Turning Pages- Carina DeLuca

Stuck Like Glue

This day started like any other. In her locker was the same type of note. She read it with the same nauseated feeling and she sent the same text to her wife. To Carina, it seemed like a never ending cycle. It didn't appear this was gonna slow down any time soon, despite her original thought. It was clear to her that if this continued, she would have to report to Chief Bailey. It was a step that she really didn't want to have to take, but she would if needed. Walking out of the lounge, she threw her stethoscope around her neck, ready to start the day. What she hadn't anticipated was who she saw standing at the desk as she approached to grab a patient file.

"There you are, Dr. DeLuca." Ray smiled. "I'm on your service." Carina furrowed her brows in confusion for a moment. "I asked that I be put back on your service. I said that I was really interested in O.B."

Carina hummed in response, knowing that was far from the truth. Her pager beeped in her pocket, taking her from her thoughts. Before reading the message, she set the file back down. "I'm needed in the E.R." She muttered as she started walking away.

"Dr. Kepner, what have we got?" Carina asked the redhead as she approached. As her eyes darted down to the woman lying on the bed, she could clearly see she was in pain.

"Nineteen-year-old girl, eight weeks pregnant. She complained of abdominal pain with tenderness. Her HCG levels have dropped from her appointment last week, according to her lab work." April explained. Carina smiled sadly, knowing exactly why.

"Okay." She whispered as she put on gloves before settling in front of the ultrasound machine. "I'm Dr. DeLuca, what's your name?" She smiled softly.

"Her name is Alison." There was a man next to her who jumped in. "Could you please help her?" He asked.

"Let's find out what's going on." Carlina smiled softly, already fearing the worst in this case. It ended as she expected. It was always the hardest when she had to break the news to couples or women in general that they were losing their child. This was her least favorite part of her job. Nevertheless, it was a part of life, regardless of how sad it was. Even with the perfect teaching opportunity, it was a delicate balance to know when to teach and when to focus on the patient, and when her patients were going through the worst of things, she tried to ease their suffering.

"What you just saw is what's known as a miscarriage. Although it's common, it is heartbreaking." As she and Ray left the ER, Carina explained what had happened. "Rarely do we see a woman pass the fetus right in the ER. They're usually either not that far along in the delivery process or our ER bathroom has seen many of them. After, I did an ultrasound to ensure that there was no tissue or fragments of the fetus that could cause severe infections. Over time, you'll earn how to be sympathetic without getting emotionally involved."

Ray kept shaking his head as Carina spoke. Whether he was listening to what she was saying as he stared at her was another matter. There was no doubt he found her beautiful. He was mesmerized by her smile and Italian accent. While he knew she was married, that didn't mean he couldn't still have a chance with her. Carina, on the other hand, just wanted to get through this day without losing her sanity.

When lunchtime arrived, Carina decided to eat in the lounge. Since interns weren't allowed in there, she didn't have to worry about Ray joining her. The morning went as smoothly as she could have wished. Ray would make little remarks about her appearance which she would ignore. Nothing that she couldn't handle. She also noticed that he would always stare at her and although she tried to ignore it, it freaked her out.

Taking out her phone, she texted Maya to see if she was taking lunch. She added a few emojis at the end of the message before sending it. Like her job, lunch was equally unpredictable. On the rare occasion that they ate their lunch at the same time, they would text each other. Informing each other about their mornings or simply letting each other know that they're fine. To anyone else, Maya and Carina may seem as if they revolved around each other too much but to them, it didn't matter. The pair loved one another. Sure, they got into fights, but don't all couples? At the end of the day, all that mattered was that they were happy and Carina could only hope that it would remain that way forever.