I am so sorry everyone! I know it's been like a month since I updated but seriously, I really haven't had the time. My life decided to take me on a rollarcoaster ride over the last few weeks and when I finally did sit down to write this chapter it just wasn't right, no matter how many times I re-wrote it...So anyways, finally, here is the next chapter!
(Note: Suggestion for Chapter: DieHardBrendan. Written solely by yours truly! This is how I imagine Carol got her new job)
December 29th, 2000
Carol watched the Richards Family reunion from the corridor outside Chloe's room. Melissa sat on the side of Chloe's bed, her arms wrapped around the younger girl's shoulders tightly as both sisters cried. Their mother stood at the top of the bed, one hand resting on Chloe's cheek, the other on Melissa's head, and their father, overwhelmed with relief and renewed hope, stood watching, one hand over his mouth as he silently cried too.
Carol was pleased to know she had played a part in their reunion. She and Melissa had talked for a long time down in the ER. Carol had explained Chloe's condition, her treatment options and more. She answered Melissa's questions, held her while she cried and did not try to force any decision on the young woman, but let her make up her own mind in her own time.
'I'll do it, whatever you need from me, whatever I have to do, I'll do it,' Melissa had said finally, a fierce determination now alive in her face. Carol had nodded, retrieved a wheelchair and brought Melissa back up to Chloe's room.
The elevator doors opened behind her and Carol jumped when, seconds later, a hand landed on her shoulder. She turned to find Doug smiling at her.
'So this is where you've been hiding,' he said.
Suddenly Carol remembered she was supposed to meet Doug before his shift started. Obviously, she had missed it as he was already dressed in his scrubs, stethoscope around his neck and ID pinned to his chest.
'Oh Doug, I'm so sorry, I totally forgot about meeting you. It's just I was with Chloe and-' but Doug cut her off there.
'It's okay, I was talking to Anais and Adam. They told me Chloe's sister turned up. That's really great news,' he said, leaning in to press a kiss to her temple.
Carol just smiled in agreement and looked back into Chloe's room. Melissa was sitting up on the bed now and talking to Chloe as she wiped away tears from her cheeks.
'We'll need her to sign the consent form and then we'll start getting everything ready. She should be ready to go into surgery tomorrow evening so make sure she's MPO as of now.'
Carol turned upon hearing the new voice and found the surgical transplant team conferring near the door to Chloe's room. Without really thinking about what she was doing, Carol stepped forward and addressed the Chief of Surgery, Simon Le Vell, a man whom she had only ever spoken to a handful of time since starting in the hospital.
'Dr Le Vell,' she started, stopping in front of him, 'I'm Carol Hathaway, a nurse in the ER. I've been looking after Chloe since her most recent admittance and I was wondering if I could see her through the surgery?'
Dr Le Vell, the attending, the resident, two interns and a med student, turned to look at her.
No one spoke for several minutes. Doug had come to stand next to Carol and Dr Le Vell and both the attending and resident nodded to him in recognition.
'I'm afraid that won't be possible, Nurse Hathaway. Ms Richards is now a surgical patient and you are needed in the ER,' Dr Le Vell finally answered, gestured to the others around him and entered Chloe's room.
Carol exhaled and her shoulders slumped. She really wanted to be as involved as she could with Chloe's transplant surgery, as she had formed such a close bond with the teenager since meeting her two weeks ago and even felt a similar connection with Melissa.
Doug wrapped one arm around her shoulders, 'Sorry, Carol.'
'It's okay, I'll visit her later. Let's get back to work,' she replied. Both headed for the elevators and returned to the ER.
......
'Nurse Hathaway?'
Carol sat at the Nurse's Station doing some chart work. She had had a very busy afternoon and hadn't been as meticulous as always with her orders and was now taking the time to fill them in. When she heard her name, she looked up and found a young, baby-faced intern looked down at her from across the counter. He reminded her of Carter and she smiled. 'Yes?'
'Dr Le Vell sent me to get you. It's Chloe's Richards. She's locked herself on the bathroom and won't come out unless you come,' he informed her.
Carol dropped her charts and ran for the elevators, the young intern behind her.
......
Dr Le Vell and the others nodded as Carol approached the door of the bathroom and moved back to give her some space. Carol gently knocked on the door and called, 'Chloe, it's Carol.'
No answer.
'Chloe, can you come out please?' Carol asked.
Still no answer.
Carol turned towards some of the doctors around her and noticed that Melissa and her mother stood among them. 'What happened?' she asked.
'We came in to explain the surgical procedure to her. She started to panic and then just lock herself in the bathroom,' the resident present told her.
'She's scared. Carol, she's just scared' Melissa added, her voice barely louder than a whisper. Carol nodded and turned back to the door.
'Chloe, how about you let me in and we can talk? Just you and me,' Carol offered. There was a long silence but, eventually, the lock clicked and the door opened an inch. Carol pushed open the door, stepped inside and locked it behind her again.
Chloe was sitting on the closed toilet seat, her elbows on her knees and her hands gripping her hair at the roots. Carol crossed the bathroom and kneeled before her, brushing away the teenager's blonde hair until she could see her face. She didn't speak, just waited for Chloe to talk.
'I'm scared, Carol,' she admitted after a few silent minutes.
Carol took a breath and said, 'Tell me what's scaring you and I can explain, try make it easier to understand. I want to help.'
Chloe nodded and sat up a little straighter. 'How will it happen? What's first?' she asked and Carol realised she hadn't heard a word of the doctors explanation.
'Well, Melissa has already been tested and she's a good match and she had agreed to both the kidney and bone marrow transplant. So, next you'll be brought to surgery, that's going to be tomorrow, and the kidney transplant will happen first. Melissa will be in surgery the same time as you and as soon as the doctor take out her kidney, it will be brought into your OR and Dr Le Vell will put it into you,' Carol knew she was using very simply language to explain this but figured that was exactly what Chloe needed.
She continued through the whole surgery process, letting Chloe know that she would be given a few days between each of the surgeries. She answered all her questions as honestly as she could, knowing that it was what Chloe needed.
'Could I die? Or could Lissy?' Chloe asked finally and Carol sensed this was what was causing her panic.
'Well...there's always that possibility, but you're young and so is Melissa and the surgeons on your case are the best this city has to offer.'
Chloe didn't seem to like that answer and her eyes welled up with tears again, so Carol pushed on.
'Chloe, I know this is scary. I know how it feels to be in an OR and know that you might not make it out alive-' but Chloe cut across her.
'How can you know that? You haven't got Leukemia and getting closer to dying every day and now your only option of survival is to risk your sister's life too,' she snapped angrily.
Carol was silent for a few seconds as Chloe sniffled and wiped away stray tears. Her own memories flashed to the front of her mind as she thought about Thanksgiving 1999. Not a lot of people knew what had happened to her, except Doug, Mark, Kerry and Dr Coburn. And now she found herself telling Chloe her story, taking the girl into her confidence, much like Chloe had the day they first met.
'I almost died once. It was just over a year ago, when I was giving birth to the twins. Tess was delivered first and everything was fine but then I had to be rushed into surgery for an emergency c-section with Kate. When she was born, she wasn't breathing and my uterus wouldn't stop bleeding. I was so afraid that both me and my baby girl would die. I remember blaming myself, what had I done wrong that my little girl couldn't breathe? I blacked out then and my last thought was that I was definitely going to die. I woke up a few hours later, with both my girls alive and well beside me. So I know it's scary, Chloe, but this is your chance. You could get better, you could go to school next Fall, and so many other things. Your chances of coming through this are very high. I can't promise that everything will be alright, but I'm confident enough to tell you that I believe it will. You just have to believe too.' Carol was almost pleading with her at this stage, knowing that the surgery was her only chance and needing Chloe to realise that too.
They both sat in silence for a long time, the longest yet and Carol hoped that Chloe would see sense.
Eventually, the young girl nodded and looked at Carol, 'Okay, I'll do it.'
Carol smiled and helped Chloe to her feet. When they emerged from the bathroom, Chloe's family and the doctors stood waiting. Carol smiled, 'Good to go,' she told them.
48 Hours Later - New Years Eve 2000
'Has she woken up yet?' came a voice from behind Carol and she turned to find Dr Le Vell behind her. She shook her head. She was sitting beside Chloe's bed in recovery, waiting for her to wake up after her kidney transplant. Melissa has woken only an hour before and was doing extremely well.
'Carol, I wonder if I could talk to you for a moment, in the hallway?' the doctor asked.
Carol nodded and followed him outside. He stopped a few feet away from the door and turned to face her.
'I have to say, Carol, I was very impressed with the way you handled this whole procedure. Not just talking to Chloe before when she panicked, but your clear understanding of what would happen, the way you talked her through it and made sure she understood everything that was happening. It's not very often you find that in, forgive me, an ER Nurse' Dr Le Vell said, then coughed as though he was nervous.
'Thank you' Carol said, glad that she was of some help to Chloe during her operation.
'Chloe will be taken in for her bone marrow transplant next week and I'd like you to be there again. Chloe knows and trusts you, it will be easier for her to have you there and I should have realised that the first time round, for which I'm dreadfully sorry' he added.
Carol smiled. 'It's okay. As long as Chloe was okay,' was all Carol said.
Dr Le Vell nodded, though as if to himself rather than Carol. Carol began to turn, to head back to Chloe, when he spoke again.
'One more thing. The rest of the transplant team was very impressed with you also and we have an opening for Transplant Co-ordinator. I know it might not be something you are interested in, for all I know you're happy in the ER, but it's just something to think about, if you want a change,' he said.
Carol's mouth popped open. 'You're offering me a job?' she asked, as if to clarify.
The doctor nodded. 'As I said, we were impressed. If you're at all interested, stop by my office and we can talk, pay and extra privileges and the sort. I know you'll need time to think about it and talk to Dr Ross but if you are interested, call to see me tomorrow morning.'
Carol swallowed, not without difficulty, and nodded. 'I will, thank you Dr Le Vell.'
He nodded, than looked past Carol and into Chloe's room. 'Seems she's waking up,' he said and Carol turned to see that he was right. When she looked back, it was to find the doctor walking away. She smiled to herself and hurried back to Chloe's beside.
AN: Thanks for reading!
Next Chapter: Mark Drama! :P It will be posted by Saturday at the very latest...Promise!