Apart from her normal duties as district nurse Shannon Pond took it upon herself to provide additional services, partly to make sure they regained their self-worth, but on occasions it was more than that but only once did it go beyond the professional.
One of her all too familiar haunts was Shaftsbury Towers in Finchbottom, a rundown modern day slum tenement.
When she got there she found, not for the first time, that the lifts weren’t working and so she had to yomp up 15 flights of stairs up a stairwell that stank of urine.
She was more than a little flushed when she reached her destination, short of breath and short of patience.
Her first patient was Dakota Hogan, a pretty terminally ill 19 year old girl, who was quite naturally depressed.
Shannon was almost 35 and very experienced in her field and she had watched many young people dying before their time.
Shannon knocked on the door and a moment or so later Mrs Hogan, the patient’s mother answered the door.
“Hello dear” she said
“Hello Mrs Hogan” Shannon said “How’s the patient today?”
“The same” she said blankly “I don’t know how to help her”
“Just be supportive” she said
“It’s hard though dear” she said putting on her coat and going to the foot of the stairs.
“Dakota! The nurse is here” she shouted up the stairs “the pretty one with the blonde hair”
Shannon smiled and Mrs Hogan said
“You can go up when you’re ready, I need to do some shopping”
On that day Dakota was in a very positive mood and Shannon had the easiest visit she had had with her, which improved her own mood, but she knew from experience that it was likely to be a false dawn and that there would doubles be darker days ahead.
When she reached the stairwell the lift opened and Mrs Hogan got out.
“Oh wonderful, they’re working again” Shannon said
“Yes dear, thank god” she said “How’s the girl?”
“You know, I think she’s a bit brighter” she replied
“Oh I do hope so dear” Mrs Hogan said
She was thankful that the lift was working again as she was feeling a bit leg weary.
Shannon said her goodbyes to Mrs Hogan and stepped in and when she turned around she saw Tom Hughes jogging towards the lift.
Although she was often willing to go the extra mile for her patients she always drew a line at crossing the line with family or friends of the patient.
But Tom’s mum wasn’t her patient anymore, and as she fancied him like mad, she pressed the hold button.
“Thanks” he said
“No problem, how are you? How’s your mum?” she asked as the lift began to descend
“Good” he replied
“I bet you are” she thought and began flirting with him but her flirtations were abruptly halted when the lift started rattling and shaking and threw the pair of them into one corner.
“I don’t mind if I do” she said and kissed him.
“I’ve wanted to do that for so long” he said
“Me too” she concurred and the lift started moving again.
By the time they had reached the ground floor and emerged into the lobby she was the picture of respectability again and they had a dinner date for that evening.
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