I told Dawn I'm going out to get some fresh air, but that was just an excuse so she wouldn't ask for me. I wanted to make the call as quickly and shortly as possible, so I went out to the rooftop of our hospital to call him.
There was another man there, probably out for some fresh air like me. I looked at the piece of paper Dr Jones gave me and let out a breath, loosening my body. I dialled the number, putting the phone close to my ear.
Surprisingly, the guy's phone rang as soon as I dialled. 'Maybe it was just a simple coincidence.' I thought and waited for Dr Smith to answer.
"Hello, this is Dr Shaun Smith, who is this?"
I turned around abruptly, shocked at the sound of the guy's voice saying the answer. "I'm Lucas Johnson, the caretaker of Dawn Wood. I've asked for your number from Dr Jones to ask you about Dawn's psychiatric case."
He hung up and walked over to me, holding out his hand for a shake. "I thought you were one of Dr Jones's nurses: she usually doesn't give my number."
"I'm the nephew of Dr Johnson. I've been working with him for a while and now I'm the carer of Dawn Wood."
"Ah, yes, I've heard about her from Lucy, the girl that gave her the meals. How is Dawn right now?"
I explained about her condition, and about how things happened. But nearing the end of my explanation, my phone buzzed. The caller ID was a pink heart, the name I'd placed for Dawn ever since I realised my love for her.
"Who's that?"
I simply held up a finger and answered, "Yeah?"
"Where are you? Can you get me black sapphire grapes in the supermarket? I want to freeze them for snacks." Dawn spoke.
"Sure, I can drop by there. It may take some time, but don't worry."
"Are you on the rooftop somewhere? The wind sounds familiar."
I was shocked that Dawn was able to find out where I was just by hearing me for less than five minutes. It also didn't sound good, as she said "familiar". How does Dawn know this… unless she was up there a lot?
"How did you know? Have you… been up there a lot?"
After that, silence. Dawn didn't answer and from the corner of my eye, I could see Dr Smith typing furiously on his phone, looking very urgent. Could it be because of my call?"
He showed me what he had written: "Don't press her/him for information. Just act like you forgot what you said and say that you aren't up here for suicide. Say that and I'll shout out to you, so hang up saying your friend is here."
I nodded and said, "Oh, I'm not here to kill myself, okay? I just got on here because I got on the wrong elevator."
"Lucas! What the hell are you doing here? Come on, let's go get some coffee!"
"There's my call, Dawn. I'll see you soon! Oh, do you want something from the coffee shop?"
"Uh, I'm good but Catherine wants an iced mocha latte. She'll give you the money after you return with the drink."
"Okay, tell her I'll be dropping off by Starbucks and the supermarket for your grapes."
"Okay, see you soon," Dawn spoke and soon hung up.
I closed my phone and followed Dr Smith down to get some coffee and drop by the market.
On our way down the elevator, Dr Smith started to talk about what I had done wrong. "When you talk about things like being on the rooftop, don't forget the personality that the listener will relate to suicide. Especially if the person has tried to or knows a person that tried to commit suicide, no matter what the method is. So just be cautious when you're saying things like that. Was that Dawn?"
I nodded yes, the elevator stopping where the hospital workers stayed. Dr Smith picked up his tumbler and dialled a number. "Catherine, can you bring you and Lucas's tumbler? We're in front of my dorm room." Catherine must have been able to come quickly, as he remained waiting in front of the door.
Catherine appeared within five minutes, much quicker than I had anticipated. Receiving the bottles from her grasp, I asked, "Weren't you with Dawn?"
She shook her head and said, "We just happened to be checking on her from Dr Jones's shifts when you were talking about coffee. I'll be by her room around the time you return, so I'll be able to pick my drink up before returning to work."
Catherine waved goodbye and we headed to Starbucks. On the way there, Dr Smith seemed to be deep in thought. However, he didn't talk about any solutions related to this.
It was time for me to return to Dawn's room, so on the floor of Dawn's room, I asked him, "So how do I help her?"
"I… think I need some time to give you a good answer without having her simply meet me. I'll tell you about this ASAP via message. Can I do that?"
I nodded at his answer, thinking it is the best, as I thought Dawn might not like the idea of seeing him. So I agreed and entered the room, carrying both bottles and the receipt.