Night Shift.

The white crisp sheet turned down

My efficient antiseptic hands

Brisk

A practical uniform against my skin.

Two resuscitations, one death

A sad midnight death

Tonight.

Now to the woman

Who had been beaten

Her face was a

Map of pain, of control

Of fear.

She had an accent

She thanked everyone politely

For everything.

She was tired and scared.

Still my briskness remained.

I spoke in jolly three word phrases.

“Just a jab”, “open your mouth”

“Roll over now”, “Does that hurt?”

Under the fluorescent lights

So unforgiving,

My smile was mechanical.

She did what she was told

Her fear could be smelled.

I wanted the shift to end.

But then I spied someone

Standing at the door

Furtive and worried, lovely

With a bag in her hand

“I’m looking for Eve” she said.

“Here she is”, I said.

The woman hurried over

And knelt beside the bed

“Oh Eve, look at you” she whispered.

She took her face in her hands and kissed

Her mouth. A passionate kiss.

They were lovers.

I stood mesmerized feeling

Like a boof-head witnessing this intimacy.

Yet I couldn’t look away.

They stopped and looked at me

With so many expressions.

I saw their histories etched

On their faces

And I wanted to say

“It’s alright”

But I said

“Visiting hours are almost over”

I walked toward the door

And turned back to look

She was climbing into Eve’s bed

Behind her wounded love

Spooning her body tenderly

And stroking her arm.

Eve’s face relaxed

The fear was gone

And her eyes closed.

My shift ended.

My exhaustion was complete

They work us too hard and too long

Still I had to check

The lovers in the ward

They would be asleep spooning

And I would wonder at their life.

I opened the door and took a stealth step in

The curtains were drawn

Around the little bed

Then I heard them

Moaning softly together

Quietly making love

For comfort

For solace

For solidarity

In defiance

Of the bastards who

Had hurt the dyke walking home by herself

Doing no harm.

Gently coming together

To ease the pain

Doing what nature was telling them to do.

I could have danced a gigue

I was invisible.

There was a desire to look

To watch their moving hips

Their arching backs

Their noises aroused me

Much to my embarrassment

And surprise.

Instead, I backed slowly and quietly

Out of the room and

Shut the door on their sex

And went home to my sleeping

House.