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Thank You For Being A Friend
Part 3
By Cari
cxcarleo@naz.edu

This is part three of the series called "Thank you for being a friend." For the purposes of this story, Doug knows that Carol is pregnant. Please send me any comments.

As usual.... I do not own the characters and am not making any money from this. Just having some fun.

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Around 9:30, the telephone rings. Mark and Elizabeth are still watching the movie, Carol is long asleep. Mark answers the telephone and pauses the movie. He is surprised, but happy, to hear Doug's voice on the other end. "Hey buddy, how are you?"

"Good. Just got home from work. I tried to reach Carol at work but Carter said that she was sick and had left early and was staying with you. Is she ok?"

"Yes, she has the flu and strep. She feels lousy, but she will be fine. Elizabeth and I just did not want her to be alone so we brought her here. I guess this puts a damper on your weekend surprise plans?"

"Nope, I actually got my flight moved up, my flight now leaves in two hours and I will be landing in Chicago around 2:30 AM."

"That's great. I know she will be glad to see you. I'll pick you up at the airport"

"I can't ask you to do that...."

"You're not asking, I'm offering, and not taking no for an answer."

"OK, OK. I will see you then."

Mark hangs up the telephone and says to Elizabeth, "Doug is flying in tonight."

"Oh that is great. Carol will be happy to see him. Hopefully she will be feeling better before he has to leave."

"I think I'm going to forego watching the end of the movie so I can get some sleep before I pick up Doug."

"OK, if you don't mind, I'm going to sleep out here in case Carol needs anything."

"That sounds like a good idea."

Elizabeth, who was tired after a long day at work, fell asleep almost instantly but woke up suddenly during the night. At first, she did not know what had woken her up, but immediately she heard the sound of someone crying. "Carol, what's the matter?" she asked, sitting up and switching on the lamp on the end table.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up. It's nothing."

"It is something if it got you this upset."

She then noticed that Carol's face was flushed and she felt her forehead, "You're burning up."

"I...I know.... I feel worse, I don't know why, I just feel worse overall."

"Oh sweetie," Elizabeth said, putting her arms around Carol and pulling her head to her shoulder as Carol started to cry even harder. The more Carol cried, the more she coughed, so Elizabeth tried to calm her down by rubbing her back.

Carol started to calm down, and asked, "Could I have a cold compress, and maybe a drink of water?"

"Of course." Elizabeth brought them in and got Carol settled again.

Carol took the Tylenol that Elizabeth held out to her, and said, "I hope these help. My head hurts so badly right now."

"They will help, and bring down your fever as well. The compress will help your head too."

"I have a silly request but..."

"There's no such thing as silly if it will help."

"Will you stay with me until I fall asleep, please?"

"Of course. I'll be right here with you all through the night" Elizabeth said, giving Carol a hug.

"Thank you."

Within forty-five minutes, Carol was asleep, propped up on two pillows so that she would not cough as much.

Just a few minutes after Carol fell asleep, Elizabeth heard the door open. Mark was surprised to see the light on, but Elizabeth signaled to them to be quiet. She met them in the hall and they walked toward the kitchen. "She just fell back asleep. She's having a rough night."

Doug said, "I just want to check on her." So he walked into the living room, gave her a kiss and then went back into the kitchen with Mark and Elizabeth.

Mark asked, "Why the compress?"

"She wanted it. Her fever went up and she has a bad headache."

Doug said, "Compresses always seem to help her when she has a headache. Many a night when she had migraines, Id just sit there rubbing her back and rewetting the compress."

"She woke up... I do not actually know when, but I woke up about an hour ago to her crying. She said that she feels worse, but did not say how. I could tell that her fever had gone up."

"How high is her temperature now?"

"I didn't take it, she was coughing too much to hold the thermometer. I would guess a little over 103 though. She took Tylenol, and I will definitely check it in the morning."

"Thank you, both of you for taking care of her since she got sick. It means a lot to me to know my baby is being taken care of."

"That's what friends are for," Mark said. Then, he added "I hate to be a party pooper, but I'm on at 6 and I need some sleep."

He went off to bed and Doug and Elizabeth went back into the living room. Doug whispered, "You can go back to sleep if you like. My body is on West Coast time so I am not that tired. I can sit up with her to make sure she is ok."

"OK," so Elizabeth settled back into the bed next to Carol.

Doug said "Thank you for staying like this, even in bed with her."

"Of course, she needed me."

Doug sat in the chair for a while, occasionally rewetting Carol's compress and just watching her sleep, something he had missed since he was gone. He thought more about the real reason behind this trip back, and was excited for the next day when he could share his news with Carol.

He fell asleep eventually, but woke up when Mark was leaving for work. "Sorry. I tried to be as quiet as possible."

"No problem. Time for me to rewet her compress anyway. It seems like her fever has come down a little."

"Good. If you want to crash in my bed, you can."

"Thanks, but I want to be right there when she wakes up."

"Good point. I had better run. I will see you later."

"Thanks again."

Around 8:30, Doug and Elizabeth both woke up to the sound of someone gagging and they saw Carol running for the bathroom. Doug said to Elizabeth, "I'll take care of her," and he ran off to the bathroom after her.

Carol made it to the toilet just in time, and was vaguely aware of someone holding her hair back as she threw up. After she finished, Doug helped her to stand and looking at the arm, she realized it was too muscular to be Mark. She turned around and said, "Doug!"

"Hey sweetie," he said giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Want some water to rinse out your mouth?"

"Sure...But...What are you doing here? When did you get here?"

Giving her the water, he said, "I got in during the night. I was... Oh well forget the surprise. I was going to come in this weekend to surprise you, but then I called to reach you at work and Carter told me you were here, and sick, so I moved my flight up and, here I am."

He put his arm around her and walked her back into the living room. Elizabeth asked, "Is your stomach still bad?"

"It's worse, and I'm worried about getting dehydrated. It can't be good for the baby."

"Maybe we should make a trip to the ER?"

"I think you're right," Carol said laying back on the couch, "I feel absolutely horrible."

Doug, who was holding her hand asked, "What's the matter sweetie?"

"I have a horrible headache, my throat is killing me, I cant stop coughing, I'm a mess," she said starting to cry. He gathered her in his arms and rocked her until she calmed down.

Elizabeth asked Doug, "Do you want to eat something before we go?"

"No, I'm all set. You?"

"I'm fine. Shall we go?"

They drove to County with Carol sitting in the front with the seat reclined and Doug rubbing her back. Elizabeth dropped them off at the ER door and said, "I will park and I have to do something. I will be in in a bit."

Carol said, "You can leave. You need some time to do stuff before you come in. My car is still here, and Doug can drive us home when we're done."

"No, I want to stay to make sure you are OK."

Doug and Carol walked in and Jerry said, "Dr. Ross, what are you doing here?"

"I came to check on my girl. Is Mark around?"

"He's in with a patient, but he should be out in a minute."

"OK, let him know we're in the lounge."

Doug and Carol walked to the lounge, where Carol laid on a couch with her head in Doug's lap.

Out at the desk, Jerry saw Mark come out of Exam 1. "Hey Dr. Greene, Dr. Ross just came in with Carol. They're in the lounge, and she doesn't look too good."

"Thanks Jerry," Mark said running off to the lounge. As he entered, he immediately asked Doug, "What's wrong?"

"She got sick again this morning. We're worried about dehydration, and the baby."

"Of course. Let's go into one of the rooms and start an IV. We'll get someone from OB down just to be sure and...." As they pass the desk, Mark says to Jerry, "Call OB and have them send someone down as a consult. We'll be in Exam 3."

The three of them go into the room, and Carol asks, "Can I wait a little while before putting on a gown? I am so cold right now."

"Sure," Mark said. He did a preliminary exam and started an IV of saline while Doug holds Carol's hand before OB gets down.

Within 10 minutes, a male doctor comes down from OB and Mark fills him in on the situation. They can tell immediately that the doctor, who none of them knows, has not majored in bedside manner.

"You!" he says to Doug, who he does not recognize, "Out to the waiting room."

"But."

Before he can finish, the doctor says to Mark, "Why isn't she in a gown? I cannot examine her like this. You have not even done vitals yet! And please don't tell me you can get an accurate temperature with her coughing so badly."

"Now wait one moment," Mark yells.

Within seconds, the three of them are yelling at each other and Carol says, "Go ahead and take them, I just do not want an audience" Seeing that they are not listening she starts to cry quietly, unnoticed.

Just then, Elizabeth came in through the ER doors, having finished her errands, we can see she is holding a balloon and a stuffed animal. Jerry says, "They're in Exam 3."

Elizabeth hears the yelling as she nears the door. She enters quietly, but instead of getting involved in the argument, she goes to Carol's side. "Sweetie, what's the matter?"

"This OB guy is a jerk. He came in yelling, first at Doug, then at Mark."

"Why?"

"He wanted to throw Doug out, and yelled at Mark for not having gotten me in a gown, or taking my vitals. He will not listen to either one. I feel bad, I asked Mark to let me stay dressed because I am so cold. And he is right; there is no way they could get an accurate temperature reading with me coughing so badly. I don't object...Well I do. I do not want this guy to do it... I do not care... Just as long as I do not have an audience. It's already bad enough."

"Oh sweetie," Elizabeth says rubbing Carol's back. "Men and their egos. I can take care of this. Do you want me to do vitals?"

"Sure, I just don't want an audience... I don't really care if Mark and Doug are in here, I just don't want him," she gestures toward the OB Doc who is in Mark's face. "I don't want him here, but I doubt he'll leave alone. I don't even want him to be the consulting"

"I'll take care of this." Elizabeth walks over to the three men and whistles louder than any woman they have ever heard before. They stop arguing immediately and look at her. "Please gentleman, if you're going to scream, do it outside. You are frightening the patient. She has requested that you leave. And Doctor" She pauses to look at his nametag. "Brown, we won't be needing you any further"

"But, but"

"Out!" Elizabeth says.

Doug does not want to leave Carol, but Mark pulls his arm and says, "It's the only way to get him out." So they leave, and he is on the elevator before they can speak to him.

No one had realized it, but Kerry was waiting outside. "I already called OB. We will not be using him as a consult in the future. Now tell me what happened, why is Carol here? Is she ok?" She tries to look in the window, but the blinds are closed.

Mark said, "We're worried about dehydration, her stomach is very upset. So we are running an IV of saline. Elizabeth is doing her vitals now. We had called OB to check on the baby, and to see what medicines we can safely give her. But that man is a conceited ass."

"That much I could tell. I have OB training and am familiar with the medicines we can give to pregnant women. And Mark, you could run an ultrasound if Carol wants."

"OK great. I forgot about your OB experience."

"Doug, when did you get into town?"

"Just a few hours ago. I was due in this weekend to surprise Carol, but I came in early when I found out that Carol was sick."

"Im glad that you were able to be here, she needs you. How is your job in Seattle?"

"It's a job," Doug said.

In the room, Elizabeth is taking Carol's blood pressure, pulse, and resps while waiting for the thermometer to register. "Thank you for doing this," Carol said.

"Of course. If I were you, I wouldn't want an audience either." Elizabeth removes the thermometer and says "101.9. It has definitely come down a little." She gives Carol, who is still shivering a blanket and said, "Let me give report to Mark and Doug, ok?"

"Sure. Could you get me a little water too?"

"Of course," Elizabeth says pouring her a glass and handing it to her.

Elizabeth goes out into the hall where she sees Mark, Doug, and Kerry waiting. "I'm sorry," she apologizes to Mark and Doug. "She just needed some privacy and I wanted to get that... that... creep out of here."

"That's ok. He won't be back," Mark said. "I forgot Kerry had OB training, she can help with the medicine."

"Great, I got her vitals, her temp is down to 101.9." Elizabeth said as she led them into the room.

"Hey Carol," Kerry said. "Hi," Carol said weakly. They can all see that she is drained.

"I'm sorry that I put up a fuss guys I just"

"Ssh. Don't apologize," Mark said as he got everything ready for the ultrasound.

Doug had prepared a cold compress and was holding it on Carol's forehead. He notices the bear holding the balloon and asks, "Where did that come from?"

Elizabeth said, "I brought it in before."

"Thanks, " Carol said jumping as she felt the cold ultra sound gel.

The room grew silent as Mark started the procedure. Immediately he detected the baby's heartbeat, right at the level where it should be. "Heartrate is 140, the baby is fine," Mark says.

They all breathe a sigh of relief. "Now, " Kerry says, "Let's take care of mom."

Just then, Mark's beeper goes off and says "Oops, duty calls. Come find me before everyone leaves, ok?"

Doug assured him he would.

Elizabeth said, "Do you guys mind if I leave to get some sleep before I come back on?"

"Of course not," Carol says. "Thank you for doing everything for me. Doug and I will go back to my place tonight, but call me when you get off tomorrow?"

"Sure. Take care of yourself and call me if you need anything." Elizabeth said giving Carol a hug and kiss.

Kerry checked Carol's breathing, ears and throat and asked, "How did the strep test come back when Elizabeth did it?"

"Positive, she gave me a prescription for Amoxicillan."

"You don't have bronchitis, I would just recommend cold medicine for the cough, but one without alcohol. I think the antibiotics will help the strep as soon as you are able to keep them down. For that, I would recommend Compazine, which is completely safe for the baby. Do you want me to write a prescription?"

"Please, that would be great."

"OK, I will call it in. Doug, you can pick it up in ten minutes."

"OK." Doug asked Carol, "Do you mind if I leave for a few minutes?"

"No, but while you're gone, can you do me a small favor?"

"Of course, what do you need?"

"I had to park way out by the outer edge of the lot when I came in yesterday. Can you move the car? There is no way I can walk that far."

"Sure, you rest until I come back and then we'll go home," he says, giving her a kiss.

Carol must have drifted off, because the next thing she knew, Doug and Kerry were back in the room. Doug asked, "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes. I'm sorry that I fell asleep."

"It's OK."

Kerry removed the IV and said to Carol, "Don't worry about work until Monday at the earliest. If you feel better by then, great. If not, give me a call and we'll work something out."

"OK, and thank you."

As they walked toward the lobby, they saw Mark coming from the lounge. "Hey guys, headed home?"

"Yes," Carol said. "Thank you so much for taking care of me yesterday and last night."

"Of course, call us if you guys need anything."

"We will."

Mark gave Carol a hug and Doug asked, "What time are you on until?"

"Four."

"Want to come by when you're done so we can catch up on the past few months?"

"Sure, if you guys won't be too busy," Mark said with a smile.

Carol said, "Much as I would like to talk, I think I'm going to be sleeping more today than anything."

Doug chimed in, "Yes, you are going to bed as soon as we get home."

"OK," Mark said. "I'll see you around 4:30 then.

When Doug and Carol got back to Carol's, they walked up to the bedroom. Carol sat on the edge of the bed and Doug got her a nightgown. "Why don't you get changed while I go get your medications and some water?"

"OK," Carol said softly.

Doug went down and got the stuff as well as something from his bag. When he reached the bedroom, he saw that she was curled up in a ball, and he started to rub her back. "Which do you want first?"

"I don't care just as long as I can have a massage after."

"Of course."

First she took the antibiotics and then Doug gave her the other medicine. Once that was done, she crawled under the covers and Doug started to massage her neck, shoulders, and back. "Thanks, that helps a lot."

About 10 minutes later, she rolled over and faced him. He lay down next to her, put his arms around her and she put her head on his shoulder. "Thank you for being here for me."

"Always," Doug said as he wrapped his arms around her tightly. He thought about the meaning of this response, and this time, felt like he really meant it. Soon, they both drifted off to sleep.

Around 4:15, Doug woke up and they were still in each other's arms. He knew that he needed to get up. He moved slowly so as not to wake her up. So that she would not be alone when she woke up, he put a teddy bear that he had brought her in her arms.

Doug descended the stairs to see Mark knocking softly at the door. "I did not want to ring the bell in case she was asleep."

"She is. Has been pretty much since we got home. I think its a combination of the Compazine and being sick."

"Is the Compazine helping her stomach?"

"I think so, we slept for about four hours and she didn't get up at all." Mark started to unpack a bag he brought and Doug asked, "Dinner?"

"Yep. Figured it was one less thing for you to worry about."

"Thanks. For tomorrow, I don't think Carol will be up to going put but I still want to do something for the four of us, so I'll make dinner here."

"Sounds great. I suspect there is more to this dinner than you're letting on."

"And you would be right," Doug said with a smile.

"But I have to wait, don't I?"

"Yep."

Doug and Mark talked until a little after six when Carol came into the kitchen. "How do you feel?" Doug asked.

"A little better," Carol said sitting in Doug's lap. She saw the bottle of ginger ale and asked Mark, "Would you mind if I had some?"

"I bought it for you."

"Thanks." She sipped it cautiously. Seeing and thinking of food, Carol said to Mark, "About dinner tomorrow, I don't know how I will feel...."

Doug said, "Don't worry about that. It was a set up for me to surprise you. I'm going to make dinner here for everyone."

"OK, I'm sorry that I messed up your surprise."

"That's OK sweetie," Doug said, rubbing Carol's back gently.

A few minutes later Mark said, "I hate to run but I'm on early tomorrow and need to do a few things before I head home. So I will see you guys tomorrow at...What time is good?"

"Does 5 work?"

"Sounds great to me, and Elizabeth is off tomorrow so it should be fine for her as well. See you then, and feel better Carol."

"Thanks."

Doug asked Carol, "Do you want to try dinner?"

"Just broth. The Compazine helped a lot, but I don't want to push it."

"Good idea. Do you think you'll be able to hold down the medicine?"

"I was going to hold off taking that until bed time when I take the Compazine again."

"OK, now you go lay down on the couch while I get dinner done."

"You don't need help?"

"Nope, and you need to rest."

About 10 minutes later, Doug called "Dinner." As Carol came in and they ate and talked, Carol was debating whether to ask Doug about the reason behind his return, as it seemed there was more to it. However, she decided against it, she was just happy that he was here.

After dinner, Doug could see that Carol was still tired so he walked her up to bed and they lied down and talked about what had happened in the three months that Doug had been gone. Doug thought about how he was going to explain his absence tomorrow morning and decided to steer the conversation towards dinner. "I will go out early tomorrow to get stuff for dinner," he said thinking that was a good way to cover.

"OK, just wake me up when you get back and I'll help."

"Nah. I will let you sleep. That's most important."

"I'm trying to fight it right now. I want to stay awake and spend what little time we have together."

"Get some sleep so you feel better, we have all weekend to talk."

As Doug went downstairs to get her a fresh glass of water, he gave her the teddy bear, which she took and hugged. When he came back up, he also had the thermometer with him. Carol said, as he gave her the medicine and took her temperature, "Thank you so much for taking care of me."

"Of course," he said, kissing her and removing the thermometer "102.5 Tylenol? Compress?"

"Please."

He got her all settled and tucked in and said, "I'm going to take a quick shower and then I'll be right back."

"OK, please leave the door unlocked. My stomach is a little shaky."

"Sure."

10 minutes later, Doug came back to the bedroom and was happy to see that Carol was close to asleep. He lay down, set the alarm, and thought happily, "In less than 12 hours I can tell her why I am back."

Doug was out and about early the next morning. His first stop was the appointment, which went well, as planned. All it really was was a formality. On the way home, he stopped to get some stuff for dinner.

It was around 11 when he got back to the house, and he could hear the shower running. He went up to the bedroom, and left a rose on Carol's pillow. He returned to the kitchen and started a light breakfast. A few minutes later, Carol came into the kitchen, "Thank you."

"You're welcome. How do you feel?"

"A little better. I woke up achy so I.... Doug, what's the matter?" she asked, detecting a distance in his eyes.

Trying his best to look sad, he took a letter, that he had received a week ago, from his pocket and said, "Read this."

Carol took the letter and scanned it. She saw the letterhead, which was Mercy Hospital, about 10 minutes from her house. The first sentence, "We are pleased with your acceptance of our offer of employment..." was all that she needed to read before putting her hand to her mouth and turning to face Doug who now had a huge grin on his face. "You're back?"

"For good...Well...Until Sunday night. I need to fly back and pick up a few more things and then Ill be back Tuesday morning. This is why I was here this weekend, for a meeting with the Chief. I have been waiting on this since June, the position opened just two weeks after I left and they called me immediately asking if I would consider, and here I am. I've missed you so much."

"Me too. Is this the reason behind dinner?"

"Sort of. Mark does not know either. All he knows is that I came back to surprise you."

"He'll be so happy. I cannot believe it. I dreamed of this day but never thought...."

"Me either, sweetie."

"It really means a lot to me that you would come back here for me."

"I am sorry that I ever left. I was wrong, and I know that."

The rest of the day, Carol alternated between helping Doug and resting on the couch.

Dinner was ready around 4:45 so Doug joined Carol on the couch. "How's your stomach?"

"Better, I'm going to eat lightly though."

"That's a good idea."

Within minutes, the doorbell rang and Doug waved Mark and Elizabeth in. Doug and Mark started to talk while Elizabeth went to Carol's side. "How do you feel? You look a lot better than yesterday."

"I feel a little better."

"You still have fever though?"

"Yeah, it's around 102. I'm hoping it will break tonight or tomorrow though."

"It should."

A few minutes later they headed to the table and after everyone was served, Mark said, "OK, the suspense is killing me. What is the reason behind this dinner?"

Doug smiled, "Well there are two. What do you want to know first, the part that you and Elizabeth don't know or the part that no one knows?"

"Catch us up first."

"OK, read this," Doug said, showing Mark and Elizabeth the letter.

"This is great," Mark said hugging Doug. "I'm so glad you will be back here. When do you start?"

"Next week. I fly back Sunday to get some stuff but will be home Tuesday morning, for good."

"I am so glad.... So.... Could the other news that you have to share be any better?"

"I think so," Doug said, getting up and handing a small container to Carol. "Can you open this?" Carol gave him a puzzled look, but did as she was told.

As she peered into the opaque container, she took a deep breath. Doug took this as his cue and asked, "Carol Hathaway, will you marry me?"

"Yes...yes...yes," she said through the tears.

Doug gave her a huge hug and kiss and Mark said, "Congratulations, guys."

Through tears, Carol asked Elizabeth, "Would you be my maid of honor?" "Of course sweetie," Elizabeth answered giving Carol a hug.

Doug says to Mark, "Do I even need to ask?" "Of course not. I would be honored. Now it's time to toast."

After filling each of their glasses, three beers and one ginger ale, Mark said, "To my two best friends. All the best."

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