First Impressions

 

By

 

Jan

 

Chapter 1

 

 

Why the hell did everyone have to squash into a lift as if it was the last one of the day?  Packed in like a sardine, then mile after mile of seemingly endless corridors. Damn it! How she hated hospitals. Why the hell couldn't grandmother have been booked into a private nursing home? Nikki thought irritably. And did she have to be almost on the top floor?

 

She reached the nurses’ station to find it manned...or should that be personned...by a slender dark-haired figure laboriously scribbling away. She stopped in front of her and, when she didn't look up immediately, cleared her throat noisily.

 

"I won't keep you a moment." Came a lilting Scottish reply as she carried on writing. "Sorry, about that," she apologised as she laid down her pen. "How can I help you?"

 

Nikki’s initial reaction was to admonish the nurse for keeping her waiting but as she looked up and a pair of warm, green eyes met hers, she felt as if she had been physically punched in the stomach.

 

"Have you come to visit someone?" the nurse enquired pleasantly when Nikki didn’t answer.

 

"My grandmother," she said almost stupidly. "Could you tell me where to find her?"

 

"What name is it?"

 

"I’m Nikki Wade."

 

"Your grandmother's name," the nurse replied patiently.

 

"Sorry," Nikki grinned inanely. "It's Emma...Emma Wade."

 

"She's in room five. Turn right at the end of the corridor." She smiled at Nikki causing her stomach to turn somersaults.

 

"Thank you, Miss... er...nurse." She mentally slapped her own face for acting like a schoolgirl.

 

"Sister Stewart," she supplied.

 

"Well, I'd better go." She smiled then marched off the way she had come.

 

"Miss Wade," a silky voice stopped Nikki in her tracks. "It's the other way."

 

Nikki cursed herself under her breath for being such an idiot and, as she walked passed her, felt sure she saw Sister Stewart trying to stifle a smile.

 

She followed the sister’s directions and found her grandmother occupying a room, along with three other elderly ladies.

 

"Nikki, how lovely to see you," Emma Wade beamed when she saw her granddaughter.

 

"Hi, Gran." Nikki kissed her grandmother’s cheek then held out the bouquet of flowers she had been carrying. “I got you these.”

 

"They're lovely.  Put them on the cupboard for now, then you can go and find a vase before you leave."

 

Nikki suppressed a smile. Even on her sickbed she was her usual bossy self. She did as she was bid then pulled up a chair and sat beside the bed. “Come on then, what were you doing that you shouldn’t have been?”

 

Emma looked at her guiltily. “I climbed onto a chair to get something from the top shelf and I must have over-stretched. The next thing I knew I was on the floor.”

 

“With a busted hip and ankle. I’ve told you about climbing before. Maybe now you’ll listen to me,” Nikki admonished her.

 

"What are you doing here anyway?” Emma asked her almost accusingly. “I thought you were in America for another few weeks."

 

"When Maddy rang and told me you were in hospital I flew back as soon as I could but I have to go back first thing on Monday. If I could have re-scheduled my meetings I would have been here days ago." Maddy had been with her grandmother for almost twenty years. She had initially been employed as Nikki's nanny but when she outgrew the need for a nanny, she became her grandmother's housekeeper.

 

“I told Maddy not to bother you."

 

"I'm glad she did," she replied, then thought selfishly, I'd never have met Sister Stewart otherwise. Imagine being given a bed bath by her! She coloured as the object of her fantasy appeared in the doorway.

 

"I see you found her," Sister Stewart said with a smile then crossed to check one of the other patients before leaving the ward.

 

"Isn't she a lovely girl?" Emma asked as the young woman left.

 

She's absolutely gorgeous, Nikki thought to herself but said aloud, "I hadn't noticed."

 

"You do surprise me. Pretty girls don't usually escape your notice," Emma remarked knowingly, her granddaughter having made her sexual preferences known to her from an early age. When her son and his wife – Nikki’s father and mother – had found out their daughter was gay they had disowned her but Emma had sided with Nikki and given them an ultimatum. Consequently their family had disowned them both!  "Take the flowers and go and find a vase. If you flash your most beautiful smile, maybe you can get one of the nurses to arrange them for you."

 

Nikki raised her eyebrows to the ceiling. Her grandmother was totally outrageous sometimes but she thought she'd better do as she was told or she'd never hear the end of it. "Alright, bossy," she replied affectionately.

 

She picked up the flowers and made her way back down the corridor. There was a young nurse standing by the desk speaking on the telephone. She pointed questioningly at the flowers and received a hand signal in response directing her round a corner to the right. She smiled her thanks and as she rounded the corner bumped into Sister Stewart coming in the opposite direction.

 

"We meet again," the Sister observed pleasantly. "Are those for me or do you want a vase?"

 

"A…a vase, please," Nikki stammered. Why did she have this effect on her? Was it the uniform? She knew some men were turned on by a woman in a nurses uniform, whether they were real nurses or not, but she'd never imagined she could be like that.

 

"I'll see if I can find one for you," she smiled and walked back the way she had come, Nikki’s eyes following her all the way. She had a great pair of legs, even in flat shoes. She disappeared through an open doorway, only to reappear a few seconds later holding a vase half filled with water.

 

"I don't suppose you've time to arrange them for me?" Nikki asked flashing what she hoped was her most beautiful smile as per her grandmother's instructions.

 

"Of course. Come through." She turned on her heel and led the way into a small sluice area.  "These are beautiful. They must have cost a fortune," the sister remarked as she removed the cellophane from the flowers and began placing them in the vase.

 

Nikki watched her in silence, her eyes never leaving the woman’s face. The beauty of the flowers paled in comparison with her. Selfishly, she hoped her grandmother was going to be in hospital for a long while then she would have to keep visiting her and maybe going back to the States so soon wasn't such a good idea either.

 

"Do you fancy going out for a drink one night?" She cringed and prayed she hadn't spoken the question aloud but, as Sister Stewart’s hands momentarily stilled, she knew she had.  "To...to talk about my grandmother," she stammered an excuse. "If you'd rather not, I understand. You’re probably busy and you don’t know me from Adam or Eve." She grimaced at her feeble attempt at a joke.

 

"It’s ages since I had a girlie night out. I'd love to, thanks. As long as it's not tonight," she smiled across at her." And your grandmother has told me all about you," she added mischievously.

 

Nikki grimaced. A ‘girlie night out’? What had the old girl told her?

 

Sister Stewart answered her thoughts as if she had read her mind. "Don't worry. Nothing too damning. There, that's the best I can do, I'm afraid. I'm not very artistic."

 

"They look fine to me, thanks." As Nikki took the vase from her their fingertips brushed. She looked at her for a long while before muttering "I'd better be going. Gran will be wondering where I am." With a last lingering look she reluctantly left the room.

 

Nikki stayed with her grandmother for another hour, listening only half-heartedly to what she was saying. She couldn't get Sister Stewart – What the hell was her first name? – out of her mind.

 

She stood up to leave. "I'll come and see you tomorrow, Gran," she promised as she bent and kissed Emma's cheek. "Do you want anything bringing?"

 

"Maddy said she'd come and see me. Would you bring her? It would save her having to do all that travelling by bus."

 

With a last final wave Nikki left her grandmother. She was hoping for a glimpse of Sister Stewart before she left but to her dismay she wasn’t anywhere in sight.

 

It was two days later before she saw her again. As she walked down the corridor, she couldn’t resist a smile forming on her lips when she saw the sister standing at the nurses’ station.

 

“Hello again,” Sister Stewart smiled as Nikki reached her.

 

“Hi,” Nikki returned her smile. “I didn’t see you last night.”

 

“Day off and boy was I ready for it. I was…” She was interrupted by the telephone ringing. “Excuse me.” She picked up the receiver and placed her hand over the mouthpiece. “Could I have a word with you before you leave, Miss Wade, about your grandmother’s convalescence?” Nikki nodded. “I’ll see you later then. I'll be in my office at the end of the corridor,” she informed her then smiled mischievously. “The other end. Hello, sorry about that,” she spoke into the mouthpiece effectively dismissing Nikki.

 

After visiting was over, Nikki’s heart was singing as she made her way to the office Sister Stewart had indicated. She knocked on the door and received a brusque 'Come in' in response. The last time she had been this excited was when her father had bought her a pony for her tenth birthday. However, the occupant of the office wasn't Sister Stewart, but a woman twice her age, twice her size and only half as pretty.

 

"Miss Wade?" she enquired pleasantly.

 

Nikki nodded. Where the hell was she?

 

"Please, take a seat. I'm Staff Nurse Bennett," she was saying. "Helen Stewart had to dash off...an emergency, so she asked me to give you this and have a word with you about your grandmother." She held out a folded piece of paper.

 

"Emergency?" Nikki repeated, as she took the paper from her. She unfolded it and smiled as she read it. It bore the words 'Call me', then a telephone number and was signed 'Helen Stewart'. She refolded the paper and pushed it into her pocket. She'd call as soon as she got back to the car.

 

"Yes, one of her children has had an accident, so she had to go home," Nurse Bennett was saying. "Right, now I just need to have a word with you about your grandmother."

 

The woman's voice became just a buzz in Nikki's ears as she tried to unravel her thoughts. So, her name was ‘Helen’ for all the good that would do now. She had children. She was someone's mother, which probably meant she was also someone's wife. She hadn't noticed a wedding ring on her finger but then she hadn't got as far as looking at her hands.

 

"We'll just keep your grandmother in for a few more days observation then you can take her home."  Staff Nurse Bennett smiled at her expectantly.

 

What had the woman been saying? Was she supposed to make some comment? She took a deep breath and hoped for the best. "If you let me know when, I'll make the arrangements," she replied then stood up, thanked her and left the office.

 

Just my luck, she thought, as she once more played sardines in the lift, as soon as I meet the woman of my dreams she has a husband and kids in tow. Even if there wasn't a husband, she still had kids and she wasn't prepared to play stepmother to someone else's brood. She took the piece of paper from her pocket and looked at it with a wry smile. It was a pity though. As she left the lift she screwed up the paper and tossed it into a bin.

 

 

Helen drove her Peugeot onto the driveway, a worried frown masking her lovely face. Twice in the last two weeks, she had been forced to finish her shift early, because eight-year-old Tommy, the eldest, had been in trouble. The first time, he had been in a fight at school and tonight, the child-minder had telephoned to say he had fallen out of a tree.

 

"Auntie Helen! Auntie Helen!" Five-year-old twins, Jemma and Jamie, danced around her as she entered the house. "Tommy climbed a tree and almost fell on me," Jamie informed her importantly.

 

"And there was blood everywhere," Jemma offered, ever the gory one.

 

Mrs Morrison, the child-minder, bustled in from the kitchen. "Don't exaggerate, Jemma. You'll frighten your Auntie to death."

 

"Where is he?" Helen sighed resignedly.

 

"I kept him in the kitchen with me. I didn't want him going to sleep. Nasty things... bumps on the head."

 

Helen nodded in agreement then went into the kitchen where her nephew was sitting at the table looking sorry for himself.

 

"What have you been up to, young man?" She asked gently as she put her hand under his chin and tilted his head back. There was a nasty graze on his forehead, but not bad enough for there to be blood everywhere as Jemma had described. "You'll live," she reassured him, tousling his hair and causing him to wince.

 

"The doctor said it was nothing serious but better to be safe than sorry," Mrs Morrison said wisely.

 

"Look, why don't you take advantage of the fact that I'm home early and have an early night yourself?” Helen suggested thoughtfully.

 

"If you're sure you wouldn't mind,” Mrs Morrison replied gratefully. “The twins have had their tea and I've left you a casserole to warm up."

 

"Of course I don't mind. I'm sorry you keep having problems, but if a certain party would keep out of trouble." She looked pointedly at her nephew who had the grace to look sheepish.

 

"Don't worry about it. My own boys were always getting into scrapes when they were little but they haven't turned out too badly."

 

Helen smiled. Mrs Morrison really was a treasure. 

 

"Give them time," Mrs Morrison murmured softly. "They're still missing their mum and dad."

 

Helen's eyes filled with tears. Even after six months, she still missed her brother, Tom, and Denise, his wife, so it must be worse for the three children, Tommy especially. He had been riding in the back seat of his parent's car when it had been involved in a crash. Miraculously Tommy had only received a few cuts and bruises but his parents had been killed instantly, and she, Helen, had become an instant mother.

 

She knelt down in front of her eldest nephew. "How about a glass of milk and a chocolate biscuit?"

 

Tommy nodded uncertainly and his bottom lip trembled as he flung himself at her, twining his arms around her neck.

 

"Is Tommy alright, Auntie Helen?" Jemma asked concerned.

 

"He'll be fine, love," Helen reassured her. She untangled Tommy's arms from her neck and stood up. "Why don't we all have a glass of milk and a chocolate biscuit?" she suggested brightly.

 

"I'll leave you to it then," Mrs Morrison bustled in wearing her coat and carrying a shopping bag.  "See you first thing in the morning. 'Night all."

 

"Goodnight, Mrs Morrison," they all chorused as she went out.

 

Helen looked around the three expectant faces. "Right now, who wants a glass of strawberry milk?"

 

Jemma and Jamie clapped their little hands gleefully. "Me, please, Auntie Helen?"

 

Helen pouted playfully at Tommy, until he smiled at her and nodded. She placed her arm around his shoulder and hugged him to her. "Come on, then, and when I've had something to eat and washed up, we can play a game." She momentarily regretted her idea when they all shouted out their favourite game, but Tommy seemed to have already forgotten his mishap, so that was all that mattered.

 

Once the children were tucked up in bed, after several board games, Helen dropped wearily on to the settee. It was hard work, a full time job and the responsibility for three children, and it would have been impossible had it not been for Mrs Morrison's help. Of course, she was paid to look after the children but there weren't many evenings when she didn't leave a meal ready for Helen to microwave when she came home from the hospital.

 

As she thought about the hospital, a mental picture of Nikki Wade sprang into her mind. She hoped May Bennett had passed on her message and that Nikki would telephone. Women friends of her own age, she was almost thirty, were thin on the ground and, as she’d told Nikki, it was ages since she’d had a girlie night out. She really was beautiful and her grandmother obviously thought the sun shone out of her. Emma had also made a point of telling her Nikki was single but gay and, as she put it, ever likely to be unless she put romance before work for a change, and when she did go out it was with empty-headed bimbos.

 

Helen's own romantic life was non-existent since she had become the children's guardian. She had been engaged, but when Colin realised he would have to take on a ready-made family he had called off their engagement. The children more than made up for Colin's absence, but she did sometimes miss adult conversation in the evenings. On the few occasions she had gone out Mrs Morrison, who lived alone, had stayed the night. She also stayed over when Helen had to work late, though the hospital had been really co-operative with her and, unless it was an emergency, she rarely had to work a night shift. If Tommy got into any more trouble though she might just have to leave the hospital and get a part-time job during school hours.

 

Nikki Wade still hadn't telephoned when she left for work the following morning. Helen was disappointed but on retrospect maybe accepting her invitation hadn’t been such a good idea. She was gay after all!

 

Just before lunchtime she popped in to give Emma her medication and the old lady’s face lit up when she saw her.

 

"You didn't come and see me before you left last night," Emma admonished her.

 

Helen smiled. "Sorry, Emma, I had to go home early, but I'm sure Nurse Bennett looked after you.

 

"Not as well as you do," Emma grumbled. "Why did you have to go home early? Problems?"

 

"Nothing for you to worry about."

 

"What was it then?" she persisted.

 

Helen smiled at the old lady’s perseverance. "My nephew, Tommy, fell and hurt himself."

 

Emma looked puzzled. "Couldn't his parents have looked after him?"

 

"His parents, my brother and his wife, were killed in a car crash six months ago,” Helen told her quietly. “I'm their legal guardian now."

 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry. It must be very painful for you to talk about."

 

Helen nodded. "But it's worse for the children."

 

"Children?” Emma echoed. “Then there isn't only your nephew?"

 

"No, there's the twins, Jamie and Jemma. They're five and Tommy's eight."

 

"And you look after them alone?"

 

"When I'm not working. I have a child-minder who looks after them for me when I am."

 

"It must be very trying for you,” the old lady replied sympathetically. “You can’t have much of a social life."

 

"It is,” Helen agreed but without self-pity. “But the children's happiness comes first."

 

"Wouldn't it be better if you were at home with them the whole time?"

 

"It would, but I can't afford to stop working, and you, madam, should be resting, not listening to my troubles. I'll see you in a bit."

 

Later, one of the nurses summoned by Emma's bell, told Helen the old lady wanted to see her.  "What's wrong, Emma?" She asked pleasantly as she entered the room.

 

"Helen, I've had an idea. I need a nurse when I leave here, so why don't you come and work for me?"

 

Helen gave an astonished laugh. "What about the children?"

 

"There's a whole wing of rooms we rarely use and my housekeeper will help you look after the children,” Emma replied avidly

 

Helen looked at the older woman keenly. Wing of rooms? Housekeeper? Emma obviously wasn't just the pensioner she had imagined her to be. "I don't know what to say."

 

"Please, say you will," Emma pleaded. "You'll be able to spend more time with the children."

 

"But what happens when you don't need a nurse?"

 

"I promise I'll give you time to find another job. Please." A pair of brown eyes looked at her expectantly.

 

"It's very tempting, but...Look, give me time to think about it."

 

"Alright.  Let me know as soon as possible though, I don't want Nikki to make alternative arrangements."

 

 

On to Chapter 2

 

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