by Rita Hestand
Melanie's heart warmed to each of them, but Julia was showing her the name tag systems, and the charts and regulations they had to adhere to. It was a lot to take in and when they finally went back to her office, she told her to go downstairs to the lunchroom and get something to eat then come back and she'd issue her supplies and a long list of do's and don'ts.
Melanie was excited to be working here, but something niggled in the back of her mind. Several things. Why did Mrs. James and her secretary think she was this Norma, and Julia hadn't said a word about it. This Norma had worked with Julia. It didn't connect. If she really looked like her, why didn't Julia and her secretary remark about it too? It was puzzling. It didn't fit.
Melanie went downstairs and finally found the cafeteria. It was packed with nurses and doctors and even visitors to the hospital. Mulling over the two important women she'd met this morning she liked Julia best. She was direct, and to the point, but also interested in her and fair.
Mrs. James had been unapproachable and hard to define in one sentence. And yet her reactions to be a look alike were more normal than Julia's. It just niggled, Melanie fretted.
The menu had a variety of things and Melanie just grabbed a sandwich and some soup, grabbing some tea and lemon, she found a place to herself and was busy watching the crowds of people coming in and out of the cafeteria.
When she spotted Dex he came over and sat with her.
"So how did it go?"
"I got Pediatrics." She smiled.
"Great, so you've met Julia? That's fantastic. I'm a little surprised since the majority do get stuck in ER for a while."
"Yeah, it was a shock to me too. I like her a lot. And I think Julia must have been shorthanded was the reason I was sent immediately to her." She told him.
"Good."
"But, I was informed by Mrs. James that I’m taking the place of another nurse who was fired from Pediatrics. And that I bare a resemblance to the woman."
Dex's face changed. His expression was serious, and he seemed to think about what he was going to say. "Norma Wells, oh yeah, we've all heard about her. And I never saw it until you just mentioned it, but you do bear a resemblance to her."
Dex knew Norma too, and he didn't remark about it. That was strange, he'd been with her for some time now and nothing about Norma.
"Well, great, I haven't had the pleasure. Why don't you tell me about what happened? I haven't a clue."
Dex shrugged. "She'd been here ten years. Good nurse. But she kept to herself a lot. Wasn't friendly. No one liked her much except Julia."
"That's funny, she didn't mention the resemblance."
"Probably didn't want to scare you off. Anyway, as time went on Norma was very controlling of the babies in the ward. Julia noticed her spending her breaks rocking one baby. She watched her closely too."
"Why was she fired?" Melanie asked point blank.
"She got too involved with the babies. There was one she wouldn't let any other nurse rock her. She insisted. It got to be she'd neglect other babies while this one seemed to take up her time. Julia noticed, but she also knew that Norma had tried for some time to get pregnant and couldn't. So, she indulged her. We all suspected Norma might try to take the baby."
Melanie's eyes widened. "You don't mean it?"
"She tried. She was almost out of the hospital when they caught her."
"My God!"
"And she didn't go down quietly either. She kept telling them it was her baby."
"How did they know it wasn't hers?"
"She'd worked here ten years. Although she was married at the time, they couldn't have children, everyone knew that. So, when they found her at the back door of ER they figured something was amiss."
"Oh my! So, what happened to her?"
"Julia fired her, she was arrested, and when she was released on bond she came back here. Norma lost it that day. She screamed for her child, who had luckily gone home by then. Julia had to call the cops to come get her."
"Forever more…"
"The day she took off with the baby, wow, that was a day no one around here will forget. Everyone in this hospital knew about her before that day was over. They chased her through the halls of seven floors before they caught her. She'd gone completely nuts. A week later, while being transferred to another prison, she escaped. No one has seen her since."
"That's so sad, Dex." Melanie murmured. "Did they catch her?"
"No, she escaped when they were transferring her to another prison, and no one has seen or heard from her since. They've been keeping surveillances cameras here at the hospital. They think she'll return here and try to take another baby. The baby she was after was a preemie, so naturally has been here a while, but she was released and gone home now. That's a good thing. She used to live here in our apartment building, a while back. Before I ever moved in. That's how I knew her. She found out I lived here and came to introduce herself to me."
"She lived in our apartment building?"
"Yeah, for a while, when her husband first left her. He couldn't handle her kidnapping a baby."
"It's all kind of sad. But, it's funny, if I look like her why didn't Julia say anything about it?"
"I'm sure she didn't want to alarm you, considering Norma's behavior."
"I guess."
Then a tall good-looking black doctor came to their table. "Well, you are holding out on us Dex, who is the cute girl?"
Then when Melanie turned to look at him, he gasped. "My God, Norma?"
"No, I'm afraid not."
The doctor looked from her to Dex.
"Melanie, this is Dr. Rod Covington, Gynecologists from the fourth floor. He's quite the ladies' man, so watch out for him." Dex teased. "No Rod, this isn’t Norma. This is Melanie, and oddly enough, she's working in Pediatrics."
"I don't believe it."
Ron scooted Dex's tray over and joined them. "Melanie huh? You are working here?"
"Yes, started today." Melanie smiled, "Pleased to meet you."
"Same here, and don't be a stranger." He smiled at her. "My God, don't you see it Dex?"
"What?"
"She looks so much like Norma Wells."
She chuckled. "So, I've been told."
"Hey, wait a minute, you're telling me, she's taking Norma's place, in Pediatrics?"
"Yes," Dex explained.
"But she could be her twin. How on earth did that happen?"
"I'm with you, I find it rather odd, myself." Melanie agreed.
"Well, Norma has mousy brown hair, but you look just like her. I swear. Oh yeah, we'll be seeing a lot of each other then." He grinned. "I knew Julia had someone in mind to replace Norma, still, this is more than a little ironic. But it's uncanny how much you look like Norma. You could be twins. I sure hope security knows about you."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Hey, let up will you. She's nothing like Norma." Dex defended. "You are scaring her."
"No, she's prettier than Norma. But seriously, maybe you should let security in on this so there is no mix-up."
"Okay, maybe that's a good idea. Don't let him fool you. He has a girlfriend in ER and she'd can him if she knew how much he flirts with all the new girls." Dex glanced at his buddy.
"Gloria trusts me."
"Sometimes I wonder why." Dex teased.
"She will after this weekend. I have a ring," He whipped it out of his pocket and displayed for both of them to see.
"Wow, that's not a ring, it's a rock." Dex whistled.
"Been dating for five years now, it's time bro." Rod chuckled. "She deserves it."
"She's a lucky girl." Melanie smiled.
"Think she'll like it?" He asked her.
"Any girl would like that," She chuckled.
"So, how long you known my friend Dex, here?"
"Not long, I moved in the same apartment building."
Rod looked at Dex, "You have all the luck."
"Yeah, I think you are right." Dex smiled.
/> The intercom called Rod's name and he shook his head. "Well, at least I got some food in me first. Gotta run, nice meeting you Melanie, look forward to working with you too."
"Thanks." She smiled.
"See ya, bro." Dex shook hands with him and he left.
"I guess I better run before someone calls me too," He told her. "See you later."
"Okay," She smiled. "What about security?"
"Oh yeah, come on, we'll take care of that now." He suggested.
They walked what seemed like miles around the hospital until they got to the security area.
Dex waited until the guard came out and introduced her to him.
"She looks like Norma? How do I know for sure, that she's not Norma?" The guard declared.
"Yeah, that's why we are here. This is Melanie George, and she's working in Pediatrics so we thought we'd come down and let you know before you arrested her or something." Dex explained. "She's got ID and Julia can vouch for her."
"Good thing you did. Because I would have sworn it was her."
"I really look that much like her?"
"You could be twins except your hair color is different."
"Thank God for that."
"Well, I'll let everyone know about you and there shouldn't be any incidents."
"Thanks," she smiled at the guard. He was quite handsome.
He smiled back.
Dex walked her back to her department and ran into Julia.
"Dex what brings you here?" Julia smiled.
Melanie noted that their glances were flirty and she wondered about that, but she said nothing.
Melanie noted how she referred to him as Dex, not his proper name. Maybe they had known each other a long time.
"Oh, I took Melanie to security and introduced her so they don't arrest her for looking like Norma."
Julia nodded and nearly gasped, "You are wise to do that. I should have done it myself. But honestly Melanie, I didn't want to scare you off because of it. Mrs. James called me to warn me they might arrest her by mistake. Thanks for taking care of it for me, Dex."
"Sure, well, see ya later." Dex told them.
He winked and left.
Chapter Eleven
Oddly enough the rest of the day was nothing more than going over rules and regulations for Melanie. She filled out insurance papers, and signed her employment paperwork. Julia issued her a badge, showed her where all the supplies were kept, gave her a key to the supply room and introduced her to a couple of nurses on the day shift.
"I don't want you to get discouraged during your first days here, as we'll have you doing mundane chores like stocking the supply room every day, and making the name tags. We have a machine and we'll show you how that works. You won't be responsible for putting the name tags on, but you will make them when the new lists come in once a week. You'll be like an errand girl for the first six weeks, but this is just to acclimate you to the department and when the trial is over, you'll know this place as well as the rest of us."
"Sounds fair to me." Melanie nodded.
"Because you are new, you'll work a swing shift in which you will work, two nights, two days and three days off. You'll work ten hours a day. Call me if you are sick or something comes up that you can't make it. But it better be something very important to take off for any day for the first six months. After that I'm a bit more forgiving."
Melanie nodded and smiled.
"You've met Beverly and Shauna, and they are strictly day shift, so you will work two days a week with them. For the first six weeks, you won't touch the babies, but you will make name tags, keep the supply room stocked, and learn your routine here. By the time you are tested, you'll know your job like the back of your hand. After that, you'll have full access to everything on the floor. The trial period is to get you used to where everything is, how to find your way around the hospital and comfortable with a routine."
Melanie understood and responded with a nod.
Julia waited until she was sure she understood.
"Now, at the end of the six-week trial period, you'll be given a written test on procedures and rules. If you make above 80 you will become a full-time employee of the hospital and have all benefits of insurance, and privileges. Until then you'll have to buy your own lunches, or bring them and you won't have an assigned parking place. If you don't pass the first test, you are offered one more six week stint, if you don't pass, I'm afraid you'll be let go."
"Sounds good." Melanie smiled.
"You'll start on days from 5AM to 3PM with an hour for lunch. Nights will be from 3PM to 1PM, with an hour for lunch. You have three days off and I advise you for the first six weeks, don't be late, don't call in sick, and plan anything personal for those days off. Your days off will rotate. So, any questions?"
"Uniforms, standard, furnished or unfurnished?"
"The first six weeks you will not wear a uniform but rather an apron that identifies you as a newbie. After that you can order five uniforms every six months. As needed."
"Sounds good." Melanie smiled.
"I want you to know that I handpicked you for this job."
"Really, why? I mean, do you usually do that?"
"No. I don't." She paused. "And I'm sure Mrs. James has already told you it is not standard procedure, but once I looked at your resume I felt I had to act. But something about your resume stood out as outstanding, not to mention your grade average. I saw on your resume that you were going to college and doing night nursing school, which told me you wanted to get started and that you were willing to work for it. You also had exceptional grades which means you are a person who pays attention to detail. I like that. You aren't married so I can count on you to be here most of the time. In short, I like what I saw in writing. Now that I've met you I think we will get along famously." She finally shot her a real smile. "I'm sorry, but it's shocking how much you look like Norma Wells, the nurse you are replacing. I'm sure others have commented on it."
"Did you know I looked so much like Norma Wells?"
There was the slightest of hesitation from her then she shook her head. "No, I'm afraid I didn't. And that is more than strange."
"I feel the same way, everyone has remarked about it."
"Well, then it's a very good thing that Dex took you down to security. I'd hate for them to arrest my new employee." Julia smiled.
Melanie, felt she was finally home. This was where she would make her career in nursing. She sighed with an inner happiness in finding a job that she so looked forward to. And everyone was so helpful. The Norma thing was unusual, but just a big coincidence obviously.
"Now you haven't put in a 10-hour day today, but you will get paid for it. Your starting salary will begin at $55,000. Six weeks after you pass your trial period you will be making $70,000. As you become more valuable to us, you'll be needed more and might have to put in a lot of hours as a newbie and the lowest on the list of nurses here. But you'll be paid overtime up until you reach the $70,000. Then it's a flat salary."
"How often are we paid?"
"As a full time, Pediatric Nurse, you'll be paid every two weeks. As a new employee, you will be paid weekly for the first six weeks." She paused looking at her paperwork once more. "You scored high marks on your licensing exam. I was truly impressed. When anyone makes exceptional grades, their names are sent out to the local hospitals and alerted that we have a real serious student. Another reason you are here. I don't know if Mrs. James told you but most new employee nurses start out in ER. You are an exception, because I was thrilled at your grades and workmanship. I thought you would be an ideal candidate for our hospital."
"Thank you." Melanie smiled once more as the tension let up and Julia seemed to relax now that she'd gotten the information settled. "There is one thing I’m a little puzzled about."
"What's that?" Julia filed her information away.
"You're the only one that didn't mention my resemblance to Norma when you first saw me, nor did your secretary."
&
nbsp; Julia's head flew up and her eyes narrowed on her for a moment. "You are perceptive. I like that. To tell the truth, I saw it, but I didn't want to scare you off. I thought you might run if I told you just how much you favor Norma. So, I told my secretary not to mention it either. We need you hear, Melanie and I'm glad to have you on staff."
"You worked with her. Am I like her?" Melanie asked with a slight chuckle.
"Actually, it would be cruel to compare the two of you and very unfair. Norma wasn't the kind of woman I would want to be compared to, that's for sure. I was merely being kind."
"Did you know I looked like her before you hired me?" Melanie nodded, still a bit miffed.
"No, but I guarantee you everyone that saw you alerted me that you looked like her. Mrs. James secretary called me the minute you went into her office. So, I was prepared for the shock of it."
Melanie sighed, "I wondered why you didn't say anything and Mrs. James seemed astounded."
"It is shocking how much you look like her."
"Well you won't have those kinds of worries with me." Melanie assured her.
"We're proud to have you, and I'm sure you'll become a great nurse." Julia smiled and got to her feet. "So, be ready to start early in the morning."
"Thanks, I certainly will." Melanie shot to her feet and shook hands with her.
She drove home in a blur of mulling over all the rules and regulations she would have to learn. And the answer Julia gave her hung in the balance. Julia should have said something about the resemblance right off, she'd worked directly with Norma Wells. But perhaps she was trying to give her a fair chance, like she said. It's just that she didn't seem surprised that she looked like Norma, and everyone else was. Maybe she was just too suspicious. Melanie did know that hospitals tended to be a lot like schools, rather hush hush about gossip and incidents.
But Dex knew Norma too, and he hadn't remarked about the resemblance. Why were they all so quiet about it?
She'd been so involved in soaking up the information she had forgotten about this morning.
But the police were there at the apartment, looking over the door and taking prints.