Disclaimer: Yeah, me no own. Thank you and have a nice day. :cheesy tour guide Barbie smile as she shoves Vinnie in her closet:
End Credits.
A man walked onto the stage. Everyone in the audience applauded. "And now, a word from the director." The man walked off the stage.
The audience burst into a standing ovation. Then another man walked on stage. This man had curly blonde hair and blue eyes. Sad blue eyes. He made his way to the microphone. Then, after tapping on it twice, he said, "Hi. I'm Douglas Howser. I used to be a doctor." He gave a little half smile. "Well, I came to say that a very unfortunate event happened yesterday. Vincent Delpino, the director of this film and my best friend..." Doogie looked around the room. He spotted his wife, Wanda, in the front row with tears in her brown eyes. Then, two rows behind her, he saw someone he never thought he'd ever see again. With a worried look in the girl's dark blue eyes, she nervously slid a piece of her short blonde hair behind her ears. Doogie cleared his throat. "I'm sorry... Um... Vinnie was in a car accident." A silence fell over the room. Everyone had expressions of shock. "He's now in a coma. But, I know that he'd like to thank all of you for coming. We're all proud of him. And, I would like you all to know, that though he might not be here in body for much longer..." Doogie cleared his throat again. "...he'll be here in spirit, thank you." And with that, Doogie walked off of the stage.
The room was absolutely silent. They all stared at the spot where Doogie Howser previously stood. Some people still held the expression of shock, some cried.
Vincent Delpino, known as Vinnie to close family and friends, was Doogie's best friend. He moved next door to Doogie when they were five. He helped Doogie bring out the kid in himself. He helped Doogie with his leukemia. He helped Doogie with his girl problems (though he wasn't much with the ladies anyways). And he was always there, and no matter how annoying he got, Doogie still loved him like a brother. Now, it was Doogie's turn to always be there.
The night before the first showing of his first motion picture, Vinnie had been in that shiny new car of his. He'd made sure not to drink and drive. He even buckled his seat belt. And he always remembered to watch for traffic lights and drive on the correct side of the road.
The driver of the other car was not so considerate to other drivers on the road.
Vinnie had just left dinner with his latest date, Ericka Jacobsen. She was a model, and drank heavily when she was nervous. Needless to say, that night she was nervous. Anyways, they got into the car. Vinnie buckled his seat belt and told her to buckle her own, but she refused. He sighed, knowing there was nothing he could do, and he pulled out of the parking lot.
About ten miles down the street, as soon as the light turned green, another car came out of no where, driving on the wrong side of the road.
It was a head-on collision. The front of Vinnie's brand new BMW was completely demolished. Ericka was violently jerked out the windshield, she died instantly. Vinnie, however, was not so lucky. It took paramedics an hour to extract his broken body from the car. He was rushed to the hospital. He was declared to be alive and in a coma.
Four hours later, at 2 a.m., Douglas Howser, Vinnie's best friend and 'emergency contact', was contacted.
The showing of the movie was the first time Doogie had left his side all since.
And, after the showing, Doogie and his wife, Wanda, went back to the hospital.
There were nurses in his hospital room to check up on him. Nurse Curly Canfield, previously Curly Spaulding, was one of them.
Doogie wrapped on the window and Curly looked up, tears in her eyes. She smiled softly and opened the door, wrapping Doogie into a warm hug.
"Hi Doogie." She sniffled into his ear.
"Hi Curly." He smiled, it was good to be back in Los Angeles.
Curly wiped her eyes and hugged Wanda. "You can both go in." She sniffled.
Wanda and Doogie nodded. "Thanks, Curly." Wanda said.
Curly nodded and walked off.
Wanda took Doogie's hand and they both went into the hospital room. There was Vinnie. He was attached to so many cords and machines. He was always small, but he looked so much smaller with everything surrounding him.
Wanda wiped a tear and sat in a chair next to Vinnie. She took one of his cold palms in her own hands. "Hi Vinnie. How ya doin' kiddo? It's Wanda." She smiled and let out a shaky breath as a tear rolled down her cheek. "You'll stick through this wontcha? I know you can do it." The smile wiped off her face. "You're so brave." And then she stood up and broke into sobs.
Doogie came over and wrapped Wanda in his strong arms, a tear rolled down his own cheek and into her hair.
Then there was a soft wrap on the window. Doogie and Wanda looked up to see her. She was the girl Doogie had seen in the audience. But now she was crying. It was Janine Stewart, Vinnie's first love...
Doogie motioned for her to enter and she slowly opened the door.
She ran to Wanda and the two embraced, sobbing. Then, with caution, she looked up at Doogie. He hesitated at first, but then he too embraced her. She shuddered and let out a shaky breath.
After they hugged, she wiped her eyes and looked down at Vinnie. She couldn't stand the site and quickly looked away. "How's he doing?" She asked Doogie, wiping away another tear.
Doogie shook his head. "It doesn't look good. The doctors don't know if they can keep him with us much longer."
Janine bit her bottom lip and looked back at Vinnie. "Doogie, can't you do something?" She looked back up at Doogie, hopefully.
Doogie shook his head.
"Of course you can. You have to!" Janine said, sobbing. "You've been playing doctor with him since you were five. You've been operating on him since you were fourteen! You've got to do something!"
"Janine, it's not that easy. I'm not a doctor anymore-"
"No, but you have a degree. That's got to count for something."
"I don't want to talk about it." Doogie looked down at Vinnie and something made him feel sick to his stomach. "I have to go." And with that, he left the room.
Janine looked at Wanda. "I'm so sorry." She whispered.
Wanda walked over and hugged her friend. "Do you want me to leave you alone with him?" She glanced down at Vinnie.
Janine sniffled and nodded.
Wanda nodded, kissed Janine on the forehead, and exited the room to find Doogie.
Janine let out another shaky breath and sat down on the chair that Wanda had just been sitting in. "Vinnie? It's Janine. Wow, I haven't talked to you in forever." She let out a little laugh. "I want you to be ok, Vinnie. You have to understand that." She clutched his hand with her own. "If I flashed you would you wake up?" She asked hopefully.
He didn't even smile in his almost lifeless sleep. His pale skin was adorned with deep cuts, probably from glass and metal. The casual smirk that was always plastered on his lips was now turned into a solemn and almost painful expression.
Janine kissed his hand. "I love you."
Doogie was in the cafeteria, drinking a cup of coffee. It was midnight, and it had been two and a half hours since Janine showed up. He was all alone and thinking.
He could imagine himself in his old hospital scrubs. Curly would be sitting across from him, eating a salad because she had to fit into a dress of some sort. Next to him would be Raymond Alexander, a good friend of Doogie's who held Doogie and Vinnie at gun point in a convenient store once. (But, Raymond cleaned up and now worked at the hospital.) Then, Vinnie would slide up next to Doogie and, instead of greeting him first, would talk to Curly. "Curly, how about dinner, tonight? You know you want me Curly." And then he'd flash her a smile.
"So sorry, Vinnie, but I have a date." Curly would smile.
"Yeah, yeah, I know, the old dude." Vinnie would roll his eyes and then turn to Doogie. "Doog, you want to go to a party tonight?" He'd ask in that Queens accent that he hadn't dropped since he was five.
"Sorry, Vinnie, I'm on call tonight." Doogie would reply.
And then Vinnie would glare and say. "Boy, what a friend! Never spending time with your best friend. I'm like a brother to you Doog. But no more. Going to work and not partying? You make me sick. I've disowned you! Goodbye!" Then, he'd walk half way out of the cafeteria, turn around, grin, and say. "I'll see ya later, Doog."
Doogie would laugh and reply, "Bye, Vin."
Doogie smiled softly, fondly remembering the good times he had with his friend.
That's when Janine walked in. She yawned, made herself a cup of coffee, and then sat down next to Doogie. "Hi."
"Hi." He said, staring into his coffee.
"Listen, Doogie, I'm sorry I lashed out on you in there. I was being rash. I'm just worried about him, you know how that goes." She apologized.
"Yeah. It's alright. But I have a question for you."
"What's that?"
"Why did you leave?" Doogie looked up at her and a shock spread over her face. She opened and then closed her mouth, thinking of something to say, finally, she said it.
"Well, we had to go to college. I just chose one out of state. Simple." She stared down into her own coffee.
"Janine, you know what I meant." Doogie sighed, but didn't take his eyes off of her.
A tear slid off the tip of her nose and landed in her coffee. Another left a streak down her cheek. "I don't know." She whispered. Then she looked up at Doogie. "I thought it was right at the time. I mean, I never thought it would've worked out. I was all into rumors and that. I heard that long distance relationships never worked. I guess I was wrong." She smiled softly, meaning Doogie and Wanda's relationship.
"Yes, but you didn't have to not contact us. We all thought something terrible had happened to you. All we ever got was a Christmas card." Doogie stated.
Janine sniffled. "I'm sorry." She whispered. "Doogie, I miss him so much." She crumpled on the table and sobbed into her arm.
Doogie gently rubbed her back and sighed. "Me too, Janine, me too..."
You like the first chappy? Please say you do! It'll make me happy! Read and review and all that jazz!