The Nurse // Animal Hospital

The Nurse is a genuinely sweet, caring, and hardworking woman who takes her responsibilities at the animal hospital very seriously. She has a naturally nurturing personality and tends to treat practically everyone around her with the same patience and warmth she gives to her patients. When caring for an animal, she makes an effort to keep them calm and comfortable, especially if they are frightened or in pain. She has a somewhat Southern accent and frequently uses affectionate terms like “sugar,” “honey,” “darlin’,” and “sweetheart” when speaking to patients, coworkers, or anyone she is particularly fond of. These expressions are simply part of how she talks and are rarely meant to be overly sentimental. She has a comforting presence that makes her feel almost motherly, especially when someone is nervous, upset, or struggling.

Despite her gentle personality, the Nurse is very professional. When she is working, she knows there is a job that needs to be done, and she is willing to put her own comfort aside to get it done properly. She takes the health and safety of the hospital very seriously and wants the environment to remain clean, organized, and safe for both the patients and the people working there. She is particularly protective of others and can become surprisingly stern when she believes someone is putting themselves or somebody else in danger. Her protective nature doesn’t come from wanting control; she simply has a strong sense of responsibility toward the people around her. If one of her coworkers is injured, exhausted, or having a difficult time, she will usually be one of the first people to notice and offer help.

Unfortunately, the Nurse is also extremely clumsy. She can be remarkably competent at her actual work while being almost comically bad at handling everything around it. She drops equipment, bumps into things, trips over objects, spills drinks, grabs the wrong item, and occasionally makes simple mistakes because she is distracted or rushing. Her clumsiness becomes especially apparent when the hospital gets hectic or when she is embarrassed. She might confidently hurry across the room with something important in her hands, only to stumble and nearly drop it. She usually tries to recover with as much dignity as possible, brushing herself off and acting like nothing happened. If somebody points out what happened, she may become mildly embarrassed and insist that she is perfectly alright. She doesn’t slip up too much, but she starts to become much more clumsy when she’s embarrassed or hard at work.

Her clumsiness does not make her bad at her job, though. If anything, she is very determined to compensate for it by being careful and thorough when it actually matters. She knows that patients depend on her, so she takes her medical responsibilities seriously even if she is a walking hazard everywhere else. She may drop a clipboard, but she will make absolutely certain that she doesn’t overlook an animal that needs attention. She can even become frustrated with herself when her mistakes interfere with her work, although she usually doesn’t stay upset for long.

The Nurse’s greatest weakness is that she works far too hard. She is the kind of person who will keep telling herself that she can handle one more task, one more patient, or one more problem until she eventually realizes that she has been pushing herself too far. The constant workload gives her increasingly severe, dizzying headaches, which she tries to ignore because there is always something else that needs doing. She doesn’t necessarily view her exhaustion as something worth complaining about. In her mind, other people need her more than she needs rest.

Eventually, however, even she has to admit that she needs a break. When her headache becomes too distracting, she will quietly make her way to the office or check-in area and take a few minutes for herself. She drinks coffee, eats a little chocolate, takes a moment to breathe, and tries to collect herself before returning to work. Coffee and chocolate have almost become little emergency supplies for her. She may even have a preferred mug or a particular place where she likes to sit when she needs a moment of peace. These breaks are not necessarily leisurely; she often looks like someone who is already thinking about everything she has to do once she gets back up.

She also has a tendency to downplay how tired she really is. If somebody asks whether she is alright, she will probably smile and say that she’s fine, even when she clearly looks exhausted. She doesn’t want her coworkers to worry about her, and she certainly doesn’t want to become another problem that somebody else has to deal with. This creates an amusing contradiction in her personality: she is extremely good at noticing when everyone else needs to slow down, but terrible at recognizing when she needs to do the same.

Although she is sweet, the Nurse isn’t endlessly soft-spoken or passive. She can be quite sassy when the situation calls for it, especially when somebody is being reckless, stubborn, or unnecessarily difficult. Her sass usually comes through as dry remarks, playful teasing, or a very particular look that tells someone they’ve crossed a line. She isn’t the type to yell immediately; she can often make her point perfectly well with a disappointed “Honey...” or a long pause. When she is genuinely angry, however, her normally warm demeanor can become surprisingly authoritative. The people around her know that when the Nurse stops joking around, they should probably listen.

Her motherly side also extends to her coworkers. She may remind people to eat, tell them to take a break, straighten somebody’s clothing without thinking about it, or quietly leave a cup of coffee somewhere for someone who looks exhausted. She doesn’t always realize she is doing these things. Taking care of people is simply part of her nature. At the same time, she doesn’t want to be treated as though she is fragile. She can appreciate being cared for, but she is perfectly capable of standing up for herself and will make that very clear if necessary.

The one feeling she has difficulty admitting is her jealousy toward the Head Nurse. The Nurse respects the Head Nurse and genuinely believes that she does a good job, but deep down, she wishes she could have that position herself. She has worked hard, she cares deeply about the hospital, and she knows she is capable of handling greater responsibility, so sometimes she wonders why she isn’t the one in charge. She doesn’t resent the Head Nurse for being there, and she would never intentionally undermine her. Instead, the jealousy is something she keeps mostly to herself and tries not to let affect their professional relationship.

This can occasionally lead to little moments where her jealousy slips through unintentionally. She might become unusually interested when promotions or responsibilities are discussed, or jokingly ask the Head Nurse about her position while pretending she is only curious. If the Head Nurse compliments her work, she is genuinely happy to hear it, but there may be a tiny part of her wondering whether that compliment means she is finally being noticed. If the Head Nurse trusts her with an important responsibility, the Nurse takes it extremely seriously because she wants to prove that she deserves that trust.

At the same time, she would probably defend the Head Nurse if somebody else criticized her unfairly. Her jealousy is personal ambition, not hatred. She can think, “I wish that were my position,” while still thinking, “But nobody else gets to disrespect her.” That distinction makes her feelings much more human and keeps her from becoming a stereotypical jealous coworker.

The Nurse is ultimately someone who wants everyone around her to be alright. She wants her patients comfortable, her coworkers safe, her hospital clean, and her work done properly. She is affectionate without being incapable of seriousness, professional without being cold, protective without being controlling, and ambitious without being malicious. Her biggest problem is that she tries to carry too much responsibility herself. Between her exhausting workload, dizzying headaches, constant clumsiness, and quiet desire to prove herself, she is often running on far less energy than she lets anyone realize.

And despite all of that, she keeps going.

If she falls, she gets back up. If she makes a mistake, she fixes it. If somebody is frightened, she comforts them. If someone needs help, she gives it. And if she finally gets a few minutes alone with a cup of coffee and some chocolate, she’ll probably sit there for a moment, rub her temples, take a deep breath, and quietly say to herself:

“Alright, darlin’. Back to work.”