One Night Stand

Chapter 19

Nicole felt a bit antsy. Dr. Driver had left to check if she had any visitors about twenty minutes ago and no one had come through the door yet. She knew the guys from 51 were off shift by now yet no one was here, at least as far as she knew. She had thought at least Morris and Mathis would come check on her and she hoped Gray might come by but she was still waiting.
Given she didn't have many options to entertain herself she flipped through the channels on the TV hoping she's come across something of interest. She found a popular crime show on one of the stations so she got as comfortable as she could and focused on the show.
About ten minutes later there was a knock on her door and then the door opened. She was hopeful it was a visitor but she didn't recognize the man who walked in.
He was holding a chart and asked, "How are you feeling Nicole?"
"Restless." She admitted harshly. "I'm not used to just sitting around with nothing to do."
He smiled, "I imagine not. How's your shoulder feeling?"
"What on a one to ten scale? I just answered that like half an hour ago, not much has changed." Nicole answered sarcastically.
"I see that." He replied as he flipped through the paperwork. "The lack of pain is because of two factors. One, you are a firefighter so I'm guessing you have a higher threshold for pain than most average people."
Nicole nodded, "That's true, what's the other factor?"
"The other factor is that you had excellent treatment in the field." He said then added, "Whoever cleaned your wound did a very good job."
Nicole smiled, "Well Mathis and Gray are damn good at what they do."
The man looked surprised then asked, "Amber Gray?"
Nicole nodded, "Yeah. I know at first they were both assessing me but Gray took the lead on actually cleaning the wound."
"Interesting." The man said. He didn't offer anything else.
"No offense," Nicole started. "But who are you exactly?"
"I'm sorry Nicole, I should have introduced myself when I walked in. I'm Dr. Ronald Gray. I'm the specialist Dr. Driver mentioned, I hope."
Nicole looked at the man in front of her for a moment before she asked, "You're Gray's dad aren't you?"
He smiled, "Is I that obvious?"
"A little." Nicole replied and shrugged slightly. "You asked me about Gray, referred to her as Amber Gray and you share a list name. Given all that I can also see a familial resemblance."
"Let's keep that to ourselves." He said. "I'm not sure Amber would appreciate any similarities between her and either of her parents."
"Fair enough." Nicole replied. She completely understood complicated family dynamics so she didn't question further. Her only questions were about her condition. "So what can you tell me about my shoulder Dr. Gray? Given you are the specialist and all."
"Well the good news is you only have 1st and 2nd degree burns. What makes your case tricky is the burns aren't just on the surface. The muscles in your shoulder were also burned." Dr. Gray explained. "Those burns will take longer to heal than the burns to the skin. It also increases the potential for infection not to mention the scarring."
Nicole sighed then asked, "Okay bottom line, how long until I'm back to work doc?" She hoped there was an answer to this question. She wasn't sure she could handle hi saying she couldn't go back to work.
"I have a ballpark idea, not a specific timeframe." He stated but he could see the fear in her eyes so he wanted to be completely honest with her. When she nodded he said, "Six months, give or take."
Nicole rolled her eyes but she was also relieved there was a timeframe. "Six months is a long time doc."
"Realistically for a normal civilian I'd be talking closer to a year or more to be back to 100%. But you seem to be a healthy, active person who I am sure is highly motivated to get yourself back to your normal life so I think we can work together to get you back in about six months."
"What's the catch doc?" Nicole asked.
"The only catch is that you have to trust me and follow your treatment plan." Dr. Gray admitted then asked, "Do you have someone at home who will help in your recovery process?"
"I live with my sister, her husband and their son. Between my sister and my nephew they will nag me endlessly then call in my brother in law and grandparents if need be. I also assume at least some of my coworkers at 51 will be on my ass too." Nicole replied.
"Good to know you'll have help around the clock. I may be a mostly research doctor but I know there is a loyalty within a firehouse so I'm sure the guys from 51 will come over anytime your family needs an extra hand." Dr. Gray said with a smile. "So here is what I'm thinking."