My Safest Place

Not-So-Stranger

Nadine pulled her brown shoulder length hair up in a bun and took a glimpse in the mirror. Well today is a new day. You should smile. It was her first day as a volunteer in a new program at the Beverly Center Hospice. After a couple of deep breaths Nadine exited the bathroom fixing her badge.

"Hey Nadine, I got a new patient for you!" Sarah grinned looking around. "It's kinda top secret. I volunteered you...he is a hottie, but quite the grouch. Your kindness will tame him, I'm sure..." Sarah was a close work friend of Nadine's, she was the reception nurse at the hospice. The girls had grown close with all the hours that Nadine spent volunteering. She handed Nadine the clipboard with documents.

"You know the last top secret mission of yours was a bust." Nadine protested, some patients never fell for her kindness, so now she was worried about this grouch that everyone was talking about. She'd looked at the file and she couldn't believe who it was. Standing at the door her stomach was in knots.

She didn't know how she would play off not knowing who he was. The whole world knew who he was. In an attempt to ease the fluttering she took a couple of deep breaths, which didn't seem to work; but she went in anyway.

"Hello how are---" She went speechless as her eyes met with her patient's familiar green eyes.

So the breathing technique outside in the hallway had not helped, not one bit.

The man faked a smile, "Hello. I'm doing great, confined to these four walls and everyone and their mother walking through my door at all hours." His response was croaky and low and full of sarcasm. "So, listen...I hope you didn't come to give me any more shots. My ass can't handle needles anymore."

She covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, "Uh...Scott right?" She looked at the chart to make sure, that's what he'd put as his name. "Sorry about the shots. I'm guessing they are just routine." It was odd to call him that. She looked over the chart, the name she knew him by was different from the one on the chart. Scott R.

He nodded with a roll of his eyes. "Of course they are. So Nadine is it..." He shot a glance at her chest and then the badge. "Just do what you have to quick...I'm tired of this routine!"

"Ok, but I'm not a nurse. I'm a volunteer for the Spreading Smiles program. We volunteer our time to accompany people who..."

"Who is dying alone? Well, I'm not lonely. I'm just dying."

Sarah hadn't been joking about needing to tame down the hottie. "No one said you were lonely...Scott. I'm just offering my free time, so that you can have some fun outside these four walls. Now, like I was saying, I'll be here for a couple of hours this evening. So if you need me for anything you can just push this---"

"I've been here for two months already. You're the newbie!" He held his hip with a face of pain.

"Right, sorry. I'm just nervous; today is practically my first day with Cancer patients so..." She placed the clipboard down and checked his pulse.

He looked up at her "Not much to it. We just lay here moping and reminiscing about being out in the world, like normal people." She watched as he stared out the window. Drifted off in thought, as though he hadn't been out of his room for years.

She looked down somewhat embarrassed and saddened by his situation, "I'm sorry that you feel that way, Scott."

"Sorry all you can say? We have to have more conversations than this, especially if we are supposed to spend so much time together. Wait...we did have volunteers a couple of weeks ago. They didn't last long and the one I got was a bit nerdy. All she did was read to me like I was a child"

He pulled his gown up over his head. "Do you mind handing me that shirt."

"Oh my God!" Nadine closed her eyes quickly imagining he had nothing else under. She heard his laughter and opened one eye then the other. Tall, dark and handsome was all she could think. He had muscles everywhere.

Oh my god! Stop drooling Nadine. How can he have cancer?

"Well...you gonna hand me my shirt or leave me standing here in the cold?"

She snapped out of her trance and reached for the shirt, "Oh...um...right..." she stuttered, "Um...how about I start with telling you what we will be doing."

"I would love to know what that would be..." He rolled his eyes. There wasn't much that could bring him any kind of joy. She heard from the nurses that he was always kicking everyone out, or making stupid jokes and making them feel stupid. Apparently nothing made him feel whole, at least not lately. "Now I'm sorry, go on."

"I will be here during the evening; approximately four hours a day. Once school is over I will be changed to the day shift. There are many more things to do during the day." He wasn't saying anything. Nadine didn't know if Scott had gone silent, because he wasn't feeling well, or her information was being processed slowly. "Um...I found a park nearby; were we can take a walk. Plus, I heard you like music. There is a really nice Café down the street. Where they play jazz music."

He sat up with a surprised look on his face, "We? As in you and I are going to do this? How is that going to be possible? My mother specifically gave instructions to not let me out of this hell hole."

Nadine nodded "I can imagine that they already informed her about the program. If not we can always request for her permission if that is necessary."

"I'm a grown ass man. I can make my own decisions, thank you." He shifted on the end of his bed.

"You just made it sound like your mother was in charge. Are you always so pleasant?" She teased, "As I was saying before, I'm in a program that volunteers us to be a companion for someone with the same interest, we get to spend 2 to 4 hours with that certain person until..."

He groaned, "Until we die? Then you move on to the next patient. Typical, but I'll take what I can get."

There wasn't much she could argue on that last statement. That's how the program worked, and usually the volunteer was moved before they even got a chance to get attached to the patient. "Don't put words in my mouth, smarty pants. I was going to say until we are assigned to someone else. So, should we get started tonight? I thought we'd play a game of pool in the lounge, and then it would be medicine and bedtime. Cool?"

"Damn you sound like a nurse...with a mixture of my mother." He hopped off the bed, as if nothing was wrong with him. "Well don't just stand there let's go."

The twosome walked down the hall in silence. She couldn't get enough of his looks. He was slender, but muscular. His hair was a healthy, coarse black. Not to mention that she felt her heart skip a beat when his green eyes met with hers.

"Give me a second. I have to sign us in." She walked over to Sarah who seemed to be drooling from the side of her mouth. "Napkin?" Nadine teased, as she leaned on the counter.

Sarah giggled, "He's been here for two months and I just can't stop staring. I just can't believe he's here..."

"Yeah, neither can I. Who would have ever thought. There is nothing on the news..."

Sarah turned to look at Nadine and chuckled. "He is going to be so much fun for you. You get to spend your days with a Backstreet Boy...ok ex-Backstreet Boy. Anyone would give their left boob for an opportunity like this. Hell I would!"

Nadine smiled, "That is pretty extreme, but yeah! You were right though; he's got an attitude on him. He doesn't look that grumpy on TV." Both girls turned to stare at the tall man standing a couple of feet away.