Stay home, Stay safe
By: Precarious Positions
Tags: Covid 19, Short Fiction, Nurse, Doctors, Covid 19 Crisis

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“Stay home, stay safe.” read the digital screen on every passing bus.

It was cold and Ashley was waiting for her bus to the hospital like every other day. She left quietly, in an effort to not wake her grandmother. It has been two weeks since Ashley saw any of her family members. That is how you show love in the times of COVID-19, stay away from those you care about, especially if you are a nurse.

She grabbed her phone from her pocket to check the time — 7:20 am. Her shift at the hospital starts in 20 minutes, she was going to be late.

“Shit,” Ashley thought to herself.

It won’t be much of a problem though. No one pays attention to time at the hospital anymore. The only numbers that matter are the number of dead and diagnosed. A sign of relief as she saw her bus from a distance. Ashley quickly hopped on without making eye contact with the driver.

She looked outside the window, at a world so different from the one she had known. Empty roads, empty parking lots, empty schools. A place so lonely, even birds refused to visit.

The scene at the hospital was the opposite. Ashley rushed to her locker room, passing the choir of coughing patients in the hallway. Her eyes teared up as she opened her locker. A gift wrapped in red was sitting there patiently, waiting to be opened. “For Peggy — May you have the best birthday ever”.

Peggy died last week from complications related to the virus. She came in contact with the virus while caring for a patient at the hospital. 32 years of life, wrapped in plastic, ready for cremation. No family, no goodbyes, no birthday gift from her colleague Ashley. From brave nurse to unfortunate patient, to late Peggy Brown in 10 days.

Ashley puts on her uniform and heads to her manager’s room.

“Good Morning, Mrs. Watson” Ashley said as she grabbed the schedule marked “Ashley Miller”.

Mr. Singh, age 62 was her first patient. He was on a ventilator since the day he arrived. His wife kept calling to check on him. “Please look after him” she wept “He has never spent a day without me since we got married”.

“I hope he recovers, but I dread the day I’ll have to call his wife and tell her she will spend the rest of her life without him” Ashley sighed to herself.

Next in line were patients who were just diagnosed. Those were always harder to deal with. They came with tantrums and conspiracy theories of how to deal with the virus. The first one was interesting. A woman in her late thirties, presenting mild symptoms, most likely caught the virus at a religious gathering on Sunday as per the report.

“You’re wasting your time you know,” she said “I have the blood of Jesus in me. The lord will protect me.

Ashley ignored her protests and continued to take her temperature.

“Mrs. Olsen, you have a fever. I am going to give you some medicines through IV. Please be patient, we are here to help you” Ashley said

“It’s all a farce, I know that you are killing poor people to make room for the rich. How come the virus hasn’t killed any rich people? Do you think I am stupid? Does the virus go like — Hey there Angelina, I liked you in that movie so I won’t kill you! Nonsense! I want to go home back to my kids immediately.

Ashley didn’t respond. It was hard to explain the magnitude of this pandemic to someone who didn’t see hundreds of people dying every day. People dying alone, with no one to give them hope or comfort. Stuck in a ward full of strangers, wondering which one will die next.

Ashley left Mrs. Olsen and headed to the next ward. She could hear people clapping on her way out. Someone has recovered from the virus. A tiny ray of hope in this tsunami of sadness. This patient will go back home to his family, eat bacon and eggs for brunch, pet his dog while watching TV, face-time with friends during the lockdown. All thanks to the effort of people working at the hospital. Moments like this made thousands of dollars in student debts worth it. Moments like this made putting your life at risk worth it.

Ashley stopped at the food trolley to grab an apple. The lady pushing the trolley didn’t smile or acknowledge Ashley. That was the mood of everyone working at the hospital. Everyone was worried for their life, wondering if they will live to see another day.

She took a bite when a poster on the wall caught her attention.

“We remember our medical heroes that lost their life while fighting on the frontline. Your sacrifice will be remembered forever.

Navdeep Sodhi

Mathew Wilson

Tom Lin

Peggy Brown

Charlotte Wang

Ashley Miller”