Duty Over Love [POV: Nate]
The moment I checked the clock, I felt the anticipation settle deep in my chest. I had cleared my schedule for the night, making sure there was nothing to pull me away from what I had planned.
One night.
Just one night to put everything else aside and focus on Hannah.
Ericka, my soon-to-be predecessor, leaned against the nurses’ station, arms crossed, watching me with a smirk. “So, you’re really going all out for this, huh?”
I shot her a look. “You have a problem with that?”
She shrugged, a teasing glint in her eyes. “Not at all. In fact, if you need me to cover, I will. Go be romantic, lover boy.”
I smirked, shaking my head, but before I could respond, the hospital intercom crackled to life.
My stomach clenched as the TV in the waiting lounge flickered to a breaking news report. The images were brutal. A school bus—crumpled metal, shattered glass, flashing red and blue lights. Paramedics scrambling, parents crying, children being pulled from the wreckage.
Everything inside the hospital stilled, the atmosphere thickening as doctors and nurses took in the scene.
I felt Ericka’s eyes on me before she sighed. “Damn it,” she muttered. “Sorry, lover boy, but your girl is gonna have to wait.”
My grip tightened around the pen in my hand. I already knew.
I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed Hannah’s number. It rang twice before she picked up, but instead of the quiet anticipation I expected, loud music thumped in the background.
I frowned. “Where are you?”
Her voice was bright, almost giddy. “I’m at the club…”
My entire body went rigid.
I felt Ericka glance at me, but I ignored her, turning away as I tried to steady my voice. “I thought you took the night off for our date.”
“I did!” she said quickly, a laugh lacing her words. “I’m quitting my job. I just dropped by to get my things and—”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, exhaling sharply. “You’re really doing it?”
“Yes,” she said, her voice suddenly firmer, determined. “I thought it’d be the perfect gift for you. And you know… what comes after dinner.”
A ghost of a smile tugged at my lips despite everything. She sounded so damn excited, so sure of her decision, and for a moment, all I wanted to do was forget about the trauma cases rolling in and focus on the fact that she was choosing us
But I didn’t have that luxury.
“Hannah, listen, I’m so glad about that news,” I started, keeping my voice steady, measured.
“I know! I can’t wait to celebrate—”
“But,” I cut in, softer this time, “we have an emergency.”
The excitement in her voice faded instantly.
“A bad one,” I continued. “A bus full of kids crashed into a truck. Multiple casualties. We’re expecting them any minute.”
Silence.
I could still hear the music in the background, muffled now, like she had turned away from the speakers.
“Oh,” she finally said, her voice quieter, more serious.
“I know this is important,” I added quickly, not wanting her to think I was brushing off our night together, “but I can’t walk away from this. Not when kids are fighting for their lives.”
For a few seconds, she didn’t say anything.
Then, a long exhale.
“Then go save them, Nate,” she murmured, her voice soft but sure. “Do everything you can.”
A rush of relief filled my chest. “You sure?”
“I’m sure.”
The words lingered between us, and for a moment, I wished I could reach through the phone, hold her, kiss her, make up for what I was about to miss.
Instead, I said the only thing that mattered.
“I love you.”
There was a pause—a hesitation so brief I almost missed it.
Then, finally, her voice, quiet but steady.
“I love you too.”
I let out a breath I didn’t realize I had been holding. “I’ll come home as soon as I can.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
