Twist of Love

Twist of Love

Paige Powers

Global Village Publications

Copyright 2014 Paige Powers, Global Village Publications

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1. A Nightmare in the Emergency Room

Josie and Trevor walked the shores of the beach barefoot, and hand in hand. They had planned this dream vacation for months and it was finally happening. Saving up for the trip had been pretty tough, but it had finally paid off. Now the married couple could enjoy the long-delayed second honeymoon that they deserved. They were lost in the moment and with each other. It was a moment in eternity and Josie wished it would last forever.

She looked into her husband's dreamy eyes and clasped his hand even tighter.

“Oh, Trevor! I'm so happy we're together,” she said.

Trevor smiled at his lovely wife. Josie pulled back her long brown hair. She didn't want to lose sight of Trevor's eyes but she was more than happy to be lost in them.

“Josie…”

Josie's voice was full of love and tenderness. She didn't need to ask Trevor anything and she had an idea of what he was going to say. But she still had to ask him, of course. 

“Yes, my love?”

“I'm in love with Emma.”

Trevor's answer hit Josie like a bullet. She heard it but she still couldn't believe it. Josie's world suddenly went spinning out of control. The calm waves that lapped at her feet now felt like worms wriggling on rotting food. She recoiled her hand from Trevor's in shock and dismay. And her head suddenly began to ache and throb.

“W…what did you say?”

“You heard me. I'm in love with Emma.” Trevor said. His words had a sick finality to them.

“No...No. No!” Josie cried. The tears began to fall along her face. She drew back from Trevor and turned away from him. She started to run away from her husband, but she could not run fast enough. The sand was sticking to her feet, and she could not move away. It was almost like running on quicksand. The bright and wonderful sunshine of the day was replaced with a foreboding darkness that seemed to close in on the young woman.

“Noo!” she cried. Something in Josie told her that this was all real. And that somehow, this had all happened before.

“Paging Dr. Josie Steele. Paging Dr. Josie Steele. You're needed at the emergency room immediately.” The dry and monotonous voice of the nurse on the paging system jarred Josie into wakefulness.

“All... a dream. It was just another stupid dream,” she mumbled.

Josie had dozed off on her desk. Working late shifts at the Lenora Regional Hospital could do that to you. Just working as a doctor on-call anywhere was taxing enough. Josie had realized this long ago, and she knew that late nights were part of the job. Having nightmares was something else altogether.

'Get it together, Josie. Trevor's long gone. You've been divorced for quite a while now. He was not your knight in shining armor. He was far from what you wanted him to be. Deal with it.' Josie thought.

She composed herself as she walked briskly to the Emergency room. 'Forget about your personal issues and focus on the job at hand,' she thought. Josie passed by the silent rooms and corridors of Lenora. It was quiet here, but it would soon be chaos at the E.R.

She finally arrived at the Emergency room. The difference from the halls was jarring, but to be expected. Josie passed by various patients in different states of distress and suffering. Some were wheeled along on stretchers. Others were sitting on wheelchairs and still others were waiting uncomfortably with loved ones. It was a tableau of confusion and distress, but Josie was used to all of it.

Josie approached the head nurse in the E.R. It was the nurse who had paged her earlier. “So, what have we here?” Josie asked.

“We've got an elderly patient here. Complaining of stiffening of the chest, chest pains, and a lack of feeling in her palms.”

Josie approached the elderly lady. She was plump for her age and had kind eyes. “Don't worry, ma'am. It's going to be all right.” Josie reassured the old lady, but she still looked quite shaken. She suddenly gripped the doctor's hand with a strength that surprised Josie.

“Please, doctor. I don't want to die yet. I need to live on. I mean, who's gonna take care of my boy?” The old lady asked.

She motioned towards a clearly distraught young man. He looked close to Josie's age, and was quite attractive.

“Doctor, please save my mother. I'm Blake Ingram. I teach at Fallston High. She's all I have,” he said despondently.

2. I think she would be good for you

Mrs. Ingram didn't know how long she was out. The past events were a blur for the elderly lady. The last thing she remembered was suffering a stifling pain in her chest, then being rushed to Lenora by Blake. After that, everything went black. Then she’d woken up lying face up on the bed, staring at the glaring lights of a hospital room. However, aside from the excessive glare on her eyes, and some exhaustion, she felt fine. Mrs. Ingram looked around in the room. Standing beside her bedside was Blake. He was barely controlling the tears coming down from his eyes.

“It's okay, mom. They said you'll be okay,” he said. Blake could barely control the emotion in his voice.

Mrs. Ingram smiled kindly at Blake. She noticed Josie standing beside her son.

“It's all right, Mrs. Ingram. You suffered a minor heart attack. But your son, Blake, detected it in time. It's a good thing you were rushed here immediately.” Josie said.

Mrs. Ingram nodded at Josie in acknowledgement.

“Then I guess I owe you both my life,” Mrs. Ingram said.

Blake smiled at his mother. She looked so helpless lying there. But at least it was all right now. Josie nodded at his mother.

“You'll be kept overnight for observation. Standard procedure, but I do believe the worst is over. You're very lucky to be alive. And you're very lucky to have such a loving son,” Josie said.

Mrs. Ingram smiled at Josie again.

“Thank you again, Dr. Steele. Now that it seems that everything will be fine, I would appreciate some time alone with Blake.”

“Of course. I'll check back on you later.” Josie smiled, then turned away and closed the door behind her. Mother and son were left alone.

“I'm so glad you're all right, Mom.” Blake said. He moved closer and held his mother's hand. Mrs. Ingram slowly moved her head closer to Blake. “What is it, Mom?”

“I think she would be good for you,” she whispered to Blake.

Blake wiped the tears from his eyes. Despite his stress, his Mom had managed to make him smile.

“You know what, Mom? I think so, too.”

3. Another Dream?

Breakfast for Josie was coffee and some chips. Granted, it wasn't the best breakfast for a doctor to have, but she would take it. Josie had managed to squeeze in 4 hours of sleep a while ago, which was a luxury for her. The coffee and the sugary chips would give her a short burst, but Josie knew the crash would happen sooner or later. 'I really ought to stop eating crap like this,' she thought to herself. She checked her watch. It was time to check on her patients. Josie stood from her chair, and began her morning rounds.

Josie opened the door to Mrs. Ingram's room. Blake was still beside his mother and was wearily rubbing his eyes. It looked like he’d hardly slept the entire night. “Good morning, Mrs. Ingram. Blake.” Josie said.

Blake nodded at Josie, and Mrs. Ingram nodded to her.

“Just a moment. If you'll both let me just check…” Josie approached Mrs. Ingram and checked her vital signs. She looked around her and did things that Blake didn't understand. Josie jotted down some notes on her pad, then she motioned to Blake.

“Your mother is doing very well. We just have to perform some PCP tests on her, but she should make a full recovery.”

“That's great to hear,” Blake said.

Josie smiled and nodded at Blake. She was happy to have helped Mrs. Ingram. It was one of those few rewarding moments of being a doctor. Josie cherished these moments, as they sometimes came few and far between. She answered a few more questions and moved on. There were other patients who demanded her time and attention. And besides, today Josie wasn't on duty. She was just eager to finish her rounds and go home. Good sleep and rest was almost a luxury for a doctor like her.

***

Josie was walking down the same beach, by the same shore with Trevor. She looked past the horizon and saw that it was getting dark. Trevor's touch was far from tender and Josie felt trapped.

'No. Not again! I know what this is, and I want to wake up!' Josie thought. She realized that this was all one terrible dream. The recurring nightmare was all-too familiar for Josie and she just wanted it to end. She knew what this was, and how it would end. Trevor was long gone from her life and she just wished that the terrible nightmare would stop reminding her of his presence.

“Stop it! Just stop it! I know what this is coming to, and I won't allow it anymore!” She said vehemently.

“This is a dream! The kind of dream that you want to wake up from! And I want to wake up, now!” She said.

Trevor did not answer. But he heard everything and he was about to turn towards Josie to react. Josie wanted to address this dream-wraith, and give it more of her mind. After all, she knew it wasn't really Trevor, just a figment of him in her subconscious. But when he turned around, it was not Trevor staring back at her. It was the face of Blake.

“Blake..?” Josie asked in bewilderment.

She had the same puzzled look as she finally opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.

“What the hell was that all about..?” She wondered aloud. Josie stood up from her bed. She was only wearing her nighties. She immediately put her slippers on and ambled towards the bathroom. Josie sleepily rubbed her eyes and opened the medicine cabinet. She took out her toothpaste and toothbrush and was about to brush her teeth. But her reflection in the mirror stopped her for a moment. “I look awful. Crazy dream,” she mumbled. Then she began to brush her teeth.

“I hate crazy dreams. It just makes it harder to get to the hospital on time.”

A new day had begun again for Josie.

4. No Time for Men

“Good morning, Doctor Steele,” George said.

George had been the security guard for Lenora for 20 years. He was the first face Josie, and just about anybody, saw when they approached the hospital. He was ready for retirement at any time. If he didn't have so many bills to pay, and management wasn't so merciful, he would have retired a long time ago. But it was all for the better. After all, this was Fallston, Missouri, not New York. This was a very small town, and nothing special happened here, anyway. Lenora could afford to retain George as its security guard for a few more years.

“Good morning, George! How's Becky?” Josie asked.

“She's doing fine, Doc! You ought to come visit us again, sometime.” George said.