You Make It Easy

22.

Maya~

I turned my speaker down a little as I sensed it was getting to be a little too loud since Christian was still asleep. I mix the muffin batter a bit more to make sure everything is combined.

I pour the batter into the tin, cleaning out the bowl before putting the tin into the oven. I set a timer on my phone and do the dishes so I don't need to worry about them later.

I pour another espresso shot into my latte before going outside to my deck. I stand outside taking in the fresh air. I don't get this time anymore. I feel like the last few weeks have been crazy and I haven't had much time to relax. I'm trying to be outside as much as I can. I know it's beneficial for me.

"Morning," Christian says quietly, stepping behind me.

He puts his hand on my hip as I turn around to hug him, "Morning."

He takes my mug to take a sip of my latte. "Are you coming with me tonight?"

"That was the plan."

We go inside. I make him a latte so he doesn't drink all of mine. "What's your schedule look like?" I ask, checking on my muffins.

"We leave Wednesday night for Chicago and New York. Yours?"

"I'm off today, tomorrow, and Monday. I have a surgery shift on Tuesday. I'll be gone all day. Probably 5:30 to whenever they feel like being done. I'm off Wednesday and Thursday. Then I have night shift on Friday and Saturday. I'm back to normal by Monday. Probably a good thing you won't be here."

"I guess so."

I press on one of the muffins to see if they're done. "Muffins or cupcakes?"

"Muffins."

"What kind?"

"Banana chocolate chip."

I shut the oven before going over to him. "What's up?" he asks.

"Nothing."

He hugs me back. "Who are you playing?"

"Rangers."

I look at my buzzing pager to see where I'm needed now. It's been nonstop for me today with a lot of surgeries. I need ten minutes to recoup and drink some water. But not right now.

I make my way to OR 2 and pop my head in, "Hi, I'm the NP on surgery today. What can I do?" I ask.

"We just need an extra pair of hands. Could you get scrubbed?"

"Yeah."

I step into the scrub room and wash up to my elbows after putting a sterile mask on. The door opens as I stand in front of it. The scrub nurses hold my gown and gloves.

"Thank you," I tell them before stepping over the sterile line. "Could you stand across from me?"

"Yeah."

I keep my hands up and make my way around the table, "What do we have?"

I take an instrument and hold it for my surgeon, "Well, he was found on a park bench hardly breathing. They did a tox screen in the ER and it came back with heroin. They gave him NARCAN in the field. He was complaining of abdominal pain so a CT was done and revealed an inflamed liver so we're cutting out the inflamed part. We just needed some extra hands. He was a patient in the ER just about two years ago. He got violent with a staff member."

My face goes blank. Thank god for surgical masks. I freeze, "What?" I ask. No fucking way.

"Yeah, I guess he left the ER after he did some damage in one of the rooms and with our staff member. I heard it was bad. You probably know about it. Don't you work down there?"