It had been a very hectic morning in the emergency room of Rampart General Hospital. The Director of Emergency Services, Dr. Kelly Brackett, had just finished a long and tedious surgery. The patient had been involved in a very serious car accident, and Kelly had just finished painstakingly piecing her ankle back together. The surgery was over and, as the tired doctor shed his surgical gown and cap, he looked over at his head nurse and said, “Hey Dix, I could use a cup of coffee. Join me in the lounge to take five?”
Dixie McCall gave him a weary smile and said, “You’re on, do we have the time?”
Kelly looked down the hallway. “Looks good, both Mike and Joe are at the base station.”
“Great,” she replied. “Give me about five minutes to finish up here. You look beat, go on ahead.”
As Kelly walked toward the base station, he saw Joe Early laugh at something Mike Morton had said. Looks like Mike is finally showing a human side, he thought to himself. The resident was an excellent doctor, eager to learn, but sometimes acted like a medical robot with no personality. Joe Early on the other hand, was a very warm and personable man who was also an excellent doctor. Joe was like the older brother Kel never had. “Hi guys,” Kel greeted the two men, “everything back to normal?”
“Yeah,” Joe smiled, “for the moment all’s calm on the western front.”
“Good,” said Kel, as he signed the patient’s chart and placed it on the pile with all the others from that morning. “Can you guys hold the fort down for a few minutes while I go grab some coffee in the lounge?”
“Sure Kel,” said Mike. “You look like you could use a break. By the way, how is your accident victim?”
“Aside from the ankle I had to put back together, she just had a fractured bone in her hand and a lot of bruises. Another testament for wearing a seat belt. From what the paramedics said, if she hadn’t been wearing it she would have been DOA.” The men had all seen their share of accident victims who hadn’t been so lucky. “I’ll be back in a few minutes, thanks guys. Oh, tell Dixie her coffee is waiting.”
Kelly entered the staff lounge, happy it was empty for the moment. He poured two mugs of coffee, sat down, closed his eyes, and tried to recharge his body. The door opened and Dixie came in. The two of them had a special relationship. They were a great team in the ER, and they were good friends away from work. They were both very dedicated to their jobs and neither had ever found a special someone who understood how their jobs ruled their lives. Kel held up her cup of coffee. “Here you go, but it will cost you.”
“What’s the price?” she asked as she eyed him suspiciously.
“Work your magic on my neck.”
“Oh boy, I better complain to somebody. I even have to work for a cup of coffee!” she teased as she massaged the kinks out of the tired doctor’s neck, a service she had performed many times before.
She sat down and took a deep drink. They started to discuss their crazy morning. Suddenly the intercom blared “Dr. Brackett to the base station, Dr. Brackett to the base station please.” Kel quickly took a large gulp of the coffee and stood up. “Come on Dix, I knew it was too good to last.”
When they got to the base station, Joe said “Sorry Kel, but you aren’t going to believe this one.” Joe was in communication with one of the paramedic units in the field. “Squad 51, Dr. Brackett is here now. Please repeat”
“10-4, Rampart” The voice of Johnny Gage responded. “Rampart, we have a man in his early 60’s with a live grenade lodged in his abdomen. Vitals are as follows: respiration 16, BP 130 over 80, and pulse 70.”
Kel shook his head in disbelief as he wrote some notes. He responded, “51, is the victim able to be transported?”
“Negative, Rampart. The bomb squad guy says the ambulance trip is too risky and might set off the grenade.”
“Great,” muttered Kelly. “51, I’m on my way. Set up a makeshift surgery the best you can and set up an IV of Ringer’s lactate.”
“10-4 Rampart. Standing by.”
Kelly turned to Dixie and gave her a list of equipment he would need. She nodded and was off without a word. He turned to Mike Morton and said, “I could use a hand Mike, want to come?”
The resident jumped at the chance at some rare field work. “You bet!” he answered.
“OK. Grab some scrubs and let me know when the ambulance is ready to go.”
Kel headed for his office to grab some things and to gather his thoughts for a few moments. There was a knock on the door, and Dixie came in. “Here’s everything on your list.”
There was so much she wanted to say, how much he meant to her, how her stomach was in knots knowing the danger he would be in, and how she would be devastated if anything happened to him. “Kel...” she said softly.
“I know,” he said as he stroked her cheek and pulled her close. He gently kissed her and whispered, “I promise.”
She nodded and said, “You better go.”
“Just then Mike Morton stuck his head in the door and said, “We’re all set to go.”
Dixie watched as the men got in the ambulance. She was keeping her eyes on Kelly for as long as she could, as if she was trying to memorize his face. Kelly meanwhile was in the ambulance looking out at Dixie, sending her an unspoken message. Kelly was surprised at the thoughts he was having. It wasn’t so much that he was heading into a very dangerous situation, although that thought was there. It was more the realization of how much Dix meant to him and the fact that he had a very real chance of never seeing her again. Mike saw that Kel was very much in deep thought and wisely didn’t initiate any conversation. He assumed that senior doctor was preparing for the tense situation ahead.
When they got to the man’s home, the bomb squad was waiting with flak vests for the two doctors. Johnny and his partner, Roy DeSoto, were already wearing them. The bomb squad quickly briefed them on the details of the grenade. They had moved the man into his backyard with all the mattresses, pillows and cushions from the house surrounding him. Kel was glad that Johnny and Roy were on the job. In his opinion they were the two finest paramedics on the force. “Hey guys, I could use a couple of nurses who aren’t afraid of loud noises.”
“You can count on us,” said Roy as he and Johnny put on the surgical gowns Mike Morton handed them.
They gingerly began the operation. Roy was handling the anesthesia while Johnny kept his eye on the heart monitor. Suddenly John called out, “V-Fib!”
The patient’s heart had stopped and needed to be started by an electrical shock. Kelly felt like he had stepped out of his body and was watching the drama. He gave the order to ‘zap him’.
Johnny looked at him with anguished eyes as he handed the paddles of the defibrillator to Kel. All four men knew that the shock would either save the man or set off the grenade and kill them all. Kel held his breath as he applied the paddles to the man’s chest and administered the shock. By some miracle, the grenade didn’t go off. All four men let out a sigh of relief as the man’s heart started again. When Kelly had reached the grenade, the head of the bomb squad supervised the transfer of the grenade from the man’s body to the special container his people had waiting for it.
Kelly told Mike to pack the wound and to get the patient ready for transport back to Rampart where they would finish making the repairs to the man’s abdomen. At that moment, he was really glad Mike was there because the tension of the situation had finally gotten to him. The head doctor of the emergency room had his hands shaking so badly he could not have closed the wound to save his soul. He tried to hide it as he stepped back and let Mike get some experience. He flexed his hands a few times trying to get his nerves back under control. He took a few deep breaths and told himself that the hard part was done. Roy and Johnny were so relieved that the grenade hadn’t gone off; they were busy trying to get their own nerves under control.
The paramedics congratulated Kelly on a fine job as they removed the surgical gowns and flak vests. “Thanks to you guys too. It was a true team effort. I’m glad every thing went so well.”
Johnny grinned and said, “Thanks for not blowing us up Doc!”
Kel rolled his eyes and climbed into the ambulance. “See you guys at the hospital,” he said as Roy closed the door of the ambulance and it sped off toward the hospital.
In the ambulance Mike Morton said, “That was a great job, Kel. I don’t know how you kept your focus. I would have lost it when he had to be zapped.”
“Thanks Mike. It’s starting to hit me. Now I’ve got an adrenaline rush that I’ve got to get rid of before I try to finish the surgery.”
“Go ahead. Everything’s under control now,” the resident told his boss.
Kel smiled and let his mind drift to the encounter he had with Dixie before they left. Why did I have the need to kiss her, he wondered. Because you dummy, you love her. It’s about time you admitted it to yourself and to her. You saw the look in her eyes. You know that she’s the best thing you’ve come across in a long time. You got a second chance when you easily could have blown up. Take that chance and don’t blow it!
**************
Meanwhile back at Rampart....
Dixie watched the ambulance drive away taking Kelly and Mike to the accident site. She couldn’t believe that Kel was going to try to perform such a risky surgery. She said a silent prayer as they drove away. She walked slowly back to the emergency ward deep in thought. Oh Kel, she thought, please be careful. Please come back to me. I don’t know what I would do without you. You are so special, I love you so much. She stopped right in her tracks and thought: I love him? Yes, I love him. It’s time to stop fooling yourself, Dix; you went and fell in love with your best friend. Now just hope that he makes it back so you can tell him. He never kissed you before, maybe the time is right. Oh God, please let him come back!
Dixie went back to the base station and sat down to try to concentrate on the mountain of paperwork that had piled up during the busy morning Joe Early saw that she was having a difficult time concentrating. He put his hand on her shoulder and said, “Dix, go take some time for yourself. I can tell your mind just isn’t on what you’re doing.”
“I’m sorry Joe,” she responded. “I’ll be OK.”
The kindly older doctor smiled and said “You really think I’m going to believe that? This is Joe you’re talking to. If it helps, I’m just as worried as you are.”
“When are we going to hear anything?” Dixie asked.
“Well,” Joe replied, “technically they don’t have to contact us at all, since Kel is on the site and is in charge.”
With a catch in her voice, Dixie said, “But what if he’s the one needing help?” Joe noticed the tear running down her cheek before she could wipe it away. “I’m sorry Joe, I’m so scared, I can’t think straight.”
Joe poured her a cup of coffee from the ever present pot at the base station. “I know Dix, I know. Why don’t you go into Kel’s office and let it out. Take this and go relax. If I need you, I’ll come get you. There are plenty of nurses here now. Go ahead.”
Dixie didn’t try to fight him. She took the coffee and let him lead her into Kelly’s office.
“Thanks Joe,” she said quietly.
“It’s going to be OK,” Joe smiled as he left the office. Oh Dix, he thought, I hope he’s OK too, but I’m not in love with him. Maybe this is what the two of you need so you can figure out what I’ve known for a long time. He loves you as much as you love him. Now just wake up and smell the coffee!
Dixie sat at the desk in the private office. She drank the coffee without tasting it. Now that she was alone, the tears finally began to fall as she gave into her nerves. Now Dix, she thought, Get hold of yourself. Kel is a wonderful doctor. If anyone can pull this off, he can. You have got to think positive. You have no reason to become a blubbering idiot. Pull it together now! She blew her nose and wiped her eyes.
Just as Dixie was pulling herself together, Kelly and Mike were arriving back at the hospital. Kel wanted to stop by his office for a minute while the patient was taken to surgery. He was thinking about Dixie and had a need to let her know everything was OK. He was surprised to see her in his office, and wished he could have had a camera to capture the smile on her face when she saw him. “Hi Dix,” he said as he came in the room.
“Kel!” she exclaimed with joy. She impulsively hugged him and said, “You made it! I’ve been so worried!”
“Believe me, I have never been so glad to walk into this hospital in my life!” he laughed.
“How did it go?” she asked.
“Everything went OK. We have a few repairs to make; Mike is prepping for the surgery. I’m on my way now. I just wanted to tell you we were back. Aren’t you about done for the day?”
Dixie looked at her watch and said, “Yeah, I didn’t have any idea it was so late.”
Kel asked, “Do you have any plans or can you wait for me to finish up so you can keep me company over dinner?”
“Sure thing,” she answered. “I’ll be here. You better get going.”
Kelly sighed and said, “Yeah, I guess so. I shouldn’t be too long,” he smiled and left.
Dixie went back to the base station and worked on her stack of paperwork waiting for her replacement to come. When Carol Andrews came on the floor she asked, “What’s going on? I see a bunch of reporters hanging out in the waiting area.”
“Oh, Drs. Brackett and Morton had an unusual surgery this afternoon,” Dixie answered. She went on to describe the day’s events.
Carol asked “Are you kidding me?”
Dixie laughed and said, “Believe me; I couldn’t make something like that up! Hope you have a calm night! See you later.”
As Dixie made her way to the nurses’ locker room, she started thinking that Kelly wouldn’t be pleased the reporters got wind of the story. He accepted the duties of being the Director of Emergency Services and often times ended up being a spokesman for the hospital. He never enjoyed it, and as he had often told Dixie and Joe, he was a doctor and not a public relations officer. You’re not going to get out of it this time, pal. You are the story this time, and a hero whether or not you want to admit it, Dixie thought as she changed her clothes.
The pretty head nurse had put on a casual outfit of a sweater and leggings; she took down her blonde hair from the clip that always held it out of the way on the job. She brushed her hair into the shoulder length style she wore away from work, checked her makeup, and did a quick touch up. She finished up and headed toward the surgery waiting area. She didn’t have too long of a wait when she saw Kel come through the doors. The reporters were right on him.
“Can you give us a statement, Doc?”
“How did the guy manage to get a grenade in his belly?”
Kelly took a deep breath and said, “As I understand it, the patient is a collector of World War II weapons. He was cleaning the grenade launcher and didn’t realize there was a live grenade in the chamber. It went off and hit him in the abdomen. It was too dangerous to transport him here, so we went there. It was a real team effort to pull it off. I had help from Dr. Mike Morton, our resident in emergency services, and from two of the finest paramedics I have the pleasure of working with on a daily basis, John Gage and Roy DeSoto, from Fire Station 51. I also have to thank the bomb squad who guided me through the procedure and disposed of the grenade once we got it out.”
Dixie stood off to the side taking in the scene. She caught herself admiring the view of the tall man with dark wavy hair and deep blue eyes still in his surgical scrubs. Those eyes were showing the strain of a very long and difficult day. Dixie caught his eye and gave him a smile and a wink. Kel smiled and asked the reporters “Hey guys, do you have enough? It’s been one hell of a day, and I’m beat.”
The reporters said, “Yeah sure Doc. Thanks.”
“Yeah, congratulations Doc,” and they left.
Kel walked toward Dix and said, “Thanks for being here for the moral support. You know how much I hate doing that.”
Dix nodded and said, “No problem.”
“Are you ready to go? I thought maybe we would head out to Pete’s Place?” Kel asked.
Pete’s Place was a restaurant on the beach that looked like a rundown shack from the outside, but served excellent seafood and was far enough off the beaten path that getting a table wasn’t a problem . It was a favorite of both of them. “Pete’s Place sounds great. Yeah, I’m ready to go, but I don’t think even Pete’s is ready for that fashion statement!”
Kel looked down and realized he was still in his scrubs. “Oh brother! I’ll be right back.”
He took off down the hall. He quickly changed, and soon he was coming back down the hall in his dress slacks, shirt and leather jacket. He’d left his tie in his office closet. Dixie once again found herself admiring the view. She would have been pleased to know that Kel was admiring the view of her at the same time.
They shared a pleasant dinner, both trying to keep the conversation light and not go into the new feelings they both wanted to explore. Kelly asked Dixie about the seminar she had been to a few days before. She explained that it was on the healing power of touch and how the techniques had been used on patients in the emergency room, the theory being that a calming touch had a positive effect on some victims who were having a rough time.
As they were leaving the restaurant, Dixie took a deep breath of the fresh-smelling ocean air. “What a beautiful evening,” she commented
“Want to take a walk?” asked Kel.
“Sure,” said Dixie.
They headed down the boardwalk of the beach. It was the most natural thing in the world for Kelly to slip her hand into his as they walked. They walked for a while with a comfortable silence between them. After a while, Dixie asked, “Kel how was it?”
“You want the truth? I’ve never been so scared in my life.” He took a deep breath and said, “You haven’t heard the worst of it yet.”
She looked at him and said “What could be worse than trying to operate with on a man with a live grenade in his belly?”
This was the part he had kept silent about to the reporters. “When his heart stops and we have to zap him with a live grenade in his belly,” Kelly answered.
“Oh my God, Kel!”
As he put his arm around her, he gave her the smile she knew so well. “It’s almost funny now. You should have seen Johnny’s face when he handed me the paddles. I didn’t have a choice. We had to zap him or he would have died right there. I’m sure if the bomb squad guy would have realized what I was doing, he would have stopped me. It was a good thing the adrenaline kicked in because I could hardly think any more. Once I removed the grenade, I had to have Mike pack the wound, because my hands were shaking so much.”
Dixie put her arm around Kel’s waist. “I am so glad I didn’t know that was going on. I was a basket case as it was. The suspense was killing me, and I was so scared something was going to happen to you. Joe finally ordered me to go relax in your office because I was so nuts.”
Kelly frowned and said, “That’s not like you; you are normally pretty much in control.”
“I never had to worry about you being blown to bits before,” she said softly. “I was so afraid I was going to lose you.”
It was then that Kelly knew the time was right for what he wanted to say. “Dix, something funny happened to me today. When we were in the ambulance pulling away, I found myself trying to memorize your face in case I didn’t make it back. I realized how much you mean to me, and I was bound and determined to make it back to you.”
He stopped and cupped her chin with one hand and brushed the windblown hair away from her face with the other. Dixie couldn’t believe it. The magic had happened for him too. “Somewhere along the way I fell in love with you.”
Kelly watched his beautiful Dixie digest this news with the tears in her eyes and the smile on her face. “That’s funny, the same thing happened to me while you were gone. I realized I love you so much, and if anything would have happened to you....”
Kelly quieted her with his kiss, gentle at first and then building with emotion. When the kiss ended, he softly said, “I love you, Dixie McCall.”
She said, “I love you, Kelly Brackett.”
They noticed the sun was setting and Kel frowned, “I guess I better get you home.” They walked arm in arm, pausing every so often to kiss.
***************
When they got back to Dixie’s apartment, she persuaded him to come in for a while. He settled in on her sofa, and she snuggled up beside him. “I feel like this whole day has been a dream,” she said.
He smiled and said, “I like how this dream is working out. It’s been a real roller coaster, one of the toughest, yet one of the best days of my life and...” he paused, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close, “I would do it all again if it meant winding up with you.”
Dixie felt herself tearing up for the third time that day. “Oh Kel, that is the sweetest thing any one has ever said to me,” she sniffed.
“What’s this?” he asked as he gently wiped the tear away from her cheek.
“Sorry, I’m really tired and really emotional tonight... a classic combination for tears.” She got up to get a tissue.
Kelly got up and stretched. “Yeah, I’m really tired too. Now that I’ve been able to relax it’s starting to hit me.”
“As I recall, Doc, you were pretty exhausted before that call came in.”
“But I had a beautiful reason to revive!” he grinned as he pulled her close and began kissing her again. Her arms went around his neck in eager response.
“Kel,” she murmured in between kisses, “stay here, don’t go home.”
Kel stopped and looked into her eyes. “Are you sure?” he questioned, knowing full well that she meant something much more that him sacking out on her couch. In those eyes he saw a very familiar look, the ‘determined nurse’ look.
“I’ve never been surer of anything in my life.” No words were needed as she took his hand and led him into her bedroom.
Later as the couple cuddled together in Dixie’s bed, Kelly indulged himself in playing with Dixie’s hair. He chuckled and said, “Now this is the way to end a day.” She nodded in agreement.
“Who would have believed it?” he asked with a smile.
“Believed what?”
“That the person I would end up breaking my vow with was right here the whole time.”
She looked puzzled. “What vow?”
“To never again get involved with someone from work.”
Dix knew what he was talking about. They had both had long ago relationships with co-workers that had disastrous results. A look of concern fell over her beautiful features. “I never thought about work! What are we going to do? The last time this happened, my life turned into a nightmare!”
Kelly responded, “I know, mine did too. This time things are a little different.”
“How do you figure?” she asked.
Kelly propped himself up on his elbow and looked at Dixie. “Why am I in charge of the ER?”
“Because you are the best,” she stated simply.
“OK, why are you the head nurse?”
“Because I earned it!” she cried defensively. “I worked hard to get where I’m at!”
“I know you did and that’s my point.”
“What?” she asked.
“My point is, Nurse McCall, is that we each have our jobs because we are very good at them, and we both have enough experience that the job of taking care of patients becomes automatic. I have never seen you let your personal life get in the way before, and I have no reason to think you will now. We have had disagreements before that never affected our jobs or our friendship. That’s another thing. We have been friends for a long time and this has built up over a long time. Neither one of us was looking for a relationship, and that’s the best kind, one that blossoms slowly. Don’t worry, Dix, we’ll be fine,” he said as he pulled her close for another kiss.
“Promise?” she asked softly.
“Promise.” He sealed it with a gentle kiss. “Good night my love,” he whispered.
“I love you,” she whispered back.
They both drifted off to sleep happy and ready to start the new chapter of their lives together.
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