A/N: Okay I know that the timing in this thing is probably all over the place, but I don't know how long it takes to get to Indiana from Illinois so just go with it! Lol. And thank you for all your reviews so far guys!


Abby had finished drying her hair and changed out of her clothes. She looked over at her daughter who was innocently sat on the bed sucking her thumb with her blanket in hand.

She hated dragging her daughter around like this, but this is how she had always handled things; when some problem crosses her path she runs. This time she had a passenger with her. But the truth in the matter was she actually missed her friends back in Chicago, in all the places that she'd been she'd never had friends like the ones back there. Ones that would actually care if something happened to her. But she couldn't turn back round now, she'd made it this far. But then what was waiting for her in New York? Sally didn't even know she was coming. Then her phone rang...

Abby closed her eyes and whispered 'Please let it be Carter.' She looked down at the caller ID JOHN CALLING "Hello." She said, a smile crept across her face.

"Abby!" A relieved voice said on the other end. "I've been so worried about you. Why didn't you say anything before you took off?"

"I umm..just needed to clear my head." Abby replied hesitantly, holding back the tears.

"Are you ok?" Carter asked, he could hear the tears in her voice.

"Ummm yeah, yeah I'm fine." Abby said wiping away the tears from her eyes and turning away from her daughter.

"Where are you? I'm coming to get you."

Secretly this is what Abby wanted, but she couldn't let Carter know that she needed his help, that just wasn't her. "The Sapphire Motel, Indiana." Abby blurted out, she knew that her subconscious wanted Carter to come and get her.
"Right I'm coming to get you." Carter said. "Just stay there." With that he hung up the phone.

Abby hastily wiped away her tears and put her cell phone in her pocket, she got up and went to the bathroom to refresh herself, emerging a couple of seconds later. She went over to her daughter kneeling to her eye level. "Guess what? Uncle John's coming."

"Why is he coming to New York with us too?" Emily asked a little confused.

"No he's coming to take us home."

"So aren't we going to New York anymore now?"

"No. Why did you want too?"

Emily stood up and smiled. "No! I never wanted to go in the first place. Mom you're the best!" She said throwing her arms around Abby's neck.

"Okay, go and get your stuff together." Abby had this huge goofy grin on her face, which she couldn't get rid of. She felt like she was fifteen again, and Jordan Carmichael had just asked her if she wanted to go out for pizza.

Abby jumped up from the floor and gathered her things together, and then she heard a knock at the door. She glanced down at her watch, it couldn't be Carter he only called her twenty minutes ago it takes a couple of hours to get to Indiana. Emily rushed passed her to answer the door, Abby pulled her back and put the chain across the door peering out through the gap.
Taking the chain off she let the guy at her door in.

"Hey There." Ben said, strolling in.

"Hi." Abby said looking a little confused, how the hell did he know where she lived?

"I know I bet your thinking 'how does he know where I live?' well…" He produced a key chain, with their motel's name on it. "And I went down and asked the guy what number you were in… Hope you're not too mad at me."

Abby looked down at her feet as she felt her cheeks changing from the normal fleshy tone to a bright red. The only other guy she knew that made her feel like that was on his way to rescue her from this. "No I'm not mad. I'd um... offer you something to eat or drink…But we don't have anything." Abby laughed.

"Well I didn't come from nourishment, I came to return this." Ben jutted out his arm with the key chain firmly in his hand.

"Thank you." Abby said taking the key chain from his grasp.

Emily then piped up, breaking the silence. "When's Uncle John coming?"

"Soon sweetie, go finish getting ready for me." Abby said guiding her daughter in the direction of the bathroom.

"So where you off to next then?" Ben asked, his tone changing. Abby had seen this before

Abby felt a little uncomfortable with Ben's tone of voice. "We're going home."

Ben glared at Abby, who was looking out of the window. He stood behind her. "So where's home?"

"We live in Chicago and my Uncle John's coming to get us now. He's a doctor y'know." Emily said running up to her mother with her bags and a huge grin on her face.

Ben moved to the side for Emily to get to her Mother, Abby looked over to him. There was something about him that was familiar, other than his cheeky grin which reminded her of Carter.

"Ummmm...I'm not being rude or anything, but we have so much to do." Abby hesitantly said said avoiding his stare.

"No thats ok." Ben replied looking down at Emily, now he knew exactly who they were. Those piercing green eyes gave it all away. Abby. Emily. Chicago. Doctors. It was all beginning to add up. "Bye Emily." Ben said reaching down touching her cheek.

Abby moved Emily behind her quickly and opened the door for Ben. Shivering as she shut the door behind him. How can somebody change like that? He seemed like such a nice guy earlier, but then Abby was never going to see him again so she stepped away from the door and carried on with her packing.

"Hey, its me. I know where she is. She's got the kid with her and she's not planning on coming back. When you get this message call me back." Ben hung up the phone and took one last look at Abby's apartment window.


"I am fed up with you!" Sam said to Alex, as he entered the ER behind Luka. "Now you're going to sit there until I finish which is five minutes. And if I find that you have so much as moved an inch, you are in so much trouble." Sam said pointing over in 'Chairs'.

Alex slowly shuffled over to 'Chairs'

"Come on Sam, don't you think your being a little harsh?" Luka said taking off his coat and gloves and placing behind Admit.

"No I don't, he's been so defiant lately. He has to know who's boss." Sam picked up her chart and disappeared into exam one.

"Anyone seen Carter?" Weaver's voice screeched down the corridor, before she hobbled over to Admit.

"He left here a few hours ago, said something about a family emergency. And he's sorry and he'll be back here tomorrow" Frank informed the firey red head.

"Typical!" Weaver excaimed before leaving Admit and heading towards the lounge.

"Family emergency?" Susan questioned placing her charts down on the desk looking in Franks direction.

"Yeah Carter was on the phone, then he ran into the lounge grabbed his coat and ran out. Yelling something about a family emergency. Told me to tell Weaver he was sorry and he'd be back in tomorrow."

Susan had a feeling it had something to do with Abby, she left her charts where there were and went over to the phone.


"He's here! He's here!" Emily exclaimed running over to the front door, throwing the door wide open. Abby picked up the bags and headed towards the door, grabbing a tight hold onto her daughter's hand. She shut the door and they made there way down to reception and left the keys. Emily ran out to see Carter who was just getting out of the car. She ran full force throwing her arms around his legs.

"Missed me?" Carter laughed lifting Emily up.

Abby gave him a wry smile and handed him her bags, he took them with his free hand and threw them into the trunk.

"What about my car?" Abby asked looking over to where she had parked it.

"I'll get somebody to come and get it." Carter placed Emily in the back and buckled her in, before going to the front and opening the door for Abby. But what Abby didn't see was the pair of eyes that were watching her in the shadows. Carter got in the otherside and they started to make their way back to Chicago.

Abby glanced down at her watch. It was four thirty in the afternoon. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?" She said looking over at Carter.

He shrugged his shoulder and laughed. "I suppose I am."

"Weaver's going to burst a blood vessel when she finds out you've gone." Abby laughed.

"Yeah but what can you do!" Carter replied, Abby found herself just sat there staring at him. She'd missed him so much, when she was in hospital he'd hardly come to see her. When he brought Emily he never came in the room. 'I guess you don't know what you're missing until it's gone' Abby thought to herself.

"I forgot to thank you." Abby said

"Thank me for what?"

"Looking after Emily."

"Ah! That was no trouble at all! We had fun didn't we squirt!"

Emily nodded her head vigorously as she sat there sucking her thumb with her blanket in hand. Abby knew then that she was tired.

Abby turned round to look at her daughter. "You tired sweetie?" Emily shook her head opening her eyes wide, causing Abby to laugh to herself. "Okay then, but don't fall asleep mind because you won't sleep tonight."


Sam had finished her shift and headed over towards 'Chairs' to find her son. And there he was just where she had left him.

"Mom you said five minutes." Alex whined. "That was more like half an hour!"

"It was fifteen minutes. Come on." Sam said putting her arm over her son's shoulders.

The headed out into the bitter chicago weather, Sam and Alex made there way across the street to the El as the patiently waited for their carriage to pull up.

"So what happened today?" Sam questioned as they sat on the bench.

"Whats the point in telling you? Your not going to believe me, you never do." Alex said pulling his school bag off of his shoulders.

"Try me."

Alex sighed before beginning. "Well it's just like I told you on the phone, but I swear Principle McChristie thinks that it was all my fault. But I would never pick a fight with Mad Max. Have you ever seen him Mom? He's huge. That's probably why Principle McChristie always takes Mad Max's side because he's afraid of what he'll do to him. Probably eat him!"

"Alex! You can't talk about people like that!" Sam said looking round to see if anyone had heard what Alex had said.

Just then their carriage pulled up, Sam and Alex got in to make their journey home.


"I want you two to stay with me for a while." Carter said to Abby as they neared Chicago.

Abby felt relieved for him saying that, she really didn't want to go back to her apartment. The thought of Richard coming back scared her. "I don't want to get in the way though."

"Abby you've seen my house. We could be shut in that house for years at a time and go weeks before bumping into each other." Carter laughed.

Abby playfully hit him on the arm. "Okay theres no need to be so sarcastic."

"So is that a yes?"

"I suppose so." Abby looked into the rearview mirror. "I thought it had been a while since we'd heard from her." Abby said as she saw her daughter sleeping in the back. "Now she's never going to sleep tonight." Abby went to wake her up, before Carter stopped her.

"Just leave her, i'm sure she'll sleep tonight." He smiled over at her.