By: Courtney
"Charlie! Breakfast!" Carol calls up the stairs. She returns to the kitchen where Doug is at the table. It's 8am on a Tuesday morning in mid August and they both have the day off but Charlie has to go in to the hospital. Since it's summer, she's been trying to get back into her volunteer work there.
"What time does she have to be there?" Doug asks as Carol sits down across from him. She's dressed in a T-shirt and denim shorts. Her pregnancy is not yet evident by her size but the glow on her face is unmistakable.
"Kerry asked her to be there at 9 o'clock," Carol replies.
Doug nods and sips his coffee. He's wearing jeans and a blue golf shirt. "I can take her," he says.
"You don't have to. I can do it," Carol says. She rises from the table to get another glass of orange juice. "Don't you have plans for the day anyway?"
Doug rises from his seat and walks over to stand behind her as she pours juice in her glass. He wraps his arms around her waist and rests his chin on her shoulder. "I thought we could spend the day together," he says.
She turns her head towards him and smiles then kisses his lips lightly. "That's the best offer I've had all week, doctor," she replies.
"Who else has been making you offers?" he kids.
Carol grins and goes to put the juice back in the refrigerator, gently breaking free from Doug's grasp. "Oh, you know, just some of my admirers," she continues the joke.
"Well, I'm definitely at the top of that list," he tells her and goes to put his arms around her again and this time they share a longer kiss.
"Well, I told those other guys to scram. I let them know I was taken," she says with a smile.
"Very taken," he grins back and rubs her stomach.
"Oh, I'm just so excited," she gushes. "Only one more week!"
"Yeah, in a week we'll know if we are having a son or daughter but we still have to wait another six months before the kid actually gets here," Doug says.
"I still can't wait. We'll get to see the baby." Doug takes her hand and leads her over to the table as she talks. He sits back in his chair and pulls her into his lap. "Remember when we first saw Sarah? It was so . . . so magical. I had never felt anything like it. From then on we were a mom and dad. It made everything so real, remember?" she says as her mind drifts back to that time.
Doug smiles slightly at the memory and pulls Carol closer to him. "How could I forget?" he replies. "That day was one of the happiest of my life. Seeing her made me feel like I'd done something I could finally be proud of."
"We can still be proud of her," Carol says softly as she rests her head on his shoulder. "And we'll be proud of this child, too."
"Yep . . . How are we ever going to wait another six months, though?"
"That's a very good question," Carol smiles.
Just then, Charlie walks into the kitchen. She sees Doug and Carol curled up together in the chair and smiles. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything," she remarks as she goes to the cabinet to get a glass for her juice.
"No, we we're just talking about how impatient we are for the baby to get here," Carol says. She doesn't make a move to get up, just raises her head to look at Charlie as she speaks.
"Tell me about it," Charlie says. "And I'll be glad when you tell everyone about it, too."
"It won't be long now," Doug says. "After the appointment next week we're going to make the big announcement."
"So, Sarah and Helen are coming to dinner then?" Charlie asks.
"Yeah, we go to the doctor's next Thursday and we're inviting them to dinner Friday night," Carol says.
"And Ray," Doug adds.
"Are you still sure he and Sarah will be comfortable with that?" Carol asks.
"They're my parents and I'm trying my best to have a relationship with both of them," he replies. "If they both want to have a relationship with me then they will just have to get over their differences. Besides, they haven't had a fight in a long time. For the most part, that ended when they got the divorce. Ray pretty much gave up after mom married Howard," he says. Howard Burgess was Doug's step-dad. He had died the year before Doug and Carol met so she never knew him.
"Well, we still need to warn Sarah. It's been a long time since she's seen Ray," Carol points out.
"Yeah, it has. She'll be shocked when she sees him. As far as I know she hasn't seen him since he stopped drinking."
"Well, I must admit, he's a lot different now than he was when I first met him," Carol says.
"I like him," Charlie adds. They had all gone out to dinner with Ray a few weeks ago. It had been the first time he and Charlie had met and the first time Carol had seen him in over two years. They had all decided to put the past behind them and start over as a family.
"He's going to be excited to hear about the baby," Doug comments.
"You think he's going to be excited, wait until you see our mothers. I think my mom will be pretty happy but I know your mom is going to be ecstatic. Remember how she was the last time?" Carol giggles. "She must have called me ten times a week to be sure I was okay . . ." her smile slowly fades as another memory crosses her mind. "I'll never forget her face that day in the hospital after Sarah . . . She was positively heartbroken," she says quietly.
Doug rubs Carol's back gently and holds her close. "Hey, we're going to be happy now. And we're going to make them happy with this news. It'll be a great dinner," he says softly as he presses his lips to her hair and hugs her to him.
"Yeah," Carol says softly with her head still resting on his chest. She lifts up to look in his eyes. He smiles at her and touches her cheek.
Charlie stands by and watches them. It's really so amazing to see how in love they are. When she was back in Cleveland or when she first came here to Chicago, she would have never imagined love like that could exist. The world seemed too cruel and harsh for something so fragile and precious to survive. A small smile crosses Charlie's lips now. If there is one thing she can have faith in it is the love Doug and Carol share. And she knows if they have found that love then there is hope for everyone.
Doug looks up at Charlie and smiles at her as he sees she is watching them. She walks over and sits down at the table across from them. Carol sits back up and looks over at the girl. "Are you about ready? I can take you to work whenever you're ready," she tells her.
"Actually, I was sort of wondering if maybe I could drive myself," she replies. Charlie had gotten her driver's license last month and since then Doug and Carol have both been taking her out driving whenever they can. She seems a little scared of it, though. But she is also anxious to master this new challenge.
"Drive all that way alone?" Doug says. "No, I don't think that's a very good idea."
"Aw, come on . . . I'm almost 17 years old. I have a license. I can do it, come on," Charlie pleads.
"Charlie, Doug's right. You've never driven alone. I think we should take you. You can drive over though," Carol offers.
Charlie frowns and stares down at her juice. "You know it's not the same," she says.
Carol looks at Doug and gives him a questioning look. He wrinkles his brow and looks back at her. Looking back at Charlie, she gives Doug another look that he is quick to interpret. "Doug . . ." she whispers.
"I don't know . . ." he says under his breath. She draws his eyes to her own and nods slightly, indicating that she thinks they should cut Charlie a little slack. "Okay," Doug finally says. "But to the hospital and back."
Charlie looks up with a huge grin on her face. "Really? You're gonna let me?" she says excitedly.
"Yeah, I guess. But only to work. And you call us as soon as you get there and before you leave to go home. And . . ."
She cuts him off. "I promise. I'll do all of that. I'll be so careful. Thank you, thank you!" she dashes around the side of the table and hugs them both then grabs her purse off the table. "I've gotta go," she says.
"Watch the speed, too, Charlie. And be sure to put on your seatbelt. And . . ." Doug could think of a million warnings but Carol stops him by placing her finger to his lips.
"Bye Charlie, be careful," Carol says.
"I will, I swear! Bye guys!" she grins again, then practically skips out the door to head off to work.
"Are you sure that was such a good idea?" Doug asks.
"We have to let her grow up," Carol says.
"She was too grown up when we met her. I was sort of hoping we'd get a little more time before she became an adult," he replies. Carol smiles at this and dips her head to kiss him. When their lips part, Doug smiles and says, "Umm, what was that for?"
"For being such a great dad," Carol says and leans in to kiss him again.
Charlie starts up the car and, fastening her seatbelt, pulls out of the driveway. She turns the radio on and cranks up the volume. The sound of Seven Mary Three fills the car. "When you gonna make up your mind?" Charlie sings loudly along with the music. She keeps her eyes on the road and is very careful as she makes her way towards Cook County General. She continues to sing with the song until it goes off. The next song is not quite so loud but it's another she likes. It's called The Killer Inside and it's by Better Than Ezra:
"Well she believes
That I'd be better off without her
And she believes in me
Well she believes
That time can make things right, yeah
And I wanna believe
That there's been a change in me . . ."
Charlie listens to the song but this time she doesn't sing along. She's thinking about the lyrics and how much they remind her of her dilemma with Josh right now. "I wanna believe that there's been a change in me," the song said. She wants to believe that too. She wants to be able to tell Josh everything about her past and know that he'll realize how different she is now. The only way to find out, though, is to tell him the truth and wait for his reaction. It's a chance she'll have to take.
"Anna, have you seen my blue tie?" John Carter yells in from the bedroom. Anna peeks her head out of the bathroom with a toothbrush sticking out of her mouth. She mumbles something unintelligible. "Huh?" he says with a laugh.
She holds up her finger and ducks back inside the bathroom. He hears her rinsing the toothpaste from her mouth and then the water turns off and Anna walks back in towel drying her hair. "Look in the top drawer," she says.
John does as she says and sure enough there is the tie. "Thanks," he smiles as he ties it. "What did I do before we met?" he asks.
"Probably just asked the maid," she teases.
"Yeah, probably," John laughs. "But, I'm serious. I mean, look at us Anna. We are so . . . so compatible. You're here every night. We do everything together. How can moving in together be so much different?"
"Oh no, not this again," she replies as she pulls a hairbrush through her hair.
"I don't give up so easy," he grins.
"Yeah, so I've noticed," she smirks. "Look, John, I still feel the same way. I love being here with you. I love us being together. But, I also need to have a place of my own. I'm not ready for us to live together."
"When was the last time you slept in your apartment?" he asks.
"I . . . I don't know . . . it's been . . ."
"Try at least a month, Anna. You live here anyway. Why not make it official?"
"Because . . . official is what scares me. Official is like saying forever. I'm not ready for forever," she says as she slumps down on the bed.
John goes over to sit beside her. He wraps her in his arms. "Fine," he says. "If it makes you that uncomfortable then you can keep the apartment. But when you start actually sleeping there I'm going to have to put my foot down." She leans back a little and looks up at him. He smiles. "Even if you don't think we're ready, I've already said forever to you. I'm never leaving you."
"I love you," she says and lays her head back on his chest.
"Yeah, I love you, too," he replies, holding onto her for dear life and never feeling more at home than he does right now.
Carol walks into the kitchen to find Doug putting away the last of the breakfast dishes. She smiles. "Thanks for doing that."
"No problem," he grins back and wipes his hands on a dishtowel. He tosses the towel aside and walks over to put his arms around her. "It's as much my responsibility as yours. We're in this together, remember?"
Carol smiles and kisses his lips gently. "I guess I'm just not used to you doing so much. You know, you really have been picking up a lot of the slack lately. I want you to know I appreciate it."
"Well, it's the least I can do for the woman who is going to bear my child. Trust me, when you've been in labor for eighteen hours you'll forget all about what a great guy I am," he smirks.
"Never," she replies and kisses him again.
"Don't speak too soon, my dear," he says. She just grins and they continue kissing. After a moment, Doug pulls back. "You know, if we're going to have a day together we'd better stop this or else we'll never make it out of the house."
"Who says we need to leave the house to have a day together?" Carol replies with a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"No, no . . . I *really* want us to go out. I have things planned for today," he says.
"You do?" she responds with definite curiosity. "Like what?"
"Well, I guess if you want to find that out you'll have to control those raging hormones, now won't you?" he teases.
"Watch out, I'll remember that comment later," she says.
"Why do women have such good memories when it comes to things men say?" Doug wonders aloud.
"We have to get ammunition from somewhere," she smirks.
"Hmm, I'll remember *that* comment too," he teases. He kisses her again but doesn't let the kiss linger for too long. He knows that if he does they really won't make it out of the house today. "Grab your purse, I'll get my keys," he instructs.
"Wait, should I change first?" she asks.
He looks at her. She's still wearing the T-shirt and shorts that she had on at breakfast. He shakes his head. "No, you're fine. Let's go." He grabs his keys off the hall table and takes her arm to lead her to the door. They walk out together, still arm in arm.
By noon, Charlie has finished all of the filing Kerry asked her to do and she's standing around the nurse's station waiting for Dr. Weaver to finish with her patient so she can find out what she's supposed to do next. She had thought it might be busy today but apparently the beautiful summer day has managed to somehow ward off infection and disease from the residents of the greater Chicago area. Everyone seems to be healthy, happy, and elsewhere in this city having a wonderful day. Everyone, that is, except for Charlie.
"This sucks. I'm so bored," Charlie complains.
"Don't let Dr. Weaver hear you say that," Jerry warns. "She can *always* find something for you to do."
"Yeah, that's why I hide my magazines under the counter," Randi chimes in as she pops her gum loudly and flips through the latest copy of Vogue.
"Well, at this point I'd be glad to find something to do actually. Standing around here is making me so tired," she tells them.
"So, go in one of the exam rooms and catch a nap. Who's going to care?" Jerry says.
"Dr. Weaver might care. I get the feeling she doesn't take too kindly to people sleeping on the job," Charlie replies.
"Yeah, well, who's going to tell her? Besides, you're a volunteer so it's not like they'd be paying you to sleep. If she comes looking for you I'll come and get you. How's that?" he asks.
Charlie is hesitant but she really would love to take a quick nap. "Well . . ." she says. She had been on the phone with Bax until after 1am this morning and then she'd gotten up so early to get ready for work. There was no doubt she could use the sleep. "Alright . . . but if she even mentions wondering where I am or anything come and get me, okay?"
"Got it," Jerry says, giving her a mock serious look and saluting.
Charlie grins and shakes her head, then turns to walk towards the empty exam room. Randi continues leafing through her magazine and Jerry turns back to the computer game he's been at all morning. The whole place, for once, is calm.
Susan rings the bell again and waits impatiently. She's anxious to get out of this hotel. Her stay here has lasted months and she's happy to finally be leaving. After months of fruitless searching, she has finally managed to find the perfect apartment. It's a twenty-minute ride to Mercy in one direction and the same distance to Doug and Carol's house in the other direction. Those were the only places she seemed to go lately anyway so it was just what she'd been looking for.
Her impatience grows and she rings the bell again. "Hello?" she calls. Finally, a head pops out from behind the curtain. Susan sees a tall blonde with her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She's wearing a lavender sundress that only seems to accentuate how tall and skinny she is.
The girl sees Susan and quickly dashes out. "Sorry, I didn't hear you. I swear, I get so involved in these talk shows sometimes that I completely space. It's ridiculous, I know, but those shows are really addictive." She grins and Susan returns the smile to avoid seeming rude. "I'm really sorry, I hope you haven't been waiting long."
"No, that's okay. I haven't been here long," she lies. She's doesn't really know why but she finds it hard to not be nice to people. Rudeness just isn't something she does well. Chloe had gotten all of those genes from her mother. She'd inherited her father's mild manner. Sometimes this was good but she knew it also proved to be a hindrance a lot too.
"So, how can I help you?" the clerk asks. She's new, Susan assumes, because they haven't met before. She looks very young, maybe in her early twenties at best. Susan theorizes that the young woman is a college student or something like that. This is probably just her summer job.
"Um, I'm here to check out," she says. She hands her key and credit card to the woman and waits as Pamela, as her nametag proclaims, types furiously at the keyboard to locate her account.
"Here we go . . . Lewis. Hmm, you've been here for quite a while," she comments. "We're you in town on business?"
"No, actually I just moved back to Chicago. I've been staying here while I found an apartment."
"Oh, you must be glad to finally be getting out of this place then. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's nice here. In fact, I think this hotel is one of the better one around here to tell you the truth. But, it's not the kind of place you want to live in. I bet you're glad to finally be getting a place to call home."
Pamela smiles and Susan considers what she has said. As Pamela is busy finalizing the check out, Susan begins to mull over that word . . . home. She likes her new apartment, but it isn't a home. She'd be the first to admit that.
"Here you go," Pamela says as she hands Susan her receipt. "Just sign there," she points. Susan does and Pamela hands her the credit card along with her copy of the receipt. "Thanks, I hope you enjoyed your stay," she says in a perky voice that gets instantly under Susan's skin.
"Thanks," she says forcing another smile, then turning to leave as she fishes her keys from her purse. She walks outside and makes her way to the car. Sitting inside, Susan thinks more about the encounter with Pamela.
No matter what she wants to believe, she can't lie to herself. She really doesn't have a home anymore. She no longer has a place she can go and feel completely at ease and comfortable and that frightens her, probably more than anything ever has.
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Created by Courtney Stovall © 1998
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