Friday, 2:30pm
"We'll be conducting an X-ray on Mr. Ahmad. Please see that the room is ready."
"Yes Sir."
"Are they inside?"
"They've just entered your office." Harun glances at Frank, the newest addition to the team of nurses. He prefers Frank over the others because of his professionalism and eagerness to help.
"Good. I'll be there in a minute." The young nurse heads inside while Harun lingers in the common area with a hand raking his already messy hair. The truth is he needed a break.
A break from the adrenaline rush.
It's not the checking of tonsillitis or blood pressure that made him edgy. No, it's the man outside and his family. Harun pulls his hair until the pain of it forces him to stop. I don't want to make a mistake, that's why. I want everything to be perfect. I want my service to be top notch in every way.
He told the staff to keep an eye out for the Ahmad family and to notify him when they arrived. Thankfully Frank is quick on his feet so Harun received timely updates in the form of neon yellow post-its. He wanted to take them in first but thought against it since last time he refused to charge them. He doesn't want to upset Mr. Ahmad or worse, disrespect him.
Okay I need to go in there and do my job, Harun convinces himself. He rubs a hand on his crisp white coat and quickly does a once over. His light blue shirt and black slacks are clean and presentable. He pats his beard and slips inside the office. To his left there's a sink which he uses to wash his hands and there's a curtain preventing any patients from seeing that section. He then moves the curtain slightly and is met with three curious faces. The ceiling lights glare down at them and he blinks a few times before making eye contact with Mr. Ahmad.
"Assalamu Alaykum Sir, how are you?" He greets. He sounds more confident than he feels. Harun shakes his hand with a smile and sits on the black leather swivel chair. He lifts the white coat slightly and splays his right forefinger on his upper lip while his thumb supports his chin.
"Alhamdulillah I'm well." Mr. Ahmad replies.
"Good to hear it."
"And how are you Doctor?" Aminah joins in. "I see many people outside."
"I'm alright, can't complain." He smiles kindly. "It's been a busy morning."
"La Rayb, it must be like this everyday!" (No doubt). Harun waves a hand modestly and focusses on the task at hand.
"I suggest we get right into the X-ray. Let's see what's going on with the joints and how we can better treat it In Sha Allah." Harun presses the buzzer and Frank peeks in almost immediately. "We're ready for the X-ray."
"Right this way Sir." Frank points outside.
"Tayyib." (Okay) He mutters gruffly.
"Can I go with him?" Aminah asks. Frank is about to speak when Harun beats him to it.
"Of course." People can't enter the room unless they're patients or authorised personnel. This is the protocol considering the room is designed for exposing one to radiation and Harun doesn't want Aminah let alone any other civilian harmed. Then again Frank can inform her of the details when they get there. "Jamila keep my bag." She orders and gives her a firm look.
Harun avoided looking directly at Jamila until now. He observes her helping her father to the door until Frank takes over. She wears a red shawl which frames her face well and a black loose Abaya with a single cream stripe at each wrist. She nods wordlessly and the door is shut, enveloping them in silence.
Okay this was not supposed to happen. He didn't expect to be alone with the woman he's been thinking about more than he should. I should leave the room until they come back not just out of respect for her but really for my own sanity. Harun if you leave now it'll be super awkward, is that what you want? No. Good then sit put and look down. No that would be even weirder! Then what do I do? Think fast! You're an educated man who knows right from wrong, on most days at least...
Harun swallows at his mental yelling. He picks up the Parker pen beside his note pad and from his peripheral vision, he sees Jamila staring off behind him. He follows her gaze to a frame hanging behind him. She's probably wondering what it's doing there. Sometimes even I wonder why I chose to keep it there. Actually it's because...
"It's a good reason to start a conversation." Harun mentally grins at himself because that's exactly what he did right now. He follows her line of vision until it lands on the square painting.
"It's beautiful." He smiles softly but it's not at the painting, it's at the one admiring it. Her eyes shine as if awestruck. "Where'd you get it from?"
"I went to a cultural fair recently and saw it at a booth. It caught my attention so I decided to buy it." He leaves out the bit about his mother nagging him to take her because that's irrelevant. For now.
"Do people confront you about it?" He blinks rapidly as he processes her question.
"Not really. Some people don't notice while others sympathize with me." He explains. "Unless of course they're having 102 fever and want to bolt out the door in 3 seconds." She covers a chuckle with her hand while Harun joins in.
"That's nice I guess." She sobers up and turns to look at him.
"Not everyone's the same." He crosses his arms over his chest. "It's something I learned over time." His expression turns serious.
"True but I think some people are tired of hearing about it." Harun scoffs.
"They can get tired but we won't. We can't afford to." He says firmly. "Our freedom depends on it."
"Our lives depend on it." She adds.
"Exactly." He offers a lop sided smile. He notes her eyes scanning his face and in that fraction of time, he knows. He's no longer confused. He's no longer doubtful. He's no longer afraid.
He knows for certain that he means something to her.
She averts her gaze to the things on his desk. Harun wants to say something to swipe the subtle tension that settles above them but in that moment Frank walks in with the X-ray. His attention shifts to his patient and now he's no longer a man in want of a companion, he's a doctor needed for his service.
The next fifteen minutes are spent reviewing the X-ray. Harun pointed to the image of the kneecap and explained that Ahmad is facing an onset of Osteoarthritis. "It's when the cartilage wears off and so the bones touch one another which result in the pains and aches you've been feeling. It happens over time as a person ages."
The family listened attentively without commenting. "In short I would recommend you get physical therapy and as I said last time, avoid any type of strenuous activity or carrying anything heavy." Ahmad nods wordlessly and sighs heavily.
"How long would he need physical therapy for?" Jamila questions.
"That would depend on the discretion of the therapist. It's hard to say right now."
"What if the pain becomes unbearable even with physical therapy?" Harun rubs his beard to cover the smile dying to show itself. I don't know why I feel happy when she asks me something. Is it a guy thing? No. It's just that you want her to talk to you. He picks up the pen and scribbles down the name of a painkiller.
"I've recommended a painkiller and the name of a therapist you can see. His name is Dr. Asmil, I'll put in a word too so you should be able to get an appointment by tomorrow latest In Sha Allah."
"Oh you know him?" Still stoked that she's talking to me.
"Uh, he's a friend of a friend." Jamila nods in understanding. Harun stamps the bottom of the paper and holds it out to Aminah who takes it gratefully.
"Thank you, thank you! JazakAllahu Khayran." (Allah reward you with good).
"You're most welcome, Wa Iyyakum." (And to you all too). He replies sincerely and looks at Ahmad who holds onto the desk for support in order to stand. "I pray for your recovery Sir."
"Na'm, I will get better In Sha Allah." He says confidently and offers his hand for a handshake. Harun feels him squeeze a little.
"Frank." Harun looks at him pointedly and the young man hastens to help Ahmad outside. Aminah is beside him whispering something in his ear and Jamila follows them. He mentally wishes that she'd turn back but she doesn't. "Which is a good thing, obviously." He mutters to himself. He places both hands on his desk and hangs his head forward with closed eyes. He declutters any unnecessary thoughts and resorts to saying Dhikr (remembrance of Allah). He learned that saying SubhanAllahi Wa Bi Hamdihi (Exalted is Allah and All Praise be to Him) or any other type of remembrance can improve the physical strength of a person. And right now that's exactly what he wants. He needs a mountain of strength to do the work that he does because without it, serving and helping people can become burdensome. God-forbid, Harun frowns. Positivity Harun. Be positive. You've been chosen for this path because you can handle it.
Knock, knock!
"SubhanAllahi Wa Bi Hamdihi, come in." He continues breathing deeply and consciously. "Can you send the next patient in..." He raises his head.
My mind must be playing tricks on me. He blinks hard just to double check if it's really Jamila in front of him.
"Oh uh I-I'm sorry. I thought you were a nurse." He clears his throat and stands upright.
"It's okay." She says quickly as if to assure him that there's nothing to apologize for. "I left my mother's bag here." She walks closer to the desk and lifts it from the ground.
"Ah." Harun swallows and ponders on whether this is a blessing in disguise or a test. Clearly a test to see, no actually to prove to yourself the level of patience you've gathered.
"Thank you for everything." She meets his gaze. He nods slowly and tries his best not to stare at her.
"It's my pleasure." He notices her biting her cheek unsurely. Okay I'll make this easier on both of us. "You should probably get going." He stuffs his hands in his pockets.
She nods and looks away shyly. She leaves as quickly as she came.
Harun looks at the ceiling and seeks divine help. If he keeps meeting her like this only God knows what he's going to end up saying or doing. He shakes his head at the thought. Tonight is the night, I'm telling mom.
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Ramadan 2020 is days away. Let's make the most of this beautiful month.