Good News All Around
Part 17
By Cari
cxcarleo@naz.edu

"Has anyone seen Carol?" Kerry asked, hanging up the phone. "No, why?" Susan asked. "That was Doug on the phone, and I didn’t see her in the lounge or anything." Jerry piped up, "About 15 minutes ago she said she was going for some air. I thought that was a little odd given that it is pouring rain, but…." Susan interrupted to ask Kerry, "Since its quiet, do you mind if I go look for her?" "Not at all, I hope she’s all right." "Maybe she didn’t like the surprise party?" Jerry asked, laughing. However he stopped immediately as Susan gave him a "look."

A few minutes later, Susan opened the door to the roof and was greeted with a drenching, cold, downpour as she stepped onto the roof. After looking around for a few seconds, she saw Carol sitting on the ledge looking out over the city. Sitting down beside her, Susan said, "You must have really wanted to get away to come out here in this." "I guess," Carol said without looking up. "Do you want to talk about it?" "Not right now. I got some bad news, and I guess…I just want to talk to Doug first. I’ll fill you in later, is that ok?" "Of course, but why don’t you come inside? You don’t want to be sick for your getaway. And you’re soaked." "I barely noticed the rain," Carol said as she allowed herself to be led inside.

As they reached the lounge, Susan said to Carol, "Why don’t you get changed? I'm sure there is more than one spare set of scrubs around." "OK," Carol said softly. Susan could see the tears starting to make their way down her cheeks again. Susan sat down beside her friend and said, "I know you don’t want to talk, I just wanted to let you know I’m here for you." "I know you are, and thanks," Carol said, accepting Susan’s hug. As Susan left the lounge, Carol just curled up in the corner of the couch.

As Susan approached the desk, Kerry asked, "Were you able to find Carol?" "Yes, she was up on the roof. Do you think you could let her leave a little early since it’s slow?" "Sure, is everything ok?" "I really don’t know. She didn’t want to talk, but was really upset. I’m going to call Doug to come pick her up because I don’t think she should be driving."

As Carol lay on the couch, memories of the past few years flooded her mind. There were memories of she and Doug at the beach a few summers ago riding jet skis, memories of them out to dinner, ice skating this past Valentine’s Day, or just enjoying a quiet evening at home. As these memories played in her mind, a song ran through her head.

We'll make memories that will last all our lives
As you and I travel through time together
Living this sweet dream
And every day we can say
These are the special times
Times we'll remember
These are the precious times
The tender times we'll hold in our hearts forever
These are the sweetest times
These times together
And through it all, one thing will always be true
The special times are the times I share with you

"Oh Doug, what am I going to do?" Carol thought, as a fresh wave of tears poured down her cheeks.

About 15 minutes later, we see Doug walking in to the ER through the ambulance bay entrance. He walks to the desk where he sees Susan waiting for him. "I got here as quickly as I could, is she ok?" "I don’t know," Susan admitted. "She hasn’t moved since I brought her in from outside. I haven’t gone in there because I don’t want her to think I’m pressuring her to talk when she doesn’t want to." "That’s probably the best way to handle it. I hope she will talk to me. I hate that she got bad news on her birthday. I brought her dry clothes and had the car packed already. I think we may leave from here." "Have a great trip and I hope that she can enjoy the trip and her birthday. I will see you tomorrow." "Yup, and thanks for calling and babysitting for the night."

Doug walks into the lounge and sits down next to Carol. Gently, he asked, "Is everything ok?" "We’ll talk about it later, ok? You’re here early." "Susan called me. Kerry agreed to let you leave early and she didn’t think you should drive home." "I need to change before we leave. I’m soaked." "I brought you a change of clothes." "Thanks."

As they get ready to leave, Carol asked, "How bad do I look?" "You don’t," Doug said. "Your eyes are just a little red." They left the lounge and were able to get out of the ER without having to stop and talk. Carol was grateful for this, as she just wanted to get on the road. To celebrate Carol’s birthday, they were going to a small hotel about an hour away on the lake. The first part of the car ride was fairly quiet, with Doug and Carol just making small talk. Finally, Doug reached over and turned on the radio. The song that started playing was:

It must be love,
It must be love.
I fall like a sparrow
Fly like a dove.
You must be the dream,
I've been dreaming of
Oh what a feeling
It must be love

He reached over and took Carol’s hand, "I love you sweetie." "I love you too." "I’m not going to push you to talk, but I want you to know that I’m here for you." "I know you are. I’m sorry if it seems like I’m pushing you away, I don’t mean to. I just want to try and enjoy today first. We will talk later, I promise." "That sounds good. I want your birthday to be special." "Just being together is all I need. That makes it special enough."

Cut scene to show a time lapse of several hours. Carol and Doug have arrived at the hotel, which consists of a main house and a handful of small cabins, all on the lake. The rain has stopped, although the sky is still overcast. Carol and Doug are walking around the lake, and as they do, the music that plays in the background is:

For all those times you stood by me
For all the truth that you made me see
For all the joy you brought to my life
For all the wrong that you made right
For every dream you made come true
I'll be forever thankful baby
You're the one who held me up
Never let me fall
You're the one who saw me through through it all

Doug and Carol have stopped and are standing on the edge of the lake, feeding a small group of ducks. Doug stands behind Carol with his arms around her waist.

You were my strength when I was weak
ou were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach
You gave me faith 'coz you believed
I'm everything I am
Because you loved me

You gave me wings and made me fly
You touched my hand I could touch the sky
I lost my faith, you gave it back to me
You said no star was out of reach
You stood by me and I stood tall
I had your love I had it all
I'm grateful for each day you gave me
Maybe I don't know that much
But I know this much is true
I was blessed because I was loved by you

Doug and Carol are now sitting at a picnic bench talking. "We should go inside to get ready for dinner," Doug said. "OK," Carol said. "Thank you for bringing me here. I love it." "I know you love the water, so I thought this place would be great for celebrating your birthday." "It is," Carol said, as she took Doug’s hand and they started to walk back to their cabin.

As they enter the cabin, they find the table all set with nice dishes. There is a hot meal on the table, as well as a bottle of Chilean Merlot, Carol’s favorite wine. The dinner was a grilled chicken platter with mixed steamed veggies. As they walked to the table Carol asked, "How did you do this?" "I arranged it with the front desk before we went for the walk and they told me when it would be ready." "Now that’s service," Carol said with a smile. Doug could tell, however, that the smile was forced and hoped that she would tell him soon what was bothering her.

They talked their way through dinner, and after they finished, Doug went to the fridge where there were two pieces of cake. He also picked up a candle, a lighter, and his gift to Carol. He came back to the table with the candle lit. He placed it in front of her and began to sing Happy Birthday. He then handed her a small box. As she opened it, her eyes widened when she saw a gorgeous diamond solitaire necklace. "I love it so much." She gave him a hug and kiss and said "Thank you for a great birthday." Pouring a little more wine into each of their glasses, he lifted his glass to make a toast. "Here’s too many more."

As Doug said that, Carol’s hand began to shake and she dropped the wineglass. Luckily, she hadn’t been holding it too high and Doug grabbed it before it could break. He looked up at her and saw that she was sobbing. Wondering what could have set her off so quickly, Doug put his arms around her and helped her to a standing position. He then lifted her up and walked over to the love seat and sat down with her in his arms. "I’m sorry," she started. "I wanted to get through tonight w/o breaking down. I didn’t want to ruin your birthday plans." "Ssh, it’s ok. It’s more important that you let it go so you’re not holding it in. I’m here for you, and I don’t mind."

After crying for a few minutes, she calms down enough to talk. She shifts her position so she can look at Doug’s face. She takes a deep breath and begins her story as Doug gently rubs her back. "On Monday I was taking a shower, I felt a lump. So I called my doctor when I went to work. She was able to fit me in on Tuesday. She found the lump and did a needle biopsy. She said the results would take about 48 hours to come in. I got the call today at work—it was malignant. I have breast cancer." Carol had started to cry again, and Doug was in a state of shock.

Doug just pulled her tighter in his arms and pulled her head to his shoulder. He rested his head on Carol’s shoulder as he tried his best to comfort her; despite his own pain and tears. "We’ll get through this, somehow." "I hope so…Six years ago, I wanted nothing but to die, and now I’m so scared of that. Things are going so well, I don’t want to die." "You’re not going to die. I won’t let that happen. You have a lot of fight in you, and we can beat this." "I almost lost it when I got the call, I just told Jerry I was going for air and sat on the roof. I think I was there for about 20 minutes before Susan came and got me. I barely noticed the rain. Please don’t be mad at me for not telling you earlier." "I’m not mad. I wish you would have told me so that I could have been there with you, but I respect your choice." "I just needed time to let it sink in. I have an appointment for tomorrow late afternoon to discuss the surgery, prognosis, etc. I made it for 6:00 because you don’t have to work until 7, right? I want you to be there for this one if you can." "Of course. I’ll be here for you through this all." "Even if I have to have chemo and lose my hair and get so sick." "I’ll love you with hair or bald. We’d just go shopping for wigs-I think a blue mohawk would be perfect for you," Doug said with a smile.

It is a few hours later; Carol and Doug are lying in bed. Carol was tired because she hadn’t slept well the past few nights and she asked Doug to hold her. "I just don’t want to be alone right now," she had said. "Of course," he had replied. They changed and got into bed with Doug lying behind Carol with his arm around her waist. They had stayed this way for about an hour when Doug realized he had to go to the bathroom. He got up quietly so as not to wake her, but as he did, she frantically reached for his arm. He sat back down, and said, "I’m just going to the bathroom, I’ll be right back. You can’t sleep?" "I’m thinking too much." "How about I bring you a glass of warm milk?" "Ok, thanks."

Doug returned a few minutes later and helped Carol sit up to drink the milk. When she is done, he puts the glass on the night table. He lies back down, but before he can role onto his side, Carol lays her head on his chest. He rubs her back in a hope that this will relax her. He knows there is nothing he can do to stop the pain, but he can try to comfort her. Carol said, "I’m thinking about taking a medical leave from work, I just can’t deal with that stress on top of this." "That’s what I was going to suggest." "I’m not sure how it will work since I already took maternity this year, but…" "Let administration work that one out, you just worry about getting better."

It is now the next evening, and Carol and Doug are walking into the hospital to get ready for her appointment. Doug says, "I want to let whoever is on know that I may be a little late if your appointment runs late." "OK," she says softly. "I should probably set up a time to talk to Kerry about leave." As they walk into the ER, they see Kerry at the desk. "Hey guys," she said. "How was your trip?" "Pretty good," Carol said. "I didn’t know you were on tonight, Carol." "I’m not, I have a doctor’s appointment." "I’m going with her, so I may be a little late for my shift. Is that ok? You can just page me if you need me and Ill be down as soon as I can." "Sure. Is everything ok?" Carol said, "I need to talk to you about a few things, do you have time?" "Of course, come find me when you are done with your doctor’s appointment. I’m on until 9 PM" "Thanks."

Doug and Carol make their way up to her doctor’s office and are called in after a few minutes. Doug helps Carol into a gown as they wait for the doctor. "I’m so scared," Carol said. "I know you are. So am I," Doug said, putting his arm around Carol. "Let’s just hope for the best." A few minutes later Dr. Arthur Jurney came in the room. "Hello again Ms. Ross." "Hi Doctor, this is my husband, Doug Ross." "Nice to meet you."

Turning to Carol, the doctor said, "Well you know the preliminary results. Those haven’t changed, and it looks like the rest of the results show…"

This story is shorter than some others to leave a little suspense. But more is coming in the next few days