Page 3 of Stat: Love In Scrubs

“ S calpel.”

The word slipped from my mouth, calm and low, even as the fetal monitor behind me screamed in frantic beeps.

The mother was hemorrhaging. Her blood pressure was crashing, and the baby’s heart rate was dropping fast—too fast. I didn’t flinch, didn’t blink.

I couldn’t afford to. Not with two lives in my hands and a room full of eyes waiting for direction.

“Clamp.” I extended my hand without looking up, feeling the cool steel press into my palm a second later.

Sweat beaded along my hairline beneath the surgical cap, but my hands were steady.

The scrub nurse breathed too hard, and the resident to my left was ghost-pale, but I blocked it all out.

I was used to this crisis, chaos, and quiet control.

I lived here, in the space between heartbeats.

I made the incision quickly and cleanly, the way I’d done hundreds of times before. No matter how many times I’d stood in this exact position, it never got easier. No amount of training prepared you for the sound of silence when a baby didn’t cry right away.

Seconds stretched. The kind that made your chest tighten and your mind race, even when your hands knew exactly what to do.

“Baby’s out,” I said as I lifted the infant, still and slick with fluid.

I handed her off quickly to the NICU team and refocused on the mother, who was fading fast. Her pressure was tanking, and the bleeding wasn’t slowing the way it should.

I barked out the next set of instructions, barely registering the chaos at the edge of the room.

Everything narrowed down to tissue, to clamp and suture, to getting this woman back to her baby alive.

Then it came—the wail. Small, sharp, defiant.

The kind that pushed air back into everyone’s lungs, including mine.

“She’s breathing,” the pediatric nurse called, and the room exhaled with her.

But for half a second, I saw Veronica’s face instead of the mother on the table. Heard her voice whispering that everything would be okay, even as it wasn’t. That ghost never left me. It followed me into every OR, into every victory, into every wail.

I didn’t smile. I rarely did in moments like this. Not until I knew everyone would walk out whole. I finished with the mother, cleaned my hands, and stepped back as the attending closed.

Outside the OR, I peeled off my gloves and pushed open the door with my shoulder.

My chest ached the way it always did after cases like that—like I’d been holding my breath too long.

The baby had cried. The mother had lived.

That was the outcome we fought for, but the relief didn’t stick the way it should’ve.

It never did.

Not when I’d stood in a room just like that one, years ago, and watched my own wife fade right in front of me.

Same beeping monitors. Same urgency in the air.

The only difference was that no one could save her.

The room had been full, but somehow I’d never felt more alone.

One moment, I was holding her hand, telling her everything was fine, and the next, I was a father without a wife, a man with blood on his shoes, and a baby girl I had no idea how to raise.

I leaned against the wall, letting my head drop back for a second.

People passed, voices blurred, and I stayed still.

It clung to my ribs, showed up in operating rooms, in lullabies, in the curve of Esa’s smile.

I carried it the way some men carried medals—proof that I’d survived something no one was meant to walk away from.

If it wasn’t for my parents or Veronica’s, I didn’t know where I would be.

Those folks had been everything to me. Since that day with my late wife, I adjusted my direction as a doctor.

I wanted to be the man who could defy all odds and make sure these mothers made it home with their babies.

I was not saying that I hadn’t lost anyone, but it damn sure wasn’t for me not trying.

“Dr. Wilder… Dr. Wilder.” Rhonda called out.

I snapped out of my daze and looked up at her. She held a clipboard in her hand with a soft smile. She was the scheduler in the OR.

“My bad. You know I like to come down after cases like that. What’s next?” I asked.

She stood still for a moment, not saying a word and giving me a sympathetic smile before gripping her clipboard, then looking down at it.

“You’re all set to go. Take a moment to clear your mind. There’s no one else scheduled here for you.”

I nodded. Most of my clients whose pregnancy I had been following had either had their babies or weren’t close to delivering.

“Alright. I’ll let the nurses on my floor know that my phone is always available in case anyone needs to call.

Can you get someone to check in on the Hamptons every ten to fifteen minutes?

I just want to make sure she is alright.

You know what? I’ll wait around here for another hour, then I’ll head out. ”

Rhonda shook her head and pulled her clipboard into her chest. She did that when she was ready to hand out lectures, and I wasn’t in the mood to hear one, but she was damn near my elder, and I knew I didn’t have a choice.

She had been there on that fateful day with my wife and me, so I knew she held a soft spot for me with this.

I continuously told her I was fine, but clearly, she didn’t believe me.

“You overwork yourself. You don’t think it would excite Esa to hang with her dad for the day? When do you ever get the chance to leave here this early? Take it, Desmond. I will personally check in on this couple myself and send you text updates.”

I stood stone-faced, but I knew everything she said was right. Esa had been talking about doing a movie night for a while, but I would get home too late, so we had an outstanding reschedule.

“I hear you. I expect those text messages. Don’t make me come back up here, Rhonda,” I cracked with a smile and a wink.

Her cheeks warmed, and she waved me off.

“Boy, you’d better be gone now.”

I smiled and made my way to the lockers to get my things.

I had been here for a minute now, and I was ready to get home.

I hadn’t been able to spend as much time as I would have liked with my baby girl, so I planned to rectify that, especially since this was my weekend off, unless one of my clients went into labor.

I made my rounds around the floor once more before heading to my car. I planned to stop by my parents’ place before heading home, so they knew I would pick Esa up today.

Before I left the building, they paged me over the loudspeaker. Instead of heading to the garage, I went to the administrative floor and then made a beeline for Mrs. Hamilton’s office.

I knocked, letting her know I had made it, then stood and waited for a brief moment before she invited me inside. She gestured toward the seat across from her desk, but I stood. I couldn’t come to a conclusion about why she had asked me to come here.

“Doc, please have a seat. It’s nothing bad. You can relax,” she announced.

I released a breath, then pulled the seat away from the desk to take a seat. I settled back into the seat and gave her my undivided attention.

“It looks like you were on your way out, and I caught you just in time.”

“Yeah, Rhonda was practically trying to push me out of the doors.”

Mrs. Hamilton chuckled, then grabbed a stack of papers beside her and placed them in front of her.

“I’ll get right to the point. We love the work we have been seeing you doing.

Death rates amongst your floor have decreased more than sixty percent.

Not to mention, we have only gotten good reviews about you from your patients.

I’m going to mention this off the record, but Mr. Mathews is getting ready to retire from the head of Obstetrics. ”

I straightened my spine and then slid to the edge of my chair to make sure I heard her correctly. I had been waiting for this moment for a few years now, and if I got the right idea, the chance was finally presenting itself.

“I was aware of him retiring soon, especially once I saw him use all that vacation time.”

We laughed.

She nodded. “I’ll get right to it. You’re at the top of the list. Keep doing what you’re doing, and the job is yours. But it will definitely come with a lot of responsibility. I wanted to share this with you early to prepare yourself, or know whether you wanted this opportunity.”

I sat still, no words formulating in my mind or out of my mouth. Damn, I had gone this hard for this opportunity, and it was so damn close I could touch it.

“I’m going to assume this all has you a little speechless. I don’t mean to overwhelm you. I just wanted you to prepare yourself for the next level,” she said, then smiled before standing to her feet.

I followed suit and held my hands out to shake hers.

“Thank you for letting me know and for the opportunity.”

“No problem. Now go enjoy the rest of your day. I’m sure your daughter can’t wait to see you,” she responded.

The mention of my daughter immediately put a smile on my face and put me in a better mood.

“I would hope so. We have a standing date that I’ve dropped the ball on these last few weeks, so I have some kissing up to do,” I joked.

She smiled and waved as I made my way out of her office. I waited until I was secure in my car before I swung my fist wildly to release my excitement.

“Hell yeah!” I celebrated.

I accidentally honked the horn, causing the nurse who was walking in front of my car to stop and stare at me as if I had two heads. I held up my hand apologetically. I started my car once she continued walking toward the hospital. I was sure she was talking about me because I looked crazy as hell.

I needed to get the hell out of this parking garage and away from this hospital so I could celebrate without prying eyes.

I arrived at my parents’ place in under twenty minutes because of their proximity. My place was even closer, which made the pick-ups between my parents and me seamless.

I parked in their driveway and jogged up the steps. I rang the doorbell and waited until my dad opened the door. I stepped inside behind him and took off my coat, then placed it on the coat rack.

“Where is Esa?” I asked, looking every which way.

My dad slowed up his steps and glanced over his shoulder with a lift of his brow.

“Well, damn. What’s up to you, too, Son?” he cracked with a laugh.

“My bad, Pops. I haven’t seen my baby in over twelve hours. I miss her.”

“I get that,” he told me.

“Aight, now, old man, where is my baby?” I asked.

Not long after, a squeal revealed her before her bright smile and wild hair followed close behind.

I kneeled on one knee and held my arms open for her to run into them.

Esa’s little arms wrapped tightly around my neck while I placed a series of kisses against her cheek and her forehead, causing her to giggle uncontrollably.

She pulled back and smiled.

“Did you miss me? I missed you,” I told her.

She nodded with a smile. I kissed her cheek once more, this time making a loud kissing sound, causing her to squirm away. I stood to my full height and followed her back into the kitchen. My mother stood in front of the stove, stirring whatever was in the pot.

I walked over to her side and kissed my mother’s cheek as well, speaking upon my entry into the kitchen.

“Hey, how was work? I’m going to assume things went well. Since you appear to be in a really good mood,” my mother commented.

I stepped away from the stove and walked back around the island to take a seat beside Esa while she continued to color.

“You can say that. It was a close call today, but everything worked out as planned. Not to mention, I was told that I can prepare myself for that head of Obstetrics position.”

My mother stopped stirring and turned around to face me with wide eyes.

“Senior! Come in here right now. You have to hear this!” she called out to my father.

It always made me chuckle when my mother referred to my dad as Senior. My father and I shared the same name, so early on, she stuck to calling him "Senior," while I was called whatever name she felt like calling me at the time.

“Celeste, you know the game is on. This boy already interrupted me when I had to answer the door. It better be good,” he complained before stepping into the kitchen with a flat expression.

My mother rolled her eyes, then returned her attention to me with a big smile.

“Go ahead and tell ’em what you told me, Jr.,” she instructed.

I nodded with a smirk, then turned to face my dad.

“I was notified today that as long as my job performance continues on the path I’m on now, I’m going to be the new head of Obstetrics, unofficially.”

My dad’s eyes widened, and a smile soon followed.

“Congratulations, Son. It sounds like you’re going to be able to afford to send your mother and me on a vacation.”

All of us burst into laughter as I nodded.

“I’ll see what I can do. My only problem with the job is that you two are already doing so much. If I take this?—”

“What do you mean by ‘if’? You’ve been working hard all this time to gain this position, correct?” my father interrupted with a stern tone.

“Yes, sir, I have but?—”

He shook his head, stopping all further protest.

“But nothing. If your mother and I thought we couldn’t do it, we would have told you that.

Esa is a very easy child to take care of while you’re working, so don’t use that as a reason to block your blessings.

If you don’t want this position, let it be because it doesn’t align with what you see for your life. Nothing else,” he lectured.

I heard him loud and clear, but I still felt they did more than enough. My daughter was my responsibility, but with my job, she fell more on my parents. It made me feel like shit sometimes when I thought about how much more they knew about her day to day.

“Thanks, Pops. I hear you, and I’ll consider that when making my choice. Speaking of a break, I will be picking up Esa tomorrow from the Academy. You want to leave early tomorrow, Esa?” I asked her after speaking to my dad.

“Not too early. Ms. Sinclair is coming to my class tomorrow, and I want to show her my new picture of her,” she responded, still coloring.

I pointed down at the picture of the woman she was coloring. My baby was a natural. It wasn’t clear yet, but I could tell that she wouldn’t be going in the science direction once she was older.

“Is that Ms. Sinclair?” I asked.

She tilted her head to the side and nodded.

“Isn’t she so pretty, Daddy?” she asked.

“Very.”

Esa smiled brightly at me, then continued coloring.

“I guess I’ll come a little later to get you, then we will go get ice cream. How does that sound?” I asked.

She looked up at me with wide eyes and a grin while nodding with her thumb raised. I tousled her hair with a chuckle and grabbed an orange out of the fruit basket in front of me.