MEET THE CO-WORKERS

[Candace R. Stanton]

The coffee was hot, perhaps a little too hot, as Candace has to gently blow on it in order to cool it off for a small sip. A large yawn escaped her lips and she lived a hand in an attempt to stifle it. Last night she’d decided to have a movie marathon at her place. While she’d had a great time, it probably wasn’t the wisest idea she’d ever had considering she had work the next morning. Now she was certainly feeling the repercussions of her actions. Hopefully the caffeine would kick in soon.

Candace picked up the papers on the table and sat back in her chair going over her appointments for the day. Tilting her head to the side she began humming merrily as she began to feel more awake. The door to the lounge opened up and she lifted her head briefly to see who had entered, giving the person a warm smile.

“Hi,” she said in an friendly manner. Considering she was still new to the prison, she hadn’t had the opportunity to meet very many of her co-workers seeing as most of her time was spent with the prisoners themselves. Standing up she leaned over the table slightly with her hand extended for a handshake. “I’m Candace,” she told the man. “Candace Stanton. I’m the new psychologist. It’s nice to meet you Mr…” The young woman trailed off as she awaited an introduction.

[Scott McCoy]

Scott's day had started out pretty normal. He had seen the regular amount of inmates and treated their wounds after they had beaten up on each other. Scott was not a big fan of the inmates because they always seemed to act like wild animals. He just could not understand why they always had to beat eachother up. As Scott thought about the stupidity of the inmates, he shook his head and walked into the staff lounge room. He was definitely ready for a break.

When Scott walked into the staff lounge he had not expected anyone to be there, even though it was the best time for staff to take a break. "Hello" Scott said to the woman when she greeted him. Scott shook Candace's hand. "I am Scott McCoy. I am the doctor here. It is nice to meet you Candace." Scott said. He went and poured himself a cup of coffee and then leaned against the wall by the door. He had been sitting most of the day so he needed to stand up for a while to stretch his legs.

Scott drank his coffee while he looked around the lounge room. It was pretty quiet so Scott looked at Candace and decided to start a conversation with her. He had never met her before, and figured it was time to start meeting some of the staff. "So how are you like being a psychologist here?" Scott asked. He knew it was not fun being a doctor at a prison, but he thought maybe being a psychologist was a little bit different.

[Candace R. Stanton]

“Mr. McCoy,” she finished after she’d learned his name. Giving him a nod, she returned to her seat continuing her preparations for the day. Candace had just assumed that they’d do their own thing, so when he began to speak again she lifted her head in slight shock, taking a minute to realize that he was speaking to her. She closed the folder in front of her, giving the man her full attention as she listened to the question.

“The pay’s awful, the hours are long, and I’m dealing with mass criminals all day,” she replied with a slight laugh. Though it was true, she waved it off jokingly as she said, “I’m kidding. It’s actually not as bad as I thought it would be. My patients so far have been decent. I haven’t had any…significant mishaps.” Candace winced slightly as she thought about her time so far. The learning curve was larger than she’d thought it would be and while she was slowly adjusting, she was also making a few more mistakes than she’d have liked. She was constantly worried that she was going to get reprimanded or written up if she kept it up.

Leaning back in her chair, she leisurely crossed her arms in front of her chest. “So what’s it like being a doctor?” she wondered. “I can only image it’d be a busy job. It seems like there’s always a fight or someone trying to hurt themselves in here.” Jokingly, she said, “I’m surprised you find time for a break.”