Wherever that may be

Arc II (1) - 1594

There is a reason why she has not been fired yet.

"Only one?", she asks quickly, already thinking about the list of things she'll need from the storing room.

Alcohol, cotton, bandages, scissors.

"It's a bad one", the boss explains, and rushes pasts her.

Jenna follows, diligently.

"What happened to him?"

"Her. A bulled penetrated in her leg. She almost bleeds to death".

Needles, suture thread.

"How did she survive?", Jenna asks, and reaches the door of the room.

Her boss doesn't stop.

"We have no idea".

-

Jenna enters the emergency room with her hands full. She's been reciting the number of her patient all the way there.

She realizes, taking at glance at the place, how vital that information is. Hospital beds and improvised stretchers are placed one besides the other, making at least a hundred. Soldiers come and go in a whim. The noise of muffled words and quick step are mixed with groans of pain. The strong scent of war makes Jenna happy of the fact that she's wearing her mask.

The beds are not numbered, but the patients are. Many call her in need but she remains stoic. She needs to do her work. And sometimes, as selfless her work was, it meant sacrifices.

1408, 1408...

A woman, she thinks, a woman, and makes the effort to search for a female face among the mass of male soldiers.

And suddenly, she finds her.

Jenna hesitates briefly.

The woman is not looking at her, but through one of the few windows that can be found at the emergency room, flashing a profile that Jenna could swear is the prettiest she has seen in her life. She shakes her head when she realizes that she's staring when she's supposed to be working. She tells herself that the abnormal beating against her chest is caused by the adrenaline of the moment. It's half true.

"Patient 1408?", Jenna asks.

Of course it's me. Isn't the sign against my chest big enough? Where were you, anyway? the nurse expects to hear.

Instead, the woman- the girl turns around slowly. When her eyes set on Jenna's face, they widen a bit, as if startled.

Jenna is about to speak again, thinking oh my god it's worse than they told me it would be, but the soldier shakes her head lightly, like waking herself up from a daydream.

"It's me", the patient says with a raspy voice.

Jenna nods and gets closer, immediately inspecting her leg.

"My coworkers told me that a bullet impacted against your leg", she says, and puts her hand on the patient's knee, "can I see?".

The soldier pulls the light blanket covering her body away, mentally praising her nurse's politeness.

"Another nurse stitched me up already", she explains, and Jenna kneels to inspect the wound closer.

"I see", she concedes, "It's fine", and she keeps analyzing it, thinking that whoever worked on her leg could've done it with a bit more of care. Stitched like that, the wound will definitely leave quite a prominent scar.

"It's bigger than I thought", the patient says, and Jenna smiles softy.

"Well, you almost die from it, you know?"