“No! You're being fucking childish.”
“Are you serious? I’m being childish?" My left hand on the steering wheel, I begin to flail my right hand as though he can actually see me. “Levi...how could you do that to me?”
“Damn! Your feistiness is a huge fucking turn-on right now." I can hear the smile in his voice and that pisses me off even more. He’s trying to make light of the situation, and I’m not letting him get away with it!
“Seriously, Levi? I’m furious with you and that’s what you’re thinking?" Pulling into the parking garage at work, I maneuver my car into one of the cramped spaces and throw it in park. Sighing heavily, I lean forward and bang my head against the steering wheel.
“Okay, okay. Don’t be so damn dramatic. Listen, I know I should’ve told you Tyson was going to be there and I promise that I meant to tell you, but I’ve been so busy lately that it slipped my mind." He pauses, waiting for me to reply. Hell no! He’s going to have to do better than that.
“Ugh,” he growls. “I’m sorry, okay? It was a shit thing for me to do, and I should’ve told you. But I didn’t, and I can’t take that back. Forgive me?" he pleads.
“Well, that depends," I reply, tapping my finger against my lips.
“Jesus Christ,” he mumbles. “On what?”
“You have to come cook for Max and me.”
“Done.”
"This Wednesday."
"Done."
“And you have to make that spectacular cheesecake thingy that I love.”
“Done.”
“Good. Then I forgive you," I reply, silently smiling to myself, knowing good and well that I would have forgiven him without the dinner and dessert.
SHRUGGING INTO MY LAB coat, I walk up to Cindy's door, knock twice, and let myself in. "Hey, boss! Where do you want me today?"
Cindy and I started working here at the same time. Last year she was promoted to the position of staff coordinator, and I couldn't be more proud of her.
"I'm not your boss," she replies swiftly, "but that does have a nice ring to it." Cocking her head to the side, she gives me a cheeky grin and continues typing furiously on her keyboard. "Okay. Done with that," she says, closing her laptop and leaning back in her chair. She gestures for me to sit and I do, tossing my bag on the floor and setting my tea on her desk.
"It is way too early to be as busy as your are," I say with a chuckle.
She rolls her eyes. "Tell me about it! I had some call-offs today, so I had to move a few people around. It's going to be one of those days."
Reaching into my bag, I grab the pager that I’m required to carry and slip it into the pocket of my scrub jacket. Looking up, I find Cindy watching me. Her gaze appears both worried and hopeful.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" I ask, instantly suspicious.
"Because you're going to hate me."
"Hmmm...try me."
"I'm putting you in the ER." Scrunching her nose, she cringes, awaiting my reaction.
Throwing my head back against the wall, I growl loudly.
"See, I knew you'd be upset."
I know, I'm a grown adult that's whining like a two-year-old, but I really hate the ER. You never know what's going to walk through the door, so I guess it’s really the unknown that I hate. It could be something fairly simple like a broken arm or someone needing stitches. Or it could be a mom, dad, or child just pulled from a car accident, barely alive and on the verge of coding. I. Hate. It.
Reaching for my tea, I sit up and take a drink. "No, not upset," I reply pointedly. “After all, it is my job. I just really, really hate the ER. It's so depressing and it's such a fast-paced environment. I just feel like I don't do well there."
"Nonsense," she says, waving her hand dismissively. "You're a great nurse, the staff down there absolutely loves you, and the head Doc down there adores you. Every time you work there, he raves about how good you are with the patients."