Chapter Three
"Well when do you think I can be seen?" An older middle-aged woman yelled through the glass.
Sam sighed as she repeated the same thing she told every patient who came up to ask her that. "Ma'am a doctor will see you as soon as possible. Just please sit back down and I'll call you up as soon as possible."
The woman stood in front of the glass for a moment, eyeing Sam, before she finally turned around and went back to her seat.
Taking a deep breath, she placed a hand on her neck and tried to massage the stiffness out. The car ride to Chicago left her neck feeling sore and rigid and she hadn't been able to shake the feeling all day.
--
Luka, after just finishing with a trauma, walked over to grab a chart. Rummaging through the papers of one of the charts he picked up, he casually glanced over to the new nurse and saw her massaging her neck. Luka tried to turn his eyes away, but couldn't. The way she casually manipulated at the back of her neck almost made the whole scene seem almost sensual.
He had been impressed with the entrance she made, and he found himself wanting to talk to her, learn more about her. After taking her hand away from her neck, Sam turned and glanced around the ER, she directed her eyes at the Admit desk and saw that Luka was staring straight at her. Embarrassed, Luka quickly averted his eyes back to the chart. Sam smiled at the thought that he had been watching her and she decided to fix her eyes on him.
Although Sam didn't know much about him, she had heard some things from the nurse's station. He was Croatian and had recently broken up with an Abby Lockhart. From what she had heard, it sounded like she ended things with him. Sam wondered why anyone would break off a relationship with this man. He seemed to have a gentle touch with his patients and had an accent that made her melt every time he spoke.
"Miss?" Sam's gaze was broken when she heard an older woman call to her from the other side of the glass.
--
"Luka?" Luka sighed at the call of his name and looked up from the chart he was holding.
Abby raised a brow. "Problem?"
Luka shook his head and tried to hold in his sudden urge to walk away. "No. What do you need?" He knew he was being brief with her, but he figured it would cut their conversation short.
"Are you okay?" Abby questioned, although she knew the answer.
"Perfect." Luka answered, trying not to speak through gritted teeth.
"No you're not okay. You've always been a bad liar."
Luka ran a hand through his hair and sharply turned his head a few inches away from hers. He loudly whispered, "Abby, will you just tell me what you want?"
Abby was about to respond, but instead turned around and walked away, leaving Luka standing there yelling "Fine, walk away. That's what you're good at!"
Many of the patients had their head turned and where now looking at Luka. Luka looked at all of them and yelled out, "What?" Then he took off toward the Lounge.
Carter walked into the lounge to find Luka sitting on the couch with his head bent over in his hands. He quietly walked over and joined him on the couch. "What's going on Luka?"
Luka remained silent for a while, trying to gather his thoughts. "… I don't know."
Carter pursed his lips and nodded his head. "Does any of this have to do with Abby?"
Luka slowly lifted his head and faced Carter. "You know?"
Carter nodded. "You can take a week off to hide, but it still won't stop others from talking about it … so … what happened?"
Luka stood up and began to pace the room. He brought his hand to his head as his eyes darted from each corners of the room. "I don't know. Things were going great you know?" This time, he turned his attention to Carter. "We were happy … Then, all of a sudden, she ends it. She said she didn't love me anymore." Luka walked over to the couch and sat down next to Carter. "I don't know … maybe I moved things too quickly. I just … I thought she was the one, you know?"
Carter patted Luka on the back. "I know. I think everyone saw how much you loved her. I'm sorry that this had to happen to you."
Luka snorted. "Yeah … thanks."
"No really. You're a good guy Luka, and you'll find somebody that's right for you."
Luka ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, but when?"
Just then, the door opened and Sam called out, "Carter?"
Carter turned his head to Sam and Luka did also. "Yeah Sam?"
"Sorry to bother you, but your jogger is complaining of chest pain."
Luka sat up straighter and found himself captivated by her. The way she spoke, her soft curls, the way she kept bringing her hand to her neck to massage it …
Carter took a deep breath. "Um, okay. We should probably look for any dynamic changes in the EKG." Carter said quietly to himself.
"What?" Sam said in confusion.
Carter looked back up to her. "Oh, thanks Sam. I'll take care of it."
Sam pressed her lips together. "Okay." She said, and then was out the door, leaving both Luka and Carter staring at the door.