If I Could Fly // H.S.

One

I wake up to my alarm screaming at me and discover that I have snoozed not once, but 3 times. I now have about 20 minutes to get ready before rushing out for work. So much for getting to bed early so I could have some time to at least look decent. Stupid mornings. I don't get how anybody can ever be a morning person. After realizing I have been sitting there for 3 minutes, I jump out of bed to go wake up Scarlett who will most likely murder me for snoozing after trusting me to wake her up for work. As I peek into her room, I see that she is already awake and is putting on makeup.

"You're awake!" I yell half angry, half relieved.

"I figured you would get up late so I set my own alarm. I think I have you figured out by now Victoria," she chuckles.

"And the thought didn't cross your mind that I may have overslept since I didn't come in to get you?!"

"It did but I figured you did it on purpose, I mean you snooze constantly," she laughs without looking my way because she's putting on mascara.

"Well thanks for nothing, Scar!" I shout while swiftly walking back to my room to get ready considering I am down to 10 minutes if I want to make it to the cafe before my shift. I slip on my scrubs and yell for Scarlett to be ready in five minutes while I put on some foundation and mascara knowing that I don't need to be all dolled up at work. After brushing my teeth and putting my hair up into a high ponytail, I head out the door to find Scarlett already sitting in the passenger's seat. We rush to the hospital and get there with 5 minutes to spare before I need to clock in at 7:15. I drag Scarlett along behind me to get to the cafe and buy a blueberry muffin and a cup of black coffee. We clock in at 7:14 and the busy day begins.

"Victoria! I need you to check on rooms 628, 645, 387, 398, and 316." Grace chirps and hands me my clipboard before sending me on my way. Who knew somebody could be so happy in the morning, I can barely keep my eyes open! I specialized in rheumatology in medical school at Oklahoma College of Medicine, which in short means that I deal with patients who have musculoskeletal diseases or systematic autoimmune conditions, or better known as rheumatic diseases. As top of my class, I tend to work with the more serious patients within Tulsa Crest Hospital. I eventually find room 628 and knock on the open door to get the patient's attention.

"Oh hello, I haven't seen you around before!" the young lady says. She has short black hair that is cut into a pixie cut with dark blue eyes. She's petite and barely takes up any of the bed.

"Today is actually my first day! I just finished my residency yesterday and haven't been able to visit new patients. It seems we have 5 and it's my job to meet them all! My name is Dr. Caster and your name is Daisy Kneer correct?"

"That's me!" Daisy answers with a kind smile. I nod and look down at her charts. I note that she is a 33 year-old sent by her physician because of her stiff left wrist joint.

"I'm going to have to send a nurse in to draw blood so we can take a few tests. Do you mind if I take a quick look at your wrist?" I question.

"Of course," she answers with as much enthusiasm as she can without pushing the fact that she would rather keep it hidden. As she removed her hand from under the blanket I can see the swelling isn't too bad. I grab her forearm and hand, being careful to avoid any pain. I set a hand on her wrist and notice that it's quite warm which then proves my suspicions to most likely be correct, rheumatoid arthritis. Luckily if that is the case, it is in the early stages which shouldn't be hard to treat but we still need blood tests to confirm my opinion.

"The nurse should be in soon and I'll be back as soon as the blood tests have all gone through," I smile and head out the door as she turns her attention to the TV. After setting out to send a nurse in to Daisy, I head to room 645. The door is closed and there's a wheelchair outside of the room. I knock and enter the room seeing an old man sitting in the far corner while holding what I assumed to be his wife's hand who was waking up by my entrance.

"I'm sorry to wake you!" I apologize with a solemn expression.

"Oh no! Please come in, the sooner I am seen the better!"

"Alright well I'm Dr. Caster and I presume you are Lora Smith?" I raise an eyebrow.

"That's me," she smiles. She has gray hair that is to her shoulders, pale skin, and has a bigger figure.

"I'm George Smith by the way. I figured I should introduce myself," the man in the corner says as he leans forward with a hand out to shake which I quickly obliged.

"Nice to meet you," I smile. As I check Lora's chart, I read that she is a 78 year-old who was diagnosed with osteoarthritis(OA) a few weeks ago in her right knee but just now decided to get it checked. It's swollen and makes cracking noises with joint movement.

"We are going to do an X-ray to see the extent of your disease, is that alright?" I ask sweetly. She looks at her husband for support and he nods. After sending a nurse to bring them down I set off to room 387. I was starting to realize that having patients all to yourself is quite a reality check from residency. You not only have to go see what they need but also check repeatedly on them to read test results and research if needed. And I thought 5 patients would be a breeze. It's already 9:45 by the time I get down to room 387 and I realize that my day may go quicker than I had imagined. When I enter, I see a middle-aged African-American woman who looks at me immediately with a smile spread across her face.

"Good afternoon doctor! It's nice to finally have somebody besides nurses in here asking what I need!" she laughs.

"I'm glad to see you're excited!" I smile back. "I'm Dr. Caster. I've heard that you are the one that has osteoarthritis and won't go to the physical therapist like we requested, is that correct?"

"Unfortunately it is. It's not because I don't want to improve I just didn't see a point in going until I realized that the pain was increasing." she whispers.

"Cathy Wethers, right?" She nods. "Well Cathy, we are gonna have to keep you here for a while until you improve seeing that your treatment isn't getting you anywhere. I'm sorry to be the one telling you this. We are going to sign you up with a physical therapist here at the hospital and we may need to have surgery considering your pain levels and damage."

"Is surgery the only answer?" she questions looking concerned.

"It is the most effective way to get you back to functioning better," I sigh. She nods and I explain that I will be back later on to check what the nurses have found out about her X-rays.

After leaving Cathy's room, I head to the cafe to grab a granola bar and a bottled water before heading to the restroom to take a quick break. It's 11 when I start heading towards my next room and thinking about lunch that will be at 2. I begin realizing that the days may drag on more than I thought they would. As I find room 398, I see that the bed is empty and after asking a nurse, I find out that the patient is at the cafe with his family and I decide that I will come back after I go to my next patient.

I begin searching for room 316 as soon as I leave the other room, hoping that the faster I get things done, the sooner I will get lunch. After not being able to find room 316, I end up asking a nurse who says that it is on the other end which makes sense considering I am by room 370. I make it to room 316 after five minutes of searching and tap on the door and grab the chart and study it without examining the room or introducing myself. The patient is a 28 year-old man and I look up to see that it is none other than Harry Styles.