Adwin
Disclaimer:
1. Copyright: These are all my characters. Copyright © 2011 All Rights Reserved. Send comments to JLNickymaster@yahoo.com
Also, I only get about 10 sentences written on a bad day. On a good day, maybe 10 word doc pages. But, I dont have an editor nor, a reader at this time. Sorry for any mistakes. Email me if you see something horrible or just want to feedback my error.
2. Violence: No, but it is held in a hospital. Bound to be some sick or injured.
3. Sexual content: Ummm, No.
4. Special thanks: not yet
5. Language: No
6. Start Date: Wee hours of the morning in July 2011
Chapter 2:
Lauren caught up with Patty, growling her displeasure toward the now happily engaged brunette who was selecting a delightful variety of hor'dourves from a tray being held by a very gay Latino waiter. The boys were chatting up the young man as Patty checked out all the delicious options being served. Lauren managed to physically correct herself twice from letting her wondering gaze return to where she’d just left, while she waited for the waiter to leave. She did see the tallest hunk of womanly gorgeousness, unfortunately named Doctor Adwin Holbrook, put down her bottled water on a nearby table and move toward the exit. She fought a growing desire to follow the world renowned doctor. Growling, she nudged her nearby best friend with a hard elbow. A muffled ‘mffph’ was the only satisfaction since Patty had her mouth full. But Lauren noted Patty watching Doctor Holbrook’s departure as well. The two women turned toward each other once the great doctor was gone. Brown eyes met green and waggling eyebrows gave impish voice to what Patty thought was on Laurens mind. Lauren blushed and frowned, instantly.
Laughing at the disgusted look bestowed upon her, Patty calmly lifted a small plate of shrimp topped snacks in Lauren’s direction.
“Hungry?” Patty stated suggestively and watched as Lauren’s cheeks went a deeper shade of red.
Feeling the heat on her face, Lauren shook her head at her reaction, irritated at her inability to control her emotions. She adjusted quickly giving Patty a severe scowl. “Way to tell me just who I was flirting with, Patricia Louise De Breaux. Next time why don’t you just push me off a high ledge? Not that I didn’t see you looking her up and down as well.” Lauren muttered the last remark and then tisked at her runaway mouth.
“Really?” Patty let her dry one word of sarcastic response say a million things.
Lauren dropped her glaring eyes and looked around the room a little too nonchalantly.
“You saw that all the way from the bar?” Patty inquired with a hint of teasing. Lauren regarded the brunette and rolled her eyes as she noted the subtle amusement in Patty's expression. “I thought that bartender was a bit quick to provide you drinks, with you in that killer dress. What did you do, grab and run?
“He was really quick…” Lauren snagged a cheese melt topped item off Patty’s plate, here own coy smile beginning to bloom. “…once you put a rush on it and tip him a $20.00.” She examined the delectable as Patty choked on her food, laughing.
“Oh Lord, girl, you need help!” Patricia wiped her mouth and chuckled at the chagrin Laurens expression showed.
“Well, I’m sure I need something. But, I’m not going to get it tonight.” Lauren looked down at her water bottle and sighed. She put it on a nearby table and looked around for a bar.
Patty watched her friend and smiled warmly.
“Like my dear mama would have said to you…what you need, ma cher enfant, is a good kick in the seat for deciding to toss a beau choice of robe by running away from the one person who was appreciating it so nicely.” Patty gave a heavy drawl with a laid back Louisiana accent. Lauren swung her gaze back to Patty with surprise. “She could barely take her eyes off you, while you were at the bar. She obviously has her priorities set crooked…” Patty grinned at Laurens little ‘o’ of surprise. “…just like you”
Lauren felt the conflicting rise of emotions and shook her head. “I shouldn’t even be thinking thoughts about a doctor, much less that doctor. Adwin Holbrook, right? She’s our employer! And she signs our paychecks! I mean, wow. She is really…wow. But, I can’t think about her that way.” She shook her head more firmly. “She may be gorgeous but…there is a whole lotta wrong in moving in that direction.” Lauren’s speech came to a slow winding halt as her thoughts ran away from her. All she seemed to remember was those blue eyes.
Patty grinned at her friends rambling comments. She’d have to figure out a way to get these two together again. The results were very interesting.
*******
“Don’t forget to write up the med count for bed 7, Patty. Doctor Jeffrey decreased little Aprils dose. She is almost homebound.” Lauren mentioned as she scratched a note onto the clipboard for incubator 3, the little preemie newborn yet unnamed boy, delivered into her wings care just the previous night. The rapid beep of his attached equipment showed life but the baby lay still as death; his underdeveloped lungs struggling to take in air. The oxygen pumped for him using the smallest tubed respiration kit, his tiny 2 pound body fought the grip of death. He shivered, even within the warmth of the acclimated unit. Lauren reached into the station using the vacuum entry holes that allowed someone to touch the baby without the adding distress of germ contamination. Her index finger ran the length of his arm and hand. He twitched and clenched his perfectly tiny fingers. She fit her finger tip in his grasp. The babies touch was feather light. He stopped shivering.
“There you go sweetheart. We’re watching out for you.” She murmured softly, letting her thumb run over the back of his hand.
Patricia glanced over at the blonde across the room. She loved the way Lauren put her whole heart into each patient, but they both knew the consequences of commitment to the newborns had led to heartache from the dire results. Life expectancy was improved in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) but did not always help, regardless. The patient they’d just lost yesterday had similar symptoms to the little one Lauren was currently spending time with. Unfortunately, most of the parents or parental figures were unreliable and scared shitless to deal with someone so fragile. The Neonatal nurses in the unit proved every day their attention was a blessing for any new born infant that they were given. In fact the nursing staff didn’t need to boast about their record which showed improved survival rates above the norm. Patty knew it was due to the people like Lauren who spent that extra moment to bond with the babies time and time again.
“He’s a handsome one, that boy. Hope to get a name soon coming down the pipe.” Patricia mentioned as Lauren checked the large screen monitors above the incubator. The stats were all over the place for his oxygen, blood pressure, and temperature. He was up and down on the electrocardiogram for his long term history chart of all of 24 hours. She focused on the dips with a frown. A single day could very well be a lifetime for a premature newborn.
An empty incubator at the end of the row suddenly started beeping. The two nurses shook their heads at the poor device that had been diagnosed by the team as epic failure. They only kept it running to use the respirator attachments if needed on an external basis if one of the mothers came to sit with a child. But for the basic purpose of incubation, the internal vacuum system was shot. Both women went to work to shut off the racket. Lauren reached above the unit to start flipping the switches to reset the electronics. Patty unplugged and re-plugged the respirator unit that was near the rocking chair next to the cranky machine.
Over the noise Patty grumbled. “It looks like we have a quick tour group coming through today of some upper management folks. Some last minute review for budgeting. Are you ready to shake and wiggle?” She grinned at the scowl she received.
“They’d better be looking at our equipment. I am not too sure how much longer our beds will provide the service they were intended for. We need at least 3 more in here if not four.”
“Why don’t you shoot for the moon too? We could ask for another entire wing? Or how about expanding the NICU?” The noise stopped suddenly with the last switch flipped.
“Is that truly necessary?” A woman’s calm voice spoke from the entrance to the sterile unit. The nurses both turned abruptly to gape at the small group standing inside the now quiet room.
A small group of four stood near the doorway, all in scrubs and sterilized. The leading two were clearly Peter Blackstrom and Adwin Holbrook. Peter was looking upward at the taller woman’s frown with a little smirk on his face.
“I’ve been down that route Dr. Holbrook. I’ve requested the appropriate budget at the last four board meetings to replace multiple units.”
Adwin gave a slow nod; she remained looking at the two women. A raised eyebrow had Lauren and Patty quickly glancing at each other.
“I spoke out of turn….for expanding the NICU. If we don’t have a budget for the current equipment my…suggestion doesn’t really make sense.” Patty managed to dredge out her response.
Lauren jumped on the nervous band wagon and nodded in agreement. Still, those focused blue eyes regarded her.
“I…uh…think the current equipment needs updating and in some cases…” Lauren gave a glare at the machine beside her. “…replacing is needed. I’m sure Peter…Mr. Blackstrom is fully aware of the current dilemma we have been in.” Lauren looked from Peter back to Adwin, hoping the administrator would jump in.
He opened his mouth to comment but Dr. Holbrook stepped forward and made room for the other two doctors standing behind her to view the entire room. The NICU was not brightly lit, the limiting visual stimulus used to mirror the more naturally the fetal uterus environment. The incubators were built to lower echoed auditory stimulus as well; the environment more familiar to stimulate better growth in premature babies.
“This is Dr Martinez and Dr. Fletcher, ladies. They are board members for the budget review. This is Nurse Patricia De Breaux and Nurse Lauren Grace.” The two doctors acknowledged the nurses and looked around with interest. Neither nurse had met either of the additional board members.
We obviously don’t run in the same circles. Lauren digested that brief unpleasant thought, as her eyes returned to the tall, dark hair goddess slash doctor, pointing to different equipment around the room. Peter was busy answering specific questions when Lauren noticed the blinking red light above the respirator of bed 3. She frowned and with a vague ‘excuse me’ heading for the machine.
She checked the readings and double checked. The chart reflected a specific med and the readings were counter acting that med. The baby was working his way up to distress. She slid her hand down the IV and tapped against the drip of the IV. Her eyes roved the electrical charts being pumped from the monitoring devices on the child.
The Q wave on the ventricle reading of the EKG is too low.” Lauren almost screamed at the soft tone spoken directly beside her. She stiffened in fright as her heart skipped a beat. Ironically, it was Adwin practically whispering in her ear. She shivered with the realization.
“For goodness sake, Doctor Holbrook, please don’t sneak up me, like that.” Lauren drew a breath to calm herself. She looked at the reading and noted the dangerously low Q wave that was part of the arches and dips of the EKG readings. Nodding she stepped widely around Adwin, and went to page the doctor.
“Dr. Jeffries will need to be updated. I can probably give a med to stimulate…” She paused abruptly as she caught Adwin reaching inside the unit. The doctors large hands gently rubbed the small distended belly of the suffering patient. Strength and gentleness skimmed fingertips feather soft against bared skin, just above the tiny cloth diaper. The look on the doctor’s face gave Lauren pause. She’d seen that look before from new parents who were asked to hold their baby for the first time. The three F’s were in play; fearless, fascinated, and focused.
Adwin took a deep breath. Looking down at her own hand against the small patient, she touched the smallest human she’d ever encountered, in rapt fascination. She’d spent very little time on rotation for anything baby related and the premature wing was absent on her listed background in her resume. But hearts were hearts in her experience, and she’d performed multiple heart surgeries. The perfectly proportioned baby, with its miniscule fingers, and twitching limbs was far removed from the larger adult beating hearts she spent a lifetime lauding over in picture after picture before she moved onto the brain functions. She touched above the very spot where the smallest of beating hearts lay. With focused and control she tapped the chest cavity once with a single finger. The whistles and beeps subsided; the baby waved an arm slightly. The monitored rhythm returned to the rapid pace it held before distress.
“An arrhythmia on an already stressed heart.” Adwen murmured, her fingers still engaged in gliding over the tiny form; the simple stroking of the precious softness helped desensitize the little body. She looked up at the monitor and read the sinus rhythm of the heart beat, noting the now more normal Q wave. Nodding she slid her hand out of the chamber carefully and stepped back from the bed unit.
Green eyes met blue and Adwin gave Lauren a small smile. “I’d still update Dr. Jeffries but the distress is probably over.” Lauren just nodded and watched as Adwin moved to rejoin the other 3 visitors in the ongoing tour.
Patty walked over and sighed dramatically as she leaned her head against Laurens shoulder. Lauren rolled her eyes and shrugged the weight off.
“Get back to work Nurse…what is the word for jerk in French?” Patty chuckled at Lauren.
“Fantastic!” Patty provided, nodding her head.
“Yeah, right.” The two women smiled and both looked back over at the small group of people.
*****
While running a comb through her wet ebony locks, she pushed out the excess water with her other hand and ruminated over the operation she’d just monitored; the slamming and opening of lockers around her faded into the background. She sat tall at the end of a locker row on the wooden bench in the changing area. The dripping water ran down her thick hair onto the tank top she wore making her shoulders damp. The surgery went well. In and out in less than three hours and she freshly showered. A brief thought to the up-coming surgery schedule revealed a light load but she was defiantly going to need to hit the lab to check ongoing research. Then she had a lecture in two weeks.
When her hair was deemed dry enough she quickly separated it into three sections and started to braid the foot-long length down the back of her head. Her mind, so used to prepping her hair for confinement under a scalp cap for surgery she rarely took much time to do anything but braid. Nimble fingers moved through the habitual repetitive motion as she glanced at herself in a mirror. She vaguely noticed her damp tank top lying over the curve of her rounded breasts, the hardened nipples poking outward from the chill. Her mind immediately jumped to the much less medical related topic of Nurse Lauren Grace. Adwin paused braiding and then resumed. Having spent the last 35 years avoiding off medical topics she felt strangely enlightened that she was interested in something outside of work. Although sometimes an interruption to her focus, the random thoughts of Lauren Grace were persistent; her strangely wild curly hair, the beautiful smile, those green eyes, and the full laughter Adwin remembered were deemed fascinating. Adwin went over the two short moments between them and sometimes smiled. She enjoyed the pleasant feelings Lauren engendered. And with that realization, it seemed only appropriate that she take a side trip to check on the NICU patient, little baby boy. After all, it had been two days since she had seen…Nurse Grace. Adwin gave a little half smile.