Page 11 of New Hope

I snorted. “Well, it’s not exactly like I walk around wearing my lab coat outside the office.”

“True.” His cheeks pinkened slightly with embarrassment.

I watched the color slowly spread across his cheeks, wondering how he managed to be both sexy as hell and utterly adorable at the same time. Moving further into the room, I lowered myself onto the stool and smiled at the two of them. “So, what brings you in to see me?”

Ford cleared his throat. “Things have been a bit hectic with the move and…well, to be honest, it was even before then and somehow, I forgot to take Ellie in for her annual physical. Mrs. Baker reminded me when I took her to school yesterday.”

“Do I have to get a shot, Daddy?” Ellie’s voice wavered, pulling our attention her way. Ford looked like he wasn’t sure how to respond, not wanting to lie to his daughter but also hoping to avoid a meltdown.

I quickly rolled my stool closer to the little girl, hoping to distract her as Carol walked back in, carrying a small tray which I knew contained the vaccine in question. Carol and I had worked together long enough to know what each other was thinking, so one look from me was all it took for her to understand the situation. “We’ll get to that later. For now, I just want to check a few things, see how big and strong you’re getting. Is that okay, Ellie?”

Ellie glanced back and forth between me, Carol, and her father then gave an almost imperceptible nod. “Good.” I pulled out my stethoscope and listened to her heartbeat, strong and steady. “So, Ellie, Hannah told me you like to eat ranch on your pizza like she does.”

“Mhmm.”

“I wonder if there’s anything else the two of you have in common,” I mused as I pulled my otoscope out of my pocket, shining the light over the palm of my hand to show her before using it to check her ears and the inside of her nose. I could feel Ford’s eyes on me as I continued. “Do you dip your French fries in ketchup or mustard?”

“Mustard,” Ellie practically whispered.

“No way! So does Hannah! Are you two sure you’re not twins?”

She shook her head. “We’re not twins.”

“Hmm.” I frowned at her like I still wasn’t convinced. “Open your mouth and say Ahh!”

“Ahhhh!” she said as I shone the light inside her mouth, doing a quick examination of her teeth and tonsils, all of which were in great shape.

Next, I moved my fingers gently along the sides of her neck, checking for any swollen glands. “Now, here’s the big question. Do you like pickled pig’s feet with horseradish sauce?”

Her nose wrinkled in disgust. “Ewww, gross! No way! Does Hannah like that stuff?”

I tapped the end of her nose with my finger and grinned. “Nope. She thinks it’s gross too. But if you had said yes, I might have thought you were crazy.”

Ellie giggled that time. Carol and I laughed along with her, but the sound died on my lips when I swiveled around and caught Ford staring at us, a strange expression on his face, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. I stood, moving to the counter, and grabbed the reflex hammer from a drawer while simultaneously slipping the needle into the pocket of my lab coat. I winked at Carol before walking back over to my patient.

“I’m going to check your reflexes now,” I explained to her, demonstrating how the hammer worked on my own wrist. “But I don’t want you to see where I’m going to tap next, so you’ll have to shut your eyes, okay? That’s the only way I can be sure your reflexes are working properly and you’re not just thinking you feel it because you see me using the hammer.”

“Okay.” Ellie’s tiny pink lips lifted in a genuine smile then she closed her eyes.

“All right. You’ll feel something cold before each tap. It’s just a wet cotton ball that keeps your skin clean, so we don’t spread germs. Tell me where you feel me tapping.” Carol and I worked together with practiced skill, her dabbing a water-soaked cotton ball along each spot before I tapped it. It was a routine we’d tried years ago on a patient who was deathly afraid of needles. It had worked like a charm and over the years, we’d continued the practice.

I moved through several spots, lightly rapping against her ankles, wrists, elbows, and even her forehead which made her giggle. After each one, she announced where she’d felt it. “You’re doing great, Ellie. Only a few more.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ford tense when I pulled the needle out of my pocket and uncapped it, but he kept quiet, letting us continue. I tapped one knee with the reflex hammer then the other, watching as her legs responded in a typical jerk, then I nodded to Carol who used a separate alcohol-soaked cotton ball to rub over the top of Ellie’s thigh. Quickly, I inserted the needle and pushed the plunger with my thumb. I’d already disposed of the used needle in the red sharp’s container mounted to the wall before Ellie answered, “My leg.”

I gave her a final tap to her belly as Carol slipped a Band-Aid over the injection site and smoothed Ellie’s skirt back down over her leg. “All done. You did an excellent job and I pronounce you perfectly healthy.”

Ellie blinked her eyes open. “I’m all done? But I thought I had to get a shot.”

“You already did. It’s over. Look, you even have a Band-Aid,” Ford said.

Her forehead wrinkled as she lifted the hem of her skirt to see the Band-Aid before looking back at her dad and finally at me. “It didn’t even hurt,” she said incredulously.

I shrugged. “I don’t know what to tell you. Some little boys and girls are so brave they don’t even feel their shots. I guess you’re one of those girls.”

Ellie beamed up at me, her green eyes nearly sparkling. “Will you tell Hannah I was brave?”

“I sure will,” I promised.

---