroom.
Then Mark headed back to the kitchen where Josh was stirring the soup. "You don't mind if mom uses your shower, do you?"
"Of course not, but I used the last towel earlier for my shower. I have to get some from the laundry room."
"I'll get some," Mark said. "I'm headed that way anyway."
Before returning to the bathroom, Mark went up to their bathroom and got Elizabeth's body wash and shampoo.
A few minutes later, Mark returned to the bathroom and asked "Are you ready?"
Elizabeth nodded slightly, as if too much movement would be painful.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Mark asked, as he slipped Elizabeth's tee shirt over her head.
"You are," Elizabeth said softly, slipping the sweatpants over her hips. "I just feel terrible, I'm sorry."
"It's OK," Mark said removing his clothes. "I just wanted to be sure there was nothing more I could do."
"Thank you."
Mark turned on the water; cool enough so that it would cool Elizabeth off but warm enough so that she wouldn't get a chill. They stepped over the edge of the tub. Mark had his back to the rear of the shower, and Elizabeth was facing him, allowing the warm spray to hit her back.
Keeping one arm around Elizabeth's waist, Mark got the shampoo and began to massage it into her long curls. After rinsing, he did the same with the conditioner. While the conditioner soaked into her hair, he put some body wash on a washcloth and began to lather up Elizabeth's body.
As the washcloth ran across her breasts, Elizabeth moaned softly with pleasure.
"We'll finish that when you're feeling better," Mark said with a smile.
"And it will be my turn to give you a bath" Elizabeth said.
"I'll hold you to that," Mark said detaching the showerhead to rinse Elizabeth's hair and body.
When they were done, they climbed out of the shower and Mark wrapped Elizabeth in a large bath towel, holding her close. "Feel better?" he asked.
"Much, thank you."
About 20 minutes later, Elizabeth was again lying on the couch. Mark asked, "Do you want me to bring my soup in here?"
"No, you guys eat together. I'm falling asleep anyway. Just come in here when you're done."
"Deal," Mark said, giving Elizabeth a kiss.
"I hope you don't get sick," Elizabeth said.
"If I do, you'll just have to take care of me," Mark said with a smile.
As Mark, Josh and Rebecca sat down for dinner, Rebecca asked, "Mom isn't eating with us?"
"No," Mark said. "She isn't up to eating."
"So why did I have to come home for 'family dinner' if we weren't having one?" Rebecca asked.
Josh tried to silence her with a look but she continued. "It's not fair, I could be out with my friends."
Neither Mark nor Josh responded immediately and before they could, they saw Elizabeth walking slowly toward the room. "You didn't have to come," Josh said.
"Go lay down," Mark added.
"No, it's OK," she said, taking her seat next to Mark.
"Do you want me to get you a bowl?" Josh asked.
"No thank you," Elizabeth said. "I'm just going to get myself a glass of juice."
"I got it," Mark said, standing up. Pausing in front of the fridge he asked, "Apple OK?"
"That's fine."
After Mark sat back down, Josh said, "Since we're all here, I have some news to share..."
-July 31, 2001
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