“As if I didn’t have enough to worry about,” Lieutenant Commander Cassidy Montgomery griped as she stood at the bay window of her office. “Stress tests are uncomfortable and unpleasant.” She turned to her assistant, Ensign Geraldine Parker. “You like this kind of stuff, don’t you?” The 21-year-old ensign had a knack for finding the fun in everything, including meetings, symposiums, and drudgery that tested Cassidy’s ever-loving patience.
Parker’s smile was tight, but it was there. “We learn how to be better at what we do.” She groaned as the Deputy Director of General Medicine rolled her eyes. “I know, I know. I wish I could find fault in it, but it’s just…so much fun.”
“We need to work on your definition of that word, Parker. You’ve been through one of these before?”
“Once, at the academy.”
Cassidy fought the urge to roll her eyes for the second time. “That explains why you thought it was fun. These are less fun and more…I don’t have an appropriate word suitable for my office.” She’d worked hard at making sure the professional lines of language remained in her office and the surrounding medical facilities. “They’re going to push at everything we know to do and push until we either cry or cry uncle.” Montgomery blew an exasperated sigh through her lips. “I know, a little hyperbolic.”
Parker scoffed, “A little? Reminds me of my fights with my brothers when we were younger. Those were no joke. Mom got really good at triage.” She held up a PADD. “We know we’re on the list for surge and triage drills. There’s also someone coming to review our collective quarantine protocols. My personal favorite. A panel is coming to discuss the allocation of limited space and resources during a crisis. Second favorite right there.”
Cassidy turned and playfully snatched the PADD from her assistant’s hand. “You need to get out more, Parker. Get off station maybe. Take a week and do some shuttle tripping. Play some music real loud. Make some bad decisions in a bar or something. Wake up on a beach with someone. A ginger, maybe.”
Geraldine chuckled. “Are we speaking from personal experience, Deputy Director?”
The eyes of her supervisor sparkled at the accusation. “Do as I do and as I say, Ensign Parker. We’ll get you to experience the proper definition of fun somehow.” She scrolled through the PADD. “This is going to make everyone a little crazy. Gonna have to up my morning running routine.” Cassidy tossed the PADD back. “The fun will have to wait. Let’s walk and talk to our teams in General Medicine. They know it’s coming, but they need to know what’s coming.”
Parker took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she muttered, “Makes perfect sense.”
