More Than Meets The Eye

Chapter Seventeen

Thursday and Friday were long and exhausting. A really unpleasant strain of the stomach flu was making its way through the city and had spread quickly through a couple of the local elementary schools, so the pediatrics floor was almost at capacity. We were also shorthanded, since a few staff members had called in sick.

I ended up working double shifts and didn’t even go home on Thursday night. Instead, I just slept for a few hours in the nurses’ lounge that existed specifically for that reason. Then I went right back to work Friday morning.

By Friday evening, I was running on nothing but adrenaline. But I still stuck a smile on my face and went to read to Tim at seven-thirty, when I was able to take a dinner break.

We’d only read a couple of pages when Cam swept into the room and closed the door behind him. Tim flashed him a big smile and greeted, “Hey, Doc Albrecht.”

Cam smiled, too. “Hey yourself, kiddo.” He was carrying a cardboard box, and he swung the rolling table over so both Tim and I could reach the things he began unpacking.

“What’s all this?” I asked.

“There’s hot chocolate for Tim,” he answered as he fitted a straw into the top of a paper cup, then handed it to the boy, “and coffee with cream and sugar.” He placed a large cup beside me. “There are also gingerbread cookies for both of you, and two sandwiches and two cups of soup. You shouldn’t skip dinner, Xander, especially since you’ve been working since eight a.m. and this is your first break. I brought double everything so Tim can have some if it looks good to him. If not, I’m guessing you can probably finish it off.”

“Wow, thank you.”

He put down the cardboard box, then picked up the boy’s tablet. “Where are you in the book?” he asked.

“We’re about four pages into chapter twelve.”

I marked the page with the flap of the dust jacket before setting the book aside. Meanwhile, Cam tapped the screen a few times, then said, “This isn’t meant to replace you, but it’ll give you a chance to eat while both of you listen to the story. I’ll begin it at the start of that chapter.” He placed the tablet on the bedside table, and the audiobook of the story we’d been reading began to play.

“You need to eat, too,” I told him as I unwrapped Tim’s cookie for him and put it within reach.

He picked up the cardboard box, produced one more plastic-wrapped sandwich, and grinned as he stuck it in the pocket of his white lab coat. Then he took a second coffee cup from the box and winked at me as he left the room.

“I don’t know why I thought Doctor Albrecht was mean at first. He’s actually super nice,” Tim said before shoving a big piece of gingerbread cookie in his mouth.

“He really is,” I murmured as I reached for a sandwich.

* * *

When I got off work at two a.m., I was delighted to find a text message from Cam waiting for me.

Cam: Please come over when you get off work.

I didn’t care that I was tired -- there was no way I’d pass up the chance to see him. I quickly changed out of my scrubs and replied to his message.

Me: On my way.

Then I grabbed my backpack and practically ran out of the building.

Surprisingly, Cam was sitting on his front stoop when I pulled into his driveway. He smiled at me and got to his feet as I hurried over to him. I dropped my backpack on the ground and planted a big kiss on him before saying, “I’ve wanted to do that for two days.”