A/N: And.. enter Carter! But don't worry, it's still a Jaby story.. for now at least.. Enjoy and review please!
Listen to your heart
Chapter three: Happy smiles
I rush into the hospital with a cup of coffee in my hand. I'm about 15 minutes late so I hope Weaver isn't on a warpath. I step into the ER and I don't see Weaver anywhere, so I quickly sneak into the lounge.
'Hey' I hear a voice behind me as I close the door quickly. I turn around.
'Hey Carter'
'Who are you running away from?' he asks me.
'Who do you think" I answer with a smile on my face.
'I'm guessing Weaver'
'Yes Carter, what is it?' asks Weaver, who just walks into the lounge and hears her name.
'Nothing' he says quickly. 'I gotta get back to work'
'Yeah, me too' I say, as I quickly discharge my coffee in the trash and follow Carter, avoiding the questioning look Weaver gives me.
'That was close' I say laughing, before we say our goodbyes and both go our separate ways, ready to treat patients.
It's about five hours later and it's been the shift from hell. I've been puked on, spit on and some kid thought the little hoops in my ear were some sort of toy, which is why I'm in drug lock up icing my ear when I hear a voice behind me.
'Hey, what are you doing?'
I turn around and see Jake. I haven't seen or spoken to him since he left last night. I haven't been avoiding him, it was just a fortunate side effect of my busy day. But now that I see him, I'm glad. I actually missed him and I want to talk to him. I want to tell him everything so there are no secrets from my side and then let him decide what he wants to do. I just want to be happy and not be in another relationship with so much baggage.
'Hey. I was just icing my ear. The kid in curtain one pulled on my earring' I say, making a pouting face.
'Ouch' he responds.
I look at him smiling. 'How do you know? You don't have any piercings'
'That you know of…' he says, winking at me.
'Really…' I ask in a surprised voice.
He just looks at me, daring me to ask further. I don't know if I really want to know the answer to that question so I change the subject.
'Anyway, I was hoping you'd be free for dinner tonight'
'Yeah I am' he replies happily. 'I wanted to ask you, but I wasn't sure you'd be up for it'
'Well, I am. I was hoping we could talk'
'I'm looking forward to it. You want me to bring something? Pizza, wine or-'
'Ehm, excuse me, but don't you two have patients to treat?' I hear Susan's voice. 'We're getting slammed out there and you're standing here doing.. What are you doing here by the way?'
'I'm icing my ear' I reply, showing Susan the ice cube in my hand.
'I was just asking dr. Lockhart something about a patient' Jake stammers.
'Dr. Lockhart huh? Well, do you guys think you can make it quick, we really are busy today'
'Yeah sure, I'm done' I say, throwing the ice cube away. 'I'll walk with you to see that patient now'
'Okay thanks' Jake says, a little uneasy.
'See you later Susan' I say, as Jake and I walk away, trying not to smile to obviously as I see the look of confusion on Susan's face. I think she knows something's up. I'm afraid I'll get a third degree later, as soon as she can corner me. Well, I'll just have to avoid her for the rest of my shift, which means the next seven hours. When we reach the admit desk I grab a new chart and turn to Jake.
'My place at eight' I say quietly, and then walk away, smiling to myself. I have a feeling this is all going to be okay. If I survive this shift, that is.
About six discharged patients and two traumas later I decide that I deserve a break. I'm about to walk into the lounge when I see Susan doing charts on the table. I really don't feel like getting that third degree now, so I turn around and head to the one place I know that is almost always quiet; the roof. Only once I'm up there, I see that I'm not alone. Carter is leaning on the railing, looking out over the city. As soon as I feel the ice cold wind I regret not bringing a coat with me. I want to turn around and go back downstairs when Carter notices my presence. Since it would be rude to walk away now, I smile at him and walk towards him.
'Hi again'
'Hey. Aren't you freezing? Why didn't you bring a coat?'
'I… forgot'
As I say this I know it makes no sense at all. Carter looks at me funny.
'You forgot?'
'Yeah, it was getting crazy downstairs and I really wanted to get out of there'
'Owh, got ya. Here…' he says, and he takes his coat off and holds it out for me to take.
'John, I'm not taking your coat. It's my own fault'
'True' he says smiling 'But still, you can never leave a lady in the cold without a coat'
I smile at him and knowing he won't stop until I take his coat, I reach for it and put it on, immediately feeling the warmth surrounding me. It smells like him, exactly as I remember.
'Thanks'
'You're welcome'
Now that I look a little closer I notice he's not looking very happy. We're still friends and still able to read each other pretty well. I try to make eye contact with him, but he avoids my gaze.
'So, what brings you up here?' I ask, trying to get him to talk to me.
'Nothing really, just thinking'
'Really? Good thoughts I hope' I say, hoping to get a reaction from him.
'No not really' he sighs.
'Want to talk about it?' I ask, knowing he'll probably say no.
'Not really' he answers. See, I told you I could read him.
Just as I'm about to ask further my pager goes off. I look at it and see it's a text message from Jake, which brings a smile to my face. I look up at Carter, knowing by the look on his face that he's seen me smile. He looks at me questioningly, but before he can ask about it, I take off his coat and give it back to him, implying that I'm leaving.
'I'm sorry John, it's the ER. I've got to go'
He takes his coat and nods.
'Call me if you need to talk or anything'
'I will, thanks Abby'
'Sure' I say and I head for the door when I hear him speak again.
'Hey Abby'
I turn to him, waiting for him to go on.
'You look happy'
I smile at that, thinking about it for a second.
'Yeah, I think I am' and I walk through the door with a big smile on my face.
A/N: Happy Abby is always good. Leave a review and make me happy!