'Smooth move, fool,' Edward berated himself, shaking his head and running a hand through his hair as he watched the brunette nurse, he now knew as Bella, disappear down the hallway. Leave it to him to knock a pregnant nurse on his first day at the hospital.
'She was beautiful too,' his subconscious chimed. He refused to acknowledge the natural beauty of the woman he had taken out with a door. She was expecting and likely in a relationship. This just added to his embarrassment. As if being the new doctor on the floor wasn't nerve wracking enough.
Edward Cullen had just made the trek across country back to his home state of Washington. He had previously made himself at home in Boston, where he had attended medical school, before he decided to come back home. There was something about the rain that just drew him back here. That and family. His younger sister could be very persuasive. So he compromised and took up residency in Seattle.
He had grown up in a little town northwest of Seattle, called Forks. His parents were well known in the small town and the family had built themselves quite a presence. His father, Carlisle Cullen, was surgical chief of the hospital. His mother, Esme, a proud homemaker, hosted many a charity gala at their expansive, white columned home. Their three children were brought up to be respectful young adults that were to make a difference in the world. Edward's older brother opened up his own development firm with real estate across the country, much of it geared toward affordable senior living. His younger sister, Alice, was a world renowned clothing designer with her own franchise of secondhand clothing stores geared toward teens littered along the west coast. Leaving Edward to follow in the footsteps of his father.
After having just been back in the state a week, Edward was jumping right back into the hospital life. His apartment, much to his mother's and sister's dismay, was still a wreck with moving boxes haphazardly placed everywhere. But, there was no time to pack when, like his father, he thrived on his work. It was what made him happiest. At 32 years old, Edward didn't have family of his own to come home to. His job was it.
Scanning the hallways Edward looked for any signs that would tell him where the hell he needed to go to get a rundown of the morning's patients. It seemed as though every floor was built differently in this hospital, so despite the endless training, this floor's layout was new. If he had been able to pull his head out of his ass he would have asked Bella for some guidance.
Making his way toward what seemed to be the central hub of the emergency room floor Edward immediately identified the nursing manager. Edward knew his key to success was the nurses. He made an effort to befriend the nurses, knowing building a relationship with them would make everyone's lives easier. A fact that some, holier-than-thou, doctors had yet to realize. Y'know how they say "happy wife, happy life", in a hospital setting nurses fill that wife roll.
"Excuse me, ma'am," Edward called out, trying to grab the woman's attention. He glanced at the badge, noting her name. She glanced up from the stack of paperwork laid out in front of her, smiling warmly at him.
"Dr. Cullen, I presume," she muttered. Of course, word of a new doctor got around fast. Edward returned a friendly smile.
"Yes, ma'am," he responded, reaching out a hand to shake. She met his and they exchanged a friendly greeting.
"Sue, if I may," he added, "Could you point me in the direction of my patients?"
With a small chuckle, Sue nodded her head, giving him a little, amused eye roll in response.
"Of course, young'un," she replied, nodding her head to her right. "Follow me."
Turning on her heal she led him to the large white board behind her, names and room numbers scribbled across it. She showed him a row of clipboards filed in front of it in columns, each column labeled with a number.
"Alright, doc," she instructed, pointing to the board she found his last name. "You are here, follow over to your number," she continued, guiding him through the process. "Looks like you are lucky doctor number three. All charts behind three are yours."
"Great, thank you so much," he offered. "I owe you."
"Anytime, kid," Sue smiled, turning to go back to her own work.
'Let's see what we're working with,' Edward thought to himself, grabbing his two charts for the day. He thumbed through the patients' records.
'Back injury and dog bite,' he noted. Should be easy enough. Tucking his charts under his arm he headed to treat his patients and start the day.
Edward didn't notice that he was headed back in the direction of where he ran into Bella. It wasn't until he caught a glimpse of the back of her head, entering the room he was just about to head into, that he pulled the charts back out. He noted the last name of the nurse on call. Swan.
He laughed at himself, rolling his eyes at his luck. First he knocks the poor mom-to-be on her ass, now he is probably going to make a fool of himself with her and the patients. Typical first day.
Edward made his way to the room, knocking on the frame to make his presence known. Walking in he noted Bella typing away at the rolling desk and their eyes met. Hers lit up with amusement and she shook her head infinitesimally, a smile playing at the edge of her lips.
"Good morning," Edward greeted. "I'm Dr. Cullen. Looks like you're having some back pain?"
The patient groaned in response, not even opening his eyes. Likely a side effect to the morphine he was given. Edward looked to Bella expectantly, knowing she would give him a rundown.
As if on que, Bella opened her mouth, "Patient presented this morning with severe back pain after a fall from a ladder. Patient noted a 10/10 on the pain scale. Per Dr. Cope's orders 5mg of morphine was administered while we awaited further work up. Patient's initial BP was 134/92, has since dropped to 123/84. Patient has history of disc herniation following an MVA in 2013, multiple disc replacements, as well as a history of uncontrolled hypertension." Bella continued, not missing a beat. "Only known drug allergy is to penicillin. Last imaging was an x-ray of the hand following a slip and fall six months ago."
Edward nodded his head, taking in what she was saying and coming up with the best course of action.
"Alright, let's order an MRI of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine. Monitor pain and administer morphine at current dose every three hours as needed. Let me know when imaging is complete and we'll go from there."
Bella's fingers moved furiously across the keys as Edward spoke, likely noting the projected treatment plan.
"I assume you're working room 123 as well," Edward commented, waiting for Bella to finish.
Once done she looked up, a playful smile adorning her face.
"Looks like today is your lucky day, Dr. Cullen," she quipped, playfully. "The best nurse on the floor on your first day, how could one be so lucky?"
Edward followed her as she made her way into the hall, he laughed loudly.
"I'm not sure, Miss Swan," he winked. "But, whoever arranged this greatness, I owe them coffee."
Bella rolled her eyes what seemed like the hundredth time. "Seems like you already know coffee is gold around here."
"Looks like it's a trend in most hospitals." He followed her into the next room where she was already greeting their next patient.
"Good morning," she beamed, "My name is Bella and I'll be your nurse for today. And this is Dr. Cullen."
"Good morning," Edward nodded, smiling warmly at the girl. She returned his warm smile with a mischievous one.
He did not like the way she looked him up and down. Edward wasn't oblivious to his good looks, but preferred to keep it strictly professional. Except with the older ladies that loved to flirt playfully, he followed their lead and flirted back. Only harmless fun. He noted the patient's age, 23. She was biting her lip now as she ogled him unabashed.
'Oh god,' Edward thought to himself. 'Figures, with the way this day is going.'
He cleared his throat uncomfortably, looking at Bella. She clearly was enjoying the exchange and was fighting back her laughter. Edward glared at her.
"Miss Denali," Bella quickly started, "Presented with a dog bite wound to the right hand. Wound has since been flushed for further assessment. Miss Denali was experiencing significant pain, noted a 8/10 on the pain scale. Doctor on call prescribed 300mg of Vicodin. Current BP is 117/65, no known drug allergies."
Edward nodded, moving to grab a pair of gloves from the case on the wall.
"Mind if I take a look?" he asked, reaching out for the patient's hand.
"Not at all," Miss Denali sweetly replied, eagerly placing her hand in Edward's. "Feel free to look as closely as you'd like."
Apparently that was too much for Bella and a small laugh managed to escape, which she tried to pass off as a cough. Edward's eyes snapped to hers in playful irritation. Of course she would get a kick out of this.
Edward looked over the wounds on his patient's hand, noting the shallow punctures. Not much needed to be done, fortunately, and he made a note to get Miss Denali discharged as quickly as possible.
"Alright, Miss Denali," Edward started.
"Oh, just call me Tanya," she interrupted, smiling suggestively at him.
"Tanya," Edward corrected himself. He tried to mask his discomfort with a friendly smile, but it looked more like a grimace.
"Fortunately, these are puncture wounds," he continued explaining his plan, "I'd like to get an x-ray just to make sure that there are no bone fragments or debris in the wounds. We like to let these heal from the inside out, so stitches will not be needed. I will prescribe you some antibiotics to reduce the risk of infection. I recommend ibuprofen or other over the counter pain relievers for any pain or swelling. Bella will be happy, I'm sure, to go over the proper wound care for the next two weeks."
Edward smiled, excusing himself from the room, "It was a pleasure meeting you, Tanya."
Bella was right on his heel as he exited the room, closing the door behind them. She laughed openly now.
"Do you get that often?" she asked. Shaking her head as she laughed.
Edward huffed in mock irritation. Her laughter was contagious though and it wasn't long before a chuckle escaped.
"More than I'd like," he answered, turning to look at her. He took more of her appearance in as she worked diligently at the rolling computer she pushed around with her from room to room. She was glowing, as they tend to say with pregnant women. Her happiness shined and her brown eyes were lively. She was naturally beautiful with her flushed cheeks and full lips. Her dark chestnut colored hair and slender frame, minus the protruding belly.
"How far along?" Edward interrupted his own ogling and met her curious eyes. 'She, she caught me,' he thought.
"Six months," she replied, the most beautiful smile spread across her face as she reached a hand down to stroke her stomach. She didn't call him out on his staring. Edward was grateful.
"Wow, not much longer," Edward added. "You and the father-to-be must be excited."
He watched as her brow furrowed and her smile dropped slightly. But, she recovered quickly and looked up at him.
"No, the father-to-be is not in the picture," she continued, "Just me and little peanut."
Edward returned her smile, admiring her for what he was sure wasn't an easy situation, though he didn't pretend to know all the details. He was about to comment when a terrified gasp came from Bella and he met her eyes.
All life was gone and she seemed to be staring just past him, the color drained from her face and her entire frame shaking. Panic lurched through his veins as he took in her appearance now, she looked like she was about to collapse. His head snapped around to find the source of her apparent fear.
Edward was met with the iciest blue eyes he had encountered as a tall, blonde man stood at the other end of the hallway, staring menacingly at Bella.
"James," Bella squeaked, and Edward turned back to her and watched as she began to collapse.
"Shit, fuck," Edward grunted, reaching out to catch her just before she hit the floor, taking them both down. And for the second time that day Edward found himself with a downed Swan in his presence.