“Okay,” I nod. “Carry on, then. Pretend I’m not here.”
Nick leads the way to the pediatric ward and stops outside Claire’s room. “Kevin met this patient yesterday, so I was going to let him take the lead, if that’s okay?”
“Sure,” I agree, with an encouraging smile at Kevin. He looks terrified at the prospect of having to assess a patient while Nick and I watch.
Kevin knocks nervously on the door, and we file into the room. The first person I see is Melissa, sound asleep in the pullout armchair with Liam sprawled facedown on her chest. Next to them, Claire’s curled on her side in the hospital bed, also asleep.
It’s not even eight A.M., and I’m sure it wasn’t easy for them to get to sleep. Kevin hesitates, unsure if he should wake them up, and I open my mouth to tell him we’ll come back later.
But Nick’s too quick for me. “Good morning!” he says loudly. “How’s everyone doing today?”
Melissa’s eyes flutter open and latch onto me, and for a split second, she looks relieved. She gives me a drowsy smile that lasts until she comes fully awake. Then her expression shutters, and she tightens her grip on Liam and awkwardly stands. By some miracle, Liam stays asleep in her arms, and she hitches him up on her hip.
Claire has woken up too, and is blinking at us in confusion.
“Hi, Claire,” Nick says cheerfully. He seems to have forgotten about his plan to let Kevin take the lead. “I’m Dr. Decarie, the senior resident. You met Dr. Carlton and Kevin yesterday.”
Claire nods, and Nick turns to Melissa. “And you must be Claire’s older sister,” he says with a charming smile.
“Actually, that’s Claire’s mother,” Kevin chimes in, interrupting Nick’s clumsy attempt at flirtation.
“You look much too young for that,” Nick says quickly.
“Uh huh,” Melissa replies. She doesn’t look impressed, and I have to smother a laugh.
“So how are you feeling, Claire?” Nick asks. “Any tummy pain?”
“No.”
“Do you mind if I have a look?” Nick asks, stepping closer to her bed.
Claire shakes her head shyly, and Nick pulls down the blanket so he can examine her. “Looks great!” he exclaims. “I can barely see the wounds. Are you sure you had your appendix out yesterday?”
As Claire giggles, Nick puts his hand on her abdomen to feel for tenderness. “Everything looks good,” he pronounces. “It’ll be breakfast time soon. Do you feel up to drinking some juice?”
“Yeah,” Claire says shyly.
“So the lab work from the morning looks great,” Nick explains. “It’ll be juice and jello for breakfast and lunch, but if that goes well, you can have regular food for dinner. You’ll probably be able to go home tomorrow.”
Melissa’s relief at this news is plain on her face. Even though she was asleep when we came in, she looks exhausted. I doubt she slept for more than a couple of hours last night.
“You’ll get another dose of antibiotics through the IV line later today,” Nick continues. “But we can change that to pills tomorrow, and give you a prescription.”
“Great,” Melissa says. Liam’s woken up, and he’s squirming in her arms. She sets him on the floor, but as soon as his feet touch the ground, he ducks under the bedside table and breaks for the door.
Melissa moves to chase after him, but she’s trapped by the table on one side and Nick on the other.
“I’ll get him, Melissa,” I say, sprinting for the door tointercept her son. He moves fast for a little kid, but I’m faster, and I position myself in the doorway to block the exit.
“Slow down, buddy,” I say, crouching down to Liam’s level.
But unfortunately, Liam doesn’t slow down, and he barrels into me. Somehow his head connects with my knee, and he falls back onto his butt.
For a moment, the room is dead silent. Liam’s staring at me in shock, and to my horror, I see blood trickling from his nose.
Far from saving the day, I’ve managed to tackle Melissa’s son and give him a nosebleed.
And then Liam starts to cry, loudly enough to be heard at the other end of the ward. Melissa rushes over and scoops him up.
