Chapter 1

The beginning of the actual story. Lots of stuff may change though like where she works as a nurse, etc...but that will be decided later.

Monday morning traffic driving into Mason city was slow going and even slower at the drive through line at McDonalds where she picked up her morning cup of steaming hot coffee. As traffic through the city lurched forward the smell emanating from her coffee tempted her to take a sip but she resisted the urge knowing that her, drinks and cars didn’t mix very well. The inside of her beat up Pontiac was proof that she was a messy eater in the car. Gabby wanted to get a new car and with the money she’d saved up she would soon be able to see to it that it happened. She had her sights set on a new Huyndai Santa Fe in a light blue color with cream interior, hoping that it wouldn’t get as messy as her old one.

 

She ascended the stairs quickly careful not to slosh hot coffee on her hands and hurried up to the pediatric wing of New Hope Hospital. She figured that it would be quicker than walking the stairs since she was already late. She blamed the traffic but she should have left a few minutes earlier. She glided through the door and to the staff room on the floor depositing her things and getting ready for work.

            Gabby took pleasure in working with the little wing they had on the hospital specific for pediatrics since most of the patients that were brought through the clinic were little kids that had some how injured themselves. But it brought joy to her heart to help such young people. Sometimes she would just read to them and enjoy their company.

            “Hi Jen, sorry I’m late. How’s it going this morning?” Gabby asked Jen as she paused at the small central desk

            “Great, I’ve got some charts ready for you to look at as soon as you get settled in.” Jen patted a file of folders on the desk and swiveled her chair around to attend to other business. Gabby walked around the desk to the coat room and hung up her light jacket and set down the tote bag and purse she carried with her. She set the now warm cup of coffee near her place at the desk and sat down, savoring a few sips of the rich taste of her the coffee before opening up the first folder on the stack.

            “Jen, I thought Cassie Miller was being released?”

            “She was going to be, but last night she tried to make it to the bathroom on her own and tripped, guess which arm she landed on?” Gabby winced at Jens’ answer. Cassie and Gabby instantly became friends when she was admitted yesterday with a badly broken arm. The little girl was playing on the monkey bars at school, on the top of them to be exact, when she lost her footing. The result was a painfully broken arm that required sedation to set it and a few days hospital stay.

            “Did they have to do any surgery?” Gabby asked with concern, still sipping the McDonalds brew.

            “No, Dr. Hearst just sedated her and did his thing without doing any invasive stuff. She’ll go home tomorrow as long as it isn’t hurting her too much.”

            “Good. And how is Cole doing, the one with diabetes?” Gabby asked flipping open another file folder.

            “Cole is adjusting. He still doesn’t like getting the insulin shots, though I’ve assured him that he’ll get used to it. He doesn’t believe me.” Jen smiled and looked down at the teal insulin pump that hung on her blue scrubs. “In fact I think he is due for one soon, would you like to do the honors?” Jen asked holding up the syringe and bottle of insulin that she’d picked up from the medicine cart.

            “Oh sure, there’s nothing I love more than sticking little kids with needles and making them cry.” Gabby said sarcastically. She pulled herself up and took the instrument of pain from Jen. There was really only one thing that Gabby disliked in her job, giving shots. She didn’t mind receiving them, though the ability to stand a sharp object being plunged into her skin took some time to get used to. “I’ll do it this time as long as you promise to do it later. Beside you know more about this stuff from personal experience.”

            “Alright I promise, oh you might want to go see Cassie soon, she kept asking me about you when I went in to see her this morning. Shows how much the kids love me.” Jen pretended to sniffle.

            “Oh hush, every kid loves you and you know it.”

“Yeah I know, now get out of here and deliver that medicine.”

 

Gabby walked down the spacious hallway to the room where Cole Jefferson was staying. His mom and dad sat on either side of the bed as he told them some story of a giant creature. As near as Gabby could tell it was his latest dream. Cole had only graced the children’s ward at the hospital for a few days, but it didn’t take very long before the staff knew about the kids’ wild imagination. Gabby wrote a few notes down first and calculated the amount of insulin that he needed before interrupting the story of the huge bug that tried to eat him before he narrowly escaped.

“Sorry to interrupt bud, but it’s time for your insulin,” Gabby donned a pair of purple latex gloves and grabbed an alcohol swab. She pulled up the sleeve of Cole’s hospital pajamas as he squinted and braced himself for the needles attack. “I promise you won’t feel a thing. Why don’t you keep telling the story Cole, but keep your arm still.” Cole continued and Gabby finished.

“I thought you were going to give me a shot?” the little voice asked.

“I did, you just weren’t paying attention. Didn’t I tell you that you wouldn’t feel a thing?”

“Yeah I guess” Cole threw his head back into the pillow as a sign of defeat.

“Good.” Gabby rustled the boy’s hair before leaving the room and heading down a few to the room of her new friend Cassie.

 

“Well good morning little girl, I heard you were looking for me.”

“Gabby!” Cassie beamed extending her good arm to Gabby for a hug. She sat up in her bed with her little arm hoisted onto a pillow, little pudgy fingers protruded from the cotton and ace bandage prison.

“Hey cutie, what’s this I hear you fell on your way to the potty?”

“I had to potty real bad, but I twipped.” She thrust out her bottom lip and made a puppy dog face for Gabby. The five year old was irresistible.

“I heard, and Dr. Ryan had to fix your arm again.”

“Uh huh, but he’s real nice, he even said when I’m done with this cast that he’ll give me a pink one so I can be a princess.”

“Is that so?”

“Uh-huh, and mommy says I can too!” Cassie was as cute as a button, her straight blond hair stuck out in wisps all over the place indicative of major bed head and her big blue eyes lit up every time she talked.

“Is mommy coming in soon?”

“No, she had work, but your staying right?”  

“That’s right, why don’t I have Molly come and comb your hair for you and maybe wash you up a bit.” Gabby tweaked Cassie’s cheek. Molly was a nursing assistant just like Gabby had been and loved working with the kids.

“Okay.” Cassie leaned back in the hospital bed.

“Alright, she’ll be in here in a few minutes.”

 

            After Gabby helped Molly get set up with the stuff for Cassie’s bath she sat down again to review the files. She read through a few and sipped her coffee making notes on what she needed to do the rest of that morning. With the number of patients she had, it was likely to be a busy morning.

            “I honestly don’t know how you drink that stuff.” The well cadenced voice of a man spoke up from above the counter. His chiseled face, sandy blond hair and gray blue eyes were enough to make any girl melt. Even though Gabby had known the handsome doctor for quite sometime she was still occasionally taken a back by the resident orthopedic doctor.

            “Dr. Hearst,” she said her attention now away from the charts at hand.

            “Coffee not only tastes like mud, especially when it’s black, but it’s not very good for you either.” He smiled a heart stopping smile, one white enough that even Mr. Clean would have a hard time finding a speck of plaque or tartar on it.

            “Well, I happen to like it and besides you wouldn’t want to see me without my cup of java in the morning.”

            “You know somehow I can imagine that it’s not too pretty.”

            “Hey watch it,” she tossed a wadded up post-it-note at him, “just because I implied it doesn’t mean you have to agree.”

            “I’m only kidding Gabby,” he took a pen from the pocket of his animal plastered scrubs and made few notes on a patient chart, “so how’s my favorite patient this morning?”

            “If you’re referring to me, I’m not a patient. But if you’re referring to Cassie Miller, I’d say she on the mend. She was definitely excited about getting a pink princess cast.”

            “And on my honor she’ll have one,” he smiled again and Gabby couldn’t help but admire it. “See you later Gabby this knight is off to see the princess himself.” She laughed at his antics, he was a kid himself, and no wonder all the kids loved him so much.

            “Farewell”

           

            Gabby continued her rounds and was busy up until noon when she took her lunch. She grabbed a purple lunch bag from her tote and headed to the cafeteria on the lower floor near the emergency room. She sat in silence for a while enjoying a turkey and cheese sandwich as she read one of the newest Love Inspired books that happened to be by her favorite author. But her attention went toward the scene outside the large bay windows that looked out into the city streets. Two ambulances pulled into the drive and unloaded paramedics and patients from its rear end doors. Gabby watched as another ambulance pulled in. Not a good sign she thought, three at once wasn’t a usual happening. She watched for a few more minutes before deciding to return to her book but as she did a person jumped from the back of a fourth ambulance, it was a familiar face. Gabby couldn’t be sure that it was the man she thought it was, but one thing was for certain, her heart skipped a beat at the thought of her childhood friend being back in town.