I meet her in front of the hospital on a Sunday afternoon. I didn't tell anyone I'm meeting her: not Aiden, not Diana or Kathy or Hye-Rin, and certainly not Nick. I wish I had told Nick, I'm not used to not let Nick be a part of something I did.
"Hello," she says trying to not let the nervous creep into her voice
"Ready?" I say instead and she nods, firmly but a little helplessly
Dr. Heathersphere feels bad for me, I know it. He always did. But this time he actually looks to me with a downturn of his lips, his worried frown and creased forehead. He probably thinks that I need to be admitted alongside my father.
Robert Donovan is expecting the nice nurse; not his estranged wife and his daughter. Dr. Heathersphere suggests that we do not mention who we really are and pose as staff in fear of triggering an episode. I don't want to look at her. But I am sickeningly satisfied by how her breathing steadily grows ragged; now she knows how I feel.
Forgiveness is slow. And it's not always altruistic.
"It's the nice nurse," his voice rings happily through the room when I go in first. I feel her small, sheepish footsteps behind me as she walks into the scene of her crime.
"How's everything?" I ask, as I usually do
"I'm great. I'm getting so much better at the crossword because," his voice drops to a dramatic whisper beckoning me to lean in. I indulge him. "I asked Nurse Kiro to let me borrow his thesaurus."
He never asks me for my name. Just always accepted that all I will ever be to him is Nice Nurse.
His eyes widen a little, he shrinks behind me as he looks over my shoulder to see her. Maidera's hair is tucked into a cap, not a single strand in sight, her brilliant blue eyes hide behind dusty glasses and half her face is covered with a mask. But for one terrifying moment, I think he recognize her.
"Who's she?" he asks shyly
I let out a low breath.
"A friend." I say vaguely
"She's really pretty." He whispers to me, but in the quietness of the room, I'm sure she heard it too.
"How can you tell?" I ask with a little laugh. Her face is covered up, her hair tied into a cap and her eyes hidden behind glasses.
"I just can." He says decisively apparently fixed on his notion
That just about is all she can take. Because she mumbles an excuse into her mask and practically bolts out of the door. He looks at the closed door, a little forlorn and a little confused. I wonder if that's what he looked like when she first left.
"She has an upset stomach." I pat his arm gently and his gaze refocuses on me
"Will she come back?" he asks
"She'll try."
YOU ARE READING
Growing Up and Other Tall Tales
RomanceSometimes the best love stories begin with, "Who the fuck are you?" *** Lyra Donovan has been through enough hell and then some; so she enjoys the more predictable things in life. A good cup of coffee, sunsets and the fact that she hates math. Love...
