Page 25 of Doctor Mile High
“Dr. Sawyer,” I yell after her, and she pauses just before the double doors her patient just disappeared through.
“Yes, Dr. Warrick?” She grips her stethoscope that’s slung around her neck.
“Great work,” I praise, which isn’t something I do often.
They’re doctors. They need to learn that more times than not, praise or thanks isn’t going to happen. I’m not going to give them a pat on the back for doing what all doctors need to do, but when I see one of the residents taking charge like Sawyer is, that’s when I give praise.
She doesn’t smile or act excited. Sawyer remains professional, giving me a curt nod. “Thank you, Dr. Warrick.”
A few of my other residents float from room to room, so I make my way to the waiting room where it’s typically packed with patients waiting to be seen for the flu. I snag a face mask, slipping it on and over my ears, snag a few gloves, and head out into the patient waiting room. The moment the doors open, I’m surrounded by the sounds of loud coughs and children crying.The nurses at the desk seem overwhelmed. Between patients lining up and waiting to check in, and the phones ringing off the hook, they’re barely treading water.
“Dr. Warrick, what are you doing here?”
I glance at the nurse’s name tag because I can’t remember every face I come across. “I’m here to help clear out your waiting room. I have time to kill and I need to keep busy.”
She tucks a bright orange piece of her hair behind her ear, whispering, “Is it because of the girl you can’t find?”
The nurse behind her leans back in her chair, pulling the phone away from her mouth. “We’re all rooting for you, Dr. Warrick.”
“She would be insane not to reach out to you.” Nurse Rachel cups a hand on the side of her mouth so no one can see what she’s saying. “I mean, you’re the most eligible bachelor here. A few of us were wondering if you were ever going to date or if work was going to consume you. I’m glad you’re getting out there.”
I snap a pair of gloves on, needing this conversation to be over. I’m close to deleting those videos after how they seem to be taking over my life.
“Let’s not talk about my personal life, Nurse Rachel. We have a job to do.”
She scrunches her nose. “She still hasn’t reached out, huh? Don’t worry, Dr. Warrick, she will. I have a good feeling.”
“Hopefully, you’re right. Excuse me. I’m going to clear out this waiting room for you, okay?” I climb on top of the gray countertop, kicking the clipboard to the side, and a few people who were crowding the space take a few steps back.
Another dark-haired woman captures my attention, causing my heart to falter again thinking she is Dove. I’m starting to think she’s everywhere. I need to get a fucking grip.
“Excuse me.” I raise my voice over the loud coughs and conversations of the crowd, projecting to speak clearly through my face mask. “Excuse me! Hi. Yes, thank you. Can I please have your attention!” I wait a few moments for everyone to look at me. The room becomes much quieter, other than a few babies crying. “Thank you so much. I’ll be quick. I’m Dr. Warrick. I’m chief of surgery here at Warrick General. I know many of you are here because you don’t feel well. It is flu season. How many of you have had your flu shot?”
A third of the room raises their hand.
“Great. Please go home and get some rest. Get plenty of fluids. Take a fever reducer as instructed on the bottle. If your symptoms worsen within the next few days, please go to urgent care.”
A few people groan and grumble about being forced to leave, but I can’t stand it when people use the emergency room as a clinic. This is how we get behind, and part of the reason why healthcare workers have to work beyond their normal scheduled shift.
About twenty people leave the room, leaving me with people who probably just have a cold or the flu and don’t have the flu shot. Unfortunately, there isn’t really anything we can do for that. The virus has to run its course. Rest and fluids is all we can recommend.
“For everyone else who did not receive the flu shot and you think you have the flu, please go to the left side of the room.” I gesture with my arm to the empty space. “We will get a nurse to test youand if you test positive, you will have the same instructions as those who left.”
There aren’t too many left in the waiting room now. Most everyone wants to be tested for the flu.
“Thank you,” I announce, trying to smile with my eyes over the top of my mask. “I know it isn’t ideal, but we want everyone to be seen as quickly as possible. All urgent patients will be seen now. Thank you all for your attention and swift action. Ask the nurses for a get-well baggie on your way out the door if you test positive for the flu!” I jump off the countertop, landing on my own two feet.
“Wait, you’re the doctor from those videos!”
I do my best to take a deep breath. I don’t want to come across rude or angry at a patient. It isn’t their fault that I’ve brought this upon myself. I don’t know why I didn’t think about the consequences of what would happen if I posted those videos. At the time, I was just a man looking for the woman who has stolen my heart. I wasn’t the heir to the Warrick Group or the face of Warrick General Hospital. I wasn’t a public figure. I was just a man. A regular person.
And my shortsightedness is something I’m going to have to pay for now.
I lift a hand and wave in an awkward motion. “Hi, yes. That’s me. Please, let’s not talk about that as it is very embarrassing.” I chuckle softly, wanting nothing more than to focus on the medicine.
“I don’t think it’s embarrassing at all.” A woman who has a red nose from the sniffles speaks up. “I think it’s amazing you put yourself out there like that. Not many men would.”
“That’s not true,” a man dares to say. “Plenty of men would.”
