“I suppose the protein would help with energy,” I said, trying to be reasonable.
“That’s part of why I’m doing it. I need all the energy I can get right now.”
“No kidding,” I said, poking at my salad.
It was pretty fancy, imbued with all sorts of lovely things, including diced chicken, which tasted delicious.
Then something— or, rather, someone— in the distance caught my eye, immediately prompting me to roll both of them.
“Oh, great.”
I could almost feel the chill breeze as I watched The Iceman continue walking out onto the patio. It was a warm Spring day, so it had nothing to do with the weather.
“Who is that?” Tanna asked, a familiar look in her eye.
“Jake Booth,” I said. “Or, as you may have heard him referred to, The Iceman.”
“Wow, he’s not what I pictured; he’s really sexy.”
“If you like that sort of thing.”
“Rich, successful, super hot, yeah, what’s not to like? Count me in.”
I’d never really thought about it like that. My resentment was still too strong to see him as anything other than a near-pathological over-achiever. Looking at him then, with years of distance since graduation, I had to confess, if only to myself, that I was beginning to see different qualities.
He was still The Iceman, but that didn’t keep him from being attractive, at least in the physical sense. My panties drenched themselves accordingly, leading me to carefully, subtly, cross my legs.
It wasn’t just me. All around, at least among the women sitting outside, I saw examples of seductive eyes directed at Booth. Some of them were getting to the point of outright “fuck me” looks.
“You don’t like him much, do you?” Tanna asked.
“That’s definitely putting it mildly,” I told her. “I’ve known him since medical school, and he can be one cocky asshole.”
“The hot ones usually are,” she said, sighing.
The buzzing in my pocket came as a surprise, though not one that was completely unwelcome.
“Duty calls?” Tanna asked.
“So it would seem.”
“Crap, for me too,” she said, turning off her own vibrating phone.
Getting back into my PPE, I returned to my unit to attend to the call, but froze in place when I saw who had been brought into the E.R.
“Hello, Dear.”
“Grandma?” I froze in horror. “What are you doing here?”
“I fell down, Love. And when the ambulance arrived, I had a fever, so they brought me here.”
“How high of a fever?”
“High enough to be brought to the hospital for one of those Covid tests.”
“Right, makes sense.”
Suddenly, Tanna and Jake were there, back in their PPE— I guess Jake hadn’t gotten to enjoy much of a break before being called back to the E.R.— and Tanna grabbed me at my waist, not hard, but insistent.
“Let me deal with this,” she said, with a tinge of concern in her voice. “We’re not supposed to treat our own family members.”
I waited at the sidelines begrudgingly.
“Another test?” Jake asked.
“Yes,” Tanna said, keeping me quiet with a look.
Booth led Grandma away to do a Covid test as Tanna all but held me back. I couldn’t believe she would turn on me like that.
“You couldn’t just let me give her the test myself?” I demanded.
“Of course not,” she said. “Do you want me to lose my license? Rules are rules for a reason. And on that note, we have to follow the full protocol.”
She took her phone out of her pocket and started typing on it.
“What are you doing?”
“Following protocol, like I said. Texting the department head, to let him know of a possible household member exposure.”
“You can’t. I don’t have anywhere else to go stay!”
“Too late, I just did,” Tanna said, putting her phone away.
“Judas!”
“Sticks and stones,” Tanna tutted.
She always had been one to stick to the rules, no matter how silly it could get sometimes. I knew she was right to follow them, especially during a pandemic, but I didn’t understand the rush. It felt like I was being marched to the principal’s office.
The department head, Dr. Smith, was wanting to see me right away. I had no idea things could work so quickly in such a normally bureaucratic institution.
“Please, take a seat,” Dr. Smith said.
I dropped like a well-trained Spaniel. The department head had always been a no-nonsense guy who demanded strict obedience.
“I hear your grandmother may have Covid,” he told me.
“Nothing is certain yet, but it is looking that way, Dr. Smith.”
“You live with her, correct?”
“Yes.”
“You realize that if she has to quarantine, you will have to move out for the duration of that time?”
“That’s usually the way of things, yes.”
“No need to be concerned,” Dr. Smith said briskly. “Some time ago we started a list of staff willing to accommodate others in a situation such as this. The program has only gained in popularity and demand, so, I was afraid there might not be a match for you, but it appears that it’s your lucky day. Because there is one person left on the list.”