My sister always knew exactly what to say whenever I started getting inside my own head. For the past two weeks, she’d reminded me that moving back to Atlanta wasn’t a failure. It was a second chance. I still wasn’t completely convinced she was right, but I was trying.
Even after living in Florida for ten years, there was something about Atlanta that still felt like home. The skyline had changed, a few new buildings had gone up, and the city looked different than I remembered, but the energy was still the same.
I unlocked my small SUV, tossed my bag onto the passenger seat, and climbed behind the wheel. The clock on the dashboard read6:32 p.m.,giving me more than enough time to make it to Grady before my shift started.
My playlist connected through Bluetooth as I pulled out of the apartment complex. The first song came on, and before I knew it, I was singing right along with it. It wasn’t that I was suddenly happy. Peace was probably the better word. For the first time in months, my mind wasn’t stuck on weddinginvitations, unanswered questions, or wondering what the hell I’d done wrong.
I was thinking about work… learning everybody’s names, proving I deserved to be there, and finally getting the fresh start I’d been praying for.
Traffic started picking up as I merged onto the interstate, but that was nothing new. Atlanta traffic had always been a pain in the ass, and apparently, some things never changed. By the time I reached downtown, the skyline stretched across my windshield, glowing against the evening sky.
My phone buzzed in the cup holder with an incoming call from a number I didn’t recognize.
I frowned before answering through my steering wheel.
“Hello?”
“Is this Milan Rivers?”
“Speaking.”
“This is Dr. Nia Brooks. We met during orientation last week. I gave you the tour of the ER.”
I remembered her immediately. Orientation had been long as hell, and most of the faces from that day had already started running together, but Nia was different. She had been one of the few people who’d gone out of her way to make me feel welcome instead of treating me like another new employee she’d probably forget by the end of the week.
“Oh, hey!” I said, relaxing a little. “Of course I remember you.”
“Good, because I was about to be offended.” The humor in her voice made me smile. “I hope I’m not catching you at a bad time.”
“No, I’m driving. I’m almost there.”
“Good. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t already lost on your first day.”
I laughed, glancing at the GPS as it directed me toward my next turn. “Not yet. Give me another five minutes.”
“See, that’s exactly why I called. I was about to send somebody to come find you.”
“I appreciate that,” I said, laughing again. The nerves that had been sitting in my stomach since I left home eased a little. I knew I could do the job, but knowing that and walking into a new hospital for my first twelve-hour night shift were two completely different things.
“Trust me, you’re going to do fine,” Nia assured me. “The first night is always the worst because you don’t know anybody, you don’t know where anything is, and everybody moves like you’re supposed to already know. Just survive tonight, and everything after that gets easier.”
Her words settled some of the nerves I hadn’t wanted to admit I was feeling. “I’ll hold you to that.”
“You better. Drive safe, and I’ll see you in a few.”
“See you in a few.”
The call ended just as I pulled into the hospital entrance, and for the first time since leaving home, I felt a little less like I was walking into this completely alone.
Ambulances lined the emergency bay while visitors moved in and out of the sliding doors. Nurses in every color scrub imaginable crossed the parking lot carrying coffee cups, backpacks, and the exhausted look that came from working twelve-hour shifts. Security officers greeted employees as they walked inside, and for a second, I found myself taking it all in.
This was it…
My fresh start…
I followed the signs leading to employee parking before making my way up to the third level of the garage. It took another minute to find an empty space, but considering shift change had already started, I wasn’t complaining.
I pulled into the spot, grabbed my bag, and checked the time one last time.
