January 5th, 2015

It was six in the morning my alarm beeped like a mother yelling for her teen to get up; I wasn't the multiple snoozer person, if I ignored the alarm there was no way I was getting out of bed. It was a very cold winter morning as I lazily made my way to the bathroom with my eyes mostly shut and smoothed my hair into a ponytail.

The small neat wallpapered kitchen overlooked the yard where I sat down to have a cup of coffee alone and saw the last thing I needed first thing in the morning.

"Really? Snow on my first day?"

Forced to wear the big fuzzy snow boots hidden in the back of the hallway closet I changed into a sweater remembering labs were uncommonly cold no matter what weather it was outside. Lastly I brushed my teeth, put a pair of white sneakers inside a bag and walked out into the winter wonderland only to realize I'd have to clean snow off my beat up 1988 red Ford Thunderbird before I had to make it to the hospital for work.

Science was never the most popular subject out there but it grounded my life and I enjoyed my dose of reality where I could get it. Science was the ever improving field and the fact I could have a small part in making the human experience better gave this existence some meaning. My chosen field of profession also kept me busy. The years of studying were never anywhere near the end and the latest discoveries kept the likes of us on our toes.

Of course this made it extremely hard to make too many friends because our day at work pretty much made everyone want to puke or depressed. Not really the kind of small talk people enjoy.

The arrival at the hospital was less than ideal because when I found a nice parking spot another car got in before I backed up.

"Jerk!" I said to myself watching the man in the black car hurry out in a long coat and messy hair like he hadn't even been aware of anything except himself.

The white floor, popcorn ceiling and sterilized hospital like smell made me feel at ease as I punched in for my first day at work; I couldn't help it, there was a slight smile on my face. They had a coffee room where I stopped some steps away from it preparing myself to not make a bad impression on my coworkers.

But the man who got my parking spot came out of the room with a coffee in his hand and almost turned over his entire cup on me.

"Uh... I am... So uh..." He said finally moving his eyes to mine shaking his head as if he'd seen something truly crazy and as a doctor that was a far fetched thing. We'd seen just about everything roll in through the doors of a hospital.

"Oh goodie, you again."

I was trying to rewind this moment to the point where I knew not to have this interaction because the guy who took my spot was Dr. Herzberg. The very talented and famous neurosurgeon, wait neuroscientist at the moment. So yes the one and only genius was a parking spot thief.

"What?"

"You took my parking spot." I said upset and stomped my foot at his inconsideration.

Was there anything more irking than inconsiderate brats? Well maybe but that's not the point here.

"Sorry?" He raised one of his eyebrows at me but I knew the sorry he said wasn't an apology but rather a type of English slang meaning; come again? What did you say? And boy was I mad.

"Excuse me please," I made my way to the nearest bathroom to hide in shame.

I wiped the snow off my boots and talked to myself in the bathroom.

"Really stomping your foot? How old are you? But he did steal my parking spot..." I pouted knowing I was still in the wrong though not feeling particularly too guilty about it.

After looking both ways I made my way to the room where I'd be expected to see the first patient nothing like digging in the job to forget about everything else.

The morning fiasco though had me wishing I could make it through the day unseen but how in the world did the renown Dr. Herzberg end up here in upstate New York out of all the hospitals in America? The Mayo Clinic, John Hopkins, UCLA, Mass General any of those should have been his top pick so why here in the middle of nowhere and why in the world America since he could have happily stayed in Europe?

"Hey," an intern looked back to say to me.

"Hi," I smiled politely filling out a patients chart.

"I'm..."

"Harlan," I said reading his name tag.

"Yeah how did you know? Am I famous or something? Oh God please don't say we..."

"Uh definitely not and name tag," I pointed to it with my pen rolling my eyes at his assumptions.

"Right I mean you're obviously not my type," he was cocky but hey what was a guy to do to save his ego?

"Of course," I almost chuckled.

"You didn't go to Hopkins did you?"

"Um no."

"Yale?"

"Nope."

"Columbia? UCLA?"

"None of those either, why?" he pressed on and I started to wonder what was up with all the questions, I was only nurse after all.

"See I told you guys, she's the quota filler," he told the two other nurses with him.

"Quota filler?"

"Yeah you're the low income girl, the one who graduated from an unknown school but magically got picked to be in the top 5."

"Top 5 of what?"

"Oh you're playing dumb, not really a good strategy if you wanna win you know?" Harlan left with his buddies and I was left with two questions? Win what? And how did I get into this competition?

Best first day ever right but it was true what Harlan said, I wasn't rich then another doctor walked in the room with Dr. Herzberg.

"Is she one of the five?" The older doctor asked Dr. Herzberg.

"I wouldn't know, we haven't met," Dr. Herzberg said briefly looking my way denying our earlier interaction.

"I'm Dr. Fitzgibbons and you are?"

"Stella," I responded and we shook hands.

"Yes your name is here and I hope you're ready because we have many patients on your list and this is what will decide your future with us."

"Wait um what future?"

"Well Stella walk with me and I'll explain to you what we'll be expecting from you," Dr. Fitzgibbons walked and I followed him while Dr. Herzberg stayed put watching us walk off typing on his phone.

Apparently Dr. Fitzgibbons and Dr. Herzberg we're going to take one only nurse to work with them during some secret trial and this someone would be accredited any success achieved during it. Dr. Fitzgibbons and Dr. Herzberg we're teaming up and anyone they chose for their team would be as good as destined for greatness, job advancement and pure scientifical wonder. So for the love of science I was going to have make my peace with the arrogant Dr. Herzberg before it cost me the job.

Except there was one very insignificant problem, it was next to impossible for me to hide my dislike for someone.

Dr. Fitzgibbons left me at the reception where the many Neuro patients waited for us, the five nurses to run tests on them. These people had come from all over America, dislocated from their home to make it into this trial which meant they were cooking up something big in the lab. And whoever excelled with the patients and the work would win the job and although I wasn't very keen on competition I was dying to know what was their mystery trial was about.

As per usual I'd get the one patient who wasn't sleepy enough to take some zzzs so I could do the EEG. There was also the unending inquirer, every little detail you had to stop and explain before continuing. The worst though was the claustrophobic, that poor soul suffered so much to even get on the table to do the MRI I usually spent double the time it normally took.

"Oh I'm sorry," Dr. Herzberg bumped into me as I came out of the bathroom.

"Right."

"Sorry but did I hurt you?" He looked at me strangely smirking as if I had no reason to be annoyed with him.

"No you didn't hurt me, I'm fine."

"Good, I wouldn't want to injure one of the five on my first day here," he fixed his white lab coat and I couldn't put my finger on the kind of guy he was. First he took my parking spot, then he apologized for bumping into me but earlier he denied we had met, what was wrong with this guy?

"First day?"

"Fresh off Amsterdam."

"From Amsterdam to Syracuse, that's a big change."

"The job takes me many places, mostly Europe but I've been looking to settle."

"I um settle?"

"Yes a quieter life, some peace from busy cities..."

"Then I guess you're in the right place, welcome to Syracuse," I was caught off guard by having this specific similarity that ruled much of my life with him.

"Thank you and what are you..." He and I talked at the same time mixing our words with each other's and he kind of smiled. "Go ahead," he was polite.

"My shift ended so good luck on your first day."

"Thanks, positive thinking never hurt anyone," he scratched his forehead.

"Yeah bye doc," I said under my breath laughing at the weird conversation between the quota filler and the parking spot thief.

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No part, character, names, plot, setting, conflict or resolution, point of view, theme or symbolism of this story may be replicated.

Copyright: All Rights Reserved to A. Sena Gomes.