Secret of love

Secret of love

It was really dislike at first sight: Dr. Caio was too arrogant for Laura's liking. But, as he had been chosen for her heartthrob, in the play set up at the hospital, the two made some kissing scenes... And Laura fell head over heels in love with the proud doctor! Caio seemed to correspond to that love, but hid it from all that romance. Especially from Yasmin, the head nurse, who was constantly humiliating Laura.

What strange secret was there between them that prevented Laura's happiness?

We'd been waiting for twenty minutes, and Dr. Peter was beginning to show signs of impatience. Normally, the chief of orthopedists was a calm man, admired by nurses and patients alike, but when he was directing a play with the amateur group at Hospital Augusto, he became aggressive and severe.

"That new doctor is quite impudent, leaving us waiting here like this!" I told my friend Helena, who had studied nursing with me and now also worked in the men's orthopedic ward. The amateur theater group was made up of various members of orthopedics, because these were the only ones that Dr. Pedro managed to intimidate and thus make them participate in the play.

Helena was sitting in a corner, memorizing her part, with her eyes closed. He opened them to face me and said slowly:

- You what?

I repeated my comment, adding:

"What's this new doctor like?"

It had been my day off, so I hadn't been in the ward when Dr. Gaius arrived.

"He's tall, dark, and quite charming. But he has an arrogant way of looking at people, which I didn't like.

"That smells like smugness to me," I said.

"Oh, I don't know, Laura. Maybe he was nervous about being new here. This sometimes makes people seem arrogant when they are not. Helena was making an obvious effort to be understanding.

"We'll soon be able to find out how Dr. Caio really is, when he starts playing the main male role in the play," I said. "There's nothing like amateur theater to bring out the worst in people.

I had good reason to be interested in Dr. Caio and also in her personality, because she had been chosen to play the main female role.

"It seems to me that the head nurse already knew him." I think they worked at another hospital before," Helena said.

"People are always finding each other in this little world of ours. "I wasn't very interested in the information. "Why is he so late?" Do you think you got lost in the hospital?

The Augusto was a mix of old and new, ranging from Victorian style to modern concrete and glass. It was said that people often wandered for days without finding the department they were looking for. We rehearsed our plays in a basement room, which was even harder to find.

- Maybe we should send a search team... - Helena laughed and, at that moment, Roberto, assistant physician on Dr. Peter, approached us. Rob didn't participate in the play, but he was always ready to help us, filling in those who were missing, due to work reasons.

"Hey girls, need some help decorating your parts?" He sat in a chair and looked at us, his blue eyes interested.

"I would very much like you to hear my part. Helena passed it to him. "Laura won't need any help; she is the type to decorate easily.

- I'm really lucky to be able to memorize quickly. The only problem is that I also forget what I memorized, just as quickly!

Helena started to recite, but then the phone rang and she stopped mid-sentence.

Rob was called, urgently.

- Damn it! Now you will have to go.

- I think so. He walked over to the phone. - See you later!

The Doctor. Pedro stopped tapping his fingers on the table and said impatiently: "We're not going to wait any longer for Dr. Gaius. He flipped through the pages of his copy of the play. "I intended to start with the first scene, but since he has such a large part in this act, let's go straight to the second act. Take your positions, please.

There was no stage in the room where we rehearsed, but we managed very well with an area marked out on the floor. I was standing with my back to the door in the middle of a difficult speech when I heard someone enter. It must be Dr. Caius, I imagined. Or maybe it's Rob back.

I stopped, waiting for Dr. Pedro to interrupt the scene and start over with the first act. But instead he ignored Dr. Caio and shouted to me:

"Start again, Laura. And this time, try to put some feeling and life into those words instead of repeating them like a rattle.

I was used to his criticisms, and usually I wasn't fazed by them. But that night, the presence of the stranger behind me made me nervous.

I started again. I recited my part with difficulty and stumbled over a complicated word. The principal threw the book to the floor and ran a hand through his thinning hair.

"It's a waste of time to go on like this!" You all should know your parts perfectly by now instead of always needing someone to blow. He looked away. "Now that Dr. Caio has arrived, let's go back to the beginning of the play. I bit my lip, feeling embarrassed as I felt my face flush, and turned to look at the newcomer. He was a slender young man, dressed in a dark suit, his hands sloppily in his pockets. Everything Helena had told me about him was true, especially the way he looked down on people.

I immediately disliked him.

"Sorry I'm late," he said politely, and I had to admit his voice was pleasant. - I. . . humm ... I was late because of a visit.

- I understand. - The expression of Dr. Pedro clearly showed that he did not allow anyone the right to receive visitors on rehearsal nights. "I think I should introduce you to the others." - He quickly went through the names of a male nurse, Helena, two other nurses and came to mine.

"This is Laura Mitchell, who's playing opposite you.

I wished our roles weren't so linked, but I did my best to smile and say,

- Hello.

I should, of course, be glad that we found someone to play the male lead. We had already tried it with two other doctors: one had been in a car accident and the other had gotten married, suddenly losing interest in the role.

Dr. Gaius looked me up and down. I was sure he noticed the grease stain on my jeans.

"I haven't had time to read the play," he said, "but I've seen it performed twice. It's a well-known text, isn't it?

"Are you saying it's outdated?" I asked sharply.

"Well... not quite like that. But this is certainly the kind of play that amateurs often stage.

Fortunately, Dr. Pedro didn't hear the comment, or he would have exploded with rage. He was busy supervising the assistant editor, who was preparing the stage for the first act.

I was taking part in the opening scene, and the few words I had exchanged with the newcomer had so infuriated me that I decided to show him that not only did I know my part by heart, but I was also a reasonable actress. But despite everything, I didn't get a chance to show my qualities, because we were going slowly, with the director explaining to Dr. I drop your markings and how your character should act.

At first, we were all disappointed with his performance. He was contracted and didn't seem to be paying attention to what he was saying. After a while he seemed to concentrate, and suddenly the play took shape and I had to admit that it was a pleasure to play with him. Later I heard Dr. Pedro tell him that he was delighted with the way he had interpreted his character.

"Have you done a lot of theater work?"

"Lately, I haven't had much time. A shy smile softened Dr. Gaius. "But I was in every play at school and even thought about making a career out of acting before I got sick from medicine.

"Is this your first job as a senior physician?" Surely you didn't have a lot of time to dedicate to acting when you worked as a resident, did you? I never cast residents if I can help it. It's hell enough running theater with people from the hospital, there's always someone missing due to crises of all kinds. I need to turn into a tyrant to get some order at rehearsals! He chuckled, and the two left the room together.

I put on my wool coat, wrapped a scarf around my neck, and joined Helena.

'Come and have a coffee before you go, Laura,' she suggested.

Helena lived at the hospital, but I preferred to go back to live at home after my first year as a trainee nurse.

"I will, it's a good idea!" I ignored the fact that it was already ten-thirty at night and I had to report early the next morning for work.

We started walking through the labyrinth of corridors and flights of stairs that would lead us to the covered walkway, linking the hospital complex with the nurses' quarters.

"What did you think of His Royal Highness?" Helena asked.

"He's a good actor," I was willing to be fair.

- Yes but.

- She stopped when we bumped into Roberto.

"Is rehearsal over yet?" How it was?

"It was good, though. Helena looked at him. "Laura and I are going for coffee, Rob. Want to join us?

- With pleasure! I've been very busy since that time you called me.

- What there was? Have you been called to our ward? Or the female?

- Yours. A boy fell off his motorcycle. He wasn't badly hurt; he just fractured his right tibia and he's all scraped up. To complicate matters, he was scared as a child and the night nurses were unable to calm him down.

"Was there any reason for such fear?" Helena asked.

Rob hesitated for a few seconds.

"I don't know for sure, but I suspect he's a drug addict. Still discussing the case, we continued on our way to the room where the nurses received their visits. Helena made coffee in the kitchen next door and brought out steaming cups.

"Are you on duty all night?" I asked Rob.

He shook his head.

"Tim will replace me, starting at eleven o'clock, thank God!"

Tim Walton was another resident on Dr. Pedro, and there was also a senior physician, James Turner, superior to Dr. Gaius.

I stifled a yawn and got to my feet. Being off duty, she had lazily spent the day, but she was starting to get tired now. The rehearsal had worn me out enough and it was time to go home.

"A little fresh air will do me good," Rob said. "I'll walk you to the parking lot, Laura.

I saw Helena look at him surreptitiously, but I couldn't read her expression. A couple of times lately, I had suspected that she was more interested in Rob than she wanted to show, but she was closed off about her feelings and I didn't feel entitled to intrude.

Outside, the night was beautiful, the sky covered with stars.