till' we meet again, william schofield

fifteen

fifteen

ONE WEEK, THREE DAYS BEFORE DEPARTURE

HIS NAME WAS ALFRED O'BRIEN. But told Rosine he preferred Al. Although these two didn't know much about each other, they filled a void within each other. Al had lost his daughter in the war— she was a brave nurse who got caught in the line of fire. Rosine and his daughter were similar in many ways, the same bright smile, same coloured hair, same likeable personality.

It was barely nine o'clock when Rosine arrived at the clinic. Only Betty was stationed behind the desk, filing her nails while checking the schedule. Rosine nodded her greetings, then continued to the Nurse's Lounge. She beelined for the coffee maker. Slowly and barely awake, she filled the filter with twelve scoops of coffee grounds, then filled the compartment with twelve cups of water. Sloppily, she hit the brew button.

"Rough night last night Ro?" A nurse teased as she walked to the lounge, grabbing an apple out of the fridge. She bit into it and winked.

"If by rough night, you mean trying to get a toddler to sleep then yes. I had a rough night," Rosine replied. The coffee pot made a loud noise, which told Rosine it was done. She eagerly filled her mug with coffee, basking in the bitter smell.

"I was hoping you'd get a piece of an English man before you left," the nurse joked. "Anyways, I've got a patient now. See you around Rosine."

Rosine felt guilty for not remembering the nurses name, or just not caring enough to learn it, but as she placed her behind in a soft, leather chair she couldn't find a guilty bone in her body anymore. She sighed, taking another sip from her mug.

Last night Timmy had a hard to sleeping. She didn't know why, but she did her best to comfort the child. Perhaps it was just a nightmare. But the child had sniffled and stirred all night long.

"Rosine! You're favourite patient is here!" Betty called from the lobby. Rosine sighed and chugged her coffee, desperately trying to get as much caffeine as she could into her body. She placed her mug in the sink, then went to see Al.

She entered the lobby to see Betty at her desk, writing in a notebook. Rosine grabbed a couple biscuits and a cup of tea for Al, and then proceed to walk towards him.

He had his reading glasses on, covering his aged eyes. He had the newspaper laid across his lap as he tapped his foot lightly. He glanced up to see Rosine coming, and a small smile spread across his face.

"Good to see you," Rosine said breathlessly as she placed all his snacks on the coffee table. She plopped herself next to him, slouching in her chair.

"Straighten your back before you break it— is that coffee I smell on you? A young woman such as yourself shouldn't need coffee at your age!"

Rosine playfully rolled her eyes, as she fixed her posture. "My nephew didn't sleep well last night, therefor neither did I."

Al tsked. "We use to give my daughter a shot of whiskey when she couldn't get to sleep. She'd be out like a light within the next hour!"

"Al... my nephew is three. I don't think that's appropriate."

"He'll be drinking three fingers in no time." Rosine looked at Al, disbelief evidently displayed on her face. Al sighed, "I'm only kidding kid."

Rosine was about to reply, but then Betty interjected. "Alfred, you're good to go now."

Al nodded, taking a cookie with him in his pocket. As he walked by he ruffled Rosine's redlocks. "I'll see you on the other side, kid."

Rosine chuckled, before going off into the file cabinet room to make use of herself.