Clash Of Cultures

10. ER Visit

Noor

After Mr Martinez and the miracle baby's mom were loaded in to ambulances and taken to the ER, the paramedics recommended that we ride along in the next ambulance to get checked out in the ER as well. I didn't object to that but it was so weird being on the other side of the doctor-patient relationship.

The ER we were taken to was at the adult hospital attached to our children's hospital, and was busy as usual. Though we were whisked away to the trauma bay as soon as we got there.

The ER resident who came in, took one look at us and remarked, "Don't I know you both?"

Kimberly answered, "Yes! We are Peds interns here"

My head laceration had stopped oozing by now, and my hair over it was matted with the clotted blood. I had sneaked a peak at myself using my cell phone camera and I could tell that a large bruise was developing over the right side of my face.

Now that the adrenal rush from the accident and finding the baby was subsiding, I realized just how much my head was actually hurting. It was difficult keeping my eyes open under the bright lights of the trauma bay. The ER resident and Kimberly were chatting away and laughing loudly, which made my headache worse.

Is there anyone that she does not flirt with?

I lay down and closed my eyes, trying to ignore everything around me. I figured I probably had a bad concussion. The ER resident must have come to the same conclusion when he came over to examine me.

"We need to get a head CT on you. Just to make sure there is nothing serious going on...ok?" I nodded, "If anything changes, let us know right away. I am going to go see the other injured patients that came in but will check up on you in a bit"

Soon after, a nurse helped me in to wheelchair and then rolled me in to the ER CT scan room. The machine takes images rapidly so it wasn't long before I was taken back to the trauma bay. Though, I wish it had taken longer, because when I got back to our room, I saw Sal hugging Kimberly tightly. And despite what I had told myself just a couple of hours ago, that I needed to stay away from Sal, seeing him embrace Kimberly bothered me a lot more than it should have.

Why is he here? I can not deal with him right now.

"Oh you're back so quickly!", Kimberly called out across the room

Sal turned around and I heard a small gasp escape from his lips. He quickly walked over as the nurse was helping me transfer from the wheelchair to the bed. I couldn't help wondering which of his personalities I would encounter then. But when he stood next to me everything seemed to stand still around us.

"Hey...", he said quietly.

I looked up at him. His face was full of concern, his warm, brown eyes searched mine for something. Perhaps he was looking for reassurance that I was ok. But I told myself that it was much more likely that he was just looking for an opportunity to ridicule me.

Your emotional radar with Sal has always been completely off-base. Won't be long before he starts arguing again.

"Hi...", I replied, looking at him with a straight face. But the smell of his cologne was making me dizzy. Or maybe it was just his physical presence near me.

"Couldn't handle Chicago traffic in the rain? Newbie...", he smiled gently.

I managed to return a smile ad well, "Clearly, you have not been to Pakistan"

"Actually I have been to Pakistan, 20 years ago", he chuckled.

"By the way, heard you were quite the hero out there. Good job keeping your eyes open", he said, while surveying my cuts and bruises, now fully in physician-mode.