CHAPTER 5 CANCER PATIENT

CHAPTER 5 CANCER PATIENT

I found myself standing in the level four ladies bathrooms. I could hear someone vomiting in one of the stalls. It looked like this might take a while. I pulled myself up onto the bench and lean my head against the mirror. The woman vomited again once more and then there was silence. I sat waiting...

I heard the door unlock and I lift my head to see a frail gaunt looking woman shakily walk out of the stall over to the sink. She has little hair and dry skin, side effects of chemotherapy. I watch as she rinses out her mouth and washes her hands. From her bag she pulls a white prescription bottle, opens the cap and swallows six pills with a drink of water from the sink. The woman leaves the bathroom. I sigh and look around, I get down off the bench and kick open every stall. Nobody else is here; she must be who I'm here for.

I walk out of the bathroom and follow the woman into a semi private chemo infusion room. She gingerly sits down in a recliner alone; a nurse hooks up her treatment to her port. "Is there anything I can get for you Marylyn?" The nurse asks after taping down her IV. "Some water please? I forgot my medication." The frail woman asks.

The nurse smiles and pours the woman a cup of water from the jug nearby. Marylyn fishes out the white prescription bottle again and attempts to open the bottle.

"Would you like some help there?" The nurse asks.

"No, no thank you." The bottle clicks open, Marylyn retrieves three out of the bottle then closes the lid and immediately places the bottle back into her handbag. The nurse hands her the water, the woman swallows the pills.

"Thank you" Marylyn says to the nurse with a weak smile.

The nurse smiles and leaves quietly. There's a caregivers chair in the corner, I sit and wait. I don't have to wait long before Marylyn clears her throat, I look to her. She's looking at me.

"Hi" I say cheerily attempting to forget that these are the woman's last moments.

"Who are you?" Marylyn asks.

"Oh you know I'm death; you're Marylyn, right?"

The woman blinks lazily a few times and weakly nods. "What are you waiting for?" Marylyn asks.

"You're not close enough to death yet. You could still be saved."

"I don't want to be saved."

"Too bad, I don't like what I do and if it can be avoided if your saved so I'll wait till the very last opportunity."I said almost too casually.

There was silence for a moment and Marylyn holding back tears muttered "I'm tired and in pain all the time. Even if I do beat this cancer I'll never be the same, the chemo had destroyed too many healthy cells. I'll always be in hospital, I'll always be sick" Marylyn said wiping away a tear from her gaunt face.

For a long moment I thought over what she said "Hmm..." I mused while looking at the desperate spirit trapped within the failing body. "Why here?" I asked. "A hospital isn't the best place to commit suicide."

"I live alone, I have no family. I don't want my friends to find my body." Marylyn coughs, and then drinks a little more water to clear her throat.

Good answer, I think to myself. I stand and walk over to Marylyn. I kneel at her feet and Marylyn leans forward.

"I never imagined death to look like you. You're so young and beautiful..."

I don't smile at her compliment, it feels inappropriate. "Thank you..." I whisper.

"My hair use to be long and wavy like yours, I dyed it bright pink before I started chemo." Marylyn chuckled to herself and I couldn't help but smile.

Our eyes met and I let her know it was time as I place both my hands over hers and pull gently lifting out Marylyn's spirit. Marylyn's spirit looks the same as her physically now. Aged in her early forties with high cheekbones and large eyes, the exception to her appearance however was that her physique was no longer gaunt, she was still slim but no longer bones and skin, also her hair was a beautiful golden blonde and long down to her waist.

"Thank you..." Marylyn said and with a smile she closes her eyes and lifts her arms as her spirit balls up into a warm golden light and ascends upwards through the ceiling. I think that is the first time in all my years doing this job that I've been thanked... "You're welcome!" I call up to the ceiling. That woman sure knows how to make an exit... Marylyn's body remains and her skin has already become cold and her eyes stare blankly into nothingness. Even though I deal with death on a daily basis it still unnerves me seeing a corpse like that, I lean over and touch her eyelids pulling them down with my fingertips. Now it simply looks as though she's sleeping peacefully. I sigh as I think to myself that her poor body was so weak that it didn't even try and saves itself from suicide by trying to cough up the pills. Perhaps it's for the best that she's passed on, I tell myself. I stand as I see the nurse approaching, I leave the ward as I hear the nurse calling Marylyn's name and shaking her gently to attempt to rouse her, with no luck the nurse calls for a doctor.

Hmm... I wonder what Margie's doing? I wander down to the ICU looking for Margie, I can't see her anywhere. I look at the clock on the wall it's almost 8:00PM. Margie might have finished her shift already. I walk through the double doors into emergency looking for something to entertain me. I spot Margie talking to Nicole at the nurses station but I grimace when I see the Margie has her coat on and her handbag on her shoulder about to leave. I look over to Reeves he's still carrying on and not looking so grim, he must have gotten his last wind knowing that his gruelling shift is almost over. He quickly writes a script for a patient and signs off to have them discharged. With a smile Reeves walks through the ER to the nurses' station.

"Is Dr. Matthews on the floor yet?" Reeves asks.

"Yea, I saw her take a patient file ten minutes ago." A rounded middle aged nurse said.

"Thanks Susie. Ok ladies, I'm off now. Have a good night."

The nurses smile and wave goodnight, Reeves and I take the elevator to level one and he retrieves his backpack from the doctor's mess opening it up rummaging around for something. I see his brow crinkle in confusion so I follow him to his office.

Reeves office is small and hardly ever used. The majority of his time is spent in the ER or ICU. He opens one of the top draws in his desk, suddenly there's a knock at the door. Nicole is leaning against the door frame, "Doctor Reeves..." She says with a smile and a in a sultry voice.

She walks in and leans over the desk placing his cigarettes and the old lighter on the desk leaning far more forward then necessary "I found these on the rooftop, I'm pretty sure they're yours." Nicole straightens her back but pushes her chest forward.

"Thank you, I was just looking for them now." Reeves said with a smile of relief.

"You're welcome... " Nicole said. "I was just about to go up to the roof for a smoke. Do you wanna join me?"

Reeves pulling his hand out of his pocket to examine his watch, "Don't you have to go back on the floor?"

Nicole shook her head "I'm finished for the night; I've been waiting for an opportunity to give back your things."

Reeves smiles weakly and puts down his backpack and takes a cigarette out of his pack. "Ok..."

He walks up to Nicole and escorts her out of the room with a hand guiding her at the waist. Nicole looks up at him with a gentle smile.

I follow them up to the roof top they walk over to the edge of the building and lean against the brick ledge. After lighting their cigarettes I watch them talk.

"It looks like you had a hard day today..." Nicole said.

"Yea, it was a long shift. One of the surgeons called in sick and we're so short staffed at the moment I had to work a triple shift."

"When do you have to be back?" Nicole asked.

"Fifteen hours and counting. It takes me an hour and a half just to get home." Reeves said.

"Oh you poor thing..." Nicole said with her voice dripping with sympathy. "Well you could stay at my apartment if you like, I only live fifteen minutes away and I don't like taking the train home alone at this hour in the night..."

I could feel the tension between the two build.

"If we leave together people will talk..." Reeves said as he brought the cigarette to his mouth for another drag.

"Oh I'd take it as a compliment..." Nicole said with a gleeful smile. "Unless you'd be embarrassed being seen leave with me?"

"Oh! No, I wouldn't... You're very attractive. I ah... wouldn't be embarrassed, no."

Reeves looks away from Nicole blushing profusely...

Nicole waits for a moment then says. "So are you going to come home with me then?"

"Yea, well, that is so long as you don't mind."

"No, of course not; but you should know I've only got the one bed."

Reeves blushes again and fumbles embarrassed."Nicole, are you asking me if I want to... with you?"

"Honestly doctor, it's like you've never had anyone hit on you before." Nicole giggled.

"Ah well, it's been a while and ah... I've been very focused on work recently."

I've never seen Reeves so coy before, even in the darkness I can see his skin is red hot from blushing and he doesn't quite know where to look.

"I've been dropping hints for a while, I think you're really attractive, intelligent and I'm curious to know whether the rest of you is as perfect as your face." Nicole mummers.

Reeves laughs and looks away, he looks like he's struggling for words."Umm... thank you..."Reeves manages to stagger out.

I almost feel sorry for him; Nicole has found her pray and cornered it.

Fearlessly she stands in front of Reeves and puts her arms around his neck pressing her body against his. Reeves allows this and after a beat he puts his hands on her hips, he releases a deep breath attempting to relax but he looks nervous.

It seems that this is all the indication Nicole needs, she tilts her head up and comes close to his lips. Reeves tilts his head down closing the gap between them, he kisses her back gently at first then it deepens between them. I feel a little awkward just standing here watching. But I remind myself that I get so little entertainment and this is as good as it gets.

I watch as the two finally break from what seemed like an indefinite kiss, Reeves runs his hand around Nicole's waist and pulls her tighter to him. He moves his hand to her cheek and kisses her again deeply.

Whoa, Reeves knows what he's doing when he's locking lips. Lucky Nicole...

They break the kiss again "Sorry, I got a little carried away..." Reeves said stroking her cheek with his thumb.

"No, that was good, intense, but good. It feels like you're ready to come home with me..." Nicole replied as she ran her hands up Reeves' thighs.

Reeves again blushes, it seems as if it is uncommon that women approach him in such a matter that Nicole has.

Nicole pulls Reeves off the brick ledge and pulls him towards her. She kisses him again briefly, Reeves leans in for more but she denies him this. "Did you drive in?" Nicole asks. Reeves just nods and with that Nicole leads Reeves off the rooftop. I stay where I am and think to myself that Nicole has Reeves wrapped around her little finger... I chuckle to myself. Surely all women have that power within them to seduce any man they please. A part of me hopes that she has real feelings for him, perhaps the reason Reeves focuses solely on work is due to the fact he has no time for a significant other in his life.

I feel it before I hear it, a faint TING! in the near future.

I gather my thoughts together and follow the torturous TING before it sounds in my head.