A Little Disrespect Goes a Long Way
by Connie #2
Sarah quickly glanced around; the sounds of footsteps behind her were drawing closer despite the fact she was running at full speed. A pair of hands reached out and knocked Sarah to the ground. Sarah grunted, feeling the weight of her pursuer on her back.
"Hey, I thought we were playing touch football, not tackle," Sarah growled as she attempted to roll out from underneath Johnny.
"Oops, sorry I must have forgotten," Johnny said with a grin.
"Yeah, well let this be a reminder to you," Sarah responded as she playfully yanked his hair.
"Why…you!" Johnny laughed. As he pinned Sarah to the ground, he found himself looking deep into her eyes. He was caught off guard when he realized she was looking right back into his eyes instead of glancing away shyly like she usually did.
"Come on you two, let's get back to playing the game," Chet whined as he snatched the ball from Sarah's hands. "You can get a hotel room later."
Johnny stood up and helped Sarah to her feet. The gang of fifty-one had been playing football all afternoon. Sarah had invited Jimmy to participate since they always needed an eighth man.
It was a close game and there was a big incentive to winning. The losers had to buy pizza and beer at the end of the day. Sarah, Roy, Cap and Mike were leading Chet, Johnny, Jimmy and Marco by one touchdown.
Chet snapped the ball to Jimmy. As Jimmy looked down field he saw that Johnny was open. He threw the ball and watched as it floated gracefully into Johnny's awaiting grasp. Johnny ran towards the goal line with Sarah hot on his heels. Sarah dove for Johnny's feet trying to knock him over but it was not in time. Johnny crossed over the goal line and fell as Sarah pulled him to the ground.
"Mouse, I thought you said this was touch football, not tackle," Johnny said in a high pitched voice mimicking Sarah.
Sarah giggled as she and Johnny got up and headed back to the middle of the field. Sarah jumped on Johnny's back and he had a huge smile on his face as he carried her over to the rest of the crew.
"We've decided to call it a draw," Cap said. "Our stomachs have dictated that we should think about eating at some point in the near future."
"Why don't we head out to my place since it's the closest and we can continue the festivities?" Johnny offered.
Everyone nodded their heads in agreement and then headed off to their cars. Each had assigned items to go pick up for the aftergame party except for Johnny and Sarah. They headed home to take care of the horses before the gang arrived.
"Are you almost done in here?" Johnny asked, scratching Wolf behind the ears.
"Yep, just have to throw down a few more shovelfuls of shavings and then go get cleaned up before everyone gets here," Sarah replied.
Johnny looked at Sarah and brushed a couple of wood shavings from her hair. "You look just fine to me, no cleaning up necessary." He moved closer to her and looked into her eyes. He loved the way they sparkled in the light. For a brief moment they became lost in each other's gaze.
The moment ended with the sound of cars pulling up the driveway. "Rotten timing," Johnny thought as he gazed into Sarah's eyes one last time before she glanced away shyly.
Johnny and Wolf went out to greet everyone, giving Sarah a few extra moments to run into the house to get cleaned up.
*******************
Johnny looked up from Dixie's desk area as Doctor Morton brushed briskly past him.
"Hey Doc, how's it going?" Johnny asked, sipping his coffee.
"John, just remember that there are two sides to every story," Doctor Morton growled. He reached for a chart and headed back into an examination room.
"What a grouch. I guess someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," Johnny exclaimed. "I wonder what that was all about."
"When Morton is involved, no one can ever really know for sure," Roy replied. "Come on Pal, we should get back to the station. Lunch will be on soon and I'm starved."
"I was going to go see Mouse. But I can catch her the next time we're here," Johnny said.
"We have time if you want to go now. I don't mean to rush you if it's something important," Roy answered.
"Nothing too important, I just wanted to see her and say 'hi'," Johnny replied with a crooked grin.
As Roy and Johnny walked into the kitchen they heard a thumping noise against the station's back wall.
"It's about time you guys got back here. Maybe you can get her to calm down," Chet said.
"Calm who down? Where?" Johnny asked.
"Your housemate Pal, she's out back. She showed up here sometime after we went out on that last call. She won't talk to any of us. She just keeps bouncing that blasted ball against the wall," Cap sputtered. "Go see what you can do before we all go insane."
"Mouse is out back? I thought she had to work today," Johnny replied slightly confused. "Come on Roy, I may need back up on this one."
Johnny and Roy walked out back and watched as Mouse bounced the basketball up against the wall.
"You better cut that out. You're going to make a dent in the wall if you keep this up," Johnny kidded as he approached Sarah.
Johnny's attempt at lightening the mood just made Sarah bounce the ball harder. She continued to look straight ahead, muttering under her breath.
"Sarah, what's up? What has that ball done to you to deserve such treatment?" Roy asked softly.
Sarah threw the ball with all of her might, sending it sailing towards the hose tower. She turned to Johnny and walked into his open arms.
Johnny looked over at Roy as he gave Sarah a hug. Roy went over to his truck and pulled the tailgate down. Johnny still embracing Sarah slowly walked her over to the truck and sat her down.
"What happened?" Roy asked.
Sarah looked up at Johnny and Roy and opened her mouth to speak just as the claxons rang out.
"You stay here, I want to hear all about it when we get back. OK?" Johnny asked.
Sarah nodded her head and watched as Johnny and Roy headed into the station.
*************
Doctor Brackett came out of the exam room and noticed Johnny and Roy getting supplies from Dixie.
"Hey guys, you certainly are keeping busy today," Doctor Brackett chuckled.
"It keeps us off the streets and out of trouble," Johnny responded.
"Speaking of trouble Johnny, I want you to know I'll do whatever I can to help Mouse out but I can't promise anything," Doctor Brackett said.
A page came overhead for Doctor Brackett. "I have to run, I'll see you guys later."
Johnny looked at Roy. "Let's get back to the station and see if we can find out what's going on. It seems like everyone knows about Mouse except for us."
"Whatever happened it must have been something pretty big for Doctor Brackett to be involved," Roy said as he picked up the box of supplies.
When Johnny and Roy got back to the station they were quite surprised to discover Sarah was no longer there.
"Did she leave a note?" Johnny asked.
"Sorry Pal, no note and she was gone before we got back. What's going on anyway?" Cap asked.
"I wish I knew. Something happened at Rampart today and everyone there assumes we know all about it," Johnny said scratching his head. "I wonder if Jimmy is on over at 10's today. Maybe he knows something."
Johnny picked up the phone and called over to 10's. Jimmy confirmed that Mouse had swung by the station but she hadn't stayed long.
*************
Sarah found herself driving up Pacific Coast Highway. She pulled into the parking lot near Point Dume State Park and headed out to the beach. As she sat people-watching, she became lost in her thoughts. "I have such a good thing going at Rampart. I really hope I haven't messed things up too much. I shouldn't have let him get to me. On the other hand, I was merely reciprocating an equal amount of respect, or lack thereof, which Morton had been showing me."
She watched a pod of dolphins riding the waves alongside the surfers for quite some time before deciding to head back towards Carson. She was hungry and it being Marco's night to cook she definitely wanted to get to the station before dinnertime.
Sarah, walking in through the back door, heard the squad pulling out of the station. Cap greeted her at the kitchen door. "Heya Mouse, what have you been up to today? We were surprised when we got back from the run and you had left."
"I needed to go mellow out for a while. It was a rough morning," Sarah sighed.
"So I've heard…or sort of heard," Cap responded. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Could we go in your office?" Sarah asked.
"Of course," Cap replied motioning toward his office. He shut the door as Sarah settled into a chair.
Marco, Chet and Mike conveniently kept finding reasons to walk by the door in hopes of catching some of the conversation. Much to their disappointment no one was able to hear anything that either Sarah or Cap was saying.
Roy backed the squad into the station. He and Johnny watched as Mike, Marco and Chet each wandered nonchalantly back into the kitchen.
"What's going on here? You all look like cats who had just been caught dipping their paws in the fishbowl," Roy asked.
"Just trying to get some dirt, that's all. Mouse is in Cap's office talking with Cap," Chet responded.
"Has she said anything? Where did she go? What happened at work today?" Johnny asked.
"You're asking the wrong guys, she hasn't said a word to us," Marco responded as he searched through the refrigerator for the ingredients for dinner.
Everyone looked up when they heard Sarah and Cap entering the kitchen.
"Sarah, nice to see you again. Are you staying for dinner?" Roy asked.
"Yep, wouldn't miss it for the world," Sarah responded.
"So, are you going to explain to us why you ended up having the day off or are we going to have to annoy the heck out of you and play twenty questions?" Asked Johnny.
"Can we wait until after dinner? I'd rather not get into it right now," Sarah begged.
Johnny, remembering the last time that he pushed her for information that she did not want to give, nodded his head and began to set the table.
After dinner Sarah started to wash the dishes and she wasn't too surprised when Johnny came over and offered to help her dry. She knew it was just a ploy to get her to talk but she wasn't about to refuse help with the dishes.
"So, will you tell me now? The suspense is killing me," Johnny whispered.
"There's really not much to tell you," Sarah said sticking her hands in the water. As she grabbed a glass and began to wash it, it broke and cut into her hand.
"Ouch!" Sarah screeched. She could see the blood gushing from her hand as she lifted it out of the water. "Damn glass."
"Here, run it under some water so we can take a look at it." Johnny suggested. "Roy, Sarah's cut her hand, can you grab some compresses out of the squad?"
"Sure thing." Roy got up from the couch and headed for the squad.
Johnny looked at Sarah's hand. "You did a nice job with this. I definitely think it needs stitches."
"Can't we just wrap it up and see if it stops bleeding on its own? It's only a little cut," Sarah said, knowing that she probably wouldn't win the battle."Oh, it'll stop bleeding all right, especially after some stitches are put in," Johnny said matter-of-factly.
Sarah became really embarrassed when she realized that everyone was standing around her. "How many firemen does it take to treat a girl with a cut hand? Guess I just found out the answer to that age-old question. Okay kids, next test question, how many firemen does it take to ignite the pilot light on a stove?" She growled sarcastically.
"Cap, Sarah will probably need stitches, could you call it in for us?" Johnny asked.
"Oh no, Johnny-boy, you are not going to bring me to Rampart in an ambulance for this teeny-weeny, little cut. That would be way too embarrassing. Even more so then having all of you standing around gawking as I bleed to death," Sarah scowled. "Wrap me up real good and I'll drive myself over there."
"Which is it, are you bleeding to death or is it a teeny tiny cut?" Roy asked with a grin.
"Neither, let's just forget the whole thing," Sarah said.
"Cap, is it all right if we follow her in?" Johnny asked.
"Sure, I'll call it in for you. Why don't you get going; it seems the rest of us have a pilot light to ignite. Then after we do that maybe we will see how many firemen it takes to screw in a light bulb," Cap responded with a wink.
Johnny and Roy walked into the Emergency Room with Sarah. They ran into Dixie in the hallway. "Hey Dix, is there a room and doctor available?" Johnny asked.
"Room four is open. All the doctors are in with patients but I'll send someone in when they're free," Dixie stated.
"Just as long as it isn't Morton, I would rather bleed to death at this point," Sarah said sarcastically.
"Don't you mean Doctor Morton?" Dixie said raising an eyebrow.
"Mean Doctor Morton, now Dixie, that isn't a very nice thing to say about him," Sarah said with a grin. Her grin quickly dissipated with the look that Dixie shot her. "Yes Ma'am, what I meant to say was 'anyone but Doctor Morton' please."
As Sarah sat on the examination table Johnny asked, "I'm guessing that your unplanned day off had something to do with Doctor Morton? Am I right?"
"Johnny I really don't want to talk about it here. I promise, I'll tell you everything. Have some patience my son," Sarah replied.
Doctor Morton came over to the desk. "What do we have Dixie?"
Dixie was filling out some paperwork and not paying attention to which doctor she was talking with. "There's a lacerated hand in four."
"Great, I'm in the mood for a nice open wound. Can I have the chart?" Doctor Morton said, reaching in Dixie's direction.
"Um yeah, here it is," Dixie said handing him the chart without looking up. When she did look up and realized what she had done she called out to him. "Uh Mike?"
"Yeah Dix?" He said placing his hand on the door.
"Nothing, nothing," Dixie replied, deciding it was best not to get involved.
Johnny had managed to get Sarah giggling but the laughter stopped soon after Doctor Morton opened the door. "Sarah? How did you cut your hand?"
Sarah got up and began to grab her things. "It's none of your business and as a patient I have two rights. A right privacy and a right to refuse treatment."
Johnny tried to intervene. "Mouse, you need stitches, you can't refuse treatment."
"Just watch me, my friend, just watch me," Sarah responded as she walked closer to the door.
The door opened and Doctor Brackett walked in. "What's going on in here?"
"The patient is refusing treatment. There's nothing I can do," Doctor Morton said.
"I'll take care of this one Mike. Why don't you go check out two? You'll find a kid named Earl who evidently has the flu," Doctor Brackett offered.
"If you insist," Doctor Morton replied.
"Oh I insist. I always find such pleasure in treating this wounded badger; I wouldn't want anyone else to steal my fun," Doctor Brackett said as he took Sarah's chart from Doctor Morton.
"My hero!" Sarah giggled after Doctor Morton walked out of the room.
Ignoring Sarah's comment Doctor Brackett suggested, "Shall we take a look at that hand of yours?" He removed the wrapping from Sarah's hand. "That's some fine craftsmanship little Miss Mouse, you boys should be very proud of her."
"Oh we are Doc, we are," Johnny grinned.
"Would you guys go grab some coffee? Mouse is always such a wonderful patient that I think this time I'll repay her by not using any Lidocaine while I stitch her up. I wouldn't want you two to have to listen to her screams of horror mixed with my maniacal laughter of delight," Doctor Brackett smiled.
"Let's go Junior," Roy said. "I think they want to be alone."
Johnny attempted to argue but Roy grabbed him by the sleeve and pulled him towards the door. It was obvious to Roy that Doctor Brackett wanted to discuss more than just a cut hand with Mouse.
Johnny and Roy were hanging out by Dixie's desk as Doctor Brackett held open the exam room door. "So I'll see you bright and early Friday morning?"
"Yes, Sir. I'll be here with bells on," Mouse replied.
"I would appreciate it if you leave the bells and your wounded badger attitude at home. It might make things a little easier," Doctor Brackett warned.
"No problem, I appreciate everything that you are trying to do for me," Sarah said reaching out to shake his hand.
Sarah approached Johnny and Roy with her bandaged hand in the air. "No dish duty for me until these stitches come out so I'm going to head home."
Sarah said goodbye to Roy and then Johnny walked her to the Land Rover as Roy crawled into the squad to make them available.
"So, what's going on Friday? It's a little too soon to get your stitches out," Johnny asked as he opened the door for her.
Sarah climbed into the Land Rover. "You overheard that huh? It's just a meeting between Doctor Brackett, Doctor Morton, my boss and me. It's really just a formality but you know how the higher-ups can be about following procedure."
"Sarah, you still haven't told me what happened this morning," Johnny replied.
"Johnny, like I said earlier, its really no big deal. There were some boundaries crossed this morning that shouldn't have been," Sarah stated as she closed the door and rolled down the window.
"Come on Junior, we got a run," Roy called out as he pulled the squad up next to them.
"Call me if you need to talk," Johnny kissed her on the forehead and jumped into the squad.
Sarah watched as the squad pulled away. She was happy to have dodged the bullet again. She headed home and enjoyed an evening of hanging out in the hayloft with Wolf.
**********************
Sarah felt a cold and wet sensation begin to drip down her back. She screeched with delight and then pounced on Johnny, dragging him into the snow. "Throw snow down my back will you? I guess I need to teach you a lesson or two about what happens to a man when he picks on a poor, defenseless, little mouse," Sarah grabbed Johnny's head and pushed it into a pile of fluffy, white powder.
Jimmy snuck up behind them and tossed some more snow down Sarah's back. "You don't look like a little, defenseless mouse to me."
"Hey two against one, now how fair is that?" Sarah questioned as she jumped up and tossed some snow into Jimmy's face.
"It's not two against one, it's three against one," stated Roy as he ran out from behind some trees and tossed a snowball in her direction.
Sarah squealed and giggled as she attempted to run for cover. Because she was not experienced in the great art of running in the snow, she was slow and awkward and it didn't take the guys long to catch up to her.
"Hey Mouse, I'm having a party. Would you like to come?" Johnny laughed as he pushed her into a snow bank.
"What kind of party?" Sarah asked naively
"The best kind; a whitewashing party, and I ain't referring to Tom Sawyer and picket fences," Johnny said as he and the others picked up snow.
Sarah begged for mercy but it didn't help. She soon found herself covered in snow from head to toe and loving every minute of it.
They went into the lodge to dry off and get some hot chocolate before the long drive home. Sarah plunked herself down right in front of the fireplace and enjoyed the warmth that the fire was giving off.
Johnny brought her over a cup of hot chocolate and sat next to her. "Did we make up for twenty two years of not having a snow experience?"
"Yes, and then some. Thanks so much for surprising me with this excursion this morning. It has been a stressful week and I guess I really needed this." Sarah reached over and placed her cup on the table next to them. She winced as she felt a twinge of pain fly through her shoulder.
"Hey, what's wrong? Did you hurt yourself?" Johnny asked.
"It's nothing, I just probably stretched something that had never had a reason to be stretched before," Sarah replied praying Johnny wouldn't make a scene.
"Let me check it out," Johnny said insistently.
"It's no big deal, see I can move it. It's just sore that's all," Sarah growled under her breath.
"Well let me rub it for you," Johnny said as he began to massage her shoulder.
Sarah resisted at first and then gave in. If this wasn't heaven, it must be close. Sitting in a ski lodge, sipping hot chocolate while one of the handsomest guys she knew rubbed her shoulder.
Johnny felt the muscle in Sarah's shoulder relax almost instantaneously but because he was enjoying giving the massage almost as much as Mouse was enjoying receiving it, he continued to rub her shoulder and a little bit of her back until Roy and Jimmy came over and sat with them.
"Uh, Mouse hurt her shoulder, I was just trying to get a knot out of it," Johnny stammered uncomfortably.
"Yeah, um, thanks Johnny, it feels a whole lot better now," Mouse replied stretching her shoulder."Likely story," Jimmy kidded. "Roy, I hurt my shoulder, would you be a sweetie-pie and rub it for me?" He asked in his best girly voice.
"I'll give you a hurt shoulder," Sarah said punching his shoulder. "And here's a boot to the head to match."
**********************
"I wonder what replacement pigeon they are going to send over to cover for Marco today?" Chet asked as he buttoned his shirt.
"Has anyone heard how Marco is doing?" Roy asked as he watched Jimmy come around the corner.
"He's doing a lot better than when we pulled him out of that building the other day. I think he might be going home from the hospital today," Chet answered.
"The replacement pigeon has arrived," Jimmy said giving Chet an evil look.
"You know it's not nice to eavesdrop behind lockers. Didn't your mother teach you any manners?" Chet replied.
"She taught me manners, but she also taught me to be aware of my surroundings at all times," Jimmy responded as he placed his things into the vacant locker.
"That sounds like you are issuing a challenge to the Phantom. Be very careful, he lurks everywhere," Chet grinned.
Johnny entered the locker room and was surprised to see Jimmy. "Oh man, are we stuck with you today? We must be really scraping the bottom of the barrel of Suitcasers if we ended up with you."
"I'm beginning to wonder who is stuck with who," Jimmy said with a grin.
"Come on, Cap is out there waiting for us," Roy said hoping to bring the relentless banter to a momentary end.
**********************
Jimmy glanced up; he got the distinct feeling that someone was staring at him. Chet quickly looked away and proceeded to put some more wax on the engine but Jimmy could tell he had just caught the Phantom in the process of placing a few tricks up his sleeve.
The claxons rang out. "Engine 51, respond to a dumpster fire at 1432 Avalon. 1-4-3-2 Avalon, time out 11:04."
"Looks like we'll get to finally see you in action, pretty boy," Chet said with a grin. "I certainly hope you won't mind getting a little dirt under your nails."
Jimmy ignored the snide comment and placed his helmet on his head as he hopped into the jump seat.
When they arrived on the scene Cap yelled for Chet and Jimmy to grab the reel line. Jimmy grabbed the hose and headed over to the dumpster.
Chet came up behind him and grabbed the hose. He kinked it and let go, stopping the water flow briefly. "Hey there Nozzleboy, do you know why the Cap wanted us to use the reel line?"
"Gee, I don't know. Why is that Chet?" Jimmy asked.
"One of the lessons you learn after you have been in the business awhile is… Big fire, big hose…. Little fire, little hose," Chet smirked.
"Oh… I get it, if it's a big fire then use a big hose… Little fire, little hose… thanks for clearing that up for me. Over at 10's they taught me all about putting the cold, wet stuff on the hot, red stuff in order to make the hot, red stuff turn into smelly, gray stuff. I really appreciate you taking the time to teach me about the hoses," Jimmy replied sarcastically. "Hey Cap, if I work really hard, do you think I have any chance of being half the fireman Chet is? Golly gee Beav, that would be swell."
"Work hard and someday, maybe, just maybe you can be as great a fireman as good ole Chester B. But don't be too disappointed if you fail, it's a very high goal you have set for yourself," Cap snickered.
"Seeing you are the senior member of this hose team, I will let you properly store the hose so I can learn some more from the master," Jimmy said as he handed the hose to Chet and began to walk back toward the engine.
"Hey Jimmy…." Chet called out.
"Yeah, what is it Chet?" Jimmy asked.
Before Jimmy could turn around and see what Chet wanted he felt cold water spraying down on his head. He continued walking, not wanting to give Chet any satisfaction. "You'll get yours my friend, wait and see."
**********************
"Can I help you Miss?" Captain Stanley asked as he opened the door.
"Hi, I hate to be a bother but could I use your phone? I'm late for work and my car has a flat tire." The young woman walked into the station as Captain Stanley nodded and held the door open for her.
The men of fifty-one watched with much interest as the lovely young lady used the phone.
Chet walked up to her as she hung up the phone. "I couldn't help but overhear your predicament. If you have a spare tire, I can change the flat for you."
"That would be great, thanks," the young lady answered handing Chet her keys.
Chet, Johnny and Jimmy eagerly raced for the door.
"I said I would help her!" Chet scowled as he squeezed through the door slightly ahead of Jimmy.
"I wouldn't want you to get all dirty," Jimmy responded.
"That's OK, I don't mind helping a damsel in distress," Chet replied.
Johnny reached over and took the keys from Chet.
"Hey Johnny, I don't think Mouse would be real impressed to find out that you are pursuing another woman so why don't you sit this one out?" Chet suggested.
"Thanks for thinking of my well-being Chet, but there isn't a ring on my finger and technically there isn't anything more than a friendship between Sarah and I," Johnny said as he opened the trunk.
Chet pushed past him and grabbed the tire iron and jack. The young lady stood with Captain Stanley in the driveway and watched as the three stooges changed the tire.
Chet walked over to the woman and gave her the keys back, "There you go, its as good as new."
"Well thank you very much. I'm sorry but I didn't catch your name," she said as she took back her keys.
"Chester B. Kelly at your service ma'am. But you can call me Chet," Chet replied.
"Well Chester B. Kelly, I am late for work so I must go but my name is Sonja and you can call me anytime. Here's my number. I'd really like to hear from you tonight if you get a chance. Work can be so boring sometimes and it would help to pass the time. I'm surrounded by people but they are never talkative," Sonja said as she handed him a slip of paper.
"I'll do that," Chet replied. "What does a nice girl like you do for a living anyway?"
"Right now I'm a make-up artist. It's just until I find a better job," Sonja stated. She took her finger and wiped at the dirt on Chet's face. "You have a little grease spot on your cheek."
Chet thought he was going to melt on the spot when he felt Sonja's finger brush across his cheek. He shuffled his feet and then waved as Sonja got in her car and drove away.
As they walked back into the kitchen Chet said to Jimmy, "See Pal, there's a lot you could learn from Chester B. I know what women want."
Jimmy rolled his eyes and looked over at Johnny who just shrugged his shoulders.
Sarah walked into the kitchen and was quite surprised to see Jimmy sitting at the table. "James Lee, did you get a little lost this morning? This is 51's, 10's is up the road and around the corner. It's the building just over the tracks that resembles Fred Flintstone's house."
No, Miss Sarah Ann, for your information, I didn't get lost. I'm filling in for Marco today. I'm sure the guys at 10's will be thrilled when I tell them your creative description of their house," Jimmy said as he got up and gave her a hug.
"Speaking of Marco, I saw him right before he was discharged. He's doing great and is hoping to be back to work in a week or so," Sarah stated.
"That's really good news," Roy said.
Sarah suddenly felt herself being picked up from behind. Johnny nuzzled his face into her neck. "Hey little girl, there's some Dalmatian puppies in the basement. Do you want to go see them?"
"I bet you say that to all the pretty girls," Sarah said as she was placed back onto the floor. She turned around and faced Johnny. "Gee Mister, do I get to pick out the one I want."
"Certainly, just don't pet them too much as those puppies start to drool when they get too excited," Johnny replied with a grin.
"You're such a pig!" Sarah exclaimed, pretending to be disgusted.
"Oh yeah, like you are such a saint…" Johnny whispered in her ear.
"Do I have to separate you two?" Roy asked.
"No Daddy, we'll be good," Sarah said as she winked at Johnny.
"So Chet, did you call that chick yet?" Johnny asked.
"I was just about to do that right now actually," Chet said clutching the piece of paper.
He went over to the pay phone and dialed the number. He turned and stuck his tongue out at Jimmy who was sitting on the couch with Henry.
"Harrison-Ross Funeral Home, how can I help you?"
"I'm sorry, I must have dialed the wrong number," Chet responded and then he hung up the phone.
"What's the matter Chester B? Did the dainty damsel in distress give you a wrong number?" Jimmy kidded.
"No I must have dialed it wrong. I got a funeral home," Chet replied. He picked up the phone and dialed again.
"Harrison-Ross Funeral Home, how can I help you? Hello? Hello?"
Chet was caught slightly off guard but managed to squeak out. "Can I speak with Sonja please."
"Sonja is in with a client right now but I will get her for you, if you can hold on a moment."
Chet covered up the phone and whispered, "She works at a funeral parlor?!?"
He had a brief but pleasant phone conversation and he set up a dinner date with Sonja for the next evening.
Jimmy slapped Chet on the back as he walked away from the phone. "So she does makeup jobs on dead people. No wonder she was so interested in you. It all makes perfect sense now."
"Ha Ha, very funny! But still got a date with her and you didn't," Chet stated.
After dinner, Johnny walked out to the Land Rover to say goodnight to Sarah. He wished her luck with the meeting the next day and then watched as she drove away.
Chet made his way in the darkness towards his bed. After all the runs they had called out on that evening, he was looking forward to getting some shut-eye. He crawled under the blankets and realized almost immediately he wasn't alone. He let out a slight squeal as he quickly jumped out of the bed.
"Kelly, it's after midnight, what is your problem now?" Cap growled.
"No problem at all Cap," Chet reassured as he pulled the first aid dummy out of his bed. "I'll get you for this Jimmy," he muttered under his breath.
"Me?" Jimmy whispered innocently. "I'm just a simple suitcaser, here today, gone tomorrow. I'm never around long enough to do anything wrong." He tried desperately to hold back a giggle but when he heard Johnny and Roy snickering he began to laugh.
"OK boys, I hope that the pranks are over for tonight. Let's get some sleep shall we? I'm more than willing to accommodate the not-so-weary with a late night hose rolling party if anyone should need it," Cap growled as he placed a pillow over his head.
*******************************
Doctor Brackett sat at his desk and looked over at Sarah's boss. "Thank you for meeting with me today Debbie. Knowing Sarah and Doctor Morton both personally and professionally has placed me in an awkward position. There was a game of mutual disrespect played here on Monday and even though both sides thought they was justified, you and I need to decide what actions need to be taken to make sure this doesn't happen again."
Sarah walked over to the chairs in the waiting room in front of Doctor Brackett's office. The day of reckoning had finally come. She would soon find out whether or not she still had a job at Rampart. She sat down and waited for Doctor Brackett and her boss Debbie to come out of their meeting.
Doctor Morton came over and sat a couple of chairs over from Sarah. It was an uncomfortable moment for the both of them.
They sat in silence until Doctor Morton could no longer bear it. "Sarah…"
Sarah continued to stare at the floor, not quite able to face Doctor Morton.
"Sarah, I…" Doctor Morton began.
"Doctor Morton, I want to apologize for my lack of respect the other day. I admit I went too far," Sarah said sheepishly. "I'm sorry."
"Sarah, I know that you didn't really mean what you said to me. I'm also aware that at the time I was getting on you about that missing chart, you probably felt that I was shooting at the messenger and I admit I was wrong for treating you like I did," Doctor Morton replied. "Your reaction was justified although the comment about the difference between you making a mistake and me making a mistake did go a little to the extreme."
"I will admit stating that I never had to bury any of my mistakes was a little on the evil side and I probably shouldn't have made the comment about you having a God complex. Sometimes my Irish temper gets the better of me," Sarah admitted.
"Shall we start from scratch?" Asked Doctor Morton. "Hi, My name is Doctor Morton. It's nice to meet you," he said extending his hand towards Sarah.
"Well it's nice to meet you Doctor Morton. My name is Sarah and I work in the file room in Medical Records. My friends call me Mouse," Sarah said extending her hand towards Doctor Morton.
Doctor Morton shook Sarah's hand and then asked. "Which would you prefer me to call you?"
"You can call me Mouse," Sarah replied with a grin.
"How is your hand doing by the way, if you don't mind me asking?" Doctor Morton inquired as he looked at her bandaged hand.
"A couple of the stitches started to hurt and became a little red yesterday. I hope it's not getting infected," Sarah answered.
"Have you kept the hand clean and dry as you were instructed?" Doctor Morton asked.
"Pretty much, although I did play in the snow up in the mountains the other day. They might have gotten a little wet then," Sarah admitted.
"They say doctors make the worst patients but I think Medical Record clerks round out the top three right behind nurses," Doctor Morton said sternly and then a big evil grin came across his face. "Why don't you let me take a look at it? I think examination room three is open. I'll let Dixie know where we are in case the meeting gets over before we are done and then I'll meet you in the room."
"Sounds like a plan," Sarah said as she picked up her things and headed down the hallway.
Doctor Brackett and Debbie heard laughter coming from the examination room as they walked up to the door.
"Here they are. Looks like they have signed a cease fire agreement," Doctor Brackett said to Debbie as he held open the door.
"Were you looking for us? Doctor Morton was just checking my stitches. I got one wet and now it's a little infected," Sarah replied.
"Doctor Morton, in your medical opinion, is Sarah fit to return to duty?" Doctor Brackett asked.
"I think so. I took out the stitch that was causing the problem and the rest will come out Monday," Doctor Morton replied.
"Well then, I suggest you let your patient get back to the file room and you find a patient who actually needs treatment," Doctor Brackett suggested.
"Debbie, is he saying what I think he's saying? I can go back to work?" Sarah asked, trying her best to hold back her excitement.
"On one condition. That condition is that if you have a problem with a doctor, you'll come to me instead of handling it with your quick-witted tongue," Debbie responded. "Next time you may not be so lucky and I really can't afford to lose you over something so silly as a little disrespect."
"It's a deal." Sarah scampered out the door toward the stairwell, eager to get back to work.