“Welcome to TM hospitals, Miss Arnold. I look forward to working with you, too.” Tony shook her, feeling her hand for as long as he could. It was almost as though they had forgotten about everyone in the room, as they were both lost in each other’s eyes.
It wasn’t until Tony realized he had been holding her hand for too long that he pulled away and cleared his throat. He saw the look on the faces of the other nurses and realized that it must have been awkward for them.
“Alright then, Miss Arnold. Get familiar with your colleagues and the hospital. I’ll be in my office. Feel free to reach out to me if you need anything.” He said and finally excused himself.
Lily couldn’t help but smile as she watched him walk away.
“You guys know each other, don’t you?” One of the nurses asked, and as Lily turned to give her an answer, she realized that all eyes were on her.
This was an awkward situation, and she hated awkward situations.
“I won’t say we know each other. We ran into each other yesterday, so we’re not acquainted.” She replied with a shrug and a nervous smile.
Another nurse came up to her and shoved her face in front of Lily. “You guys bumped into each other at a club, right? It was definitely at a club.” She shook her head and smiled mischievously.
Lily’s cheek burned with embarrassment. All she wanted to do was run away and hide somewhere.
“Okay, girls. That is too many questions. Let’s give the newbie some space to breathe. Don’t you all have patients to check up on?” The middle-aged lady, Aurelie Lorey, who had been showing Lily, came to her rescue, and seeing how the nurses immediately obeyed her, Lily figured that she was the head nurse.
“Pay them no mind, my dear. They enjoy gossip, and they all have a crush on Dr. Martinez, so…” Aurelie said with a short laugh, and Lily nodded slowly.
“I understand, Mrs Lorey. I can also understand why they have a crush on him. He’s a good-looking man.” Lily said nonchalantly, following Aurelie around the hospital.
“Good looking?” Aurelie gasped, her French accent coming out strong. “Dr Martinez is more than good-looking, my dear. That man has god-like features. I am a married woman, but his looks also smite me.” Aurelie said and laughed loudly while Lily stared at her with her jaw on the floor.
“Oh my God.” She laughed along and shook her head. She knew she would be having a blast at the hospital with talks like this.
“How long have you been working here? if you don’t mind me asking.” Lily asked after their laughter subsided.
“Since the start of the hospital,” Aurelie replied with a proud smile, and Lily gasped in surprise.
“Really? When was that?” She asked.
“Nine years ago.” She replied, and Lily’s mouth widened more.
“This hospital is only nine years old? I thought it’d be over twenty years old with its success.” Lily exclaimed, and Aurelie laughed.
“We get that a lot. Dr Martinez is the most hardworking and smart person I know. He did have to open a hospital in New York first before moving here to continue, so I guess he was already used to the system.” Aurelie explained.
It finally made sense to Lily, but she still applauded him for doing an excellent job with the hospital.
A few minutes later, Aurelie was done with showing Lily around and finally gave her a desk and paired her with one of the doctors she would be assisting.
The day went in a flash for Lily. She was convinced she had been paired up with the busiest doctor in the hospital, but in reality, that was how busy all the doctors in TM Hospital were. She also didn’t catch a wink from Tony as his office was on the last floor, and he only attended to VIP clients. She was on the second floor, seven floors below his, so bumping into him was impossible.
It was now 8 pm, and Lily was getting ready to leave as she would be having a night shift the next day.
A night shift a day after a new job? Her life was going great!
As soon as she changed into her casual clothes, her phone rang.
Lily picked it up, and fear gripped her as she stared at the name written on the screen. It was her boyfriend, Louis.
“Oh, God.” She sighed as she picked up the call.
“What the fuck is wrong with you, bitch? Why aren’t you home? You’re out with another guy, aren’t you?” He yelled into the phone, and Lily had to take the phone away from her eyes because of how loud he was.
“No, Louis. I told you that-”
“Don’t lie to me, you whore! Who is he? Who is this new guy that is making you stay this late? I have told you to never stay out after 6 pm! Your curfew ended two hours ago, and there’s no fucking food in this house!” He cut her off and continued yelling. She didn’t need anyone to tell her that he was drunk. She could hear the slur in his voice as he spoke.
“Can you just let me speak, Louis? Please?” She sighed tiredly, picked up her purse, and left the dressing room.
“I already told you, Louis. I now work in a hospital and will return home at late hours. I explained this to you before leaving this morning. Why are you being this way?” She explained as she hurried to the door. As she neared the door, she bumped into a wall… a body, instead.
When she looked up, her eyes widened in surprise as she saw Tony standing before her with his eyes directly on her.
“Miss Arnold. Is everything alright?” He asked with a worried expression, and before she could reply, Louis spoke.
“I hear a man’s voice. How dare you lie to me, you cheat?! You’re fucking cheating on me, Lily!” He screamed again, and Lily sighed heavily before giving Tony a sorry expression and running out of the building.
As Tony watched her run off, he could tell something was wrong. He made a mental note to ask her about it the next day.
Lily couldn’t wait for the bus since Louis was angry, so she quickly hailed the cab and rushed home. When she arrived at the front door, she said a quick prayer before entering.
She had barely entered when she saw a glass fly towards her. Without thinking twice, she immediately docked and shifted to a safer spot.
She was already used to this kind of behavior from Louis. As much as she hated to admit it, she was in an abusive relationship.
Louis had been her boyfriend for five years, and they had lived together for three years. He was extremely possessive, and sometimes, it got the better of him.
During the early stages of their relationship, Lily was in love with Louis and was convinced that he was the right man for her, but as their relationship progressed, she started seeing new sides of him.
He manipulated her into cutting all her friends off and even made her lose her job because he wanted to be in control of her.
Louis wasn’t a wealthy man, but he believed he could take care of her. He made her stay at home even though she was a qualified nurse, telling her that he could take care of her so she didn’t need to work. Since Lily was an orphan, she had no one to rely on, and after he made her lose her friends, she became utterly dependent on him, which was why she was unable to leave despite the daily abuse she faced.
A few months ago, his finances got tight, so she had to look for work. He got her a job at a club that a friend of his owned. It was easier to still keep his eyes on her even when she had to work all through the night. On days when she wasn’t working, she couldn’t leave the house, and if she did, she had to return before six in the evening.
Lily raised her head and saw Louis staring at her with red eyes and a broken glass in his hands.
“You’re dead, bitch!”