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ER
"Storm Front"
Act Three
Scene opens at Carol's home. Show a dimly lit hallway as she and Doug come through the front
door. Carol takes her jacket off and hangs it up on the closet, reaching to take Doug's jacket and
hang it up as well. Doug carries a duffel bag in his hand and a hang dog expression on his face.
Carol turns to him and reaches out to rub his shoulders in a comforting fashion.
Carol:
OK, now, I want to run you a nice hot bath...
Doug (shakes his head):
I just wanna get some rest...
Carol:
No, listen, a hot bath is a good idea. It'll loosen up your muscles and keep you
from being so stiff tomorrow.
Doug (still shaking his head):
Really, I just wanna sack out on your couch and try and get some rest...
Carol (soft voice, touches his shoulders gently):
From a medical point of view, you know what I'm saying is a good idea. And
from a personal point of view, I want to bathe you.
(Doug gives her a careful look, cocks his head to one side and smiles slightly)
Doug:
I can bathe myself. Thanks.
Carol (grins...trying to tease him):
Not getting modest on me, are you? I mean, after all, I am a nurse! There's
nothing I haven't already seen! Especially anything of yours...
Doug (shrugs nervously):
I just think I'm capable of giving myself a bath...
Carol (looks down and takes Doug by this shirt front):
I want my hands to be the last ones you remember on you tonight. (Looks up at
him quickly) Let me bathe you.
(Looks him directly in the eye. He returns her hard stare)
OK?
Doug doesn't answer verbally, just lets her take him by the hand and lead him to the bathroom.
Carol turns on the hot water...tests the temperature with her wrist....and turns back to Doug.
Carol (touches his arm):
Come on! You can help me get your bed ready while the water runs, OK?
Doug follows her to a linen closest and holds out his arms while she takes out
sheets, pillow cases, and blankets and loads him up.
Carol:
You're sure you want to sleep on the couch? (Doug nods carefully) Because,
you know, you're welcome to sleep in bed with me.
Doug (looks away slightly, then turns back to her):
Any other night in my life, I'd be jumping for joy to hear you say that. But, no,
tonight, I think I'm better off solo.
Carol (nods):
Well, OK...whatever you want.
The two of them make his bed up on the couch and go back to the bathroom where the tub is
ready. Carol turns off the water and gets a sponge and a bath towel from the linen closet.
Carol (takes a button from Doug's shirt in her hands):
Let me undress you...OK?
Doug nods, but, doesn't answer. He keeps his eyes on Carol's face as she unbuttons his shirt and
slips it off his shoulders. He steps out of his shoes and kicks them away and peels his own socks
off. He reaches for the button on his Dockers but Carol's puts her hand over his to stop him.
Carol (emphatically):
I'll do it.
Doug gives her a helpless look. Angle focus is head and shoulders and mostly direct eye contact
between the two. Off camera, Carol reaches for the snap and pulls it open. Doug winces and tilts
his head backwards to stare blankly at the ceiling.
Carol (takes his face and points him back to looks at her):
Right here, Doug. Look at me. Now, this is me, OK? You know I'm not going
to hurt you, right? And, if you're more comfortable keeping your shorts on for
the bath, that's fine. It's not a real bath. I just want to soak your muscles a little.
Doug nods, carefully. Off camera, Carol unzips his Dockers and slides them down over his hips.
Camera angle shows them hit the floor and his bare feet. Follow his bare feet as he climbs into the
tub. Cut scene.
Open next scene at Mark Greene's home. Mark is sitting on his own sofa and is on the telephone.
Mark (into receiver):
Message is for Dr. Pomerantz...please call Mark Greene at home when ever it's
convenient for you. I need to talk to you confidentially about how to handle
referring a sexual assault patient to you...
Mark closes his eyes in a tired fashion and lays the phone on the table beside him. He removes his
glasses and rubs his eyes, giving out a heavy sigh.
Cut scene.
Open next scene back at Carol's. Doug is in the bathtub soaking in bubbles and hot water. Carol is
on her knees beside the tub on the floor, carefully sponging him about the back and shoulders with
the hot water.
Carol (touches a bruise on Doug's back):
That hurt?
Doug (flinches slightly):
Ow! (turns and gives her a slight grin) Yes!
Carol (smiles slightly):
I'm sorry. You've got quite a few of them back there. Must have slammed you
around quite a bit.
Doug (puts his head down, speaks softly):
Some of it was my own fault...I was trying to get loose...
Carol (softly):
We you scared?
Doug (nods):
Yes. (short pause) Scared they were going to kill me...or leave me with
something that would.
Carol:
How many of them were there?
Doug (shakes his head):
I don't know. At least three. I didn't see much. It was dark. And it all happened
pretty quick...
Carol (touches bruise lightly):
Poor baby.
Carol leans over and kisses the bruise sweetly with her lips. At the sensation of her lips on his back,
Doug shivers from a sudden 'cold chill' that shoots over him. He glances down into the water and
grins slightly.
Doug (to no one in particular):
Well, there's a happy sight...
Carol (looks around to see what Doug is talking about):
Omigosh! Did I do that?
Doug (grins a full smile at her):
Yeah! You sure did! (he leans over and kisses her very carefully so as not to
hurt his sore lip) Thank you.
Carol (grins)
No, thank YOU. That's quite a compliment!
(she runs her hand down into the water quickly)
Water's getting cold. I better get you out of here...
Doug (laughingly):
Well, if it is, it's the ONLY thing in here that's getting cold!
The both laugh at his remark.
Cut scene.
Open next scene back at Mark Greene's home. He is on the phone again. And we hear only his
side of the conversation.
Mark (into receiver):
No, I can't. I can't tell you more than that. Not right now. Not tonight, anyway.
Because, this has to be strictly confidential! I don't even know that I can get
them to agree to see you. That's why I asked for suggestions! No, I'm not going
to tell you who it is...(sighs) All right. I'll meet you for breakfast. But, I'm only
doing this as a friend. I'm trusting you'll be professional about how to handle
this. OK. (nods) OK. I'll see you then.
Mark sighs and hangs up the phone, laying it back on the table. He reaches over and turns out the
light...
Cut scene.
Open next scene back at Carol's. Doug is lying on the couch, under a sheet, and wearing a surgical
scrub top. Carol is spreading a blanket over him gently.
Carol (tucks blanket around his sides carefully):
There! How's that?
Doug (nods):
That's great. Thanks.
Carol:
You warm enough? Got enough pillows?
Doug (reaches for her hand):
I'm fine, really.
Carol (touches his cheek gently with her fingertips):
OK. I'm going on to bed. If you need anything, just call me, OK? I'm just in the
next room.
Doug (nods):
I'll be fine.
Carol (senses he wants to talk):
You sure?
Doug (sighs):
About tonight...would you really have said 'yes' at Carlucci's?
Carol (sits on the edge of the couch beside him to talk):
Well, after I recovered from the initial shock! Yes! (looks him in the eye) I
would have. I still will. If you still want to ask me.
Doug (shakes his head):
It's not that I don't want to ask you. It's just that right now, I don't know what
the future looks like.
Carol:
It looks just the same as it ever did...
Doug (shakes his head):
I can't be sure of that. I don't know what this is going to do to me...what kind
of a sex life I'll be able to offer you for a while...
Carol (cuts him off quickly):
That's what engagements are for, Doug! To work out whatever problems need
to be worked out before the marriage.
Doug (looks nervously away from her):
Yeah, I know that, but...
Carol (turns his face to look at her):
Do you honestly think that the only thing I love about you is how good you are
in bed? (Doug gives her a nervous shrug) If this situation were reversed...if it
had been me instead of you, how you be feeling right now?
Doug (sincerely):
I'd want to kill the son of a bitch!
Carol (sincerely...looking into his eyes):
And you think I don't? You think I wouldn't love to be alone in the same room
with the man who did this to you for one minute? When two people love each
other, Doug, whatever happens to one happens to the other. So, this didn't just
happen to you. It happened to me as well. We're both victims. So, we're gonna
have to lean on each other to get through it.
Doug:
I guess I never looked at it like that. (pauses in thought...then looks quickly up
at her) What if it never comes back? Or it's never as good?
Carol (smiles with a shrug of her shoulders):
We'll just deal with it. I'd much rather we had a relationship based on love and
trust than sex any way. (smiles at him) Wouldn't you?
Doug (grins at her):
You're a good nurse, you know? You're really good at what you do to make
people feel better.
Carol (smiles):
Thanks! (stands up and tucks the covers around him again) Think you can get
some sleep now?
Doug (nods):
Sure.
(Carol reaches across him and turns out the light. Then she stands up and starts
towards her room. The only light in the room is dimly coming from the crack in
the door to her room)
Hey, Carol?
(Carol stops when Doug calls out to her. Focus tight on her face as she turns
back to him)
Carol:
Yeah?
Doug (focus on his eyes):
Thanks. (Carol doesn't answer...only smiles)
Carol (softly):
Good night, Doug.
Carol goes into her own room and we hear the door close. Doug is left alone in the dark, with the
only light coming from the glow of a street light out the window dimly cutting the dark. He pulls the
covers up around his shoulders, turns on one side, and closes his eyes trying to drift into a deep
sleep.
Cut scene.
Open next scene in the dim light. Focus on Doug's face. He is asleep but it is a restless sleep. He is
tossing about on the couch. And groaning softly. Camera moves closer and lets us into his dream.
****FLASHBACK****
Doug comes blindly around a corner of a parking lot. We are not sure of the location of the lot. He
is looking down and fumbling for his car keys. Focus tight as he bumps quickly into a dark figure
suddenly in front of him.
Doug (trying to be polite):
Sorry about that, Buddy! I didn't see you there...
Cut to show a knife blade suddenly thrust against Doug's throat. Unseen forces from either side
begin to shove him off into a dark area of the lot. Cut to show dim light and the brick side of a
building. Show Doug's face slammed up against the wall quickly. He winces...and gasps in
pain...show two pairs of hands holding his hands to the wall. His face is slammed into the wall more
than once. His chin splits and begins to bleed. Then blood begins to ooze from his lip and his nose.
He is jerked from a standing position and thrown onto the pavement, face down.
Cut back to present...Doug is struggling between sleep and awake, trying to come out of his dream
but unable to shake it
****FLASHBACK****
Knife blade in his throat and secured from both sides, Doug is helpless against his attacker. Show
hands reach under his jacket and Doug struggles...ad libs of "no" and "please" springing softly and
fearfully from his lips...show a hand cover his mouth and Doug closes his eyes tight, dropping his
head in defeat...
Cut scene back to present. Doug sits bolt upright on the sofa, breathing
hard and sweating profusely.
Cut to show Carol running into the room from her bedroom in her nightgown. She turns on the light
and drops quickly to her knees on the floor beside Doug, quickly stroking his face and speaking to
him in a comforting fashion.
Carol:
Doug! Wake up, Honey! It's OK!!
Doug opens his eyes and in an instant registers where he is and that he is OK. He reaches out and
takes her by the shoulders, dropping his head against her chest.
Carol (rubs his back gently):
Come on...bring your pillows and come to bed with me.
Like a child waking from a nightmare, Doug nods his head and lets her take him by the hand to lead
him across the floor to her room. He carries his pillow and blanket in his arms with him. He gets
into her room and sits carefully on the edge of her bed. His attention is captured by a small frame
beside her bed. He picks it up and looks at it. It is a picture of a silhouette of a man and a woman
walking on a beach at sunset and has the words: "...Faith, Hope, and Love...These Three...And
The Greatest Of These Is Love" written on it. Follow the action as Carol eases him into her bed
and covers him up. Then she climbs carefully onto the bed beside him. He lays on one side facing
her and she lays on one side facing him.
Carol (softly):
You OK?
Doug (nods):
I think so. Nice verse.
Carol:
It's one of my favorites. You know, love can conquer anything if it's great
enough.
Doug (grins):
Is that right?
Carol (nods):
Yeah. I believe it.
Doug (admittingly):
When I was a kid, I remember my Mother used to tell me that, too. Somewhere
along the way, it all got lost.
Carol:
Not lost...just misplaced. Have you given any thought to Mark's suggestion of
some counseling?
Doug:
I might.
Carol:
I'd go with you, you know. You wouldn't be alone.
Doug (voice cracks with emotion):
I'm scared.
Carol (smiles weakly):
I know. I'm scared, too. But, we'll get through this...we'll get through it together,
OK? I'll help you chase all your demons away.
Doug (smiles sadly):
Lots of those. Raypert told me he thought I had a whole lifetime of them just
waiting to be released. I'm wondering if they aren't all knocking at the door right
now.
Carol:
Well, if they are, we'll face them together.
Doug (looks into her eyes):
I love you. You know that, don't you?
Carol (smiles):
Yes. And you know that I love you, to, don't you?
(Doug nods with a satisfied smile)
And I expect to get that ring at Carlucci's just like you planned, so, you better
be making another reservation real soon!
Doug grins at her and she reaches over to pull him into her arms and hold him. He returns her
embrace and snuggles close to her, putting his head on her shoulder. She reaches behind her to turn
out the light.
Cut scene.
Open last scene back at Mark Greene's home. He is slipping in quietly to tuck Rachel into bed.
She is sleeping...or so he thinks. Just as he gets back to her door, she lets him know she is awake.
Rachel:
Did you make somebody all better tonight?
Mark (turns back to her with a sarcastic grin):
You're supposed to be asleep.
Rachel:
I was waiting to say goodnight to you!
Mark (sits on the edge of her bed with her):
I'm sorry, Sweetheart. I'll make it up to you.
Rachel (repeats):
Did you make somebody better?
Mark (nods):
I think I helped some, yeah.
(she sits besides her, his back against the headboard of her bed, and puts
his arm around her shoulders to talk to her)
I know sometimes it seems to you that Daddy's job is more important to him
that you are, but, I don't want you to ever feel that way, OK? It's just that
sometimes somebody at the hospital might need me a little more. Can you
understand that?
Rachel (nods):
It was Dr. Doug, wasn't it?
Mark (gives her a surprised look):
How did you know it was Dr. Doug?
Rachel:
Ruth talked to him outside before you came home. He looked sad...like he was
gonna cry! I figured it must hurt really bad because men don't cry!
Mark (squeezes her shoulders):
Who says men don't cry? You never heard me say anything like that...
Rachel (looks up at him):
You don't.
Mark (smiles down at her):
Well, just because you've never seen me doesn't mean I don't, OK? Now, it's
really, REALLY late, and you have school tomorrow, so, I suggest you get
some SLEEP, OK?
Rachel (sighs):
OK! (she slides back down in bed and Mark covers her up) So, is Dr. Doug
gonna be OK?
Mark (smiles at her, hand on her head):
I hope so, Sweetheart.
(turns out her light and whispers into the dark)
I really hope so.
Fade Act Three to Black...