Conscious Sedation

The Nurse

1. The Nurse

I woke up with the bright spring sun streaming through the white curtains of the glass hospital window. I wanted to stretch my body but the little throbbing pain on the Right Lower Quadrant of my abdomen reminded me of yesterday’s surgery. I smiled at myself remembering everything that happened yesterday.

I lost my virginity to some Indian guy in the University and I lost my appendix too. Two of the few things you can never get back nor replace. Bad business, as my dad would say if he hears about irreplaceable losses without catch.

The footsteps from the doorway shook my thoughts off my parents. I craned my neck to see but my position and the placement of the bed would not allow me to see the door and almost half of the door way. It was just a nurse.

She had one of those pale complexions that you see on people living on very cold climates that I oddly admire. Her hair was curled into a perfect do and her lips as red as the cross on her cap. As she was walking slowly with eyes stapled on the open glass window. I noticed dried brown stains on the neckline of her neatly pressed white uniform and splatters of the same kind of stain on her stockings.

I didn’t want to speak first but if she’s here to get my vital signs or regulate the flow of my IV, she should’ve done it instead of just looking outside a window like some prisoner without parole. “Good Morning.” I chirped and smiled at her.

She quickly turned towards my direction with eyes filled with sock. Her jaw was slightly dropped as she slowly moved towards me. I was wanted to ask If I could already be discharged this morning but she asked me something that totally weirded me out.

“You can see me?” She asked in an undeniably sad and cracking voice.

I gave a laugh at her absurd joke but before I could say “Yes.” my phone buzzed and I reached for it in the cupboard. 12 messages, ten from my mom, one from the landlady asking me why I didn’t come home and one from an unknown number asking me why I left without even saying goodbye. I set my phone aside to continue my conversation with the creepy nurse but when I looked up she was gone.

I took my diary and scribbled it up. A habit I do when I encounter things that are new to me. I quickly closed my diary and hid it under my pillow when I heard the loud metal knob twist open and the hinges squeaking as the door swung open.

It was a big black nurse in a scrub suit, carrying a tray and beaming happily at me. “Oh hello there girl, I see you’re up early.” She greeted. I like her instantly.

“Yeah, it’s because another nurse came here a while ago.” I told her while texting me mom that I was okay.

“Oh that’s impossible girl, I’m the only nurse assigned to the VIP wing. And you’re the only VIP that’s currently hospitalized ‘round here.” She said while regulating my IV and monitoring the seconds on her wrist watch.

First, I didn’t know why I was VIP. Second, there was a nurse. “Maybe that one just lost her way, she didn’t do anything though. I think she was just checking or something. She wasn’t even wearing the same uniform as…” I stopped at the middle of what I was saying as I recalled the brown stains her uniform.

Blood turns brown when it turns dry. Nurses nowadays wear scrub suits, while she was wearing the traditional white uniform. And if the first nurse came in the door, I could’ve heard the loud door opening when she got in but there was no sound back then. I looked at the big black nurse, she was quiet and I can’t read her expression. “That one doesn’t work in this area, am I right?” I asked. “Maybe she works in the Emergency Room, she had blood stains on her.” I added.

She just looked at me and scribbled things on my data sheet, but before she left she asked me, “Did she have a red cross in her cap?”

I nodded and she banged the door close before I could even ask why. That woman was crazy, she didn’t even say goodbye.

Moments later my surgeon came to me and told me I could already be discharged, behind him was the ER nurse that came to me just before the big black one. She waved at me and said “hi.”

I said “hello” in return.

“Well, Hello to you too Miss Scotch, sorry I forgot to say Hi first.” He said and laughed uncomfortably. He helped me plant my feet on the cold floor and left without even saying goodbye. How rude can these people get?

“Happy to be discharged today Miss Scotch?” The ER nurse asked.

“Yeah I have thesis papers to be done by Monday, no time for hospital rest.” I answered and returned her kind smile. “Um, you have stains on your clothes. You should really clean those up.” I suggested.

“I have been used to them Miss. There really are things you can never change and all you have to do is deal with such.” She said as she helped me with my sweater. I didn’t get what she said but I don’t want to be rude so I said; “Yeah.”

She escorted me outside my room and the hospital wing that I’m in or shall we say the VIP wing was packed. That big black nurse surely was wrong when she said I was the only VIP around. Gosh these people look sick, they’re all pale and the old ones are blotchy and sad.

“Just ignore them Miss Scotch, they’ve been here for quite a while.” The ER nurse whispered as she tapped my back.

We reached the hospital entrance and she bid me goodbye. “It’s nice having been acquainted to you Miss Scotch. It’s been quite some time since I spoke to someone like yourself.” She said. “You too.” I replied and got to the first cab that stopped in front of me.

Okay, that nurse was creepy and I just had to get away. I looked out of the cab window to wave goodbye and there she was, waving at me, ignoring the emergency ambulance while all the other nurse in scrub suits rush to the bleeding man on the stretcher.

Was she just ignoring the scene? Or was everyone unable to see her.