Thread: My Silver Lining (Ava & RocLobster)

Bills, bills, bills. James shared with himself, exclaiming a small sigh of frustration as he quickly skimmed through the various letters piled on his table. Marriage has quite a reputation for being able to change people. James still to this day felt that few people truly understood how such a 'sacred' and 'beautiful' occasion can ruin a persons life further down the road. Once maybe James was so naive, but that innocence had long since been lost. He had Lauren to thank for that, the Vicious fucking kraut! as he would so amicably refer to his separated wife. That pet name would be the first thing to come to mind as he sorted through his bills only to find another letter from his ex's lawyer firm. No doubt it was another summons for negotiating the distribution of wealth that would accompany their divorce. James new he couldn't stay locked away in his office much longer. He had been so neglectful of his patients of late. His personal life had started to consume him and infiltrate the one place he thought would forever be his sanctuary, the office he so arduously worked for. It was such an embarrassing situation that he had to share frequently with patients and colleagues that came to talk to him. His table was camouflaged with a wash of white, letters that he had redirected to the hospital address since he spent most of his time there now. Several changes of clothes hung on the ajar door to his stationary cupboard. Perhaps worst of all was the odour. It smelled lived in, musky. He could no longer afford to stay in a cheap motel thanks to his expensive wife. Her credit card bills could haunt the nightmares of even some of the wealthiest of men. Expensive spar treatments, exotic holidays, dresses, jewellery. She was an expensive woman to keep and likely to prove more expensive to get rid of. So now he lived where he worked. An unsanitary idea at first but James was given little choice. It was here or the streets and thankfully the Chief was merciful enough to allow such a discrepancy to him in James' hour of need. There were however conditions as one might imagine. He was left to do his own house keeping, forfeited his use of the staff beds for double shifts and wasn't allowed to use the internet on his office computer for recreational purposes. As far as he was concerned it was a small price to pay compared to having to live out of his car. A grunt tinted with anger would escape him as he tossed the depressing collection of letters down onto his desk. I'll deal with this horse shit later. he muttered to himself, briskly making his way across the room to take his white coat off the back of his office door. Hastily donning his coat James would check his wrist watch once it's through the left sleeve, noting his own tardiness and trying his best to rush around the room and collect his things. It would be a brief scavenger hunt thankfully, leaving him time enough to crack the window open in hopes that the fresh air will blow out the lived in smell. The last part to this ritual would be a quick face check at his wall mirror. Stepping over to face him from the wall would be his doppelgnger, a man he hardly recognised any more. His amethyst hues, hidden behind rounded spectacles, carried heavy bags underneath to betray his sleep weary state. His short brown hair strategically trimmed short enough to elude the embarrassment of bed head, he had hardly the time any more for even the simplest acts of vanity. He could barely match up to a shadow of the handsome devil he once was. With that depressing thought in tow he'd tighten his tie before making his way out of the office and beginning his rounds. He made his way slowly through his patients today, feeling that he needed to start making amends for the poor amount of effort he had put into his work these past few months. Because of his troubles he'd been relegated to taking care of low priority patients, though he saw this as more of a gift than punishment. He needed time to pull himself together and set his life straight. Dealing with high risk patients would likely make him crack at this delicate moment in time. So much pressure was felt on his shoulders it was almost palpable, physically pushing his shoulders down and affecting the gait of his walk. Several hours would pass before he came to his last patient. One he had purposefully left till last so he could devote the most attention to her. Rounding through the door into ward C James would put on as bright a smile as he could muster and make his way down the room. Spotting the end of his mother's bed he'd traverse the tiled floor as quickly as he could without running. Though when he arrived and saw the additional guest his smile became mixed with confusion. Sat at the side of the bed, hand in hand, with his mother would be a new nurse. A short, curvaceous woman who wore her uniform well and didn't seem to mind it's revealing nature. He'd adjust his glasses while rocking back and forth on his feet, taking a brief moment just to enjoy the lovely sight before he had to go in and address his mother's ailment. James would take in a deep breath before stepping up closer to the bed, offering a warm smile to share between the ladies and looking his loving mother in the eye. Hello mom. How're you feeling today? he'd ask in a low tone, leaving his chart board on the end of the bed so he can sit beside her and take her free hand into his. James! Oh my boy James I'm so pleased to see you. I'm doing well today, the nurses have been taking good care of me. Melissa's voice betrayed her age, having a slightly croaky quality to it. Though despite being in her sixties she was still quite an attractive woman. Her hair was coloured brown and the few wrinkles at the edges of her eyes and mouth did little to avert onlookers from her beauty. People always joked that James was 'All Mellisa, no Frank' when it came to describing their family resemblance.