Nick and Kelly, The Fox and The Hound revisited

by TheWriterWithWings

When Kelly, the boy who left his hometown after having been attacked for his sexual preferences, returns as a man, the past collides with the present only to prove that the future is what we made of it.

2. Chapter 1

"Abbott…..Abbott, wake up. We have an arrival in less than ten."

Kelly Abbott woke up with a grunt as someone was tapping his shoulder repeatedly. He opened his eyes and grunted again, louder this time. He threw his legs to the side and sat up his mind still cloudy. He rubbed his eyes with his palms before looking up to see his colleague, Dr Richard Carter, standing in front of him.

"Arrival...Tell me it's breakast. How late is it?" He asked as he stretched up. The other man shook his head and snickered.

"Gunshot injuries. Another Friday night downtown. C'mon, Sleeping Beauty. It's 5am. You look like shit, just so you know."

"Even my shit looks better than your face, Dick", Kelly answered. 5am. He had slept for 40 minutes. Longer than he had expected. His 12 hours shift was almost over. But those 40 minutes had been the only ones he had spent sleeping for the last 48 hours. Not even a personal record.

"Oh shush. I should take a pic of you and send it to Jenny so she would stop bugging me about how handsome you are." Carter joked.

"Hey, your wife has taste. I /am/ handsome. Send her a pic and tell her to warm the bed. I finish here and I'll go at your place so she'll get something pretty to look at when she'll wake up for once.." Kelly commented as he got up from the couch he had fallen asleep on in the resting room of the E.R.

Carter snorted and pushed him playfully before opening the door.

"Dude, I have no problem with you snuggling the wife. She's safe with you, you grumpy queer".

Kelly narrowed his eyes and pushed the guy back before passing the door. Banter was the base of their friendship, something that helped to stay awake and sharp. None of the men would ever let the other have the last word and when they were both on a twelve hours shift, it was something helping them through the quiet moments. Even if those were rare. .

Kelly pulled out a couple of gloves from a box hanging on the wall before shrugging.

"Would /I/ be safe with her? Man, your wife is crazy about me. And since she's the one with the balls at home, with enough booze she could end up being my type…. maybe I should let her have her way with me. Just to piss you off."

"You bastard.", Carter replied before taking gloves as well. "If you weren't such an asshole, I would doubt your gayness."

"Gayness?", Kelly laughed. "Is that an official word? Anyway, if the kid she's about to give you looks handsome and crack jokes five minutes after being born, we'll know Jenny molested me that night I passed out cold on your couch. I remembered I felt funny the morning after. If so, I'll sue you both. Her for abusing me, you for...well. Being you."

The other man laughed. "You felt funny because you were hangover, Abbott. That counterfeit whiskey we drank that night was lethal. My farts smelt like gazoline for a week after that.", Carter continued.

Kelly gave him an exaggerated horrified look. "Man, you're disgusting. How you managed to marry such a lady like Jenny is beyond me. And when I think you're about to become a father….Hell. Now I really hope Jenny abused my handsome self that night and that this baby is mine. You're an awful...awful human being." They reached the entrance of the E.R but the ambulance bringing them the injured patient wasn't here yet. However, sirens were echoing through the very early morning and Kelly shivered. It was cold. Autumn would be here earlier this year. The chilly wind welcomed both doctors with a strong embrace.

"If that kid is yours, Kels, I'll drop it on your doorstep. I have to deal with you at work way too often. A tiny version of you would be too much to handle. I'd rather raise a bunch of enraged bulldogs.", Carter retorted

They were now working together for four years and became friends. Long hours and entire nights of insane work had created a bond. Richard Carter liked the young doctor, one of the most talented of his promotion. They were never spending a day without insulting or picking on each other but it was their way to communicate. Carter was a smart man, spiritual and devoted to his job. His wife Jenny had been so surprised to hear him talk about Abbott so often after his long shifts, to see him laugh as he remembered one of the other jokes they had been telling each other that she had insisted for her husband to invite Kelly over for dinner. Carter had complied, telling Jenny that there was something singular about Kelly though. The guy was charming, social, funny, always in a good mood but for some reason, Carter had felt something somber about him. Something he could put his finger on.

Kelly had accepted the invitation and the three of us had had a lovely night. They had laughed, dined, drank and when Kelly had left, Carter only had to look at his wife to see that she as well was fond of the young man. But as they were both cleaning up the dinner table, Jenny had confirmed Carter's impression. There was something deeper behind the jokes and the smiles. Kelly had a sad look on his face whenever he thought nobody was watching. Jenny had decided that they would have to do something about that. But along the years, she and Richard got used to this untold part of Dr Abbott. Now Jenny was eight months pregnant, feeling like a stranded whale, happy about the future child but tired and cranky. That thought reminded Richard that she had sent him on a mission. Asking (in Jenny's language, it meant 'demanding') Kelly to be the godfather of the unborn child. It had been an easy choice and the first name coming into their minds. A way to offer Kelly to have a more official place in their family. Family was a sensitive subject for Kelly, Richard had noticed. But he had his ways to escape any kind of conversations about that. Richard never insisted. He assumed that Kelly would talk about it someday. And if he didn't...well. They all had that particular chapter of their lifestory that they'd rather not share.

A year ago though, they had met his adopting mother, a very kind and old lady, fierce and dignified.

As they were waiting there for the ambulance, shivering, the cold wind killing their joking mood, Richard glanced at his colleague and friend and remembered in which circumstances he had met Mrs Ollister.

A year ago, they had a very busy time. The ER were daily flooded with countless patients. On days like these, you didn't have time to joke or even take a piss. Someone always needed you somewhere and when it was crowded, the ER were not a nice place to be. Injured patients cumulated with the frustrated sick people who had to wait way too long, ambulances feeding the flow, it was impossible to explain to someone who didn't work there how you could keep your head clear while taking life saving decisions one after the other without a hesitation, like it was the most natural thing to do. Richard loved it though, the adrenaline in his veins keeping his thoughts clear and organized. Kelly and him were a good team and that's also why they were doing most of their shits together. There was a balance, a synchronisation in the way they were dealing with patients. Kelly was excellent at treating heavy traumas while still keeping in mind his other less important cases. He had a natural talent for motivating the troops and even if he was completely unaware of it, his presence acted like a real calmative middle. When Doctor Kelly Abbott told you you were going to be okay, you believed it. No doubt possible. He had seen the young man managing to calm down hysterical patients just by talking to them and he was a pearl whenever a completely flipping kid was brought in. His charm was working even on very young patients as it seemed.

Richard on the other hand, was the Chief of the interns, calm, stern, organized. He knew every rule, every protocol by heart. He had years of experience in surgery and he had taught a lot to Kelly as well. He was the guy you needed when shit hit the fan to keep everything rolling smoothly even on crazy days like that. He was also the one able to keep Kelly in check, especially when Kelly went in what Richard was calling 'the stuntman mode'. .Saving lives was their job, yes. But they had rules to follow. And sometimes Kelly needed to be reminded of that. Even if the guy was charismatic, he also had a remarkable talent when it came to make enemies. How many times had Richard to go behind his back settling things with the people his friend had pissed off? Way too often. But in every case, mostly about Kelly forcing expensive tests because he had the conviction he knew what was going on in a particular case, his decisions had been right. He had this instinct about diagnoses that was almost scary sometimes. A skill that didn't work well with procedures and protocols. Richard had once told him that he couldn't just do whatever he wanted only because he knew he was right. All Kelly had answered was "Then tell that to the people who're still alive because I'm a stubborn ass." And it had been pretty much the day they sealed that silent deal. Kelly made the diagnoses and raised hell to prove it right. Richard would handle the collateral damages.

That day, a fight had started in a nearby neighborhood. Gangs at war. One of the injured young gang members had been brought in and Kelly and Richard were in charge. Richard had intercepted the patient at the entrance. Kelly who was busy with treating a bunch of scoutgirls vomitting and crying that they were going to die just due to a food poisoning had joined him in the room as soon as he had heard what the case was about.

"What do we have?" Kelly had said while a nurse was helping him with putting a proper blouse on (Richard could imagine what had happened with the previous one, he had heard Kelly scowl five minutes earlier after one of the girl had puked on him).

"Were you not busy with something?", Richard had joked before giving him a short recapitulation.

"Two gunshots, one in the chest, one in the stomach. One out, the other is still inside. Heart rhythmn dropping. I bet you a hundred we have a bleeder." Richard said as he examined the young patient. He frowned and shook his head before starting to remove the bandages that the medics had set to control the hemorragie.

Kelly came to stand on the other side of the table and cursed. "Fuck...how old is that kid? 12? Soon you'll see freaking babies shooting at each other;", he grumbled before working on trying to figure how to save the kid.

An alarm echoed next to him and he called "Oxygen is dropping. He's getting hypocolemic. I'd say that's a too easy bet. Let's see how bad this is and I'll tell you if we can fix another miracle. How many this week?"

"Six", a nurse replied dryly next to them. The Gang War was a plague and it was getting worse lately. The gunshoot injuries were becoming a daily scenario.

Kelly watched closely the screen of the echo as he scanned the chest. "Crap. We need to drain him. The bullet is way too close from the heart. We'll never get him stabilized if we don't open him. Call the O.R, tell them to wake up, we'll send him in as soon as…..C'mon….", He plunged three fingers inside the chest wound and Richard followed the results on the screen.

Kelly was making faces due to the concentration, eyes half closed as he was focusing on what he felt under his fingers. Then he found it, that familiar pulse and liquid warmth. He twitched his fingers expertedly and turned his head toward the heart monitor.

"I got it. Artery sectioned. I need the clamps."

Richard understood what Kelly had done. With his fingers, the guy was now holding the severed artery, keeping it squeezed to slow down the bleeding. Smart. It was definitely quicker than opening the chest. Not really by the books but in the E.R, you needed to be resourceful.

He grabbed the clamps on the plate next to him. "You managed to slide your chubby fingers between the ribs, I'm impressed." He humored before holding the clamps to Kelly. But when he did, the nurses gasped, looking horrified at something behind Richard. The doctor saw Kelly's face, jaw clenched and his body tensing. And he slowly turned around

"GET AWAY FROM THAT TABLE….DO IT OR I'LL SHOOT YOU TOO"!

A young man with a haunted look on his face was standing at the entrance of the emergency room, a gun pointed at them. The boy was covered in blood, blood coming from a large wound on the side of his head. He pointed his gun at Richard and yelled again.

"NOW. I SWEAR, I'M KILLING YOU ALL. BACK OFF". The boy was shaking and waving around with his gun. Richard held his hands up and took a step aside, to place himself between the boy and the nurse behind him.

"Calm down….Listen, you put the gun down. Nobody needs to be injured, alright? We'll all do what you say", he offered as calmly as he could.

The kid looked at him and shouted again that they had to back off, to walk away from the table where the patient was with Kelly next to him.

As nobody moved, too shocked to react, the boy pointed the gun at Richard again and shot him with an enraged scream.

The blood in Kelly's veins turned into ice as he saw his colleague and friend stumble and fall, his hand flying to his shoulder. One look at him and Kelly was sure the bullet hadn't reached any vital organ. Not as you knew the bullet had gone through Richard's shoulder to end up his course into the wall behind him, just a few inch above the nurse's head.

"Get back...all of you", Kelly said with a very cold voice. The nurses obeyed immediately and the one behind Richard wrapped her arms around the man to help him up and away from the table. Only Kelly hadn't moved, his hand still half inside the other boy's chest.

"Hey, you idiot...'He growled. "You put that gun down. Shoot any other people of mine and I swear to God, you're dead."

Richard widened his eyes. What the Hell, Kelly, that's the last thing to say to a crazy shooter!, he thought. He was about to say something before realising what his colleague was doing. His eyes caught a motion behind the door of the room. The curtains on the other side of the glass wall moved slightly. There was someone behind it. Probably a cop. And Kelly was trying to get the shooter's attention to distract him from whatever was happening outside. And from anybody else but him in the room. 'Don't play the hero, Kels', Richard thought.

The boy snickered and walked toward Kelly before pressing his gun against the doctor's side.

"You jackass don't tell me what to do! I told you to get back, fucker! You want me to shoot you too? Huh?""

Kelly didn't move, only a cringe on his face betrayed his anger as the boy pushed the gun against his ribs again.

"Get the fuck out of my way asshole! I have a job to finish. They'll get me if I don't so don't play with me, ass, you get that?", the boy spit out at Kelly.

Richard met Kelly's eyes and what he saw frightened him. Kelly had no intention to move, no intention to freaking realise he was going to get shot if he kept being stubborn. He smiled at Richard and Richard shook his head slowly. Don't play hero, Kelly. I don't want to have to tell Jenny you're dead, he told himself again in the hope Kelly would get the message.

"I also have a job to finish, dickhead. if I move, that kid will bleed out and die and since that's what you want, you bet I won't give you that pleasure", he answered between gritted teeth.

The shooter looked at him, stunned. He seemed to hesitate but then he raised his hand and hit Kelly hard in the head with the side of his gun. Richard jumped forward but the shooter pointed the gun at him again. "Don't fucking try me!", the shooter warned. Richard stepped back, realising how close the boy was from Kelly right now. If he shot him now….

Kelly took the hard blow without a sound, his head flying to the side and he kept it that way for a second or two, his face away from the shooter, until he stopped seeing red spots dancing in front of his eyes.

He spit on the floor and cracked his neck before looking back at the shooter, his hand still inside the patient's chest. His arm was getting tired as he had to maintain it at a weird angle so his fingers wouldn't slip. He wouldn't keep it much longer, that he knew.

"That's all you have, really? You hit like a girl. Now….get the fuck….out of...my ...E.R". He growled, breathing deep between words. Richard knew him enough to realise it was to keep calm and alos probably to win some time. Where were those damn cops? He motioned discretly to the nurses to exit the room through the other door as the attention of the shooter was entirely focused on Kelly. Richard's shoulder was killing him but he was refusing to let his friend alone.

"Kelly….Maybe you should consider doing what he asks you to", he said pointedly.

"Richard, get out of here. I'm handling this, making new friends and all. Get. Out.", Kelly replied, his eyes now staring at the shooter's face, the shooter standing dangerously close, his back straight, like a fighting cock reading to attack.

Kelly spoke again, addressing the shooter.

"Listen, you genius. You just forced your way into a hospital shooting and waving your gun at people. Shoot me all you want, shoot that kid again. Go ahead. You're dead anyway. They'll never let you leave this hospital alive, you do realise that? You're fucked. Finished. Your only chance is to put the gun down now and my buddy there and me, we'll put a word for you to the local attorney. With a little luck, you'll escape the death penalty so I'll live with the satisfaction of knowing your sorry ass being manhandled in prison every damn day by a giant dude named George. So do that. Put the gun down now and I'll even send you some lube in jail to ease the lovemaking. What do you think? You're going to shoot me while I have my hand inside another loser like you? How brave. Bet your mommy is proud of you…..Or you're going to wait till the cops storm in and paint the walls with whatever there is left of your brain?"" he almost whispered at the shooter.

Richard frowned as he saw that Kelly's other hand was busy with something behind his back, away from the shooter's eyes.

What the hell was he up to now?

The shooter hit him again and this time, Kelly scowled.

"F….fuck! Stop hitting me in the face, you moron. I have a date tonight.' He grunted and gave another look at Richard. Then to Richard's horror, Kelly winked.

The shooter was now more than furious. He grabbed Kelly's hair with the intention to put the gun into his mouth and shoot him at point blank rage but then Kelly's other hand flew across the hair and he stabbed the shooter's neck with a syringe before injecting some white liquid into him. Then he headbutted him hard. The shooter stumbled, and Kelly whose nose started to bleed heavily bended over the patient to grab the clamps left on the plate by Richard earlier. He quickly put the clamps into place before pulling out his fingers and once finally free, he turned around to face the shooter. The boy was holding his hand against his neck and the hatred in his eyes began to blurry as the morphine injected by Kelly was flooding his system.

He pointed his gun at Kelly again.

"You...fucker...what did you...do to me?"

Kelly tilted his head and glanced at the door again. That would be the perfect moment for the cavalry to make an entrance, he thought. But the door didn't move.

The shooter on the other hand, stumbled back into the wall behind him, his gun still waving in Kelly's direction.

Kelly was completely stupefied and his head was pulsing so hard he thought out loud.

"Oh for God's sake, I injected you half the bottle, how can you still stand?", he commented with an offended tone in his voice.

"Fuck you…" the shooter said before shooting him and passing out, his body falling hard on the white floor, a few feet away from Kelly.

Richard jumped as the shot echoed in the room. He was behind Kelly, only seeing his back. He was still standing up so maybe the shooter….

But as to prove him wrong, Kelly started to collapse. Richard hurried and after a look at the shooter to be sure he was out, he kicked the gun away from the boy before opening the door. "Shooter down! I need help in here!" he yelled before forcing himself to turn around. He didn't want to. He didn't want to watch Kelly Abbott die.

He rushed toward Abbott who was holding his stomach, a blood flower blossoming on the blouse he was wearing. He threw himself on his knees to check on Kelly.

"Kels...Fuck, you idiot...I got you. You hear me.? I got you, you stubborn son of a bitch. I forbid you to die. Jenny will kick my ass if you do." Talking was helping him to calm down. The room gets filled with nurses and cops. He gave a furious glance at the last ones before focusing on Kelly.

"Someone needs to check on the other patient! Call the O.R, we need one for the doctor Abbott as well, come on, people!" he ordered.

Kelly was pale and silent in his arms. And his silence was too loud for Richard. Nurses and doctors surrounded them and helped Richard to place Kelly on a table. A nurse tried to pull Richard away to check on his shoulder but he shrugged it off. He needed to be sure Kelly would be okay first.

Kelly didn't move for a moment then his voice echoed through the room.

"I got shot because... I'm a doctor. Always thought….I'd get shot for….being a handsome fag."

Despite the shock and the stress, Richard laughed briefly. Kells was still there, joking even when his life was threatened. He stopped moving from a moment to lean over Kelly and talk to him.

"You got shot because of your big mouth. That guy got to do what everybody here dreams to do for ages. To shut you up, you imbecile. Now I'm going to fix you up because the world needs pains in the ass like you. And because if you die, Jenny will kill me. And I would have to kill you too.."

Kelly snorted and coughed with a painful grin.

"You love me….", he humored weakly. "Does your wife know?", he coughed again and Richard smiled before looking around at the worried staff.

"Kelly Abbott, ladies and gentlemen, the guy even guns can't shut up. Book him for parties and celebrations. Guaranted fun all day long.", he announced before checking on the vitals.

"He's stable. We send him upstairs now. Warn the anesthesist that he'll need some seriously strong drugs to keep that mouth shut long enough."

The nurses start to move the table but Kelly grabbed Richard's wrist.

"Hey, Dick...how's the kid? The one we treated…." Richard stared at Kelly before sighing. He looked back at the other room before leaning over Kelly. "They're taking care of him. Means he's still alive. Your stubborness saved his life. Don't you ever do that to me again, Abbott. Next time a guy with a gun tells you to back off, you do so!"

Kelly nodded before grunting. "Alright...Get that shoulder taken care of. You're bleeding all over the place, that's ew.", he managed to say before his eyes closed, the drugs finally kicking in.

Richard watched as they took him away, amazed and amused. That was typical of Kelly, to make him laugh even through the worse. He suddenly wondered what had happened to Kelly in the past. That haunted look on his face, the one both him and Jenny had noticed, Richard had seen it on Kelly's face again after the shooter had hit him the first time.

It wasn't fear or sadeness. It was deeper than that. The look of someone who had been broken once and sworen to never be broken again.

It was not anger. It was determination.

Kelly Abbott, Richard was sure of that now, had been a victim. A prey.

The jokes, the apparent carelessness, it was just a cover. Something he used as a shield.

Someone had gotten him on his knees and not in a fun way. And now Kelly was determined not to be a prey anymore. And that shooter had learned it the hard way. Now of course, Richard wondered if that determination was not something to worry about. Kelly had acted like he'd rather die than being threatened and forced to step back. Like he didn't care to die as long as he died standing up.

That feeling had grown stronger over the years. Richard and Jenny had 'adopted' Kelly in a way. They had met Mrs Ollister after Richard had convinced Kelly to allow him to call her to tell her what happened. The lovely old lady had completely charmed Jenny and Jenny had invited her to stay with them as long as Kelly would be at the hospital. Richard had lived three heavenly weeks made of homemade pies, roasted chickens and daily visits at Kelly who had to endure the reproachs, the glares and the overly kind cares of the old lady and Jenny. He remembered how the old lady had hugged the life out of Kelly on her first visit to him, thanking God for watching over her boy right before poking him hard in the ribs and yelling at him for playing the 'heroic imbecile'. Watching Kelly acting like a little boy every time Mrs Ollister would throw a fit about him almost getting killed by being stubborn or about him not letting the nurses do their job, was simply priceless. He had even witnessed Mrs Ollister grabbing Kelly's ear to bring him back to bed as she had caught him at the cafeteria way too soon, ignoring the scowls of a guy who was taller than her. He had almost peed himself the day Mrs Ollister had heard Kelly call a medic visiting him 'fucker' and refused to believe it was an affectionate nickname. She had chased Kelly around his bed to force him to apologize for his rudeness to a medic who of course pretended to be offended only for the fun of it. Kelly had refused to apologize and Mrs Ollister had given him an evil glare before turning around to ask the medic if he was gay too so he could 'confirm her that being gay didn't give you the right to be rude'. Kelly had choked and she had tucked him in bed before getting out of the room under the impressed and bemused looks of the entire team.

Mrs Ollister was a great and kind woman, that was for sure. And she cared about Kelly more than about life itself. During the entire time she stayed with them, she had counselled, advised, helped and comforted a lot of people. Like Jenny when this one had told her they were trying unsuccessfully to have a child or that patient in the room next to Kelly who had survived a car crash and making nightmares. Even if he denied it, Kelly had taken a lot after her in the way he was dealing with patients. His infinite kindness and patience were a complete opposite of the very talkative and insubordinate side of his personality. He could switch from annoying brat to funny carebear in seconds. And after having met Mrs Ollister, Richard knew from who he had learned that. The love between Mrs Ollister and Kelly was overwhelming, no matter how bad Kelly was trying to hide it under a thick layer of sarcasm and banter. A mother and her son. They felt closer than that. Maybe, according to Jenny, because Mrs Ollister wasn't really Kelly's mother. They had built a bond stronger than motherly love from scratch. It was love indeed. But with a tenderness created by two beings that had to tame each other, to discover each other. She had given him a home and he had given her a son. It was precious and pure. Now of course, Richard had never said a word about this to Kelly. He didn't need the denial act to prove he was right.

And now here they were, a year later.

Kelly had been back at work only six weeks after the shooting. He was getting restless and impatient. Richard had put a good word in the favor of his early return to the Hospital board, first because Kelly had almost begged him and two, because he knew Kelly needed to keep busy to maintain a certain level of sanity. And also because Jenny who had found out she was pregnant had decided to take Kelly with her for baby stuff shopping. A terrified Kelly had called Richard to tell him that he would do anything, really anything if his colleague would save him from that.

Something about being the only guy prisoner of a world inhabited by women sharing stories about giving birth and determined to get him a date. Richard had played with the idea of letting Kelly suffer a little more but he wasn't a complete jerk. Shopping with Jenny could indeed get really terrifying. And awfully long.

The ambulance arrived and the back doors opened, stopping Richard's train of thought. Both Kelly and him rushed forward to take care of the patient. They brought him and worked together in perfect sync, hands flying over the patient, orders getting called, beeps rythming their strange choreography.

There was a rumor about Kelly's possible promotion as chief of the E.R. Something Richard could only approve of. Even if Kelly hated paperwork, he was the most skilled and perfect fit for the job. He would have to talk with him about that. Kelly tended to underestimate himself sometimes but Richard was convinced that of the guy wanted to, he had a whole successfull career ahead of him.

A nurse came in and called Kelly.

"Dr Abbott, there is someone on the phone for you. They say it's important." she said loud enough to cover the noises inside the room.

Kelly grinned before bending his knees to check if the drain he was pushing inside the patient's side was following the right angle.

"I'm a little busy now….I'm in!", he announced before straightening his back again. He glanced at the nurse and said; "Do they say what it's about? Take the message anyway. I'll call back whenever I can".

The nurse seemed to hesitate before continuing.

'They say they're a lawyer from Charity, Michigan. They insisted that you needed to take that call." A cold chill ran down Kelly's spine and he almost didn't hear the other nurse calling out the heart rhythmn dropping and quickly after, the cardiac arrest.

Without thinking about it, Kelly climbed the first bar of the table and started the C.P.R, feeling Richard's eyes on him.

"Put them on the speaker', Kelly said dryly, his eyes focused on his hands pumping on the patient's chest.

"Kells….", Richard said calmly. "Let me take over. It's imp…" Richard offered but Kelly shook his head.

"No...It's probably nothing, yeah? Probably nothing." Kelly repeated breathlessly before pausing CPR and checking the monitor.

It was Kelly copping with the incoming bad news, Richard knew that.

He sighed and nodded toward the nurse. "Do as he says. We're here.'

Soon after, the nurse came back into the room and pressed a button on the wall. Kelly was now off the table and he glanced at her, his eyes empty of any emotion. He cleared his throat and resumed the cares to the patient.

"Doctor Abbott? I'm sorry to disturb you at work but this is really important."

A male voice echoed through the speaker. It was the kind of over polite tone that generally was the sign of unpleasant things about to be said.

"Is she okay?", Kelly asked. "Just tell me. Is Mrs Ollister okay?". Only Richard knew him well enough to notice that tremor in his voice.

The nurse called the cardiac arrest again and again, Kelly climbed up for the CPR.

A silence responded him and it felt like for a few seconds, the entire world had stopped breathing, waiting for the man on the phone to speak,

"I'm sorry, Dr Abbott. Mrs Ollister passed away last night. As you know, her heart condition had gotten worse lately. And...my sincere condoleances. May I ask you to call me back at a more adequate moments so we can settle a few details?".

All eyes were now turned to Kelly who didn't react. He was still pressing and releasing the patient's chest forcefully. His jaw was clenched and Richard had the feeling he was trying to control his emotions, to not show them. It was typical of Kelly. If he spoke now, it would be to crack a bad joke only to break the tension in the air. One of the nurses, the one that had been there during the shooting, covered a sob with a hand over her mouth. Richard would bet that everybody in the room was dying to hug the doctor, himself included.

As Kelly remained silent, Richard spoke for him. "He'll call you back later. Leave your coordinates to the reception. Thank you for calling", he said dismissively.

He took a step toward the table and checked on the vitals. Only Kelly's pressures were registered, there was no sign of cardiac activity. "Timing is a bitch", he thought before cupping Kelly's hands with his.

"Kelly….stop. It's over. Go get some air, I'll call it. Come on, pal…", he said gently. He had to call Jenny. She would find the right words to comfort Kelly. He always sucked with that.

Kelly pulled away and stared at the patient. He climbed of the table and looked up at the clock.

"Time of death: 6.53am."

His gaze flew over the people around him, all eyes on him and curiously, even if Kelly was charismatic despite his denial, even if he was always the funny handsome guy, even if he always ended up being in the middle of things, he hated being the center of attention. He hated this, the pity in people's eyes when they were looking at him. He hated to be looked at because he didn't felt seen.

But right now, he didn't care. He pulled off his gloves, threw them in the nearby trashcan and exited the room without a word. Everybody watched him leave and only then, the nurse allowed herself to cry more openly. "Mrs Ollister was a fine woman, I met her….Poor man." she sobbed.

Richard felt immensely sad and powerless.

As far as he knew, the old woman was the only family Kelly had.

He gave a few instructions to the nurses in regard to the patient and followed Kelly. He saw him on the parking line, lurking against a wall, his head craddled in his hands. In the way his shoulders were jumping up and down, there was no doubt that the news had finally hit his heart. A tear rolled down Richard's cheek and he wiped it away hastily. Fuck. Now he was getting emotional as well. Probably a side effect of Jenny's pregnancy, he lied to himself.

If he had to be honest, over the years, he had started to see Kelly as a younger brother. More than a friend, he was family. And you couldn't let family down.

He pulled out his cellphone to call Jenny and explain her briefly what had just happened.

"I'll try to convince him to come home with me; I don't want him alone tonight. Can you fix us some dinner? And beers. We'll need it." he told his wife.

Then he walked outside to stand next to Kelly. He didn't say a word as he knew there was nothing to say. But instead, he rested a hand on Kelly's shoulder to let him know he wasn't alone.

And he would stay like this as long as Kelly would need it.

That's what a brother would do, he assumed. So That's what he would do. As simple as it may seem.

"You have everything you need?", Carter asked as he watched Kelly throw his bag in the bag of his truck. It's been two days since they got the news about Mrs Ollister's passing. Kelly had needed some time to organize himself and take a temporary leave from the hospital, which had been easy since he had a lot of vacations over. In the meanwhile, the lawyer had sent a letter with all the legal and necessary informations. That letter had not left Kelly's pocket ever since.

"Yep. Except a baseball bat and a taser but your wife said that wouldn't be a good idea. She got me two hundred sandwiches for the journey instead. The woman probably thinks I'm going to Alaska or something." Kelly answered. He opened the door of the truck and put the bag of the sandwiches on the passenger's seat. He then sighed and leaned against the truck. Carter watched him closely. Kelly looked exhausted. He probably hadn't slept much the last couple of days. And since he had been working on a twelve shift hours just before hearing about his adoptive mother, Richard couldn't help but to worry.

"You sure you don't want me to come with you? I could drive half the way so you could get some rest, Kels", he offered again like he had being doing for two days.

Kelly shook his head.

"Thanks. But your wife is about to burst and pop you a baby. You have to stay here and you know it. Are you worrying about me? I'm just going to Michigan, you know. I'll probably be the most dangerous thing walking out there. If..you don't count wild animals. And rednecks.", Kelly said with a forced cheerfulness. He paused and narrowed his eyes. "Although….I'm still not sure I should renounce on the taser thing.". Richard knew the man was joking. Well, he was almost sure of that.

He leaned against the truck next to Kelly and shoved his hands into his pockets before speaking again.

"What happened there? I know you don't like to talk about it but in the four years we worked together…..you never spoke about it. It's obvious that something bad happened. Bad enough for you to never return home even if you were missing Mrs O. Kels….You and I are friends, right? Hell, I see you as family. If there is something bad for you out there, I can come with you. Jenny's due is in three weeks. That gives me some time. I mean that.", Richard said as calmly as he could.

Kelly stayed silent for a moment and Richard hoped he hadn't pushed too much all at once. But what he had said was true. They were friends. And Richard had the feeling that his worries were grounded. Maybe Kelly wouldn't answer but Richard was free to ask after all.

Kelly seemed to think about it for a while before sighing tiredly.

"Remember the scars on my side you asked about when we were playing basketball behind the hospital on our first year?", he asked.

Richard remembered that. It had been one hot summer day and the E.R were quiet. Kelly and him had decided to waste some energy outside as they were both getting restless. At some point, Kelly had removed his shirt and Richard had spotted a web of thin, white scars on his side, just under his chest. They were covering his entire side, some larger than others. He had asked about it without really thinking about it. Doctor's reflex.

"Yeah...you said you got in a fight in an alley when you were young.", he remembered.

Kelly nodded slowly and looked away.

"Right. That's the version I usually give.", Kelly retorted.

Richard frowned and glanced at him but he said nothing as he expected Kelly to carry on.

"I got those scars the day before I left Charity. I was 17. It happened in the alley behind the bar I was working at night to spare some money for my first truck. I was...not very popular in town. Big mouth, gayness...the whole package was hurting the local sensibility . They were three. Sheriff included. I was alone. They did most of the fight, I only took the blows.". He paused and snickered.

"They cut me with a broken beer bottle to make me apologize for being a fag and thank them for teaching me otherwise. You know me. I refused. They must have understood I wouldn't do what they say. So they beat me some more, they got bored and they left me there. Momsy made me leave town the day after. She was scared they would do it again. And that it would only get worse the next time. So I left. And I never went back. Not because I was scared. Just because….", he shrugged and sighed again, kicking dirt with the tip of his shoe. "...I promised her I wouldn't look back. That I would do something with my life, great enough to shut them up the day I'd return. At first, I was terrified to have to face life alone. I was angry because I felt like they had won. I was out of their sight and away from everything I cared about. It took me a while to find my way. I did a lot of stupid things before Charlie, the man who welcomed me after Charity, decided to kick my ass and force me to think about the future instead of being stuck in the past. He always said that I didn't die that night so I had to stop acting like I did. You can imagine the rest."

Kelly stopped talking and focused his eyes on his feet like he didn't dare to look at Richard again.

Richard remained silent at first, trying to process all the informations. He felt angry, disgusted. What kind of assholes would do that to a kid, damn it?

He rubbed his chin before speaking.

"Well...at least it explains why you never give up easily. I'm n ot going to say I'm sorry since it's those bastards who owe you that; But….hey. look at what they did. They gave a great doctor to the world. Such a treasure couldn't possible stay hidden in Michigan", he joked before patting Kelly's shoulder. Kelly finally looked up and tried to glare at him but he half-smiled instead.

"You jerk. You're just jealous because I'm handsome and talented. So don't mock me.", he grumbled.

Richard rolled his eyes and gave the guy a one arm hug.

"Oh shut up. I'm not mocking you. You're good. I'm sincere there. And don't expect me to give you compliments just because you got beaten up in the past. In my eyes, you proved everybody they were morons. And that big mouth of yours got you shot already. Now we're just adding more reasons on your account to learn how to tame it.", he humored. He mowered his voice and continued. "My offer still stands though. If you need me to come with you…"

Kelly nudged him and chuckled. "You're just trying to escape your duties. I'm starting to think you'd do anything to not be there when Jenny will give birth. Even a road trip with me."

- You know Jenny and her cranky mood lately. I'm not thrilled by the idea of standing there next to her while she's screaming that I'm the one who put her in that situation while my progeny makes its way out of her belly. a road trip with you to Moron City sounds delightful right now."

Kelly laughed. He felt relieved that Richard didn't get sympathetic after hearing the truth. He didn't want his sympathy. They were friends, indeed. He was even grateful that Richard got him into another banter instead of asking for details.

""Man, she'd hunt me down to slap me with her uterus if you left her now to go with me. Sorry but you're grounded, Doctor Carter." He snorted and added. "But thank you. I appreciate the offer. I guess I just want to do this on my own. You stay here and take care of her. And….don't tell her, okay? I'll tell her myself one day. Perhaps."

"Damn it. Well, it was worth the shot. And okay. Thanks for sharing that with me. Don't you think I will stop threatening to kick your ass on regular basis." Richard said.

Kelly clapped in his hands once and shook himself up.

"Alright. Time to hit the road. I'll try to stay in touch. Can't promise you to call every day because the connection is probably shitty out there and we're not dating so you can live without me for a few weeks. I gave you the keys of my place, right? Don't touch my stuff.

-Oh Hell. Like I would want to find your stash of sex toys. Don't worry about that. I'll touch nothing but the mail and I won't go further than the hallway. You have my word".

The two men shook each other's hand and Richard gave Kelly another manly hug that caused the man to make a few other jokes about Richard being way too cuddlish all at once. He pushed Kelly away with a laugh and watched him get into his truck.

Kelly opened the window to say one last thing.

"If I'm not back in a month, call the army and tell them to nuke the place, yeah?"

Richard shook his head and waved at his colleague dismissively.

"Sure thing. Now go, Abbott. And take care of you, alright?"

Kelly started the engine and waved goodbye at his friend who watched him drive away, hoping that whatever guardian angel was watching over Kelly, it would make sure the man would come back soon and safe.

When the truck disappeared from his sight, Richard turned away to go home.

"Home is where the heart is", he told himself.

He couldn't help but wondering where Kelly's was. Maybe his friend would find out once in Michigan. It was all he wished to the man.