Dr. Shelly White strolled down the hall toward the nurses’ station with a cheerful, happy step. She silently celebrated the anniversary of her release from St. Theresa’s and she was feeling a bit giddy. These were the same halls she’d walked as a cancer patient in 1972. Now, thirty-five years later, she patrolled the corridors as a bona fide healer alongside the great Dr. Wall. The young, spunky Nurse Doris had grown to be an older, plumper Nurse Doris, who still ran the ward like a prison matron. Part of her job was to keep young patients in their rooms and ensure their safety. It was a work she had been doing for a long time and one she was well suited for.
“Well, hello there, Doctor,” Wall said. He stood at the nurses’ station, leaning on the counter.
“And to you as well, Doctor.”
Doris, who sat behind the counter making notes in files, gazed over her glasses. “You two need something? Are you waiting for me to get you some coffee? Hmmm?”
“I would love a latte.” Shelly nodded. “Dr. Wall?”
“Oh, great,” Doris said. “All right then. I’ll tell you what. All you need to do is go to this little room we call the doctors’ lounge. There’s a coffee machine there. Get it yourself.”
Shelly raised an eyebrow. She recognized stress when she saw it. “You’re not having a good day, are you, Doris?”