January 7th, 2001.
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Doug stood at the admit desk, looking down at a chart. Dr. Christopher Marshall walked down the hall of the ER. The ER was almost empty, so when Doug saw someone walking towards him, he looked up. Beside Chris was a dark-haired woman. Doug's mouth opened, but no words came out. He was stunned by her beauty. Chris smiled at him and Doug closed his mouth and looked at Chris.
"Hello Dr. Ross." Chris says. Doug nods.
"Dr. Marshall." Doug says. Chris turns towards Carol, placing his arm around her shoulders.
"This is Carol Hathaway. The new head nurse of the ER." Chris says. Doug nods.
"Ah, from East Side, right?" He asks, remembering his earlier conversation with Mark about her being hired. She smiles and nods.
"Yeah." She replies. He smiles.
"Nice to meet you, Nurse Hathaway." He says.
"Carol, please." She says.
"Carol, I'm Doug." He says. She nods and they turn back to Chris.
"Do you know where Greene or Weaver are?" Chris asks.
"Uh, I think Greene is in Exam One and Weaver's in the lounge." Doug replies. He smiles.
"Thanks." Chris says. Doug nods and Carol smiles at him before Chris leads her towards the lounge.
"Wow." Doug mutters after they are gone.
"Wow what?" Carter asks as he walks up beside Doug. Doug chuckles lightly.
"The new head nurse." Doug says. Carter nods.
"Where's she at?" He asks.
"Lounge. I think she's taken, though. Dr. Marshall was awful protective." Doug says.
"Marshall? Isn't he a radiologist?" Carter asks.
"Yeah. So they must be going out or else he wouldn't be showing her around, would he?" Doug asks. Carter shakes his head.
"I think I need some coffee." He says. Doug chuckles as Carter heads to the lounge. A few minutes later Carter comes out.
"Wow." He says. Doug laughs.
"I wonder if they're serious?" Doug asks. Carter laughs.
"I think he is. He had his arm around her and everything. He was talking to Kerry and she just kinda sat there."
"Damn." Doug murmured. They chuckled.
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"So Nurse Hathaway, how was your first day as head nurse of Cook County General?" Doug asks, holding out an invisible microphone. She grins. They are standing at the admit desk and she is getting ready to go home.
"Fine, thank you Dr. Ross." She says, smiling at him. He chuckles lightly.
"Overwhelming?" He asks.
"Sort of. Your ER is a lot different than East Side's was. You definitely have more patients." Carol says. Doug nods.
"Unfortunately you caught us on a busy day." Doug says. She nods.
"Well..I've gotta head home. I'll see you Doug." Carol says.
"Bye Carol." He replies, smiling at her. Her head swims and she smiles back, leaving the desk. He chuckles under his breath.
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Carol had been working in the ER at CCG for about a month now. Doug would often catch her coming into work, pissed or very quiet. Today she came in pissed.
She walked into the lounge and slammed the door behind her. She walked to the coffee machine and slammed a mug down onto the counter. Doug raises his eyebrows.
"Carol?" He asks quietly.
"What?!" She snaps. He flinches slightly.
"Uh, are you alright?" He asks. She turns to him, smiling tightly.
"Yeah, Doug. I'm sorry." She says. He grins.
"Hey, it's no problem. I probably needed that." He says. She smiles slightly wider, raising her eyebrows. He stands, moving towards her. "So, what's bugging you? Talk to Dr. Doug." He says. She lets out a small giggle.
"You're awful, you know that?" She asks. He smiles, nodding.
"Yes, now quit avoiding my question and tell me what's pissing you off." He says. She sighs, her smiling fading.
"I can't take it anymore!" She says.
"Take what?" He asks. She sighs again.
"Chris." She says.
"Ah! Boyfriend trouble." He says. She nods.
"Want to hear more?" She asks. He nods, smiling.
"Oh, yes." He says.
"Then you have to swear you won't tell anyone. I really don't want this going around, Doug. Please!" She says. He smiles.
"You can trust me." He says truthfully. She smiles, believing him.
"Thank you. Well......I moved in with him when I started to work here. You knew that?" She asks. He shrugs.
"I didn't know you moved in with him then, but I knew you lived with him." He says. She nods.
"Yeah. Well......ever since I've moved in..I've been having problems with him." She says.
"What kinds of problems?" Doug asks. Carol rubs her hand across her eyes.
"Well......he doesn't come home until late and when I call the hospital..they say he's already gone. When I ask him why he's home so late, he tells me that he was working, even though I know he was lying because I called the hospital. If I ask him why he smells like alcohol, he tells me he went out with 'friends' for beer." Carol says.
"Maybe he does go out with friends." Doug says, not sure why he's defending Chris.
"Girl-friends? He always comes back smelling like perfume. Besides, if he was just out with friends, why would he lie and tell me he was at work?" Carol asks. Doug shrugs.
"Maybe, he's just a sleazeball who you need to dump." Doug suggests, raising his eyebrows. She smiles.
"Don't I know it." She asks.
"Then why don't you?" He asks.
"Because." She answers. It's his turn to raise his eyebrows.
"Bad answer. Why don't you?" He asks again.
"I can't." She says.
"Okay. So..did he do this again last night? Is that why your pissed today?" Doug asks. She nods.
"Yes. He smelled like cheap perfume last night, so I asked him who he had been with that night. He said that one of his buddies girlfriends had a lot of perfume on. I asked him why he lies to me and he told me he wasn't lying. I knew he was lying, so...I made him sleep on the couch." She says. Doug nods.
"Seriously, Carol. Why don't you break up with him?" Doug asks. She sighs.
"I don't know." She says.
"Do you love him?" Doug asks. She sighs.
"No." She replies softly. He nods, his brow furrowing. He recognizes that look she is giving him. It suddenly dawns on him.
"Carol...I won't tell anyone this but you need to tell me the truth." Doug says. She looks up at him. "Does Chris hit you?" Doug asks. Doug's gaze locks with hers and she freezes. "My father used to hit me and my mother. I recognize that look on your face. My Mom always used to look like that." Doug pauses. "Does he hit you?" He asks quietly. Carol looks away from him and nods softly.
"Only..only sometimes. Not very often." She whispers, her eyes filling with tears.
"You don't have to put up with that, Carol." Doug says. Carol sighs.
"If I break up with him, he'll hit me. He only hits me when he's really pissed or drunk and I won't do what he wants. Surprisingly, he didn't hit me last night when I made him sleep on the couch." Carol says.
"I don't care if he's only hit you once or if he barely leaves a mark. You don't have to deal with that. I know what kind of hell that is. I wasn't strong enough to get away from that when I was younger. You can get out. Let me help you." He says.
"I'm not strong enough." She says quietly. He moves closer to her, making her look at him.
"Yes you are." He says. She shakes her head, a single tear slipping over her cheek. "Fight it, Carol." He says. She nods.
"I'll..I'll try." She says.
"That's all I'm asking..for now." He says. She nods and he smiles reassuringly. "Everything will be okay." He says.
"You can't tell anyone." She says. He nods.
"I promised." He says.
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A week later, Doug and Carol are in the lounge.
"Have you said anything to him yet?" Doug asks. Carol shakes her head.
"No, he's been clean all week." Carol says. Doug sighs.
"That doesn't mean forever." Doug says. Carol smiles and nods.
"I know." She says.
"Carol." He says.
"I know." She says. He nods.
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Carol is sitting at Chris' house on the couch, with a small bag packed, beside her. She is sitting quietly, waiting. She looks at the clock. 2:28 a.m. Chris was 2 and a half hours late coming home from work. Doug was right. She didn't have to put up with this. Just then she heard some noise outside the door. Oh, shit. What am I doing? She asks. She looks at the door as Chris stumbles through it. He closes the door behind him and sees her. He smiles.
"Hey Babe." He says. She stands, picking up her bag.
"I'm leaving, Chris." She says. He starts to sober up.
"What are you talking about, darling?" He asks.
"I'm breaking up with you. We're through." She says. His mouth opens wide and he straightens his posture.
"You are not leaving." He says, his voice deep and menacing. She shivers.
"Yes I am." She says, standing her ground. He moves towards her. She doesn't move a muscle as she stares at him.
"Go to bed, Carol." He says.
"No, Chris. I said, I'm leaving." She says, and starts to push her way past him, heading towards the door. He grabs her arm and hits her, close to her eye. She flinches, stepping back and placing her hand on her face. She looks at him, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Carol..I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. Baby..I didn't..." He starts. Her bag still in her hand, she moves towards the door quickly.
"Go to hell, Chris." She says and flings the door shut behind her as she bolts down the driveway. She jumps into her car, turning it on and backing out of the driveway. He runs after her, but she presses her foot onto the accelerator, speeding up. Her eye is throbbing but she finally feels free.
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Carol pulls into the ER and looks down in her car, searching for her sunglasses. She slips them on and flips the mirror down, checking to make sure no one could tell she was bruised. She slips into the entrance of the ER, unnoticed. She doesn't see Doug anywhere, so she slips into the lounge, to try later. She sees Susan sitting on the couch, sipping coffee.
"Hey Carol." Susan says. She smiles.
"Susan." She says.
"It's almost three o'clock in the morning. What in the hell are you doing with sunglasses?" Susan asks. Carol smiles.
"Making a fashion statement. Do you know where Doug is? I thought he was working." Carol says.
"He is. I think he's on the roof." Susan says.
"The roof?" Carol asks, raising her eyebrows. "Why?"
"He goes there a lot, to think. He told me and Mark he was going to head up there, I assume he's still up there." Susan says. Carol nods.
"Thanks. I..uh, I think I'll go talk to him." She says. Susan nods, confused, but smiles. Carol smiles back and leaves, heading for the elevator. She heads up to the roof. She opens the door to the roof, walking through. She sees him leaning against the wall, overlooking the city. He turns when he hears the door open.
"Carol?" He asks, turning his whole body towards her. She smiles weakly and slips her sunglasses off.
"Shit." He murmurs, seeing the already nasty bruise. They walk towards each other and he takes her face into his hands, turning it slightly and rubbing his finger across her bruised cheekbone ever so gently. "He got you good. You did it though?" He asks. She smiles and nods.
"We're done. I'm finished with him." She says. Doug smiles brightly.
"That's good. You might have a shiner for awhile. It doesn't look like you broke anything." He says. She shakes her head.
"Nah, I've broken a bone before and this definitely doesn't hurt that bad." She says. He chuckles lightly, releasing her face. "I got my little extra bit of satisfaction though." She says, smiling wickedly.
"How?" He asks. She raises her eyebrows.
"I told him to go to hell. I've been wanting to tell him that forever." Carol says. Doug chuckles. Carol's smile fades. "Can I ask you a favor?" She asks. He nods.
"Of course." He says.
"I don't have a place to stay." She says.
"Say no more. You can sleep in my bed at home and I'll sleep on the couch." He says.
"Doug..I don't want to take your bed. I just need a place to crash for a few days until I get my own apartment and you're really the only one I would be comfortable staying with. I don't know anyone else very well and there is no way in hell I can stay with my Mom looking like this." She says. He chuckles lightly and shakes his head.
"You get the bed. Don't argue." He says. She smiles.
"Thanks Doug." She says. He nods.
"No problem." He answers. He looks down at her wrist. "What time is it?" He asks.
"2:56." She says.
"Then, we'll stay up here for four more minutes and then we'll leave. I'm off at 3." He says. She nods and they turn and look out of the city, both feeling lucky. Carol for having broke up with Chris. Doug for knowing he might have a chance with Carol.
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Doug unlocks the door to his apartment.
"So what are you going to tell everyone at work?" Doug asks. Carol shrugs.
"I don't know. I'm pretty creative. I'll think of something." She says, smiling. He chuckles.
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"Sheesh Carol, what happened to your eye?" Chuny asks as Carol walks into work the next day. Doug looks up from his spot at the desk, waiting for her reply. She laughs.
"It was the funniest thing. I was at my sister's house yesterday after work. Her son, Jack is 4 years old. Well he was playing baseball with his Dad and my sister asked her husband to go into the house and get something, because she wanted to talk to me privately. And so I became the new catcher for Jack. Well..I wasn't paying attention to him, because I was listening to my sister. He winged one and it hit me right in the eye. I was surprised and then I looked at my sister and we started laughing. Jack just stood there, shocked. He was scared that he hurt me." Carol says, giggling. Doug smiles and shakes his head. Chuny laughs.
"Maybe you should have your brother-in-law practice with him a lot and send him to the pros." Chuny says. Carol laughs.
"I'll have to tell Matt that." She says and smiles. She then turns and her and Doug walk into the lounge.
"You lying sack of shit." Doug exclaims. She laughs.
"She believed it." Carol says. Doug chuckles. "See..that's what those women that come in here everyday do wrong. They don't make their stories believable. All you gotta do is make up some big story and make it believable. I really do have a four-year old nephew Jack. And my sister lives in Chicago...so my story is very believable." Carol says.
"I hope you don't have to make up those types of stories very often. Or ever again." Doug says. Carol smiles.
"I think I've learned. I'm not going to get into that kind of relationship again." She says. He chuckles.
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Later that day, Carol is standing at the desk, surrounding by her co-workers. Doug walks up to the desk and throws a chart into a bin. Doug sees Chris approaching Carol and immediately takes guard.
"Carol?" Chris says, coming up behind her. She looks up, her face emotionless.
"Yes?" She asks.
"We need to talk." He says. She nods and motions towards an exam room, close to the desk where everyone is. Everybody watches as the two of them head into the room. Chris shuts the door and moves to shut the blinds.
"Don't touch those." Carol says, her voice stern. He stops, his hand midway. "I want those people to be able to see everything that goes on in here." Carol says. He nods, looking down, then looking back up at her.
"Carol..I'm sorry. I was drunk last night and I didn't mean to hit you. I love you, Carol." He says. She smiles and shakes her head.
"No, you don't. Don't tell me you love me, when you fuck other women every night, while I sit at home, thinking..'Well maybe he got hurt, or he is really still at work, even though I called and they said he went home.' I'm sick of it, Chris. I'm not taking any more of your shit. We're through." Carol says. His face flashes with anger and he raises his hand slightly. "Don't you dare hit me. Every single person out there will see it. Doug Ross knows what you did and if you so much as raise a finger at me he'll be in here and kick your ass before you even know what happened to you." Carol says, her voice strong, warning him. She's not afraid, she knows she's speaking the truth and she can tell he does too. He stares at her for a few seconds before he turns on his heel and opens the door, exiting the exam room. Carol smiles triumphantly and walks out of the room. Doug chuckles at her and she smiles at him. The entire staff looks at the two of them, confused. Carol picks up a chart and walks off.
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"What did you say?" Doug asks, pulling Carol in Trauma One. She giggles.
"Oh, it was great! He said he loved me and I told him he didn't or he wouldn't fuck other women every night while I was at home, waiting for him. And I said I wasn't going to take anymore of his shit. He was really pissed and he raised his hand just slightly to hit me and I stopped him. Oh..this is the best part!" She says, happily. He chuckles. "I told him that if he touched me, everyone out there would see it and that Doug Ross knew everything and that if he so much as raises a finger at me, you would kick his ass before he knew what happened." Carol says. Doug chuckles.
"You said that?" He asks. She nods.
"Yes. It was so funny. He got this sort of scared look on his face. It took all I had to stop from busting out laughing." Carol says, giggling. "Sorry I said that about you, but it was worth it." She says. He chuckles.
"No, it's alright. I would have kicked his ass if he had touched you. I don't believe that you should have to go through that. No one should." Doug says. Carol nods, understanding. "What time does your shift end?" Doug asks.
"5." She says.
"Mine too. Why don't we get something to eat. We can celebrate..and besides I have no food in my house." Doug says. She laughs.
"You're so romantic, Doug." She says, pushing on his chest. He chuckles. She nods. "I guess if I don't wanna starve, I'll have to eat out with you." She says, then turns and walks out of the room.
"Is that a yes?" He calls after her. She laughs and nods her head. He smiles and chuckles.
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That night, Doug takes her out to dinner. They flirt the whole night, having a lot of fun. Carol is happy....happier then she's been in a long time.
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Carol woke up late that night. She was in Doug's bed and he was out on the couch. She smiles as she thinks about him and the great time they had that night.
She knew he was attracted to her. The first time he saw her, she saw the way his jaw about fell off his face. Inside she had been thrilled to death, but hadn't pretended like she noticed because she knew Chris would hurt her if she did. Later that night, Chris told her to stay away from Doug, because he was trouble. Carol had agreed, but in her mind knew she was curious about Doug. She had been immediately attracted to him, also. With Chris...they had met at a bar and he had flirted his way in. She hadn't been attracted to him at first. She had actually been turned off but him, but he wouldn't leave her alone, so she went out with him. She knew if she got together with Doug it would be completely different. Nothing about him annoyed her and she realized she had flirted with him first. She giggled quietly in the dark room.
Carol threw the covers off her legs and stood up. She tiptoed across the floor and out into the hall. She heard him snoring softly. She put her hand over her mouth, holding in a giggle. She looked at him. He was laying on his stomach, one arm and one leg draped over the edge of the couch. She smiled. He looked adorable. She smiled and stood there, watching him for a few minutes before creeping back into his room and under his covers. She picked up a pillow of his and buried her face into it, smelling his scent. She smiled and pulled the pillow to her, wrapping herself around it, falling asleep, just to dream of him.
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Doug walked into his room the next morning. He had taken his shower and was getting ready to go into work. Carol was still asleep on his bed. The covers were up to her waist and she was hugging one of his pillows. She was adorable. He chuckles lightly, under his breath. He sits beside her on the bed and shakes her shoulders. "Carol, wake up." He says.
"Mmm...Doug, go away." She says. He chuckles.
"I've got to be at work soon. You are on in an hour and a half. I just thought I would wake you before I left, so you can get a shower and whatever." Doug says. She rolls over onto her back, finally opening her eyes.
"You're Satan." She says. He chuckles.
"I try." He says. She grins lazily.
"You smell good." She says. He laughs.
"Aftershave." He says. She nods.
"That's it." She says and stretches, arching her back. Doug can hardly contain himself. Watching her flaunt herself, makes him want to stay home, in bed all day with her.
"I've got to get to work now." Doug says, standing quickly and walking out of the room. She giggles gleefully to herself, knowing full-well that she had tempted him. She knew for sure if she made a move, he wouldn't turn her down.
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Later that night, Carol was on the roof. She had her coat wrapped around her and she was leaning against the wall. She heard the door open, but didn't even turn around, figuring she had a good idea who it was.
"Carol?" She hears a voice ask. She smiles and turns her head, looking at Doug.
"Yes?" She asks.
"What are you doing up here?" He asks.
"What is this..your private thinking spot?" She asks. He chuckles.
"No..I'm just surprised to find you up here, is all." He says. She turns to him, moving closer then necessary. He holds in his laughter, knowing very well that she knows the effect she has on him. He can't believe they are doing this.
"Well....I just wanted to talk to you and I figured you might be coming up here sometime. And besides, I needed to think." She says. He smiles.
"What did you want to talk to me about?" He asks. She shrugs and nudges him with her shoulder, her face close to his.
"Hmm..I don't know." She says. He chuckles.
"But you wanted to talk to me..but you didn't have anything to talk to me about?" He asks. She smiles.
"Well....I didn't really want to talk." She says, her face becoming serious as she moves closer to him, her body against his. He moves his hand up, to cup her face. She smiles widely and leans in, pressing her lips against his. Sparks fly. She moans gently. He chuckles beneath her lips. She presses farther into him, wanting to silence him. He kisses her harder, wrapping his arms around her waist. She cradles his head in her hands, loving every minute of this.
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