"What's not funny?" A familiar voice asked as the lounge door squeaked open again. Abby smiled at Susan, she instantly knew whose voice that was, and his voice was exactly how it had sounded twenty two years ago. Abby turned around in her chair, "I was just telling Susan what I have been up to the past twenty years." Abby said looking at the doctor she had once and always would love with all of her heart. "Abby? Wow, you haven't changed at all, how are you?" John asked, he thought his heart had skipped a beat when Abby had turned around. She was still the beautiful vision of loveliness that forced him to keep waking up during his years in Africa. "That is what I have been told by everyone. I have been alright, just waiting for the right time to come back here." Abby said, she still couldn't believe how much he had changed, it was almost heart wrenching. John smiled, Abby still had her smart remarks, and that just showed how much she hadn't changed. She was still the young woman he had worked so hard to open up, and helped put the pieces of her life back together. "You actually wanted to come back?" John asked, a sly smile spreading across his face. "Yeah, I could not leave my family forever, that wouldn't be very nice of me now would it?" Abby said, she really wanted to say it was because she couldn't get him out of her mind, but she decided that it wasn't worth the fight.
"Abby, put your stuff in the open locker next to John's and then I will get you started." Susan said realizing that right now might not be the best time for them to fall back in love with each other. John cleared his throat, "After your shift, lets go over to Ike's and we can have a coffee or beer and just talk." John said. "John, I don't drink, I have been sober for twenty two years." Abby said smiling at him, as she stood up to walk over to her locker. Abby swirled the dial on the lock and opened the locker. "Susan, is this my old locker?" Abby asked noticing the old pictures taped to the sides. "Yeah, we couldn't give it to anyone; we didn't want them to throw away the pictures. There are a few of Mark, and some from Christmas and Thanksgiving." Susan said smiling at her. Abby nodded, and put her purse and coat inside. Putting on her white lab coat and stethoscope Abby smiled. "Is that your old one? From here?" Susan asked noticing the lettering on the left breast. "Yeah, I just kept wearing it." Abby said grinning sheepishly. "I can't believe it still fits." Susan said. "Well yeah, I didn't have any kids, so I just kept my nice shape." Abby said smiling at Susan. "Okay, that was below the belt, now you get the diarrhea kid." Susan said, opening the lounge door for Abby. Shutting the locker door Abby walked out of the lounge with Susan.
Walking up to the admit desk, she perused through the charts. All of them included giving the patient a rectal exam. Picking up one of the charts Abby walked over to curtain area three. Pulling back the sheet she smiled at the little girl, "Hi Ashley, I'm Dr. Lockhart and you're my very first patient." Abby said smiling at the little girl. "First day Doctor?" The little girl's father asked. "First day back working here, I left here twenty years ago." Abby said as she took the girl's temperature "101… Just a slight fever. Ashley does anything hurt?" Abby asked. "No, I just don't feel good." Ashley said. "Alright, well the nurse is going to give you some medicine for your fever, and then you can go home." Abby said as she signed the chart and handed it to the nurse who had walked over. The nurse nodded and handed back the chart to Abby, placing it in dispo. bin Abby walked over to the board, and cleared the little girl's name off of it. As the hours went by Abby had cleared about twenty patients and been in at least seven traumas.
Walking back into the lounge, she walked towards her locker. Opening the door, she placed her lab coat on the ring, and her stethoscope on the shelf. Pulling out her jacket she put in on, and grabbed her purse. "Ready?" John asked sitting up on the couch. "God Carter! You scared the crap out of me!" Abby said, after she jumped. "I will take that as a yes." John said standing up and grabbing his coat. Abby nodded, and walked over to him. "So, where are you staying?" John asked as they walked out of the lounge together. "I actually got my old apartment back, everything is just kind of falling back to how it was twenty years ago." Abby said. John nodded as they walked outside into the ambulance bay. They stepped to the side of the bay as an ambulance pulled in. The lights and sounds of the ambulance brought back a few memories of when Abby had left. It was not a sad memory, or a happy one, just a fleeting one. The walk to Ike's had been quick, they had basically ran there, it was way to cold.
Walking into Ike's was some what unforgettable. A glance back in time you could say. "Its all the same." Abby said smiling. "Yeah, Susan said they didn't want to remodel." John said smiling. Looking around Abby spotted a perfect spot, a table for two. Walking over to the table they sat down, and took off there coats. The heat was up way to high to be comfortable in a jacket. "John, before we start talking, I need to tell you this. Just hear me out, if you are mad at me, or leave, I understand." Abby said looking into John's brown eyes. "Alright Abby." John said trying to humor her. "John the real reason I came back is because I couldn't go on without you. I couldn't go on with my own life because of how you left. I didn't even say goodbye to you. When I was away in Minnesota it hit me that I love you, and always did." Abby said, she looked down, she was embarrassed by what she had said, but it was worth it. John needed to know. "Abby, I felt the same. I still feel the same now." John said looking at her.