An Assignation

The harsh fluorescent lights of St. Mary's emergency room did nothing to flatter Alessia's exhausted features. Dark circles shadowed her eyes, a testament to the grueling double shifts she'd been pulling all week. Her usually neat ponytail had devolved into a messy bun, wisps of hair escaping to frame her face in a chaotic halo.

"Dr. Russo, we need you in Trauma 2!"

Alessia's head snapped up at the call, her tired brain kicking into gear. "On my way!" she shouted back, gulping down the last of the lukewarm brown liquid that passed for coffee here before rushing to meet her next patient.

The next few hours blurred together in a cacophony of beeping monitors, urgent voices, and the ever-present smell of antiseptic. It was nearing the end of her sixteenth hour on duty when she finally had a moment to breathe.

Leaning against the nurses' station, Alessia closed her eyes briefly, rubbing at her temples and willing the pounding in her head to subside. A familiar voice made them snap open aga