By Ginny
Thanks for the reviews, they are always appreciated.
Much to Abby's surprise, she woke to the smell of coffee, meaning she'd either over slept or Lucien was up early. I quite glance at her cell phone showed she still had 15 minutes to sleep. She sat up, sent up a little prayer that he was just up early and hadn't been up for hours, brooding, in pain or whatever. She peered over the back of the couch into the kitchen and saw him hunched over the table, reading the newspaper. The sight of him didn't give any clues as to why he was up early. There was no sense in stalling, she got up and headed into the kitchen to check on him. "Morning," she said as she reached for a coffee mug. He turned and smiled but said nothing. "Regular?" Abby asked as she pointed in the general direction of the coffee maker.
"Yeah. I've been cleared for caffeine," Lucien teased as he raised his mug in a mock toast.
"You're up early. Everything okay?" she asked as she sat down in the chair across from him.
"I'm fine. I actually slept pretty well. Before all this, I only slept 4 or 5 hours a night, so I guess I'm getting back to normal," Lucien said matter of factly.
"Good to hear. You hungry?" Abby asked as she glanced at the front page of the paper.
"Yeah, I think so. How about eggs?"
"Sounds good," Abby replied as Lucien started to stand. "I'll get it, you relax," she said as she headed for the refrigerator. "So what's on the agenda for today?"
"Other than trying not to die of boredom," Lucien teased as he got up to pour himself another cup of coffee. Abby just glared a little as handed him two pieces of bread and pointed towards the toaster. "My housekeeper is coming by, that'll give me someone to talk to for a while. What time are you on today?"
"I'm on at 8:00. Do you want me to come back later?"
"Nah, I'll be fine. I'm sure you could use a little time alone, or at least away from me," he teased as he pulled the toast out and buttered it.
"OK, but call if you need anything," Abby said as she poured the eggs into the pan.
They ate in comfortable silence, while they read the paper together. Lucien waved off Abby's efforts to clean up and she headed for the shower, leaving him to wash the few dishes from breakfast. He threw on his coat and went out to get a little fresh air while Abby got ready for work. She packed up all the stray things she had around his house, figuring her days of spending the night were over. She had amassed more than she realized and had to hunt down a shopping bag to put the last of her things in. When she finished, she put everything by the front door and went to look for Lucien, figuring he was in his office. When she found the office dark and empty, she pulled on her jacket, realizing he had to be outside.
Abby found Lucien on the swing with his coffee, his quilt and a hard to read look on his face. She put her things on the top step and checked her watch. The sun was nowhere to be seen behind a thick layer of clouds and it was rather cold.
"Feels like snow," Abby said as she leaned against the railing, facing Lucien. He stopped the swing with his foot, wincing as he did. Abby took his silent invitation and sat down next to him. Lucien smiled and offered her one end of the quilt.
"You okay? You're rather quiet," Abby said as she turned a little on the swing, tucking her foot underneath her.
"I'll be fine," Lucien answered in a tone that would have been convincing had it not been for the big sigh after his declaration. But it was half an hour before she was due at work and Abby wasn't in the mood for a pity party so she didn't press the issue.
"Thanks," Lucien whispered a minute later as he held out a gloved hand to Abby. "For everything," he clarified.
"This is not 'goodbye' forever Lucien," Abby replied, teasing him a little so she didn't have to face the fact that she was indeed going to miss his company. "I think I'll run into you sometime at the hospital," she said as she nudged him with her shoulder. Lucien flashed a big smile, the one Abby had come to find rather endearing. "Okay, I have to go, so no time for a big weepy 'goodbye'," she smirked as she stood up. She helped Lucien to his feet and pulled him in for a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. "I'll call you later," she promised as she carried her things out to her car.
Lucien sat back down on the swing and watched as Abby pulled out of the driveway and headed down the street. He wiped away a few stray tears, blaming them entirely on the increasing wind. When the first flakes of snow started to make their way to the ground he gathered up the quilt and the empty mug to head inside.
A quick check of the guest room dresser told him it was time to do laundry or time to try and tackle the stairs for the first time since his discharge. He figured he'd try the stairs. While it took longer than he would have liked and he had to sit for a few minutes after making it upstairs, he did just fine. Recovering on target was what his surgeon had said during his appointment. Deep down he agreed with that assessment but that didn't mean he was happy about it.
After a nice relaxing shower, Lucien dressed and settled down in the chair by the window for a few minutes, flipping through a surgical journal and trying his best to relax.
It wasn't working.
The thought of being alone for any length of time was getting to him more than he liked to admit. He'd gotten used to having Abby around and he missed her, more than he thought he should. In all the time they'd spent together, during all the teary conversations and his less than stellar moments, she had never given any indication she wanted more than friendship from him. And so he didn't think he should really miss her as much as he did. "Get a grip," he muttered to himself as the phone rang. The Caller ID showed his ex-wife's number and he let it go to the machine as he wallowed in whatever it was he was knee deep in.
He heard a knock at the front door and the voice of his housekeeper. "Dr. Dubenko, are you here?" she called from the foyer.
"Upstairs, I'll be down in a minute," he yelled back as he eased himself out of the chair. By the time he'd made it down the stair, his housekeeper had started a load of laundry and was starting a shopping list.
"Looking much better," Eleanor Murphy said as she gave him a quick once over. She hadn't seen him since he'd been released, although she visited him once in the hospital.
"I feel better," Lucien said as he crossed the room and kissed her cheek, "Thanks for the flowers."
"You're welcome. So has your little friend been around?" she asked. Lucien choked a little on the water he'd just poured for himself.
"Friend?" he said, trying to wrack his brain trying to think when he would have mentioned the "facilitator" to her. And more importantly...why.
"Your friend, the doctor. Long brown hair, cute, puts you in your place," she teased as she opened the refrigerator to look around.
"Abby," Lucien muttered as he realized who she was talking about.
"Yeah, her," Eleanor said as she looked at him like he'd just lost his mind. A look she had given him on more than one occasion. She'd been with Lucien for a few years and had a pretty good handle on what made him tick and how to read his many, ever changing moods. She and her husband, Pat, lived a few miles away. He was retired from something to do with computers and video, Lucien never quite understood what it was he did. At 68, Eleanor had given up all her other housekeeping clients one by one over the past few years but she wasn't quite ready to give up her last one.
Lucien reached over and added a few items to the list on the counter. Eleanor looked at what he'd written and then added a few more things. "Are you going to the drug store?"
"I can go any where you want me to, just make a list."
"I'll call in and have them get a few things together that I need," Lucien said as he headed for the guest room to check some supplies.
He came out a little while later, having called the pharmacy and ordered some supplies. He found Eleanor dusting in the office. "Pat sent this stuff over," she said as she pointed to a stack of brochures, computer printouts and magazines. "Thought maybe it might help you keep in touch with the hospital," she explained as she picked up the furniture spray and headed for the family room.
Lucien sat down on the couch with the papers. He flipped through them, finding the answer to his "how do I keep from getting bored out of my mind" problem. A two way video hook up, allowing him, or at least as disembodied version of himself, to troll the hallways of the hospital, consulting, advising and in general keeping himself in the game. Pat had put a Post It Note on the top of the stack, telling him to call with any questions. Lucien couldn't find a pen and paper fast enough.
By the time Eleanor arrived back from running the errands, Lucien and her husband were sitting at the kitchen table with papers and pizza spread out all over. Pat hopped up to help her with the bags but she waved Lucien back down as he wasn't supposed to be lifting anything. Eleanor put the groceries away, leaving the guys to discuss what exactly Lucien needed to hook everything up. Eleanor could email her grandchildren, surf the web and order things online, but that was the extent of her computer expertise.
After running the vacuum, folding the laundry and carrying it upstairs Eleanor was about done for the day and Lucien was fading fast as Pat was trying to explain a few more things.
"Pat, he needs a break," Eleanor pointed out when she came into the kitchen to find Pat pacing around and thinking while Lucien was sitting at the table, chin propped up on one hand, the other hand rubbing at his eyes.
"Sorry, Lucien. I'll get the stuff ordered and come over to help you get it set up. Call if you have any more questions."
"Thanks for all your help Pat," Lucien said as he wearily pushed himself to his feet.
"I'll see you later at home," Pat said as he kissed his wife on the cheek and reached for his coat.
"Okay, the refrigerator's stocked, the laundry is done, and I left meatballs and sauce in the crock-pot, enough for dinner tonight and lunch tomorrow. There's a case of water in the pantry and I made another pitcher of iced tea. Call if you need anything."
"Sounds good. Thanks for everything," Lucien said sincerely as he held out her coat for her.
"Get some rest," Eleanor said as she patted his cheek before heading out the door.
Lucien grabbed a bottle of water and curled up on the couch. He called Abby but she was unable to come to the phone and he didn't leave a message with Frank. After trying to get comfortable for almost half an hour, he got up, took a pain pill and curled back up.
He was out within 10 minutes.
When Abby came out of a major trauma and asked Frank if she had any messages, she was surprised there weren't any.
"But some guy did call, didn't leave his name. Sounded like Dubenko though," Frank said when he realized Abby looked disappointed. Abby headed for the lounge and was about to call but when she checked her watch she realized it was about the time of the afternoon Lucien usually tried to rest. She grabbed a cup of coffee and a bagel leftover from breakfast as she lacked the energy to run down to the cafeteria for a more substantial, and very late, lunch.
When Lucien woke at a little after 3:00 the snow that had been threatening all day was falling steadily. He nudged the heat up a little and put on some water for tea. After catching up on his email, he called Abby, who actually had a few minutes to talk. Lucien told her about the video hook up idea and she was happy to hear him excited about something, even if she wasn't quite sure what he was trying to describe. When Frank announced a big weather related car accident, Abby quickly got off the phone and headed for what looked to be the biggest trauma of the day.
And she was right. Three hours after her shift was supposed to have ended, she stepped out into the snow to head home. Lucien had left a message on her cell phone a little before 9:00 PM saying he was heading for bed.
TBC