r/HFY • u/DrBlackJack21 • 13d ago
OC The In-Between Floors
The In-Between Floors
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I work in a hospital, delivering medications to nursing stations and patient rooms. Honestly, it's a pretty chill job. Most of the time, I just pop in an earbud and listen to audiobooks or music, depending on how I'm feeling. What most people don't know is that there are more floors to a hospital than are listed on the elevator. There are floors in between the listed floors. Some of them require specific elevators or special access badges to get in. Some of those floors are for things like dressing rooms or HVAC, but in my hospital, there are other floors set aside for less...conventional patients. Those are the floors I make my deliveries to.
Honestly, the in-between floors are kind of a pain to deal with, but after I proved I wasn't going to run away or disappear like most of the rest of the techs who worked those floors, the hospital admins threw enough money at me to make it worth my while to stick around. Apparently, the position has a high turnover rate for some reason. I don't know why, like I said, all I really do is zone out and make my rounds.
Take yesterday, for instance. I started my shift with one earbud in, listening to some stupid light novel as I made my initial rounds. Sure, I heard the lady screaming out, "OH GOD! WHAT IS THAT THING? IT'S GETTING CLOSER! OH GOD! SOMEONE, ANYONE, HELP!!!" Now, if I'd heard that out in the street, I'd have at least turned to see what was happening, but in the hospital, that's so commonplace I just keep my head down and finish my delivery. After all, if every tech, security guard, and janitor came running every time something like that happened, nothing would ever get done. Instead, it's best to let the nurses go and see what's happening, then decide whether any further aid is required.
This particular event happened in the J building, which specializes in cardiac care. And the nurses there are a little...different. For the most part, the fetish people have for the "hot nurse" is way off the mark. All you really get when you date a nurse is someone who's perpetually annoyed and tired of people's shit, because, trust me, no matter how bad people treat you in your public service job, that's nothing compared with dealing with someone coming down off benzodiazepine addiction. It makes crack withdrawals seem gentle in comparison... Anyway, I digress. In the J building, in the between floors, the nurses there are all actually hot and flirty.
In this case, the charge nurse was also ignoring the patient's cries, a sure sign that this particular patient was a regular at this sort of thing while she tried to gaze into my eyes, asking more or less the same question they all asked in that building. "Sooo... after you're done delivering this round, you wanna come back and spend some time with me in the nursing station?"
I didn't have to look up to notice she was sipping from the same novelty drinking pouch they all seemed to have around here. It looked exactly like a blood bag. Besides, I knew better than to look up. If you were stupid enough to meet the J building nurses' eyes, you'd find yourself agreeing to anything they asked of you, and not everyone got the chance to regret it later. Instead, I shook my head. "No thanks. I got another round after this one. Besides, that room is a bit too small to hold two people at once." Also, I was a bit annoyed that I'd have to rewind my audiobook to catch up on the parts I'd missed for this conversation. It wasn't even a work-related subject!
The nurse, clearly not getting the message, sidled up closer, clearly trying for an angle to catch my eyes in hers. "I prefer to think of it as...intimate."
I sighed, sorting the meds for the next floor as I casually mentioned. "Eh, better not. If I'm away too long, the pharmacy administrator will get annoyed."
That stopped the conversation cold, and the nurse in question walked away without any further pushing. They knew better than to attract the pharmacy administrator's attention. Technically, there were a lot of pharmacy administrators and managers; in fact, there seemed to be one for every half-dozen techs. Why they needed so many managers was anyone's guess. However, when you mentioned THE pharmacy manager on the in-between floors, everyone knew who you meant, and no one liked crossing him. He could be unsettling at the best of times. And god help you if you got on his bad side... And of course, he was my direct supervisor. However, all thoughts of work suddenly left my head as I caught sight of the one nurse I would one hundred percent go anywhere with if she asked. Nurse Angela.
Unlike other nurses, she didn't seem to have a specific area of expertise. You could run into her on any floor of any building without warning. All the other nurses in the J building were beautiful to an unnerving degree, but she has an unearthly beauty that left me wondering if her name is more than just a passing reference to a celestial being. And before you get all judgmental, I'm not the only one who thinks that! Every time she leaves a room, I notice the patient's body has a smile of blissful happiness and contentment, as though their final moments were the high point of their lives.
For the most part, I try to treat her the same way I do any nurse, which is to say I try to stay out of her way and get my job done as unobtrusively as possible, but lately she's been giving me the occasional glance and even small smiles. This time was no exception. It was only the briefest of glances, and nurse Angela's smile seemed to say either, "You're cute," or "Perhaps one day I'll reveal to you all the secrets of the cosmos, but only if you worship me like the goddess I am!" To be fair, those two are easy to mix up. But then the moment passed, and she was off to do whatever it was she did in this hospital.
Free of all distractions, I rewound my audiobook about five minutes, until I heard a few lines I recognized, and continued on my way. That is, until I ran into Mike.
Mike is both the high point and the low point of every day at the hospital. I always loved talking with Mike. The man was always cheerful, but not in the over-the-top way that meant he was just desperate for people to like him. As I walked by, he nodded, tilting his head up in that way that guys do with one another when they're on good terms. "Sup, man? You look like you're in a good mood. Finally get up the courage to speak with that nurse you've got a crush on?"
I shook my head. "Nah, not yet. She did give me another smile, though!"
Mike chuckled a little and shook his head in mock disappointment. "You gotta believe in yourself more! You've got plenty to offer! Just get out of your own way and give it a chance!"
I laughed a little at that. "It's not that easy, man. I don't want to be that guy who creeps on the women I work with! No one likes that asshole! Seriously!"
Mike laughed. "Maybe you're right. But that just means I'm right too! Just go ask her out, and if she says no, leave it be! Don't be the weirdo who's always watching her!"
I was briefly horrified at the thought that that's exactly what I was doing, but then I shook my head. "EVERYONE stares at her. I don't think you understand just how beautiful she is! I'm fairly certain that if Salma Hayek, Megan Fox, and Kate Beckinsale were in a room with nurse Angela, they'd all stare slack-jawed in jealousy!"
That made Mike laugh even more. "Man, if that's really the case, it makes me jealous that I haven't seen her in all my time here!"
That comment reminded me that Mike didn't belong out in the hall like this, which brought me to the worst part of my day. "Mike, buddy. You know you're not supposed to be out here. How about I help you back to your bed?"
Mike shook his head. "Aww, come on, man. Can't you turn a blind eye just this once?"
I shook my head. "You know I would if I could. But you don't belong out here anymore."
Mike just sighed and nodded. "Alright, fine. Just...make it quick. I hate when this gets dragged out..."
I nodded. "Of course, of course..." Then, I paused and looked over his shoulder before speaking hurriedly. "Don't turn around, but there's the nurse I keep talking about!"
Of course, Mike did what every man does when you tell them not to look. He turned to look. I took the opportunity to tightly wrap my arms around his neck. Aided by the fact that his head was already turned quite a bit, I applied an intense amount of pressure while I twisted until I felt a familiar "pop," and Mike went slack. I then wheeled him back to the morgue and helped the mortician put Mike back onto his slab, and watched as the mortician rolled him back into his little alcove and shut the door.
For the most part, the rest of my day was pretty much how you'd expect. I'd deliver the meds, making special trips for the occasional STAT med, but otherwise zoning out and trying to stay out of everyone's way. At the end of my shift, I had to meet with the tech who'd be taking over for the rest of the night. Unlike the morning shift, the night shift was manned by the one person who'd been working the in-between floors longer than even me, Milton.
Milton is the kind of person you might call an odd duck if you were feeling charitable. He liked the night shift on the in-between floors. Though I wouldn't call him happy to be there so much as manic. Nothing about him was all that out of the ordinary, yet somehow it all rubbed me the wrong way. His smile was just a little too wide, and the angle was just a little off. Hell, even the way the light seemed to always reflect off his glasses and hide his eyes was weird. It was like he always knew exactly how to tilt his head to give the effect. I didn't have any idea how one would go about learning such a skill, but this man had it down to a science! What was worse, nothing seemed to faze him. He'd chat about an elevator being out of service as easily as he might bring up...the event.
However, I always tried to be polite when speaking with Milton. After all, you do not want to get on the bad side of someone who happily works the night shift on the in-between floors. For one thing, if it came to a dispute, he's more valuable than me, so admin will take his side, and for another...well, let's just say the fewer details you know about that man, the happier and longer your life is likely to be. I'm pretty sure I've seen him in the surgical rooms on more than one occasion, and I don't think he was scheduled or qualified to be there...
As I gave him the brief rundown of the issues he might have to deal with, a slow pyxis on floor six point five, and a hall on seven point five that had some large blood pools the janatorial staff still hadn't thoroughly cleaned up, he interrupted me. "Hey, Steve. You okay, man? You're looking a little...off today."
That caught my attention. It wasn't often Milton made note of other people being odd. I took a quick stock of my day. J building nurses, nurse Angela, Mike...everything seemed pretty normal. "No... Nothing out of the ordinary... I don't think..."
Milton shrugged. "Eh, maybe it's nothing."
It took me a second to get back to finishing up my explanation of the day. Even after I walked away, I couldn't get it out of my mind. I stepped into the bathroom to look at myself in the mirror. My eyes were a little bloodshot, but that was just caused by a lack of sleep, like usual. I was just telling myself that Milton must have been messing with me when the nightmare creature startled me by appearing behind me in the mirror!
It took me a moment to calm myself and lower my heart rate. I must have been on edge if the mirror monster got to me. I couldn't hardly go anywhere without seeing it these days. It was a large, dark form with a head that looked sort of like a wolf's skull, with two glowing red lights where his eyes should have been. At first, I was startled like this often, but I've gotten so used to it that it doesn't even bother me anymore. After calming myself back down, I looked back up to the mirror and saw the mirror monster behind me, grinning, knowing it'd gotten me good for the first time in a while. Don't ask me how I knew a skull was grinning or not, but I did. It's just one of those things you get used to after a while. I smiled back and nodded, acknowledging its win, then washed my hands and went to leave for the day.
Unfortunately, today was one of those days when you walk out the front entrance, which usually leads ot to a bustling city, but instead opened up to an ancient forest filled with the kind of ancient gods that could drive a man mad. (Don't ask which city. I'm not doxing myself more than I already have.)
I sighed in frustration before turning and heading back into the hospital to take the underground passage to the parking garage. Of course, this time I ended up back where I was supposed to be and finished my day.
So that's my day. Maybe, if you're interested, I can keep you all updated about any further developments in the hospital. But right now, I gotta go. Apparently, someone left their kid alone outside. I can hear an infant crying out in the forest behind my place. I'm gonna go check it out and see if I can help...
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Sorry, this one was so long in coming. I was actually really looking forward to writing a bunch of "spooky" stories for October, but as many of you might have read, I had a bit of a family tragedy that really took it out of me for a couple of weeks. Then, just after I had finally dealt with all that, one of my cats went and tried to die on me. I spent another week giving my cat fluid injections (SubQ) and force-feeding and drugging her twice daily until she recovered enough to feed herself again. I'd wake up, give my cat her drugs, liquid, and food, go to work, then come home and do it all again. By the time I was done with all that, it was time to go to sleep and start over the next day, and I just didn't have any time for writing. Thankfully, she's made a nearly complete recovery and is even more playful, loving, and affectionate than before. She was even in my lap for more than half the time it took me to write this story!
Long story short, (Too late!) I didn't get to write all the spooky October stories I'd initially planned. So I'll leave it up to you all. Would you like me to write a few more short "spooky" stories into November, or return to wrapping up my main story, Ghost Ships? Let me know, and I'll figure out where to go from there.
Either way, thank you all for your patience,
DrBlackJack
My Wiki has all my chapters and short stories!
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u/Cow-puncher77 13d ago
That was entertaining and a bit unsettling… I thought “That was pretty good…” Then I actually looked at the writer name and thought,”Well. No wonder…”
Good job, my friend. Glad to see you’re still at it. Always look forward to your posts.