24. Ruined Lunch
Chapter twenty-four
Ruined Lunch
Stanley
It takes everything in my willpower to not smash my phone on the ground and call it quits on this place. But I know if I do that, then all of my patients floors above are going to be left helpless and forgotten. I don’t know why people keep putting them off and treating them like an afterthought.
“I’m sorry, but that’s how the rules work.”
“They’re clearly not. I obtained that money through my own work, through donations from people who actually care about my work. You can’t just take it from me.”
“You’d be surprised at how easily we can. You work for us. And since you’re garnering money for patients in our hospital, then the money belongs to us.”
“Money you didn’t want to give me in the first place!”
“We’ll see what we can do after we allocate the funds appropriately.”
“You’re putting up a whole new wing on the east side of the building because some rich pompous businessman donated a lot of money to this hospital. You have more than enough to attribute to my wing.”
“This isn’t a conversation you should be having in a hallway, Doctor Baker. You must maintain your professionalism.”
“Yeah? Well, I can’t be a professional if you can’t give me the money for my work!” I hit the End symbol and stare at the black screen for a while.
I miss old-fashioned phones with receivers. Hanging up on people felt more satisfying.
“Stanley?”
Her familiar voice draws me away from my anger, like a soothing rain after a scorching hot day.
I haven’t spoken to her since that night nor have I been to Ed’s place since then, not wanting to make things more awkward for her.
He’s shared that he thinks she’s been avoiding him.
I’m pretty sure my presence wouldn’t make things any better.
Which leaves me questioning why she’s here, talking to me.
“Ah, Maria. Hello.” I quickly shove my phone into my pocket to get the source of my anger out of view. She doesn’t need to be within shockwave distance of my problems.
“Long time no see.”
“Yes, it has been a while, hasn’t it?” She looks both embarrassed and apologetic for withdrawing. I can’t blame her for her reaction.
“What brings you here?” I ask, genuinely curious why she would be at the hospital for no reason.
“Edward wanted to have lunch with Alexander. That’s where we’re going now, actually.” She jabs a thumb over her shoulder toward the cafeteria.
“Really!? He wants to subject his son to that awful crap?”
Maria hides her snicker behind a hand and I feel my heart stumbling over itself all over again.
“No, I brought a packed lunch for him. His tiny body isn’t ready for all that salt.”
“Or preservatives,” I continue. “I swear, there’s more of it in that food than there is in the morgue.”
I mentally kick myself when I remember the loss of her loved one. I flounder between saying nothing and apologizing; I don’t know where she is in the stages of grieving at the moment.
But my nerves are soothed when there is no physical response. So I guess I haven’t offended her.
“Is there... something you want to talk about? We kind of overheard you in the hallway.” She inches a little closer, keeping her voice low.
I quickly look around at my immediate surroundings and realize that I’ve been having my argument way too close to the hospital entrance. There’s no doubt in my mind that more people heard my conversation than I intended. Or wanted.
“I’m… just annoyed that nothing seems to be moving forward. That idea you gave me, about online donating? Hospital management’s decided that all of that money goes to them to decide who gets how much.”
Maria presses her hands to her mouth, her eyes rife with shock.
“Oh, Stanley, I’m so sorry to hear that. And you can’t fight it?”
“That’s what I was doing on the phone. But what’s one man like me going to do against a group of businessmen who only care about the money and not the lives we have under our care?”
I then shake my head. She doesn’t need to hear about my bureaucratic problems. There isn’t much she can do to change the situation anyway.
“Sorry, I’m sure you’re tired of hearing me talk about this. It doesn’t seem like a problem that’s ever going to go away.”
Honestly? What else do I have going on in my life? It’s not as if I’m out there dating or trying to meet someone else to talk to about my life.
Maybe that’s why I pour so much of myself into my work. So that I don’t feel so fucking lonely.
“Is there another angle you can work?”
“Believe me, I’ve tried everything, short of selling my plasma to fund this place.”
Maria cocks her head to one side, a Cheshire grin on her face.
“You are pretty tall. How much plasma do you have in you?”
I can’t help but crack a smile. The silver lining to my cloudy day. I have no idea how she does it.
“How about you put all this aside for an hour or two and come have lunch with me, Edward, and his son?”
My stomach twists into a knot. Knowing that she and Edward were involved before we’d considered joining in puts me on edge because I have no idea if they’re “back together” or not. I haven’t had the gall to ask.
“Only if he’s okay with it,” I suggest. I don’t want to step on any toes just because I’d like the company right now.
“Nonsense. I don’t see why he would have a problem with it.”
Because he was with you first, is what I want to say but she was never his, was she? Not if the description of their casual arrangement was accurate.
I could use something to eat. Even if it is cafeteria food.
“Just for a quick bite. I have rounds coming up again in a few minutes. You know... I’m surprised that you came over to talk to me,” I whisper as I follow behind her, forcing my eyes to remain on the back of her head instead of drifting to the rest of her body.
I only remember a few details about her body, the parts I got to touch before she nipped everything in the bud.
Maria pauses in her steps for a split second. Did I just upset her?
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m still a little surprised that I even agreed to it. It’s nothing against you guys, I just don’t think that kind of thing is right for me. You know? Again, I’m sorry. But thanks for being so understanding.”
“Of course. What kind of people would we be if he held a grudge against you for it?” Am I disappointed? Sure. But that’s just life in general: full of disappointments.
“Does that mean you and Edward have made up, then? He mentioned that you might have been avoiding him.”
“You could say we made up, in a sense. But he’s right, I was avoiding him when I didn’t need to. Everything’s settled between us now. He’s even offered to help me brush up on my driving skills.”
“Driving skills? From him!? Maria, you’d be better off learning how to navigate a maze from a naked mole rat. Edward’s the worst driver I’ve ever known.”
“I... you’re kidding.” She steps up to the large pile of trays and takes two from the top, handing me one.
“Not kidding. How did you think he lost all that hair?”
Her brows knot together for a second.
“He told me he has alopecia...”
Oh. Darn. I guess I can’t keep going with that joke.
“Okay, true, but he still drives like a maniac sometimes. If you don’t believe me, ask him how many speeding tickets he’s gotten.”
“Oh dear...” She slides to the back of the line, peering through the plexiglass to see what’s being offered. “Maybe it’s a good thing I’m driving Alexander to school, then.”
“Ah, is that why he wanted to show you? That’s probably for the best. But if you want to get him there safely, then I can offer you a few warm-up sessions.”
I realize too late how that sounded.
“Oh God, I meant in the car. Behind the wheel of the car. Driving.” My face gets hotter and hotter with each new explanation to make myself look less like a pervert. I think I’m only making the situation worse.
Maria touches my arm; her bottom lip is caught behind her teeth to stifle all the laughter trying to escape.
“I got what you meant,” she finally says, once she can trust herself to talk. She nods to one of the ladies behind the plexiglass and she hands Maria a small bowl of corn kernels.
“Sorry. I’m just...” Awkward? More comfortable around old, sick people than people my own age? At a loss for words every time I look at a pretty face?
I fix my gaze forward and dive deeper for other words to say.
“... it’s been a long time since I’ve been in a serious relationship, so I’m not that good at...”
“Dating?”
“Conversation, outside of a hospital setting.”
“Ah. Well, you should get out more. There’s no reason you shouldn’t share all of that compassion and caring you have with someone. You deserve it.”
I should. I just can’t with the person I’m interested in right now.
“I can talk to Chelsea and see if she has anyone in her circle who’s looking to date.”
I feel my heart sink to the bottom of my stomach as I take a small bowl of diced carrots and another of congealed macaroni and cheese casserole. Suddenly, I’m not so hungry.
“I’d... like that,” I lie through my teeth. Who knows, maybe this introduction to a new person may be exactly what I need right now.
As long as they don’t care about my awkwardness.
Or my crappy work hours.
Or me constantly smelling like the elderly.
Oh, who am I kidding?
We continue down the line until we get to the end, our trays filled with enough food to feed at least another person.
“Here, let me get this for you at least. So that you don’t have to pay actual money for it.” I pull my ID card out of my white coat pocket and hand it to the cashier. She swipes it and hands it back after subtracting two meals from my meal plan.
“You didn’t have to do that, Stanley. It’s not as if Edward isn’t paying me well.”
“He’s not paying you have food poisoning, that’s for sure.”
The line of lunch ladies all stare at me, likely imagining me in horrible situations. I decide to get away from them as quickly as possible before I end up with a ladle in my eye.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t eat here for a while,” Maria whispers as we head for a table as far from the buffet table as we can get.
“Anything they’d put in my food would be an improvement.”
“You’re awful.”
“Yeah, well, sometimes humor is all I’ve got left.”
Maria gives me a look before she puts down her tray and gives me a hug.
“Don’t give up. I’m sure something will come along that helps you out.”
My arms are poised in the air, unprepared for her sudden gesture of kindness. I don’t want to leave her hanging but I also don’t want to misread the situation.
She initiated it, dummy.
I soon return the hug, a little glad for the offer of some comfort. It’s exactly what I need right now, even if it’s in a cafeteria full of other people.
“What the hell...?”
Both of us snap to attention and turn to find Edward and his son coming out of the bathroom. Ed looks… shocked? Pissed? Confused? I can’t tell at the moment. All I know is that he doesn’t seem happy.
“Edward?” She stands and interposes herself between Ed and me for some reason. “What’s going on?”
He’s about to say something when he remembers that he’s still holding his son’s hand.
“Get your lunch from Miss Bailey and go sit at a table, okay?” he manages through gritted teeth, trying his best to sound calm. I can tell from the large, bulging vein in his neck that he’s failing.
Once Alexander is a decent distance away, Ed stalks towards us, his hands balled into fists.
“What the heck was that?”
“What? The hug?”
Oh. Oh no.
“Why is it a problem if I want to give Stanley a hug? He’s having a hard time, I wanted to comfort a friend.”
“Oh, is that what he is now, Maria? Your friend? Yet you treated me like shit for weeks?”
“Edward, can we not talk about this here? Can’t this wait until later?”
“Later? When you drop Alexander on my couch and leave as soon as you’ve got your stuff? You’ve been avoiding talking to me for weeks and now you want to talk?”
“Ed... you’re getting loud,” I whisper. He turns his attention to me and the look in his eyes tells me that I should have kept my mouth shut.
“Stan, you need to go before I...”
“Before you do what, Edward? Punch your fellow doctor in the face? In front of all these people? In front of your son?” Maria’s voice is a mere hiss but her words are clear as day.
Edward unfurls his fists but the tension remains in his shoulders.
“Why do I get treated like dirt when he—!”
“Stop that right now. Why are you so insistent on making comparisons? I apologized, alright? What more do you want me to do? Are you trying to make me regret saying yes to all three of you?”
Her words strike me like a thunderbolt to the spine. We’re talking about this now?! Here?!
How far is the nearest exit?
“I didn’t expect you to be the jealous type, Edward. You’re the one who convinced me that we could get past this. But I guess you were wrong.”
Maria grabs her purse and heads to the cafeteria doors, toward the hospital entrance.
“I’ll be waiting outside. You can bring Alexander when you’re done having lunch together.”
Ed and I continue staring at her retreat, dumbfounded at what’s just happened.
“Ed, I’m sorry I—”
“Shut it, Stan. I don’t want to talk right now.”
He departs just as quickly and sits across from his son, trying to pretend as if nothing ever happened.
Leaving me standing there awkwardly, my tray still in hand.
I make myself useful and dump both of our lunches into the trashcan.