Hello, people, I'm depressed as I've just found out some spoilers for the end of season 13 and they do not bode well for my favorite character, I will not expand as it may ruin some people's day and make them as upset as me.
This story has been pestering me for ages and I have only just managed to get it down. It's been very hard to write and I've only written one chapter. This is a very angsty, dramatic story so don't kill me if you don't like what I do to the characters.
One last thing, apart from the fact I don't own ER, is that I'm from Britain and although I've heard about Ray and Neela getting closer together I haven't seen it. So my story is before that but leading up to it as I am an adamant Reela fan!
Read and give me your feedback comments please, in other words REVIEW!!
"You gonna come into the ER with me today, Joe?" Luka smiled down at his baby son who blew a bubble at him, eyes bright and sparkling. "Looking forward to seeing your mom?" The baby managed a small twitch of the lips that looked like a smile as an answer. "I'll take that as a yes. She'll be happy to see you too, she's been missing you. Let's go."
Luka scooped the child out of his crib and placed him in the sling on his chest. He pulled a small blue hat with teddy bear ears over his soft, downy hair and gave Joe a stuffed penguin. The child's tiny fingers reacted naturally and gripped the object tightly. Finally, Luka picked up his bag and keys and headed out of the door.
The man walked down the busy street outside the house towards the hospital. He talked to Joe the whole way, cooing and chucking his chin. Joe gurgled back, feeling safety in his father's strong arms. Luka strolled into the ambulance bay and through the front doors, meeting Tony Gates on the way.
"Hey, boss," Gates grinned, "You brought the little fella, how's he doing?"
"He's fine thanks, Gates; shouldn't you be getting to your trauma?"
"Oh, yeah, right," Tony smiled sheepishly and headed out to meet the rig.
Luka carried on into the ER, greeting several nurses on the way and headed over to the admin desk. Frank was sat there, a grumpy looking boy standing beside him, a permanent scowl on his face.
"Hello, Frank, Alex," the Croatian nodded to them both, "What are you doing here?" He directed the last part at the child at the desk.
"Hi, Dr Kovac, Sam had to bring him in for some reason. She's off soon so she can take him home. Not being that great company for me," Frank looked pointedly at Alex who blatantly ignored him.
"Luka, d'you know where my mom is?" Alex asked.
"I don't know, I only just got in," Luka shrugged, "I'm sure she'll be out soon."
"Ok," Alex nodded and slumped onto a seat looking depressed.
Abby appeared just at that moment and spotted Luka and Joe. She smiled and hurried over, removing the child from the sling.
"Hello, Joe," she nuzzled his cheek with her nose and he burbled, clutching her fingers with his own. He snorted slightly and blew a raspberry, "How rude." Abby grinned and cuddled her son closer.
"How's it been?" Luka asked her affectionately.
"Exhausting, I'm gonna enjoy passing out on the couch when I get home," the woman rubbed her eyes with her free hand, "Which is in…" she looked at the clock, "Half an hour. Hurray."
"Lucky for some," Neela quipped in passing, "Abby, in that half an hour, could you help me with the incoming GSW? ETA two minutes."
"Sure, Luka, d'you wanna leave Joe in the lounge with one of the nurses and I can pick him up when I go?" Abby passed the child reluctantly back to Luka and headed after Neela.
"Er…well, technically I'm not on for about ten minutes so I can keep him company, save the nurses the trouble," Luka answered, departing to the doctor's lounge.
Hope pushed the gurney with the young patient, Frankie, lying on it. The girl had been admitted because of a foreign object stuck in her stomach which they had discovered to be a pair of scissors. God only knew how it got in there. She was going up the OR to have it taken out. The girl would not tell them how it got there.
Sam was on the other side of the gurney as they entered the elevator. She was talking to the child about boys.
"Yeah, so there's this boy that I really fancy but he's not interested," Frankie explained.
"How d'you know he's not interested?" Sam asked.
"Well, he's fifteen and I'm fourteen, so why would he notice me? Plus every time I try and talk to him he garbles this excuse about soccer and leaves," Frankie sighed.
"Sounds to me like he's totally into you," the nurse smiled.
"How'd you work that out?" the girl frowned, bewildered.
"He's trying to avoid you cos he's nervous and trying to work up the courage to ask you out. Why wouldn't a boy wanna go out with a pretty girl like you?" Sam answered and pressed the button for the OR. The elevator began to ascend.
Crenshaw wrung his hands together and tapped the wall impatiently, waiting for his patient to arrive. Those ER docs did insist on taking their time and always being late. He could be doing so much with other patients rather than wait for this most likely non existent scissor removal. Who ate scissors anyway?
"How's it going?" Lucien Dubenko asked as he passed.
"Nothing's going," Crenshaw replied, looking annoyed, "I'm waiting for a non existent patient."
"Sounds fun," Lucien smirked, "Have you seen Neela?"
"She's doing a surgical consult for that useless lot downstairs," Crenshaw scowled.
"Don't do that Dustin, the look does nothing for you," Lucien smiled and disappeared into a nearby room.
Ray raised an eyebrow and leant on the stairs as Morris spouted a whole load of crap about how he saved some guy with a bullet to the head. Ray knew it wasn't true; he'd got the true story from Abby who had been with Archie at the time. He didn't stop Morris though to correct him because he found it amusing to hear the senior doctor's spiel.
"And then I just pulled it out of his skull, it was like inches from his brain," Morris continued animatedly, "And he survived! The whole family thanked me of course and I told them that it was all in a days work."
"Sure, Morris, and I'm really an alien from Jupiter with two heads and three butt cheeks," Ray replied sarcastically.
"Huh?" Morris frowned, clearly confused.
"Doesn't matter," the young man shook his head exasperatedly, "You gonna leave me alone now? I kinda have patients to see."
"And so do I, you should learn from me," Morris exclaimed.
"Who are you? Yoda?"
"Ooh, yes, call me Yoda Morris! I'm off to save some more lives now. See ya!" Morris flounced off down the corridor and Ray sighed.
"I swear he's gay," he muttered.
"I agree," a voice beside him caused the resident to jump and spin round to see Dr Greg Pratt, "How you doing?"
"Fine, apparently I've gotta learn from Morris and save lives. Although, that's what I thought I was doing already," Ray answered.
"Don't listen to him, man, he's an idiot," Pratt laughed.
"You think I don't know?" Ray replied, chuckling.
"Anyway, what's going on with you and Neela?" Ray stopped laughing and became silent.
"Nothing, you know that, Greg. She's with Gates."
"Gates," Greg snorted, "He means nothing to her, trust me, Ray. Everyone knows you two belong together."
"Then how come I'm never the one she chooses to be with? First Michael, then Tony," Ray snapped bitterly.
"She just needs time, Ray, she's confused," Pratt said.
"I've given her time. I've given her space. I've sat back and watched her be with that jerk. I think I deserve to be noticed by her at least," the resident replied.
"I know, man," the attending sighed, seeing the younger man's anguish. He had no idea why Neela was doing this to Ray but he guessed she had her reasons.
Ray hung his head before walking several steps up and leaning on the banister, running a hand through his spiked hair. Pratt followed him up and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. The young man looked at him, his hazel eyes swirling with emotion.
"I just…" Ray began but froze, "Can you smell that?"
"What?"
"Gas."
He was about to head down the stairs but before he could even raise a foot an immense heat blasted him off his feet and into the other doctor. Flames shot down the corridor as a huge explosion erupted and ripped throughout the whole hospital. Windows shattered and shards of deadly glass flew in all directions. The ceiling of the ER was blown completely out and the surrounding walls and floors above splintered collapsing on the unfortunate victims beneath. Balls of fire burst from the broken widows and licked up the sides of the building. Debris showered down on the survivors of the initial destruction, burying several of them alive.
Neela screamed as the force of the blast headed for the two women, frozen in terror. Abby grabbed her arm and hauled her out of the door; they sprinted across the ambulance bay and threw themselves to the hard floor as the power of the explosion knocked them flying. The heat singed the back of their clothes as they lay, sprawled on the ground.
The elevator shook violently and the occupants cried out in fright, Sam and Hope trying to keep the gurney steady so it didn't tip. They both ended up on the floor as the small box rocked and jerked. Frankie screeched in terror and struggled on the gurney, clutching to the metal sides in desperation. Sam yelled out in pain as she was smashed against the wall and her arm was crushed at an unnatural angle. There was a sickening crack as it broke.
Luka was thrown off his feet as the door was blown off its hinges and flames barrelled into the room. He only just had enough time to react and protect the baby in his arms with his body and shield it from the blaze as he hit the floor with a thud. A large piece of concrete was dislodged from the ceiling and it struck him on the head, knocking the man out cold. Shards of glass from the window following shortly after, raining down on his limp body. Joe was sheltered from the worst by his father's bulk. The child began to cry in distress.
Crenshaw gasped as the floor beneath him gave way and he was plunged into the rubble below. Smacking his head on a jutting out piece of concrete he was knocked unconscious and didn't feel the massive agony his body experienced on impact with the floor. More shrapnel and debris fell on top of his unmoving body, burying it from sight.
Alex dived under the admin desk as the explosion tore through the hospital. He didn't know exactly why he did and whether would help him survive or not but he did it anyway. Sheltering beneath the desk the young boy watched as fragments of the ceiling showered down around him, hoping that none of the bouncing bricks would ricochet off and hit him. It was then that the body of Frank fell down beside him, blood dripping from an ugly gash on his forehead. He was out cold. As much as Alex was annoyed by the old man he couldn't let him stay there to be hurt so he darted out from his hideout and dragged the heavy form of Frank under the desk with him, all the while thinking that he was about to be squashed by a piece of ceiling.
Morris felt the intense heat behind him as he was walking out of the double doors of the hospital. He spared a second to look behind him and saw the inferno heading his way. He squealed in fright and put on a spurt of speed, skidding out of the ER just after Abby and Neela. He charged to a nearby rig and jumped behind it, curling himself into a ball.
As he hit the stairs Ray cracked his head on a hard step and was dazed for a few seconds. He regained focus just in time to see a jagged brick hurtling straight at his head. With a reaction he hadn't thought he would be capable of he rolled to one side and sagged in relief as the debris hit the floor harmlessly. His reprieve was short lived, however, as the ceiling collapsed...
Duh, duh, duuh! Please tell me what you think. Good? Bad? Should I continue? Is it quite well written? Please review and tell me and have a cookie!