Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. They belong to Lifetime Television.
Chapter 6: EXHAUSTION WINS
"Who's next, Lana?" Lu asked with a heavy
sigh as she handed the receptionist the file from her previous patient.
"Lisa Jo Evens." Lana replied as she handed Lu the new file. "Lu, you look exhausted. Won't you please take a break? It's 4:00 in the morning. You've been going steady all night. Go upstairs for a bite to eat or something. Please, Lu."
"Lana, I can't. There's no time. The ER has been like a mad house tonight, and I still have some of my own patients to see." Lana glanced around the reception area.
"Lu, there are only a few patients here. At least consider going home when you're done with those few. Take the rest of the day off." Lana persisted.
"I can't, Lana. I have chat room at 7:00am and another full day of patients."
"My god, Lu. For once in your life, please think about yourself. You already look like you are about to collapse. You don't look like you can make it another hour much less another day. I think..." Lu interrupted.
"I gotta go, Lana. I'll be fine." Without another word, Lu hurried down the hall to her office. Lana stared after her, shaking her head. What would it take to convince that girl to take some time off until Jonas was found?
"Hey Lana, you seen Lu around?" Nurse Peter Riggs asked.
"Not for the past hour," Lana said, glancing at her watch and noticing that it was 5am. "I'd like to see her go home, but she won't budge." Peter nodded.
"Yeah, I tried talking to her too, but she won't listen. You know how stubborn she is."
"Peter, I don't get it. Her boyfriend is missing, and she won't even take time off. She looks so exhausted, like she can hardly stand up." Lana said in a concerned tone. Peter nodded.
"Yeah. She did the same thing after Mickey..."Peter's voice trailed off as he saw Lu coming down the hall. The look on her face told him that she had heard what he had said.
"Leave Mickey out of this, Peter. What happened to Mickey has nothing to do with anything."
"But Lu..." Peter started, but Lu interrupted.
"Drop it, Peter. I'll be in my office if anyone needs me." Lana and Peter looked at each other as Lu headed towards her office. Seconds later they heard her office door slam shut.
Lu sat down on the couch in her office after spending the past hour in the ER. She glanced at her watch. 6:45am. Good, she still had 15 minutes before chat room, she told herself with a heavy sigh. She leaned her head back against the back of the couch and closed her eyes.
Lana opened the door to the chat room, where several women were sitting in the circle, laughing.
"Hey Lu..." Lana started, but paused when she quickly realized that the young doctor was not in her usual seat among these women.
"Where's Lu?" Lana questioned. Abbey Shrugged. "We don't know. She didn't show up." Lana looked at her watch.
"What do you mean she didn't show up? It's 7:45."
"We just figured she got held up in the ER or somethin'," Nadia said. Lana shook her head.
"Not that I know of. I saw her go into her office about an hour or so ago." Lana immediately become concerned. Lu was totally exhausted, and not in a good state of mind right now, with worrying about Jonas and caring for her patients.
"I think I can safely say that chat room is cancelled for today, Ladies." Lana told them.
"That's a new one," Amy said with a laugh. "I don't think Lu has ever cancelled chat room."
"Well, she has a lot going on right now," Lana said, defending her friend. "I'm sure she'll be back tomorrow. But I'd better see if I can track her down. See you tomorrow, Ladies."
"Bye, Lana." several of the ladies said in unison. Lana hurried out of the chat room, almost colliding with Peter as she did so.
"Hey Lana, what's up?" Peter asked. "You seem to be in a hurry."
"Where's Lu? She didn't show up for chat." Peter shrugged.
"I don't know. Have you checked her office? She's been spending a lot of time there lately." Lana nodded as she all but ran down the hall toward's Lu's office, followed closely by Peter. Lana opened the office door, stopping dead in her tracks when she stepped inside. She smiled.
"Look at that, Peter. Exhaustion finally took over." Lu was sitting on the couch, elbow propped on the arm of the couch, and her head resting on her hand. It was obvious to them both that she was sound asleep.
"Get her a blanket, Peter. I can't wake her now. She needs to rest." Peter nodded as he left the office, returning seconds later with the requested blanket. Lana gently covered Lu with the blanket, trying not to waken her.
"I hope she will sleep for awhile. I am going to clear her morning schedule." With that, Lana and Peter quietly left the office, leaving an exhausted Lu sound asleep on the couch.
