Chapter Eighteen
Gina
I can already tell things are hopping in the Emergency Room. As I drove around the lot to find a parking spot I saw at least three ambulances pulling in. It’s going to be a long night. Oh well, let’s get going.
“Yvette, I didn’t know you were working today?”
“I hadn’t planned on it, but they needed some help and asked me to come in. At first I started to turn it down but when I started thinking about the overtime pay, I decided to come in.”
Yvette had a troubled look on her face that I hadn’t seen in a long time. I wondered what was going on with her.
“Yvette, you’ve never been stressed about money before, so what’s up with that?”
“Gina, it’s a long story…trust me.”
“Well, as soon as we get a break you are going to need to tell me that long story. I don’t like the way you’re looking at all. Remember how I was looking the other day when I came in with my neighbor? You pointed out how tore up I looked.”
“Yeah…so?”
“Well, that’s how you look today. I’ll see you in a little bit. We obviously need to talk.”
“Alright, girl. I’ll see you in a little bit. Triage is crazy right now.”
I see Dr. Alexander is in ER today. Father, give me strength! He is one of the most obnoxious doctors on staff. He never listens. Dr. Alexander is one of those doctors that diagnoses and treats the condition but never the patient. Half the time he doesn’t even speak to or acknowledge the patient or their family. He always deflects that to someone else. His bedside manner is awful. Hopefully he will be better today, but I doubt it. Some assholes never change.
Whew! One gallstone, a little kid with a broken arm (bicycle accident), one heart attack patient and a diabetic in crisis. Now that it’s quieted down a bit, let me see if I can find Yvette and see what’s going on with her.
“You’re going to have to stop calling me at work like this. I can’t handle it right now. We can talk about it when I get home. Yes, when I get home from WORK!”
“Girl, who are you slamming the phone down on?”
“Ugghhhh! He is driving me insane. I swear…”
“All right, let’s step outside for a minute. I see we can’t have this discussion here.”
Yvette is normally so level-headed. She’s the one who helps to calm me down. It’s weird to see her upset like this. I have my suspicions as to what the problem is, but I’m going to let her tell me.
“Okay Yvette, spill it.”
“Gina, I don’t know how much more of this I can take.”
“Quit pacing and talk to me. What’s up girl?”
“It’s everything, Gina…just everything.”
She continued pacing the floor again and took a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. I hadn’t seen her smoke in forever.
“I thought you gave that up?”
“I had,” she replied inhaling and exhaling deeply. “But with all the shit going on at home, it was all I could do to keep myself from going crazy.”
“What’s the matter girl? I thought you and Marlon were doing good?”
“We were up until a few months ago.”
“What happened then?”
“He got laid off. They had been threatening layoffs at the plant for years because of the slow economy, but nothing ever happened so we figured they was just blowing smoke again to keep from giving out raises. But this time they were serious, and Marlon was in line for the layoff.”
“Vette, you didn’t tell me anything about that.”
“You know I don’t really like to talk about the stuff that goes on with me. With all the folks we see day in and day out in the hospital fighting for their lives, the stuff at home seems to pale in comparison, you know? We thought the layoff would just be for a little while, but it’s been almost six months now. And there’s no word when and if he will be able to go back.”
“So it’s the money…”
“I wish I could say that was the problem, but it’s really not.” Yvette took another long drag on her cigarette; letting the smoke curl out through her nose.
“Ever since Marlon has been playing house husband it’s been a struggle. Yeah, money is tighter and every now and then he splurges when we really can’t afford it…but the worst part is his mouth.”
“His mouth? What do you mean?”
“I don’t know…It’s like the roles have been completely reversed. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate him being at home taking care of things so I can work. He was real good about it at first. He didn’t seem to mind cooking, cleaning and taking care of the kids. But as of late, he makes me feel bad for working late or not coming right home. He accuses me of emasculating him. I swear Gina, it ain’t even like that. I try to be mindful and not say things that make him feel like less of a man, but to hear him tell it, I make him feel like a woman typically feels in that situation – neglected, taken for granted and overlooked.”
“So is it the complaining that’s bothering you or what?”
“The complaining I can handle. It’s the name calling. I mean, when he feels like he has been slighted or I’m treating him like my wifey instead of my husband, then I become all kinds of bitches and hoes. I have never been talked to like that in my life - especially not from him!”
“That’s not good, Vette… not good at all…”
“I know! And he’s not even careful around my kids - our kids. On the phone or when I get home he’s right there in my face talking down to me and treating me like I did something to him. I never expected this…never.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“That’s the thing…I have tried everything. I asked him to be cool with the language and stuff especially when the children are around…but that just made it worse. If he doesn’t get back to work soon, I don’t know what I’m going to do. I know he’s upset and feeling like he’s not taking care of his family and stuff, but I don’t say that kind of stuff to him. I’m always trying to find the positive in the situation – always trying to build him up, you know?”
“Yeah, but while you’re building him up he’s tearing you down…that’s just as bad as being hit, if not worse.”
“Oh no, girl. It’s not like that. He’s just going through something right now. It will get better. I know it will. As soon as he gets back to work, everything will be fine again. I’m just going to have to be more careful with what I say to him. I’m going to try not to give him a reason to get so upset.”
“Okay, if you say so…”The pregnant pause between the two of us was more than awkward. I wanted so badly to say something more. I wanted to tell her what I was really thinking. I wanted to offer a solution to her problem, but now was not the time. Just like Zenobia, she would have to decide for herself when she couldn’t take that shit no more. If she’s not careful the words will become slaps and then it gets worse from there. I needed to break the obvious silence as Yvette continued to pace back and forth.
“I guess we better get back in here before they start looking for us.”
“Yeah, I guess we better.” Yvette threw away the cigarette that had burned out in her hand. We walked back into the Emergency Room not really saying much more to each other. My mind was troubled with what she had shared with me…
This really bothers me that she doesn’t see it for what it really is - abuse. Words hurt as much as fists, but she can’t see that…she will eventually…I hate this for her. Yvette is such a kind-hearted person and definitely doesn’t deserve to be treated like this. Hell, nobody deserves it! I hope it works out the way she plans, but it rarely does…
When Yvette and I returned from break, the emergency room was buzzing again. There was a three-car accident with several injuries. Sadly one of the passengers died – no seatbelt. When are people going to learn? I hate to say it like that, but the seatbelt is there for a reason. It’s a shame, too. The passenger that died was just a te
enager who was cruising around with friends. Someone failed to stop at a red light, and now their life is over. It seems like it’s always the innocent victims that lose their life and the assholes in the wrong live forever. But not all of them…we should be less one asshole sooner than later.
Wish I had time to decompress and relax, but I need to see if everything is on schedule with Zenobia.