In Good Hands

Written in Stream of Consciousness in 7 min. 34 sec.

Joshua Bennett sat down in a hard plastic chair after talking to the receptionist. An hour already wasted, he was looking at thirty more minutes in this waiting room. It was as sterile and void of color as all the other rooms in the building, and all of the magazines were at least four months old.

"What did she say?" asked his wife Alecia.

"It'll be another few minutes or so," he said, not wanting to reveal the extra half an hour to the already impatient patient. He patted her knee, "Don't worry. It won't be much longer."

Alecia slumped back in the uncomfortable chair, her belly bulging with child. She could not find a comfortable position, and the chairs were narrow -- so narrow that they pinched her thighs. Definitely not designed with the pregnant woman in mind, she thought as she slid into another angle to ease her back pain.

Joshua was beside himself with the wait. He didn't want to make a scene in front of his wife because she was already an emotional time-bomb with eight months of hormones built to explode like an atomic bomb at any given moment, but his patience was wearing thin too.

"I'm going out for a stroll in the hall. Want to go with me?" he asked.

"What if they call us in? We've been waiting this long, and I'm not going to wait any longer than I have to."

"Ah, don't worry about that. I'll let the receptionist know. They won't forget about us." He looked up at the clock. It was 4 p.m., and he knew they were the last appointment of the day. He walked up to the receptionists window and tapped.

The receptionist was a twenty-something named Irene. Although she'd only been working for Dr. Holmes for three months, she was used to the drill. Patients wait, and she takes the grief. As soon as she heard the tap, she got ready for another tongue-lashing. She slid the window open slowly. Here it comes, she thought. She hated getting yelled at, and she wondered if she'd ever get used to it.

Joshua gave her a cold stare as if to say, "I"m pissed," but instead of letting his emotions get to him, he calmly told her that they were going to walk down the hall. His wife, he explained, was having difficulty getting comfortable, and they wanted to move around.

Irene was relieved that he didn't yell, and she was more than happy to accommodate his wishes. "Just stay on the floor, and I'll find you with Dr. Holmes is ready," she said.

"Any idea when that will be?" Joshua asked.

"No sir. He had two deliveries this afternoon, and he's still not in the office. He will be here though, or he would have called and had me reschedule you."

After waiting this long, rescheduling was not an option for Joshua. He knew that Alecia would exterminate them both if that were suggested at this point. "We'll stay on this floor," he said. "Just come get us when he gets here."

Joshua started to walk away. He could see the relief in Irene's eyes when he talked to her. He stuck his hand in the opening of the window as she was closing it, and he leaned in so she could hear his whisper. "This happens all the time, doesn't it?"

Irene smiled. "All the time."

"Why is he like that?"

"Deliveries are always first. He doesn't want some intern delivering his patients, so he always does it himself."

Somehow that made Joshua feel better about the wait. He hated wasted time, but there was something about that statement that made him feel better. Who would he rather have bringing his baby into this world? The doctor or some rookie?

He went over and helped Alecia out of the chair. "Come on honey, Dr. Holmes will be here shortly."

"Good," she said. "I'm getting ready to walk out of here if he doesn't hurry."

"Nah," Joshua said. "I kind of like the old man."

They walked through the door and slowly exited the waiting room. Joshua took small steps while Alecia wobbled down the hall. He put his arm around her waist. "I still think it's going to be a boy," he said.

"Nope, I know it's a girl," Alecia said, and they giggled, glad that they hadn't found out. She stopped and looked at Joshua. "I just want it to be healthy."

"Somehow," he said, "I believe we're in good hands." And he kissed her softly on the lips only to be startled by the elevator door opening. It was Dr. Holmes.

"Joshua, Alecia," he said. "Come on into the office. I'm so sorry for the delay."