reminisce
Ashira
The scraping of metal against the floor could be heard from the closet where the little girl was hiding, she had only decided to come home when the school management deemed her little body too weak to function and asked her to to seek help from her parents. Oh what a mistake that had been.
A large slam , proof that another door had been shut by the predator and the only room left to evaluate was the one she resided. Bringing her tiny shaking hands to her mouth to cover the slight whimpers that escaped every now and then,
What was going to become of her today
"Come out come out wherever you are" came the daunting voice of the man who thought he could get a good ransom on the poor girl's life.
The door to the closet were pulled open revealing crooked teeth and an unkempt scarred face " found you"
My ringtone blared jolting me from sleep and the horrible nightmare I was having, staring at my sweat drenched body i noticed that my tank top had ridden up revealing the ugly scar on my ribs which has started throbbing a little , they said it was psychological and the pain would never go away until I healed mentally. My hand found my eyes rubbing it as if to wipe the memory that surfaced ,glancing around I spot the glass of water I always kept at the bedside for this reason exactly and chug it down fairly grateful to whoever was calling while I made no effort to pick up the phone .
The call ended only to resonate a second time , taking my phone in my hands eyes inadvertently seeking the time 2:04 am . Who the hell is calling at such ungodly hour I complained. Groggy eyes find the caller ID as Anastasia flashes on the screen and am tempted to just ignore the call.
Bringing the phone to my ear I manage to murmur a soft hello only for a loud screech to greet my ears.
"What the hell was that sound Anastasia"
"Well that's the Sound your patient has been making since 1am and I just called so that you enjoy the great music with those of us on duty tonight " sarcasm dripping with each word.
"Which one " I mutter using my two pad of my fingers to smooth the crease between my brows in a soothing motion.
"Well the little boy from yesterday with the bloody wound on his thigh" Ana piqued. Well that is to be expected when working nights its like the heat goes up a few degrees more at night
"Anastasia he may be my patient but if it's not detrimental you go ahead and do what's best"
"Not detrimental have you heard those screams" she asks in a duh tone
"Well is anything wrong?" I probe clearly tired of the conversation
" no vitals are okay, the stitch didn't open nothing serious but detrimental nonetheless to my ears and that of my colleagues "
"Anastasia.. do you "
"Well the boy's mom is demanding the doctor in charge be brought forward"
Letting out a sigh I wipe my free hand on my face
"Pls put the phone on speaker and call the patient's mom" from the call a voice can be heard calling mrs.delores and some shuffling of feet
"Hello" A new voice greets me and from the light sniffles I can tell she had been crying . Just what I needed an overbearing parent .
"Good morning mrs. Delores umm am the doctor incharge of your boy and I have been Informed that you are refusing treatment for your ward unless i be contacted "
"Mmmm"
"Pls ma'm the woman beside you is my colleague and attending doctor at the moment she's also a great doctor I assure you that your boy is in good hands"
"No , I want the designated doctor incharge "
"I am the doctor incharge "
"Well come here my son is in so much pain , I don't know what to do "
"You don't have to do anything mam let her help you" I reassure for good measure. I know how her type can be always thinking the doctor would fly over there for a headache on their patient. Some words were exchanged that sounded like the shuffling of static on the other end before Ana returned to the line
"Well that's solved have a good sleep" she said as the line cut followed by the stereotypical beep sound.
Could I really fall asleep rightnow I feel very awake my mind Involuntarily going back to that incident 10 years ago . I cant believe it has been that long ,even now the screams coming from my mother haunts my dreams sometimes and I can't help but blame myself. It should have been me that day .
People kept telling me that it wasn't my fault but their white lies taste like ash in my mouth unsavoury and vile. If I hadn't gone home that day maybe the situation would be different. A stray tear roll down my face falling on the back of my hand paving way for the showers that unleashed right after.
Pushing open the double doors to Grace Medicals the strong scent of antiseptics slap me in the face causing my face to Involuntarily cringe , I subtly check my reflection on the polished surface of the empty receptionist table just to be sure my concealer was doing its job .
Today i strut to the dressing room shopping bag containing my scrub in hand , yesterday I went home looking like a murder scene and the stares I got walking into my neighborhood wasn't worth it. Changing into purple scrubs I make my way to the pedratic department to check on Anastasia and the screeching patient subsequently tying my black frizzy curls in a bun, which wasn't an easy feat.
Rounding a corner I inadvertently bump into a wall of 6ft towering mess with a backpack strung at one arm and a crooked grin that looked stuck to his face. Glancing down I notice that he dropped his keys when we bumped and I just stared ahead not to be rude , but am not going to act like those females in melodramas that try to pick up something and mistakenly touch the stranger's hand . I think I have enough drama on my plate already,so imagine my suprise when this handsome stranger didn't make an effort to pick his damn keys but stared intently at my head as if trying to bore a hole in it one hand stuffed in his denim Jeans .
After a few seconds of awkward silence and a battle of wills I decided to be the bigger person and pick the keys , besides it was partially my fault and I didn't have the habit of pinning my mistake on other people .
Bending down i reach for the keys my eyes making contact with the white tennis shoes on his feet and i rose up only to meet an outstretched hand , a silent order for the keys to be delivered.
Holy biscuits I don't have the time nor the patience to respond so I simply hand over the keys and sidestep the giant to get on my way not even bothering to take a good look at his face .
Spotting Ana at the front door to a room eyes weary and slightly droopy , well that is to be expected. I greet her only for her to roll her half way shut eyes at me 'typical bitch' , I could swear the girl is out to get me . She is at least tolerable to everyone else but it's like she sees me and decides ' let me go full *bitch mode* on her'
Rolling my shoulders to exude more confidence than I felt at the moment I approach her in what I hoped was a dexterous manner to acquire due information from her first hand . I could get a briefing later but I needed her input I wasn't kidding when I said she's a great doctor.
"Well someone's early today" she drawled suppressing a yawn . I can't believe she still has the energy for this nonsense. Deciding to starve the mole hill and prevent the manifestation of a mountain so early in the morning I cut to the chase.
" the patient this morning, the one you called me for how is he" . An annoyed expression crossed her face seeing I didn't bite the bullet, contemplating offering an answer or not . I guess professionalism won the inner debate as she bit the inside of her cheek and answered .
"He was okay , but I recommended some soporific that would aid his pain and help the little guy sleep." Hearing it from her mouth helped calm down a bit of nerves
"Thank you Ana" my gratitude was well recieved with a scowl , I think the graveyard shift was making her meaner than usual
"Don't call me that!. Only close friends are allowed to call me Ana do you understand "
A perfect retort was just at the tip of my tongue about to be unleashed like a bag full of vipers in a chicken farm but vanessa's voice halted the motion. Mustering a deadly glare I send it her way before turning around to greet Eric and vanessa behind me already in scrubs the two had always stuck to each other like magnets though their relationship was purely platonic it still gets the side eye from a lot of people even Ana.
"Hey Ana" Eric mumbles a shy smile on his face as his hands rub the back of his neck in a nervous motion a grunt reply was all he got causing Eric to blush a deep red , embarrassment or shyness hard to decipher.
"Hi ash you are here early" vanessa greets with a million watts smile. She's a morning person , I don't really understand where they tap their energy from, am all groans and grunts in the morning and the only reason I break up with my dear love 'my bed' every morning was because I loved my job .
"Well I had a headstart " I glance at Ana which only earned me an eyeroll. Twice in one morning I must have hit the jackpot today (note the sarcasm) "hey Eric "
"Hey ash, you are in an easy mood today "
"Yeah I had two full cups of coffee before coming to work" a loud clearing of throat is directed our way making Eric and vanessa to look up and me to turn around to meet the rude interrupter only to come in contact with Armani suit expensive cologne and hazel eyes.
"Good morning team ,Ashira" he nods in my direction a series of good mornings are muttered back.
" well why are we loitering here " jack asks as if we have been standing there for hours and not just to exchange greeting. The others fidget which is odd as they never behaved like that with mr. Hudson even Ana swerved around in one swift motion to go sign out.
"Get to work" he commanded before walking forward . Well that was extremely weird . I narrow my eyes at Eric silently demanding an explanation .
Raising an eyebrow at me as if asking if I lived under a rock.
"He's director Peters son " noting the quizzical expression on my face he elaborated "you know the mr. Peters that owns 30 percent of the hospital shares. You know dark haired , weird moustache about ye high" he made an illustration with his hand, vanessa bobbing her head like a puppy about to take a walk. And that's when it finally clicked stone faced director Peters with a pesky mustache.
"Wow his gene really evolved you can't even see the similarity " while mr. Peters was an average height man always in way too big suits to give himself an artificial sense of bulkiness his son was lean in a good way with a thing for clothes his size.
"No matter what I wouldn't want to get on his bad side, could cost me my job" vanessa chips in before waving me goodbye as she drags Eric with her. While I head to the nurse section to extract my patients evaluations in the last 12 hours.