“Evans Leonard’s baby mama? What is she even doing here? She doesn’t need to work a day in her life! She should stay home and stop trying to play nurse.” There’s the sound of laughter.
Oh my God, is this really what people think about me?
Then I hear Lianna’s voice.
“Shut your mouths right now! Do you even know Ciara?”
There’s silence.
“That’s what I thought. You don’t know anything about her. She’s a wonderful nurse—you could learn a thing or two from her.” A moment later, Lianna struts into the break room and sees me. I half smile.
Without saying anything, she grabs my arm and pulls me into the hallway. Those other nurses are gone.
“Those two just like to spread gossip. Ciara.” Lianna peers at my face, searching for signs that I’m unwell. “They aren’t worth stressing over—not one bit.”
“Thanks,” I say, taking a shaky breath.
There are footsteps behind us. Suddenly, Dr. Juliet appears at my elbow.
“Ciara, you need to follow me.”
“Good luck,” Lianna whispers, reaching out and squeezing my hand.
I nod my thanks. I’m afraid that if I speak, I’ll start crying again. Dr. Juliet and I walk to her office in silence. I think of what Evans said about everything being okay and let the thought of Evans bolster me. You can handle this, Ciara.
Once inside and seated, I take a deep breath and look at Dr. Juliet straight in the eye across her desk.
“I’m so sorry about what happened today. Really, I—”
Dr. Juliet doesn’t even let me finish before launching into her tirade. “Ciara,what happened today? I’ve been a doctor a very long time and never in all my years have I seen anything like that. Ever. What was going through your mind?” She continues to speak, talking about liability and patient safety, and though I try to keep it together on the outside, inside I’m dying. She is so disappointed in me.
Finally, I can’t take the suspense anymore.
“Are you going to fire me?” I blurt out.