Part 1.
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"Courage, my word, it didn't come, it doesn't matter. Courage, it
couldn't come at a worse time" -Courage. THE TRAGICALLY HIP.
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He flipped through it as Weaver walked up from behind and collared him.
"You're not sifting through cases again are you Malucci?!" She said, annoyed.
Dave jumped a foot in the air, the clipboard flying from his hands and
clattering to the desk as it slid across the Formica tile, coming
to a rest against smooth elegant hands of the ER chief.
"No! Not doing that! Of course not, Chief.." He said nervously, grabbing it and putting it back.
"No.. It's okay.. Looks like a good teaching case.. Take Lucy with you.." Kerry said evenly.
"Lucy?! Chief!!!" Dave whined before snatching it up and storming off to find the young blonde med-student.
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"You have headaches... Is it a sharp pain or a throbbing pain?" Dave's patient bowed his head and shuddered.
Gee.. This was a talkative one. "Paul.."
Paul looked at his doctor, pained and depressed.. "A sharp pain.. A... Stabbing pain.." He winced and lay back on the gurney.
"Uhhh huh." Dave moved the chair away from the gurney and gave himself a little space. "I'm going to order a few tests if that's okay.. You're in college right now Paul?"
Paul nodded. "Yeah.. Law classes.."
Malucci scrawled something on the chart. "Well.. Your headaches are
probably stress related.. But we can get some blood work and
head scans and x-rays just to be sure."
Lucy looked at the chart from behind the junior resident. "You sure he isn't just drug seeking?" She whispered.
Dave cringed. Couldn't she go wash some homeless guy or lance a boil or something?? "He could be.. That's why we need to run some tests.. It'd be stupid to say he's a drug seeker and have him come back with a brain-tumour the size of a Volkswagen next week."
She nodded her head slowly, absorbing the information. "Okay.. So do we order a spinal tap?" She whispered back.
Spinal tap!? Christ.. "Yeah.. Probably.. Have you done one before?!" Dave said nonchalantly, putting the chart down on the empty gurney beside the door and lead her outside.
"Maybe you should stay out of this Lucy.. If this guy does have a brain tumour or something.. It'd be better if we didn't have too many people crowding him. Find Carter.. He probably has something interesting." Dave said quietly, glancing back into the room where his patient lay on his side towards the wall. His gown gaped open at the back, revealing his pasty buttocks.
Malucci closed the blinds and turned back to the med student who stood there, her arms crossed and a scowl on her pretty lips. "Come on Lucy... Please.. If the CT and X-rays come back negative.. I'll come and get you.. I promise.."
She sighed, throwing up her hands and walking away. "Whatever Malucci.. I won't hold my breath." Lucy grumbled, slamming into the lounge.
***
"Hey Luce.. What's wrong?" Carter looked up from the chart he was finishing. His brow furrowed worriedly and he stood up from the table and sat her down on the couch.
"Malucci's being an asshole again.." She muttered angrily, tearing a Kleenex into tiny squares and scattering it over the floor.
He smiled and put a hand over hers stopping the destruction of the innocent tissue. "An asshole eh? I can't say that I've ever heard you use that sort of language.. What did he do this time?"
"Weaver gave him a teaching case, and told him to take me through it, then when it was time to order the tests he told me to go away." Lucy grumbled.
"He told you to go away?" Carter cocked a brow.
"Well.. No.. The guy has been having headaches.. Dave said if it was
cancer or something, it'd be better if he told the patient alone. He
said that if the films and tests were negative, he would come back
and get me." She mumbled quietly, tearing the kleenex.
"Well... That's not so bad is it? Did Dave say anything else?" He urged.
"Uh.. Not really.. The guy might need a spinal tap. Dave said I could help." She said, cheering up a little.
"Oh..." He smiled. "A champagne tap.. Good luck."
"A champagne tap?"
"Yeah.. If you do your first spinal tap correctly, the supervising resident has to buy you a bottle of champagne." Carter grinned.
"Oh.." Lucy returned his smile.
Dave suddenly stuck his head in the door way. "Hey.. Luce.. Commere.."
Carter squeezed her knee comfortingly and let her rise off the sofa and exit the lounge.
"So you're going to buy me a bottle of champagne Dave?" Lucy asked indifferently as they walked down the hall.
"What? Who told you that?!" Dave said, startled.
"A medstudent who does her first correct spinal tap gets a bottle of champagne." Lucy said haughtily.
"Oh really! Who told you this? Carter?" He cocked a brow and glanced back into the lounge.
"Yes actually.. and I believe him." Lucy said, her anger growing.
"You would.." Dave muttered under his breath.
"WHAT!?" Lucy nearly shrieked.
He rolled his eyes and continued to exam 3 where Paul's films were posted
on the lightboard. "They're clear. We have to do a tap.. I
don't know if I can afford a bottle of champagne.. Would a case of
beer be okay??"
Lucy sighed and walked into the room, watching the sleeping man while Dave went to get a tap kit. "Hi Paul.." She said softly.
"When can I go home? I have to study.. I have to feed my cat." He mumbled.
"Soon Paul." She replied, walking to the gurney, her voice comforting..
"We just have to do a few more tests, to rule out
anything serious."
"Is it a tumour?" Paul said panicky..
"Oh.. A tumour.. No.. The x-rays.. They were all clear.. The scans too.." Lucy said hurriedly, reassuring him.
"Oh.." He sighed. "Good... I didn't like that humming tube.. Too bright.. That banging tube too.. Too loud." Paul murmured.
"It's okay Mr.Sobriki.. Everything's okay." Lucy pulled up a chair and turned to see Dave walk in. "Just one more test."
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