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Micah taped over the intravenous site he had just started. “There you go, Mrs. Henderson. All done.”
The elderly lady patted his big hand, “Thank you, young man. That didn’t hurt at all.”
Micah asked, “Is there anything I can get you right now?”
Mrs. Henderson said, “I’d love a steak dinner.”
Micah smiled and replied, “That sounds delicious. The only problem is that you can’t eat or drink anything until the doctor sees you.”
With a defeated look on her face, Mrs. Henderson sighed, “Well, then I guess I’ll just settle for another blanket.”
Micah motioned with a thumb’s up. “Now that I can do. I’ll get you a blanket.”
In a few moments, Micah returned with a warmed blanket and draped it over the elderly lady. “There you go.”
“Thank you. You are such a kind, young man.” Mrs. Henderson praised him.
Micah joked, “Believe me, in my teenage years, my mom did not think so.”
Then he moved to walk out of the room. As he walked through the doorway, he turned to her and said, “We’ll take care of you, Mrs. Henderson. Dr. Paine will be right in.”
Micah rounded the corner of the nurse’s station and heard a voice behind him. “Micah, go ahead and take your lunch now.” He turned to see that it was the charge nurse, Lisa.
“I have a few things to finish up first,” he said.
She leaned on the desk beside where he was sitting. “Tell me what you have going on, and I’ll finish up for you. You need to go eat now while you have a chance.”
Micah relented. He could see the ER board getting full, and he knew she was right.
“Okay, here is my patient list. Everyone is stable right now. Thanks.”
Lisa said, “By the way, a bunch of us are going down by the river Friday night to hang out. We’re going to build a bonfire and roast marshmallows. You should come with us.”
Micah felt his gut tighten, as it had in the past. He knew that Lisa had been sweet on him for the past year since she had started working there. She was pretty and kind, and he knew a lot of guys would love to date her. In fact, many had. For some reason, she had her eyes fixed on him, though. She had invited him out with her group of friends many times, and many of his guy friends had told him he was crazy for not dating her. But for Micah, he could still only see one face in his memory. It was too early for him. At least, he kept telling himself that. He shook off the thought and replied, “I work this weekend, but thanks anyway.” Not giving her a chance to respond, he quickly walked off and headed toward the nurse’s lounge.
In the lounge, he pulled his turkey and cheese sandwich and an apple from the fridge. Seated at the table, he began to eat. The room was empty, except for the occasional person coming in for a cup of coffee or a soda. Micah was enjoying these few quiet moments when Marla’s face flashed in his mind. Last evening had been odd. She had just shown up out of the blue, claiming she owned the lake house. He believed her, but the whole situation was ... what is the word? Disturbing. Her presence had caused him some discomfort. Of course, she was kicking him gently out of a home he had known for two years, in the middle of the night, in his pajama bottoms. What wouldn’t be disturbing about that? But it was more than that. There was something about her, not the situation. She had seemed almost familiar as if he were connected to her in some way. He couldn’t lie. She was beautiful. Her long, brown, curly locks had brushed her face and shoulders. Her eyes were the color of emeralds, and she had high cheekbones. He hadn’t been able to keep himself from noticing her lips. They were full and looked so soft. She hardly wore any make-up, which was also appealing. She was a natural beauty, and it gave her confidence, whether or not she owned it. She was slender and built like— he stopped himself. Then he realized that something about Marla reminded him of Allie. He exhaled as he stopped eating. Putting his sandwich down, he could feel his eyes begin to water.
Allie had been his everything. He had tried to live without her these past three years, but he had not done it well. He had tried to move on, and he had even dated a few girls for a short period. But no matter how hard he tried to move forward, Allie’s face still haunted his memories. He missed her so much. The grief he still felt was unreal, and he didn’t think it would ever get easier. Thankfully, his thoughts were interrupted as the lounge door opened. Micah turned his face away from the open door and tried to clear his mind.
Then he heard, “Hey Micah, I’ve been looking all over for you.”
Micah turned to see Ben Montgomery. “Hey, Ben, what are you doing down in the ER? The surgery manager usually has plenty to do up in the operating rooms.”
Ben replied, “Yeah, it’s busy up there, but I came down to ask the ortho guys if they need any special instruments for this femur fracture that came in a few hours ago. While I was here, I thought I’d find you. Delaney and I are having Sunday dinner at our house at two o’clock. Can you come over?”
“I work Saturday night, but I’m off at seven in the morning. I’ll grab a few hours of sleep and then head over. A homecooked meal sounds great.”
Ben looked at Micah’s face and could see the sadness. “Are you okay, man?”
Micah shook off his mood and replied stoically, “Yeah, man. I’m great. It’s just already been a long day.”
Ben said, “Look at me, man.”
Micah finally looked over at Ben.
Ben said, “You’re thinking about her, aren’t you?”
Micah nodded. “Sometimes she just pops in my head. I really miss her.”
Ben placed his hand on Micah’s shoulder and said, “You know I’m here for you if you ever want to talk. You know, I understand. It will get easier. Just hang in there.”
Micah held a straight face and half-nodded. He knew Ben understood. Years before Ben had married Delaney, he had lost his first wife and baby daughter in a tragic accident. Ben had been blessed with a second chance at love and a family. In a way, this gave Micah hope that someday he might have a second chance, too. He stood and gave Ben a firm hug. “I know. Thanks. I’m looking forward to Sunday.”
Ben smiled and opened the door to the lounge. “Okay, see you then.”
After Ben left, Micah sat down and was still for a few moments. The lounge remained empty. He looked at his watch and still had five minutes left for lunch. Ben and Delaney were his only friends who knew about Allie. She had been his wife for only two years before she passed away. Her death had come so quickly and unexpectedly from a heart attack. He couldn’t understand why God had taken her away from him. If there had ever been such a thing as a soulmate, Allie had been his. Their relationship had been easy, to the point that they could almost read each other’s thoughts. They had been connected by heart and soul, and Micah knew his grief would never end. Every day of her absence had been a struggle for him. Although he had rebounded some from his depression, some days, he still had to force himself to get out of bed. He was happy to be able to bury himself in his work, and he was glad to have Ben and Delaney as his friends.
He thought back to his life in Cincinnati. After Allie’s death, he had become a project for everyone, the kind of project where everyone felt obligated to cheer him up. He was tired of their sympathy, their pitiful looks, and the reminders of Allie. To this point, his time in Guntersville had given him some refreshment and freedom from being the sad widower that everyone felt sorry for. Here, no one except Ben and Delaney knew his story. He was thankful for that. He prayed silently, Lord, give me strength. Help me through this. Please bring me some comfort and give me hope.