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Bobbie had been to Caroline’s apartment, only to find
out she’d turned
in her keys and left--for good--the landlord said, earlier
that
afternoon. She had looked all over town but could not
find hide nor hare
of her daughter. Not that she had any idea what
she would say when she
*did* find her. Bobbie suspected Caroline –Carly,
she reminded
herself—didn’t either.
Bobbie thought about the stranger who called herself Carly
that had
shown up in town one day. She had some physical
therapy experience and
Monica had spoken highly of her and felt that she’d made
a good PT
nurse. Bobbie was ashamed to say she hadn’t thought
twice about it
really. Why would she? The young fresh faces
that came in to GH to
enroll in the nursing program were a dime a dozen.
Most of them didn’t
make it past the first round of tests and interviews.
Bobbie had no
idea why she would think anything differently of Carly
Roberts.
Bobbie was so lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice
the bike had
stopped suddenly and was turning around. She was
startled when she saw
it’s lone headlight shining right on her. She lifted
a hand up to
shield her eyes but still was unable to see.
As Jason steered the bike toward Bobbie, he ignored Carly’s
insistent
protests. She was swatting at him with as little
leverage as she could
get considering their cramped condition.
“What are you doing?!” she hissed in his ear.
Jason ignored her, and Carly began to panic. Did
Bobbie know? Oh hell,
of course she knew. Luke couldn’t keep his big
mouth shut. What was
she going to say? What was Bobbie going to think?
Why the hell did
Jason think she was leaving town? Only to have
a rendezvous with her
mother on the way out? She decided she was furious
with him.
Absolutely, unforgivingly furious. There was no
way he was going to get
out of this unscathed. Carly shook her head.
That really wasn’t her
biggest concern. Her biggest concern right now
was getting *herself*
out of this unscathed. She groaned out loud to
let Jason know just how
much this was hurting her.
Jason finally stopped the motorcycle, leaving the engine
idling. He and
Carly stared at Bobbie as though she was an alien from
another planet.
Bobbie kept her hand up to her face and Jason realized
he was probably
blinding her with the headlight. He killed the
engine completely. Now
there was silence.
It was deafening.
Carly resolved she was not getting off the bike.
No way, no how. It
was Jason’s idea to stop the bike, Jason’s idea to talk
to this woman
who was her biological mother, he could do as he pleased.
She was just
along for the ride. She couldn’t help but stare
at Bobbie anyway. Her
mother. She looked forlorn. Devastated.
Like she’d been crying for
hours. And walking for days. What was she
doing out here anyway?
Carly shifted uncomfortably on the seat. This three-way
staring contest
was getting tiring.
Bobbie took in every feature of her beautiful daughter.
Her blond hair
was pulled back into a high pony tail, loose strands
swirling around her
forehead and ears, presumably products of the wind.
Carly’s eyes were
big, dark and haunted, just like her own. A delicate
nose and pouty
lips made Bobbie realize how much her daughter did indeed
look like her,
although somehow not similar enough that someone would
casually notice.
It was astounding, really. Bobbie could remember
exactly what Caroline
looked like when she was born, down to the very last
detail. But the
woman she was now, Bobbie never would have guessed.
Although they
looked so similar, they seemed so different at the same
time.
Carly began to wonder if anyone was ever going to say
anything. She
kicked Jason subtly, trying to get him to say something.
He was the one
who got them into this ridiculous situation after all.
Carly should
have known Jason couldn’t take a hint if it was handed
to him on a
silver platter. He didn’t do a thing at her kick
except move his leg
out of the way. Carly was beginning to realize
she was going to have to
take this into her own hands. Her mother was standing
there staring at
her like a deer caught in the headlights. Jason
was sitting there
waiting for someone else to talk. Carly heaved
herself off the bike,
letting a sharp breath outward.
Bobbie nearly jumped back at her movement. She was
definitely
flustered, and Carly realized that maybe Bobbie was as
nervous as she
was. This gave her a bit more confidence as she
tried desperately to
think of the right thing to say. 'Hi mom, how've
you been' didn't seem
to quite cut it.
"What are you doing out here?" Carly finally stammered,
unable to find
any words more meaningful than these. She hadn't
even decided if she
was going to admit to anything, yet. She knew it
was probably the wrong
thing to do, to continue lying to the people that were
her *family*, but
it was safe.
Bobbie shifted on her feet. She had no idea what
to say. She knew the
right thing to do was to confront this girl, her daughter.
But somehow,
not admitting she knew, seemed safe.
Neither woman had any idea that they were mirroring the
other's
thoughts.
Bobbie decided she'd better say *something*. Anything.
She cleared her
throat, her mind racing. 'Caroline, I'm so glad
you're here' was her
first thought. Then, 'why didn't you tell me right
when you got to
town?' But Bobbie said none of these things.
"I was just, um, walking..." Bobbie said lamely.
Her voice trailed off.
The sentence should have ended with 'looking for you.'
but somehow the
words couldn't find