A/N – I am not a medical expert – making it up as I go along. Pardon any discrepancies.
If you're not a fan of Sarah Webber, of course you're not going to enjoy this story!
Chapter Three
Sarah put the last piece of paper down and stretched her arms over her head. She'd been reading for a few hours, and her body was stiff. Rubbing her eyes, Sarah stood up to stretch more of her body. Hearing a knock at her door, Sarah called tiredly, "Come in."
The door opened and Sarah smiled when she saw Felix standing there. "Tell me that mug in your hands is tea and that it's for me and I will be the happiest girl on earth."
Felix grinned. "Then you must be the happiest girl on earth because this IS tea and it IS for you." He handed it to her, chuckling softly at the look of pure bliss that crossed her face as she closed her eyes and inhaled the scent of the steaming tea. "You've been in here for hours. Any progress?"
Sarah groaned and dropped back into her chair. "Yes and no," she admitted, blowing gently on the tea to cool it down. "There's been a lot done to try and help this little girl. Her heart is just badly damaged and not functioning the way it should." Sarah bit her lip thoughtfully. "I just finished reading her chart, so I just need to figure out what approach to take next. It's like a puzzle, but one that you need to get right the first time."
Felix clucked his tongue. "That's rough. Sonny Corinthos wouldn't have brought you in, though, unless you were the best."
"Sometimes being known as the best has pressures of its own," Sarah commented. She yawned and then smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. Jet lag, I guess? I left California at an ungodly hour this morning."
"Where are you staying? The Metro Court?" Felix figured that likely since Carly owned the hotel and Sarah was there on their request.
"Carly has a room reserved for me, yes." Sarah checked her watch. It was 10:00pm, PC time. She'd been on the go for 12 hours. "I guess it's too late to see Avery one more time tonight. Is there an On Call room I can take a short nap in?"
Felix looked surprised. "Yes, but the beds at the Metro Court are way more comfortable," he began, but stopped when Sarah held up a hand.
"I appreciate your concern, Felix. Almost as much as this tea." Sarah grinned at him, pausing to take a sip of her tea. "I'm out of town on this case, away from my life and things that are important to me. I will rest as it's needed, then get back on the case. I'm sure you understand."
Felix looked momentarily taken aback, and then snapped out of it. "Down the hall, turn right and you'll see the On Call room on the left. Do you want me to take you?"
"No thanks, Felix. You've done more than enough." Sarah indicated the tea. "I'll shut things down here and head there for a nap. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"You bet! See you tomorrow, Dr. Webber." Felix opened the door to leave, giving her a smile. "Good night."
"Good night. And Felix?" When he paused to look at her, she smiled. "Please call me Sarah."
"Yes, Sarah." Felix waved and left.
Sarah locked up all the files in the desk and grabbed her luggage. Shutting the lights off, she left the office and closed the door quietly behind her. As she turned around, she saw.. "Liz!"
Elizabeth looked up and looked very displeased to see Sarah. "Still here?"
Sarah rolled her eyes. "Glad to see adulthood hasn't matured you. It's time I made a few things clear to you, Miss Saint Elizabeth." Sarah's eyes glittered with anger as she moved closer to her sister, glancing around first to make sure no one was within earshot. "I saw the look on your face and heard the words you said earlier, make no mistake. The mistake you've made is thinking I don't know what's happened over the years, Lizzie. I know you slept with Nikolas while you were in a relationship with Lucky."
Elizabeth winced.
"Oh yes. And I know you got pregnant with Aiden and thought it was Nikolas' son and your relationship fell apart as a result. So don't you dare stand here and act like you have any right to be angry at me for what happened years ago. You were not in a relationship with Lucky when he and I – " Sarah broke off, emotions overcoming her.
"When you screwed around with my ex-boyfriend, who I was in love with?" Elizabeth hissed, her tone vicious. "You're right, Sarah. I've made my own mistakes, and I've tried to take responsibility for them. Unlike you, however, I am a single mother and have had to grow up quickly."
"So Aiden's your first child then? You didn't have three children with three separate men? That's really grown up, Elizabeth. Learned to keep your legs closed yet?" Sarah spat angrily.
*WHACK*
Elizabeth's hand flew across Sarah's cheek before she could stop it. An audible gasp escaped from Sarah.
"Whoa! What's going on here?"
They both turned to see Nikolas fast approaching, looking worried. "I could hear voices and came to see what was going on and then saw – " he stopped talking as he reached them. Both were visibly shaken and when Sarah lowered her hand from her face, Nikolas saw an angry red welt across her skin. Tears were falling from Sarah's eyes. "Sarrie." It was a nickname he hadn't called her in a long time. Stepping closer, Nikolas reached out and squeezed her shoulder gently.
Sarah shrugged off his support, wiping her eyes angrily. "Don't worry about it, Nikolas. Saint Elizabeth was just proving again how she's always better than everyone else in the world. She can do no wrong, especially now that she has three kids. It means she freaking Mother Theresa."
Turning, Sarah spun away towards the On Call room. As she disappeared, Nikolas turned his eyes on Elizabeth. "Want to tell me what happened?"
"Maybe after you tell me what you're doing here so late?" Elizabeth's voice was a little strangled, and she was still visibly shaken.
Nikolas took her arm and led her to the bench. Pushing her down on it, he sat down beside her. "After Spencer went to bed, I came back to keep Ava company for awhile. Carly and Sonny actually let her be the one to stay tonight."
Elizabeth gave him a watery half-smile. "I still don't know what you see in that woman." At Nikolas' firm stare, she wilted. "Sarah just called me out for being the hypocrite that I am," she admitted. "Instead of taking it and just admitting it and moving on, I'm stuck in this permanent zone of anger. I know I have no reason to be but every time I see her, I just remember – all the anger I felt and it hits me again."
"Do you still have feelings for Lucky?" Nikolas asked her quietly.
"No, and I haven't for a long time," Elizabeth answered without hesitation. "I mean, I'll always love him. But I'm not in love with him."
"Did Sarah really ruin what could've been your big chance with Lucky?"
"I'll never really know, Nikolas," Elizabeth said honestly.
"I don't think you're being fair to yourself, Lucky or Sarah if you really believe that," Nikolas said carefully. "In any case, it's been six years and you've made similar mistakes. I think it's possibly time to try and move on. Sisters before misters, Elizabeth."
Elizabeth gazed at him. "I've never heard you say anything like that before." She smiled weakly. "Ava's influence, I'm sure. " She sighed and stood up, wiping her eyes. "I'm soon, so I'm going to finish my rounds and head home. Thanks for the chat, Nikolas."
"Bye." Nikolas watched her leave and then decided to check in on Sarah. He headed to the On Call room. He knocked once, lightly, and then gently pushed the door open. She was on the phone, speaking quietly to someone. She waved him inside and nodded at him.
"Thanks, Stella. I appreciate the update. I'll be in touch in the morning, as usual." Sarah closed her eyes for a brief moment and smiled. Her voice was thick with emotion when she answered. "Same here. You can let her know that. Ok – talk to you in the morning. Good night." Ending the call, Sarah slipped her cell phone in her pocket. "What's up, Nikolas?"
Nikolas felt like he was intruding on Sarah's private time. "I just want to make sure you're okay," he said quietly, his eyes looking to her face. The red mark was fading, but the hurt in Sarah's eyes was still very clear. "I'm not sure exactly what you said, but there was no cause for Elizabeth to hit you."
Sarah smiled sadly at Nikolas. "She's determined to hate me, and when I'm pushed, I guess I can be as cruel as she can be." Sarah shrugged. "It's her loss, I guess. I just don't need or want the attitude I'm getting from her. If she doesn't want to be sisters, she can at least be civil."
"I'm not sure why she won't let it go either," Nikolas admitted. "How did you find out about our affair?"
"Gram." Sarah offered him a wry look. "Trying to comfort me one night, letting me know my sister was a big a screw up as I was. She didn't exactly use those words, though."
Nikolas chuckled. "Knowing Audrey, I'm sure they weren't even close." He sobered up. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry."
"Sorry about what? You don't hold any animosity towards me for my relationship with Lucky, you never called me any names or got yourself involved in that situation. What you and Elizabeth did to Lucky sucks, but you're all adults and it had nothing to do with me."
"It was a messy situation that was handled badly," Nikolas acknowledged. "We've moved past it now, and Elizabeth owes you the same courtesy."
"She's Saint Elizabeth, Nikolas," Sarah reminded sarcastically. "She owes no one nothing." Sarah glanced at her watch. "I'm sorry to cut this short, but I need some sleep if I'm going to be of any help to Avery."
Nikolas nodded understandingly. "Thanks for the chat. Sleep well."
"Good night."