8:53

A slovenly, disheveled man was being assisted into the hospital waiting room by two 

uniformed police men. He had been a habitual occupant and was intoxicated as usual. The nurse 

was in no hurry as she clambered around the hospital floor. Stopping only briefly for a scant 

cup of coffee. Hours after waiting the man greeted the nurse jocosely. This had peeved her 

immensely. There was so much to do and people who actually needed help. She considered this 

man to be an inconvenience. His actions were his own undoing and the reason he is in such a state 

of disarray. The nurse began to put on an extra pair of gloves disgustedly. Doing her best to 

make as little contact with this man as possible. It didn't seem to bother him. Almost as if he'd 

become desensitized to this type of comportment from others. He expected to be adjudged as 

nothing more than a homeless man looking for a warm bed and a hot meal. 

   She continued to check his pulse and blood pressure. They were elevated, but not enough to 

cause her concern. Had it been any other patient she'd suggest they'd do more testing, but 

without a second thought the nurse wrote up his discharge papers and sent him back 

to the streets jovially. The night continued to drag on and the once full waiting room began to 

dwindle down to just a handful of patients. There was a dithery child squirming in a chair. 

Desperate to break free and roam the halls. His mother held him and insisted he stay still. All the 

while she kept apologizing. The nurse would grit her teeth, but smile kindly. It was a child after 

all. She eventually called the patient and his mother back to the exam room. She then began to 

check his stats. She then pivots in her chair towards the frazzled mother and promptly asked, 

"What is the main complication? What am I seeing him for?" The frazzled mother began to 

yammer. The only thing the nurse could catch from the garble had been pertaining the child's 

nose. She shined a light into his left nostril. Nothing. She continued to shine the light into the right 

nostril. Upon inspecting the right nostril the nurse noticed an obstruction. With a small pair of 

pincers she removed the object which happened to be a fragmented piece of colored wax. It was 

very routine. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Just another laborious night full of combative 

patients. 

  The nurse began to rummage around the break room cabinets desperately searching for the 

foam cups so she could procure a measly cup of coffee. With darkened circles under her eyes 

she proceeded to reach for the coffee. Yawning vigorously she jitterily pours her a drink. There 

was a sudden bustle of activity that resulted in another nurse coincidently jostled her causing her 

to spill her coffee. The nurse began to shake her hand frenziedly in pain. The nurse hastily threw 

the cup in a near by trashcan. She proceeds to seize multiple napkins from the counter hastily. 

She topples down onto her knees to clean up the spill. Through all the chaos she catches a small 

glimpse of a patient being brought in on a gurney. They had the oxygen mask pressed against his 

face as another nurse performed CPR. Suddenly a torrent of blood up spewed through the 

mask. The man began to asphyxiate on his own bio fluids. The dying man look desperately at the 

aids bogglingly. Though he was hyperventilating the man adamantly began to mumble, "I must have 

nurse Sorren." 

  The young women cautiously approached the disheveled man's gurney fearing repercussions 

for what she had done. To her surprise the man held her hand gently. With a cacophonous 

whisper he asked, "Will you forgive me?" Despite her state of befuddlement the woman obliged 

the moribund man's query. With a sigh of solace the man nodded off slowly as the machines 

began to whir tumultuously. His cancer riddled lungs had finally relinquished putting his aching 

body and spirit to rest. Nurse Sorren stared bemusedly down at her watch, "Time of death 8:53 

PM." She covered the disheveled man's face with the blood soaked blanket and continued to 

finish out her shift. By the end of her shift she was beyond languorous as she listlessly fumbled 

around for her car keys. She continued to scuffle her feet down the garage corridor and into 

her car. 

  Stopped amidst traffic she waited patiently for the red light to flash green. Without warning her 

phone began to ring raucously. Startled she drops the cellular device onto the floorboard 

beneath her feet. Hastily she retrieves her phone and continues to answer. The voice on the 

other end had been that of her supervisor, "My condolences. I can't imagine how tough it must 

have been to treat and lose a family member. Don't forget to finish the paperwork tomorrow." 

With a loud beep the man hung up abruptly not giving the nurse time to speak. Bewildered she 

doubles back making an illegal U-turn all the while texting a colleague to bring her the unfinished 

paperwork. She impetuously veered into the hospital parking lot. Swerving just barely missing a 

fellow driver. The nurse retrieves the paperwork and begins to chat cordially before hastily 

driving off. There was a brief pause as she looked down at the vanilla sheathing that encased the 

patients medical documents. She approached the four way and halted at the yellow light. As the 

light quickly changed to red she opens the folder. There on the first page was his name written in 

black ink. She read the name out loud, "William L. Sorren." That happened to be her fathers 

name, but he was presumed dead over a decade ago. Puzzled the woman looks through the 

folder. As the green light flashed she turned onto the freeway only to greeted with yet another 

yielding light. Fortuitously, the disheveled homeless man appeared in her front seat. Startled 

presses down the gas pedal as he whispers on repeat, " Will you forgive me?" The impingement 

caused her body to thrash violently. As blood began to gush down her face she glanced at the 

clock and whispered, "Time of death...8:53."