DISCLAIMER: These characters are not mine. I am making no money from them in no way. They belong to NBC, Warner Brothers, Constant C., Micheal Crichten ect. ARCHIVES: Sure! Just e-mail me first, telling were it's at.
A Few Steps Forward
Part 2
~~~~~~~~~~ July 23, Sunday, 2:00 AM
After spending all night with the Carter family, John and Lucy were exhausted and ready to go home and rest. As soon as the first person stood up, announcing their departure, Carter and Lucy followed, with out any hesitation. Finding out about the engagement the way they did, didn't lighten the mood at all. Everyone had to complain about how they were moving to fast and should slow down. That was the thing. Nobody in John's family actually knew him, let alone them , as a couple. They didn't know their past or the obstacles they've had to get to where they are today.
Entering Lucy's apartment, they both headed towards the bathroom and stripped of their clothing. After an evening like they have just experienced, the only cure was relaxing with a warm cup of cocoa in their pyjamas. They soaked in the steamy shower together for fifteen minutes and then accompanied each other to Lucy's bedroom where she dressed herself in stripped, draw string pants and a tang top. Carter plaid himself in sweat pants and a northwestern t-shirt.
Flopping down on the floor infront of the sofa with their large mugs of coffee, Lucy and Carter slouched lazily, side by side. Resting his eyes, Carter turns his head toward his accomplice. "Wasn't this an eventful night?"
"Meeting the parents. This is definitely a day I will remember."
"Yeah? I think it went pretty well compared to what I was expecting."
"What were you expecting? Them to bite me or something, because I think that is the next worse thing."
"You're the one that asked for it! You could of said no when they called."
"God, if you were regretting meeting them so bad, then why did we go and see them at all?"
"Because you wanted to meet them and I thought that I could label this as your warning."
"My warning?"
"You are getting sometime to come up with some good excuses before they call again and invite us over."
"God, what was your life like as a child?"
"Uh, my parents travelled most of my childhood and we stayed with our grandparents a lot."
"We, as in you and your sister?"
"And Bobby."
"Right." Lucy says quietly, "I forgot. He was your older brother with leukemia."
"Yup." Carter stares down into his dark coffee, fiddling with the handle.
"Did you only decide to be a doctor after Bobby's death?"
"Partially."
"I went into medicine because I wanted to help people. My family was excited because they smelt cash, I went to medical school for the exact same reason as most people. That is the end of my story... John?"
"Yeah?" Now resting his eyes again, Carter does not look up.
"My night was going extremely well before the restaurant." Lucy starts to play with the diamond band that now rested on her left ring finger.
"So was mine." For the second time, John opens his eyes and focuses them on Lucy.
"I think that I am still in shock." Lucy lets go of her jewellery and makes eye contact with the only other person in the room, "I am exactly where I want to be. A year ago, would I of thought that I would have the perfect job, perfect support system, perfect Fiance ?" she adds a personal emphasis to her last word, "No way, but it is what I wanted more than anything, and now I have it."
"We have it." Carter reminds her.
"...What am I gonna tell my mom?"
"You could call her up and say that you are engaged." Carter suggests.
"And give her a heart attack? No thanks. She doesn't even know I'm seeing anyone, let alone you."
"Ouch! What's that supposed to mean?"
"She trusted you. She doesn't trust men that sleep with her daughter."
"So I have to pay for having a sex life?"
"Something like that." Lucy lowers her voice.
Allowing his eyes to wonder the room for a clock and not find one, he turns to Lucy, "What time is it?"
"Uh," she checks her watch, "Three."
"And what time is out next shift?"
"Six hours."
"I don't know about you Luce, but I'm going to bed." Carter pushes himself up with his hands, placing his empty mug on the coffee table in front of him.
Looking up at him with her blue eyes, Lucy smiles, "Go ahead. I'll be in in a minute."
After the bedroom door closes behind him, Lucy lets out a deep breath. Lifting up her left arm infront of her and separating her fingers to admire her ring, she grins. Moving her hand in close to examine it, she laughs and gets up to go to sleep. This is what she wanted and never thought would happen. Ever since she hooked up with John, she seemed to only get happier and happier."
~~~~~~~~~~ August 8, 7:40 AM
"Hey." Lucy exclaims, walked up behind Carter who was sitting infront of a gurney piled high with charts. "Chart reviews?"
"Yeah. I haven't been doing many lately. I have to catch up."
Leaning against the gurney, Lucy nods. "So I'm guessing you will be doing this all night then."
"Yeah." Carter leans back in his chair, stretches his arms and yawns.
"That is good."
"Excuse me?" Laughing slightly, John stares at her.
"Oh, I just meant that, you don't expect me to.... I'm just gonna go out with the girls and now I know that you are busy and didn't expect us to go out. Am I making any sense at all?" Lucy laughs along with Carter at her gibberish.
"Yeah, I think I get your drift."
"Do you want me to drop by your place later, or did you just want to meet up at work tomorrow."
"I don't think I'll be heading home anytime soon. I might just finish all of these, get it over with and then sleep in the on call room until my next shift." Stretching, Carter looks back at her.
"So, I'll see you tomorrow."
"Bye."
~~~~~~~~~~ August 8, 8:30 PM
Soon after Dr. Knight left the exam room Dr. Carter was working in, Chunni, Connie, Abby, Elizabeth, Haleh, Lily, Randi, Lydia, Jing Mei, Lucy and Cleo headed to a close by bar in three cars. Not all of them were tight friends, but it was nice to just have a girls night out sometime with the various clicks.
Pulling up to the side walk, they parked their cars in a row and everyone jumped out, continuing the conversations they had started in the car.
By the time they had convinced the place to push enough tables together to fit all of them and their drinks had been ordered, they had all started talk about each others love lives and rumours.
"I heard that Mallucci and Randi went out!" exclaims Lydia enthusiastically, leaning over the table to get some pretzels.
"We did not! It was a friend thing. We just went out for drinks!" Randi insists, crossing her arms across her chest.
"Sure, that is what Carter and Lucy said and look at them now. They are all over each other all the time!" exclaims Chunni, making everyone laugh at her expression.
"We are not all over each other! We are showing our affection!"
"Speaking of you and Carter, how serious are you guys anyway?" questions Connie from across the table as she takes a sip of her drink.
"Yeah. How come there is never any good gossip about your guys' relationship? Fill us in."
"Maybe there isn't any news because we never want you to know any thing."
"Well, there are 10 of us and one of you, you can either tell us, or we will just liquor you up and let you mumble it out." threatens Chunni.
"Fine! I'll tell you, but only if you promise not to let it out around the hospital."
One by one, everyone says "Promise", and focuses in on Lucy, anxious to hear about fresh news.
Staring down at her hands for a minute, she looks up and makes eye contact with the group, "Well, a couple weeks ago..."
"Talk faster!" Insists Elizabeth from the left of Lucy.
After everyone gives a small giggle, Dr. Lucy Knight continues, "A couple of weeks ago Carter and I went to go meet his family... I wouldn't say that they were the best people in the world, but they weren't all that bad."
"Wow, you met his parents. Exciting stuff." Chunni exclaims sarcastically, "What about you Abby, rumour is that you are seeing someone and not telling us about it."
She roles her eyes, frustrated at how impatient her friends could be. As everyone starts chatting loudly, trying to be heard over one and others voices, Lucy raises hers the highest, "We're engaged!"
At the same time, everyone stops talking and starts whispering to each other, "What?" the normally quiet Lily speaks curiously.
"Yeah! What?!" Abby mimics, wandering why her closest friend would keep something like this from her. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because you were the one that told them about John and I when we were going out. I wanted to have the honour of telling them this time." answers Lucy, responding to Abby lockhart's question.
"So, details. Tell us, when, where, how, everything!" pries Randi.
"Well! Like I was saying! We were going to meet his family at a restaurant, but we were early. Instead of going to wait for them inside we decided on going for a drive around. We had been talking about commitment and settling down for a while but I never actually thought seriously about it, unlike him. John pulled to the side of the road, we talked a bit and then he popped the question. I said yes, he gave me a ring," Lucy waves her left hand in the air, "and we went to meet his folks."
Getting up from their chairs, the girls all huddled around Lucy, admiring her ring.
"How did we not see it?! That thing is huge!" Jing Mei exclaims, letting her mouth fall open. "I've knew Carter a while, but never would of thought of him as one to do something like this."
"Please! It had to happen sometime." Connie says, defending Lucy and Carter.
"Look, it's not that I don't like being the centre of attention, but I would appreciate if you don't let this out. I still have to tell my mother and the last thing I want is the cafeteria workers to know before her. So please, can tonight be the first and only time we here about it until I tell my mom? After that you can tell anyone you want and I won't give a damn."
Straightening themselves out, the women of the emergency department go back to their chairs and find a different topic to place their conversation around.
~~~~~~~~~~ August 9, 2:00 PM
When Lucy woke up in the morning and saw that the sun was shining brightly through her window, she knew it was going to be a good day. She didn't have to be to work until the early evening and had the whole morning and afternoon to waste away. She knew one thing that she could do. She could finally call up her mother and tell her. It felt like a good day and she had a positive feeling about it.
After taking a shower and getting dressed, she blow dried her hair and made herself toast for breakfast. It wasn't until two o'clock that she got up the courage to call up Barbera Knight. Taking the phone off of the receiver, she dialled the firmiliar number. It to rang five times before someone picked it up.
"Knight residence. Corrine Speaking."
"Hey. Is mom home?"
"Oh, hey Lucy. Yeah, she is just out back. I'll go get her."
"Thanks."
A Few seconds later, the opposite end of the phone line was picked up by Lucy's mother. "Lucy?"
"Hey mom."
"Is something wrong? It's Tuesday. You usually only call on Fridays."
"Nothing is wrong mom, I just wanted to tell you something."
"Is it important?"
"Uh, yes." Lucy responds, pondering for a minute, knowing the answer, just thinking if she should retort.
"Do you want me to fly down there? It sounds like you aren't that anxious to tell me over the phone." proposes Barbera, worried about the news her daughter has.
"You don't have to do that mom. It is pretty expensive for you to fly to Chicago just for me to tell you something. I could tell you now."
"Nonsense. I haven't seen you in a few months, I can afford it and I can easily take more time off work."
"And what about Corrine?"
"She can stay with a friend."
"Fine." Lucy sighs, not really sure if all this is necessary, but goes along, happy that her mother is coming to visit.
"Okay, lets see, I'm free from August twelfth to fourteenth. Is that okay with you?"
"I have to work."
"Uh," Lucy could here a rustle of paper in the background of her mothers day planner before her voice appears back on the phone. "The only other two days in a row I am free this month is the eighteenth and the nineteenth."
"Okay, I can make sure I'm not scheduled to work."
"Great! I guess I will see you then and you can tell me everything."
"Okay mom, See you."
"Bye."
Hanging up the phone, Lucy picks it right up again to call Carter and tell him that her mother would be coming to Chicago instead of Lucy telling her about their engagement over the phone.
~~~~~~~~~~ August 18, 6:00 AM
Looking out the taxi cab window at the office buildings and tall skyscrapers, Dr. Lucy Knight contemplated over the various ways to tell her mother. She could always just wave the ring, but that was kind of impersonal. She could reintroduce her to John, only say he is her fiance. That didn't sound any better then the first one. Her best bet would probrely be to tell Barbera story slowly. Starting her story from May and go till August.
Barbara probrely wouldn't be all that thrilled at first, but she will come to her senses eventually and realize that her daughter was getting married. Although Lucy had only been seeing him for a few months, after she saw her child and Carter together, she will have discover how in love they are. She wouldn't stay mad at Lucy forever.
"Hey lady! The fair is twenty dollars and eighty cents." The sound of the cab drivers voice jolted Dr. Knight out of her daydreaming.
Pulling a two ten dollar bills and a one dollar bill out of her pocket, she pushed it into the drivers hand, "Keep the change." Grabbed her jacket from the seat beside her. she steps out into the early morning air. Taking a deep breath in, she turned to O' Hare airport and walked in.
~~~~~~~~~~ August 18, 8:00 AM
"We are sorry for the inconvenience. Flight 231 from Boston has been delayed. It is due to arrive in half an hour."
That was the third time that voice had announced the same phrase in the past two hours. Rolling her eyes, Lucy slid back in her chair and crossed her arms. 'Maybe I should of brought a book.' she thought to herself. She had to take yet more time off work and the only reason she was getting it was because everyone was thinking of her as a glass doll that might break if you weren't careful with it. The only person that ever treated her like a normal person anymore was John.
Lucy slouched lazily in the stiff, plastic chair for another 25 minutes before she picked up her jacket and walked over to the platform her mothers pane was planned to land at. Squishing between the assembly of people waiting for their relatives, Lucy eventually made it through the crowd. Getting more impatient by the minute, she soon gets the idea that the plane might never land and she might as well go home. When she started to take this into serious consideration, she saw her mother make her way towards her, carrying a handbag at her side.
"Lucy dear. How are you?" Barbera sizes up her daughter with her eyes. "Well, I don't see any physical damage, so that probrely ain't it!"
"Mom! Not here! Lets go back to my place and get you settled! I will tell you everything then."
"Sure."
"Do you have anymore luggage?" asked Dr. Lucy Knight, realising her mother was heading towards the exit instead of baggage claim.
"I thought since I wasn't staying that long, I wouldn't risk losing all of my clothes with these airlines. I have had to much experience to know better."
"Yeah, well, do you need to drop by the store and pick up anything or did you really fit everything in their?" asks Lucy, gesturing towards her carry-on on bag.
"That is fine dear. I was space conservative"
Lucy and Barbera Knight step outside under the sun and quickly hail a cab, heading to her apartment.
~~~~~~~~~~~ Lucy's apartment
Opening the door to her home, Lucy moves aside, allowing Barbera to enter first. "Did you do something with your place again? It looks different."
"I painted over a few scratches on the walls. Nothing drastic."
"Huh." Barbera states, not really interested in their conversation
"So, you can put your bag in my room. I'll take the couch."
"Look dear, it's a nice gesture, but I will not be putting you out. You can have your bedroom and I will sleep on your couch."
Knowing she got her stubborn streak from her mother, Lucy resists a fight and gives in, "Fine, but if you change your mind, my offer still stands."
Barbera only smiles.
"So, did you want to change or are you comfortable?" Lucy asks, hoping she could find a way to stall longer.
"I'm fine. I flew down here for a reason, and that reason was not so that I can change."
"Uh, you know, lets sit." Taking their places on opposing sides of the couch, Lucy pulls he feet up beside her body looking toward her relative. "Now that you have gone through all of this trouble to get here, my announcement doesn't sound that big anymore."
"Big or small, I came all this way for you. Now lets here it."
"I've been seeing someone..." Lucy says slowly, trying to make sure that her words are coming out correctly.
"Is he attractive?" Barbera asks, leaning in, as if she were a friend, desperate to here about the others love life.
"Mother?!" she questioned, not finding it the most appropriate moment to ask the question.
"Is he?" Barbera repeated.
"Very! Well, we have been going out since May sometime..."
"May?! And you never told me?"
"We never really told anyone accept Abby until a few weeks ago. It was a thing that was we wanted to keep secret."
"So you work with him I'm guessing."
"Yes, he works with me in the hospital. He is nice, loving and everything I could ever ask for and more."
"Can I meet him?"
"You've already met him."
"I have? When? I only recall meeting Dr. Dave and Dr. Carter." Barbera asks curiously, totally oblivious that it was one of the two.
Lucy raises her eyebrows and her mother starts to catch on a little at a time.
"Is it that Dr. Mallucci? I don't trust him. He doesn't look or act very responsible. Not the kind of guy that would make a commitment. You will only be getting your heart broken."
"Mom, I'm not seeing Dave. I am going out with John Carter!"
"What?! Dr. Carter? You're seeing Dr. Carter?!" Ms. Knight asked, shocked that her daughter would actually go out with an ex-teacher.
"Actually, we were going out." Lucy claims, highlighting were.
"Oh, he dumped you? So you called me over a broken heart? Is that what this is about?" Barbera asks, acting sympathetic.
"Mother! John didn't dump me! I called you to tell you about this!" Lucy screams, flinging her left hand forward, towards her mom's face.
Barbera's jaw dropped as realised what her daughters point was. Something she probrely should of caught on to a lot quicker then she did. Grabbing hold of Lucy's hand, she admired the jewellery sitting of her ring finger. "That is one hell of a rock! Either you will spend the rest of your marriage paying for this or he's got deep pockets!"
"Is that a question or a comment?"
"Both."
"Am I supposed to answer that question?"
"Uh huh." Barbera alleges, not taking her eyes off of the band.
"Well, they have some money, but John doesn't really a big thing for all of it. He is more of the kind that wants to make it on his own."
"Something tells me, if his wage is anywhere close to yours, that he broke into the family safe for this one."
"So, do you still want to meet him, although you already know him, or do you want to sit here for the rest of the day and drool onto my hand?"
"Is he home?"
"No, he is at work, but we can go and see him there."
"What time does he get off?"
"Six I believe."
"If he is at work, I believe that means he is supposed to be working. How about we call him, tell him to meet us here for supper and we can all eat together. That way we can spend the day shopping! What do you say?"
Not really sure what had just happened with her mothers switch of emotions, Lucy just kind of plays along, "Uh, okay."
"Great!" Standing up, Barbera, gives her daughter a hand and goes to grab their jackets.
~~~~~~~~~~1:00 PM, Same day
Walking through the grocery store, stalked with such a wide variety of food, Barbera and Lucy Knight found it hard not to fight over what they were going to have for dinner.
"No mom. You already asked. Plus, John doesn't like bland food."
"This does not count as bland."
"It's turkey with no spices, no flavouring and no stuffing. I also think that it might be to much. I was think more toward something smaller and less effort."
"Like what?"
"Maybe a little bit less traditional and more original. Pizza, spaghetti, or maybe salad."
"Fine then, how about we make some spaghetti and toss a salad. They aren't exactly the perfect match, but you said it, not me."
"Okay, I'm fine with that. What will we have to drink? Do you want to pick up some wine?"
"Sure."
~~~~~~~~~~7:30 PM, Lucy's Apartment
"What time is John supposed to be here dear?" Barbera yelled from the kitchen as she moved pans from one burner to the other.
"He said somewhere close to seven thirty."
"Well, dinner is ready, so whenever he arrives we can eat."
"Should I call him?"
"He will get here when he gets here. Don't stress out over this. It will be okay if he is a little late. I can reheat the spaghetti sauce if it gets cold. Don't worry about the food."
"I'm not worried about the food. I'm worried about me."
"He'll be here soon, don't stress." just as Barbera said that last sentence, their was a knock at the door. Looking at each other, the two women smiled, " I told you so!... Well, don't just leave him standing out their, go answer the door!"
Pulling herself together, Lucy walked around the couch and to the door. Opening it up, she found John, plaid in his usual dress pants except this time he didn't have a tie. Just a dress shirt. "Hey Luce." he leans down and gives her a quick peck on the lips. "Sorry if I'm a little late, car trouble."
"Again? What this time?"
"I lent my jeep to Dave and he went joy riding. When I got it back, the thing was practically dead and it overheated on my way over so I had to take the EL halfway here."
Appearing from the kitchen, Barbera Knight walks over, "Hello John. I hope you like spaghetti. We also made salad and got some wine."
"Sounds great." Grinning, John stands tall, waiting to be asked to sit.
Turning around, Ms. Knight runs to the kitchen calling behind her, "Excuse me a minute, I have to go and take the sauce of the stove."
Looking down at Lucy, Carter whispers, "I'm guessing that she took it easier then you thought she would."
"After she stared at the ring for, uh, five, ten minutes... She found out that your family was not necessarily living on a strict budget and she was anything but depressed about it."
"I say fifty bucks that you didn't tell her the only relation I have to my family's account is family trust."
"Remind me, to remind you, to write a check for fifty dollars later."
Walking back out to the foyer, Barbera smiles, "Well, what are you waiting for? A written invitation? Come on and sit. Eat."
Taking their places around the oval table, Ms. Knight at one end of the table while Carter and Lucy sat side by side across from her. Through out their meal, the happy couple shared a few stories, some happy and some funny. They also took sometime to discuss Lucy's younger sister and how she had been doing in school. After they had finished scraping their plates clean with their forks, Barbera stood up, walking away, but soon returned with a pie.
"When we were at the store, I found some gorgeous, homemade pies. They looked delicious and I just couldn't help myself. I hope that you like apple pie John."
"Yes I do, thank you." It seemed like she had to check with him about everything she did. If it wasn't about whether he liked the food, it was about whether he was comfortable with their conversation. It felt pleasant that she cared about his tastes. He could tell that he was being accepted into their family and found it a good sign of there being no feuds between them.
~~~~~~~~~~8:45 PM, Lucy's Apartment
"Thank you, both of you, for dinner. It was delicious."
"Your welcome." says Barbera.
"I'm sorry I have to cut this night short. This is the third time that the lady living across from me has called, notifying me that I left a light on in my apartment and it is keeping her up. I don't even know where she got my cell number, though it is absurd what people can find on the internet these days."
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then?" Lucy suggested, starting to walk Carter to the door.
"I'm not working late, so I'm sure we can get together sometime."
"Good bye Barbera." John calls to the other room where Lucy's mother was now doing dishes.
"Good bye John. It was nice meeting you again."
"You too." He hollers into the kitchen.
"Don't stay up to late, and call me tomorrow morning." demands Lucy, making sure he would keep in contact over the nights time they will be apart.
"Of course I will. What would I do with out you to keep me in track?" John now talks to her, their voices hardly over a whisper.
"Uh, have no one to call in the morning?" Lucy guesses.
Carter laughs, giving her a deeper kiss good bye then he did when he first saw her earlier in the evening.
"Call me!" She yells down the hall as he works towards the stairs. Waving behind him, he disappears into the stairwell which leading down to the main floor.
~~~~~~~~~~ 7:30 AM, August 19, Lucy's apartment
Waking up the next morning with the sun in her eyes, Lucy shoved her face deep into a pillow on the opposite side of the bed, quickly realising she was alone. She had become quite fond of waking up in the morning with someone beside her or wrapping his arms around her body. It wasn't the first night they had slept apart, but it seemed different then other times. He had seen her the night before and had the chance to stay. Not that she would feel comfortable, especially with her mother in the other room and the paper thin walls. It just wasn't something she wanted to happen very often.
Falling asleep the previous evening was not a bundle of joy either.
Lucy stayed up late, talking with her mother, updating her on her summer and work. They talked to each other more like they were friends then mother and daughter. They just had a special bond most people didn't have. Maybe it had something to do with her being a single mother and raising two children on her own.
Sometime near midnight, Lucy and Barbera made a bed on the couch and went their separate ways for the wee hours. It took two hours for Lucy to fall asleep. All she could think about was John. Her mind was supposed to be clear. She had finally told her mother about their relationship and all turned up well. Now she was trying to get him off her mind so she could sleep a full nights rest. Why should she be putting herself through this? Why couldn't they be together every evening.
~~~~~~~~~~ 7:30 AM, August 19, Carter's apartment
Hearing his alarm clock go off was not the noise Carter had been looking forward to waking up in the morning. The annoying ring buzzed loudly throughout the room, causing John to punch to snooze button solidly with the palm of his hand, over a fit of anger. He had only got about three to four hours of sleep the previous evening, forlorn over not having Lucy at his side.
Carter found it sad, that he, as a grown man, could loose sleep over missing a women he had only seen hours prior. Not only that, but they had also spent most of summer and spring with one and other. There were also times through out the evening when he had the sudden urge to call her. At one point, he picked up the receiver and dialled six of the seven digit number until he realised it was two in the morning and she was probrely sleeping, not wanting to be awaken by the telephone. It wasn't long until he resorted to counting sheep.
Now that it was finally morning and he had made it throughout the night, he layed in the same position for a few seconds, allowing his body and mind to adjust to the morning. Stepping out of bed a few minutes later, Carter engloved himself in his housecoat and trotted off to the bathroom to take a shower.
~~~~~~~~~~ 8:00 AM, August 19, Lucy's Apartment
After waking up, there was no way that Lucy was going to fall back asleep and decided in waiting for John to call. The only time she got out of bed was to make herself toast and grab a muffin. Her mom had not awoke yet and Lucy was planning on letting her sleep until after John rang her up.
Taking her breakfast back to bed with her, she confiscated the cordless on the way to her room and crawled back under the heavy comforter. In the time it took to eat one slice of bread and the top of her muffin, the phone rang. Jumping slightly, Lucy reached for the phone and had pushed the 'on' button before the first ring had finished. "Hello! John?!" Lucy yelped into the speaker, making in known to the person on the opposite end she was anxious.
"Hey Luce! How'd you sleep last night?"
"Sleep? What's that? I haven't had it in such a long time I'm starting to forget what it is." Lucy exclaims humorously, trying to make it sound serious.
"Yeah? I didn't get that much rest my self to tell you the truth." admits Carter after being told he wasn't the only one unable to repose himself.
"I kept thinking of you."
"Me too."
"Lucy giggles.
"I mean you! I kept thinking of you !"
"I know what you meant! So how do you think last night went?" asked Lucy.
"It was fun. I'm just happy that she didn't ponder us with questions all night. It went a hell of a lot better then I expected it to go. Better then with my family."
"Me too! I expected her to totally freak! I was actually expecting to have to give her a day until seeing you. I was thinking she might of clawed your eyes out with her nails or something."
"Those are quite the humble expectation you have."
"Well, she hasn't thought very highly of most of my past boyfriends. Even if they were respected people or got good grades in school, she automatically turned on them. But she likes you for some reason. I love you for that same reason."
"And what reason might that be?" asks John, showing his face was glowing through his voice.
"Your charming, have good values and manners, stubborn..."
"Since when does me being stubborn come into this?"
"Know the saying 'Opposites Attract'?"
"Uh huh." responds John.
"It isn't all true. We are both stubborn and I think that is one of the reasons we are both so compatible."
"Do you think?"
"Yeah." hearing a knock on her bedroom door, Lucy finishes up her conversation with John, "Look, my mom is up. I have to go. I'll talk to you though."
"Kay, bye. I love you."
"Love you to." Pushing in the 'off' button, Lucy turns her attention to the door, "Come in."
"Good morning Lucy! I was wandering if you wanted to go out? We can go shopping and eat breakfast and maybe even drop by the hospital later..." Barbera tries to entice her daughter.
"Sure. I'm up for it." Forcing herself out of her comfortable bed, the two women start getting ready for their day."
~~~~~~~~~~
For the rest of the morning and afternoon, Lucy and Barbera ate out and went shopping. Stopping at all of their favourite stores and of course, County General Hospital. During his lunch break, John went and ate lunch at Doc Magoos with them and enjoyed the meal as he did the previous evening. Both feeling reassurance that everything was going to be okay, Carter and Lucy felt free to safe in the way their life was going. For now.
~~~~~~~~~~