"Mommy can we go to the flower stand?" Kate asked her mother excitedly as she held onto her hand as they crossed the street.
Carol looked over at Doug who nodded before responding. "We can do that sweetie." She said as her family walked into the market. "But first we need to pick up groceries for dinner." Kate pulled on her mother's hand excitedly as they walked through the market.
"What are we planning?" Doug asked her curiously as he carried Tess on his hip.
"Well Mark and Elizabeth will be at the hospital for most of the day. I figured we could grill out tonight before you head in for your overnight." Carol explained, feeling her daughter pull on her arm. "Kate calm down."
"Katie come here." Doug said as he leaned down to pick up his other daughter. "That sounds great." He assured his wife as he tried to wrangle his daughter. "This string bean is not going to calm down unless we take her to the flower stall."
Carol sighed. "How about I take the girls down to get some flowers, and you pick up some meats for the grill and the produce we talked about this morning?"
Doug nodded. "Sure." He said as he put Kate back on the ground. "Okay Tess you need to go to Momma." He tried to coax the quieter of his daughters to stop clinging onto his shoulder.
"Come here sweetie." Carol said gently as she took Tess from Doug. "We'll meet you back at the car in half an hour?"
"See you there." Doug promised her before heading off to get the groceries.
"Alright Kate what kind of flowers should we get?" Carol asked her daughter as they walked through the busy market.
"What kind does Elizabeth like?" Kate asked curiously. "We should give her the flowers."
Carol's eyes widened. "You don't want to get flowers for your room?" She asked in surprise. When she and the twins had arrived in Seattle the nursery that Doug had set up had a vase on the window sill that he had filled with flowers. Since then nearly every time one of the Ross family members went to the market they picked up new flowers for their room.
Kate shook her head. "This morning Elizabeth was crying and I think she needs some flowers."
Carol couldn't believe her daughter's observance of the world around her. "Well if it's okay with Tess it's okay with me." She replied.
"Can we Tess?" Kate asked her as she pulled on her sister's sleeve.
Tess nodded gently against Carol's shoulder. "Alright then. How about you pick them out Kate?" She suggested as they arrived at the flowers.
After several minutes of careful consideration Kate pointed to a bright bouquet of flowers. "Those ones. Do you think Elizabeth will like those ones?" She asked hopefully.
Carol smiled. "I think she'll love them."
Elizabeth and Mark sat in the waiting room of the oncology department at Northwestern. Mark was gently rubbing the back of Elizabeth's hand as he talked on the phone with Rachel. Elizabeth sighed as she listened to Mark argue with his daughter about babysitting duties.
"Rachel I'm sorry but we can't come home yet." Mark was saying tiredly. "No Rachel, just stay at the house until Doug and Carol get back. They're on their way home now."
Elizabeth leaned onto his shoulder as he hung up the phone, obviously agitated. "Hey, good news is she called." She whispered with a smile.
Mark looked at her tiredly. "I just wish I could get through to her." She said into his hands.
Elizabeth sat up. "Mark you're doing the best you can." She assured him gently.
Mark shrugged. "What if my best isn't enough? What if I can't give her everything she needs anymore? Should I send her back to Jen?" He began to fire questions to no one in particular.
Elizabeth shook her head. "Mark you're doing wonderfully." She assured him softly. "If you think that Rachel needs more than we're giving her then you're the one who I need to get through to. You have two daughters and they're both incredibly lucky to have you."
"I've spent so much more time with Ella." Mark protested softly. "Rachel got a raw deal."
"No Mark." Elizabeth stopped him. "Rachel is lucky to have a father who loves her as unconditionally as you do. That's all she can ask of you."
Mark nodded before pressing his lips firmly against hers. "Thank you." He said earnestly when they parted. Elizabeth smirked in response. They sat in comfortable silence for several moments before a nurse approached them.
"Mark Greene?" She questioned.
"Yup." Mark replied, looking up at her.
"Doctor Parcher is ready to see you now."
Several hours later Elizabeth and Mark arrived back at the house. Rachel had left long before they arrived, leaving Ella with the Ross family for the afternoon.
"Hey baby." Mark greeted his daughter as he lifted her up to kiss her on the cheek. "How was your day?" He asked her with a smile as she nuzzled into his shoulder.
"She's been a bit fussy." Carol replied for her. "I think she may be catching the cold Tess has." She explained sympathetically.
Mark nodded as Elizabeth took Ella from him. "Elizabeth I'm fine." He tried to protest. "A cold isn't going to kill me."
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "You have chemotherapy in two days and you start the trial in three, we don't need you taking any chances."
"You got in?" Carol interrupted excitedly. "To the trial?"
Mark nodded. "They think I'm an excellent candidate." He replied, obviously excited. "So what are the plans for tonight?" He asked as he watched Elizabeth head up the stairs with their daughter.
"Doug's outside starting the grill." Carol informed him as she began to clean up the toys around the living room. "We figured we'd grill out before Doug heads in for his shift. After that we can do whatever you want."
Mark nodded as he helped Carol with her task. "Sounds great."
They worked quietly for several minutes before Carol spoke up again. "Hey I wanted to ask you about something."
"Shoot."
"Is Elizabeth doing alright?" Carol asked awkwardly. When Mark's confused expression indicated he needed more information she continued. "Today at the market Kate asked if she could get her flowers, she said something about her crying this morning."
"Crap." Mark said softly as he stood up.
"I just thought you should know." Carol tried to apologize. "I didn't want to cross any…"
Mark shook his head. "No Carol. Thank you." He said honestly. "I should go talk to her…"
"Go, go." Carol dismissed him. "I've got it."
Mark nodded before hurrying up the stairs and knocking on the guest room door. "Elizabeth?" He asked gently before turning the door knob. The door opened to reveal Elizabeth furiously wiping her eyes with one hand as she held Ella in the other arm. Mark gently took Ella from her, putting his daughter into the playpen in the corner of the room before wrapping his arms around her. "I am so sorry." He whispered quietly.
Elizabeth shook her head as she pulled away from him. "Mark I'm fine." She tried to insist.
Mark allowed her to back away but responded immediately. "You are not fine. You don't have to pretend to be fine just because I'm sick. Please tell me what's wrong."
Elizabeth looked at him, her eyes shining with tears. "I just can't stop thinking about the phone call from Doug. I thought… I thought you were…" She couldn't find the strength to finish her sentence.
"I'm right here." He promised her quietly as he sat next to her on the bed. Elizabeth sighed as she sat still next to him, unable to process much of anything around her. "I'm right here." Mark repeated, this time taking her hand in his. "Please don't push me away."
Elizabeth sighed. "I know you're here Mark. I know you're not gone yet." She assured him quietly. "I just don't know how to do this again."
Mark smiled sympathetically. "Me either." He assured her gently. They sat quietly for several minutes before he turned to her. "Elizabeth please promise me something?" Elizabeth looked at him expectantly but didn't say anything in response. "Promise me you won't hide things from me. I know you want to protect me, but I don't need you to. I need you to trust me."
Elizabeth stared into his eyes for several moments before nodding and burying her face in the crook of his neck.
"How are you feeling?" Mark asked after a long silence.
Elizabeth sighed. "Horrible." She replied honestly. "I'm exhausted and I can't seem to stop thinking about everything with you and the girls."
Mark nodded as he gently rubbed her back. "Well Ella's out cold." He said with a smirk. "Why don't you try to get some rest?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "I can't Mark." She replied.
Mark rolled his eyes. "Well I'm going to lie down in here, and you are welcome to join me."
Elizabeth laughed as he pulled her back against him. She relaxed against him as she took several deep breaths. Finally she yawned. "Thank you Mark.' She whispered quietly, obviously starting to fall asleep.
Mark gently kissed her neck. "Anything for you."
Elizabeth woke up to the sound of her daughter coughing. She glanced at the clock and was shocked to see she had slept for nearly ten hours. She gently pushed Mark's arms from around her waist and got up to check on Ella.
Ella grasped onto her mother's shirt as soon as she was close enough, obviously trying to express her need for comfort. "Hello sweetheart." Elizabeth whispered quietly as she lifted her daughter from the playpen. She frowned as she felt the temperature of Ella's skin against her own. She quickly went down the hall and into the bathroom, rummaging around in the medicine cabinet until she found a thermometer which she promptly put in Ella's ear, causing her to fuss even more.
104.3. Stared back at her, mocking her for even thinking that the hot skin against her own might not be as serious as it felt. She sighed as she put the thermometer down on the counter. Ella murmured quietly against her chest, obviously exhausted. "Alright Ella, come on." She said softly as she hiked her daughter onto her hip before walking down to the end of the hall and knocking on the door to Doug and Carol's room.
She heard the shuffling of blankets before Carol opened the door. "Elizabeth?" She asked as she tiredly rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
"Is Doug here?" Elizabeth asked quietly, trying not to disturb Ella more than necessary.
Carol shook her head. "He's on shift until six." She explained through a yawn. "Why?" She asked suddenly, noticing the scared look on Elizabeth's face. "What's wrong?"
"Ella has a temp of 104.3." Elizabeth admitted quietly.
Carol's eyes widened as she looked down at the little girl. "Okay." She said calmly, pressing her hand against Ella's small forehead. "She should go into the hospital." Carol said sympathetically. "With a fever that high we shouldn't wait."
Elizabeth nodded. "I know." She assured her softly. "I just hoped Doug…"
"I know." Carol assured her. "Is Mark awake?" She asked as she headed back into her bedroom.
Elizabeth shook her head. "No."
Carol nodded as she pulled on a sweatshirt and a pair of sneakers. "I'll take Ella." Carol said gently, taking her friend's daughter into her arms. "Go wake Mark."
Elizabeth nodded, quickly walking down the hall back to the guest room. "Mark." She gently shook his shoulder. "Mark!"
He sat up quickly. "What? What's wrong?" He asked her immediately, grabbing his glasses from the bedside table.
"Ella's sick." Elizabeth said as she rummaged around the room for clothing. "She has a fever we need to take her to the ER."
Mark's eyes widened. "How bad is it?"
"104.3." Elizabeth replied, her voice cracking slightly.
Mark jumped out of bed. "I'm coming."
Elizabeth shook her head. "You can't risk getting sick right now." She chided.
"Elizabeth!" Mark tried to protest.
"Mark." Elizabeth replied sternly. "Someone needs to stay here with the other kids. Carol will be able to get us in quickly. Please…"
Mark sighed realizing he had crossed a line. "I'm sorry." He said gently before quickly kissing her. "Call me as soon as you know more."
Elizabeth nodded. "Of course."
"I love you Elizabeth." Mark said quietly.
"I love you too."
Ella lay on the bed in the ER, whimpering as Elizabeth held a cold compress against her forehead.
"I know sweetie." Carol tried to comfort her friend's daughter. "What's her temp?" She asked the doctor that was reading through her chart.
"It's down to 103.4." Doctor Evans replied.
"Is Doug down here yet? We called him down for a consult nearly twenty minutes ago." Carol asked anxiously.
Doctor Evans shook her head. "We paged him but he hasn't come down."
Carol rolled her eyes. "I'm going to get him." She said angrily. "I'll be back in ten minutes." She promised Elizabeth before jogging towards the elevators.
Three minutes later Carol opened the door to Doug's office. "Hey you!" She yelled angrily seeing him asleep in the chair behind his desk.
He woke abruptly before looking at her in confusion. "Carol?" He asked as he tiredly rubbed his eyes.
"Come on." Carol said angrily as she grabbed onto his arm and pulled him towards the elevators.
"I'm sorry I'm confused." Doug said as they stood waiting for the elevators. "What are you doing here?"
"Ella's sick." Carol said as they stepped into the elevator.
"I thought it was just a cold." Doug replied. "It's three in the morning."
"She came in with a fever of 105." Carol began to fill him in. "We've got it down to 103.4 last time I checked."
"105?" Doug asked, eyes wide. "How did it get that high?"
Carol shook her head. "We don't know."
Doug nodded as the doors opened to the ER. "Where are they?" He asked before following Carol into the exam room where Ella was now crying intently. "Hey Ella." He greeted her gently as he pulled his stethoscope from around his neck. "Give me her vitals." He requested immediately of Doctor Evans.
"Temp is down to 103, pulse-ox is 88, and heart rate is 90." She replied quickly handing Doug her chart. "She's been coughing with no mucus production, ears appear to be infected."
Doug nodded as he began to examine her. "Alright Ella, I need you to sit up for me." He said gently as he helped Elizabeth prop her up. "When did you notice the fever?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "About an hour and a half ago, but Mark and I were asleep for hours, I have no idea when it started." She replied guiltily.
"Alright Doctor Evans seems to be on point. Ella's ears are full of fluid and are incredibly inflamed. We'll have to drain them but we should bring her fever down first." Doug replied gently. "Give her a dose of Children's Tylenol, and I need a basin of cold water and some sponges."
"We can have a nurse work on lowering her temperature." Doctor Evans suggested awkwardly.
Doug shook his head. "I'm taking care of this one." He insisted.
"Alright." Doctor Evans conceded. "Sarah will be in with the Tylenol and the water basin in a few minutes."
"Her fever broke about half an hour ago." Elizabeth said tiredly to Mark on the phone.
"How are you doing?" Mark asked her gently.
"I don't know if I've ever been this tired in my life." She replied honestly.
"I can come down to be with Elle." Mark offered.
Elizabeth shook her head. "Mark…"
"It's an ear infection Elizabeth. I'm not going to catch it." Mark cut her off.
"No." Elizabeth replied. "Just stay with Rachel and the twins."
"Elizabeth, I'm not going to get sick from sitting in an exam room with Ella." Mark protested once again. He was beginning to become frustrated with her before he heard her breath hitch on the other end of the phone. "Oh… don't cry… it's okay." He immediately began to panic.
Elizabeth took in a deep breath and laughed slightly. "It's not. It's really not okay. I don't want to be here but you can't be here. If you get sick you know you might not get better."
Mark sighed. "Alright." He conceded. "I'm sorry."
"We should be heading home in a couple of hours. Doug is getting ready to drain Ella's ears." Elizabeth said after a couple of moments.
"I'll see you soon then." Mark replied. "Keep me posted."
"I will." Elizabeth assured him before hanging up the phone and going back to Ella's room. "How's she doing?" Elizabeth asked Carol who was sitting on the bed holding Ella in her lap.
"She seems to be more comfortable now that we've got her temperature down." Carol assured her. "Doug just left to get the draining kit."
Elizabeth nodded as she leaned over to kiss Ella on the cheek. "You're going to feel better soon sweetheart." She gently assured her daughter. She gently picked her up and began to pace around the room with her daughter's face nuzzled into her shoulder. She cringed as she felt her daughter's hot tears against her skin. "Do you ears hurt?" She asked her gently, shifting the toddler so she could see her face.
Ella nodded as she cried harder. "Daddy." She whimpered softly.
Elizabeth sighed. "I know I want Daddy too." She affirmed for her daughter. "We can go see him as soon as Doug drains your ears out."
Ella shook her head before placing both of her hands over her ears. "No!"
Doug finally arrived with a draining kit in his hands. "No?" He asked with a smirk. "But how am I supposed to be a good doctor if my patient won't cooperate?" He asked Ella gently as Elizabeth sat down with her next to Carol on the bed.
"No no no no!" Ella began to scream as she tried to cling to Elizabeth.
"Sweetheart you have to keep your head very still." Elizabeth moaned as she tried to still her squirming daughter.
Ella vigorously shook her head in protest. "No!"
Doug couldn't help but laugh. "And I thought treating one of my favorite kids would be easy."
Elizabeth rolled her eyes before pulling out her cell phone. She quickly dialed Mark and waited for him to answer. "Elizabeth? What's wrong?"
"Ella's in a bit of a mood. If I put you on speaker could you please try to calm her down while Doug drains her ears?" She asked tiredly.
"Of course." Mark assured her gently.
Elizabeth put the phone on speaker before setting it in front of her daughter. "Say hello to Daddy Ella." She encouraged gently.
"Daddy?" Ella asked as she sniffled every few seconds.
"Hey munchkin." Mark's voice filled the room. "How are you feeling?"
"Ow." Ella replied, obviously upset.
"Well if you let Doug help you your ears won't hurt as much anymore." Mark said gently. "Can you do that?"
Ella hiccupped before nodding. "Yes."
"Alright let Mommy help you stay very still." Mark instructed, causing Ella to relax in Elizabeth's arms.
Doug quickly worked through the procedure as his best friend tried to comfort his daughter through the phone. When he finally finished he listened as Mark said goodbye to Ella, promising her he would see her soon. "Alright Elizabeth, you should keep her on Tylenol just to make sure she doesn't get a high fever again, and I'll grab an antibiotic on my way home in an hour."
"Thank you Doug." Elizabeth said earnestly as she felt Ella's head relax onto her shoulder. "I'm sorry she took so long to calm down."
Doug shook his head. "Don't worry about it."
"Let's head home." Carol said gently as she took Ella from Elizabeth. "You look like hell."
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Thanks."
Mark was relieved when he saw his wife enter the kitchen with Ella in her arms. "Hey." He said gently before pulling her in for a kiss. "How's she doing?" He whispered, having noticed Ella's slight snoring.
"Much better." Elizabeth said honestly, allowing him to take her.
Mark pressed his hand against Ella's forehead, checking her temperature for himself. "How hot did she get?" He asked curiously, her forehead still slightly warm.
"105." Elizabeth replied through a yawn.
Mark's eyes widened. "Damn." He cursed softly.
"Look I need to lie down…" Elizabeth said quietly, rubbing her eyes to try to stay awake.
"Go. I'll watch Ella." Mark quickly dismissed her.
Elizabeth thought about protesting, but ultimately decided that this was a battle she wouldn't win. "Thank you."
Mark smiled sadly as he watched his wife tiredly make her way upstairs. He turned around and saw Carol starting a pot of coffee. He sighed before pulling out a chair from the table. "How bad was it?" Mark asked Carol quietly.
Carol turned around, surprised at the question. "Ella's fine Mark." Carol said immediately.
"She had a fever of 105." Mark replied angrily. "How is that fine?"
"Elizabeth caught it." Carol assured him gently.
Mark shook his head. "We should have noticed yesterday. We're doctors Carol, and we messed up on our own kid."
"Mark you can't beat yourself up about this." Carol said, incredibly concerned for her friend. "Why is this such a big deal? Kids get sick all the time…"
"Because Elizabeth shouldn't have to deal with this alone." Mark said angrily. "She's hurting and I can't do anything to stop it."
"Mark…" Carol began quietly before realizing she didn't know what to say.
After a few moments Mark stood up and handed Ella to Carol. "I have to clear my head."
"Where are you going?" Carol asked, following him toward the front door. He didn't respond. "Mark!"
"I'll be back I promise."