Flashpoint
Part One
By Cathy and Clotho
huntersglenn@yahoo.com - clothomoerae@hotmail.com

The characters and situations of ER are the property of Warner Bros, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Great thanks, as always, to Melissa and Alice, our editors - whose comments inspire and encourage us (and occasionally bring us crashing back to earth).



The fourth of July.  A day of independence.  A day of
hope.  A day to celebrate all the good things -
including summer.  A day when drunk people play with
fireworks.  A day of horrific injuries.

A day that Kerry Weaver had off.

Or to be strictly accurate, an evening.  She'd worked
up until 3pm - the drunks had been coming in all day,
but she was going to miss the fireworks injuries.

Another big plus to getting off at three was that her
boarder was also off for the rest of the day.  As Kerry
headed home, seated next to Carter on the El train, she
couldn't keep from smiling.  "So what party do you have
lined up for tonight?"  Kerry knew she had a habit of
living vicariously through her boarder - she'd faced up
to that when he was still dating Roxanne and had found
herself listening eagerly for the small snippets of
their dates that he sometimes mentioned casually in the
kitchen.

John shrugged.  "Nothing planned.  That new guy,
Malucci, mentioned something about a party, but . . . "
Since he didn't know Dave Malucci all that well, John
wasn't too keen on going over to his place and
partying.

"Oh."  Kerry had been wondering if Carter would end up
going to Malucci's party - it seemed that half the ER
had been invited - the half that didn't include her.
It wasn't that she resented being left out of the
residents' activities - in many ways that was right and
proper, but.there had been a lot of talk about it.
She'd have liked to know what went on there.  Live
vicariously  - it was better than not living at all.
"So what are you doing to celebrate?"

John grinned.  "I know this might sound silly, but I
was thinking of heading over to the Navy Pier later.
They've got a concert planned and there will be
fireworks tonight."  He shrugged.  "It just seemed like
a neat idea to go without anything planned and just do
whatever I feel like doing.  Like riding the Ferris
wheel fifteen times in a row or something."

Kerry nodded, and looked up at the tall resident seated
next to her.  "That sounds like fun."  It did sound
like fun.  It also sounded like a place jam-packed with
people.  It wasn't that Kerry disliked crowds, it was
just that once, before she'd started using this type of
crutch, she'd had her stick swept away from her in a
bunch of people.  And a fun night had rapidly turned
into a scary one.

John nodded.  "Yeah, it should be.  Navy Pier's got a
great Ferris wheel - 25 stories tall, and you're in an
open gondola rather than strapped in, so you can move
about.  Anyhow, what are you doing to celebrate the
4th?"

Kerry turned away slightly.  "I don't know.  Open a
bottle of wine maybe."  And watch other people enjoy
themselves on TV.  Or turn on some music.  Read a
book.  Sit out in her yard.  There were lots of things
to do.

"A bottle of wine?"  John frowned, not liking the idea
of Kerry spending the evening at home with a bottle of
alcohol at her side.  Wasn't that one of the warning
signs for alcoholism?  "I have a better idea.  Why
don't you come with me to the Pier?"

"I don't know." Kerry demurred automatically.  It
wasn't right that the handsome young resident curtail
his social life for her..but he'd just said that he was
going alone..  He'd said that he wanted to do things
without a plan, on a whim.surely having his boss and
landlady along would stop that.  And the crowds.  "I
don't know.."

John grinned.  "Just say yes.  We'll have a great
time.  We can sit down whenever we want, do whatever we
want, eat whatever we want.  It would be a lot more fun
for me to go with someone.  Say yes.  Please?"  He
looked at her with his best begging expression on his
face.  The one that countless girlfriends had cursed
him over because they claimed it made it difficult for
them to say no to him when he used it.

It was nice to have someone say we and include her.
It felt good.  And Carter sounded sincere - like he
actually wanted her along.  He was smiling, and his big
brown eyes looked like . . . Kerry mentally slapped her
own face.  You do not think about your resident and
boarder's big brown eyes.  All the same, she found
herself smiling.  "Okay.  Sounds fun."

John's grin broadened.  "Great.  I'd like to shower and
change and then we can go.  I don't think that a suit
is the best thing to wear when walking around the
Pier.  We had better take the El, too.  There's no way
we'll get decent parking there.  Or I can call us a
cab.  Now that Gamma has relented on my trust fund, I
can easily afford that."  His eyes twinkled as a new
thought hit him.  "Or, even better, we can rent a limo
and arrive in style."

Kerry listened to him smiling in disbelief.  A limo!
The idea did sound oddly attractive though.  She shook
her head.  It was easy to forget that her young boarder
was a multi-millionaire.  He was just Carter to her.
But now that he was talking to his family again he had
money to burn, and he did seem happy about this limo
idea.  All the same it was totally frivolous.  But it
did sound fun.  She wrinkled her nose; "I'll leave that
to your discretion, Carter."

John grinned.  Definitely a limo.  With champagne and
strawberries and whipped cream thrown in for a snack on
the way to the Pier.  Kerry worked hard and deserved a
little bit of pampering.  "Good.  I'll call as soon as
we get home to see what's available."

Kerry shook her head again.  "And speaking of home."
The train was drawing up to the stop before theirs.
She reached for her bag, automatically knowing that her
crutch was still safely leaning against the seat.  A
limo!  No planning, no forethought, he'd just decided
he wanted a limo.  Still he'd said he wanted to be
impulsive earlier.  This meant that she wasn't slowing
him down, that was good.

John reached down and quickly grabbed Kerry's bag then
handed it to her, not really paying attention to the
expression on her face.  It was an automatic reflex for
him to not let a lady strain herself to get something.
And his mind was on what else he could do to make
tonight especially relaxing for her.

Kerry frowned - she could have got the bag herself, but
she swallowed her complaint.  If she wasn't going to
slow him down tonight she'd need to let him do things
like that.  Speed things up.  She didn't have to like
it - just put up with it.  And the evening at Navy Pier
did sound more fun than being alone with the TV.  Not
as much fun as it had a minute ago though.  Kerry
gripped the bag and stood up, preparing for her own
station.

The train came to a stop and they exited, walking to
the house.  Kerry made sure that she was half a step
ahead of Carter.  He wasn't going to have to slow down
on her account.  Never.

John saw that Kerry was struggling to stay ahead of
him, so he slowed down his pace.  With his long legs,
it was way too easy for him to get ahead of people
without realizing it.  He would have to remember
tonight to not walk too fast -- he didn't want Kerry
getting frustrated with him.

Kerry was grateful when they got to her house and the
air-conditioning hit her in the face as she opened the
door.  It was blessedly cool after the heat of the
street.  She knew her face was red - but the heat was
only part of the reason.  She was sure that Carter had
slowed down part way home.  Maybe she shouldn't have
agreed to go out tonight.

As soon as he was inside the house, John headed for the
basement.  "I'll let you know about the limo, okay?"
He headed straight for the shower, pausing only
slightly to toss his bag on the bed and then stripping
on the way to the bathroom.  He could pick up the
clothes later, he thought.  Right now, he just wanted
to wash away the stench of the hospital and the sweat
from the short walk from the El station to the house.

Kerry headed to her bedroom.  Carter had been right
about one thing - work clothes wouldn't be suitable for
the Pier tonight.  She pulled out a long cotton skirt -
long enough to cover all of her leg.  It would be cool
to wear on this hot summer evening, and she didn't
often get to wear skirts, but it would also maybe puff
up in a breeze, wrap itself around her crutch, and
generally slow her down.  Pants would be more practical
- she had lots of pants to choose from, and pulled out
a bottle green pair.  She laid the garments on her bed
and stared at them.

As he stood under the cool spray of the shower, John
wondered what Kerry was doing.  He didn't hear the
telltale sound of her shower running, so she wasn't in
her bathroom yet.  She was probably deciding on what
she was going to wear first.  Women were like that.  He
remembered the way his sister would go through several
different combinations of clothing just to go hang out
with her girl-friends.  Getting ready for a date with a
guy she liked had been a nightmare and John had tried
to make himself scarce at those times so he wouldn't
get roped into the "which dress looks best on me?"
routine.  Thank God, Kerry wasn't like that.  She just
seemed to know what to grab out of her closet and never
looked unattractive.

It was stupid to spend time worrying over what to wear
tonight.  Pants or skirt - it didn't matter.  It was
only Carter, for Heavens sake.  Kerry left the clothes
issue undecided and went to her shower, glad to wash
away the sweat and smells of the shift.

The small amount of hot water in John's shower abruptly
disappeared at the same time he heard more water
surging through the pipes.  He smiled as he realized
that Kerry was in her shower.  Now, that was an
intriguing thought.   Kerry, her entire body as pale as
the little bit of skin she let people see, standing
there under a hot stream of water, eyes closed as she
let the water caress her body like a lover's tender
fingers...whoa!  He knew better than to get carried
away with thoughts like that.  This was Kerry Weaver,
his landlady and one of his bosses at work.  She wasn't
interested in him at all.  Didn't even bat an eyelash
when she caught him in the kitchen in nothing but his
boxer shorts on mornings when he was trying to get a
quick cup of coffee and didn't think she was home, or
awake.  Now, if only he could convince his body that he
shouldn't think about Kerry like that.

Then there was the problem of the top.  It was only
Carter, but it WAS the Fourth of July.  And if you were
going out to celebrate your country's birthday then it
was appropriate to look good - or at least as good as
you could.  Kerry soaped herself thoughtfully.  She
liked her curves - she wasn't as full breasted as some
women, or as skinny as others, but was - she thought -
rather pleasingly in the middle.  Kerry ran her hands
slowly down her body - she liked it, above the hips and
below the neck at least, she thought she was pretty.
It was just a pity that no men seemed to agree with her
- or if they did they thought that the rest cancelled
the good bits out.   Kerry shrugged and turned to face
the water, feeling it streaming down her face.  Carter
had thought it was better to spend this evening with
her than alone - that was something.  Carter of the big
brown eyes who seemed to have half the women in the
hospital swooning over him.  Kerry shook her head to
dislodge the image of Carter's eyes, and turned off the
water.

John frowned as he saw that no amount of concentration
was going to get rid of his raging hard-on.  There were
only two ways to handle this, and since he was
currently without a girlfriend, the first method was
out of the question.  He leaned against the back wall
of the tub and closed his eyes as he wrapped his hand
around himself.  Usually a pretty good fantasy would
make this go faster, and in the past those fantasies
mostly consisted of some voluptuous women doing
incredible things to him.  The past few weeks though,
he had been surprised when the image that popped into
his mind each time was of Kerry Weaver doing incredible
things to him.  What surprised him even more was when
that image made him even harder -- like now. With a
loud moan, John gave up trying to chase away the errant
thoughts of his landlady, instead he embraced them,
seeing the two of them entwined on her bed, her mouth
wet and warm on his cock as she slowly sucked him off.
God, it would feel so good.  He just knew it would.  He
cried out as his orgasm rocked his body, then he
slumped against the wall, spent.  The quickly cooling
water slowly invigorated him and he shook off his
post-climatic lassitude to finish his shower,
determined to keep further thoughts about Kerry Weaver
and her body out of his mind.

Those sounds were coming out of the pipes again!  Kerry
knew it was just her imagination but sometimes - when
she was in her bathroom and the water was running in
the downstairs bathroom - the pipes groaned, like, well
like sex.   Kerry shook her head and continued toweling
herself.  She knew she was imagining it.  It had been
nearly a year and a half since Ellis, a long time - too
long.  She ran her hands down her body, feeling the
skin tingle as she touched it.  The sounds were
arousing.  She cupped her breasts in her hands then ran
her thumbs over the aureole, almost arching her back in
response to the sensation.  Even in the warmth of the
bathroom her nipples swelled and mounded.  God, she
needed sex, it had been far too long.  She continued
caressing in time to the groans from the pipe, and
moved her right hand down to rub her clitoris.  God,
she needed sex, she needed it badly.  The sounds
reached a climax and abruptly stopped.  Without the
accompaniment Kerry, too, stopped - immediately aware
of where she was and what she'd been doing.   She
didn't want to do this to herself; she wanted a man to
do it to her.  How desperate was she that she got
turned on by the sound of water in pipe?  How
desperate?  Kerry looked at herself in the mirror in
disgust.  Her nipples were subsiding as if they'd never
been inflamed; she turned away from the mirror and
limped into her bedroom.

After his shower, John pulled on clean underwear and
looked in the mirror, running his hand over his cheeks
and chin.  His whiskers weren't too pronounced, but he
thought that it would look better if he shaved.  If he
had ended up going out alone he wouldn't have
bothered.  But, hey, it was a night of celebration, and
he was going out with Kerry, so being neatly groomed
just seemed right.

Once he was satisfied that his skin was smooth, and
after a modest application of after-shave, John headed
into his bedroom and grabbed the yellow pages, quickly
finding the section for limousine rentals.  Ten minutes
later, he hung up the phone, feeling slightly
dejected.  There were no limos to be had in the city of
Chicago -- they were all booked.  And Kerry had been
looking forward to riding in the limo, too.  Then John
wondered what his grandparents were doing tonight --
they had a limo and a driver.  If they weren't going
anywhere, then maybe they would let him borrow them for
the evening.  It would be a little nicer to know that
he could depend on the driver and the car.  Nodding to
himself, John dialed his grandparents.

In her bedroom Kerry was looking at the clothes on her
bed.  There was no point in trying to look pretty.
This wasn't a date; it was just Carter who didn't want
to spend the evening alone.  She was better than being
alone, well Carter was better than being alone too -
that, after all, was why she was going out.  Kerry
glanced over at the far side of her bed - a bed than no
man had slept in since Ellis.  The only thing that had
any right to be on that side of the bed now was a pipe
of water.  Would it be a small slender burnished copper
pipe which warmed her up with its heat nearly
instantly?  Maybe something thicker - stainless steel -
solidly and uncomplainingly lasting a long, long time?
Or a main - concrete and cold, a little bit rough at
the edges.  Kerry shook her head and grinned - at least
there'd be no arguing about who got the wet patch.

Anyhow clothes.  It wasn't a date, of course.  But it
was a party - and it was only right to dress up when
you went to a birthday party.  So.a clingy top to
outline the good bits.  And.the skirt.  Kerry nodded
decisively - the skirt.  It was a party.  She just
wouldn't let it slow her down, that was all there was
to it.  And maybe the yellow top?  It would bring out
the yellow in the skirt - that would look festive
enough.

Kerry quickly dressed, applied a small amount of
make-up and made her way to the living room.  She put
on some music, feeling suddenly cheerful.  Going out
WAS going out, and sat back to enjoy a patch of
sunshine coming in through the windows.

With everything arranged, John headed up the stairs.
He saw Kerry waiting for him, looking radiant as she
sat in the living room.  The sunshine that was
streaming through the window was creating a halo effect
around Kerry's face and it almost took his breath
away.  Then he reminded himself that this was Kerry
Weaver, his landlady and one of his supervisors at
work.  She wasn't interested in him.  At the most, they
could maybe be friends, but certainly not lovers. No
matter how exciting and beautiful he found her.

"All ready?" he asked with a smile, putting all
thoughts of romance out of his head.  This was going to
be an evening of fun.  Spending the 4th of July with a
friend instead of alone.

Kerry smiled.  "Yes."  He'd come up those stairs
looking fresh and alive, and ready for fun.  She wasn't
going to have him have to wait for her, not now and not
later.  "So car or El?"  It seemed almost improper to
mention that the car might be a limo instead of a cab.

John's smile widened as he heard the excitement in
Kerry's voice.  "Car.  And it should be here any
minute.  I hope."  John walked to the window and pushed
the curtain aside.  No limo yet.  He frowned.  "It
should be here soon.  So, what do you want to do
first?  Grab a bite to eat or go on some of the rides?"

Kerry shook her head.  "I thought you wanted to be
spontaneous?"  She wasn't about to start dictating the
plans for this evening.  "Maybe see when we get
there?"  Even as she spoke Kerry found herself
imagining junk food.  A huge stick of cotton candy or a
greasy hot-dog.  She usually ate sensibly, but.but
maybe not today.

John nodded.  "Spontaneous sounds good."  He saw a
black car pull up to the curb and he grinned.  "Our
ride is here.  Ready?"

&&&&&&
End of Part 1
&&&&&&