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: Sunday, February 22nd. 6:53 A.M.:
Seven minutes until shift change.
Jack Abbot was ready to eat, ready to be done standing and walking for some time, ready to look at something beyond the walls of this hospital…
But even thinking that, he knew that this shift hadn’t been bad.
He’d had many, many nights that ended a lot worse on this one.
And this wasn’t his first rodeo — there was still almost seven minutes left until the clock struck 7 A.M.
Plenty of time for this shift to go to hell.
But, Abbot was just going to check on the patients in the ED until it was time for him to leave, and wait for that crisis to find him.
“Excuse me? Doctor Abbot?” Abbot turned when he heard his name. The young lady standing there was a college student who rode in the ambulance with her friend who had been admitted for alcohol poisoning around 2 A.M.
“I—I don’t want to interrupt your work,” she stammered nervously. “But I wanted to ask, when do you think Cody will be able to leave?”
“You aren’t interrupting anything,” Abbot assured her. “It’s April, right?” she nodded. “I’m still on shift for another four minutes. I can check on Cody. Is she awake?”
“Not yet,” April said as she followed him to her friend’s hospital bed. “But she wouldn’t want to be here too late in the day… she has a a job with our school and…”
“April, I don’t want to give you the idea that alcohol poisoning isn’t serious,” Abbot had his hand on the curtain but turned to look at her. “Because it’s very serious, and your friend is very lucky to be going home later. But trust me, this isn’t the first time someone at college has called out due to something like…” Abbot’s voice trailed off as he drew the curtain back.
April’s friend Cody was still hooked up to the IV, peacefully sleeping, with the left hand that needed sixteen stitches earlier still elevated.
Abbot looked down at the chart on the screen in his hand.
Cody Behrens.
According to this chart, Cody Behrens was twenty-two years old.
And even though Abbot prided himself on remembering faces, when a patient comes in who is having trouble staying conscious, and the whirlwind of pumping their stomach and stitching up their sliced up hand… it’s possible he didn’t notice the patient’s face.
Abbot knew this was the same patient he had treated hours before.
But he also knew this patient was neither Cody Behrens nor twenty-two years old; of that he was certain.
Or almost certain.
“Like I said.” Abbot cleared his throat. “They get callouts for things like this… at college. It happens. And the amount of alcohol intake your friend had left her severely dehydrated, and her levels aren’t where they should be for her to be discharged. She’s gonna be here a while longer.”
“Oh.” April nodded. “Okay.”
“It’s just about 7,” Abbot offered. “If there’s anyone you need to call, or want us to call, to inform that she’s here, work… parents?”
“No, that’s okay,” April shook her head. “Her… parents don’t live in town.” Abbot just nodded; it was a long night, and now that he wasn’t going constantly, he didn’t have the heart to be the one to tell this girl she really wasn’t that good of a liar.
“Fair enough.” Abbot said. “I will let the attending who starts know what’s going on, as well as the nurses, and they’ll be around to check on her.”
“Thank you.” April nodded. In the bed, her friend stirred slightly. Abbot did hope she woke up before he left; right now, all he had was a theory.
Even though he was pretty sure, he still needed at least one more pair of eyes on this.
“Perlah!” Abbot exclaimed, moving as fast as he could to the nurses’ station. “Is Lena still here?”
“She’s discharging a patient.” Perlah said without looking up.
“Shit.” Abbot sighed. “What about Robby?”
“I think he’s by the lockers…” Perlah started to say, but Abbot cut her off with a quick, “thank you!” before he was off.
Perlah watched him hurry off… as quick as Abbot ever went anywhere and shook her head.
Robby was just downing the last of his coffee when he saw Abbot making his way towards him.
“There you are,” Abbot said, pausing to catch his breath.
“Here I am,” Robby nodded. “What’s with you? Fun night?”
“Had better.” Abbot shrugged. “Had many that were worse. Had an ambulance bring in a college coed few hours ago with alcohol poisoning.”
“Yikes.” Robby said as he held the door to the ED open for Abbot. “She make it?”
“She did,” Abbot nodded as Robby followed him across the floor. “We pumped her stomach and then stitched up her hand. She’s resting now. She’ll be fine.”
“Okay,” Robby nodded. “With you so far. What happened to her hand?”
“Apparently someone was tossing her an empty beer bottle, and it sliced right through her hand. That’s when her friend realized something was wrong,” Abbot relayed. “But… that isn’t the issue. The issue is I’ve got a chart, and saw ID, for a twenty-two-year-old named Cody Behrens.”
“And?” Robby prompted. Abbot stopped walking and pulled the curtain back.
“And this is Cody Behrens,” Abbott announced. Since he had last been there, the patient was now awake and talking with her friend.
“I see,” Robby nodded. “And no. No, it is not.” The look on his colleague’s face told Abbot that he wasn’t mistaken at all.
“I can’t believe I didn’t catch it,” Abbot shook his head. “Or that Lena didn’t. But it’s been like what, two—”
“Maybe three years.” Robby finished. “Since we’ve seen her here.” Neither of the girls were paying the two doctors much attention.
“And in that time, she stole Dana’s whole face,” Robby chuckled. “Gotta love genetics.” He frowned. “She’s not twenty-two… is she?”
“She can’t be yet.” Abbot shook his head. “I think the middle one is. Here.” He took a step over to the nearest computer and entered, Evans, Corra.
“Yep, that’s her.” Robby nodded, doing a double take between the screen and the young blonde patient in the bed. She had her mom’s heart-shaped face and light blonde hair. “She will be seventeen in the fall.”
“She’s got a very convincing ID from somewhere,” Abbot remarked. “Want to talk to her, or call Dana first?”
“I’ll try her first.” Robby said with a shrug. He made his way back over to Corra’s bed. He cleared his throat and the two girls looked up.
“Hello.” Robby said. “I’m Doctor Robinavitch, or Doctor Robby. I’m taking over for Doctor Abbot so that he can go home. I understand you were brought in for alcohol poisoning early this morning?”
“I guess?” Corra nodded. “I… don’t really remember coming here. I’d really just like to go home.”
“I understand that.” Robby nodded. “We are unable to discharge you just yet, given the amount of alcohol that was in your system when you were brought in. If there’s anyone you need to call and let them know where you are, now would be a good time for that.”
“No, that’s okay.” Corra shook her head. Robby and Abbot exchanged a look before Robby sat down on the edge of the bed.
“I’ve known your mom a long time, Corry,” he said gently. “And I’m pretty certain she doesn’t know where you are. And she should.” Both doctors watched the different emotions wash over the exhausted teenager’s face like a tidal wave.
First surprise, then confusion, then she just tossed her head back on the pillows and muttered, “Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.”
“Why does the doctor know your mom?” April whispered. “And I thought only your parents called you Corry.”
Corra groaned. “More people did when I was little.” She sighed, still not looking at Robby or Abbot. “Both of them worked with my mom. She used to sort of… be the charge nurse here.”
“A lot more than sort of,” Robby interjected. “Best charge nurse there is.”
“Better hope Lena doesn’t hear you say that.” Abbot snorted. “We are still waiting for your mom to come join us again, though.” Abbot added.
“Yeah, join the club.” Corra shook her head. “She doesn’t have enough to do at home, and she’s been a real pain in the ass the last few months.”
Robby let out a low whistle. “Well, no one will ever doubt that you and your mother are related.”
“That’s for sure.” Abbot agreed.
“And I have no problem calling her,” Robby said, steering the ship back to the matter at hand. “But Corra, you are more than welcome to. I think she’d rather hear it from you.”
For the first time since he sat down, Corra met Robby’s eyes. “Are you nuts? She knows I’m here, she’ll know I lied to her about last night. She’ll kill me.”
“Not sure how her finding out would be avoided, when you’re in her workplace of over 3 decades,” Abbot mused.
“Like that’s my fault?” Corra huffed. She turned to her friend. “I can’t believe you called 911.”
“You didn’t even move when there was glass literally in your hand!” April exclaimed. “I actually thought maybe you were dead. I was scared.”
“What’s your name?” Robby asked.
“April,” she answered nervously.
“April.” He nodded. “April, you absolutely did the right thing. If she didn’t get checked out, she very well could have died, not to mention the infection she could’ve gotten in her hand. There isn’t a doubt you did the right thing by calling.”
“Thank you.” April played with her long dark braid with her fingers. “Are we going to be in trouble? For giving false information?”
“We aren’t cops.” Robby spoke slowly, but clearly. “It’s our job to help everyone, and that’s what we do. Being that she is a minor, we would be required to let the parents know, even if they weren’t someone we know. Here’s what we’re going to do. I’m calling to call Dana, you stay put, I’m going to check in on other patients, and I’ll be back.”
“I’ll give you a hundred bucks not to call her,” Corra groaned as Robby got up off the bed.
“Tempting,” Abbot said as he pulled the curtain, “but we’ve got another rule here. If you attend someone’s Christening, you do have to notify someone when they show up in your ER years later.”
“Really?” Robby said, looking for Dana’s number in his phone. “We have that rule?”
“Well, doesn’t it feel like we should?” Abbot asked as Robby held his phone up to his ear.
It rang twice before it was picked up. “Well, this isn’t what I expected first thing Sunday,” a familiar voice said.
“Dana.” Robby smiled. “Hey. Good to hear your voice.” He caught Abbot giving him a look and cleared his throat. “I wish I was calling for a better reason, but unfortunately I gotta tell you that—”
“My smartass kid is sitting in front of you in the ED right now?” Dana cut him off.
“Uh huh.” Robby nodded. “Exactly that. How’d you know?”
“Lena called me ten minutes ago.” Dana replied. “She felt terrible no one realized it was Corry when the ambulance brought her in. Said she’s charted under a different name.”
“Yes, a Cody Behrens,” Robby said, reading the chart. “Who is apparently twenty-two.” He frowned. “Behrens is your maiden name, isn’t it?”
“Good memory.” Dana chuckled, despite everything. “Not just that — Cody Behrens was the name I would use when I was young and sneaking into bars. This is what I get for trying to be the relatable mom and share my mistakes.” She sighed. “Lena told me that Corry’s stable, but she didn’t get to speak to her.” Even without seeing her, Robby could tell the change in Dana’s tone. “Is she okay?” Dana asked. “Did she wake up? Has she said anything?”
“She just woke up a little while ago,” Robby reported. “She’s tired, a little out of it. She’ll be fine. And she offered me a hundred bucks not to call you.”
“That’s my girl, alright.” Dana sighed. “Benji and I will be there soon. Now, what the fuck happened to her hand?”
“For that, I’m gonna pass you over to Abbot.” Robby said, holding his phone out.
“Hey, Dana.” Abbot said, taking the phone. “I’m sorry we didn’t do this a few hours ago…”
“I’m gonna tell you the same thing I told Lena,” Dana cut him off too. “You were both doing your damn jobs. You’re given a name for a patient, you don’t have time to waste thinking if they’re lying to you. Although I gotta ask,” she paused. “Does she look twenty-two to you?”
“Once we weren’t rushing, no, she doesn’t even look eighteen,” Abbot said. “Next time, tell her to come in with just one thing so we can focus.”
“Trust me, I’m sticking that girl in a tower guarded by a goddamn dragon.” Dana sighed. “Now, her hand. What the fuck happened?”
“Her friend said someone tossed an empty beer bottle to her when her arm was hanging off a couch,” Abbot reported. “Bottle broke on the couch and she didn’t move her hand and it cut her hand up pretty good. When she didn’t move, that’s when her friend was worried that she wasn’t okay and she called 911.”
“Which friend is this?” Dana asked. “What’s she look like?”
“Uh, long dark braid, dark eyes, kind of medium height,” Abbot answered. “Told me her name was April.”
“That’s Corry’s best friend Amaya.” Dana sighed. “She has an older sister named April. And thank you,” she added. “I’m glad she was brought there. At least. Pass the phone back to the day shift?”
“You got it,” Abbot smiled. “Good to talk to you. Hold on.” He reached out to catch Robby with one hand; he had gotten up to check on patients while Abbot was on the phone.
“Hey,” Robby said. “Guess we’ll be seeing you soon?”
“It looks like it.” Dana said. “Tell my kid I’m on my way, and she has got a hell of a lot of explaining to do. And Robinavitch?”
“Yeah?” Robby paused.
“Good to hear your voice too.” Robby smiled at that; he couldn’t help it. “See you soon.”
“Bye.” Robby put his phone back in his pocket. He noticed that Abbot had yet to move. “You headed out?” he asked. “Or are we graced with your presence a little longer?”
“I’m mulling it over.” Abbot shrugged, hiding a yawn behind his hand. Without asking, Robby guessed he was staying to say a quick hello to Dana.
Which Robby understood; she’d been gone for four months, and he missed her, too.
“What the hell are you stopping for!” Dana roared. “You could’ve gone!”
“See that sign?” Her husband, Benji retorted. He was driving their Subaru, which was stopped at a light. “What does that sign say? It says no turn on red. You wonder what the fuck I’m doing?”
“It was yellow when you could’ve turned, Benji!” Dana snapped.
“Well, excuse me, dear,” her husband snapped as she drummed her fingers on the door. “Does yellow not mean proceed with caution?”
“No, in fact it means clear the intersection!” Dana exclaimed. Finally, mercifully, the light turned green.
As the hospital came into view, the car remained quiet.
“Hey,” Dana said softly. “Listen, I’m—”
“I know,” Her husband’s eyes met hers briefly before returning to the road. “Me too.” He kept one hand on the wheel and with the other reached over and took Dana’s hand. “Besides,” he added as he turned into the parking lot, “we should really be saving this up for Corry.”
“Can’t argue with that.” Dana sighed. “How the fuck did this happen? This means everything she told me yesterday was a lie.”
“Remember when you told her that lying would make her hair catch on fire and she bought it?” Benji chuckled.
“Hey, it took three kids before that finally worked.” Dana chuckled with a sad smile.
Both at realizing just how grown her girls were, and that it was really hitting her just where they were.
That building bearing down on them — when Dana looked at her life, she had spent more time in this building than anywhere else in her life.
There was a part of her that felt like she should just be going in to work right now.
“Babe? You okay?”
Dana realized a second too late she completely missed what her husband had said.
“What?” she asked.
“Can we park here?” he asked.
“No, we gotta move on to the next one.” Dana pointed at the patient and guest parking.
“You know,” Benji said as he pulled into a parking spot, “I could go in just me… if you wanted.”
“I’m sorry, in what world is that happening?” Dana asked.
“Hey, just wanted to offer,” Benji said as he turned the car off. “Which, I know it wouldn’t turn out well for me either… I come in there without you, the staff would send me back out to get you.”
“Oh, you’re funny,” Dana muttered as she got out of the car. Truthfully, she didn’t know what it would be like to be in this building when she wasn’t there for a shift.
“Dana! Over here!”
Dana had barely been in chairs for longer than a minute when she heard her name called.
“Good to see you, Jack,” she smiled as the night shift attending gave her a hug.
“It’s great to see you,” he said. “We’ve really missed you round these parts. Benji, how you doing?” He vigorously shook her husband’s hand.
“Hey, Doctor Abbot,” Benji said. “Are we able to…”
“Follow me.” Abbot said, setting off again. There wasn’t too many people in chairs waiting just yet.
“How is Corry doing?” Dana asked. “Robby said she was awake.”
“She’s awake and her levels are looking better,” Abbot relayed. “She was less than thrilled when Robby told her that we called you.”
“Oh, that girl hasn’t begun to know less than thrilled.” Dana huffed. “I swear to God, I—”
“Look who’s back!” Dana turned and saw Nurse Jesse with the biggest smile she’d ever seen on his face.
“It’s so good to see you,” Jesse said as he gave Dana a huge hug. “We’ve really missed you.”
“I’ve missed you guys too,” she said, hugging him back. By the time they broke apart, Donnie was there. “Donnie!”
“You look great,” he said as he hugged her. “This place isn’t the same without you.”
“Guys, she does have a kid here,” Robby said, joining them. “She’ll be here a while.”
“Hey, you said it, we didn’t,” Perlah said as she and Princess stepped in front of Robby to hug Dana.
Dana focused all her energy on not crying.
She was still in touch with her nursing staff, but nothing was the same as this.
It wasn’t the same as seeing them every day, catching up, working side by side…
Nothing beat the real thing.
Finally, Dana had to break away from her nurse’s bubble. “I miss you guys so much,” she said, giving Perlah another hug. “I’ll come find you before we leave. Promise. Benji?”
“Still here,” Benji chimed in, falling into step with Dana again as they followed Robby.
“How is she doing?” Dana asked. “Is she awake now? Has she eaten anything?”
“She was when I checked on her a couple minutes ago,” Robby nodded. “Princess brought her some applesauce and crackers. Not sure if she’s touched it. Here we are.” He pulled back the curtain, where Corra and Amaya were.
Dana had seen countless patients in her career, in all sorts of conditions.
This wasn’t even the first time seeing one of her own babies in the hospital; but that didn’t change how jarring it was to see her youngest baby with sunken eyes and a stitched up hand.
Dana threw her arms around her youngest, the only words escaping her were, “My baby. Oh, my sweet girl.”
“Mom, I’m fine,” Corra whined as her mom squeezed her. “Please chill out.”
“Oh, you’re fine?” Dana said incredulously, stepping back to fully look at her daughter. “Sweetheart, you are in the ER for alcohol poisoning! You are very far from fine, and very lucky to be alive!”
“And very unlikely to leave the house again before you’re thirty,” Benji added as he sidled over to the other end of the bed and kissed the top of his daughter’s head.
“Guys, I’ve heard it all from the doctors, okay?” Corra said. “And I didn’t even drink that much. And Tony said that Everclear is just like any other alcohol, and…”
“I’m sorry,” Dana cut her daughter off. “You’re telling me you almost goddamn died because you were drinking Everclear?”
“That was our reaction too,” Robby chimed in. “And Jesse’s. Before you got here, we were explaining that Everclear has an amount of alcohol that is somewhat akin to ingesting paint thinner.”
“Now I can see why you worked so well together,” Corra muttered. “He’s overdramatic just like you.”
“Oh you have not seen overdramatic yet, young lady,” Dana seethed.
“This is what I’m talking about!” Corra exclaimed. “You wonder why I can’t talk to you?” Robby stood awkwardly by as Dana and her daughter started arguing and talking over each other.
“Uh, Robby?” Benji asked. “She isn’t getting discharged immediately, is she?”
“Nope.” Robby shook his head. “Probably still be a couple hours. I can come back?”
“I would.” Benji nodded. Robby patted Dana’s shoulder before going to check on his other patients.
A little while later, Robby couldn’t help but smile when he looked over at the nurse’s station and saw Dana there.
“Well, that’s a good sight to see,” he commented as he got closer.
“Hey, I needed a break.” Dana sighed. “That girl, I swear to God. First, she lies to my face. Then, she almost dies. And then, she refuses to acknowledge why the second one makes me upset!” She shook her head. “Good to see you, though. How you holding up, Robinavitch?”
“Same old Pitt.” Robby shrugged. “We get through it. We miss you, though. How is it being at home?”
Dana looked across the ED at her daughter’s hospital bed. “It’s different.” She said finally. “And I love my family. I do. It’s just… different.”
“Sure.” Robby said. “Well, Corra’s numbers are finally at a place where we can let her go. But you’re welcome to hang out.”
“Don’t tempt me.” Dana snorted a laugh at that. She walked back to her daughter’s bedside with Robby by her side.
“Alright, Ms. Corry Evans, you are good to leave us,” Robby told his patient. “We can take this out. Normally this is where we’d go over the best course of action and how to avoid this happening in the future, but I think your mother probably has that covered.”
“Damn straight,” Dana confirmed with a nod.
“Fuck,” Corra winced as the IV came out of her arm. “Is there any way I can go home with someone else?”
“Not a chance, sweets,” Dana told her daughter. “Amaya, I spoke with your mom. We’re gonna drop you off too.”
“Can you drop me off at Amaya’s house too?” Corra asked.
Dana took a deep breath and chose not to answer that question. “Thank you,” Dana said, giving Robby a hug. “And thank Abbot for me too. It was good to see you.”
“You too,” Robby smiled. “Have a good one.”
Coming home after visiting her old workplace wasn’t what Dana expected.
There was a lot more fighting with her youngest child and yelling — and that, she had expected.
But leaving that building and coming home used to feel… different than this.
She remembered getting home from the hospital and being so tired she could barely make it up the front steps.
She remembered getting home with the utter relief to be home.
She remembered times when she couldn’t stop worrying about the patients she had seen that day.
But this feeling was a new one.
It was feeling like she had left something important at the hospital.
That had never happened to her before.
The feeling of unfinished business there.
The feeling that she was walking out in the middle of her shift.
“Thought you quit.” Dana heard her husband’s voice behind her. She was standing at the bottom of the steps of their back porch, cigarette in her left hand.
“Do not start that with me right now,” Dana snorted without turning around. “Not today.”
“Fine. Sorry I brought it up.” Dana turned slightly when she saw that Benji had sat down on the landing. She reached over and ran a hand through his graying hair.
“You’re getting shaggy.” She murmured.
“I think the last time you cut it was a couple months ago,” he nodded, leaning into the touch of her hand.
“How’s she doing?” Dana asked, gesturing to the house with her cigarette.
“Well, she’s been planted and watered,” her husband replied. “I wouldn’t put her in direct sunlight for a while…” He gently took her hand and held it with his own. “You okay?”
“Fine.” She shrugged. “Pissed as hell at Corra. You think making her clean out your mother’s attic is too mean?”
Benji chuckled at that. “Not the worst thing you’ve ever dealt out. But wouldn’t that mean you’d have to drive her there?”
That thought hadn’t occurred to Dana. Typically, she went out of her way to avoid her mother-in-law, and very grateful for the 100 or so miles of distance between them.
But Benji was the one still working, so driving out there… that would be her job.
“Is that me?” Dana mused, mostly to herself. “The person who just quits?”
“Shit, I don’t want to be the one giving medical advice,” Benji paused. “But isn’t quitting a good thing?”
“I don’t mean this.” Dana sighed with exasperation waving the cigarette in her hand. “Never mind.”
“Okay.” Benji nodded and slowly stood up. “If you did mean something else,” Benji said as he walked down the three steps, “say, place we went today… I wouldn’t call that quitting. You retired. After spending three decades of your life there, right up until some jackass cold-cocked you in the face.”
Dana looked away from his concerned face and glanced down the street. She was surprised that two of their neighbors had already put their recycling cans out on the curb.
“You know that wasn’t the first time something like that happened,” Dana said softly. “It was probably past being the twentieth time.”
“That’s still not good, babe,” Benji ran a hand through his hair. “You could’ve brought charges against that guy. Susie and Lou both wanted you to.”
“Well, they’re young,” Dana smiled. Both of her older girls had been harping on her to press charges after Dana was notified that Doug Driscoll had been arrested; their biggest argument was that if this happened to them, Dana wouldn’t have stopped until they pressed charges, which admittedly, Dana couldn’t really refute that.
“Uh huh,” Benji reached for her cigarette.
“Thought you quit, Mister High-and-Mighty,” Dana raised an eyebrow as he took a drag.
“Several times.” He said as he passed her cigarette back to her. “You want to talk about that, or talk about what we’re not talking about?”
“Which is?” Dana asked, even though she knew what the answer was.
“If you…” her husband shrugged, “wanted to unquit… we could talk about that.”
Dana sighed. “Not today.” She said. “Right now, we should focus on why our sixteen-year-old thinks she’s going on twenty-five.” She took one more drag off her cigarette before putting it out in the ash tray on the windowsill. “Might be something to think about, though,” she said as she took her husband’s hand and went back inside.