A Minor Emergency

You’re packing up after the lesson, listening to the girls as they file out of the room, when suddenly there’s a crash. You look up in shock. Scrambling on the floor, further scattering the books that had fallen from her bag, lies Ellie. A wave of laughter from some of the remaining girls greets the sight.

“Ellie!” you exclaim. You’re quickly by her side.

She’s lying on her front, moaning, her hands and legs flexing. Her brown eyes are unfocussed and filled with tears. One hand reaches up to her forehead where you can see a cut. The other hand is trying to help her stand.

“No, no, stay there, don’t try anything.” You rest a hand on her back and keep her down. “What happened?”

“I… I… I slipped, I think.”

You look up. There’s still a couple of girls watching. You call one of them and tell them to go and get Nurse Karlee. She hesitates, but you repeat your order, and she and her friend rush off.

“Stay there. The nurse is coming,” you tell Ellie.

“No, no, it’s lunchtime.”

“Don’t worry about that.” You reach out and touch her forehead. She winces in pain. “Did you hit your head?”

“Maybe?”

It seems to take forever for Nurse Karlee to appear. All the while you’re **** to keep Ellie lying down. If you didn’t, she’d be up and out, regardless of any injury. You wrack your brain remembering how to spot concussion. She looks so **** injured, so young and tender. You shake such inappropriate thoughts away.

They keep returning, only broken by the appearance of Nurse Karlee, trailed by the students you’d sent. She immediately rushes in. Her first aid bag thumps on the floor as she squats down beside Ellie.

“What happened?”

“She fell. I think she hit her head.”

“Fell, no-one pushed you?”

“No,” Ellie tries. “Just slipped. I’ve been feeling odd all lesson. Light-headed. Tender.”

Karlee continues to look over her. “Hmm… she says. I think you need to come and lie down for a bit. Just to check. I want to keep an eye on you.”

“No, I’ll be fine. Lunch.”

“I’ll make certain you get some, don’t worry. Come. Actually…” She looks around and spots you. “Could you help me carry her Mr Smith”

“Of course.”

Ellie is a short, slight woman, slim and only 1.6m tall. Before putting the bands on you would have still struggled to carry her but wouldn’t have any problems supporting her. The transformation has given you confidence you wouldn’t drop her now. But carrying her is inappropriate. Instead, you and Nurse Karlee take either side of her and together guide her through the corridors of the school. It helps that Nurse Karlee is only a few centimetres shorter than you. When it comes to the stairs, rather than help her you pick Ellie up and quickly descend to the right floor. In no time at all you’re outside the clinic.

Through the reception and into one of the back rooms, where there are several beds. You lift Ellie again and lay her on top of one of them. Nurse Karlee fusses with the cushion and then insists Ellie lie there. You can see Ellie doesn’t want to, but she won’t fight Nurse Karlee. Your job done, you start to leave, but Nurse Karlee asks you to wait for her in reception while she continues checking over Ellie. You stand there and wait, until she appears, shutting the door to the room behind her.

“Did you see what happened?”

“No. I wasn’t paying attention”

“She insists she just tripped, but you know what she’s like.”

You nod your agreement to that. “All I can say, there was no-one around her. And most of her worst bullies aren’t in that class. My guess is that she probably did just slip.”

“I see. She mentioned she was feeling off all lesson. It’s probably that. I’m just worried. This is the second time this term she’s ended up on the floor, and the term’s only in the second week. I hope there’s nothing wrong with her.”

“If you find anything wrong, tell me.”

Nurse Karlee gives you a big smile. “I will, don’t worry. Especially now I know where your classroom is.”